英语听书《白鲸记》第700期

 It is a German conceit¹, that the vertebrae are absolutely undeveloped skulls³. 据说德国人就狂妄地认为，脊骨绝对是发育不足的脑壳。

But the curious external resemblance, I take it the Germans were not the first men to perceive. 但是，就外表的奇似说来，我却认为，德国人在这方面，并不是首先发现的人物。

A foreign friend once pointed⁴ it out to me, in the skeleton of a foe⁵ he had slain⁶, 有一回，有位外国朋友就从一个被他杀死了的敌人的骷髅中，指给我看那背脊骨，

and with the vertebrae of which he was inlaying, in a sort of basso-relieve, the beaked⁷ prow⁸ of his canoe. 他把那脊骨以一种半浮雕的式样，嵌镶在他的独木舟的尖船头上。

Now, I consider that the phrenologists have omitted an important thing in not pushing their investigations⁹ from the cerebellum through the spinal¹⁰ canal. 这里，我认为骨相学家们还遗漏了一件大事，他们还没有从小脑而进一步调查研究一下脊髓管。

For I believe that much of a man's character will be found betokened¹¹ in his backbone¹². 因为，我相信一个人的性格，大都可以从他的背脊骨中找到暗示。

I would rather feel your spine¹³ than your skull², whoever you are. 不管你是谁，我倒要摸摸你的脊骨，而不愿意摸你的脑壳。

A thin joist of a spine never yet upheld a full and noble soul. 从来就没有一根细小的支柱似的脊骨，撑得住一个完整而高贵的灵魂。

I rejoice in my spine, as in the firm audacious staff of that flag which I fling half out to the world. 我不禁为我的脊骨而大感高兴，为那使我上半身挺立起来的、坚定而旁若无人的旗杆大感高兴。

Apply this spinal branch of phrenology to the Sperm¹⁴ Whale. 我们把这种骨相学的脊骨派观点应用到抹香鲸上。

His cranial cavity is continuous with the first neck-vertebra; 它那脑盖窝是跟第一根颈脊骨相连的；

and in that vertebra the bottom of the spinal canal will measure ten inches across, being eight in height, 在那根脊骨中，把它的脊髓管的末端量起来横达十英寸，高八英寸，

and of a triangular¹⁵ figure with the base downwards¹⁶. 而且还有一个底朝下的三角形。

As it passes through the remaining vertebrae the canal tapers¹⁷ in size, but for a considerable distance remains¹⁸ of large capacity.  当它通过其余的脊骨时，脊管的末梢便逐渐变细，不过，还是有相当长的一段是很粗的。

1 conceit   

n.自负，自高自大

参考例句：

• As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后，谦虚使人进步。
• She seems to be eaten up with her own conceit.她仿佛已经被骄傲冲昏了头脑。

2 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

3 skulls   

颅骨( skull的名词复数 )； 脑袋； 脑子； 脑瓜

参考例句：

• One of the women's skulls found exceeds in capacity that of the average man of today. 现已发现的女性颅骨中，其中有一个的脑容量超过了今天的普通男子。
• We could make a whole plain white with skulls in the moonlight! 我们便能令月光下的平原变白，遍布白色的骷髅！

4 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

5 foe   

n.敌人，仇敌

参考例句：

• He knew that Karl could be an implacable foe.他明白卡尔可能会成为他的死敌。
• A friend is a friend;a foe is a foe;one must be clearly distinguished from the other.敌是敌，友是友，必须分清界限。

6 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

7 beaked   

adj.有喙的，鸟嘴状的

参考例句：

• A Fox invited a long-beaked Stork to have dinner with him. 狐狸请长嘴鹳同他一起吃饭。 来自互联网
• Most of the other fossils come from rhynchosaurs (parrot-beaked reptiles). 其他大部分化石来自剪嘴龙（嘴像鹦鹉的爬行动物）。 来自互联网

8 prow   

n.(飞机)机头，船头

参考例句：

• The prow of the motor-boat cut through the water like a knife.汽艇的船头像一把刀子劈开水面向前行驶。
• He stands on the prow looking at the seadj.他站在船首看着大海。

9 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

10 spinal   

adj.针的，尖刺的，尖刺状突起的；adj.脊骨的，脊髓的

参考例句：

• After three days in Japan,the spinal column becomes extraordinarily flexible.在日本三天，就已经使脊椎骨变得富有弹性了。
• Your spinal column is made up of 24 movable vertebrae.你的脊柱由24个活动的脊椎骨构成。

11 betokened   

v.预示，表示( betoken的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Nothing betokened that the man know anything of what had occurred. 显然那个人还不知道已经发生了什么事。 来自互联网
• He addressed a few angry words to her that betokened hostility. 他对她说了几句预示敌意的愤怒的话。 来自互联网

12 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。

13 spine   

n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊

参考例句：

• He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
• His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

14 sperm   

n.精子，精液

参考例句：

• Only one sperm fertilises an egg.只有一个精子使卵子受精。
• In human reproduction,one female egg is usually fertilized by one sperm.在人体生殖过程中，一个精子使一个卵子受精。

15 triangular   

adj.三角（形）的，三者间的

参考例句：

• It's more or less triangular plot of land.这块地略成三角形。
• One particular triangular relationship became the model of Simone's first novel.一段特殊的三角关系成了西蒙娜第一本小说的原型。

16 downwards   

adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地）

参考例句：

• He lay face downwards on his bed.他脸向下伏在床上。
• As the river flows downwards,it widens.这条河愈到下游愈宽。

17 tapers   

（长形物体的）逐渐变窄( taper的名词复数 )； 微弱的光； 极细的蜡烛

参考例句：

• The pencil tapers to a sharp point. 铅笔的一段细成笔尖。
• She put five tapers on the cake. 她在蛋糕上放了五只小蜡烛。

18 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。