英语听书《白鲸记》第747期

 For as the mightiest¹ elephant is but a terrier to Leviathan, so, compared with Leviathan's tail, his trunk is but the stalk of a lily. 因为在大鲸看来，最大的象也不过是条狗罢了，所以跟鲸尾比较起来，象鼻就不过是一支百合茎。

The most direful blow from the elephant's trunk were as the playful tap of a fan, 象鼻的最可怕的打击也不过是一把扇子那么开玩笑的一拍而已，

compared with the measureless crush and crash of the sperm² whale's ponderous³ flukes, 跟抹香鲸的笨重的裂片那种噼里啪啦的无限的冲击力比起来，

which in repeated instances have one after the other hurled⁴ entire boats with all their oars⁵ and crews into the air, 抹香鲸的裂片已经一再出现这种情况，接二连三地把全部小艇连人带桨都给扔到空中去，

very much as an Indian juggler⁶ tosses his balls. 活象一个变戏法的印第安人在抛掷他的小球。

Footnote: though all comparison in the way of general bulk between the whale and the elephant is preposterous⁷, 原注：这样就鲸和象两者间的一般躯干上来做种种比较，

inasmuch as in that particular the elephant stands in much the same respect to the whale that a dog does to the elephant; 未免颇为荒谬，因为就这方面说来，象之与鲸犹如狗之与象；

nevertheless, there are not wanting some points of curious similitude; among these is the spout⁸. 不过，话虽如此，两者之间可仍不乏若干奇特的类似之点的；其中，喷水就是一种。

It is well known that the elephant will often draw up water or dust in his trunk, and then elevating it, jet it forth⁹ in a stream. End of footnote. 据说象也时常用大鼻子吸起水或者垃圾来，然后把它高高举起，把这些东西象一条小溪那样向前喷去。注释完。

The more I consider this mighty¹⁰ tail, the more do I deplore¹¹ my inability to express it. 我越想到这种巨尾，越痛恨我的能力薄弱，无法把它完全表达出来。

At times there are gestures in it, which, though they would well grace the hand of man, remain wholly inexplicable¹². 那尾巴好象时时在做手势，虽说这给人类的手大增光辉，却也完全令人费解。

In an extensive herd¹³, so remarkable¹⁴, occasionally, are these mystic gestures, 我曾经听到猎手们说，偶然看到一大群鲸这种神秘的手势真是非常希奇，

that I have heard hunters who have declared them akin¹⁵ to Free-Mason signs and symbols; 他们说，那种手势有如互济会（欧洲一种以互济友爱为目的的秘密结社。）的各种标志。

that the whale, indeed, by these methods intelligently conversed¹⁶ with the world.  因为实际上，大鲸就借这种聪明的方法跟人间打交道。

1 mightiest   

adj.趾高气扬( mighty的最高级 )；巨大的；强有力的；浩瀚的

参考例句：

• \"If thou fearest to leave me in our cottage, thou mightiest take me along with thee. “要是你害怕把我一个人留在咱们的小屋里，你可以带我一块儿去那儿嘛。 来自英汉文学 - 红字
• Silent though is, after all, the mightiest agent in human affairs. 确实，沉默毕竟是人类事件中最强大的代理人。 来自互联网

2 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。

3 ponderous   

adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的

参考例句：

• His steps were heavy and ponderous.他的步伐沉重缓慢。
• It was easy to underestimate him because of his occasionally ponderous manner.由于他偶尔现出的沉闷的姿态，很容易使人小看了他。

4 hurled   

v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
• The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 oars   

n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He pulled as hard as he could on the oars. 他拼命地划桨。
• The sailors are bending to the oars. 水手们在拼命地划桨。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 juggler   

n. 变戏法者, 行骗者

参考例句：

• Dick was a juggler, who threw mists before your eyes. 迪克是个骗子，他在你面前故弄玄虚。
• The juggler juggled three bottles. 这个玩杂耍的人可同时抛接3个瓶子。

7 preposterous   

adj.荒谬的，可笑的

参考例句：

• The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
• It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。

8 spout   

v.喷出，涌出；滔滔不绝地讲；n.喷管；水柱

参考例句：

• Implication in folk wealth creativity and undertaking vigor spout.蕴藏于民间的财富创造力和创业活力喷涌而出。
• This acts as a spout to drain off water during a rainstorm.在暴风雨季，这东西被用作喷管来排水。

9 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

10 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

11 deplore   

vt.哀叹，对...深感遗憾

参考例句：

• I deplore what has happened.我为所发生的事深感愤慨。
• There are many of us who deplore this lack of responsibility.我们中有许多人谴责这种不负责任的做法。

12 inexplicable   

adj.无法解释的，难理解的

参考例句：

• It is now inexplicable how that development was misinterpreted.当时对这一事态发展的错误理解究竟是怎么产生的，现在已经无法说清楚了。
• There are many things which are inexplicable by science.有很多事科学还无法解释。

13 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

14 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

15 akin   

adj.同族的，类似的

参考例句：

• She painted flowers and birds pictures akin to those of earlier feminine painters.她画一些同早期女画家类似的花鸟画。
• Listening to his life story is akin to reading a good adventure novel.听他的人生故事犹如阅读一本精彩的冒险小说。

16 conversed   

v.交谈，谈话( converse的过去式 )

参考例句：

• I conversed with her on a certain problem. 我与她讨论某一问题。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She was cheerful and polite, and conversed with me pleasantly. 她十分高兴，也很客气，而且愉快地同我交谈。 来自辞典例句