英语听书《白鲸记》第813期

 　　And an idol¹, indeed, it is; or rather, in old times, its likeness² was. Such an idol as that found in the secret groves³ of Queen Maachah in Judea; and for worshipping which, King Asa, her son, did depose⁴ her, and destroyed the idol, and burnt it for an abomination at the brook⁵ Kedron, as darkly set forth⁶ in the 15th chapter of the First Book of Kings.

　　说它是一个偶像吧，倒也真象，可是说得更恰切些，倒象是古代的偶像。这样一个偶像，跟在犹大的玛迦太后的秘密的丛林里找到的那东西一模一样；而且由于她崇拜这种偶像，还遭到了她儿子亚撒王的贬黜，把她的偶像拿到汲沦溪边作为一种弃物而烧毁了，一如《列王纪上》第十五章所模糊地记载着的一样。（参阅《旧约·列王纪上》第十五章九节至十五节。）

　　Look at the sailor, called the mincer⁷, who now comes along, and assisted by two allies, heavily backs the grandissimus, as the mariners⁸ call it, and with bowed shoulders, staggers off with it as if he were a grenadier carrying a dead comrade from the field. Extending it upon the forecastle deck, he now proceeds cylindrically⁹ to remove its dark pelt¹⁰, as an African hunter the pelt of a boa. This done he turns the pelt inside out, like a pantaloon leg; gives it a good stretching, so as almost to double its diameter; and at last hangs it, well spread, in the rigging, to dry. Ere long, it is taken down; when removing some three feet of it, towards the pointed¹¹ extremity¹², and then cutting two slits¹³ for arm-holes at the other end, he lengthwise slips himself bodily into it. The mincer now stands before you invested in the full canonicals of his calling. Immemorial to all his order, this investiture alone will adequately protect him, while employed in the peculiar¹⁴ functions of his office.

　　那么，请瞧一瞧那个叫剁肉手的水手吧，他现在由两个同伴扶着走过来了，背上沉重地背着水手们称做"大法衣"的两件东西，拱起两肩，蹒蹒跚跚，仿佛是个背着一具战友的尸体从战场回来的掷弹兵。他把它铺在船头楼的船板上后，就着手象滚圆筒一般剥它的黑皮，象非洲的猎户在剥大蛇皮那样。剥过了后，他把它兜里翻个转身，象老丑角的一条细腿子；于是将它用劲一拉，差不多把直径拉大了一倍；最后把它挂起来，张在索具上晾干。再隔一会，又把它拿下来；把它尖尖一端切掉了三英尺左右，又在另一端割了两块做臂洞的裂口，他的身体就笔直地钻了进去。现在站在你面前的这个剁肉手就是个穿上全副法衣的法师了。按照他所有的古老的法规说来，他在执行这一特殊的差使时，单是这件法衣就足以适当地保护他了。

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1 idol   

n.偶像，红人，宠儿

参考例句：

• As an only child he was the idol of his parents.作为独子，他是父母的宠儿。
• Blind worship of this idol must be ended.对这个偶像的盲目崇拜应该结束了。

2 likeness   

n.相像，相似（之处）

参考例句：

• I think the painter has produced a very true likeness.我认为这位画家画得非常逼真。
• She treasured the painted likeness of her son.她珍藏她儿子的画像。

3 groves   

树丛，小树林( grove的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The early sun shone serenely on embrowned groves and still green fields. 朝阳宁静地照耀着已经发黄的树丛和还是一片绿色的田地。
• The trees grew more and more in groves and dotted with old yews. 那里的树木越来越多地长成了一簇簇的小丛林，还点缀着几棵老紫杉树。

4 depose   

vt.免职；宣誓作证

参考例句：

• The witness is going to depose.证人即将宣誓做证。
• The emperor attempted to depose the Pope.皇帝企图废黜教皇。

5 brook   

n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让

参考例句：

• In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
• The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。

6 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。

7 mincer   

n.粉碎机

参考例句：

• With a household food mincer, one can cook many kinds of food for immediate consumption. 有了家用食品粉碎机，很多食品都可以现做现吃了。

8 mariners   

海员，水手（mariner的复数形式）

参考例句：

• Mariners were also able to fix their latitude by using an instrument called astrolabe. 海员们还可使用星盘这种仪器确定纬度。
• The ancient mariners traversed the sea. 古代的海员漂洋过海。

9 cylindrically   

adv.圆柱地

参考例句：

• A novel broadband cylindrically conformal microstrip antenna with a single substrate is presented. 提出一种新型的单层介质宽频带圆柱共形微带天线。 来自互联网

10 pelt   

v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火

参考例句：

• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。
• Crowds started to pelt police cars with stones.人群开始向警车扔石块。

11 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。

12 extremity   

n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度

参考例句：

• I hope you will help them in their extremity.我希望你能帮助在穷途末路的他们。
• What shall we do in this extremity?在这种极其困难的情况下我们该怎么办呢？

13 slits   

n.狭长的口子，裂缝( slit的名词复数 )v.切开，撕开( slit的第三人称单数 )；在…上开狭长口子

参考例句：

• He appears to have two slits for eyes. 他眯着两眼。
• "You go to--Halifax,'she said tensely, her green eyes slits of rage. "你给我滚----滚到远远的地方去！" 她恶狠狠地说，那双绿眼睛冒出了怒火。

14 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。