英语名篇诵读 胃口

Appetite

胃口

Laurie Lee(劳里·李)

One of the major pleasures in life is appetite , and one of our major duties should be to

preserve it. Appetite is the keenness of living; it is one of the senses that tells you that you are still

curious to exist, that you still have an edge on your longings¹ and want to bite into the world and

taste its multitudinous flavours and juices.

By appetite, of course, I don't mean just the lust² for food, but any condition of unsatisfied

desire, any burning in the blood that proves you want more than you've got, and that you haven't

yet used up your life.

Appetite, to me, is that state of wanting, which keeps one's expectations alive. In wanting a

peach, or a whisky, or a particular texture³ or sound, or to be with a particular friend. For in this

condition, of course, I know that the object of desire is always at its most flawlessly perfect.

Which is why I would carry the preservation⁴ of appetite to the extent of deliberate fasting ,

simply because I think that appetite is too good to lose, too precious to be bludgeoned into

insensibility by satiation and over-doing it.

Fasting is an act of homage⁵ to the majesty⁶ of appetite. So I think we should arrange to give

up our pleasures regularly — our food, our friends, our lovers — in order to preserve their

intensity⁷, and the moment of coming back to them. For this is the moment that renews and

refreshes both oneself and the thing one loves. Sailors and travellers enjoyed this once, and so did

hunters, I suppose. Part of the weariness of modern life may be that we live too much on top of

each other, and are entertained and fed too regularly.

Too much of anything — too much music, entertainment, happy snacks, or time spent with

one's friends — creates a kind of impotence of living by which one can no longer hear, or taste,

or see, or love, or remember. Life is short and precious, and appetite is one of its guardians⁸ ,

and loss of appetite is a sort of death. So if we are to enjoy this short life we should respect the

divinity of appetite, and keep it eager and not too much blunted .

人生主要的快乐之一就是胃口，而我们的主要职责中，其中一个就是保护好这种胃

口。胃口是生命的渴望；它是一种官能，让你知道你依然对生活充满着好奇，你依然有着

热切的渴望，想要享受这个世界，品尝它多种多样的美味佳肴。

当然，我所说的胃口不单指对食物的强烈欲望，而是任何未得到满足的欲望的状态，

是生命中的澎湃激情，证明你并不满足于现状，有更大的人生目标，证明你的生命力尚未

枯竭。

在我看来，胃口是一种需求状态，使人怀有尚待实现的各种期望。想要一只桃子、一

杯威士忌、某种独特的纹理或声音，或想要同某个特定的朋友在一起。当然，我知道在这

种状态下，所希冀的物品几乎总是完美无缺。那就是为什么我特别注意保存胃口，故意禁

食，只是因为我认为胃口太重要，不可失去，胃口太珍贵，不可饕餮无度，使之厌食。

禁食是对高贵的胃口表示敬意。所以我认为，我们应该做出安排，定期放弃自己的快

乐——我们的食物、朋友、情人——以便保存对他们的强烈愿望，享受重逢时的激情。因

为正是这样的时刻，使我们身心振奋，对心仪的事物倍感新鲜。我想，水手和旅行家有过

这种享受体验，猎人也有过。现代生活令人厌倦，部分可能就是因为我们社交活动过多，

声色犬马，暴饮暴食。

任何过多的东西——过多的音乐、过多的娱乐、过多的可口快餐、过多地跟朋友在一

起——使生活变得乏味，苍白无力。由此我们再也听不见、尝不到、看不见、受不了或记

不住。生命短暂而宝贵，胃口就是生活的一个卫士，没了胃口也同死亡差不多。所以，如

果我们想要享受这短暂的人生，我们就应该尊重神圣的胃口，使之更加旺盛，而不是太过

萎靡不振。

1 longings   

渴望，盼望( longing的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Ah, those foolish days of noble longings and of noble strivings! 啊，那些充满高贵憧憬和高尚奋斗的傻乎乎的时光！
• I paint you and fashion you ever with my love longings. 我永远用爱恋的渴想来描画你。

2 lust   

n.性(淫)欲；渴(欲)望；vi.对…有强烈的欲望

参考例句：

• He was filled with lust for power.他内心充满了对权力的渴望。
• Sensing the explorer's lust for gold, the chief wisely presented gold ornaments as gifts.酋长觉察出探险者们垂涎黄金的欲念，就聪明地把金饰品作为礼物赠送给他们。

3 texture   

n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理

参考例句：

• We could feel the smooth texture of silk.我们能感觉出丝绸的光滑质地。
• Her skin has a fine texture.她的皮肤细腻。

4 preservation   

n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持

参考例句：

• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
• The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

5 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

6 majesty   

n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权

参考例句：

• The king had unspeakable majesty.国王有无法形容的威严。
• Your Majesty must make up your mind quickly!尊贵的陛下，您必须赶快做出决定！

7 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

8 guardians   

监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者

参考例句：

• Farmers should be guardians of the countryside. 农民应是乡村的保卫者。
• The police are guardians of law and order. 警察是法律和秩序的护卫者。