英语听力精选进阶版 11256

 

17Aesop's Fables¹

The Lion and the Mouse

By Rob John

A Mouse was scurrying² through the forest when he saw a Lion sleeping under a tree. The Mouse stopped and said to the Lion. ‘You may be very big but I’m not scared of you.’

The Mouse climbed up the Lion’s tail and sat down on its back leg. 

‘Oh no , Mr Lion, you don’t frighten me one little bit.’ 

Still the Lion didn’t move so the Mouse walked along the Lion’s side and climbed up towards his head. 

‘All the animals in the forest are scared of you , Mr Lion, but not us mice 'cos mice are the bravest creatures in the world.’

Again the Lion didn’t move so the mouse climbed up the lions face and shouted in his ear. ‘Why should we be scared of lazy lions who spend all day snoring under trees?’

The Mouse was enjoying himself and feeling very brave when he  noticed that the Lion’s eye was open and looking straight at him. 

Quick as a flash the Lion grabbed³ the little Mouse in his paw.

‘What were you saying?’ said the Lion.

‘Nothing,’ said the little Mouse.

‘Something about brave mice and lazy lions’

‘That wasn’t me,’ said the Mouse. 

‘I’d never say that. I think lions are...’

‘Quiet,’ said the Lion. ‘I’m going to eat you. What do you think about that? ’

‘Don’t think that’s a good idea,’ said the Mouse.

‘Why’s that?’ said the Lion. 

‘Because...’ 

‘Because what?’ said the Lion.

‘Because...’ And suddenly an idea flashed into the Mouse’s tiny head. ‘Because one day I could help you.’

The Lion roared with laughter. ‘You? How could a tiny Mouse help a huge Lion like me ..?’

‘I don’t know,’ said the Mouse. 

‘Maybe I could...’

‘Yes?’ said the Lion.

‘Maybe I could...’ 

‘Yes?’

The Mouse couldn’t think of a single way in which a tiny Mouse could help a Lion. He shut his eyes and waited to be eaten.

But the Lion didn’t eat the Mouse. 

He just laughed and gently put the Mouse down on the ground. 

‘That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard ,’ said the Lion. ‘A tiny Mouse helping⁴ a huge Lion like me. I’m not going to eat you after all, little Mouse. You’re too funny to eat. I’m going to let you go.’

‘Oh , thank you,’ said the mouse. ‘I think that’s a very wise decision. I meant what I said. I will help you 

Mr Lion. One day. Just you wait and see.’

The Lion laughed again : ‘Off you go little one,’ he roared, ‘before I die laughing.’

The Mouse ran away feeling very lucky.

But the very next day he was scur-rying through the forest when he heard more roaring. 

This time though, it wasn’t a roar of laughter but a roar of pain and fear. The Mouse crept closer to the terrible sound and saw the same 

Lion all tangled⁵ up in a hunter’s net. The more he struggled the more tangled up he became.

He was just about to run away when the Mouse remembered how the Lion could have eaten him but let him go. And then the Mouse remembered saying:

‘I will help you ,  Mr Lion. One day.Just you wait and see.’

Suddenly the  Mouse was chewing at the ropes and gnawing⁶ as fast as he could. His teeth were tiny but razor sharp and soon he had cut the ropes and the Lion was free. 

The Mouse looked at the Lion. The Lion looked at the Mouse.

‘Yesterday I laughed when you said you would help me. I’m not laugh-ing now. You are a very brave little Mouse. Just goes to show you don’t have to be big to be a big friend. Thank you.’

‘That’s alright,’ said the Mouse. ‘You get into trouble again just give me a shout, OK?’

‘OK ,’ said the Lion and he turned and walked away.

The Mouse watched him go. He smiled to himself and now some-how he didn’t feel quite so little.

1 fables   

n.寓言( fable的名词复数 )；神话，传说

参考例句：

• Some of Aesop's Fables are satires. 《伊索寓言》中有一些是讽刺作品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Little Mexican boys also breathe the American fables. 墨西哥族的小孩子对美国神话也都耳濡目染。 来自辞典例句

2 scurrying   

v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• We could hear the mice scurrying about in the walls. 我们能听见老鼠在墙里乱跑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We were scurrying about until the last minute before the party. 聚会开始前我们一直不停地忙忙碌碌。 来自辞典例句

3 grabbed   

v.抢先，抢占( grab的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指匆忙地）取；攫取；（尤指自私、贪婪地）捞取

参考例句：

• He was grabbed by two men and frogmarched out of the hall. 他被两个男人紧抓双臂押出大厅。
• She grabbed the child's hand and ran. 她抓住孩子的手就跑。

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 tangled   

adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。
• A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。

6 gnawing   

a.痛苦的，折磨人的

参考例句：

• The dog was gnawing a bone. 那狗在啃骨头。
• These doubts had been gnawing at him for some time. 这些疑虑已经折磨他一段时间了。