痴情的狮子The lion in love

 　　A lion demanded the daughter of a woodcutter in marriage. The father, unwilling¹ to grant, and yet afraid to refuse him, had a good idea to rid himself of his request, he expressed his willingness to accept him as the suitor of his daughter on one condition, that he should allow him to pull out his teeth, and cut off his claws, as his daughter was fearfully afraid of both. The lion cheerfully agreed to the suggestion; when, however, he repeated his request, the woodcutter, no longer afraid, beat him with his walking stick, and drove him away into the forest.

　　一头狮子向一个樵夫的女儿求婚，她父亲不答应，可又害怕而不敢拒绝。忽然，他想到一个好主意，可避免他的求婚。他表示愿意将自己的女儿许配给狮子为妻，但有一个条件，拔掉狮子的牙齿，砍掉狮子的爪子，因为他的女儿害怕这两样东西。狮子愉快地接受了这个条件。然而，当狮子回头再来求婚时，樵夫不再害怕了，用手杖打他，并将他赶到丛林中去了。

1 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。