月亮和六便士 第五十七章(6)

 The colours were so strange that words can hardly tell what a troubling emotion they gave. 这幅画的着色非常怪异，叫人感到心神不宁，其感觉是很难确切说清的。

They were sombre blues¹, opaque² like a delicately carved bowl in lapis lazuli, and yet with a quivering lustre³ that suggested the palpitation of mysterious life; 浓浊的蓝色是不透明的，有如刻工精细的青金石雕盘，但又颤动着闪闪光泽，令人想到生活的神秘悸动；

there were purples, horrible like raw and putrid⁴ flesh, and yet with a glowing, sensual passion that called up vague memories of the Roman Empire of Heliogabalus; 紫色象腐肉似的叫人感到嫌恶，但与此同时又勾起一种炽热的欲望，令人模糊想到亥里俄嘉巴鲁斯（一名埃拉嘉巴鲁斯（205？—222），罗马帝国皇帝）统治下的罗马帝国；

there were reds, shrill⁵ like the berries of holly— 红色鲜艳刺目，有如冬青灌木结的小红果——

one thought of Christmas in England, and the snow, the good cheer, and the pleasure of children— 一个人会联想英国的圣诞节，白雪皑皑，欢乐的气氛和儿童的笑语喧哗——，

and yet by some magic softened⁶ till they had the swooning tenderness of a dove's breast; 但画家又运用自己的魔笔，使这种光泽柔和下来，让它呈现出有如乳鸽胸脯一样的柔嫩，叫人神怡心驰；

there were deep yellows that died with an unnatural⁷ passion into a green as fragrant⁸ as the spring and as pure as the sparkling water of a mountain brook⁹. 深黄色有些突兀地转成绿色，给人带来春天的芳香和溅着泡沫的山泉的明净。

Who can tell what anguished¹⁰ fancy made these fruits? 谁能知道，是什么痛苦的幻想创造出这些果实的呢？

They belonged to a Polynesian garden of the Hesperides. 该不是看管金苹果园的赫斯珀里得斯三姐妹（根据希腊神话，赫斯珀里得斯姐妹负责看管赫拉女神的金苹果树，并有巨龙拉冬帮助守卫）在波利尼西亚果园中培植出来的吧！

There was something strangely alive in them, 奇怪的是，这些果实都象活的一样，

as though they were created in a stage of the earth's dark history when things were not irrevocably fixed¹¹ to their forms. 仿佛是在混沌初开时创造出来的，当时任何事物还都没有固定的形体，

They were extravagantly¹² luxurious¹³. 丰实肥硕，

They were heavy with tropical odours. 散发着浓郁的热带气息，

They seemed to possess a sombre passion of their own. 好象具有一种独特的忧郁的感情。

It was enchanted¹⁴ fruit, to taste which might open the gateway¹⁵ to God knows what secrets of the soul and to mysterious palaces of the imagination. 它们是被施展了魔法的果子，任何人尝了就能打开通向不知道哪些灵魂秘密的门扉，就可以走进幻境的神秘宫殿。

They were sullen¹⁶ with unawaited dangers, and to eat them might turn a man to beast or god. 它们孕育着无法预知的危险，咬一口就可能把一个人变成野兽，但也说不定变成神灵。

All that was healthy and natural, all that clung to happy relationships and the simple joys of simple men, shrunk from them in dismay; 一切健康的、正常的东西，淳朴人们所有的一切美好的情谊、朴素的欢乐都远远地避开了它们；

and yet a fearful attraction was in them, and, like the fruit on the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil they were terrible with the possibilities of the Unknown. 但它们又具有莫大的诱惑力，就象伊甸园中能分辨善恶的智慧果一样，能把人带进未知的境界。

At last I turned away. I felt that Strickland had kept his secret to the grave. 最后，我离开了这幅画。我觉得思特里克兰德一直把他的秘密带进了坟墓。

"Voyons, Rene, mon ami," came the loud, cheerful voice of Madame Coutras, “喂，雷耐，亲爱的，”外面传来了库特拉斯太太的兴高采烈的响亮的声音，

"what are you doing all this time? “这么半天，你在干什么啊？

Here are the aperitifs¹⁷. 开胃酒已经准备好了。

Ask Monsieur if he will not drink a little glass of Quinquina Dubonnet." 问问那位先生愿意不愿意喝一小杯规那皮杜邦内酒。”

"Volontiers, Madame," I said, going out on to the verandah. “当然愿意，夫人，”我一边说一边走到阳台上去。

The spell was broken. 图画的魅力被打破了。

1 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

2 opaque   

adj.不透光的；不反光的，不传导的；晦涩的

参考例句：

• The windows are of opaque glass.这些窗户装着不透明玻璃。
• Their intentions remained opaque.他们的意图仍然令人费解。

3 lustre   

n.光亮，光泽；荣誉

参考例句：

• The sun was shining with uncommon lustre.太阳放射出异常的光彩。
• A good name keeps its lustre in the dark.一个好的名誉在黑暗中也保持它的光辉。

4 putrid   

adj.腐臭的；有毒的；已腐烂的；卑劣的

参考例句：

• To eat putrid food is liable to get sick.吃了腐败的食物容易生病。
• A putrid smell drove us from the room.一股腐臭的气味迫使我们离开这房间。

5 shrill   

adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫

参考例句：

• Whistles began to shrill outside the barn.哨声开始在谷仓外面尖叫。
• The shrill ringing of a bell broke up the card game on the cutter.刺耳的铃声打散了小汽艇的牌局。

6 softened   

（使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰

参考例句：

• His smile softened slightly. 他的微笑稍柔和了些。
• The ice cream softened and began to melt. 冰淇淋开始变软并开始融化。

7 unnatural   

adj.不自然的；反常的

参考例句：

• Did her behaviour seem unnatural in any way?她有任何反常表现吗？
• She has an unnatural smile on her face.她脸上挂着做作的微笑。

8 fragrant   

adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的

参考例句：

• The Fragrant Hills are exceptionally beautiful in late autumn.深秋的香山格外美丽。
• The air was fragrant with lavender.空气中弥漫薰衣草香。

9 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。

10 anguished   

adj.极其痛苦的v.使极度痛苦(anguish的过去式)

参考例句：

• Desmond eyed her anguished face with sympathy. 看着她痛苦的脸，德斯蒙德觉得理解。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The loss of her husband anguished her deeply. 她丈夫的死亡使她悲痛万分。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

12 extravagantly   

adv.挥霍无度地

参考例句：

• The Monroes continued to entertain extravagantly. 门罗一家继续大宴宾客。 来自辞典例句
• New Grange is one of the most extravagantly decorated prehistoric tombs. 新格兰奇是装饰最豪华的史前陵墓之一。 来自辞典例句

13 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

14 enchanted   

adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• She was enchanted by the flowers you sent her. 她非常喜欢你送给她的花。
• He was enchanted by the idea. 他为这个主意而欣喜若狂。

15 gateway   

n.大门口，出入口，途径，方法

参考例句：

• Hard work is the gateway to success.努力工作是通往成功之路。
• A man collected tolls at the gateway.一个人在大门口收通行费。

16 sullen   

adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的

参考例句：

• He looked up at the sullen sky.他抬头看了一眼阴沉的天空。
• Susan was sullen in the morning because she hadn't slept well.苏珊今天早上郁闷不乐，因为昨晚没睡好。

17 aperitifs   

n.（饭前饮用的）开胃酒( aperitif的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Server welcomes the party by name, suggests cocktails or aperitifs. 前台服务员向客人问好，并推荐酒水。 来自互联网