《指环王》精讲04

The 22nd day of September, in the year 1400, by Shire-reckoning.

夏尔开垦纪元1400年九月第二十二日。

Bag End, Bagshot Row, Hobbiton, Westfarthing, the Shire.

袋底洞、袋射排、哈比屯、西区夏尔。

Middle-earth. The Third Age of this world.

中土世界。第三纪元。

There and Back Again: A Hobbit's Tale. By Bilbo Baggins.

《去而复返：哈比人的故事》。比尔博·巴金斯著。

Now, where to begin? Ah, yes. Concerning Hobbits.

现在我该怎么说呢对了。关于哈比人。

Hobbits have been living and farming in the four Farthings of the Shire for many hundreds of years, quite content to ignore and be ignored by the world of the Big Folk.

千百年来，哈比人一直都定居在夏尔的四个区域务农，完全无视于外界的存在，也满足于被外界忽视的状态。

Middle-earth being, after all, full of strange creatures beyond count.

毕竟中土世界充满了数不清的奇异生物。

Hobbits must seem of little importance, being neither renowned¹ as great warriors² nor counted among the very wise.

哈比人一定显得不重要，因为我们既不是骁勇的战士也不被认为特别有智慧。

Frodo! Someone at the door.

佛罗多！有人在敲门。

In fact, it has been remarked by some that Hobbits' only real passion is for food.

事实上，有人曾经评论过哈比人唯一的狂热就是美食。

A rather unfair observation as we have also developed a keen interest in the brewing³ of ales and the smokingof pipe-weed.

这评论相当不公平，因为我们也对酿啤酒和抽烟斗有浓厚的兴趣。

But where our hearts truly lie is in peace and quiet, and good, tilled earth.

但是我们一心所系的是和平宁静与肥沃的农耕地。

For all Hobbits share a love of things that grow.

所有的哈比人都热爱能够生长的东西。

And, yes, no doubt to others, our ways seem quaint⁴.

无庸置疑的，我们的生活方式对其他人而言非常奇特。

But today of all days, it is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life.

特别是今天安享宁谧的生活其实很不赖。

1 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

2 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

3 brewing   

n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然，一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
• She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。

4 quaint   

adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的

参考例句：

• There were many small lanes in the quaint village.在这古香古色的村庄里，有很多小巷。
• They still keep some quaint old customs.他们仍然保留着一些稀奇古怪的旧风俗。