精读讲解英文版了不起的盖茨比（了不起的盖茨比）

They arrived at twilight and as we strolled out among the sparkling hundreds Daisy's voice was playing murmurous tricks in her throat.

他们在黄昏时刻到达，然后当我们几人漫步在几百名珠光宝气的客人当中时，黛西的声音在她喉咙里玩着呢呢喃喃的花样。

"These things excite me so ,"she whispered ."If you want to kiss me any time during the evening ,Nick ,just let me know and I'll be glad to arrange it for you .Just mention my name .Or present a green card .I'm giving out green --"

这些东西真叫我兴奋，她低声说，如果你今晚上任何时候想吻我，尼克，你让我知道好了，我一定高兴为你安排。只要提我的名字就行，或者出示一张绿色的请帖。我正在散发绿色的…

"Look around ,"suggested Gatsby .

四面看看。盖茨比敦促她。

"I'm looking around .I'm having a marvelous --"

我正在四面看啊。我真开心极…

"You must see the faces of many people you've heard about ."

你一定看到许多你听见过的人物的面孔。

Tom's arrogant eyes roamed the crowd .

汤姆傲慢的眼神扫过人群。

"We don't go around very much ,"he said .In fact I was just thinking I don't know a soul here ."

我们平时不大外了，他说，实际上，我刚才正在想我这里一个人都不认识。

"Perhaps you know that lady ."Gatsby indicated a gorgeous ,scarcely human orchid of a woman who sat in state under a white plum tree .Tom and Daisy stared ,with that peculoarly unreal feeling that accompanies the recognition of a hitherto ghostly celebrity of the movies.

也许你认得那位小姐。盖茨比对着一位如花似玉的美人，端庄地坐在一棵白梅树下。汤姆和黛西目不转睛地看着，认出来这是一位一向只在银幕上见到的大明星，几乎不敢相信是真的。

"She's lovely ,"said Daisy .

她真美啊，黛西说。

"The man bending over her is her director ."

站在她身边弯着腰的是她的导演。

He took them ceremoniously from group to group :

盖茨比礼貌周全地领着他们向一群又一群的客人介绍。

"Mrs.Buchanan - - -and Mr.Buchanan--"After an instant's hesitation he added :"the polo player ."

布坎农夫人…布坎农先生，踌躇片刻之后，他又补充说，马球健将。

"Oh no,"objected Tom quickly ,"Not me ,"

不是的，汤姆连忙否认，我可不是。

But evidently the sound of it pleased Gatsby for Tom remained "the polo player" for the rest of the evening .

但是盖茨比显然喜欢这个名称的含意，因为接下来整个晚上汤姆就一直是“马球健将”。

"I've never met so many celebrities !"Daisy exclaimed ."I liked that man --what was his name?--with the sort of blue nose ."

我从来没见过之么多名人，黛西兴奋地说，我喜欢那个人…他叫什么名字来着？就是鼻子有点发青的那个。

Gatsby indentified him ,adding that he was a small producer .

盖茨比报了那人的姓名，并说他是一个小制片商。

"Well ,I liked him anyhow ."

哦，我反正喜欢他。

"I'd a little rather not be the polo player ,"said Tom pleasantly ,"I'd rather look at all these famous people in --in oblivion ."

我宁愿不做马球健将，汤姆愉快地说，我倒宁愿以…以一个默默无闻的人物的身份看看这么多有名的人。

Daisy and Gatsby danced .I remember being surprised by his graceful ,conservative fox-trot -- I had never seen him dance before .Then they sauntered over to my house and sat on the steps for half an hour while at her request I remained watchfully in the garden:"In case there's a fire or a flood ,"she explained ,"or any act of God ."

黛西和盖茨比跳了舞。我记得我当时看到他跳着优雅的老式狐步舞时感到很诧异－－我以前从未见过他跳舞。后来他俩溜到我家，在我的台阶上坐了半个小时，她让我待在园子里把风。万一着火或发大水，她解释道，或是什么天灾啦。

Tom appeared from his oblivion as we were sitting down to supper together ."Do you mind if I eat with some people over here ?"he said ."A fellow's getting off some funny stuff ."

我们坐下来吃晚饭时，汤姆又从默默无闻中出现了。我跟那边几个人一起吃饭，行吗？他说，有一个家伙正在大讲笑话。

"Go ahead ,"answered Daisy genially ,"And if you want to take down any addresses here's my little gold pencil ....."She looked aruond after a moment and told me the girl was "common but pretty ,"and I knew that except for the half hour she'd been alone with Gatsby she wasn't having a good time .

去吧，黛西和颜悦色地回答，如果你要留几个住址下来，这里是我的小金铅笔。…过了一会她四面张望了一下，对我说那个女孩“俗气可是漂亮”，于是我明白除了她单独跟盖茨比待在一起的半小明之外，她玩得并不开心。

We were at a particularly tipsy table .That was my fault --Gatsby had been called to the phone and I'd enjoyed these same people only two weeks before .But what had amused me then turned septic on the air now .

我们这一桌的人喝得特别醉。这得怪我不好－－盖茨比被叫去听电话，又碰巧两星期前我还觉得这些人挺有意思，但是当时我觉得好玩的晚上却变得索然无味了。

"How do you feel ,Miss Baedeler ?"

你感觉怎么样，贝达克小姐？

The girl addressed was trying ,unsuccessfully ,to slump against my shoulder .At this inquiry she sat up and opened her eyes .

我同她说话的这个姑娘正在想慢慢倒在我的肩上，可是并没成功。听到这个问题，她坐起身来，睁开了眼睛。

"What ?"

什么？

A massive and lethargic woman ,who had been urging Daisy to play golf with her at the local club tomorrow ,spoke in Miss Baedeker's defence :

一个大块头、懒洋洋的女人，本来一直在怂恿黛西明天到本地俱乐部去和她一起打高尔夫球的，现在来为贝达克小姐辩白了：

"Oh ,she's all right now .When she's had five or six cocktails she always starts screaming like that .I tell her she ought to leave it alone ."

噢，她现在什么事也没有了。她每次五六杯鸡尾酒下肚，总是这样大喊大叫。我跟她说她不应当喝酒。

"I do leave it alone ,"affirmed the accused hollowly .

我是不喝酒。受到指责的那个人随口说道。

"We heard you yelling ,so I said to Doc Civet here :"There's somebody that needs your help ,Doc"

我们听到你嚷嚷，于是我跟位希维特大夫说：那里有人需要您帮忙，大夫。

"She's much obliged ,I'm sure ,"said another friend ,without gratitude ."But you got her dress all wet when you stuck her head in the pool ."

她非常感激，我相信，另一位朋友用并不感激的口气说，可是你把她的头按到游泳池里去，把她的衣服全搞湿了。

"Anything I hate is to get my head stuck in a pool ,"mumbled Miss Baedeker ."They almost drowned me once over in New Jersey."

我最恨的就是我的头按到游泳池里，贝达克小姐咕哝着说，有一回在新泽西州他们差一点没把我淹死。

"Then you ought to leave it alone ,"countered Doctor Civet .

那胸就不就当喝酒嘛。希维特大夫堵她的嘴的说。

"Speak for yourself !"cried Miss Baedeker violently ."Your hand shakes . I wouldn't let you operate on me !"

说说你自己吧！贝达克小姐激烈地大喊道，你的手发抖。我才不会让你给我开刀哩！

I was like that .Almost the last thing I remember was standing with Daisy and watching the moving picture director and his Star .They were still under the white plum tree and their faces were touching except for a pale thin ray of moonlight between .It occurred to me that he had been very slowly bending toward her all evening to attain this proximity ,and even while I watched I saw him stoop one ultimate degree and kiss at her cheek .

情况就是这样。我记得的差不多是最后一件事是我和黛西站在一起望着那位电影导演和他的“大明星”。他们仍然在那棵白梅树下，他们的脸快要贴到一起了，中间只隔着一线淡淡的月光。我忽然想到他整个晚上大概一直在非常非常慢地弯下腰来，才终于和她靠得这么近。然后正在我望着的这一刻，我看见他弯下最后一点距离，亲吻了她的面颊。

"I like her ,"said Daisy ," I think she's lovely ."

我喜欢她，黛西说，我觉得她美极了。

But the rest offended her --and inarguably ,because it wasn't a gesture but an emotion .She was appalled by West Egg, this unprecedented "place "that Broadway had begotten upon a Long Island fishing village --appalled by its raw vigor that chafed under the old euphemisms and by the too obtrusive fate that herded its inhabitants along a short cut from nothing to nothing .She saw something awful in the very simplicity she failed to understand .

但是其他的一切她都讨厌－－而且是不容置辩的，因为这并不是一种姿态，而是一种感情。她十分厌恶西卵，这个由百老汇强加在一个长岛渔村上的没有先例的“胜地”－－厌恶它那不安于陈旧和委婉辞令的粗犷活力，厌恶那种驳使它的居民沿着一条捷径从零跑到零的过分突兀的命运。她正是在这种她所不了解的单纯之中看到了什么可怕的东西。

I sat on the front steps with them while they waited for their car .It was dark here in front :only the bright door sent ten square feet of light volleying out into the soft black morning .Sometimes a shadow moved against a dressing-room blind above ,gave way to another shadow ,an indefinite procession of shadows ,who rouged and poedered in an invisble glass .

他们在等车子开过来的时候，我和他们一同坐在大门前的台阶上。这里很暗，只有敞开的门幽暗的黎明投下十平方英尺的亮光。有时楼上化妆室的遮帘上有一个人影掠过，然后又出现一个人影，络绎不绝的女客对着一面看不见的镜子涂脂抹粉。

"Who is this Gatsby anyhow ?"demanded Tom suddenly ."Some big bootlegger ?"

这个姓盖茨比的究竟是谁？汤姆突然质问我，一个大私酒贩子？

"Where'd you hear that ?"I inquired .

你从哪儿听来的？我问他。

"I didn't hear it .I imagined it .A lot of these newly rich people are just big bootleggers ,you know ."

我不是听来的。我猜的。有很多这样的暴发户都是大私酒贩子，你知道。

"Not Gatsby ,"I said shortly .

盖茨比可不是。我简慢地说。

He was silent for a moment .The pebbles of the drive crunched under his feet .

他沉默了一会。汽车道上的小石子在他脚底下咔嚓作响。

"Well ,he certainly must have strained himself to get this menagerie together."

我说，他一定花了很大气力才搜罗到这么一大帮牛头马面。

A breeze stirred the grey haze of Daisy's fur collar .

一阵微风吹动了黛西毛茸茸的灰皮领子。

"At least they're more interesting than the people we know ,"she said with an effort .

至少他们比我们认得的人有趣。她有点勉强地说。

"You didn't look so interested .

看上去你并不怎么感兴趣嘛。

"Well ,I was ."

噢，我很感兴趣。

Tom laughed and turned to me .

汤姆哈哈一笑，把脸转向我。

"Did you notice Daisy's face when that girl asked her to put her under a cold shower ?"

当那个女孩让黛西给她来个冷水淋浴的时候，你有没有注意到黛西的脸？

Daisy began to sing with the music in a husky ,rhythmic whisper ,bringing out a meaning in each word that it had never had before and would never have again .When the melody rose ,her voice broke up sweetly ,following it ,in a way contralto voices have ,and each change tipped out a little of her warm human magic upon the air .

黛西跟着音乐沙哑而有节奏地低声唱了起来，把每个字都唱出一种以前从未有过、以后也决不会再有的意义。当曲调升高的时候 ，她的嗓音也跟着改变，悠扬婉转，正是女低音的本色，而且每一点变化都在空气中散发出一点她那温暖的人情味很浓的魔力。

"Lots of people come who haven't been invited ,"she said suddely ."That girl hadn't been invited .They simply force their way in and he's too polite to object ."

来的人有好多并不是邀请来的，她忽然说，那个女孩子就没有接到邀请。他们干脆闯上门来，而他又太客气，不好意思谢绝。

"I'd like to know who he is and what he does ,"insisted Tom ."And I think I'll make a point of finding out ."

我很想知道他是什么人，又是干什么的，汤姆固执地说，并且我一定要去打听清楚。

"I call tell you right now ,"she answered ."He owned some drug stores ,a lot of drug stores .He built them up himself ."

我马上就可以告诉你，她答道，他是开药房的，好多家药房。是他一手创办起来的。

The dilatory limousine came rolling up the drive .

那辆姗姗来迟的大型轿车沿着汽车道开了上来。

"Good night ,Nick ,said Daisy .

晚安，尼克。黛西说。

Her glance left me and sought the lighted top of the steps where "Three o'Clock in the Morning ,a neat ,sad little waltz of that year ,was drifting out the open door .After all ,in the very casualness of Gatsby's party there were romantic possibilties totally absent from her world .What was it up there in the song that seemed to be calling her back inside ?What would happen now in the dim incalculable hours ?Perhaps some unbelievable guest would arrive ,a person infinitely rare and to be marvelled at ,some authentically radiant young girl who with one fresh glance at Gatsby ,one moment of magical encounter ,would blot out those five years of unwavering devotion .

她的目光离开了我，朝着灯光照亮的最上一层台阶看去，在那里一支当年流行的哀婉动人的小华尔兹舞曲《凌晨三点钟》正从敞开的大门传出来。话说回来，正是在盖茨比晚会上那随随便便的气氛之中，就有她自已的世界中完全没有的种种浪漫的可能性。那支歌曲里面有什么东西仿佛在呼唤她回到里面去呢？现在在这幽暗的、难以预测的时辰里会发生什么事情呢？也许会光临一位令人难以置信的客人，一位世上少有的令人惊异不已的佳人，一位真正艳丽夺目的少女，只要对盖茨比的看上一眼，只要一刹那魔术般的相逢，她就可以把五年来坚贞不移的爱情一笔勾销。

I stayed late that night .Gatsby asked me to wait until he was free and I lingered in the garden until the inevitable swimming party had run up ,chilled and exalted ,from the black beach ,until the lights were extinguished in the guest rooms overhead .When he came down the steps at last the tanned skin was drawn unusually tight on his face ,and his eyes were bright and tired .

那夜我待到很晚，盖茨比要我待到他可以脱身，于是我就在花园里徘徊，一直待到最后一群游泳的客人，又寒冷又兴奋地从黑黝黝的海滩跑上来，一直等到楼上各间客房里有灯者灭了。等到他最后走下台阶时，那晒得黝黑的皮肤比往常更紧地绷在他脸上，他的眼睛明亮而有倦意。

"She didn't like it ,"he said immediately .

她不喜欢这个晚会。他马上就说。

"Of course she did ."

她当然喜欢啦。

"She didn't like it ,"he insisted ."She didn't have a good time ."

她不喜欢，他固执地说，她玩得不开心。

He was silent and I guessed at his unutterable depression .

他不讲话了，但我猜他有满腔说不出的郁闷。

"I feel far away from her ,"he said ."It's hard to make her understand ."

我觉得离她很远，他说，很难使她理解。

"You mean about the dance ?"

你是说舞会的事吗？

"The dance ?"He dismissed all the dances he had given with a snap of his fingers ."Old sport ,the dance is unimportant ."

舞会？他一弹指就把他所有跳过的舞都勾销了，老兄，舞会是无关紧要的。

He wanted nothing less of Daisy than that she should go to Tom and say:"I never loved you ."After she had obliterated three years with that sentence they could decide upon the more practical measures to be taken .One of them was that ,after she was free ,they were to go back to Louisville and be married from her house --just as if it were five years ago .

他所要求黛西的不过是要她跑去跟汤姆说：我从来没有爱过你。等她用那句话把四年婚姻一笔勾销之后，他俩就可以研究决定那些需要采取的更加实际的措施。其中之一就是，等她恢复了自由，他俩就回路易斯维尔去，从她家里出发到教堂去举行婚礼－－就仿佛是五年以前一样。

"And she doesn't understand ,"he said ."She used to be able to understand .We'd sit for hours--"

可是她不理解，他说，她过去是能够理解的。我们往往在一起坐上几个钟点…

He broke off and began to walk up and down a desolate path of fruit rinds and discarded favors and crushed flowers .

他忽然停住不说了，沿着一条布满了果皮、丢弃的小礼物和踩烂的残花的小道走来走去。

"I wouldn't ask too much of her ,"I ventured ."You can't repeat the past ."

我看对她不宜要求过高，我冒昧地说，你不能重温旧梦的。

"Can't repeat the past ?"he cried incredulously ."Why of course you can !"

我不能重温旧梦？他大不以为然地喊道，哪儿的话，我当然能够！

He looked around him wildly ,as if the past were lurking here in the shadow of his house ,just out of reach of his hand .

他发狂地东张西望，仿佛他的旧梦就隐藏在这里，他的房子的阴影里，几乎一伸手就可以抓到的。

"I'm going to fix everything just the way it was before ,"he said nodding determinedly ."She'll see."

我要把一切都安排得跟过去一模一样，他说，一面坚决地点点头，她会看到的。、

He talked a lot about the past and I gathered that he wanted to recover something ,some idea of himself perhaps ,that had gone into loving Daisy .His life had been confused and disordered since then ,but if he could once reture to a certain stariting place and go ove it all slowly ,he could find out what that thing was ----One autumn night ,five years before ,they had been walking down the street when the leaves were falling ,and they came to a place where there were no trees and the sidewalk was white with moonlight .They stopped here and turned toward each other .Now it was a cool night with that mysterious excitement in it which comes at the two changes of the year .The quiet lights in the houses were humming out into the darkness and there was a stir and bustle among the stars .Out of the corner of his eye Gatsby saw that the blocks of the sidewalk really formed a ladder and mounted to a secret place above the trees --he could climb to it ,if he climbed alone ,and once there he could suck on the pap of life ,gulp down the incomparable milk of wonder .

他滔滔不绝地大谈往事，我揣测他想要重新获得一点什么东西，也许是那进入他对黛西的热恋之中的关于他自己的某种理念。从那时以来，他的生活一直是凌乱不堪的，但是假如他一旦能回到某个出发点，慢慢地重新再走一遍，他可以发现那东西是什么…五年以前，一个秋天的夜晚，落叶纷纷的时候，他俩走在街上，走到一处没有树的地方，人行道被月光照得发白。…五年以前，一个秋天的夜晚，落叶纷纷的时候，他俩走在街上，走到一处没有树的地方，人行道被月光照得发白。他们停了下来，面对面站着。那是一个凉爽的夜晚，那是一年两度季节变换的时刻，空气中洋溢着那种神秘的兴奋。家家户户宁静的灯火仿佛在向外面的黑暗吟唱，天上的星星中间仿佛也有繁忙的活动。盖茨比从他的眼角里看到，一段段的人行道其实构成一架梯子，通向树顶上空一个秘密的地方－－他可以攀登上去，如果他独自攀登的话，一登上去他就可以吮吸生命的浆液，大口吞咽那无与伦比的神奇的奶汁。

His heart beat faster and faster as Daisy's white face came up to his own .He knew that when he kissed this girl ,and forever wed his unutterable visons to her perishable breath ,his mind would never romp again like the mind of God .So he waited ,listening for a moment longer to the tuning fork that had been struck upon a star. Then he kissed her .At his lips' touch she blossomed for him like a flower and the incarnation was complete .

当黛西洁白的脸贴近他的脸时，他的心越跳越快。他知道他一跟这个姑娘亲吻，并把他那些无法形容的憧憬和她短暂的呼吸永远结合在一起，他的心灵就再也不会像上帝的心灵一样自由驰骋了。因此他等着，再倾听一会那已经在一颗星上敲响的音叉。然后，他吻了她。经他的嘴唇一碰，她就像一朵鲜花一样为他绽放，于是这个理想的化身就完成了。

Throgh all he said ,even through his appalling sentimentality ,I was reminded of something --an elusive rhythm ,a fragment of lost words ,that I had heard somewhere a long time ago .For a moment a phrase tried to take shape in my mouth and my lips parted like a dumb man's ,as though there was more struggling upon them than a wisp of startled air .But they made no sound and what I had almost remembered was uncommunicable forever .

他的这番话，甚至他难堪的感伤，使我回想起一点什么…我很久以前在什么地方听过的一段迷离恍惚的节奏，几句零落的歌词。一会儿的工夫，有一句话快到了嘴边，我的两片嘴唇像哑巴一样张开，仿佛除了一丝受惊的空气之外还有别的什么在上面挣扎着要出来。他的嘴唇发不出声音，因此我几乎想起的东西就永远无法表达了。

,