Jonathan Livingston Seagull (2)

Jonathan Livingston Seagull (2)

Written by Richard Bach

 

The gulls² were ¹⁾flocked into the Council gathering³ when he landed, and apparently⁴ had been so flocked for some time. They were, in fact, waiting.

"Jonathan Livingston Seagull! Stand to Center!" The Elder's words sounded in a voice of highest ceremony. Stand to Center meant only great shame or great honor. Stand to Center for Honor was the way the gulls' ²⁾foremost leaders were marked.

Of course, he thought, the Breakfast Flock this morning; they saw the ³⁾breakthrough! But I want no honors. I have no wish to be a leader. I want only to share what I've found, to show those horizons out ahead for us all.

He stepped forward.

"Jonathan Livingston Seagull," said the Elder, "Stand to Center for Shame in the sight of your fellow gulls!"

It felt like being hit with a board. His knees went weak, his feathers ⁴⁾sagged, there was roaring in his ears. Centered for Shame? Impossible! The breakthrough! They can't understand! They're wrong, they're wrong!

"...for his reckless irresponsibility," the ⁵⁾solemn voice intoned, "violating the dignity and tradition of the Gull¹ Family..."

To be centered for shame meant that he would be ⁶⁾cast out of gull society, banished⁶ to a solitary⁷ life on the Far Cliffs.

"... one day Jonathan Livingston Seagull, you shall learn that irresponsibility does not pay. Life is the unknown and the ⁷⁾unknowable, except that we are put into this world to eat, to stay alive as long as we possibly can."

A seagull never speaks back to the Council Flock, but it was Jonathan's voice raised. "Irresponsibility? My brothers!" he cried, "who is more responsible than a gull who finds and follows a meaning, a higher purpose for life? For a thousand years we have ⁸⁾scrabbled after fish heads, but now we have a reason to live -- to learn, to discover, to be free! Give me one chance, let me show you what I've found..."

The Flock might as well have been stone.

"The ⁹⁾brotherhood⁸ is broken," the gulls ¹⁰⁾intoned together, and with one accord they solemnly closed their ears and turned their backs upon him.

Jonathan Seagull spent the rest of his days alone, but he flew way out beyond the Far Cliffs. His one sorrow was not ¹¹⁾solitude⁹, it was that other gulls refused to believe the glory of flight that awaited them; they refused to open their eyes and see.

He learned more each day. He learned that a ¹²⁾streamlined high-speed dive could bring him to find the rare and tasty fish that schooled ten feet below the surface of the ocean: he no longer needed fishing boats and ¹³⁾stale bread for survival. He learned to sleep in the air, setting a ¹⁴⁾course at night across the ¹⁵⁾offshore¹⁰ wind, covering a hundred miles from sunset to sunrise. With the same inner control, he flew through heavy sea-fogs and climbed above them into dazzling clear skies... in the very times when every other gull stood on the ground, knowing nothing but mist and rain. He learned to ride the high winds far inland, to dine there on delicate insects.

What he had once hoped for the Flock, he now gained for himself alone; he learned to fly, he was not sorry for the price that he had paid. Jonathan Seagull discovered that ¹⁶⁾boredom¹¹ and fear and anger are the reasons that a gull's life is so short, and with these gone from his thought, he lived a long and fine life indeed.

 

海鸥乔纳森●利文斯顿（下）

    乔纳森着陆的时候，海鸥们正聚集在一起开会，它们显然已经聚集了好一会儿了。实际上它们正等待着。

“海鸥乔纳森·利文斯顿！站到中间来！”长者的话音仿佛是在举行最高仪式。站在中间只代表两种意思：极度耻辱或极度荣耀。因为荣耀而站在中间是海鸥们宣布重要领导人的方式。

当然了，乔纳森想道，一定是早上出去觅食的鸥群看到我破的记录了！可我不需要荣耀啊。我也不想当什么领导。我只想和大家分享我的新发现，想给大家展示一个新天地。

他走到前面。

“海鸥乔纳森·利文斯顿，”长者说道，“站到中间来，将你的耻辱示以众人！”

犹如当头一棒。乔纳森的膝盖发软，羽毛耷了下来，他的耳朵轰轰地响。因为耻辱？不可能啊！我打破了记录！他们怎么不明白！他们弄错了，他们弄错了！

“……因他不顾后果、不负责任的行为，”严肃的声音说道，“他有辱我们鸥族的尊严和传统……”

因为耻辱站到中间意味着他被驱逐出鸥群，被遗弃到远处的悬崖上孤独地过活。

“……总有一天，海鸥乔纳森·利文斯顿，你将明白到不负责任是不可取的。生活不可知也无从可知，我们来到这世上仅为了吃，以及尽量活下去。”

海鸥是不能驳斥委员会的，可乔纳森的声音响起来：“不负责任？天啊！”他大声地说：“作为志在发现并追随生命更高尚意义的一只海鸥，有什么比这更负责呢？一千年来，我们只是胡乱地抢夺鱼吃，但现在我们有了生存的理由——去学习、去发现、去寻找自由！给我一个机会吧，我会让你们看看我的发现……”

鸥群依然不为所动。

“你不再是我们中的一员了，”海鸥们一齐说道，他们全体木然地合上耳朵，掉过背去对着乔纳森。

从此海鸥乔纳森就孤零零地生活了，他飞开，飞得比远处的悬崖更远。他感到悲伤的不是孤独，而是其他海鸥拒不相信有飞行的荣耀在前方等待着他们；他们不愿睁开眼睛看。

每天他都学到更多飞行技巧。他发现，用一个改良后的高速俯冲姿势能找到潜伏在海底十英尺处珍罕而味美的鱼群：他再也不必为了生存求助于那些渔船的老面包了。他练习在空中睡眠，在夜间逆海风急行，从日落到日出之间跨越一百英里的路程。以同样的内力，他飞过海上弥漫的大雾，飞越到顶上眩目而清澈的天空中……与此同时，别的海鸥还只能站在地面上，只知道雾和雨。乔纳森还学会御风高飞，飞入远远的内陆，吃到古灵精怪的昆虫。

他曾为鸥群所寄予的希望，全都独自实现了；他学会了飞翔，从不为其中付出的代价感到过后悔。海鸥乔纳森发现，厌倦、恐惧与愤怒正是海鸥们短寿的原因所在，而因为乔纳森没有这些体会，他活到了高龄并且生活得很滋润。

 

注释：

1) flock [flCk] v. (禽畜的)群集，成群结队

2) foremost [5fC:mEust] a. 最重要的

3) breakthrough [5breik5Wru:] n. 突破

4) sag⁵ [sA^] v. 松弛，下垂

5) solemn [5sClEm] a. 严肃的，庄严的

6) cast out of 赶出

7) unknowable [Qn5nEuEbl] a. 不能知道的

8) scrabble [5skrAbl] v. 摸索，扒寻

9) brotherhood [5brQTEhud] n. 兄弟情谊

10) intone [in5tEun] v. （以拖长的声音）吟咏

11) solitude [5sClitju:d] n. 孤独

12) streamlined [5stri:mlaind] a. 最新型的，改进的

13) stale [steil] a. 不新鲜的

14) course [kC:s] n. 急行

15) offshore [5C(:)fFC:] a. 离岸的

16) boredom [5bC:dEm] n. 厌倦

1 gull   

n.鸥；受骗的人；v.欺诈

参考例句：

• The ivory gull often follows polar bears to feed on the remains of seal kills.象牙海鸥经常跟在北极熊的后面吃剩下的海豹尸体。
• You are not supposed to gull your friends.你不应该欺骗你的朋友。

2 gulls   

n.鸥( gull的名词复数 )v.欺骗某人( gull的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A flock of sea gulls are hovering over the deck. 一群海鸥在甲板上空飞翔。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The gulls which haunted the outlying rocks in a prodigious number. 数不清的海鸥在遥远的岩石上栖息。 来自辞典例句

3 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

4 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

5 sag   

v.下垂，下跌，消沉；n.下垂，下跌，凹陷，[航海]随风漂流

参考例句：

• The shelf was beginning to sag beneath the weight of the books upon it.书架在书的重压下渐渐下弯。
• We need to do something about the sag.我们须把下沉的地方修整一下。

6 banished   

v.放逐，驱逐( banish的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was banished to Australia, where he died five years later. 他被流放到澳大利亚，五年后在那里去世。
• He was banished to an uninhabited island for a year. 他被放逐到一个无人居住的荒岛一年。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 solitary   

adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士

参考例句：

• I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
• The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

8 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

9 solitude   

n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方

参考例句：

• People need a chance to reflect on spiritual matters in solitude. 人们需要独处的机会来反思精神上的事情。
• They searched for a place where they could live in solitude. 他们寻找一个可以过隐居生活的地方。

10 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

11 boredom   

n.厌烦，厌倦，乏味，无聊

参考例句：

• Unemployment can drive you mad with boredom.失业会让你无聊得发疯。
• A walkman can relieve the boredom of running.跑步时带着随身听就不那么乏味了。