英语听书《海底两万里》第108期 第8章 动中之动(11)

 　　What! You know German? I exclaimed.

　　什么！你会说德语？我喊。

　　Like most Flemish people, with all due respect to master.

　　这不至于使先生不高兴吧，我像普通佛兰德人一样，会说德语。

　　On the contrary, my respect is due you. Go to it, my boy.

　　正相反，你会说德语，我很高兴。说吧，好小伙子。

　　And Conseil, in his serene¹ voice, described for the third time the various vicissitudes² of our story.

　　康塞尔拿他很镇定的语调，将我们的经过情形作了第三次的叙述。

　　But despite our narrator's fine accent and stylish³ turns of phrase, the German language met with no success.

　　可是，不管讲述人怎样把话说得婉转漂亮，音调怎样和谐动听，德语也无济干事。

　　Finally, as a last resort, I hauled out everything I could remember from my early schooldays, and I tried to narrate⁴ our adventures in Latin.

　　最后，实在没有别的办法了，我极力想起我早年所学过的语言，我拿拉丁话来讲述我们的遭遇和经过。

　　Cicero would have plugged his ears and sent me to the scullery, but somehow I managed to pull through. With the same negative result.

　　西赛罗听了，可能要塞住耳朵，把我赶到厨房里去，可是，我也勉强对付着说完了。

　　This last attempt ultimately misfiring, the two strangers exchanged a few words in their incomprehensible language and withdrew,

　　但结果还是白费。我们最后一次的尝试又失败了，这两个陌生人用那不可懂的语言彼此说了几句诸，他们就走开了，

　　not even favoring us with one of those encouraging gestures that are used in every country in the world. The door closed again.

　　甚至于世界各国通用的使人安心的手势也没对我们做一下。门又关起来了。

1 serene   

adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的

参考例句：

• He has entered the serene autumn of his life.他已进入了美好的中年时期。
• He didn't speak much,he just smiled with that serene smile of his.他话不多，只是脸上露出他招牌式的淡定的微笑。

2 vicissitudes   

n.变迁，世事变化；变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 )；盛衰兴废

参考例句：

• He experienced several great social vicissitudes in his life. 他一生中经历了几次大的社会变迁。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A man used to vicissitudes is not easily dejected. 饱经沧桑，不易沮丧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 stylish   

adj.流行的，时髦的；漂亮的，气派的

参考例句：

• He's a stylish dresser.他是个穿着很有格调的人。
• What stylish women are wearing in Paris will be worn by women all over the world.巴黎女性时装往往会引导世界时装潮流。

4 narrate   

v.讲，叙述

参考例句：

• They each narrate their own tale but are all inextricably linked together.她们各自讲述自己的故事，却又不可避免地联系在一起。
• He once holds the tear to narrate a such story to mine.他曾经含着泪给我讲述了这样的一个故事。