《简·爱》 Chapter 11 第十一章（6）

搜索

复制

The chamber¹ looked such a bright little place to me as the sun shone in between the gay blue chintz window curtains,

阳光从蓝色鲜艳的印花布窗帘缝隙中射进来，照出了糊着墙纸的四壁和铺着地毯的地板，

showing papered walls and a carpeted floor,

与罗沃德光秃秃的楼板和迹痕斑驳的灰泥全然不同。

so unlike the bare planks² and stained plaster of Lowood, that my spirits rose at the view.

相形之下，这房间显得小巧而明亮，眼前的情景使我精神为之一振。

Externals have a great effect on the young.

外在的东西对年轻人往往有很大影响。

I thought that a fairer era of life was beginning for me,

我于是想到自己生涯中更为光明的时代开始了，

one that was to have its flowers and pleasures, as well as its thorns and toils³.

这个时代将会有花朵和欢愉，也会有荆棘和艰辛。

My faculties⁴, roused by the change of scene, the new field offered to hope, seemed all astir.

由于这改变了的环境，这充满希望的新天地，我的各种官能都复活了，变得异常活跃。但它们究 竟期望着什么。

I cannot precisely⁵ define what they expected, but it was something pleasant.

我一时也说不清楚，反正是某种令人愉快的东西。

Not perhaps that day or that month, but at an indefinite future period.

也许那东西不是降临在这一天，或是这个月，而是在不确定的未来。

I rose; I dressed myself with care.

我起身了，小心穿戴了一番。

Obliged to be plain — for I had no article of attire⁶ that was not made with extreme simplicity⁷

无奈只能简朴，因为我没有一件服饰不是缝制得极其朴实的

I was still by nature solicitous⁸ to be neat.

但渴求整洁依然是我的天性。

It was not my habit to be disregardful of appearance or careless of the impression I made.

习惯上我并不无视外表，不注意自己留下的印象。

On the contrary, I ever wished to look as well as I could,

相反，我一向希望自己的外观尽可能标致些，

and to please as much as my want of beauty would permit.

并希望在我平庸的外貌所允许的情况下，得到别人的好感。

I sometimes regretted that I was not handsomer.

有时候，我为自己没有长得漂亮些而感到遗憾。

I sometimes wished to have rosy⁹ cheeks, a straight nose, and small cherry mouth.

有时巴不得自己有红润的双颊、挺直的鼻梁和樱桃般的小口。

I desired to be tall, stately, and finely developed in figure.

我希望自己修长、端庄、身材匀称。

I felt it a misfortune that I was so little, so pale, and had features so irregular and so marked.

我觉得很不幸，长得这么小，这么苍白，五官那么不端正而又那么显眼。

And why had I these aspirations¹⁰ and these regrets?

为什么我有这些心愿却又有这些遗憾？

It would be difficult to say.

这很难说清楚。

I could not then distinctly say it to myself, yet I had a reason, and a logical, natural reason too.

当时我自己虽然说不上来，但我有一个理由，一个合乎逻辑的、自然的理由。

However, when I had brushed my hair very smooth, and put on my black frock,

然而，当我把头发梳得溜光，穿上那件黑色的外衣 ，

which, Quakerlike as it was, at least had the merit of fitting to a nicety,

虽然看上去确实像贵格会教派的人，但至少非常合身 ，

and adjusted my clean white tucker,

换上了干净洁白的领布时，

I thought I should do respectably enough to appear before Mrs. Fairfax,

我想我可以够体面地去见费尔法克斯太太了，

and that my new pupil would not at least recoil¹¹ from me with antipathy¹².

我的新学生至少不会因为厌恶而从我面前退缩。

Having opened my chamber window,

我打开了房间的窗户，

and seen that I left all things straight and neat on the toilet table, I ventured forth¹³.

并注意到已把梳妆台上的东西收拾得整整齐齐，便大着胆子走出门去了。

1 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

2 planks   

（厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点

参考例句：

• The house was built solidly of rough wooden planks. 这房子是用粗木板牢固地建造的。
• We sawed the log into planks. 我们把木头锯成了木板。

3 toils   

网

参考例句：

• It did not declare him to be still in Mrs. Dorset's toils. 这并不表明他仍陷于多赛特夫人的情网。
• The thief was caught in the toils of law. 这个贼陷入了法网。

4 faculties   

n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院

参考例句：

• Although he's ninety, his mental faculties remain unimpaired. 他虽年届九旬，但头脑仍然清晰。
• All your faculties have come into play in your work. 在你的工作中，你的全部才能已起到了作用。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

6 attire   

v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装

参考例句：

• He had no intention of changing his mode of attire.他无意改变着装方式。
• Her attention was attracted by his peculiar attire.他那奇特的服装引起了她的注意。

7 simplicity   

n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯

参考例句：

• She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
• The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。

8 solicitous   

adj.热切的，挂念的

参考例句：

• He was so solicitous of his guests.他对他的客人们非常关切。
• I am solicitous of his help.我渴得到他的帮助。

9 rosy   

adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的

参考例句：

• She got a new job and her life looks rosy.她找到一份新工作，生活看上去很美好。
• She always takes a rosy view of life.她总是对生活持乐观态度。

10 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

11 recoil   

vi.退却，退缩，畏缩

参考例句：

• Most people would recoil at the sight of the snake.许多人看见蛇都会向后退缩。
• Revenge may recoil upon the person who takes it.报复者常会受到报应。

12 antipathy   

n.憎恶；反感，引起反感的人或事物

参考例句：

• I feel an antipathy against their behaviour.我对他们的行为很反感。
• Some people have an antipathy to cats.有的人讨厌猫。

13 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。