Business Partners

 　　本文从平淡的笔调描写了两位老人的孤独生活以及他们的相互揶揄，却深刻的反映了当时青年人只顾自身发展、而把家中老人置诸脑后的冷酷现实。我们的孝行也许永不能及父母养育恩情之万一，但我们总应该尽寸草之心以使他们在日渐老去的年华中感到温暖。

　　Fink, poor fellow, was a widower¹, and each of his daughters had said that she would rather be dead than live in a dump like Lyndhurst, so he had to live all by himself in the Diamond Hotel, near the office, on the other side of the Market Square. The food at the Diamond, Fink said, was giving him an ulcer² in the stomach, so he ate his lunch with Gottlieb, at the Gottliebs' house. Carefully they drove to Gottlieb's house for lunch—one day in Gottlieb's car and the next day in Fink's—and ate the lunch that Sylvia and Mrs Gottlieb served them both. Then Gottlieb retired³ to his bedroom with the newspaper and had a little sleep until two o'clock, and Fink did the same in the lounge, with his shoes off and his stockinged2 feet pointing to the ceiling from the end of the sofa.

　　"It's no life for a man without a wife," Mrs Gottlieb reported to her husband. "He had holes in his socks today."

　　"Holes in his socks! A fine advertisement for his soft-goods!"3

　　Mrs Gottlieb was not amused. "It's a shame. I'd offer to darn4 them, but he'd be offended. You know what he's like."

　　"Very well," Gottlieb nodded. "Poor fellow."

　　"He'd be hurt that I saw the holes in his socks. He has such terrible pride."

　　"Fink's pride is a terrible thing. It is eating him away."

　　Sometimes Riva cast about5 in her mind for a suitable widow for Fink. "It's what he needs," she said. "Then he'll be happy again."

　　Gottlieb was more cautious. "Perhaps he would be a little happier, and not so proud."

　　At other times Gottlieb reminded her that the man had three daughters, not one of whom had made it her business to stay in Lyndhurst and look after her father. Instead each one of them, as she had reached maturity⁴ of a sort,6 and eligibility⁵ without doubt for marriage, had deliberately⁶ gone off to Johannesburg in search of the professional man that each had succeeded in marrying. "A girl has to get married," Gottlieb admitted to his wife, "but is it impossible to manage it in Lyndhurst?"

　　And when he wanted to goad⁷ Fink, Gottlieb always inquired after Fink's daughters. "What has happened to Althea?" he would ask. "She married the lawyer?"

　　Fink would know what was coming. "Yes."

　　"He's doing well?"

　　"He's making a living."

　　Gottlieb would think this over for a moment or two.

　　"And Lynda? She married the doctor?"

　　"Yes."

　　"And how is his practice?"7

　　"Very good. An excellent practice in a good suburb."

　　"And Claire, her husband is also making a living?"

　　"A first-class living."

　　"That's a good thing to hear. Three daughters, all married to good men, all making a living." Gottlieb would nod, Gottlieb would suck at his tea, absently Gottlieb would deliver his blow.8

　　"I haven't seen them for a long time. I'd like to see them again. Are they coming down to Lyndhurst soon?"

　　"Yes."

　　"Oh—so?"

　　"Yes."

　　Gottlieb would smile, Gottlieb would know he was on top. "When?"

　　"I don't know," Fink would shout. "I don't know their plans."

　　But if Fink had been really angered by Gottlieb's inquiries⁸, he would tell Gottlieb, "They're coming down when your Irvine comes down. On exactly the same train, that's when they're coming down."

　　"My Irvine?" Gottlieb could see no connection between his Irvine and the questions he had been asking. Haughtily⁹ he asked, "My Irvine? He's very well. He's learning hard to be a specialist."

　　"And when he's finished he's coming to practice in Lyndhurst?"

　　"Perhaps," Gottlieb would lie uneasily; and Fink would reply with a pitying shrug¹⁰ of his shoulders:

　　"Perhaps is as good as a feast."9

　　(From The Price of Diamonds, 1957)

　　Dan Jacobson: 丹·雅各布森，当代英国作家，1929年出生于南非约翰内斯堡的一个犹太移民家庭，1954年定居伦敦。其早期作品多以南非社会为背景。本篇为他1957年的作品。

1 widower   

n.鳏夫

参考例句：

• George was a widower with six young children.乔治是个带著六个小孩子的鳏夫。
• Having been a widower for many years,he finally decided to marry again.丧偶多年后，他终于决定二婚了。

2 ulcer   

n.溃疡，腐坏物

参考例句：

• She had an ulcer in her mouth.她口腔出现溃疡。
• A bacterium is identified as the cause for his duodenal ulcer.一种细菌被断定为造成他十二指肠溃疡的根源。

3 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

4 maturity   

n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期

参考例句：

• These plants ought to reach maturity after five years.这些植物五年后就该长成了。
• This is the period at which the body attains maturity.这是身体发育成熟的时期。

5 eligibility   

n.合格，资格

参考例句：

• What are the eligibility requirements? 病人被选参加试验的要求是什么？ 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望
• Eligibility for HINARI access is based on gross national income (GNI). 进入HINARI获取计划是依据国民总收入来评定的。

6 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

7 goad   

n.刺棒，刺痛物；激励；vt.激励，刺激

参考例句：

• The opposition is trying to goad the government into calling an election.在野反对党正努力激起政府提出选举。
• The writer said he needed some goad because he was indolent.这个作家说他需要刺激，因为他很懒惰。

8 inquiries   

n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。
• I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 haughtily   

adv. 傲慢地, 高傲地

参考例句：

• She carries herself haughtily. 她举止傲慢。
• Haughtily, he stalked out onto the second floor where I was standing. 他傲然跨出电梯，走到二楼，我刚好站在那儿。

10 shrug   

v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等)

参考例句：

• With a shrug,he went out of the room.他耸一下肩，走出了房间。
• I admire the way she is able to shrug off unfair criticism.我很佩服她能对错误的批评意见不予理会。