《爱丽丝镜中奇遇记》 第六章 胖墩儿（2）

Alice thought about this. 'I like birthday presents best,' she said at last.

爱丽丝想了想，最后说：“我还是最喜欢生日礼物。”

'You don't know what you're talking about!' cried HumptyDumpty.

“你在讲些什么呀！”胖墩儿叫嚷道。

How many days are there in a year?

一年有多少天？

'Three hundred and sixty-five,' said Alice.

爱丽丝说：“365天。”

And how many birthdays have you? - One.

其中有多少天是你的生日？一天。

And if you take one from three hundred and sixty-five, what is left?

那么如果你将365天减去1天剩多少？

Three hundred and sixty-four, of course.

当然是364天。

'So there's only one day when you can get birthday presents,' said Humpty Dumpty,

胖墩儿便说：“这么讲你只有一天能收到生日礼物。

but three hundred and sixty-four days when you can get unbirthday presents! There's success for you!

但其他364天都能收到非生日礼物，你就‘成功’了！

'I don't know what you mean by “success” ,' Alice said.

“我不明白你说‘成功’指的是什么？”爱丽丝问。

Humpty Dumpty smiled. 'Of course you don't-until I tell you.

胖墩儿笑了笑，“我不告诉你，你当然不晓得，

I meant “there's a clever idea for you!”

我指的是‘给你个聪明的主意！’

'But “success” doesn't mean “a clever idea” ,' Alice argued.

“但‘成功’没有‘聪明主意’的意思呀。”爱丽丝争辩说。

'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, looking down his nose at Alice, 'it means¹ just what I choose it to mean-neither more nor less.'

胖墩儿不理会爱丽丝，说：“我用一个词儿，我要它什么意思，那词儿就是什么意思。

'But can you make words have different meanings?' asked Alice.

“但你可以叫词儿具有另外的意思吗？”爱丽丝问。

'Words are difficult things, I agree,' said Humpty Dumpty.

胖墩儿说：“我同意，用词儿是件不容易的事。

But you have to be strong with them. Give them orders. Tell them to obey you.

但你得对它们显示你的威力。给它们发号施令。要它们遵从你。

They must work hard, and do what they're told!

它们必须好好干，对你唯命是从！

He banged² his hand excitedly on the wall as he spoke³.

他说着，激动地将手重重地在墙上拍了一下。

'You seem very clever with words, Sir,' said Alice politely, hoping to calm him.

“你好像对词儿很有些办法，先生。”爱丽丝很有礼貌地说，希望使他平静下来。

She was worried about him falling off the wall.

她担心他从墙上摔下来。

Humpty Dumpty looked pleased. 'I can explain most words, and get them to do what I want,' he said.

胖墩儿面带悦色，说：“我能解释大多数的词儿，并叫它们为我服务。

Some of them are like suitcases, you know. They've got several meanings packed up in them.

有些词儿像皮箱，里面有好几种意思。

Take poems, for example. One short poem can carry as many meanings as five people's luggage⁴.

譬如诗歌，一首短诗的意思可以像五个人的行李一样丰富。

'Somebody repeated⁶ a poem to me earlier today,' saidAlice. 'It was Tweedledee, I think.'

爱丽丝说：“今天早些时候，有人给我背诵了首诗。我想那是特威帝吧。"

'Oh, I can repeat⁵ any number of poems, if you like,' said Humpty Dumpty.

“哦，只要你喜欢，我背诵多少首诗都可以。”胖墩儿说。

'Well, not just at the moment,' Alice said quickly, hoping to stop him from beginning.

爱丽丝马上抢着说：“哦，现在不必了。”希望他别开始背。

'This piece was written specially⁷ for you,' Humpty Dumpty went on, not listening to her. 'It will amuse⁸ you.'

胖墩儿并不听她，继续说：“这首是专门为你写的。它将给你带来快乐。”

1 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

2 banged   

vt.猛击，猛撞（bang的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Two days after the accident she still looked pretty banged up. 事故过去两天后她看上去伤势仍然很重。
• I've banged into the doorpost and hurt my arm. 我撞着了门柱，把臂伤了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 luggage   

n.行李，行装

参考例句：

• Have you packed your luggage?你打包行李了吗？
• Will you please keep an eye on my luggage?劳驾帮我看一下行李。

5 repeat   

n.重复，反复；vt.重复，复述；vi.重复；adj.重复的，反复的

参考例句：

• There will be a repeat of this talk next week.下星期将重播这次讲话。
• History will not repeat itself.历史不会重演。

6 repeated   

adj.反复的，再三的，重复的；累；频仍

参考例句：

• repeated absences from school 一再缺课
• the prisoner's repeated denials of the charges against him 囚犯再三否认对他的指控

7 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

8 amuse   

v.娱乐，逗乐，使高兴，使有趣

参考例句：

• Tom makes up stories to amuse his little brother.汤姆编故事逗他的小弟弟。
• I often amuse myself with reading.我常以读书自乐。