英语听书《海底两万里》第23期 第3章 随您先生的便(1)

 　　THREE SECONDS before the arrival of J. B. Hobson's letter, I no more dreamed of chasing the unicorn¹ than of trying for the Northwest Passage.

　　在收到何伯逊部长的信之前三秒钟，我还像不愿意去北冰洋旅行一样不愿意去追逐海麒麟。

　　Three seconds after reading this letter from the honorable Secretary of the Navy, I understood at last that my true vocation², my sole purpose in life, was to hunt down this disturbing monster and rid the world of it.

　　读了这位海军部长的来信，三秒钟之后，我才理解到我的真正志愿，我生平的唯一目的，就是要捕捉这样捣乱的怪物，把它从世界上清除出去。

　　Even so, I had just returned from an arduous³ journey, exhausted⁴ and badly needing a rest.

　　可是我刚刚长途跋涉回来，很疲倦，非常需要休息。

　　I wanted nothing more than to see my country again, my friends, my modest quarters by the Botanical Gardens, my dearly beloved collections!

　　我只想回去，回祖国去，看看朋友，看看我在植物园内的小房子和我收藏的珍贵标本。

　　But now nothing could hold me back. I forgot everything else, and without another thought of exhaustion⁵, friends, or collections, I accepted the American government's offer.

　　但现在什么也不能阻止我。我忘记了一切，忘记了疲倦、朋友、珍藏，我毫不犹豫就接受了美国政府的邀请。

　　"Besides," I mused⁶, "all roads lead home to Europe, and our unicorn may be gracious enough to take me toward the coast of France!

　　而且，我还有这样一个想法，反正条条道路都可以回到欧洲，海麒麟也许客客气气地把我引到法国海岸边！

　　That fine animal may even let itself be captured in European seas,as a personal favor to me,and I'll bring back to the Museum of Natural History at least half a meter of its ivory lance!"

　　这个有名的动物一也许讨我喜欢,要让我在欧洲海中捉到它，那么，我至少也要拿上半米以上的牙戟带给自然科学博物馆。

1 unicorn   

n.(传说中的)独角兽

参考例句：

• The unicorn is an imaginary beast.独角兽是幻想出来的动物。
• I believe unicorn was once living in the world.我相信独角兽曾经生活在这个世界。

2 vocation   

n.职业，行业

参考例句：

• She struggled for years to find her true vocation.她多年来苦苦寻找真正适合自己的职业。
• She felt it was her vocation to minister to the sick.她觉得照料病人是她的天职。

3 arduous   

adj.艰苦的，费力的，陡峭的

参考例句：

• We must have patience in doing arduous work.我们做艰苦的工作要有耐性。
• The task was more arduous than he had calculated.这项任务比他所估计的要艰巨得多。

4 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

5 exhaustion   

n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述

参考例句：

• She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。
• His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。

6 mused   

v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事）

参考例句：

• \"I wonder if I shall ever see them again, \"he mused. “我不知道是否还可以再见到他们，”他沉思自问。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• \"Where are we going from here?\" mused one of Rutherford's guests. 卢瑟福的一位客人忍不住说道：‘我们这是在干什么？” 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史