英语听力 暮光之城•暮色 第238期:第十四章 精神胜于物质(2)

 "I was born in Chicago in 1901." “我出生在1901年的芝加哥。”

He paused and glanced at me from the corner of his eyes. 他停下来，用眼角的余光瞥着我。

My face was carefully unsurprised, patient for the rest. 我的脸上是小心翼翼的毫不惊讶的神情，我耐心地等待着下文。

He smiled a tiny smile and continued. 他淡淡一笑，然后继续说道。

"Carlisle found me in a hospital in the summer of 1918. “1918年的夏天，卡莱尔在一家医院里发现了我。

I was seventeen, and dying of the Spanish influenza¹." 我才十七岁，正因为西班牙流感而濒临死亡。”

He heard my intake² of breath, though it was barely audible to my own ears. 他听见了我倒抽一口冷气的声音，尽管这声音小得几乎只有我自己能听见。

He looked down into my eyes again. 他低下头，再次看着我的眼睛。

"I don't remember it well—it was a very long time ago, and human memories fade." “我记不太清了——那是很久以前的事了，而人类的记忆总在褪色。”

He was lost in his thoughts for a short time before he went on. 他陷入了沉思，片刻之后，接着说道。

"I do remember how it felt, when Carlisle saved me. “我确实还记得，卡莱尔救我时的感觉。

It's not an easy thing, not something you could forget." 那不是件容易的事，不是你轻易可以忘掉的事。”

"Your parents?" “你的父母呢？”

"They had already died from the disease. I was alone. “他们都已经在这场瘟疫中死去了。我成了孤儿。

That was why he chose me. 这就是为什么他选择了我。

In all the chaos³ of the epidemic⁴, no one would ever realize I was gone." 在瘟疫流行的一片混乱中，没人会注意到我不见了。”

"How did he... save you?" “他是怎样……救你的？”

A few seconds passed before he answered. 几分钟后，他才回答了我的问题。

He seemed to choose his words carefully. 他似乎在谨慎地选择着字眼。

"It was difficult. Not many of us have the restraint necessary to accomplish it. “这很困难。我们中没几个人有足够的自制力来做到这件事。

But Carlisle has always been the most humane⁵, the most compassionate⁶ of us... 但卡莱尔总是我们之中最人道的，最慈悲的那个……

I don't think you could find his equal throughout all of history." He paused. 我不认为你能在整个人类历史中找到可与他相提并论的人。”他顿了顿。

"For me, it was merely very, very painful." “但对我来说，整个过程都仅仅是非常，非常的痛苦。”

1 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

2 intake   

n.吸入，纳入；进气口，入口

参考例句：

• Reduce your salt intake.减少盐的摄入量。
• There was a horrified intake of breath from every child.所有的孩子都害怕地倒抽了一口凉气。

3 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

4 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

5 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

6 compassionate   

adj.有同情心的，表示同情的

参考例句：

• She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。
• The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯。