英语听书《白鲸记》第439期

 That to attempt it, would be inevitably¹ to be torn into a quick eternity². On this head, there are some remarkable³ documents that may be consulted. 他们认为:凡想一试的人,将必然会立刻丧命。在这方面,还有一些值得注意的文献足资查考。

Nevertheless, some there were, who even in the face of these things were ready to give chase to Moby Dick;  话虽如此,却有一些人会甚至不顾这种事实,随时要去追击莫比－迪克;

and a still greater number who, chancing only to hear of him distantly and vaguely⁴, without the specific details of any certain calamity⁵, and without superstitious⁶ accompaniments were sufficiently⁷ hardy⁸ not to flee from the battle if offered. 但更大多数的人,尽管他们不过是隐约模糊地偶然听到有关它的情况,并不知道任何肯定的灾难详情,也不知道有什么附加的迷信传说,可是,如果一旦要他去参加斗争,可就难保他不逃之夭夭了。

One of the wild suggestions referred to, as at last coming to be linked with the White Whale in the minds of the superstitiously⁹ inclined, was the unearthly conceit¹⁰ that Moby Dick was ubiquitous;  这里必须一提的,就是相信迷信的人,最后竟把一种无稽的联想拿来跟白鲸联在一起,他们忽发奇想地认为:莫比－迪克是无处不在的;

that he had actually been encountered in opposite latitudes¹¹ at one and the same instant of time. 认为它实际上会在同一个时间出现于另一个地方。

Nor, credulous¹² as such minds must have been, was this conceit altogether without some faint show of superstitious probability.  既然有了这种轻信的人,那就不能把这种奇想一概看成为毫无一点迷信的可能了。

For as the secrets of the currents in the seas have never yet been divulged¹³, even to the most erudite research;  因为海洋的秘密直到现在还未被揭露出来,甚至连最全面的调查也谈不到,

so the hidden ways of the Sperm¹⁴ Whale when beneath the surface remain, in great part, unaccountable to his pursuers;  所以抹香鲸在海底里的隐身法,在它的追逐者看来,大多还是莫名其妙的;

and from time to time have originated the most curious and contradictory¹⁵ speculations¹⁶ regarding them, especially concerning the mystic modes whereby, after sounding to a great depth, he transports himself with such vast swiftness to the most widely distant points. 而且还常常对它那种隐身法作出许多最奇特而矛盾的推测,尤其是弄不懂它那神秘的形态,为什么一经深潜到海底里后,就会那么迅捷非凡地游到最辽远的地方去。

1 inevitably   

adv.不可避免地；必然发生地

参考例句：

• In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。
• Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。

2 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 vaguely   

adv.含糊地，暖昧地

参考例句：

• He had talked vaguely of going to work abroad.他含糊其词地说了到国外工作的事。
• He looked vaguely before him with unseeing eyes.他迷迷糊糊的望着前面，对一切都视而不见。

5 calamity   

n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件

参考例句：

• Even a greater natural calamity cannot daunt us. 再大的自然灾害也压不垮我们。
• The attack on Pearl Harbor was a crushing calamity.偷袭珍珠港(对美军来说)是一场毁灭性的灾难。

6 superstitious   

adj.迷信的

参考例句：

• They aim to deliver the people who are in bondage to superstitious belief.他们的目的在于解脱那些受迷信束缚的人。
• These superstitious practices should be abolished as soon as possible.这些迷信做法应尽早取消。

7 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

8 hardy   

adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的

参考例句：

• The kind of plant is a hardy annual.这种植物是耐寒的一年生植物。
• He is a hardy person.他是一个能吃苦耐劳的人。

9 superstitiously   

被邪教所支配

参考例句：

• Superstitiously he refused to travel on Friday the 13th. 他很迷信，拒绝在一个是星期五的13号旅行。
• Simon superstitiously made the sign of the Tree as he looked around. Simon打量四周的时候，迷信地画了一个树的符号。

10 conceit   

n.自负，自高自大

参考例句：

• As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后，谦虚使人进步。
• She seems to be eaten up with her own conceit.她仿佛已经被骄傲冲昏了头脑。

11 latitudes   

纬度

参考例句：

• Latitudes are the lines that go from east to west. 纬线是从东到西的线。
• It was the brief Indian Summer of the high latitudes. 这是高纬度地方的那种短暂的晚秋。

12 credulous   

adj.轻信的，易信的

参考例句：

• You must be credulous if she fooled you with that story.连她那种话都能把你骗倒，你一定是太容易相信别人了。
• Credulous attitude will only make you take anything for granted.轻信的态度只会使你想当然。

13 divulged   

v.吐露，泄露( divulge的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He divulged nothing to him save the terrible handicap of being young. 他想不出个所以然来，只是想到自己年纪尚幼，极端不利。 来自辞典例句
• The spy divulged the secret plans to the enemy. 那名间谍把秘密计划泄漏给敌人。 来自辞典例句

14 sperm   

n.精子，精液

参考例句：

• Only one sperm fertilises an egg.只有一个精子使卵子受精。
• In human reproduction,one female egg is usually fertilized by one sperm.在人体生殖过程中，一个精子使一个卵子受精。

15 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

16 speculations   

n.投机买卖( speculation的名词复数 )；思考；投机活动；推断

参考例句：

• Your speculations were all quite close to the truth. 你的揣测都很接近于事实。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• This possibility gives rise to interesting speculations. 这种可能性引起了有趣的推测。 来自《用法词典》