诗翁彼豆故事集 第22期:兔子巴比蒂和她的呱呱树桩(6)

 　　(Note. 2: Professor McGonagall, Headmisrress of Hogwarts, has asked me to make clear that she became an Animagus merely as a result of her extensive researches into all fields of Transfiguration, and that she has never used the ability to turn into a tabby cat for any surreptitious purpose, setting aside legitimate¹ business on behalf of the Order of the Phoenix² where secrecy³ and concealment⁴ were imperative⁵. JKR) （注释二：霍格沃茨学校的校长麦格教授要求我说明，她之所以成为阿尼玛格斯，是因为她广泛研究变形术的各种领域。她从没把变成花斑猫的本领用于任何不可告人的勾当，除了凤凰社的正事，但在这种情况下必须遵守保密和隐藏的准则。——J.K.罗琳注）

　　Whether there was ever a washerwoman who was able to transform into a rabbit is open to doubt; however, some magical historians have suggested that Beedle modeled Babbitty on the famous French sorceress Lisette de Lapin, who was convicted of witchcraft⁶ in Paris in 1422. 是否真有这样一个能变为兔子的洗衣妇，还有待证实。但是，一些魔法历史学家提出，彼豆是根据法国著名的女魔法师莉塞特·德·拉潘的形象塑造巴比蒂的。莉塞特于一四二二年因在巴黎从事巫术活动被判刑。

　　To the astonishment⁷ of her Muggle guards, who were later tried for helping⁸ the witch to escape, Lisette vanished from her prison cell the night before she was due to be executed. 令那些麻瓜看守大为吃惊的是，就在莉塞特将要被处死的前一天夜里，她从牢房里消失了，他们本打算晚些时候帮助女巫越狱的。

　　Although it has never been proven that Lisette was an Animagus who managed to squeeze through the bars of her cell window, a large white rabbit was subsequently seen crossing the English Channel in a cauldron with a sail fitted to it, and a similar rabbit later became a trusted advisor⁹ at the court of King Henry VI. 尽管没有证据可以证明莉塞特是一个阿尼马格斯，从牢房窗户的栏杆间挤了出去，但是随后人们看见一只大白兔坐着一口扬着船帆的坩埚渡过了英吉利海峡。后来有一只形似的兔子成了国王亨利六世朝廷里的心腹顾问。

　　(Note. 3: This may have contributed to that Muggle King's reputation for mental instability. ) （注释三：这大概说明了麻瓜国王以思想不稳定闻名的原因。）

　　The King in Beedle's story is a foolish Muggle who both covets¹⁰ and fears magic. 彼豆故事里的国王，是一个愚蠢的麻瓜，他对魔法既垂涎又害怕。

　　He believes that he can become a wizard simply by learning incantations and waving a wand. 他相信，他只要通过学习念咒语和挥魔杖就能成为一名巫师。

1 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

2 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

3 secrecy   

n.秘密，保密，隐蔽

参考例句：

• All the researchers on the project are sworn to secrecy.该项目的所有研究人员都按要求起誓保守秘密。
• Complete secrecy surrounded the meeting.会议在绝对机密的环境中进行。

4 concealment   

n.隐藏, 掩盖，隐瞒

参考例句：

• the concealment of crime 对罪行的隐瞒
• Stay in concealment until the danger has passed. 把自己藏起来，待危险过去后再出来。

5 imperative   

n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的

参考例句：

• He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
• The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。

6 witchcraft   

n.魔法，巫术

参考例句：

• The woman practising witchcraft claimed that she could conjure up the spirits of the dead.那个女巫说她能用魔法召唤亡灵。
• All these things that you call witchcraft are capable of a natural explanation.被你们统统叫做巫术的那些东西都可以得到合情合理的解释。

7 astonishment   

n.惊奇，惊异

参考例句：

• They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
• I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

10 covets   

v.贪求，觊觎( covet的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• It is the kind of TV news coverage every president covets. 所有总统都垂涎这类电视新闻报导。 来自互联网
• She covets her sister's house. 她对她姐姐的房子垂涎三尺。 来自互联网