Jonathan Livingston Seagull (2)（在线收听）

Jonathan Livingston Seagull (2)

Written by Richard Bach

The gulls were ¹⁾flocked into the Council gathering when he landed, and apparently had been so flocked for some time. They were, in fact, waiting.

"Jonathan Livingston Seagull! Stand to Center!" The Elder's words sounded in a voice of highest ceremony. Stand to Center meant only great shame or great honor. Stand to Center for Honor was the way the gulls' ²⁾foremost leaders were marked.

Of course, he thought, the Breakfast Flock this morning; they saw the ³⁾breakthrough! But I want no honors. I have no wish to be a leader. I want only to share what I've found, to show those horizons out ahead for us all.

He stepped forward.

"Jonathan Livingston Seagull," said the Elder, "Stand to Center for Shame in the sight of your fellow gulls!"

It felt like being hit with a board. His knees went weak, his feathers ⁴⁾sagged, there was roaring in his ears. Centered for Shame? Impossible! The breakthrough! They can't understand! They're wrong, they're wrong!

"...for his reckless irresponsibility," the ⁵⁾solemn voice intoned, "violating the dignity and tradition of the Gull Family..."

To be centered for shame meant that he would be ⁶⁾cast out of gull society, banished to a solitary life on the Far Cliffs.

"... one day Jonathan Livingston Seagull, you shall learn that irresponsibility does not pay. Life is the unknown and the ⁷⁾unknowable, except that we are put into this world to eat, to stay alive as long as we possibly can."

A seagull never speaks back to the Council Flock, but it was Jonathan's voice raised. "Irresponsibility? My brothers!" he cried, "who is more responsible than a gull who finds and follows a meaning, a higher purpose for life? For a thousand years we have ⁸⁾scrabbled after fish heads, but now we have a reason to live -- to learn, to discover, to be free! Give me one chance, let me show you what I've found..."

The Flock might as well have been stone.

"The ⁹⁾brotherhood is broken," the gulls ¹⁰⁾intoned together, and with one accord they solemnly closed their ears and turned their backs upon him.

Jonathan Seagull spent the rest of his days alone, but he flew way out beyond the Far Cliffs. His one sorrow was not ¹¹⁾solitude, it was that other gulls refused to believe the glory of flight that awaited them; they refused to open their eyes and see.

He learned more each day. He learned that a ¹²⁾streamlined high-speed dive could bring him to find the rare and tasty fish that schooled ten feet below the surface of the ocean: he no longer needed fishing boats and ¹³⁾stale bread for survival. He learned to sleep in the air, setting a ¹⁴⁾course at night across the ¹⁵⁾offshore wind, covering a hundred miles from sunset to sunrise. With the same inner control, he flew through heavy sea-fogs and climbed above them into dazzling clear skies... in the very times when every other gull stood on the ground, knowing nothing but mist and rain. He learned to ride the high winds far inland, to dine there on delicate insects.

What he had once hoped for the Flock, he now gained for himself alone; he learned to fly, he was not sorry for the price that he had paid. Jonathan Seagull discovered that ¹⁶⁾boredom and fear and anger are the reasons that a gull's life is so short, and with these gone from his thought, he lived a long and fine life indeed.

海鸥乔纳森●利文斯顿（下）

    乔纳森着陆的时候，海鸥们正聚集在一起开会，它们显然已经聚集了好一会儿了。实际上它们正等待着。

“海鸥乔纳森·利文斯顿！站到中间来！”长者的话音仿佛是在举行最高仪式。站在中间只代表两种意思：极度耻辱或极度荣耀。因为荣耀而站在中间是海鸥们宣布重要领导人的方式。

当然了，乔纳森想道，一定是早上出去觅食的鸥群看到我破的记录了！可我不需要荣耀啊。我也不想当什么领导。我只想和大家分享我的新发现，想给大家展示一个新天地。

他走到前面。

“海鸥乔纳森·利文斯顿，”长者说道，“站到中间来，将你的耻辱示以众人！”

犹如当头一棒。乔纳森的膝盖发软，羽毛耷了下来，他的耳朵轰轰地响。因为耻辱？不可能啊！我打破了记录！他们怎么不明白！他们弄错了，他们弄错了！

“……因他不顾后果、不负责任的行为，”严肃的声音说道，“他有辱我们鸥族的尊严和传统……”

因为耻辱站到中间意味着他被驱逐出鸥群，被遗弃到远处的悬崖上孤独地过活。

“……总有一天，海鸥乔纳森·利文斯顿，你将明白到不负责任是不可取的。生活不可知也无从可知，我们来到这世上仅为了吃，以及尽量活下去。”

海鸥是不能驳斥委员会的，可乔纳森的声音响起来：“不负责任？天啊！”他大声地说：“作为志在发现并追随生命更高尚意义的一只海鸥，有什么比这更负责呢？一千年来，我们只是胡乱地抢夺鱼吃，但现在我们有了生存的理由——去学习、去发现、去寻找自由！给我一个机会吧，我会让你们看看我的发现……”

鸥群依然不为所动。

“你不再是我们中的一员了，”海鸥们一齐说道，他们全体木然地合上耳朵，掉过背去对着乔纳森。

从此海鸥乔纳森就孤零零地生活了，他飞开，飞得比远处的悬崖更远。他感到悲伤的不是孤独，而是其他海鸥拒不相信有飞行的荣耀在前方等待着他们；他们不愿睁开眼睛看。

每天他都学到更多飞行技巧。他发现，用一个改良后的高速俯冲姿势能找到潜伏在海底十英尺处珍罕而味美的鱼群：他再也不必为了生存求助于那些渔船的老面包了。他练习在空中睡眠，在夜间逆海风急行，从日落到日出之间跨越一百英里的路程。以同样的内力，他飞过海上弥漫的大雾，飞越到顶上眩目而清澈的天空中……与此同时，别的海鸥还只能站在地面上，只知道雾和雨。乔纳森还学会御风高飞，飞入远远的内陆，吃到古灵精怪的昆虫。

他曾为鸥群所寄予的希望，全都独自实现了；他学会了飞翔，从不为其中付出的代价感到过后悔。海鸥乔纳森发现，厌倦、恐惧与愤怒正是海鸥们短寿的原因所在，而因为乔纳森没有这些体会，他活到了高龄并且生活得很滋润。

注释：

1) flock [flCk] v. (禽畜的)群集，成群结队

2) foremost [5fC:mEust] a. 最重要的

3) breakthrough [5breik5Wru:] n. 突破

4) sag [sA^] v. 松弛，下垂

5) solemn [5sClEm] a. 严肃的，庄严的

6) cast out of 赶出

7) unknowable [Qn5nEuEbl] a. 不能知道的

8) scrabble [5skrAbl] v. 摸索，扒寻

9) brotherhood [5brQTEhud] n. 兄弟情谊

10) intone [in5tEun] v. （以拖长的声音）吟咏

11) solitude [5sClitju:d] n. 孤独

12) streamlined [5stri:mlaind] a. 最新型的，改进的

13) stale [steil] a. 不新鲜的

14) course [kC:s] n. 急行

15) offshore [5C(:)fFC:] a. 离岸的

16) boredom [5bC:dEm] n. 厌倦