德国学生遇险记（下）

文/华盛顿·欧文 译析/薛省燕 唐伟胜

德国学生遇险记（下）

文/华盛顿·欧文 译析/薛省燕 唐伟胜1

On entering his apartment， the student， for the fi rst time， blushed at the scantiness2scantiness缺乏。and indifference of his dwelling. He had but one chamber—an old-fashioned saloon—heavily carved，and fantastically furnished with the remains of former magnificence， for it was one of those hotels in the quarter of the Luxembourg palace， which had once belonged to nobility. It was lumbered3lumbered (with)（用破旧东西）占满。with books and papers， and all the usual apparatus4apparatus设备。of a student， and his bed stood in a recess5recess隐蔽处。at one end.

[15] When lights were brought， and Wolfgang had a better opportunity of contemplating6contemplate端详，审视。the stranger， he was more than ever intoxicated7intoxicated (by)陶醉的。by her beauty. Her face was pale， but of a dazzling8dazzling炫目的，眼花缭乱的。fairness， set off by a profusion9profusion大量。of raven10raven（毛发）乌黑光亮的。hair that hung clustering11cluster 聚集。about it. Her eyes were large and brilliant，with a singular expression approaching almost to wildness. As far as her black dress permitted her shape to be seen， it was of perfect symmetry. Her whole appearance was highly striking，though she was dressed in the simplest style. The only thing approaching to an ornament which she wore， was a broad black band round her neck， clasped by diamonds.

[16] The perplexity now commenced with the student how to dispose of12dispose of应付，处理。the helpless being thus thrown upon his protection. He thought of abandoning his chamber to her， and seeking shelter for himself elsewhere. Still， he was so fascinated by her charms， there seemed to be such a spell13spell咒语，魔法。upon his thoughts and senses， that he could not tear himself from her presence. Her manner， too，was singular and unaccountable. She spoke no more of the guillotine. Her grief had abated. The attentions of the student had first won her confidence，and then， apparently， her heart. She was evidently an enthusiast like himself， and enthusiasts soon understand each other.

[17] In the infatuation of the moment，Wolfgang avowed his passion for her.He told her the story of his mysterious dream， and how she had possessed his heart before he had even seen her. She was strangely affected by his recital14recital叙述。，and acknowledges to have felt an impulse towards him equally unaccountable. It was the time for wild theory and wild actions. Old prejudices and superstitions were done away; everything was under the sway of the “Goddess of Reason.” Among other rubbish of the old times， the forms and ceremonies of marriage began to be considered super fl uous15superfluous 多余的。bonds for honorable minds.Social compacts were the vogue16vogue流行。.Wolfgang was too much of theorist not to be tainted17taint玷污。by the liberal doctrines of the day.

[18] “Why should we separate?” said he， “Our hearts are united; in the eye of reason and honor we are as one. What need is there of sordid18sordid肮脏的，丑恶的。forms to bind high souls together?”

[19] The stranger listened with emotion: she had evidently received illumination19illumination启示。at the same school.

[20] “You have no home nor family，”continued he， “let me be everything to you， or rather let us be everything to one another. If form is necessary， form shall be observed—there is my hand. I pledge myself to you forever.”

[21] “Forever?” said the stranger， solemnly.

“Forever!” repeated Wolfgang.

The stranger clasped the hand extended to her: “Then I am yours，” murmured she， and sank upon his bosom.

[22] The next morning the student left his bride sleeping， and sallied forth20sally forth 出发。at an early hour to seek more spacious apartments suitable to the change in his situation. When he returned， he found the stranger lying with her head hanging over the bed， and one arm thrown over it. He spoke to her， but received no reply. He advanced to awaken her from her uneasy posture. On taking her hand，it was cold—there was no pulsation21pulsation（心脏、动脉等的）搏动，跳动。—her face was pallid22pallid（人、面色等）苍白的。and ghastly23ghastly可怕的。. In a word， she was a corpse.

[23] Horri fi ed and frantic， he alarmed the house. A scene of confusion ensued.The police was summoned24summon召集。. As the officer of police entered the room， he started back on beholding the corpse.

[24] “Great heaven!” cried he， “How did this woman come here?”

“Do you know anything about her?”said Wolfgang eagerly.

“Do I?” exclaimed the officer， “She was guillotined yesterday.”

[25] He stepped forward; undid25undo解开，打开。the black collar round the neck of the corpse， and the head rolled on the fl oor!

[26] The student burst into a frenzy.“The fi end26fiend魔鬼。! The fi end has gained pos-session of me!” shrieked27shriek尖叫。he， “I am lost forever.”

[27] They tried to soothe him， but in vain. He was possessed with the frightful belief that an evil spirit had reanimated the dead body to ensnare him.He went distracted， and died in a madhouse.

[28] Here the old gentleman with the haunted head fi nished his narrative.

“And is this really a fact?” said the inquisitive28inquisitive好奇的。gentleman.

[29] “A fact not to be doubted，” replied the other. “I had it from the best authority. The student told it me himself. I saw him in a mad-house in Paris.” ■

走进公寓的那一刻，这个学生第一次为自己住所的窄小简陋感到难为情。他只有一个房间，那是一间老式的客厅，因为它是卢森堡故宫区的旅馆，曾是贵族的住所，所以房间雕刻精细，仍遗留着旧时华丽的装潢。房间里杂乱地堆满了书、纸和一个学生所有的日常用具，他的床在墙角的隐蔽处。

[15]打开灯后，沃尔夫冈更有机会仔细端详这个陌生人，他越发痴迷于她的美貌。她虽然脸色苍白，但在乌黑浓密的秀发的衬托下，她美得令人眩晕。她一双眼睛又大又亮，带着近乎狂乱的神情。透过她的黑色长裙可以看出，她的身段非常匀称。她虽然衣着简朴，但却极其动人。她身上唯一像装饰品的物件是脖子上带着的一圈黑色宽边颈带，上面镶满了钻石。

[16]现在学生开始纠结怎么安顿这个要他庇护的可怜人。他想把房间让给她，自己再找其他住处。然而，她的风韵已使他神魂颠倒，他的躯体和魂魄都像被施了咒，怎么也离不开她。她的举止也有些难以捉摸。她不再提起断头台，她的悲伤已经减轻了些。这个学生的殷勤首先赢得了她的信任，随后显然还赢得了她的心。和他一样，她显然也是一个热情的人，两个热情的人很快就彼此相通了。

[17]沃尔夫冈在意乱情迷中向她坦白了自己的爱慕之情。他告诉她自己那个神秘的梦，还说在遇见她之前就爱上了她。他这番表白令她莫名地感动，她也坦白说自己对他也有种说不清道不明的情意。那是个理论狂放、行为不羁的年代。人们已经摒弃了成见和迷信，所有的事情都由“理智女神”说了算。人们开始认为婚姻的仪式和礼节与过去的其他陈规陋习一样，是对高贵的心灵不必要的束缚。当时社会契约正流行，沃尔夫冈本就是个十足的理论家，免不了受到那个时代自由主义思想的熏染。

[18]“我们为什么要分开呢？”他说，“我俩的心已系在一起，在理智上、道德上我们都已结合，还需要什么肮脏的形式把高尚的灵魂绑在一起吗？”

[19]这个陌生人含情脉脉地听着，她显然也从这套学说中受到启发。

[20]“你没有家也没有亲人，”他继续说道，“让我成为你的一切，或者不如说，让我们成为彼此的一切。如果形式是必要的，那就按照形式来——这是我的手，我向你承诺我永远属于你。”

[21]“永远？” 陌生人郑重地问。

“永远！”沃尔夫冈重复道。

这个陌生人紧紧握住伸向她的手。“那么我是你的人了。”她一面呢喃着，一面倒在他的怀里。

[22]第二天一早，在他的新娘还在熟睡的时候, 这个学生就外出寻找一间适合他俩的大房子。他回来时发现这个陌生人的头悬在床沿上，一只胳膊伸出来挡着头。他叫她，她没回应。他走过去唤醒她，以免她这样睡得不舒服。他拉她的手，她的手冰冷——没有脉搏——她的脸色惨白，如同死人一般。总之，她是一具死尸。

[23]害怕和恐慌中，他惊动了整座公寓。紧接着是一片混乱。警察也被叫来了。这个警官走进房间看到尸体的那一刻惊得直往后退。

[24“]天呐，”他叫道，“这个女人是怎么到这里来的？”

“你认识她吗？” 沃尔夫冈急切地问道。

“认识她？”警官解释说，“她昨天被砍头了。”

[25]他走上前，将尸体脖子一周的黑色颈带解开，头颅就滚到了地上！

[26]这个学生突然发起狂来。“鬼，恶鬼已经逮住我了！”他尖叫道，“我彻底完蛋了。”

[27]他们尽力安慰他，但是没用。他认准了一个厉鬼附在尸体上来抓他。最后他精神失常并死在了疯人院里。

[28]到这里，这个满脑子鬼故事的老人讲完了故事。

“这个故事是真的吗？”这个好奇的男人问道。

[29“]千真万确，”老人说，“这个故事的来源绝对可靠，是这个学生亲口告诉我的，我在巴黎的疯人院见过他。” □

Most Famous Dogs in History (2)Bo Obama

Bo， the Portuguese water dog owned by the Obama family， is perhaps most famous for being mentioned in President Barack Obama’s 2008 acceptance speech.

“Sasha and Malia ... I love you both more than you can imagine，” Mr. Obama said. “And you have earned the new puppy that’s coming with us ... to the White House.”

The Obamas took into consideration daughter Malia’s allergies when selecting the Portugese Water Dog—it is considered a hypoallergenic breed.

The Adventure of the German Student (II)

By Washington Irving

1广东外语外贸大学“云山杰出学者”，教授，博士，研究方向为叙事学与现当代美国文学。