Mistborn(adapted excerpt) 迷雾之子(节选)

薛海燕

Step 1   感知·閱读导航

话题导入

本文选自美国作家布兰登·桑德森的Mistborn（《迷雾之子》），这是一套当代奇幻小说，设定人可以通过 “熔金术”来获得不同的能力。千年前，善恶双方决战，邪恶击溃善良， 建立“最后帝国”， 世界随之变迁，天空不间断地下着灰烬，所有植物都转为褐黄，入夜之后，浓雾四起，笼罩大地。Vin和Kelsier集团成员们杀死了不死的御主大帝，成功解放被残暴统治千年的国度，但Vin无意中在升华之井释放了被囚禁已久的邪恶存在，迷雾开始随机杀人、地震不断、火山喷发，世界崩塌。本文主人公Spook是Kelsier集团中的锡眼，是Clubs的侄子，以前总是说着难懂的街头方言， 因此不被重用。出于恐惧，他逃离了城市。在Clubs 死后，出于自责，他通过燃烧锡获得了极其敏锐的感官，一改之前的怯懦，他决心投身至抗击邪恶的斗争中。

奇幻小说是一种文学形式，奇幻一词由英文的“fantasy”翻译而来。奇幻小说与科幻小说的不同之处在于其背景通常较偏向非百分之百理性或是不可预测的世界结构，特点是大胆的想象和探索。布兰登·桑德森曾获得Romantic Times奇幻史诗大奖，并连续入选2006年和2007年美国科奇幻界地位最高的约翰·W. 坎贝尔最佳新人奖。

本文为小说节选，共693字，建议用时12分钟。

阅读目标

1. 理解Spook对Clubs之死的自责的心理;

2. 理解Spook燃烧锡引起的生理及心理变化;

3. 理解文中关于Vin的描写对刻画Spook人物形象的作用;

4. 体会奇幻小说的写作特点，欣赏文中的修辞性语言。

词汇扫障

1. permanently adv. something that is permanent or lasts forever 永久地;永恒地

2. strengthen v. to become stronger; to make sb/sth stronger 加强;增强;巩固

3. reaction n. what you do， say or think as a result of sth that has happened 反应;回应

4. figure v. to think or decide that sth will happen or is true 认为;认定

5. discomfort n. a feeling of slight pain or of being physically uncomfortable 轻微的病痛;不舒服;不适

Stars blazed （猛烈地燃烧） in the sky above Spook like a million tiny suns. They shone through the mists， which had-during the last year-become thinner and weaker. At first， he had thought the world itself was changing. Then he had realized that it was just his feeling. Somehow， by burning tin in his body for so long， he had permanently strengthened his senses to a point far beyond what other Allomancers could attain.

The burned tin had begun as a reaction to Clubs's death. Spook still felt terrible about the way he'd escaped， leaving his uncle to die. Du-ring those first few weeks， Spook had burned his metals as almost a self-punishment-he'd wanted to feel everything around him， take it all in， even though it was painful， or perhaps because it was painful.

But then he'd started to change and that had worried him. But， the crew always talked about how hard Vin pushed herself. She rarely slept， using pewter （白镴） to keep herself awake and alert（警觉的）. Spook didn't know how that worked-he was no Mistborn， and could only burn one metal-but he figured that if burning his one metal could give him an advantage， he'd better take it， because they were going to need every advantage they could get.

The starlight was like daylight to him. Du？鄄ring the actual day， he had to wear a cloth tied across his eyes to protect them， and even then going outside was sometimes blinding. His skin had become so sensitive that each little stone in the ground felt like a knife jabbing （戳） him through the bottom of his feet. The cold spring air seemed freezing， and he wore a thick cloak （斗篷）.

However， he had concluded that these discomforts were small prices to pay for the opportunity to become whatever it was he had become. As he moved down the street， he could hear people turning over and over in their beds， even through their walls. He could sense a footstep from yards away. He could see on a dark night as no other human ever had.

Perhaps he'd find a way to become useful to the others. Always before， he'd been the least important member of the crew-the dismissible boy who served as a handy man or kept watch while the others made plans. He didn't feel annoyed with them for that-they'd been right to give him such simple duties. Because of his street dialect（方言）， he'd been difficult to understand， and while all the other members of the crew had been carefully picked， Spook had joined through the back door since he was Clubs's nephew.

Spook sighed， sticking his hands in his trouser pockets as he walked down the too-bright street. He could feel each and every thread of the cloth.

Dangerous things were happening， he knew that： the way the mists lasted longer during the day， the way the ground shook as if it were a sleeping man， periodically suffering a terrible dream. Spook worried he wouldn't be of much help in the critical days to come. A little over a year before， his uncle had died after Spook fled the city. Spook had run out of fear， but also out of a knowledge of his lack of power. He wouldn't have been able to help during the campaign.

He didn't want to be in that position again. He wanted to be able to help， somehow. He wouldn't run into the woods， hiding while the world ended around him. He was sent to gather as much information as he could about the citizen and his government there， and so Spook intended to do his best. If that meant pushing his body beyond what was safe， so be it.

He approached a large crossing. He looked both ways down the intersecting（交叉的）streets-the view clear as day to his eyes. I may not be Mistborn， and I may not be emperor， he thought. But I'm something. Something new. Something people would be proud of.

Step 1   實践·文本解读

目标呈现

I. Grasp the main content.

What is the passage mainly about？

A. Spook was suffering from the burning of tin.

B. Vin was strict with Spook and urged him to revenge.

C. The mists became worse and a disaster was on the way.

D. The burning of tin strengthened Spook’s senses and he became brave.

II. Understand the structure.

Complete the outline according to the passage.

Ⅲ. Deep reading

1. What caused the psychological changes in Spook？

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2. How did Spook feel about Clubs's death？ Find out the supporting details， please.

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3. Why did Spook think of Vin when the changes worried him？

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4. What can we learn about from the underlined sentence “If that meant pushing his body beyond what was safe， so be it.”？

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5. Spook later played an important role in the restoration of the world in the story. Could you conclude the theme of the excerpt with one popular ancient Chinese expression？ Please translate it into English as well.

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Step 3 运用·读写整合

We can learn from the excerpt that Spook felt quite guilty about his uncle Clubs's death. He believed his escape from the city led to his death indirectly. If your were Spook and had a chance to talk to Clubs again， what would you say to Clubs about your feelings and changes？ Please write a passage with the words below.

reaction， punish， strengthen， figure， discomfort

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Step 4 提升·素養建构

Understand descriptive and figurative language.

Descriptive language responds to our senses： taste， touch， smell， sight and hearing.

Figurative language contains figures of speech such as simile （明喻），  metaphor （暗喻）， personification （拟人）， antithesis （对照）， metonymy （借代）， etc.

Descriptive and figurative language helps make words come to life for readers. Please find out the descriptive and figurative language in this excerpt and find out what kinds of figure of speech they are.