Spoon River Anthology — Page 15

English → Chinese Full Text Level 4/10

You saw me only as a run-down man

你眼中的我不过是个落魄的男人

With matted hair and beard

头发和胡须纠结成团

And ragged clothes.

衣衫褴褛。

Sometimes a man's life turns into a cancer

有时一个人的生命会变成一块癌疮

From being bruised and continually bruised,

因为一次次地受伤、不断地受伤，

And swells into a purplish mass

肿胀成一团紫色的疙瘩

Like growths on stalks of corn.

如同玉米秸上长出的赘瘤。

Here was I, a carpenter, mired in a bog of life

我啊，一个木匠，深陷在生命的泥沼之中

Into which I walked, thinking it was a meadow,

当初走进去时，还以为那是一片草地，

With a slattern for a wife, and poor Minerva, my daughter,

娶了个邋遢女人为妻，还有可怜的女儿米娜瓦，

Whom you tormented and drove to death.

她被你们折磨，被你们逼上了死路。

So I crept, crept, like a snail through the days

于是我爬行，爬行，像一只蜗牛，熬过一天又一天

Of my life.

在我的生命里。

No more you hear my footsteps in the morning,

你们再也听不到我清晨的脚步声，

Resounding on the hollow sidewalk

回荡在空洞的人行道上，

Going to the grocery store for a little corn meal

去杂货店买一点玉米粉

And a nickel's worth of bacon.

和五分钱的咸肉。

"Butch" Weldy

「布奇」韦尔迪

After I got religion and steadied down

自从我信了教、安定下来之后

They gave me a job in the canning works,

他们给了我一份在罐头厂的工作，

And every morning I had to fill

每天早晨我都得去灌满

The tank in the yard with gasoline,

院子里那个汽油罐，

That fed the blow-fires in the sheds

它为棚子里的喷火炉供料

To heat the soldering irons.

用来加热烙铁。

And I mounted a rickety ladder to do it,

我爬上一架摇摇晃晃的梯子去完成这活儿，

Carrying buckets full of the stuff.

手里提着装满汽油的桶。

One morning, as I stood there pouring,

一天早晨，我站在那里倒着油，

The air grew still and seemed to heave,

空气突然静止下来，像是在涌动，

And I shot up as the tank exploded,

油罐爆炸，我被冲上了天，

And down I came with both legs broken,

落下来时双腿俱断，

And my eyes burned crisp as a couple of eggs.

双眼被烧得焦脆，如同两只煎熟的鸡蛋。

For someone left a blow—fire going,

因为有人让一个喷火炉还留着火，

And something sucked the flame in the tank.

火焰就这样被吸进了油罐。

Vocabulary

你: nǐ — You, second person singular pronoun.
眼中: yǎn zhōng — In one's eyes, from someone's perspective.
的: de — Structural particle indicating possession or modification.
我: wǒ — I, me, first person singular pronoun.
不过: bùguò — Only, merely, just; used to downplay something.
是: shì — To be; linking verb indicating identity or existence.
个: gè — General measure word for people and objects.
落魄: luòpò — Down and out, destitute, having fallen on hard times.
男人: nánrén — Man, adult male person.
头发: tóufa — Hair on a person's head.
和: hé — And, together with; connecting words or phrases.
胡须: húxū — Beard or mustache, facial hair on a man.
纠结: jiūjié — Tangled, knotted; also mentally conflicted or troubled.
成团: chéng tuán — Clumped together, formed into a ball or mass.
衣衫: yīshān — Clothing, garments, one's outer apparel.
褴褛: lánlǚ — Ragged, tattered, worn-out clothing in poor condition.
有时: yǒushí — Sometimes, occasionally, at certain times.
一个: yī gè — One, a single unit of something or someone.
人: rén — Person, human being, people.
生命: shēngmìng — Life, existence, the state of being alive.
会: huì — Will, can; expressing ability or future likelihood.
变成: biànchéng — To turn into, become, transform into something else.
一块: yī kuài — A piece of, one chunk or section of something.
因为: yīnwèi — Because, due to, as a result of something.
一次次: yī cì cì — Time and again, repeatedly, over and over.
地: de — Adverbial particle linking adverb to verb phrase.
受伤: shòushāng — To be injured, wounded, or hurt physically or emotionally.
不断: búduàn — Continuously, unceasingly, without stopping or interruption.
肿胀: zhǒngzhàng — Swollen, inflamed; abnormal enlargement of body tissue.
成: chéng — To become, form into, result in something.
一团: yī tuán — A lump, a mass, a clump of something.
紫色: zǐsè — Purple color, violet hue.
疙瘩: gēda — Lump, bump, knot on skin or surface.
如同: rútóng — Just like, similar to, resembling something else.
玉米: yùmǐ — Corn, maize, a common cereal grain crop.
上: shàng — On, above, upper; indicating position or surface.
长出: zhǎng chū — To grow out, sprout, emerge from a surface.
啊: a — Exclamatory particle expressing emotion or emphasis.
木匠: mùjiang — Carpenter, craftsman who works with wood.
深陷: shēnxiàn — Deeply trapped, sunken deeply into something difficult.
在: zài — In, at, located at a place or time.
泥沼: nízhǎo — Swamp, muddy bog, quagmire, marshy ground.
之中: zhī zhōng — Within, in the middle of, among something.
当初: dāngchū — At first, originally, back at the beginning.
走进: zǒu jìn — To walk into, enter by walking into a place.
去: qù — To go, directional complement indicating movement away.
时: shí — When, at the time of, during a moment.
还: hái — Still, yet, also; indicating continuation or addition.
以为: yǐwéi — To mistakenly think, wrongly assume, believe incorrectly.
那: nà — That, those; demonstrative pronoun pointing to something.
一片: yī piàn — A stretch of, an expanse, a patch of something.
草地: cǎodì — Grassland, lawn, grassy ground or field.
娶: qǔ — To marry, take a wife; used for men marrying.
了: le — Aspect particle indicating completed action or change.
邋遢: lāta — Slovenly, messy, untidy in appearance or habits.
女人: nǚrén — Woman, adult female person.
还有: háiyǒu — And also, furthermore, there is also something else.
可怜: kělián — Pitiful, pitiable, deserving of sympathy or compassion.
女儿: nǚ'ér — Daughter, one's female child.
她: tā — She, her, third person singular female pronoun.
被: bèi — Passive marker indicating subject is acted upon.
你们: nǐmen — You all, second person plural pronoun.
折磨: zhémó — To torment, torture, cause great suffering to someone.
逼上: bī shàng — To force onto, push someone toward a desperate situation.
死路: sǐlù — Dead end, path to death, road with no escape.
于是: yúshì — So, therefore, as a result, consequently.
爬行: páxíng — To crawl, creep along the ground slowly.
像: xiàng — Like, similar to, resembling something or someone.
一只: yī zhī — One (animal), measure word for animals and small objects.
蜗牛: wōniú — Snail, a slow-moving mollusk with a spiral shell.
熬过: áoguò — To endure through, survive a difficult period of time.
一天: yī tiān — One day, a single day's duration of time.
又: yòu — Again, also, additionally; indicating repetition or addition.
里: lǐ — Inside, within; also a unit of distance.
再也: zài yě — Never again, no longer; used with negation.
听不到: tīng bu dào — Cannot hear, unable to hear a sound or voice.
清晨: qīngchén — Early morning, dawn, the quiet hours after sunrise.
脚步声: jiǎobùshēng — Sound of footsteps, noise made by someone walking.
回荡: huídàng — To echo, reverberate, resound through a space.
空洞: kōngdòng — Hollow, empty cavity; also meaning void or hollow-sounding.
人行道: rénxíngdào — Sidewalk, pavement designated for pedestrians to walk.
杂货店: záhuòdiàn — General store, grocery shop selling miscellaneous goods.
买: mǎi — To buy, purchase, acquire something with money.
一点: yīdiǎn — A little, a bit, a small amount of something.
咸肉: xiánròu — Salt-cured meat, salted pork or bacon.
自从: zìcóng — Ever since, from the time when something happened.
信: xìn — To believe in, have faith in a religion.
教: jiào — Religion, teaching; to teach or a religious faith.
安定: āndìng — To settle down, stabilize, become calm and steady.
下来: xiàlai — To come down; directional complement indicating settling.
之后: zhīhòu — After, afterward, following a particular event or time.
他们: tāmen — They, them, third person plural pronoun.
给: gěi — To give, provide; also marks indirect object.
一份: yī fèn — One portion, a single share or copy of something.
工作: gōngzuò — Work, job, employment; to work or labor.
每天: měitiān — Every day, each day, daily.
早晨: zǎochen — Morning, early part of the day after waking.
都: dōu — All, both, every; indicates totality or without exception.
得: děi — Must, have to, need to do something.
灌满: guàn mǎn — To fill up completely, pour liquid until full.
院子: yuànzi — Courtyard, yard, outdoor enclosed space near a building.
那个: nà ge — That one, referring to a specific thing or person.
它: tā — It, third person singular pronoun for objects or animals.
为: wèi — For, on behalf of, serving a purpose.
棚子: péngzi — Shed, shack, a simple roofed structure or shelter.
用来: yòng lái — Used to, used for a specific purpose or function.
加热: jiārè — To heat up, raise the temperature of something.
爬上: pá shàng — To climb up, ascend by crawling or clambering.
一架: yī jià — One (ladder, aircraft); measure word for framed structures.
摇摇晃晃: yáoyao huànghuàng — Shaky, wobbling, swaying unsteadily from side to side.
梯子: tīzi — Ladder, a structure of rungs used for climbing.
完成: wánchéng — To complete, finish, accomplish a task or goal.
这: zhè — This, these; demonstrative pronoun for nearby things.
活儿: huór — Work, task, a piece of work to be done.
手里: shǒu lǐ — In one's hand, held within the hand.
提着: tí zhe — Carrying by hand, holding something up while moving.
装满: zhuāng mǎn — Filled to the brim, packed full of something.
汽油: qìyóu — Gasoline, petrol, fuel used in engines.
桶: tǒng — Bucket, barrel, cylindrical container for liquids.
站在: zhàn zài — Standing at or in, positioned upright at a location.
那里: nàlǐ — There, that place, a location over there.
倒: dào — To pour, tip over, empty liquid from a container.
着: zhe — Aspect particle indicating ongoing action or state.
油: yóu — Oil, fuel, grease, any oily liquid substance.
空气: kōngqì — Air, the atmosphere surrounding us that we breathe.
突然: tūrán — Suddenly, all at once, unexpectedly and abruptly.
静止: jìngzhǐ — Still, motionless, at a complete standstill without movement.
像是: xiàngshì — Seems like, appears to be, looks as if.
涌动: yǒngdòng — To surge, flow in waves, move in a rush.
爆炸: bàozhà — Explosion, to explode, burst with great destructive force.
冲上: chōng shàng — To surge upward, rush up into the air forcefully.
天: tiān — Sky, heaven; also means day or weather.
落下来: luò xiàlai — To fall down, drop from a height to ground.
双腿: shuāng tuǐ — Both legs, a pair of legs on a person.
双眼: shuāng yǎn — Both eyes, a pair of eyes on a person.
烧得: shāo de — Burned to the point of, scorched until a state.
两只: liǎng zhī — Two (of animals or paired objects), a pair of.
鸡蛋: jīdàn — Chicken egg, a common food item.
有人: yǒu rén — Someone, there is a person, somebody unspecified.
让: ràng — To let, allow, cause someone to do something.
留着: liú zhe — Keeping, leaving something in place or maintained.
火: huǒ — Fire, flame, combustion; also means anger colloquially.
火焰: huǒyàn — Flame, the visible burning part of a fire.
就: jiù — Just, then, exactly; expressing emphasis or immediacy.
这样: zhèyàng — Like this, in this way, this manner.
吸进: xī jìn — To inhale, breathe in, draw into the lungs.

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