亨塞尔与格莱特
Hard by a great forest dwelt a poor woodcutter with his wife and his two children. The boy was called Hansel and the girl Gretel. He had little to bite and to break, and once when great dearth fell on the land, he could no longer procureprocure v.获得, 取得 even daily bread. Now when he thought over this by night in his bed, and tossed about in his anxiety, he groanedgroan vi.呻吟, 受折磨, 受压迫发出嘎吱声 and said to his wife, “What is to become of us. How are we to feed our poor children, when we no longer have anything even for ourselves.”“Ill tell you what, husband,” answered the woman, “early tomorrow morning we will take the children out into the forest to where it is the thickest. There we will light a fire for them, and give each of them one more piece of bread, and then we will go to our work and leave them alone. They will not find the way home again, and we shall be rid of them.”“No, wife,” said the man, “I will not do that. How can I bear to leave my children alone in the forest. The wild animals would soon come and tear them to pieces.”“O you fool,”said she, “then we must all four die of hunger, you may as well plane the planksplank n.厚木板, 支架, (政党的)政纲条款 for our coffinscoffin n.棺材.”And she left him no peace until he consentedconsent vi.同意, 赞成, 答应. “But I feel very sorry for the poor children, all the same.”said the man.
在一座大森林跟前,住着一个贫苦的樵夫和他的妻子,还有两个孩子。男孩叫亨塞尔,女孩叫格莱特。樵夫家里平时已缺吃少喝,这一年碰上国内大规模的资源短缺,结果连每天的生活费都赚不到了。夜里他躺在床上动脑筋,愁得翻来覆去睡不着,终于叹了口气对妻子讲:“咱们可怎么办呢。自己都没一点吃的,又能拿什么去养咱们可怜的孩子。”“听我说,他爹,”老婆回答,“明儿个一大早,咱们把孩子领到森林中最稠密的地方去,在那儿给他们生一堆火,再给他们每人一块面包,然后咱们就去干自己的活儿,让他们单独留在那里。他们找不到回家的路,这样咱们就省心啦。”“不行,老婆,”丈夫说,“这我不能那样做,我不忍心把我的孩子们单独丢在林子里,野兽很快会来吃掉他们的!”“你这个傻瓜啊!”女人说,“不那样,咱们四个全得饿死,你能干的就只是刨棺材板啦!”接着又对他叽哩呱啦没个完,逼得他只好同意了。“可我还是觉得对不起可怜的孩子!”丈夫说。
The two children had also not been able to sleep for hunger, and had heard what their stepmother had said to their father. Gretel wept bitter tearsbitter tears 伤心[辛酸]泪, and said to Hansel, “Now all is over with us.”“Be quiet, Gretel,”said Hansel, “do not distress yourself, I will soon find a way to help us.” And when the old folks had fallen asleep, he got up, put on his little coat, opened the door below, and crept outside. The moon shone brightly, and the white pebblespebble n.小圆石, 小鹅卵石 which lay in front of the house glitteredglitter vi.闪闪发光, 闪烁, 闪光 like real silver pennies. Hansel stooped and stuffed the little pocket of his coat with as many as he could get in. Then he went back and said to Gretel, “Be comforted, dear little sister, and sleep in peace, God will not forsakeforsake vt.放弃, 抛弃 us.”and he lay down again in his bed.
那天晚上,两个孩子也饿得睡不着,听见了继母对父亲说的话。格莱特伤心地哭起来,对亨塞尔讲:“这下我俩完啦!”“别说话,格莱特,”亨塞尔回答,“不要难过,我自有办法!”等两个大人终于睡着了,他便下床来穿上小外套,在下面打开门,溜出房外。正是月光皎洁的时候,房前地上白色小石子闪闪发亮,像真正的银币。亨塞尔弯下腰,尽量往外套口袋里塞了一些。随后他回屋对格莱特说:“放心吧,好妹妹,只管静悄悄地睡好了,上帝不会抛弃我们的!”说完,他也回到了床上。
When day dawned, but before the sun had risen, the woman came and awoke the two children, saying ,“Get up, you sluggardssluggard n.偷懒者, 懒鬼, 游手好闲的人. We are going into the forest to fetch wood.”She gave each a little piece of bread, and said, “There is something for your dinner, but do not eat it up before then, for you will get nothing else.”Gretel took the bread under her apron, as Hansel had the pebbles in his pocket. Then they all set out together on the way to the forest. When they had walked a short time, Hansel stood still and peeped back at the house, and did so again and again. His father said, “Hansel, what are you looking at there and staying behind for. Pay attention, and do not forget how to use your legs.”“Ah, father,”said Hansel, “I am looking at my little white cat, which is sitting up on the roofroof n.屋顶, 房顶, 顶, and wants to say goodbye to me.”The wife said, “Fool, that is not your little cat, that is the morning sun which is shining on the chimneys.” Hansel, however, had not been looking back at the cat, but had been constantly throwing one of the white pebblestones out of his pocket on the road.
天刚亮,太阳还没出来,女人已来唤醒两个孩子:“起床啦,起床啦,你们两个懒虫!咱们这就进林子去拣柴。”说着,她给一个孩子一小块面包,讲:“这样你们就有中饭啦。可别提前吃掉啊,因为你们再也甭想得到任何东西!”格莱特接过面包藏在围裙底下,亨塞尔口袋里已装满石子。随后他们全体上了路,朝着森林走去。走了一会儿,亨塞尔便停下来,回头瞅瞅自己的家,并且一再反复这么做。父亲见了说:“亨塞尔,你落在后边看什么?当心你脚下,别摔跤!”“唉,爸爸,”亨塞尔回答,“我在看我的小白猫哩,它高高地蹲在屋顶上,想对我说‘再见’!”继母讲:“傻瓜,那不是你的小猫,那是早上的太阳照耀在烟囱上。”其实呢,亨塞尔也并非真在看小猫,而是把亮亮的石子从袋里掏出来,一颗一颗地抛扔在路上。
When they had reached the middle of the forest, the father said, “Now, children, pile up some wood, and I will light a fire that you may not be cold.” Hansel and Gretel gathered brushwood brushwood n.矮灌木丛 together, as high as a little hill. The brushwood was lighted, and when the flames were burning very high, the woman said, “Now, children, lay yourselves down by the fire and rest, we will go into the forest and cut some wood. When we have done, we will come back and fetch you away.”
到了密林中,父亲说:“喏,孩子们,去拣些柴来,我给你们生堆火,免得你们冻着。”亨塞尔和格莱特拾来枯枝,堆得高高像一座小山。枯枝点着了,火焰升起老高,这时继母就讲:“孩子们现在躺在火边去吧,休息一下,我们去林中砍木头。等活儿干完了,我们再来接你们回家。”
Hansel and Gretel sat by the fire, and when noon came, each ate a little piece of bread, and as they heard the strokes of the woodaxe they believed that their father was near. It was not the axe, however, but a branch which he had fastened to a witheredwithered adj.枯萎的, 干瘪的, (手等)尽是皱纹的 tree which the wind was blowing backwards and forwards. And as they had been sitting such a long time, their eyes closed with fatiguefatigue n.疲乏, 疲劳, 累活, [军]杂役, and they fell fast asleep. When at last they awoke, it was already dark night. Gretel began to cry and said, “How are we to get out of the forest now?”But Hansel comforted her and said, “Just wait a little, until the moon has risen, and then we will soon find the way.”And when the full moon had risen, Hansel took his little sister by the hand, and followed the pebbles which shone like newlycoined silver pieces, and showed them the way. They walked the whole night long, and by break of day came once more to their fathers house. They knocked at the door, and when the woman opened it and saw that it was Hansel and Gretel, she said, “You naughtynaughty adj.顽皮的, 淘气的, 不听话的, 没规矩的 children, why have you slept so long in the forest. We thought you were never coming back at all.”The father, however, rejoicedrejoice v.(使)欣喜, (使)高兴, 喜悦, for it had cut him to the heart to leave them behind alone.