🔊 I had thus learned a second fact of great importance: this was that the planet from which the little prince came is the asteroid known as B-612.

因此,我学到了第二个至关重要的事实:那就是小王子来自的星球是被称为B-612的小行星。

🔊

asteroid /ˈæstərɔɪd/

n. 小行星

🔊 This asteroid has only once been seen through the telescope. That was by a Turkish astronomer, in 1909.

这颗小行星只通过望远镜被看见过一次。那是在1909年,由一位土耳其天文学家观测到的。

🔊

telescope /ˈtelɪskəʊp/

n. 望远镜

🔊

astronomer /əˈstrɒnəmə(r)/

n. 天文学家

🔊 On making his discovery, the astronomer had presented it to the International Astronomical Congress, in a great demonstration. But he was in Turkish costume, and so nobody would believe what he said.

在发现之后,这位天文学家在一次盛大的演示中向国际天文学大会报告了这一发现。但他穿着土耳其服装,因此没有人相信他所说的话。

🔊

presented /prɪˈzentɪd/

v. 提交,展示（present的过去式）

🔊

International Astronomical Congress /ˌɪntəˈnæʃnəl ˌæstrəˈnɒmɪkl ˈkɒŋɡres/

n. 国际天文学大会

🔊

demonstration /ˌdemənˈstreɪʃn/

n. 演示,证明

🔊

costume /ˈkɒstjuːm/

n. 服装,装束

🔊 Grown-ups are like that...

大人们就是这样的...

🔊 Fortunately, however, for the reputation of Asteroid B-612, a Turkish dictator made a law that his subjects, under pain of death, should change to European costume. So in 1920 the astronomer gave his demonstration all over again, dressed with impressive style and elegance. And this time everybody accepted his report.

然而,幸运的是,为了小行星B-612的声誉,一位土耳其独裁者颁布了一项法律,规定他的臣民必须改穿欧洲服装,违者处死。于是,在1920年,这位天文学家重新进行了一次演示,穿着令人印象深刻的优雅服装。这一次,每个人都接受了他的报告。

🔊

Fortunately /ˈfɔːtʃənətli/

adv. 幸运地

🔊

reputation /ˌrepjuˈteɪʃn/

n. 声誉,名声

🔊

dictator /dɪkˈteɪtə(r)/

n. 独裁者

🔊

subjects /ˈsʌbdʒɪkts/

n. 臣民,国民（subject的复数）

🔊

under pain of death /ˈʌndə peɪn əv deθ/

phrase. 违者处死

🔊

impressive /ɪmˈpresɪv/

adj. 令人印象深刻的

🔊

elegance /ˈelɪɡəns/

n. 优雅,典雅

🔊 If I have told you these details about the asteroid, and made a note of its number for you, it is on account of the grown-ups and their ways. When you tell them that you have made a new friend, they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you, "What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies?" Instead, they demand: "How old is he? How many brothers has he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make?" Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.

如果我告诉了你这些关于小行星的细节,并为你记下了它的编号,那是因为大人们和他们的方式。当你告诉他们你交了一个新朋友时,他们从不问你任何关于本质问题的事情。他们从不问你:'他的声音听起来怎么样？他最喜欢玩什么游戏？他收集蝴蝶吗？'相反,他们要求:'他多大了？他有几个兄弟？他体重多少？他父亲赚多少钱？'只有从这些数字中,他们才认为他们了解了他。

🔊

essential /ɪˈsenʃl/

adj. 本质的,基本的

🔊

collect /kəˈlekt/

v. 收集,收藏

🔊

butterflies /ˈbʌtəflaɪz/

n. 蝴蝶（butterfly的复数）

🔊

demand /dɪˈmɑːnd/

v. 要求,询问

🔊

figures /ˈfɪɡəz/

n. 数字,数据（figure的复数）

🔊 If you were to say to the grown-ups: "I saw a beautiful house made of rosy brick, with geraniums in the windows and doves on the roof," they would not be able to get any idea of that house at all. You would have to say to them: "I saw a house that cost $20,000." Then they would exclaim: "Oh, what a pretty house that is!"

如果你对大人们说:'我看到一座美丽的房子,用玫瑰色的砖砌成,窗台上种着天竺葵,屋顶上有鸽子,'他们根本无法想象那座房子。你必须对他们说:'我看到一座价值两万美元的房子。'然后他们会惊呼:'哦,那是一座多漂亮的房子啊！'

🔊

rosy /ˈrəʊzi/

adj. 玫瑰色的,红润的

🔊

geraniums /dʒəˈreɪniəmz/

n. 天竺葵（geranium的复数）

🔊

doves /dʌvz/

n. 鸽子（dove的复数）

🔊

exclaim /ɪkˈskleɪm/

v. 惊呼,大声说

🔊 So you see, it is of no use to tell them about the little prince. You would have to say to them: "The planet from which he came is Asteroid B-612," then they would be convinced, and leave you in peace from their questions.

所以你看,告诉他们关于小王子的事情是没有用的。你必须对他们说:'他来自的星球是小行星B-612,'然后他们才会信服,不再用问题打扰你。

🔊

convinced /kənˈvɪnst/

adj. 确信的,信服的

🔊 They are like that. One must not hold it against them. Children should always show great forbearance toward grown-up people.

他们就是那样。人们不能因此责怪他们。孩子们应该总是对大人们表现出极大的宽容。

🔊

forbearance /fɔːˈbeərəns/

n. 忍耐,克制

🔊 But certainly, for us who understand life, figures are a matter of indifference. I should have liked to begin this story in the fashion of the fairy-tales. I should have liked to say: "Once upon a time there was a little prince who lived on a planet that was scarcely any bigger than himself, and who had need of a sheep..."

但是,当然,对于我们这些理解生活的人来说,数字是无关紧要的。我本想像童话一样开始这个故事。我本想说:'从前有一个小王子,他住在一个几乎不比他大的星球上,他需要一只羊...'

🔊

indifference /ɪnˈdɪfrəns/

n. 漠不关心,冷淡

🔊

fashion /ˈfæʃn/

n. 方式,风格

🔊

fairy-tales /ˈfeəri teɪlz/

n. 童话故事（fairy tale的复数）

🔊

scarcely /ˈskeəsli/

adv. 几乎不,简直没有

🔊 To those who understand life, that would have given a much greater air of truth to my story.

对于那些理解生活的人来说,那会让我的故事更具真实感。

🔊 For I do not want any one to read my book carelessly. I have suffered too much grief in setting down these memories. Six years have already passed since my friend went away from me, with his sheep. If I try to describe him here, it is to make sure that I shall not forget him. To forget a friend is sad. Not every one has had a friend. And if I forget him, I may become like the grown-ups who are no longer interested in anything but figures...

因为我不想让任何人漫不经心地读我的书。在写下这些回忆时,我遭受了太多的悲伤。自从我的朋友带着他的羊离开我,已经六年过去了。如果我在这里试图描述他,那是为了确保我不会忘记他。忘记一个朋友是悲伤的。不是每个人都有过朋友。如果我忘记了他,我可能会变得像那些除了数字外对什么都不再感兴趣的大人们...

🔊

carelessly /ˈkeələsli/

adv. 粗心地,漫不经心地

🔊

suffered /ˈsʌfəd/

v. 遭受,经历（suffer的过去式）

🔊

grief /ɡriːf/

n. 悲痛,悲伤

🔊

setting down /ˈsetɪŋ daʊn/

phrasal v. 写下,记录

🔊

memories /ˈmeməriz/

n. 记忆,回忆（memory的复数）

🔊 It is for that purpose, again, that I have bought a box of paints and some pencils. It is hard to take up drawing again at my age, when I have never made any pictures except those of the boa constrictor from the outside and the boa constrictor from the inside, since I was six. I shall certainly try to make my portraits as true to life as possible. But I am not at all sure of success. One drawing goes along all right, and another has no resemblance to its subject. I make some errors, too, in the little prince's height: in one place he is too tall and in another too short. And I feel some doubts about the color of his costume. So I fumble along as best I can, now good, now bad, and I hope generally fair-to-middling.

正是为了这个目的,我又买了一盒颜料和一些铅笔。在我这个年纪重新开始画画很难,自从我六岁以来,除了画过从外面看的蟒蛇和从里面看的蟒蛇,我从未画过任何画。我当然会尽力使我的肖像尽可能逼真。但我对成功一点也不确定。一幅画画得还行,另一幅却与对象毫无相似之处。我在小王子的身高上也犯了一些错误:在一个地方他太高,在另一个地方他又太矮。我对他的服装颜色也有些怀疑。所以我尽力摸索着画,时好时坏,我希望总体上还算过得去。

🔊

boa constrictor /ˈbəʊə kənˈstrɪktə(r)/

n. 蟒蛇（一种大型蛇类）

🔊

portraits /ˈpɔːtreɪts/

n. 肖像,画像（portrait的复数）

🔊

resemblance /rɪˈzembləns/

n. 相似,相像

🔊

fumble /ˈfʌmbl/

v. 笨拙地做,摸索

🔊

fair-to-middling /ˌfeə tə ˈmɪdlɪŋ/

adj. 中等水平的,还过得去的

🔊 In certain more important details I shall make mistakes, also. But that is something that will not be my fault. My friend never explained anything to me. He thought, perhaps, that I was like himself. But I, alas, do not know how to see sheep through the walls of boxes. Perhaps I am a little like the grown-ups. I have had to grow old.

在某些更重要的细节上,我也会犯错。但这不是我的错。我的朋友从未向我解释过任何事情。他可能以为我和他一样。但是,唉,我不知道如何透过箱子的墙壁看到羊。也许我有点像大人们。我不得不变老了。

🔊

alas /əˈlæs/

interj. 唉,哎呀（表示悲伤或遗憾）

Chapter IV (第四章)