🔊 I did not see Strickland again for several weeks. I was busy with my own concerns, and if I thought of him at all, it was to congratulate myself that I had nothing more to do with him.

我有几个星期没见到斯特里克兰了。我忙于自己的事情,即使偶尔想到他,也只是庆幸自己不必再与他打交道。

🔊

congratulate /kənˈɡrætʃəleɪt/

v. 祝贺,向…道贺➕

🔊 But one evening, when I was sitting in the cafe in which he was most likely to be found, he came in and sat down at my table. He looked even thinner than when I had last seen him, and his eyes were more sunken, but they had the same hard brightness.

但有一天晚上,我坐在他最可能出现的咖啡馆里时,他走了进来,在我桌旁坐下。他看起来比上次我见到他时更瘦了,眼睛也更加凹陷,但眼神中依然闪烁着同样坚毅的光芒。

🔊

sunken /ˈsʌŋkən/

adj. 凹陷的,下陷的➕

🔊

brightness /ˈbraɪtnəs/

n. 明亮；光辉；亮度➕

🔊 "How are you?" I asked.

“你好吗？”我问道。

🔊 "I'm all right."

“我还好。”

🔊 "You don't look it."

“可你看起来不像。”

🔊 "I'm painting."

“我在画画。”

🔊 "What have you been doing?"

“你最近在做什么？”

🔊 "Nothing much."

“没做什么。”

🔊 He ordered an absinthe, and we sat in silence for a few minutes. The cafe was crowded, and the air was thick with smoke. At last he turned to me with a grim smile.

他点了一杯苦艾酒,我们沉默地坐了几分钟。咖啡馆里人很多,空气中弥漫着浓烟。最后,他带着一丝苦笑转向我。

🔊

absinthe /ˈæbsɪnθ/

n. 苦艾酒（一种烈性绿色酒精饮料）➕

🔊

grim /ɡrɪm/

adj. 阴森的；冷酷的；糟糕的➕

🔊 "I've sold a picture."

“我卖了一幅画。”

🔊 "Have you? I'm glad."

“真的吗？我很高兴。”

🔊 "It was the portrait of the retired plumber. I got two hundred francs for it."

“是那位退休水管工的肖像画。我卖了两百法郎。”

🔊

portrait /ˈpɔːrtrət/

n. 肖像,画像；描绘➕

🔊 "How did you manage that?"

“你怎么卖掉的？”

🔊 "The woman at the baker's introduced me to a friend of hers. He wanted a portrait."

“面包店的女人介绍我认识她的一个朋友。他想要一幅肖像画。”

🔊 "And are you pleased?"

“你开心吗？”

🔊 "Pleased? What the hell should I be pleased about? Two hundred francs won't last long."

“开心？我有什么好开心的？两百法郎也撑不了多久。”

🔊 He spoke with bitterness, but I knew that he was not indifferent to the sale. It was the first time he had ever sold anything, and it meant that he could go on painting for a little while longer.

他语气苦涩,但我知道他并非毫不在意这笔交易。这是他第一次卖出作品,意味着他能继续画画多一阵子了。

🔊

bitterness /ˈbɪtənəs/

n. 痛苦；怨恨；苦味➕

🔊

indifferent /ɪnˈdɪfrənt/

adj. 漠不关心的；不感兴趣的；中立的➕

🔊 We talked desultorily for an hour. He told me that he had been working on a new picture, but he would not describe it. He was as secretive as ever about his work. When I asked him how he lived, he shrugged his shoulders.

我们漫无目的地聊了一个小时。他告诉我他正在创作一幅新画,但不愿多谈。他对自己的作品一如既往地守口如瓶。当我问他是怎么过日子的,他只是耸了耸肩。

🔊

desultorily /ˈdesəltərəli/

adv. 散漫地,无条理地,不连贯地➕

🔊

secretive /ˈsiːkrətɪv/

adj. 守口如瓶的,秘密的,保密的➕

🔊 "I get along," he said.

“凑合过吧。”他说。

🔊 I knew that he was often without food, but he never complained. He seemed to have no interest in material comforts. He lived entirely for his painting.

我知道他经常挨饿,但他从不抱怨。他似乎对物质享受毫无兴趣。他活着纯粹是为了画画。

🔊

material comforts /məˈtɪəriəl ˈkʌmfəts/

n. phrase. 物质享受➕

🔊 At last he got up to go.

最后,他起身要走。

🔊 "Good-night," he said. "I'll see you again some time."

“晚安,”他说,“改天见。”

🔊 I watched him walk out of the cafe. He moved with a slow, dragging step, as though he were very tired. But there was a determination in his bearing that was impressive. He was a man who would never give up.

我看着他走出咖啡馆。他步履缓慢而沉重,仿佛疲惫不堪。但他的姿态中透着一股令人印象深刻的决绝。这是个永不放弃的人。

🔊

dragging /ˈdræɡɪŋ/

adj. 拖曳的；缓慢而费力的；拖延的➕

🔊

determination /dɪˌtɜːmɪˈneɪʃn/

n. 决心,决意,果断➕

🔊

bearing /ˈbeərɪŋ/

n. 举止,风度,姿态；（与某事物的）关系➕

🔊

impressive /ɪmˈpresɪv/

adj. 令人赞叹的,给人印象深刻的➕

🔊 I did not see him again for a long time. The winter passed, and the spring came. I heard occasionally that he was still in Paris, but I made no effort to seek him out. I was engaged in other pursuits, and I had no desire to renew an acquaintance that had brought me nothing but trouble.

很久之后,我才再次见到他。冬天过去了,春天来临。我偶尔听说他还在巴黎,但并未刻意去找他。我忙于其他事务,也无心重拾那段只给我带来麻烦的交情。

🔊

occasionally /əˈkeɪʒnəli/

adv. 偶尔,间或➕

🔊

pursuits /pəˈsjuːts/

n. 追求,事业；活动,消遣➕

🔊

renew /rɪˈnjuː/

v. 重新开始；更新；延长（合同等的）期限➕

🔊

acquaintance /əˈkweɪntəns/

n. 相识,熟人；了解➕

Chapter thirty-two (第三十二章)

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