🔊 I arrived at Tahiti about six months after Strickland had died. I had come on a small trading vessel that made the round of the Society Islands, and I stayed at the hotel kept by Mme. Louvet. While I was having dinner, she told me of Strickland. She had known him well.

我抵达塔希提的时候,斯特里克兰已经死了大约六个月。我是乘坐一艘在社会群岛间航行的贸易小艇来的,住在卢维夫人经营的旅馆里。吃晚饭时,她跟我谈起斯特里克兰。她很了解他。

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trading vessel /ˈtreɪdɪŋ ˈvesl/

n. 贸易船；商船➕

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Society Islands /səˈsaɪəti ˈaɪləndz/

n. 社会群岛（南太平洋法属波利尼西亚的群岛）➕

🔊 I had come to Tahiti because I wanted to see the place where he had spent the last years of his life, and I hoped to find someone who could give me details of his death. Mme. Louvet introduced me to a man called Captain Nichols, who had been with Strickland when he died.

我来塔希提是因为想看看他度过生命中最后几年的地方,并希望找到能向我详细描述他临终情形的人。卢维夫人把我介绍给一位名叫尼科尔斯船长的人,此人曾在斯特里克兰临终时陪伴左右。

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details /ˈdiːteɪlz/

n. 细节；详情➕

🔊 Captain Nichols was a seafaring man with a gray beard and a weather-beaten face, and he had a small schooner in which he wandered among the islands. He was in Papeete for a few days, and I arranged to meet him at the hotel in the evening.

尼科尔斯船长是个海员,灰胡子,饱经风霜的脸,有一艘小帆船,在各岛屿间漫游。他当时在帕皮提逗留几日,我便安排晚上在旅馆与他见面。

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seafaring /ˈsiːfeərɪŋ/

adj. 航海的；以航海为业的➕

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weather-beaten /ˈweðə biːtn/

adj. 饱经风霜的；受日晒雨淋的➕

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schooner /ˈskuːnə(r)/

n. 纵帆船（一种通常有两根或以上桅杆的帆船）➕

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Papeete /ˌpɑːpiˈeɪteɪ/

n. 帕皮提（法属波利尼西亚的首府,位于塔希提岛）➕

🔊 We sat on the veranda and drank beer. Captain Nichols was not a talkative man, and he spoke in a low voice. He had the melancholy of the man who has lived much alone.

我们坐在阳台上喝啤酒。尼科尔斯船长不是个健谈的人,说话声音很低。他身上有种长期独居者的忧郁。

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veranda /vəˈrændə/

n. 走廊；阳台（通常有顶）➕

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talkative /ˈtɔːkətɪv/

adj. 健谈的；多话的➕

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melancholy /ˈmelənkəli/

n. 忧郁；悲伤➕

🔊 He told me that he had first met Strickland in Marseilles, and then again in Tahiti. He had been with him during his last illness.

他告诉我,他初次遇见斯特里克兰是在马赛,后来又在塔希提重逢。斯特里克兰临终病重时,他一直陪着。

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Marseilles /mɑːˈseɪ/

n. 马赛（法国东南部港口城市）➕

🔊 "He was a great painter," he said. "But he was a difficult man to live with. I remember once he threw a glass of beer in my face because I had made some remark about his work. He was a man who could not bear interference."

“他是个了不起的画家,”他说,“但和他一起生活很困难。我记得有一次,我就他的作品说了几句话,他便把一杯啤酒泼到我脸上。他是个容不得干涉的人。”

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interference /ˌɪntəˈfɪərəns/

n. 干涉；干扰➕

🔊 He told me how Strickland had lived in a small hut in the mountains, and how he had painted on the walls. He described the hut and the surroundings.

他向我描述了斯特里克兰如何住在山间一个小棚屋里,并在墙上作画。他描绘了棚屋和周围的环境。

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surroundings /səˈraʊndɪŋz/

n. 周围环境➕

🔊 "He was happy there," he said. "He wanted nothing else. He had found what he was looking for."

“他在那儿很幸福,”他说,“别无所求。他找到了自己一直在寻找的东西。”

🔊 I asked him about Strickland's death.

我问他关于斯特里克兰的死。

🔊 "He died peacefully. He was very ill, but he did not complain. He just lay there and looked at the walls he had painted. He said he was satisfied."

“他死得很安详。病得很重,但从不抱怨。他只是躺在那儿,看着自己画在墙上的画。他说自己很满足。”

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peacefully /ˈpiːsfəli/

adv. 平静地,和平地➕

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complain /kəmˈpleɪn/

v. 抱怨➕

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satisfied /ˈsætɪsfaɪd/

adj. 满意的➕

🔊 Captain Nichols spoke little, and what he said was brief. But from his words I got a vivid picture of Strickland's last days.

尼科尔斯船长话不多,言辞简短。但从他的话里,我对斯特里克兰的最后日子有了生动的画面。

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vivid /ˈvɪvɪd/

adj. 生动的；鲜明的；清晰的➕

Chapter fifty-one (第五十一章)

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