🔊 Sometimes I had a companion in my fishing, who came through the village to my house from the east side of the town, and the catching of the dinner was as much a social exercise as the eating of it.

有时我钓鱼会有个伴儿,他从镇子东边穿过村子来到我家,捕鱼晚餐既是一种社交活动,也如同享用晚餐一样。

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companion /kəmˈpæniən/

n. 同伴,伴侣➕

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social /ˈsəʊʃl/

adj. 社会的；社交的➕

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exercise /ˈeksəsaɪz/

n. 活动,锻炼；练习➕

🔊 One afternoon, I went to Baker Farm to see the place and the man. The farmer was an honest, hard-working man, but of no enterprise whatever; he lived from hand to mouth, as the phrase is. His house was a mean one, and his life a poor one; he was one of those who are always struggling to keep the wolf from the door, and never get their heads above water. I could not help thinking, as I looked at him and his surroundings, how much better it would be for him and for the world if he had been born in a cave and lived on roots, like an Indian, than to have been born in a "free" country, and to have inherited a farm, with its mortgages, and to have to work like a slave to pay for it.

一天下午,我前往贝克农场去看那地方和那人。农场主是个诚实勤劳的人,但毫无进取心；用俗话说,他勉强度日。他的房子简陋,生活贫困；他是那种总是挣扎着防止挨饿,却从未能出头的人。我看着他和他周围的环境,不禁想到,倘若他生在山洞里,像印第安人那样以根茎为食,对他和世界来说,或许比生在“自由”国度、继承一个带抵押的农场、不得不像奴隶般劳作还债要好得多。

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enterprise /ˈentəpraɪz/

n. 事业心,进取心；企业➕

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mortgages /ˈmɔːɡɪdʒɪz/

n. 抵押贷款➕

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inherited /ɪnˈherɪtɪd/

v. 继承（财产、头衔等）➕

🔊 I asked him why he did not sell his farm and go to the West, where he could get land for nothing, and be his own master. He said he did not know; he supposed he should stay here, and work it out. He had a family, and it would be hard to move them; besides, he was used to the place. It was his home.

我问他为何不卖掉农场去西部,在那里可以免费获得土地,自己做主。他说他不知道；他想自己应该留在这里,坚持下去。他有家人,搬家不易；况且,他已习惯了这个地方。那是他的家。

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supposed /səˈpəʊzd/

adj. 假定的,据说的；被信以为真的➕

🔊 What is it, I asked myself, that makes a man content to live in such a place, and to lead such a life? It is not necessity; for there are a thousand ways in which he might better himself. It is not ignorance; for he knows that there are better places and better ways of living. It is habit, sheer habit, and that is the most hopeless of all things.

我问自己,是什么让一个人甘于生活在这样的地方,过着这样的生活？不是出于必需；因为他有千百种方法可以改善自己。不是出于无知；因为他知道有更好的地方和更好的生活方式。是习惯,纯粹的习惯,而这是最无望的东西。

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sheer /ʃɪə(r)/

adj. 纯粹的,完全的➕

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hopeless /ˈhəʊpləs/

adj. 没有希望的,绝望的➕

🔊 The scenery of Baker Farm is pleasantly diversified. In one part you see the river and the meadows, with the mountains beyond; in another, the woodland and the rocky hillside. There are some fine old trees, and plenty of rocks and springs. The place is well watered, and the soil is good. But the house! It is a mere shell, a hut, a hovel. It is not fit for a human being to live in. It is a disgrace to civilization that such a house should exist.

贝克农场的景色宜人而多样。一处可见河流和草地,远处是山峦；另一处则是林地和多石的山坡。有一些漂亮的老树,还有许多岩石和泉水。这地方水源充足,土壤肥沃。但房子！它不过是个空壳,一个棚屋,一个破屋。根本不适宜人类居住。这样的房子存在,是文明的耻辱。

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diversified /daɪˈvɜːsɪfaɪd/

adj. 多样化的➕

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meadows /ˈmedəʊz/

n. 草地,牧场➕

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woodland /ˈwʊdlənd/

n. 林地,树林➕

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hovel /ˈhɒvl/

n. 简陋肮脏的住所,棚屋➕

🔊 The farmer's life is one of drudgery and anxiety. He is up before the sun, and works till after dark. He has no time to read, or to think, or to enjoy the beauties of nature. He is a slave to his farm, and his farm is a slave to him. He gets a living, but he does not live.

农场主的生活是苦役和焦虑的。他日出前起床,工作到天黑。他没有时间读书、思考或享受自然之美。他是农场的奴隶,农场也是他的奴隶。他谋生,但并非生活。

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drudgery /ˈdrʌdʒəri/

n. 苦工,单调乏味的工作➕

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anxiety /æŋˈzaɪəti/

n. 焦虑,忧虑➕

🔊 I sat in his doorway, and talked with him about his affairs. He told me of his struggles and his disappointments. He had tried many things, but nothing had succeeded. He had raised crops, and they had failed; he had kept cattle, and they had died; he had gone into debt, and could not get out. He was discouraged and hopeless.

我坐在他家门口,与他谈论他的事情。他向我诉说了他的挣扎和失望。他尝试过许多事,但无一成功。他种过庄稼,却颗粒无收；他养过牲畜,却全都死去；他欠了债,却无法摆脱。他灰心丧气,毫无希望。

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discouraged /dɪsˈkʌrɪdʒd/

adj. 气馁的,沮丧的➕

🔊 I tried to cheer him up, and to show him that there was a way out of his difficulties. I told him that he might live a better life with less labor, if he would only simplify his wants, and be content with less. I pointed to the woods and the fields, and told him that there was food and shelter for the taking, if he had but the courage to take it.

我试图鼓励他,向他指出摆脱困境的方法。我告诉他,只要简化需求,安于较少之物,他或许能以更少的劳动过上更好的生活。我指向树林和田野,告诉他那里有食物和栖身之所,只需有勇气去获取。

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simplify /ˈsɪmplɪfaɪ/

v. 简化,使简易➕

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shelter /ˈʃeltə(r)/

n. 避难所,庇护处；遮蔽➕

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courage /ˈkʌrɪdʒ/

n. 勇气,胆量➕

🔊 But he shook his head. He was too old to change, he said; and besides, he had his family to think of. They were used to certain things, and would not be happy without them. He must go on as he had begun, and take his chance.

但他摇了摇头。他说自己年纪太大,无法改变；况且,他得为家人着想。他们习惯了一些东西,没有这些就不会快乐。他必须继续走下去,听天由命。

🔊 As I walked home, I thought of the man and his life, and of the thousands like him, who are struggling in vain to get a living from the soil, and who have no time to live. And I thought, too, of the wise man who said, "What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"

在回家的路上,我想到那个人和他的生活,以及成千上万像他一样的人,他们徒劳地挣扎着从土地中谋生,却没有时间生活。我也想到那位智者的话:“人若赚得全世界,赔上自己的灵魂,有什么益处呢？”

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vain /veɪn/

adj. 徒劳的,无效的；自负的➕

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profit /ˈprɒfɪt/

v. 有益于,获利➕

🔊 Baker Farm is a beautiful spot, and might be a paradise if it were in the hands of a man who knew how to use it. But as it is, it is a monument to human folly and shortsightedness.

贝克农场是个美丽的地方,倘若掌握在懂得利用的人手中,或许会成为天堂。但事实上,它是人类愚蠢和短视的纪念碑。

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paradise /ˈpærədaɪs/

n. 天堂,乐园➕

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folly /ˈfɒli/

n. 愚蠢,荒唐事➕

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shortsightedness /ˌʃɔːtˈsaɪtɪdnəs/

n. 短视,目光短浅➕

🔊 Once, as I was returning from a walk to Baker Farm, I was caught in a thunder-shower. I took shelter under a tree, but the rain came through the leaves, and I was soon wet to the skin. I then made a dash for a barn that I saw at a little distance, and reached it just as the storm burst in all its fury.

一次,我从贝克农场散步归来,遇上了雷阵雨。我在树下避雨,但雨水透过树叶落下,我很快便湿透了。于是我冲向不远处看到的一个谷仓,刚到那里,风暴便以全力爆发。

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thunder-shower /ˈθʌndə ʃaʊə(r)/

n. 雷阵雨➕

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dash /dæʃ/

n. 猛冲,短跑➕

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fury /ˈfjʊəri/

n. 狂怒,狂暴➕

🔊 The barn was old and dilapidated, but it served to keep off the rain. I sat down on a pile of hay, and watched the storm as it raged outside. The lightning flashed, the thunder roared, and the rain came down in torrents. It was a grand and awful spectacle.

谷仓破旧不堪,但足以挡雨。我坐在一堆干草上,看着外面的风暴肆虐。闪电划破长空,雷声轰鸣,暴雨如注。那是一幅宏伟而骇人的景象。

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dilapidated /dɪˈlæpɪdeɪtɪd/

adj. 破旧不堪的,年久失修的➕

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raged /reɪdʒd/

v. （风暴、疾病等）肆虐,猖獗；（人）发怒➕

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torrents /ˈtɒrənts/

n. 急流,洪流；倾盆大雨➕

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spectacle /ˈspektəkl/

n. 壮观的场面,奇观；眼镜➕

🔊 As I sat there, I thought of the farmer and his family, and wondered how they were faring in the storm. I thought of the house, and how it must be leaking in a dozen places. I thought of the man's life, and how it was one long storm, with only occasional gleams of sunshine.

我坐在那里,想到农场主和他的家人,不知他们在风暴中境况如何。我想到那房子,它一定在十几处漏水。我想到那个人的生活,它就像一场漫长的风暴,只有偶尔的阳光闪现。

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faring /ˈfeərɪŋ/

v. 进展,过日子（fare的现在分词）➕

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gleams /ɡliːmz/

n. 微光,闪光；短暂显现（gleam的名词复数）➕

🔊 When the storm was over, I went out into the fresh, clean world. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and everything was bright and beautiful. I walked home with a light heart, thankful that I was not as other men are, and that I had chosen a better way.

风暴过后,我走进清新干净的世界。阳光普照,鸟儿歌唱,一切都明亮而美丽。我轻快地走回家,庆幸自己不同于他人,庆幸自己选择了更好的道路。

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thankful /ˈθæŋkfl/

adj. 感谢的,感激的➕

Chapter ten: Baker Farm (第十章:贝克农场)

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