康伲谕驴薅陌镏峦缜空绞ぜ膊〉母腥斯适隆B端康俪錾谝桓霾恍业募彝ダ铮有∈艿讲还亩源ご蠛螅捎谒加姓蠓⑿择拆铮艿奖鹑说呐按啻伪凰徒跫窳拥姆枞嗽海╪ut house),与真正的精神病人和变态狂关在一起,身心受到摧残。后来,她通过努力,来到一家专门照顾孤寡老人的护理院担任了助理护士的工作,她以自己的勤奋、耐心和对病人无微不至的关爱赢得了同事——护士卡罗尔的关心和爱护,卡罗尔在露丝蒂生病时把她接回自己家里,对她精心照料,终于使她最终战胜疾病,回归美好的生活。
第三部分:我们的金钥匙英语原著的魅力(3)
下面这一段是卡罗尔第一次见到露丝蒂时的印象。
A girl dressed in a green nursing assistant’s uniform stepped out from one of the rooms in front of me。 Something in her stance let me know she was the one the nurse been calling。 Rusty。 She was attractive with blonde; short hair; which fell in place perfectly。 I figured she must about twenty。 Her uniform was immaculate; obviously pressed carefully; and her white shoes were not only polished but buffed to a high shine。 She was thin; her arms muscular; not in a way a man’s were but as though she had worked hard。 She wore her watch low on her wrist on a thick leather band; the face turned in。 She began to walk quickly towards what was now a real commotion。
(一个穿着绿色助理护士制服的女孩从我面前的一个房间里走出来,从她急匆匆的姿态中我知道,值班护士叫的就是她——露丝蒂。她长得很迷人,金发碧眼,短发很得体地披在脑后。我猜想她大约二十岁。她的制服洁净无暇,显然熨得很仔细,而她的白皮鞋不仅打光了,而且擦得铮亮。她身材苗条,可是胳膊上肌肉却很结实,虽不是像男人那样肌肉发达,但是看得出她很下力地干过活儿。她的手表低低地戴在手腕上,表带是很厚的皮带,表盘在手腕的内侧。她开始飞快地向那个现在乱作一团的地方走去。)
这就是露丝蒂。作者几句简洁朴实的话语,就把露丝蒂的形象呈献给读者了。她年轻美丽,有金色的头发;她制服洁净挺括,连白色的皮鞋也擦得铮亮;连她戴的手表也交代了,很厚的皮质表带说明她不富有……英语的表现力让我感叹,以前我总以为汉语在塑造人物形象方面很有优势,可是读了Rusty,我觉得我的英语视野太狭窄了,英语在表现力方面有它很独特的地方。下面这一段里,有一些用法是我以前不了解的,特别是几个并列的短语,给了我很深的印象。
The only constant in my life for all the years was nursing。 No matter how harrowing and painful my regular life was; as soon as I walked on to a hospital floor dressed in white uniform; I felt like Cinderella at the ball。 It was the one place I could be totally me。 The place I could be as smart; as kind; as giving; and as real as I was capable of being。 My patients and I had an understanding past words; we needed each other; we healed each other; and neither of us judged the other。 There was no mask; no pretence; we were just human beings who because of circumstances had to learn to trust each other and so were allowed to really touch each other。 And I had gotten used to that kind of closeness。 Regular relationships compared to those special ones were like to trying to talk to someone through a glass barrier and trying to touch through a wire mesh divider。
(在这些年里,我生活中唯一不变的只有做护理。不论我平常的生活多么可怕、多么痛苦,只要走进护理院,穿上白色的护士服,我立刻就觉得自己是舞池中的灰姑娘。只有在这里我才是完整的。只有在这里我才能轻松,亲切,尽我所能照顾病人。我和我的病人之间有一种相互理解的语言,我们互相需要,我们互相治愈对方。我们谁也不对谁评头论足。这里没有面具,没有伪装,我们只是人,因为各自的处境,我们学会了相互信任,也只有这样,才让我们相互体贴。我已经习惯了这种亲密的关系。这与平常的关系相比,是不一样的,那种关系就像要隔着一层玻璃跟人说话,隔着铁丝网跟人握手一样。)
这是Rusty这本书中的主人公Carol作为第一人称的叙述,她表白了自己作为一个护士对待工作和病人的态度。她已经把自己的一切都和病人联系在一起了。
要知道,在卡罗尔工作的护理院里,那些病人都是有攻击性的吸毒者、酗酒者,当他们疾病发作时,他们会拒绝治疗,甚至随意地打骂护理人员,把他们长长的指甲深深地抠进护士美丽的脸庞……可是他们得到的却是百倍的耐心、爱护和诚意,这些年轻美丽的护士们是用自己的心温暖他们,感化他们……
露丝蒂本身也是癫痫病患者,这是一种随时可能发作,引起昏厥、休克、甚至死亡的疾病,而且,没有十分有效的药物可以控制它的发作,能够使用的都是一些精神药物,这会严重地损害她的健康。露丝蒂的病一次次地剧烈发作,在上班途中的汽车里,在楼梯上,在浴室里……可是由于她坚强的意志和卡罗尔的悉心照料,使她固守着自己战胜疾病的信念。
在我看过的描写人与疾病作斗争的小说中,Rusty给我的印象是最深的。我觉得,读这本小说就仿佛在读一本英语的护理日记,在不知不觉中就跟随了英语最平实的表达。书里的那些句子,好像你一张嘴也能说出来似的,这是一种阅读的快乐。
第三部分:我们的金钥匙英语原著的魅力(4)
在这里我要特别提到十九世纪英国女作家乔治·艾略特(George Eliot)的长篇小说Silas Marner(《织工马南传》),这也是我读的比较早的英文原著,我那时简直被这个故事迷住了。织布工人塞拉斯·马南纯朴善良,勤劳节俭,可是他却到处受人欺凌,先是遭到诬陷,被迫远走他乡,后来辛苦积攒的钱又被人偷走。他于是变得心灵灰暗冷漠,一个人孤零零地住在一间小屋子里,没有人和他交往,他也不知道今天是何年何月何日,可是,在一个大雪纷飞的除夕之夜,他却意外地得到了一个惊喜……
This morning he has been told by some of his neighbors that it was New Year’s Eve; and that he must sit up and hear the old year rung out and the new rung in; because that was good luck; and might bring his money back again…
(这天早晨邻居告诉他今天是除夕,他必须坐起来,听着钟声送走旧年,迎来新年,因为那样会有好运,说不定还会让他的钱失而复得……)
When Marner’s sensibility returned he continued the action; which had been arrested; and closed his door unaware of the chasm in his consciousness; unaware of any intermediate change; except that the light had grown dim; and that he was chilled and faint。 He thought he had too long standing at the door and looking out。 Turning towards the hearth; where the two logs had fallen apart; and sent forth only a red uncertain glimmer; he seated himself on his fireside chair; and was stooping to push his logs together; when to his blurred vision it seemed as if there were gold on the floor in front of the hearth。 Gold —— his own gold—brought back to him as mysteriously as it had been taken away! He felt his heart begin to beat violently; and for a few moments he was unable to stretch his hand and grasp the restored treasure。 The heap of gold seemed to glow and get larger beneath his agitated gaze。 He leaned forward at last; and stretched forth his hand; but instead of the hard coin with familiar resisting outline; his fingers encountered soft warm curls。 In utter amazement Silas fell on his knees and bent his head low to examine the marvel; it was a sleeping child —— a round; fair thing; with soft yellow rings all over his head…Was it a dream? He rose his feet again; pushed his logs together; and; throwing on some dried leaves and sticks; raised a flame。 But the flame did not disperse the vision; it only lit up distinctly the little round form of the child; and its shabby clothing。
(马南的意识又清醒过来,他继续做着那个无法停下来的动作,开门、关门,一点也没有意识到他知觉中的那个空白,也没有意识到这中间发生的任何变化,他只觉得光线渐渐地暗下去,他打着寒战,虚弱不堪。他想起来,他已经在门口站着看了很久了。回到炉子边,他看见那两段木头已经烧得塌了下来,只发出一点点模模糊糊的红光。他在炉边的椅子上坐下,弯着腰想把那它们再支起来。这时候,在他朦朦胧胧的视觉中,好像在炉子前面的地上有金色的东西。金子——他自己的金子——它像当初被人偷偷拿走一样,又神不知鬼不觉地被送了回来!他感觉到心在剧烈地跳动,有好一会儿,他都不能伸出手去抓住那个失而复得的宝贝。那堆金子在他焦虑的凝视中似乎在闪光,变得越来越大。他终于弯下腰去,伸出了他的手,可是,他的手指碰到的不是他熟悉的金币那种硬梆梆的轮廓,而是温暖的、软绵绵的卷发。塞拉斯惊呆了,他跪了下去,低下头去仔细察看这个奇怪的东西:这是个睡着的孩子——一个胖嘟嘟的、漂亮的小东西,满头都是那种柔软的黄色的卷发……这是一个梦吗?他站了起来,把木头往炉子里推了推,又扔进去一些干叶子和树枝,点着了火。可是火焰并没有让他眼前的景象消失,反而把这个孩子小小的、圆圆的外形,还有他破旧的衣服,照得更加分明。)
显然,这个婴儿是有人故意送到马南的小屋子里的,有人告诉马南,要让好运气重新回到屋子里,就要不停地开门、关门。马南在意识不清醒的时候没有发现屋子里发生了变化,于是,这个不幸的生命就被人丢给了这个孤寂和落魄的人。遗弃者是为了解脱自己心头的重负而放弃对这个小生命的所有责任。可是,遗弃者也许没有想到,这个婴儿却像