02 1984一九八四

His eyes re-focused on the page. He discovered that while he sat helplessly musing he had also been writing,as though by automatic action.And it was no longer the same cramped,awkward handwriting as before.His pen had slid voluptuously over the smooth paper,printing in large neat capitals.

他的目光又回到纸面上。他发现,当他无助地沉思时,他也一直在写东西,好像是不由自主地在写一样。字迹也不似从前那般又小又密、难以辨认了。他的笔在光滑的纸上流畅地写着整齐的字,字母全为大写——

DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER

打倒老大哥

DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER

打倒老大哥

DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER

打倒老大哥

DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER

打倒老大哥

DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER

打倒老大哥

over and over again,filling half a page.

这样一遍又一遍地写着,写满了半张纸。

He could not help feeling a twinge of panic. It was absurd,since the writing of those particular words was not more dangerous than the initial act of opening the diary,but for a moment he was tempted to tear out the spoiled pages and abandon the enterprise altogether.

他不禁感到一阵恐慌。这是荒谬的,因为写下这些特定的词并不比开始写日记这一行为更危险,但是有那么一会儿,他真想撕毁损坏的那几页,连同计划也一起放弃。

He did not do so,however,because he knew that it was useless. Whether he wrote DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER,or whether he refrained from writing it,made no difference.Whether he went on with the diary,or whether he did not go on with it,made no difference.The Thought Police would get him just the same.He had committed—would still have committed,even if he had never set pen to paper—the essential crime that contained all others in itself.Thoughtcrime,they called it.Thoughtcrime was not a thing that could be concealed for ever.You might dodge successfully for a while,even for years,but sooner or later they were bound to get you.

不过,他并没有这样做,因为他知道就算这样做了也没用。无论写下“打倒老大哥”,还是忍住不写,二者没有什么不同。无论他是否继续写日记,也没有什么不同。思想警察一样会找到他的。他已经犯下了——即使他从来没有在纸上落笔,也是犯下了——包含其他所有罪行的根本大罪。人们称之为“思想罪”。思想罪是不可以永远隐藏的。你可能短暂地藏匿一阵,甚至几年,但迟早他们会逮到你。

It was always at night—the arrests invariably happened at night. The sudden jerk out of sleep,the rough hand shaking your shoulder,the lights glaring in your eyes,the ring of hard faces round the bed.In the vast majority of cases there was no trial,no report of the arrest.People simply disappeared,always during the night.Your name was removed from the registers,every record of everything you had ever done was wiped out,your one-time existence was denied and then forgotten.You were abolished,annihilated:vaporized was the usual word.

一直是在夜里——逮捕总是在晚上发生。突然从睡梦中惊醒,一双粗鲁的手在摇晃你的肩膀,炫目的灯光射进你的眼里,床边围了一圈严酷的脸。在绝大多数情况下,没有审判,没有逮捕的报告。人们就这样消失了,而且总是在夜里消失。你登记册上的名字会除掉,你所做过的所有事情的每一个记录都会被抹去,你的存在被否认,然后被遗忘。你被铲除了,被消灭了:“蒸发”是常用的词汇。

单词解析Word Analysis

muse[mjuːz]v.沉思,冥想

例 I sat quietly,musing on the events of the day.

我静静地坐着,沉思着一天中发生的事。

enterprise[ˈentəpraiz]n.计划;事业

例 It seemed to be an ill-judged enterprise.

这似乎是一项不明智的计划。

dodge[dɔdʒ]v.躲闪;回避

例 The girl dodged behind a tree to hide from the other children.

这女孩躲在树后不让其他小孩发现。

annihilate[əˈnaiəleit]v.歼灭;毁灭

例 The human race has enough weapons to annihilate itself.

人类有足以消灭自己的武器。

vaporize[ˈveipəraiz]v.蒸发;(使)汽化

例 You can vaporize it and then condense it back again.

你可以先把它汽化,然后再将它冷凝。

语法知识点Grammar Points

①He discovered that while he sat helplessly musing he had also been writing,as though by automatic action.

整句话为由that引导的宾语从句,从句中又涉及while引导的时间状语从句,表示“当……”。

“as though”好像,仿佛

例 It looked as though it might rain at any minute.

看上去好像随时都会下雨。

②He could not help feeling a twinge of panic.

“can/could not help+doing”不禁……,忍不住……

例 She could not help crying at the sight of her mother.

她一看到妈妈就忍不住哭了出来。

“a twinge of”一阵思绪(通常为不愉快的),文学用法。

例 I felt a twinge of envy for the people who lived there.

我对住在那儿的人产生了一阵妒忌。

③Whether he wrote DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER,or whether he refrained from writing it,made no difference.

“refrain from+doing/n.”忍住;抑制

例 I made a terrific effort to refrain from tears.

我强制忍住眼泪。

④You might dodge successfully for a while,even for years,but sooner or later they were bound to get you.

“be bound to”一定……,注定……

例 Your education is bound to shape your world view.

一个人的教育决定着他的世界观。

经典名句Famous Classics

1.A common danger causes common action.

同仇敌忾。

2.Put another man's child in your bosom,and he will creep at your elbow.

别人的孩子养不亲。

3.A contented mind is perpetual feast.

知足常乐。

4.Money is wise,it knows its way.

金钱聪明,知道路径。

5.One of the best ways to keep friendship is to return it.

要保持友谊,须报之以友谊。

6.Money is the sinews of war.

金钱是战争的命脉。

7.People who live in glass houses have no right to throw stones.

正人先正己。

8.One rotten apple spoils the whole barrel.

一粒老鼠屎坏了一锅粥。

9.Pigs love that lie together.

猪躺在一起不嫌脏。(小人凑在一起臭味相投。)

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