LESSON 46

HARRY AND THE GUIDEPOST

哈里和路牌

1．The night was dark, the sun was hid

Beneath the mountain gray,

And not a single star appeared

To shoot a silver ray.

2．Across the heath^〔1〕 the owlet flew,

And screamed along the blast;

And onward, with a quickened step,

Benighted^〔2〕 Harry passed.

3．Now, in thickest darkness plunged,

He groped^〔3〕 his way to find;

And now, he thought he saw beyond,

A form of horrid^〔4〕 kind.

4．In deadly white it upward rose,

Of cloak and mantle bare,

And held its naked arms across,

To catch him by the hair.

5．Poor Harry felt his blood run cold,

At what before him stood;

But then, thought he, no harm, I'm sure,

Can happen to the good.

6．So, calling all his courage up,

He to the monster^〔5〕 went;

And eager through the dismal^〔6〕 gloom

His piercing^〔7〕 eyes he bent.

7． And when he came well nigh the ghost^〔8〕

That gave him such affright,

He clapped his hands upon his side,

And loudly laughed outright.

8．For 't was a friendly guidepost^〔9〕 stood,

His wandering steps to guide;

And thus he found that to the good,

No evil could betide^〔10〕.

9．Ah well, thought he, one thing I've learned,

Nor shall I soon forget;

Whatever frightens me again,

I'll march straight up to it.

10．And when I hear an idle^〔11〕 tale,

Of monster or of ghost,

I'll tell of this, my lonely walk,

And one tall, white guidepost.

【中文阅读】

1．夜色漆黑一片，

太阳隐藏在灰暗的山后；

天上看不到一颗星，

不见一丝银光。

2．猫头鹰飞过荒野，

一阵尖叫声掠过；

加快脚步向前冲，

哈里的身后已被夜色包围。

3．此时，陷入最深沉的黑暗

他摸索着探寻前路；

此刻，他觉得自己看见

远处一个可怕的怪物。

4．死寂般苍白怪物向上立起，

没穿披风斗篷的它光溜溜，

交叉着赤裸的双臂，

似要抓住哈里的头发使劲揪。

5．看到眼前站立的这个东西

可怜的哈里感到毛骨悚然；

他转念一想，我相信，

好人一生平安。

6．他鼓起全部勇气，

迎面走向怪物；

热切渴望穿过阴沉的黑暗，

他那似要刺穿一切的双眼无比专注。

7．当怪物近在咫尺，

那个令他如此恐惧的幽灵，

他不禁扬起手拍在它身上，

失声大笑不停。

8．站在面前的是友善的路牌，

为指引他流浪的脚步；

这更让他彻底明白，

邪灵无法阻挡好人的路。

9．啊，好吧，他想，

我上了一课，我将好好记住；

无论何事让我恐慌，

我将踏着大步直面而上。

10．当我听到愚蠢的故事，

说有幽灵或鬼怪，

我会讲述这次寂寞夜路的经历，

还有那高高的白色路牌。

注释

〔1〕Heath, a place overgrown with shrubs.

〔2〕Benighted, overtaken by the night.

〔3〕Groped, felt his way in the dark.

〔4〕Horrid, hideous, frightful.

〔5〕Monster, a thing of unnatural size and shape.

〔6〕Dismal, dark, cheerless.

〔7〕Piercing, sharp, penetrating.

〔8〕Ghost, a frightful object in white, an apparition.

〔9〕Guidepost, a post and sign set up at the forks of a road to directed travelers.

〔10〕Betide, befall, happen.

〔11〕Idle, of no account, foolish.