LESSON 105

THE DREAM OF CLARENCE

克拉伦斯的梦

SCENE—Room in the Tower of London. Enter CLARENCE and BRAKENBURY.

Brak. Why looks your grace so heavily to-day?

Clar. O, I have passed a miserable night,

So full of ugly sights, of ghastly dreams,

That, as I am a Christian, faithful man,

I would not spend another such a night,

Though ’t were to buy a world of happy days,

So full of dismal terror was the time!

Brak. What was your dream? I long to hear you tell it.

Clar. Methoughts, that I had broken from the Tower,

And was embarked to cross to Burgundy;

And, in my company, my brother Gloster;

Who, from my cabin, tempted me to walk

Upon the hatches; thence we looked toward England,

And cited up a thousand fearful times,

During the wars of York and Lancaster,

That had befallen us. As we paced along

Upon the giddy footing of the hatches,

Methought that Gloster stumbled; and, in falling,

Struck me, that thought to stay him, overboard,

Into the tumbling billows of the main.

Oh, then, methought, what pain it was to drown!

What dreadful noise of waters in mine ears!

What ugly sights of death within mine eyes!

Methought I saw a thousand fearful wrecks;

Ten thousand men that fishes gnawed upon;

Wedges of gold, great anchors, heaps of pearl,

Inestimable stones, unvalued jewels,

All scattered in the bottom of the sea.

Some lay in dead men’s skulls; and, in those holes

Where eyes did once inhabit, there were crept,

As ’t were in scorn of eyes, reflecting gems,

Which wooed the slimy bottom of the deep,

And mocked the dead bones that lay scattered by.

Brak. Had you such leisure in the time of death,

To gaze upon the secrets of the deep?

Clar. Methought I had; and often did I strive

To yield the ghost: but still the envious flood

Kept in my soul, and would not let it forth

To seek the empty, vast, and wandering air;

But smothered it within my panting bulk,

Which almost burst to belch it in the sea.

Brak. Awaked you not with this sore agony?

Clar. Oh, no; my dream was lengthened after life;

Oh, then began the tempest to my soul,

Who passed, methought, the melancholy flood,

With that grim ferryman which poets write of,

Unto the kingdom of perpetual night.

The first that there did greet my stranger soul,

Was my great father-in-law, renowned Warwick;

Who cried aloud, “What scourge for perjury

Can this dark monarchy afford false Clarence?”

And so he vanished. Then came wandering by

A shadow like an angel, with bright hair

Dabbled in blood; and he shrieked out aloud:

“Clarence is come! false, fleeting, perjured Clarence!

That stabbed me in the field by Tewksbury:

Seize on him, Furies, take him to your torments!”

With that, methoughts, a legion of foul fiends

Environed me, and howled in mine ears

Such hideous cries, that, with the very noise,

I, trembling, waked, and, for a season after,

Could not believe but that I was in hell;

Such terrible impression made the dream.

Brak. No marvel, lord, though it affrighted you;

I am afraid, methinks, to hear you tell it.

Clar. O Brakenbury, I have done those things,

Which now bear evidence against my soul,

For Edward’s sake; and see how he requites me!

O God! if my deep prayers can not appease thee,

But thou wilt be avenged on my misdeeds,

Yet execute thy wrath in me alone:

Oh, spare my guiltless wife and my poor children!

—I pray thee, gentle keeper, stay by me;

My soul is heavy, and I fain would sleep.

Brak. I will, my lord: God give your grace good rest!

CLARENCE reposes himself on a chair.

Sorrow breaks seasons and reposing hours,

Makes the night morning, and the noontide night.

Shakespeare.—Richard III, Act i, Scene iv.

【中文阅读】

伦敦塔的房间，克拉伦斯和布莱肯巴里上。

布莱肯巴里 大人您今儿何以如此愁眉不展？

克拉伦斯 啊，我这一夜好难熬过，

什么丑陋的形象都有，噩梦连连，

我虽然是个基督徒，

也不愿再度过这样的夜晚，

那种凄凉的景象哪堪受，

即使能换来欢乐逍遥的日子。

布莱肯巴里 您做的什么梦？真希望讲给我听听。

克拉伦斯 我以为自己从塔中脱险出来，

上了要渡海去勃艮第船；

与我同行的是我弟弟格罗斯特，

他从船舱里见唤我上船。

倚着舱口，我们遥望英格兰，

嗟叹万千艰难时世，

在约克郡和兰开斯特郡交战期间，

我们遭受的苦难。当我们从

令人晕眩的舱门口踱步到甲板上时，

葛罗斯特跌倒了；本欲拽他却未能，

他推了我一下，我摔出舱外，

跌进波涛翻滚的大海。

啊，呛水的痛苦好难耐！

浪涛声在耳畔回荡，多可怕啊！

眼前浮现死亡的惨相！

我仿佛看见千百条叫人胆战心惊的破船；

千万人被鱼啮咬；

金条、大锚、成堆的珍珠，

还有难以估量的宝石，无价的珠宝，

全都散落在海底。

有的嵌进了死人的脑壳；在那些洞里，

原先眼珠寄居那里，而今爬着的东西

似乎在轻侮肉眼，而反光的宝石，

冲那泥泞的海底调情，

嘲笑那随处散落的枯骨。

布莱肯巴里 你在弥留的瞬间哪有闲暇，

窥视海底的秘密呢？

克拉伦斯 我倒觉得有呢；我多次竭力

想向魔鬼屈服；可是那嫉妒的血液，

还是淤塞了我的灵魂，不让它出去

追寻广阔、巨大和变幻不定的天空；

可是，我的灵魂被遏阻在这气喘吁吁的躯体里，

几乎就要裂开而将灵魂吐入海中。

布莱肯巴里 极度痛苦难自拔，还没苏醒吗？

克拉伦斯 啊，没有，生命已逝去，梦境却延续；

啊，我的灵魂开始澎湃激荡，

仿佛涉过了忧郁的洪流，

诗人们笔下那神情冷峻的船夫，

把我带进了长夜永复的国度。

迎接我这新来的亡魂的，

是我那鼎鼎大名的岳父大人，华威；

他高声嚷道，“这黑暗的君主国里

能有什么严刑峻法来惩治触犯天条的克拉伦斯？”

说罢不见了踪影；随后一个天使般的阴影徘徊至此，

光闪闪的头发上带着血迹；尖声叫道

“克拉伦斯来了——虚伪、善变、背誓的克拉伦斯！

他在图克斯伯雷战场上刺杀了我；

抓住他！冤魂们，让他去受酷刑！”

随即，我觉得一大群恶魔

围住了我，在我耳畔嚷个不停

那骇人的叫声把我吓醒，我满身颤抖，已然苏醒，

过了许久竟还以为自己身在冥府；

这场噩梦给我留下了可怕印记。

布莱肯巴里 难为您了，大人，您是吓坏了；

单单听您讲，我就怕得不行。

克拉伦斯 喔，布莱肯巴里，我干的那些事，

如今却成了控诉我灵魂的证据；

都是为了爱德华；且看他是如何报答我的！

上帝啊！倘若我深沉的祈祷还不能使您的怒火平息，

您就惩罚我的错误，

那就拿我一人出气吧；

啊，千万放过我那无辜妻子和可怜的儿女。

我恳求你，好脾气的狱官，和我在一起；

我的心魂往下坠，真想把觉儿来睡。

布莱肯巴里 我陪您，我的大人，愿上帝赐您安眠！

克拉伦斯在椅子上渐渐入睡。

布莱肯巴里 忧愁打破了四季的界限，连安眠也成枉然，

把夜间变为早晨，白昼变成夜晚。

（莎士比亚《理查三世》第一幕第四场）