双语·《刀锋》 第五章 四

CHAPTER FIVE 4
第五章 四

The autumn came and Elliott decided to go to Paris for a while, partly to see how Isabel, Gray, and the children were getting on, and partly to make what he called acte de présence in the capital.Then he meant to go to London to order some new clothes and incidentally to look up some old friends.My own plan was to go straight to London, but he asked me to drive up with him to Paris, and since that is an agreeable thing to do I consented and, having done so, saw no reason why I should not spend at least a few days in Paris myself.We made the journey by easy stages, stopping at places where the food was good；Elliott had something the matter with his kidneys and drank nothing but Vichy, but always insisted on choosing my half-bottle of wine for me and, too good-natured to grudge me a pleasure he could not share, got a genuine satisfaction out of my enjoyment of a fine vintage.He was so generous that I had difficulty in persuading him to let me pay my share of the expenses.Though I grew a little tired of his stories of the great whom he had known in the past I liked the trip.Much of the country we drove through, just touched with the beginning of its autumn beauty, was very lovely.Having lunched at Fontainebleau, we did not arrive in Paris till afternoon.Elliott dropped me at my modest, old-fashioned hotel and went round the corner to the Ritz. We had warned Isabel of our arriving, so I was not surprised to find a note from her awaiting me, but I was surprised at its contents：
秋天来临，艾略特决定到巴黎小住一段时间，一方面是去看看伊莎贝尔、格雷和两个孩子过得怎样，一方面则是为了他所说的“回首都重温旧梦”。之后，他打算到伦敦去定做几件新衣服，再顺便探望一下几个老友。我原计划直接去伦敦，但他邀我和他一同开车到巴黎去。这样的安排挺不错的，所以我就同意了。既然如此，我觉得自己不妨也在巴黎小住一下，起码待上几天总是可以的。这一趟旅途轻轻松松，遇见好的餐馆就停下来又吃又喝的。艾略特肾功能不好，不敢喝酒，只喝维奇矿泉水，但他每次都坚持要亲自选半瓶葡萄酒让我喝。他心眼好，自己虽然不能品尝美酒佳酿，可是见我喝得快活，他也感到由衷的高兴。他非常慷慨，我要费许多口舌才能说服他允许我清付我的那一份开销。他津津乐道于他过去认识的那些大人物，听得我有些心烦，但这趟旅行还是令人开心的。穿行于乡间，初秋的景色美不胜收，叫人心旷神怡。在枫丹白露吃过午饭，下午时分才抵达巴黎。把我送到我所下榻的那家普普通通的老式旅馆，他便驱车绕过街角去里茨饭店了。我们提前通知过伊莎贝尔，说我们要来巴黎，所以见到她留在旅馆里的便条，我并不感到惊讶，叫我觉得惊讶的是便条上写的内容：

Come round the moment you get in. Something terrible has happened.Don't bring Uncle Elliott.For God's sake come as soon as you can.
见条后速来。出大事了。别把艾略特舅舅带来。看在上帝的分上，快来吧！

I am not less curious than anyone else, but I had to have a wash and put on a clean shirt；then I took a taxi and went round to the apartment in the Rue St. Guillaume.I was shown into the drawing-room.Isabel sprang to her feet.
我的好奇心之强烈不亚于任何人，但我总得先洗洗，换上件干净衣服呀。整理完毕，我就搭上一辆出租车到圣纪尧姆大街的那幢公寓楼去了。抵达后，我被引进了客厅里。伊莎贝尔见了我，立刻跳起来。

“Where have you been all this time?I've been waiting for hours.”
“你这是到哪儿去了？我都等你几个小时了。”

It was five o'clock and, before I could answer, the butler brought in the tea-things. Isabel, her hands clenched, watched him with impatience.I couldn't imagine what was the matter.
此时是下午五点钟。我还没有来得及回答，管家就把茶具送了来。伊莎贝尔双手紧握在一起，不耐烦地看着管家摆茶具。我想象不出究竟出了什么事。

“I've only just arrived. We dawdled over lunch at Fontainebleau.”
“我们刚到，中途在枫丹白露吃了顿午饭，耽搁了一下。”

“God, how slow he is. Maddening！”said Isabel.
“上帝呀，摆个东西怎么这么慢！快把人急疯了。”伊莎贝尔说。

The man placed the salver with the teapot and the sugar basin and the cups on the table and with what really was exasperating deliberation arranged around it plates of bread and butter, cakes, and cookies. He went out and closed thedoor behind him.
管家先将托盘连同茶壶放在桌子上，然后摆上糖缸和茶杯，再把一盘盘的面包、黄油、蛋糕、甜饼放在旁边，动作慢悠悠的，的确叫人着恼。做完这一切，他走出客厅，随手关上了门。

“Larry's going to marry Sophie Macdonald.”
“拉里要跟索菲·麦克唐纳结婚了。”

“Who's she?”
“索菲·麦克唐纳是谁？”

“Don't be so stupid，”cried Isabel, her eyes flashing with anger.“That drunken slut we met at that filthy café you took us to.God knows why you took us to a place like that.Gray was disgusted.”
“别装蒜了！”伊莎贝尔大叫一声，眼里喷射出怒火来，“就是你带我们去的那家肮脏咖啡馆里碰见的那个喝醉酒的荡妇。天知道你为什么把我们带到那种地方去。那一趟叫格雷恶心透了。”

“Oh, you mean your Chicago friend?”I said, ignoring her unjust reproach.“How d'you know?”
“哦，你指的是你们那个芝加哥的朋友吧？”我没理会她的不公正责备，这样问道，“你怎么知道他们要结婚？”

“How should I know?He came and told me himself yesterday afternoon. I've been frantic ever since.”
“我怎么知道？拉里昨天下午跑来，是他亲口告诉我的。我都快气疯了。”

“Supposing you sat down, gave me a cup of tea, and told me all about it.”
“你不妨坐下来，给我倒杯茶，慢慢讲给我听。”

“Help yourself.”
“茶还是你自己倒吧。”

She sat behind the tea-table and watched me irritably while I poured myself out a cup. I made myself comfortable on a small sofa by the fireplace.
她一屁股坐到茶桌旁，气哼哼地看着我倒茶。倒完茶，我舒舒服服地坐在了壁炉跟前的一张小沙发上。

“We haven't seen so much of him lately, since we came back from Dinard, I mean；he came up there for a few days, but wouldn't stay with us, he stayed at a hotel. He used to come down to the beach and play with the children.They're crazy about him.We played golf at St.Briac.Gray asked him one day if he'd seen Sophie again.
最近不常见他——我指的是从迪纳尔返回之后。他去迪纳尔待了几天，不肯跟我们住在一起，而是下榻于一家旅馆。那几天，他常到海滩上陪孩子们玩。孩子们十分喜欢他。我们还曾经到圣布里亚克打过高尔夫球。一天，格雷问他再见到过索菲没有。

“‘Yes, I've seen her several times，'he said.
‘见过，见过好几次呢。’他回答说。

“‘Why?'I asked.
‘为什么要见她？’我问。

“‘She's an old friend，'he said.
‘她是个老朋友嘛。’他说。

“‘If I were you I wouldn't waste my time on her，'I said.
‘我要是你，就决不会在她身上浪费时间。’我说。

“Then he smiled. You know how he smiles, as though he thought what you'd said funny, though it isn't funny at all.
他听了微微一笑。你知道他是怎么笑的，就好像你说的话很滑稽一样（其实一点也不滑稽）。

“‘But you're not me，'he said.
‘可是，你不是我呀。’他说。

“I shrugged my shoulders and changed the conversation. I never gave the matter another thought.You can imagine my horror when he came here and told me they were going to be married.
我当时耸了耸肩膀，转到别的话题上了。之后再也没有多想过。当他跑来告诉我，说他们打算结婚时，你可以想象得出我有多么震惊。

“‘You can't, Larry，'I said.‘You can't.'
‘你不能跟她结婚，拉里。’我说道，‘你不能这样做。’

“‘I'm going to，'he said as calmly as if he was going to have a second helping of potatoes.‘And I want you to be very nice to her, Isabel.'
‘我已经决定了。’他说道，那股若无其事的劲儿，就像是在点菜，吩咐再来一份炒土豆一样，‘我想让你对她好一些，伊莎贝尔。’

“‘That's asking too much，'I said.‘You're crazy. She's bad, bad, bad.'”
“‘这个要求太过分了。’我说道，‘你发疯了。她是个坏女人，非常坏。’”

“What makes you think that?”I interrupted.
“你怎么会这么想？”我打断她的话说道。

Isabel looked at me with flashing eyes.
伊莎贝尔望着我，眼睛里直冒火。

“She's soused from morning till night. She goes to bed with every tough who asks her.”
“她从早到晚喝得烂醉。不管谁让她陪睡，她就跟人家上床。”

“That doesn't mean she's bad. Quite a number of highly respected citizens get drunk and have a liking for rough trade.They're bad habits, like biting one's nails, but I don't know that they’re worse than that.I call a person bad who lies and cheats and is unkind.”
“这并不能说明她就是坏人。不少受人尊敬的人也喜欢酗酒，喜欢干一些下流的事情。这是坏习惯，就跟有人喜欢咬指甲一样。我就不知道这样的人能坏到哪儿去。我觉得只有那些坑蒙拐骗、丧尽天良的人才是坏人。”

“If you're going to take her part I'll kill you.”
“你要是一味偏袒她，看我不收拾你。”

“How did Larry meet her again?”
“拉里是怎么又和她见的面？”

“He found her address in the phone-book. He went to see her.She was sick, and no wonder, with the life she leads.He got a doctor and had someone in to look after her.That's how it started.He says she's given up drink；the damned fool thinks she's cured.”
“他在电话簿上找到她的住址，便跑去看她。她正在生病——这也难怪，她那样糟践自己，哪能不病。他为她请医生，并安排人伺候她。他们就这样来往起来。拉里说她戒了酒。这个笨蛋竟然认为他把她给治好了。”

“Have you forgotten what Larry did for Gray?He's cured him, hasn't he?”
“你忘了拉里给格雷治病的事了吗？难道不是他把格雷的病治好了吗？”

“That's different. Gray wanted to be cured.She doesn't.”
“那是两码事。格雷渴望被治好，而她没有这个意愿。”

“How d'you know?”
“你怎么知道她没有？”

“Because I know women. When a woman goes to pieces like that she's done for；she can never get back.If Sophie's what she is, it's because she was like that always.D'you think she'll stick to Larry?Of course not.Sooner or later she’ll break out.It’s in her blood.It’s a brute she wants, that’s what excites her, and it’s a brute she’ll go after.She’ll lead Larry a hell of a life.”
“因为我了解女人。一个女人堕落到那种地步，就会破罐子破摔，是决不愿走回头路的。索菲今日的堕落，完全是本性使然。你以为她会对拉里忠贞不渝吗？当然不会。迟早有一天她会跟拉里分手。这是由她的本性决定的。她喜欢的是流氓，因为这让她感到刺激，所以她非流氓不要。她会把拉里置于水深火热之中。”

“I think it's very probable, but I don't know what you can do about it. He's going into this with his eyes open.”
“这种情况很有可能会出现。不过，咱们也只能干瞪眼，爱莫能助。他这是明知山有虎偏向虎山行呀。”

“I can do nothing about it, but you can.”
“我是爱莫能助，你却可以帮助他。”

“I?”
“我？”

“Larry likes you and he listens to what you say. You're the only person who has any influence over him.You know the world.Go to him and tell him that he can't make such a fool of himself.Tell him that it'll ruin him.”
“拉里喜欢你，听你的话。只有你能够对他施加影响。你见过世面，不妨去劝劝他，让他不要做傻事，免得毁掉自己的生活。”

“He'll only tell me that it's no business of mine and he'll be quite right.”
“他会叫我少管闲事——他如此说不无道理。”

“But you like him, at least you're interested in him, you can't sit by and let him make a hopeless mess of his life.”
“可是，你喜欢他呀，至少可以说对他感兴趣呀，总不能袖手旁观，眼睁睁看着他一步步走进泥潭。”

“Gray's his oldest and most intimate friend. I don't think it'll do any good, but I should have thought Gray was the best person to speak to him.”
“格雷是他的老朋友，和他的关系最铁。我认为劝说是劝不动的，但如果要劝，格雷恐怕也是最合适的人选。”

“Oh, Gray，”she said impatiently.
“哼，格雷！”她不耐烦地哼了声鼻子。

“You know it may not turn out so badly as you think. I've known two or three fellows, one in Spain and two in the East, who married whores, and they made them very good wives.They were grateful to their husbands, for the security they gave them, I mean, and they of course knew what pleases a man.”
“话又说回来，事情也不一定像你想的那样一团糟。我认识两三个人——一个是在西班牙，两个是在东方，他们娶了妓女当老婆，小日子过得挺好。那些女子对丈夫感激涕零，因为丈夫给她们提供了一个安乐窝。她们投桃报李，给丈夫带来了那方面的欢乐。”

“You make me tired. D'you think I sacrificed myself to let Larry fall into the hands of a raging nymphomaniac?”
“你的话叫人听了心烦。你以为我牺牲了自己的利益，就是为了让拉里落入一个不知廉耻的荡妇手中？”

“How did you sacrifice yourself?”
“你是怎样牺牲自己利益的？”

“I gave Larry up for the one and only reason that I didn't want to stand in his way.”
“我放弃拉里只为了一个原因，那就是我不想影响他的前途。”

“Come off it, Isabel. You gave him up for a square-cut diamond and a sable coat.”
“得了吧，伊莎贝尔。你放弃他是为了方形钻戒和貂皮大衣。”

The words were hardly out of my mouth when a plate of bread and butter came flying at my head. By sheer luck I caught the plate, but the bread and butter was scattered on the floor.I got up and put the plate back on the table.
我的话刚出口，就有一盘面包和黄油朝着我的脑袋飞了过来。纯粹凭运气，我一把接住了盘子，面包和黄油却啪嗒落在了地板上。我站起身，将盘子放回到桌子上。

“Your uncle Elliott wouldn't have thanked you if you'd broken one of his Crown Derby plates. They were made for the third Duke of Dorset and they're almost priceless.”
“你把艾略特舅舅的皇冠德贝瓷盘打破一只，他可不会饶你的。这些瓷盘当初是特为第三代多塞特公爵烧制的，几乎是无价之宝。”

“Pick up the bread and butter，”she snapped.
“把黄油和面包捡起来！”她怒气冲冲地说。

“Pick it up yourself，”I said, seating myself again on the sofa.
“要捡你自己捡。”我说完又坐回到了沙发上。

She got up and, fuming, picked up the scattered pieces.
她站了起来，一边生着闷气，一边弯腰捡散落了一地的面包和黄油。

“And you call yourself an English gentleman，”she exclaimed, savagely.
“你还自称是英国绅士呢。”她愤怒地嚷嚷道。

“No, that's a thing I've never done in all my life.”
“错了，我可从来没有这么称呼过自己。”

“Get the hell out of here. I never want to see you again.I hate the sight of you.”
“快从这里滚出去。我再也不想见到你了。看见你就叫我讨厌。”

“I'm sorry for that, because the sight of you always gives me pleasure. Have you ever been told that your nose is exactly like that of the Psyche in the museum of Naples, and that's the loveliest representation of virginal beauty that ever existed.You've got exquisite legs, so long and shapely, and I never cease to be surprised at them, because they were thick and lumpy when you were a girl, I can't imagine how you've managed it.”
“这太令人遗憾了。我倒是一直都很喜欢见你。不知是否有人告诉过你，你的鼻子跟那不勒斯博物馆里塞姬石像的鼻子一模一样。这座石像是存世的代表少女美的最优秀作品。你的腿非常优美，修长匀称，我见了总是不由得感到惊奇——你当姑娘的时候，两条腿粗壮粗壮的，简直想象不来怎么变得这么漂亮。”

“An iron will and the grace of God，”she said angrily.
“靠的是坚强的意志和上帝的恩泽。”她怒气冲冲地说。

“But of course your hands are your most fascinating feature. They're so slim and so elegant.”
“不过，要说迷人，还是你的手最迷人了，那么纤细，那么典雅。”

“I was under the impression you thought them too big.”
“我有个印象，好像你觉得我的手太大了。”

“Not for your height and build. I'm always amazed at the infinite grace with which you use them.Whether by nature or by art you never make a gesture without imparting beauty to it.They're like flowers sometimes and sometimes like birds on the wing.They're more expressive than any words you can say.They're like the hands of El Greco's portraits；in fact, when I look at them I’m inclined to believe Elliott’s highly improbable story of your having an ancestor who was a Spanish grandee.”
“就你这样的个头和身段来说，这双手不算大。你的手运作起来，简直优雅极了，令人不胜赞叹。不管是有意还是无意，你的手一举一动都有一种美感。它们有时候像鲜花绽放，有时候似飞鸟展翅，比任何语言都更富于表现力，很像埃尔·格列柯肖像画里主人公的手。实际上，艾略特曾说你家祖上有个人是西班牙贵族，我原来不信，可是看到你的手我就相信了。”

She looked up crossly.
她气恼地瞥了我一眼。

“What are you talking about?That's the first I've heard of it.”
“你在胡扯些什么呀？这我还是第一次听说。”

I told her about the Count de Lauria and Queen Mary's maid of honour from whose issue in the female line Elliott traced his descent. Meanwhile Isabel contemplated her long fingers and her manicured painted nails with complacency.
我把劳里亚伯爵娶玛丽王后侍女的事给她讲了一遍，说那就是艾略特母系一族的先祖。伊莎贝尔一面听，一面自豪地端详着自己的长手指和修剪涂染过的指甲。

“One must be descended from someone，”she said. Then with a tiny chuckle, giving me a mischievous look in which no trace of rancour remained, she added：“You lousy bastard.”
“一个人总得有先祖的。”她说完，扑哧一笑，顽皮地看了我一眼，目光里完全没有了怨气。之后，她又娇嗔地说：“你真坏！”

So easy is it to make a woman see reason if you only tell her the truth.
对于女人，只要说话说得得当，很容易叫她明白事理。

“There are moments when I don't positively dislike you，”said Isabel.
“有些时候，我并不是真的讨厌你。”她说道。

She came and sat on the sofa beside me and, slipping her arm through mine, leant over to kiss me. I withdrew my cheek.
随后，她走过来坐到我身旁，挽起我的胳膊，探过身子就要吻我。我急忙将脸扭开。

“I will not have my face smeared with lipstick，”I said.“If you want to kiss me, kiss me on the lips, which is what merciful Providence intended them for.”
“我可不愿让脸颊沾上口红。”我说道，“要吻你就吻我的嘴唇吧，这是仁慈的上帝让人们接吻的地方。”

She giggled and, her hand turning my head towards her, with her lips pressed a thin layer of paint on mine. The sensation was far from unpleasant.
她咯咯笑了几声，然后把我的脸扳过来，将芳唇印在我的嘴唇上，留下了一道细细的口红的痕印。我感觉美滋滋的。

“Now you've done that, perhaps you'll tell me what it is you want.”
“好啦，心意领了。现在说说你想让我做什么吧。”

“Advice.”
“想听听你的锦囊妙计。”

“I'm quite willing to give you that, but I don't think for a moment you'll take it. There's only one thing you can do and that is to make the best of a bad job.”
“我十分愿意效力，只怕你一时听不进去。只有一条锦囊妙计献给你：顺其自然。”

Flaring up again, she snatched her arm away and, getting up, flung herself into a chair on the other side of the fireplace.
她听了又火冒三丈，蹭地将胳膊抽回去，站起身，跑到壁炉的另一侧，一屁股坐回了椅子上。

“I'm not going to sit by and let Larry ruin himself. I'll stick at nothing to prevent him from marrying that slut.”
“我可不能袖手旁观，眼睁睁看着拉里毁掉自己。我要做出一切努力阻止他和那个荡妇结婚。”

“You won't succeed. You see, he's enthralled by one of the most powerful emotions that can beset the human breast.”
“你不会成功的。你可以看到，他已经被感情迷了心窍，而那种感情是人类胸腔里最炽热的感情。”

“You don't mean to say you think he's in love with her?”
“你不会是说他爱上她了吧？”

“No. That would be trifling in comparison.”
“不是那意思。与这种感情相比，爱情便微不足道了。”

“Well?”
“此话怎讲？”

“Have you ever read the New Testament?”
“你读过《新约全书》没有？”

“I suppose so.”
“读过一些吧。”

“D'you remember how Jesus was led into the wilderness and fasted forty days?Then, when he was a-hungered, the devil came to him and said：If thou be the son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But Jesus resisted the temptation.Then the devil set him on a pinnacle of the temple and said to him：If thou be the son of God, cast thyself down.For angels had charge of him and would bear him up.But again Jesus resisted.Then the devil took him into a high mountain and showed him the kingdoms of the world and said that he would give them to him if he would fall down and worship him.But Jesus said：Get thee hence, Satan.That's the end of the story according to the good simple Matthew.But it wasn't.The devil was sly and he came to Jesus once more and said：If thou wilt accept shame and disgrace, scourging, a crown of thorns and death on the cross, thou shalt save the human race, for greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.Jesus fell.The devil laughed till his sides ached, for he knew the evil men would commit in the name of their redeemer.”
“基督曾经受到诱惑走进旷野，一连四十天没有吃饭的故事你还记得吗？就在他饥饿难忍的时候，魔鬼来到他跟前说：‘如果你真是上帝之子，那你不妨将这些石头变为面包。’可是基督顶住了诱惑。接下来，魔鬼把他放在圣殿的屋顶上对他说：‘如果你真是上帝之子，那你不妨从这儿跳下去。有天使的保护，会把你托起来的。’而基督又一次顶住了诱惑。随即，魔鬼把他带到了一座高山上，把世界上的各个王国指给他看，说如果基督愿意跪下来参拜他，就把那些国家赐给基督号令。可是基督正色说道：‘滚开吧，撒旦！’根据善良、单纯的马太的记载，故事的结尾就是这样。实际上，故事并没有结束。魔鬼很狡猾，他又来找基督，对他说：如果你愿意接受羞辱、鞭打，愿意戴上荆棘编的帽冠，最后被钉死在十字架上，那你便可以解救全人类，因为为了朋友牺牲自己的生命，是人所能表现出的最伟大的爱。这次，基督中计了。魔鬼笑得肚子都痛了，因为他知道坏人会假借为人类赎罪的名义来干坏事的。”

Isabel looked at me indignantly.
伊莎贝尔愠怒地望着我。

“Where on earth did you get that?”
“你这段故事到底出自于何处？”

“Nowhere. I've invented it on the spur of the moment.”
“就出自于这儿。是我临时编出来的。”

“I think it's idiotic and blasphemous.”
“我觉得这故事荒唐、亵渎神明。”

“I only wanted to suggest to you that self-confidence is a passion so overwhelming that beside it even lust and hunger are trifling. It whirls its victim to destruction in the highest affirmation of his personality.The object doesn't matter；it may be worth while or it may be worthless.No wine is so intoxicating, no love so shattering, no vice so compelling.When he sacrifices himself man for a moment is greater than God, for how can God, infinite and omnipotent, sacrifice himself?At best he can only sacrifice his only begotten son.”
“我只是想向你指出，自我牺牲是压倒一切的情感，连淫欲和饥饿跟它相比都会显得微不足道。它最大程度地使人格高尚化，诱惑人走向毁灭。它无视目的，不管值得不值得它都会这样做。没有一种美酒能令人如此陶醉，没有一种爱情能使人如此心碎，没有一种罪恶能叫人如此无法抵御。一个人一旦牺牲掉自己，顷刻就会变得比上帝还伟大，因为上帝是无限和万能的，怎么能牺牲自己呢？上帝顶多只能牺牲自己唯一的儿子。”

“Oh, Christ, how you bore me，”said Isabel.
“哎，老天爷，这话说得太乏味了。”伊莎贝尔说道。

I paid no attention.
我没理会她，继续说了下去：

“How can you suppose that common sense or prudence will have any effect on Larry when he's in the grip of a passion like that?You don't know what he's been seeking all these years. I don't know either, I only suspect.All theseyears of labour, all these experiences he garnered weigh nothing in the balance now they're set against his desire-oh, it’s more than a desire, his urgent, clamorous need to save the soul of a wanton woman whom he’d known as an innocent child.I think you’re right, I think he’s undertaking a hopeless job；with his acute sensibility he’ll suffer the tortures of the damned；his life’s work, whatever it may be, will remain undone.The ignoble Paris killed Achilles by shooting an arrow in his heel.Larry lacks just that touch of ruthlessness that even the saint must have to win his halo.”
“拉里目前就是被这种情感左右着。此时对他晓之以理动之以情，你想会有什么效果吗？这些年他在追求什么，你一无所知，我也不知道，只能猜出个一二来。多年的辛勤劳作，多年的经验积累，如果放在天平上与他的愿望相权衡，就轻多了。那不仅仅是愿望，更是一种迫切、热烈的驱动力，要去挽救一个他认识的女人的灵魂——那女人从前是个清纯的孩子，而今成了荡妇。我觉得你言之有理——他一定会无果而终。他过于注重情感，势必会遭受种种磨难。不管他有什么样的事业，什么样的追求，都将功亏一篑。卑鄙的帕里斯一箭射中阿喀琉斯的脚后跟，使他送了命。拉里缺乏的正是这种狠毒劲——即便是圣徒，如欲修得正果，也得有这种狠劲。”

“I love him，”said Isabel.“God knows, I ask nothing of him. I expect nothing.No one could love anyone more unselfishly than I love him.He's going to be so unhappy.”
“我爱他。”伊莎贝尔说道，“上帝知道，我对他无所求，无所图。谁都不可能像我这般无私地爱他。我不愿让他的生活过得不幸福。”

She began to cry and, thinking it would do her good, I let her be. I diverted myself idly with the idea that had sprung so unexpectedly into my mind.I played with it.I couldn't but surmise that the devil, looking at the cruel wars that Christianity has occasioned, the persecutions, the tortures Christian has inflicted on Christian, the unkindness, the hypocrisy, the intolerance, must consider the balance sheet with complacency.And when he remembers that it has laid upon mankind the bitter burden of the sense of sin that has darkened the beauty of the starry night and cast a baleful shadow on the passing pleasures of a world to be enjoyed, he must chuckle as he murmurs：give the devil his due.
说完，她嘤嘤哭了起来。我觉得哭哭对她有好处，所以没加劝阻。在百无聊赖之际，我的心里突然蹿出了一种想法，于是便琢磨、回味起来。我敢断言，看到基督教发动残酷无情的战争，看到基督徒相互迫害、摧残，看到人世间的凶残暴虐、尔虞我诈及鸡肠小肚，魔鬼考虑一下自己的收获，一定会心满意足的；想到基督教给人类背上了一个原始罪恶的痛苦包袱，使美丽的星空黯然失色，在世人及时行乐的心坎上投下了一道邪恶的阴影，魔鬼一定会开心地笑出声，悄然低语说：这就是报应。

Presently Isabel took a handkerchief from her bag and a mirror and, looking at herself, carefully wiped the corner of her eyes.
伊莎贝尔哭了一会儿，然后从提包里取出一块手帕和一个小镜子，一边照镜子，一边小心翼翼地擦掉眼角的泪水。

“Damned sympathetic, aren't you?”she snapped.
“你就没有一点同情之心吗？”她气愤地问。

I looked at her pensively, but did not answer. She powdered her face and painted her lips.
我若有所思地望着她，却没有回答她的话。她在脸上扑扑粉，在嘴唇上涂了点口红。

“You said just now you suspected what he's been after all these years. What did you mean?”
“你刚才说猜出了几分他这些年的追求。此话怎讲？”

“I can only guess, you know, and I may be quite wrong. I think he's been seeking for a philosophy, or maybe a religion, and a rule of life that'll satisfy both his head and his heart.”
“只不过是瞎猜罢了，很可能是错的。我觉得他在寻求一种哲学，也可能是一种宗教，一种可以使他身心都获得安宁的人生准则。”

Isabel considered this for a moment. She sighed.
伊莎贝尔沉吟片刻，然后叹了口气说：

“Don't you think it's very strange that a country boy from Marvin, Illinois, should have a notion like that?”
“一个伊利诺伊州马文镇的乡下孩子会有这样的想法，你不觉得奇怪吗？”

“No stranger than that Luther Burbank who was born on a farm in Massachusetts should have produced a seedless orange or that Henry Ford who was born on a farm in Michigan should have invented a Tin Lizzie.”
“卢瑟·伯班克出生在马萨诸塞州的农场，培植出了无核的橘子，亨利·福特出生在密歇根州的农场，却发明了小汽车，与他们相比，拉里就不显得奇怪了。”

“But those are practical things. That's in the American tradition.”
“但那两人经营的是实业，符合美国的传统。”

I laughed.
我听了哈哈大笑。

“Can anything in the world be more practical than to learn how to live to best advantage?”
“天下还有什么比学会有意义地生活更能称得上是实业呢？”

Isabel gave a gesture of lassitude.
伊莎贝尔有气无力地摆了一下手。

“You don't want to lose Larry altogether, do you?”
“你不想完全失去拉里，对不对？”

She shook her head.
她点头称是。

“You know how loyal he is：if you won't have anything to do with his wife he won't have anything to do with you. If you've got any sense you'll make friends with Sophie.You'll forget the past and be as nice to her as you can be when you like.She’s going to be married and I suppose she’s buying some clothes.Why don’t you offer to go shopping with her?I think she’d jump at it.”
“你知道拉里是个重情感的人。你不愿跟他的妻子来往，他也会跟你井水不犯河水。假如你不痴不傻，倒不如和索菲交朋友。你必须不计前嫌，尽可能善待她。她即将结婚，恐怕得买些衣服。你何不提出跟她一起去采购？我想她肯定会高兴死的。”

Isabel listened to me with narrowed eyes. She seemed intent upon what I was saying.For a moment she pondered, but I could not guess what was passing through her mind.Then she surprised me.
伊莎贝尔眯着眼在听我讲话，好像听得十分专注，一面在想着心事。我猜不出她心里在转什么念头。接下来，她的几句话令我颇觉意外。

“Will you ask her to lunch?It would be rather awkward for me after what I said to Larry yesterday.”
“能不能由你出面请她吃午饭？昨天我对拉里说了那样难听的话，再让我请，怪不好意思的。”

“Will you behave if I do?”
“如果我请，你能注意自己的言行吗？”

“Like an angel of light，”she answered with her most engaging smile.
“我会像个光明天使一样。”她说着，绽出了极为迷人的微笑。

“I'll fix it up right away.”
“我这就把此事定下来。”

There was a phone in the room. I soon found Sophie's number, and after the usual delay which those who use the French telephone learn to put up with patiently, I got her.I mentioned my name.
客厅里有电话。我很快就查到了索菲的号码。凡是拨打法国的电话，都要耐着性子等一会儿才能接通。对方总算拿起了听筒，我通报了自己的姓名。

“I've just arrived in Paris，”I said，“and heard that you and Larry are going to be married. I want to congratulate you.I hope you'll be very happy.”I smothered a cry as Isabel, who was standing by me, gave the soft of my arm a vicious pinch.“I'm only here for a verv short time and I wonder if you and Larry will come and lunch with me the dayafter tomorrow at the Ritz.I'm asking Gray and Isabel and Elliott Templeton.”
“我刚到巴黎，”我说，“听说你跟拉里要结婚了。我想对你表示祝贺，希望你们幸福美满。”伊莎贝尔站在我身边，把我胳臂上的肉狠狠拧了一下，疼得我差点没叫出声来，“我在这儿只待很短一段时间，不知道你跟拉里后天能不能到里茨饭店和我一起吃午饭。我请格雷、伊莎贝尔和艾略特·邓普顿一道去。”

“I'll ask Larry. He's here now.”There was a pause.“Yes, we shall be glad to.”
“让我问问拉里。他就在跟前。”接下来就是一会儿的停顿。“好的。我们将会很高兴的。”

I fixed an hour, made a civil remark, and replaced the receiver on its stand. I caught an expression in Isabel's eyes that caused me some misgiving.
我讲定了时间，又说了几句客套话，然后就把话筒放下了。此时只见伊莎贝尔眼里出现了一种神情，叫我有点担心。

“What are you thinking?”I asked her.“I don't quite like the look of you.”
“你在想什么？”我问她，“我不大喜欢你脸上的神情。”

“I'm sorry；I thought that was the one thing about me you did like.”
“很遗憾，我原以为你喜欢我这种神情呢。”

“You haven't got some nefarious scheme that you're hatching, Isabel?”
“你不是在心里打什么坏主意吧，伊莎贝尔？”

She opened her eyes very wide.
她一听，把眼睛睁得大大的。

“I promise you I haven't. As a matter of fact I'm terribly curious to see what Sophie looks like now Larry has reformed her.All I hope is that she won't come to the Ritz with a mask of paint on her face.”
“我向你保证没有。事实上，我急切想看看，在经过了拉里的一番改造之后，索菲是否已脱胎换骨。但愿她去里茨饭店时，不要涂成个大花脸。”