“啊,像斯達(dá)巴克這樣的細(xì)心人,在捕鯨業(yè)中可以說(shuō)是屢見不鮮的。”這是二副斯塔布的評(píng)論。
But we shall ere long see what that word "careful"precisely means when used by a man like Stubb, oralmost any other whale hunter.
很快,我們就可以看到發(fā)表這樣的評(píng)論的人和他所謂“細(xì)心”在捕鯨業(yè)中的真面目了。
Starbuck was no crusader after perils; in himcourage was not a sentiment; but a thing simply useful to him, and always at hand upon allmortally practical occasions.
斯達(dá)巴克并非莽撞的十字軍騎士,他認(rèn)為勇敢主要的不是一種感情色彩,而只是在迫不得已的情況下,他從自己的身上召喚而來(lái)的一種行動(dòng)的力量。
Besides, he thought, perhaps, that in this business of whaling, courage was one of the greatstaple outfits of the ship, like her beef and her bread, and not to be foolishly wasted.
和船上的淡水、面包之類的東西一樣,勇敢也是一種必備品,不可隨意浪費(fèi)。
Wherefore he had no fancy for lowering for whales after sun-down; nor for persisting in fightinga fish that too much persisted in fighting him.
落日西沉以后,他從不下海、打鯨魚和普通的魚他都不干,他認(rèn)為沒有任何必要做無(wú)謂的犧牲。
For, thought Starbuck, I am here in this critical ocean to kill whales for my living, and not tobe killed by them for theirs; and that hundreds of men had been so killed Starbuck well knew.
人們打鯨魚是為了自己的生活,如果讓鯨魚給“打”了,豈不是反而成了滿足鯨魚的生活要求的食物了嗎?
What doom was his own father's? Where, in the bottomless deeps, could he find the torn limbsof his brother?
他父親和他兄弟在冰冷黑暗的大洋中的命運(yùn)是他永遠(yuǎn)不能忘記的。