英語聽書《白鯨記》 第297期

"But I don't think thou wilt be able to at present. Idon't know exactly what's the matter with him; buthe keeps close inside the house; a sort of sick, andyet he don't look so. In fact, he ain't sick; but no, heisn't well either. Any how, young man, he won'talways see me, so I don't suppose he will thee. He'sa queer man, Captain Ahab-so some think-but agood one. Oh, thou'lt like him well enough; no fear,no fear. He's a grand, ungodly, god-like man,Captain Ahab; doesn't speak much; but, when hedoes speak, then you may well listen. Mark ye, beforewarned; Ahab's above the common; Ahab's been in colleges, as well as 'mong the cannibals;been used to deeper wonders than the waves; fixed his fiery lance in mightier, stranger foesthan whales. His lance! aye, the keenest and the surest that out of all our isle! Oh! he ain'tCaptain Bildad; no, and he ain't Captain Peleg; he's Ahab, boy; and Ahab of old, thou knowest,was a crowned king!"

"不過,我認(rèn)為你現(xiàn)在要見他是辦不到的。我也不很清楚他是怎么一回事;但是,他一直是足不出戶;也許生病,可又不很象生病。事實上,他不是生病;不過,不,他身體可也不很好?？傊?小伙子,他跟我也不常見面,因此,我認(rèn)為他也不會見你。他是個怪人,亞哈船長...有人這么看法...不過,他卻是個好人。啊,你一定會很喜歡他;別擔(dān)心,別擔(dān)心。亞哈船長么,他是個偉大的,不敬神卻又象神似的人物;他不多說話;不過,等到他一開口,那你就得好好聽他。要記住,我事先警告你;亞哈是跟普通人不同的;亞哈曾經(jīng)進(jìn)過許多大學(xué)堂,也到過好些吃人生番的地方;他一向習(xí)慣于比海浪還更深奧的奇跡;他那支激烈的魚槍曾經(jīng)打中比大鯨還要有力與奇特的仇敵。他的魚槍呵!說起敏捷和準(zhǔn)確來,真是我們島上數(shù)一數(shù)二的啊,他不是比勒達(dá)船長;不,他也不是法勒船長;他就是亞哈,朋友;那個古代的亞哈,你知道,是一個君王呀!"

"And a very vile one. When that wicked king was slain, the dogs, did they not lick his blood?"

"而且是個十惡不赦的人。當(dāng)那個邪惡的王給刺死了的時候,狗可不是都去舔他的血么?"

"Come hither to me-hither, hither," said Peleg, with a significance in his eye that almost startledme. "Look ye, lad; never say that on board the Pequod. Never say it anywhere. Captain Ahabdid not name himself.Twas a foolish, ignorant whim of his crazy, widowed mother, who diedwhen he was only a twelvemonth old. And yet the old squaw Tistig, at Gayhead, said that thename would somehow prove prophetic.

"到這邊來....這邊,這邊,"法勒說道,眼睛閃出一股意味深長的神色,簡直要把我給嚇呆了。"記住,小伙子;這些話可千萬別在裴廓德號上說。也別在隨便什么地方亂說。亞哈船長這個名字并不是他自己取的。這是他那個癡癡呆呆的守寡母親的愚蠢無知的怪念頭。她在他只有十二個月的時候就死了。然而這個該黑特老太婆蒂斯蒂克,卻說這名字總會證明是有預(yù)見性的。