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双语对照 | 书虫二级《神秘女人——阿加莎·克里斯蒂》:4.一部侦探小说

所属教程:书虫2级 神秘女人——阿加莎·克里斯蒂

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2019年05月17日

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4.A detective story

4.一部侦探小说

One day, some time before the war, Agatha was talking with her sister, Madge, about detective stories. They both enjoyed reading this kind of book very much.

战前的某一天,阿加莎正和姐姐玛奇讨论侦探小说。两人都十分喜爱这类小说。

'I'd like to try and write a detective story myself,' said Agatha.

“我想试着自己写一部侦探小说。”阿加莎说。

'You couldn't do it,' said Madge. 'They're very difficult to do. I've thought about it.'

“你写不了的,”玛奇说,“这类小说很不好写。我也已经考虑过了。”

'Well, one day I'm going to try,' said Agatha.

“嗯,总有一天我要尝试一下。”阿加莎说。

The idea stayed in Agatha's head, and she wanted to show Madge that she could do it. And when, years later, she went to work in the hospital dispensary, she again began to think about writing a detective story.

这种念头在阿加莎的脑海中挥之不去,她要向玛奇证明她能做到。几年过去了,当她到医院药房工作时,又有了一种写侦探小说的冲动。

'There must be a murder in it, of course,' she thought. The questions ran busily around inside her head. 'But what kind of murder? A death by poisoning? Who will die? Who will the murderer be? When? How? Why? Where? And what about a detective?'

“小说里面肯定要有一桩谋杀案。”她想。她的脑子里萦绕着各种各样的问题,“但是什么样的谋杀案呢?施毒致死吗?谁会死呢?谁又会是凶手?时间?手段?动机?地点?再有一个侦探如何?”

There were some Belgian people living in Torquay, who were there because of the war in Belgium. Clara, like everyone in the town, was very kind and helpful to them when they arrived. She gave them chairs and beds for their homes, and tried to make them feel happy and comfortable. Now, Agatha suddenly remembered them.

在托基住着一些因比利时发生战争逃到此地来的比利时人。和小镇上的其他人一样,克拉拉在这些比利时人到来的时候给予了他们热心的帮助。她给他们的家里送来椅子和床,尽量让他们感到开心和舒适。现在,阿加莎突然记起了他们。

'What about a Belgian detective?' she thought, and began to build the character in her head. 'He'll be a very clever, very tidy little man. But what shall I call him? I know, I'll call him Hercules!' She smiled. 'It's a good name for a small man. And his second name? Poirot. Hercules—no, Hercule Poirot! Yes, that's it.'

“一个比利时侦探如何呢?”她想,并开始在那脑子里勾勒这个人物的形象,“他是一个聪明至极、穿着非常整洁的矮小男人。可是我该叫他什么好呢?知道了,我要叫他赫尔克里士!”她笑了笑,“给一个身材矮小的男人起这样的名字刚好。他的姓呢?波洛。赫尔克里士——不,赫尔克里·波洛!对,就是它了。”

Agatha thought about her detective story during every quiet minute in the dispensary. She knew a lot about poisons now. She knew which poisons worked quickly, and which worked slowly. She knew how much to give, and what different poisons smelt and tasted like. She knew how people died from poisons—did their faces turn blue? Did they die in their sleep, or die screaming in pain? A good detective—and a good writer of detective stories—must know these things. She began to write her story at home, and used Madge's old typewriter again.

药房里只要一安静下来,阿加莎就构思她的侦探小说。现在她对毒药的药性已经了如指掌。她清楚哪些毒药发作很快,哪些又很慢,该用多少剂量,各种毒药的气味和味道又是怎样的。她知道人是怎样中毒身亡的——他们会不会脸色发青?他们会在睡梦中死去,还是在痛苦的尖叫声中死去呢?一名出色的侦探——以及一名出色的侦探小说家——必须熟知这些东西。她开始在家动手写故事了,用的依然是玛奇的旧打字机。

'What are you doing?' Clara asked her one day.

“你在干什么?”有一天克拉拉问她。

'I'm writing a detective novel,' said Agatha, 'I want to finish it, but it's very difficult.'

“我在写一部侦探小说,”阿加莎回答,“我想写完,可这真的不容易。”

'Why don't you finish it during your holiday?' said Clara. 'Go away somewhere nice and quiet, and take it with you. Where do you want to go? Dartmoor?'

“为什么不去休个假完成它呢?”克拉拉说,“带着稿子去一个既美丽又安静的地方。想去哪里呢?达特穆尔?”

'Yes!' said Agatha. 'Dartmoor!'

“对!”阿加莎说,“达特穆尔!”

Dartmoor was a beautiful, lonely moor in Devon. Agatha took Madge's typewriter with her and stayed at the Moorland Hotel at Hay Tor. It was a large hotel with a lot of rooms, but not many people were staying there. For two weeks she wrote in her room every morning, then went for long walks alone on the moor in the afternoons. Everything went well. The characters seemed to come alive inside her head, and during her walks she planned her writing for the next day.

达特穆尔是德文郡一片美丽却人迹罕至的荒野。阿加莎带着玛奇的打字机住在了海伊托尔的穆尔兰旅馆。这是个很大的旅馆,房间很多,却没有多少客人入住。在这儿的两个星期里,她每天上午都在房间里写作,下午则在荒野里独自散步很长时间。一切进展顺利。在她的脑子里,小说中的人物似乎都活了起来,她边散步边构思第二天的写作。

She finished the last half of the book during her holiday, and soon after she sent it to a publisher. They returned it, but Agatha was not surprised. She sent it out again, but it came back once more. She sent it to a third publisher, but they returned it, too. Then she sent it to The Bodley Head publishing company—and forgot all about it.

在假期里她完成了小说后半部分的创作,并很快把它寄到一家出版社。他们把稿子退了回来,但阿加莎对退稿一点也不感到惊讶。她又把它寄了出去,但又被退了回来。她又把小说寄给另一家出版社,但也遭到了同样的厄运。后来她把小说寄给了博德利·黑德出版公司——便把这件事情抛在脑后了。

Two years went by. Archie came back to work in London, the war ended, and Agatha had a baby—Rosalind. The three of them were living in a flat in London when a letter arrived one morning in 1919.

两年过去了。战争结束了,阿奇回到伦敦工作,阿加莎也有了一个孩子——罗莎琳德,一家三口住在伦敦的一间公寓里。1919年的一天早晨,来了一封信。

It was from The Bodley Head. Agatha quickly opened the letter, and saw the words:

是博德利·黑德公司寄来的。阿加莎赶快把信拆开,信上写着:

...Will you call at our offices? ...we would like to talk about your book...

……您能来我们的办公室吗?……我们想和您商讨一下关于您的书的问题……

'It's about my book—The Mysterious Affair at Styles,' she told Archie. 'I think they want to publish it!'

“是关于我的《斯泰尔斯的神秘案件》的,”她告诉阿奇,“我想他们要出版它了!”

'Then you must go and see them at once!' said Archie.

“那你就马上动身去见他们吧!”阿奇说。

Agatha went to the publishers' office. She met John Lane, a small man with white hair.

阿加莎来到了出版社办公室,见到了约翰·莱恩,一个白头发的矮小男人。

'Do sit down,' he said. He had a kind voice, and blue eyes that looked carefully at Agatha. 'Some of my readers think that we could publish your book. But you will need to change the last chapter. And there are a few other small things...'

“请坐,”他说。他的声音很亲切,蓝色的眼睛仔细地打量着阿加莎。“有些读者认为我们应该出版您的书。但是您需要修改一下最后一章。另外还有一些小问题……”

Agatha was too excited to listen. She was happy to do anything. The Mysterious Affair at Styles was her first detective story, and she wanted to see it in the bookshops. So she wrote a different ending for it and changed one or two more small things, and at last John Lane was pleased with it.

阿加莎兴奋得几乎听不下去了。她愿意做任何事情。《斯泰尔斯的神秘案件》是她的首部侦探小说,她想在书店里看到自己写的书。于是她重写了故事的结局,并改动了其他一两个微不足道的地方,最后约翰·莱恩满意地接受了。

* * *

poison v. kill or harm sb./ sth. with poison. 用毒药毒死或害死某人(某物)。

comfortable adj. allowing, producing or having pleasant bodily relaxation. 舒适的;安逸的;使人舒服的。

character n. person in a novel, play, etc. (小说、戏剧中的)人物。

scream vi. give a long piercing cry of fear, pain or excitement; cry in this way. (因恐惧、痛苦或兴奋)尖声喊叫;喊出。

moor n. open uncultivated high area of land, esp. one covered with heather. 漠泽,高沼,荒野,旷野(尤指石南丛生者)。

alive adj. living. 活着。

soon after a short time after. 之后不久。

go by (of time) pass. (指时间)过去。

mysterious adj. full of mystery; hard to understand or explain. 神秘的;不可思议的;难解的。

chapter n. division of a book. (书中的)章,篇,回。

bookshop n. shop which sells many books. 书店。

ending n. end, esp. of a story, film, play or word. 结尾,结局(尤指故事、电影、戏剧或词语)。

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