1705005221
1705005222
欧司金·考特威尔生于美国乔治亚州。他是美国当代大小说家之一，曾与海明威、福克纳、司坦培克等齐名，描写美国南部（尤其是乔治亚州）贫穷没落的农村生活，最擅胜场。
1705005223
1705005224
这里所选的一篇短篇小说，篇幅无多，文字十分简单，几乎无需注解。然而其深刻动人之处，却耐人寻味。其描写结构都值得我国短篇小说作家的参考。
1705005225
1705005226
本文采自The Pocket Book of Erskine Caldwell Stories。
1705005227
1705005228
They came slowly up the road through the colorless dawn like shadows left behind by the night. There was no motion in their bodies, and yet their feet scuffed up dust that settled behind them as quickly as it was raised. They lifted their eyes with each step they took, peering toward the horizon for the first red rays of the sun.
1705005229
1705005230
● 第一段点出小说的时间和地点。时间是黑夜已过，旭日未升，地点是公路上。人物只是模模糊糊的They。有多少人呢？是些什么人呢？这里尚未说明，但标题是“男与女”，我们可以暂且假定是一男一女。他们的身形我们还看不清楚，他们只是像“黑夜所遗留下来的影子”。他们的动作我们也看不见，只是他们的脚步拖起（scuffed up）了灰尘，脚步步步向前，灰尘也在他们身后旋起旋落（settled）。
1705005231
1705005232
● scuffed本是不及物动词，解作“拖着脚步走路”，这里是及物动词。peering：眯着眼睛看。
1705005233
1705005234
● 描写文最难运用的是形容词，以及由形容词转化出来的副词。本文形容词用得很少，都很简单。这一段里可以说只有两个形容词是用作描写的，一个是colorless (dawn)，一个是red (rays)，都很传神而有力量。描写黎明景色，中英文都有很多滥调，如“天空露出鱼肚白色”，“美丽的朝霞”等，这种美丽的字眼，比之本文的两个简单的形容词，到底哪一种更为妥贴，哪一种更能显出作者炼字的功夫，请读者自己下判断吧。同样的，slowly是个很简单的副词，但这里用这么一个字也够了，作者可说是惜墨如金也。slowly前面的came，是从读者的立场而言：假定读者看他们往前走“来”。用了went，就变成愈走愈远，came则表示愈走愈近。
1705005235
1705005236
The woman held her lower lip clamped tightly between her teeth. It hurt her to do that, but it was the only way she could urge herself forward step after step. There was no other way to drag her feet one behind the other, mile after mile. She whimpered occasionally, but she did not cry out.
1705005237
1705005238
“It’s time to stop and rest again,” Ring said.
1705005239
1705005240
She did not answer him.
1705005241
1705005242
They kept on.
1705005243
1705005244
● The woman：我们猜想一男一女在赶路，果然有一个女人，我们大约是猜对了。（下文Ring said，Ring是那男人的名字。）clamp：作名词用，解作“螺钉夹”；作动词用，解作“像螺丝钉那样地夹着”。这里是过去分词，作形容词用。
1705005245
1705005246
● It hurt her：她并不觉得好受。可是她已筋疲力尽，非咬紧牙关，无法再继续前进，咬痛嘴唇，在所不惜了。
1705005247
1705005248
● one behind the other=one foot behind the other foot。
1705005249
1705005250
● mile after mile：天没亮就在赶路，可能是他们刚刚出门，但是由这一段文章看来，他们已经赶了不少路了。
1705005251
1705005252
● whimpered：低声呜咽。
1705005253
1705005254
At the top of the hill, they came face to face with the sun. It was a quarter of the way up, cut like a knife by the treeless horizon. Down below them was a valley lying under a cover of mist that was rising slowly from the earth. They could see several houses and farms, but most of them were so far away they were almost indistinguishable in the mist. There was smoke rising from the chimney of the first house.
1705005255
1705005256
● 第一段第一句里说slowly up the road，看到这里，我们知道他们原来是在登山。
1705005257
1705005258
● a quarter of the way up：太阳尚未全部露面，只有四分之一升在地平线上。地平线上没有树，太阳好像被刀切似的。脚下有谷，谷中雾气冉冉上升，把山谷盖了起来。
1705005259
1705005260
● so far away：后面照语法规矩应接that一字，但近代作家有把这个that省掉的。indistinguishable：房屋农田在雾中看不清楚。
1705005261
1705005262
● smoke：景物朦胧，单提出“炊烟”一事，引起下面文章。the first house：最接近他们的那座房屋。
1705005263
1705005264
Ruth looked at the man beside her. The red rays of the sun began to color his pale face like blood. But still his eyes were tired and lifeless. He looked as if he were balancing himself on his two feet with great effort, and as if the next moment he might lose his balance and fall to the ground.
1705005265
1705005266
● 女人的名字叫做Ruth，在这里点出。
1705005267
1705005268
● color是动词不定式：着色，初升的阳光，把男人苍白的脸照得血红。
1705005269
1705005270
● balancing himself：费了好大的劲，两条腿才站得稳。lose his balance：失掉平稳，脚站不住。the next moment：现在虽然勉强站稳，但是似乎一不小心，随时都可以倒下地去。
[
上一页 ]
[ :1.705005221e+09 ]
[
下一页 ]