評論
打印
"No, sir."
"不喜歡，先生。"
"No? oh, shocking! I have a little boy, younger than you, who knows six Psalms by heart.
"不喜歡？哎呀，真讓人吃驚！有個小男孩，比你年紀還小，卻能背六首贊美詩。
And when you ask him which he would rather have, a gingerbread-nut to eat or a verse of a Psalm to learn,
你要是問他，愿意吃姜餅呢，不是背一首贊美詩，
he says: 'Oh! the verse of a Psalm! angels sing Psalms.' says he, 'I wish to be a little angel here below;'
他會就‘啊，背贊美詩！因為天使也唱。’還說‘我真希望當一個人間的小天使，’
He then gets two nuts in recompense for his infant piety."
隨后他得到了兩塊姜餅，作為他小小年紀就那么虔誠的報償。"
"Psalms are not interesting," I remarked.
"贊美詩很乏味，"我說。
"That proves you have a wicked heart, and you must pray to God to change it-to give you a new and clean one:
"這說明你心很壞，你應當祈求上帝給你換一顆新的純潔的心。
to take away your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."
把那顆石頭般的心取走，賜給你一顆血肉之心。"
I was about to propound a question, touching the manner in which that operation of changing my heart was to be performed,
我正要問他換心的手術怎樣做時，
when Mrs. Reed interposed, telling me to sit down.
里德太太插嘴了，吩咐我坐下來。
She then proceeded to carry on the conversation herself.
隨后她接著話題談了下去。
"Mr. Brocklehurst, I believe I intimated in the letter which I wrote to you three weeks ago, that this little girl has not quite the character and disposition I could wish.
"布羅克赫斯特先生，我相信三個星期以前我給你的信中曾經提到，這個小姑娘缺乏我所期望的人品與氣質。
Should you admit her into Lowood school, I should be glad if the superintendent and teachers were requested to keep a strict eye on her,
如果你準許她進羅沃德學校，我樂意恭請校長和教師們對她嚴加看管，
and, above all, to guard against her worst fault, a tendency to deceit.
尤其要提防她身上最大的毛病，一種愛說謊的習性。
I mention this in your hearing, Jane, that you may not attempt to impose on Mr. Brocklehurst."
我當著你的面說這件事，簡，目的是讓你不好再瞞騙布羅克赫斯特先生。"
Well might I dread, well might I dislike Mrs. Reed, for it was her nature to wound me cruelly.
我滿有理由害怕里德太太，討厭她，因為她生性就愛刻毒地傷害我。
Never was I happy in her presence.
在她面前我從來不會愉快。
However carefully I obeyed, however strenuously I strove to please her, my efforts were still repulsed and repaid by such sentences as the above.
不管我怎樣陪著小心順從好，千方百計討她喜心，我的努力仍然受到鄙夷，并被報之以上述這類言詞。
Now, uttered before a stranger, the accusation cut me to the heart.
她當著陌生人的面，竟如此指控我，實在傷透了我的心。
I dimly perceived that she was already obliterating hope from the new phase of existence which she destined me to enter.
我依稀感到，她抹去了我對新生活所懷的希望，這種生活是她特意為我安排的。
