1. She was one of those pretty and charming girls, but had no dowry, no expectations, no means of being known, understood, loved, married by a man rich and distinguished; and she married a little clerk in the Department of Education. She was simple since she could not be adorned; but she was unhappy.
她是世上的漂亮動(dòng)人的女子之一，卻沒有陪嫁的資產(chǎn)，沒有希望，沒有任何方法使得一個(gè)既有錢又有地位的人認(rèn)識(shí)她，了解她，愛她，娶她；到末了，她將將就就和教育部的一個(gè)小科員結(jié)了婚。不能夠講求裝飾，她是樸素的，這令她很不快樂。
She suffered intensely, feeling herself born for every delicacy and every luxury. She had no dresses, no jewellery; nothing. And yet she felt herself made for that only. So she wept all day long, from chagrin, from regret, from despair, and from distress.
她覺得自己本是為了一切精美的和一切豪華的事物而生的，可她沒有像樣的服裝，沒有珠寶首飾，什么都沒有。可是她偏偏只歡喜這一套，覺得自己是為了這一套而生的。因此不住地感到痛苦。由于傷心，由于遺憾，由于失望并且由于憂慮，她非常難過。
2. But one evening her husband came in with a proud air, holding in his hand a large envelope. “There,” said he, “there’s something for you.” She quickly took a printed card out of the envelope which said: “The Minister of Education begs M. and Mme. Loisel to do them the honor to pass the evening with them at the palace of the Ministry, on Monday, January 18.” Instead of being delighted, as her husband hoped, she threw the invitation on the table with annoyance, murmuring: “What do you want me to do with that?”
不料某一天傍晚，她丈夫帶著得意揚(yáng)揚(yáng)的神氣回來了，手里拿著一個(gè)大信封。“瞧吧，”他說：“這兒有點(diǎn)兒東西是專門為了你的。”她趕忙拆開了信封，從里面抽了一張印著這樣語句的請(qǐng)?zhí)骸敖逃块L若爾日·郎波諾暨夫人榮幸地邀請(qǐng)駱塞爾先生和駱塞爾太太參加一月十八日星期一在本部大樓舉辦的晚會(huì)。” 她丈夫希望她一定快活得很，誰知她竟帶著傷心而且生氣的樣子把請(qǐng)?zhí)拥阶郎希浔卣f： “你叫我拿著這東西怎么辦？”
3. “But, my dear, I thought you would be pleased. You never go out, and here’s a chance, a fine one!” She looked at him with an irritated eye and she declared with impatience: “What do you want me to put on to go there?” He shut up, astonished and distracted at seeing that his wife was weeping. He stuttered: What’s the matter? What’s the matter?” “I have no clothes, and in consequence I cannot go to this party.” He was disconsolate. He began again: “See here, Mathilde, how much would this cost, a proper dress?” “I don’t know exactly, but it seems to me that with four hundred francs I might do it.” He grew a little pale, but he said: “All right. I will give you four hundred francs. But take care to have a pretty dress.”
“不過，親愛的，我原以為你大概是滿意的。你素來不出門，并且這是一個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)，這東西，一個(gè)好機(jī)會(huì)！”她用一種暴怒的眼光瞧著他，后來她不耐煩地高聲說： “你叫我身上穿著什么到那兒去？” 瞧見他妻子流著眼淚，他不說話了，吃驚了，心里糊涂了。他口吃著說：“你有點(diǎn)怎樣？你有點(diǎn)怎樣？” “ 我沒有衣裳，所以我不能夠去赴這個(gè)晚會(huì)。”他發(fā)愁了，接著說道：“這么著吧，瑪?shù)贍柕佟Ｒǘ嗌馘X，一套像樣的衣裳？” “細(xì)數(shù)呢，我不知道，不過我估計(jì)，有四百金法郎，總可以辦得到。”他的臉色有點(diǎn)兒發(fā)青了，然而他卻回答道：“就是這樣吧。我給你四百金法郎。不過你要想法子去做一套漂亮的裙袍。”

4. The day of the party drew near, and Mme. Loisel seemed sad, restless, and anxious. Yet her dress was ready. One evening her husband said to her: “What’s the matter?” And she answered: “It annoys me not to have a jewel, not a single stone, to put on. I would almost rather not go to this party. There’s nothing more humiliating than to look poor among a lot of rich women.” But her husband cried: “Go find your friend, Mme. Forester, and ask her to lend you some jewellery.” She gave a cry of joy: “That’s true. I had not thought of it.”
晚會(huì)的日期已經(jīng)近了，駱塞爾太太好像在發(fā)愁，不放心，心里有些焦躁不安。然而她的新裙袍卻置辦好了。她丈夫某一天傍晚問她：“你又怎么了？”她說： “沒有一件首飾，沒有一粒寶石，插的和戴的，一點(diǎn)兒也沒有。簡(jiǎn)直太窮酸了。現(xiàn)在我寧可不去赴這個(gè)晚會(huì)。”他接著說道： 但是她丈夫高聲叫喚起來：“你真糊涂！去找你的朋友伏來士潔太太，問她借點(diǎn)首飾。” “這是真的。這一層我當(dāng)初簡(jiǎn)直沒有想過。”
5. The next day she went to her friend and asked if she could borrow some jewellery. Mme. Forester opened her large jewellery box, and said to Mme. Loisel: “Choose, my dear.” She saw many precious jewels, yet she kept on asking: “You haven’t anything else?” All at once she discovered, in a box of black satin, a superb necklace of diamonds, and her heart began to beat with boundless desire. Her hands trembled in taking it up. She fastened it round her throat, on her high dress, and remained in ecstasy. Then, she asked, full of anxiety: “Can you lend me this, only this?” “Yes, yes, certainly.” She sprang to her friend’s neck, kissed her, and then escaped with her treasure.
第二天，她到她這位朋友家里去了，向她談起了自己是否可以借一些珠寶首飾。 伏來士潔太太向打開她大大首飾盒說：“你自己選吧，親愛的。”她看了許多珠寶，末了問著。“你還有沒有一點(diǎn)什么別的？”她忽然在一只黑緞子做的小盒子里，發(fā)現(xiàn)了一串用金剛鉆鑲成的項(xiàng)鏈，她的心房因?yàn)橐环N奢望漸漸跳起來。她雙手拿著那東西發(fā)抖，她把它壓著自己裙袍的領(lǐng)子繞在自己的頸項(xiàng)上面了，對(duì)著自己在鏡子里的影子出了半天的神。 后來，她帶看滿腔的顧慮遲疑地問道： “你能夠借這東西給我嗎，我只借這一件？” “當(dāng)然可以，當(dāng)然可以。” 她跳起來抱著她朋友的頸項(xiàng)，熱烈地吻了又吻，末后，她帶著這件寶貝溜也似地走了。
6. The day of the party arrived. Mme. Loisel was a success. She was the prettiest of them all, elegant, gracious, smiling, and mad with joy. All the men were looking at her, inquiring her name, asking to be introduced. Everyone wanted to dance with her. The Minister took notice of her. She danced in the triumph of her beauty. They both left eventually about four in the morning.
晚會(huì)的日子到了，駱塞爾太太得到極大的成功，她比一般女賓都要漂亮，時(shí)髦，迷人，不斷地微笑，并且樂得發(fā)狂。一般男賓都望著她出神，探聽她的姓名，設(shè)法使人把自己引到她跟前作介紹。本部機(jī)要處的人員都想和她跳舞，部長也注意她。她用陶醉的姿態(tài)舞著，用興奮的動(dòng)作舞著，她沉醉在歡樂里。她和丈夫大約在清晨四點(diǎn)鐘光景離開了。
7. Before undressing and getting into bed, she suddenly gave a cry. Her husband, half undressed already, asked: “What is the matter with you?” She turned to him, terror-stricken: “I—I—I have not Mme. Forester’s diamond necklace!” He jumped up, frightened. “What? How?” And they searched in the folds of the dress, in the folds of her wrap, in the pockets, everywhere. They looked for the entire rest of the night and the following days, but did not find it.
就在脫下衣服準(zhǔn)備就寢時(shí)，她陡然發(fā)出了一聲狂叫。她丈夫這時(shí)候已經(jīng)脫了一半衣裳，連忙問： “你怎么了？”她發(fā)癡似地轉(zhuǎn)過身來向著他：“我已經(jīng)……我已經(jīng)……我現(xiàn)在找不著伏來士潔太太那串項(xiàng)鏈了。”他張皇失措地站起來：“什么！……怎樣！……哪兒會(huì)有這樣的事！”于是他倆在那件裙袍的衣褶里，大氅的衣褶里，口袋里，都尋了一個(gè)遍。他們找了一整晚，到處都找不到它。
8. At the end of a week looking everywhere possible, they had lost all hope. And M. Loisel, aged by five years, declared: “We must see how we can replace those jewels.” At a jeweller nearby, they found a diamond necklace just like the one they lost. It was priced forty thousand francs.
一星期以后，他們?nèi)魏蜗Ｍ枷Я恕２⑶荫樔麪栂袷抢狭宋迥辏呗曊f道：“現(xiàn)在應(yīng)當(dāng)設(shè)法找一件替代品了。”在一家附近的珠寶店，他們找到了與丟失那串極為相似的項(xiàng)鏈，價(jià)格值得四萬金法郎。
Loisel possessed only eighteen thousand francs. He had to borrow the remainder. He borrowed, asking a thousand francs from one, five hundred from another, five here, three there. He gave promissory notes, made ruinous agreements, dealt with usurers, with all kinds of lenders. Frightened by all the anguish of the future, he went on to buy the new diamond necklace.
駱塞爾只有一萬八千金法郎。剩下的數(shù)目就得去借了。他動(dòng)手借錢了，向這一個(gè)借一千金法郎，向那個(gè)借五百，向這里借五枚魯意金元，向另一處又借三枚。他簽了許多借據(jù)，訂了許多破產(chǎn)性的契約，和那些盤剝重利的人，各種不同國籍的放款人打交道。將來的苦惱令他感到了恐怖，終于買回了那串新項(xiàng)鏈。
9. Mme. Loisel made the best of it, heroically. “The frightful debts must be paid” she thought. She would pay it. They dismissed the servant; they changed their rooms; they took an attic under the roof. She learned the rough work of the household. She washed the dishes, wearing out her pink nails on the greasy pots and the bottoms of the pans. She washed the dirty linen, the shirts and the towels, which she dried on a rope. Dressed like a woman of the people, she went to the fruiterer, the grocer, the butcher, a basket on her arm, bargaining, insulted, fighting for her wretched money.
駱塞爾太太突然一下用英雄氣概打定了主意，那筆駭人的債是必須償還的。她預(yù)備償還它。他們辭退了女傭；搬了家；租了某處屋頂?shù)紫碌囊婚g閣樓下。她開始做種種家務(wù)上的粗硬工作了，她清洗杯盤碗碟，在罐子鍋?zhàn)拥挠凸傅鬃由夏牧四切┟倒迳氖种割^。內(nèi)衣和抹布都由她親自用肥皂洗濯再晾到繩子上；她穿著得像是一個(gè)平民婦人了，她挽著籃子走到蔬菜店里、雜貨店里和肉店里去講價(jià)錢，去挨罵，極力一個(gè)銅元一個(gè)銅元地去防護(hù)她那點(diǎn)兒可憐的零錢。
10. This life lasted ten years. At the end of ten years they had paid everything back, everything, with the accumulation of heaped-up interest. Mme. Loisel seemed aged now. She had become a robust woman, hard and rough, of a poor household. Only sometimes, when her husband was at the office, she sat down by the window and she thought of that evening long ago, of that ball, where she had been so beautiful and so admired. What would have happened if she had not lost that necklace? Who knows? Who knows? How singular life is, how changeable! What a little thing it takes to save you or to lose you.
末后，這種生活延長到十年之久。十年之末，他倆居然還清了全部債務(wù)，連同高利貸者的利錢以及由利上加利滾成的數(shù)目。駱塞爾太太像是老了。現(xiàn)在，她已經(jīng)變成了貧苦人家的強(qiáng)健粗硬而且耐苦的婦人了。只是有時(shí)候她丈夫到辦公室里去了，她獨(dú)自坐在窗前，于是就回想從前的那個(gè)晚會(huì)，那個(gè)跳舞會(huì)，在那里，她當(dāng)時(shí)是那樣美貌，那樣快活。倘若當(dāng)時(shí)沒有失掉那件首飾，她現(xiàn)在會(huì)走到什么樣的境界？誰知道？誰知道？人生真是古怪，真是變化無常啊。無論是害您或者救您，只消一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)小事。