(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Now, the Special English program, AMERICAN STORIES.
(MUSIC)
Our story today is called "The Diamond Lens. " It was written by Fitz-James O'Brien. We will tell the story in two parts. Now, here is Maurice Joyce with part one of "The Diamond Lens."
(MUSIC)
MAURICE JOYCE: When I was ten years old, one of my older cousins gave me a microscope. The first time I looked through its magic lens, the clouds that surrounded my daily life rolled away. I saw a universe of tine living creatures in a drop of water. Day after day, night after night, I studied life under my microscope.
The fungus that spoiled my mother's jam was, for me, a land of magic gardens. I would put one of those spots of green mold under my microscope and see beautiful forests, where strange silver and golden fruit hung from the branches of tiny trees. I felt as if I had discovered another Garden of Eden.
Although I didn't tell anyone about my secret world, I decided to spend my life studying the microscope.
My parents had other plans for me. When I was nearly twenty years old, they insisted that I learn a profession even though we were a rich family, and I really didn't have to work at all. I decided to study medicine in New York.
This city was far away from my family, so I could spend my time as I pleased. As long as I paid my medical school fees every year, my family would never know I wasn't attending any classes. In New York, I would be able to buy excellent microscopes and meet scientists from all over the world. I would have plenty of money and plenty of time to spend on my dream. I left home with high hopes.
Two days after I arrived in New York, I found a place to live. It was large enough for me to use one of the rooms as my laboratory. I filled this room with expensive scientific equipment that I did not know how to use. But by the end of my first year in the city, I had become an expert with the microscope. I also had become more and more unhappy.
The lens in my expensive microscope was still not strong enough to answer my questions about life. I imagined there were still secrets in Nature that the limited power of my equipment prevented me from knowing.
I lay awake nights, wishing to find the perfect lens – an instrument of great magnifying power. Such a lens would permit me to see life in the smallest parts of its development. I was sure that a powerful lens like that could be built. And I spent my second year in New York trying to create it.
I experimented with every kind of material. I tried simple glass, crystal and even precious stones. But I always found myself back where I started.
My parents were angry at the lack of progress in my medical studies. I had not gone to one class since arriving in New York. Also, I had spent a lot of money on my experiments.
One day, while I was working in my laboratory, Jules Simon knocked at my door. He lived in the apartment just above mine. I knew he loved jewelry, expensive clothing and good living. There was something mysterious about him, too. He always had something to sell: a painting, a rare stature, an expensive pair of lamps.
I never understood why Simon did this. He didn't seem to need the money. He had many friends among the best families of New York.
Simon was very excited as he came into my laboratory. "O my deer fellow!" he gasped. "I have just seen the most amazing thing in the world!"
He told me he had gone to visit a woman who had strange, magical powers. She could speak to the dead and read the minds of the living. To test her, Simon had written some questions about himself on a piece of paper. The woman, Madame Vulpes, had answered all of the questions correctly.
Hearing about the woman gave me an idea. Perhaps she would be able to help me discover the secret of the perfect lens. Two days later, I went to her house.
Madame Vulpes was an ugly woman with sharp, cruel eyes. She didn't say a word to me when she opened the door, but took me right into her living room. We sat down at a large round table, and she spoke. "What do you want from me?"
"I want to speak to a person who died many years before I was born."
"Put your hands on the table."
We sat there for several minutes. The room grew darker and darker. But Madame Vulpes did not turn on any lights. I began to feel a little silly. Then I felt a series of violent knocks. They shook the table, the back of my chair, the floor under my feet and even the windows.
Madam Vulpes smiled. "They are very strong tonight. You are lucky. They want you to write down the name of the spirit you wish to talk to."
I tore a piece of paper out of my notebook and wrote down a name. I didn't show it to Madame Vulpes.
After a moment, Madame Vulpes' hand began to shake so hard the table move. She said the spirit was now holding her hand and would write me a message.
I gave her paper and a pencil. She wrote something and gave the paper to me. The message read: "I am her. Question me." I was signed "Leeuwenhoek."
I couldn't believe my eyes. The name was the same one I had written on my piece of paper. I was sure that an ignorant woman like Madame Vulpes would not know who Leeuwenhoek was. Why would she know the name of the man who invented the microscope?
Quickly, I wrote a question on another piece of paper. "How can I create the perfect lens?" Leeuwenhoek wrote back: "Find a diamond of one hundred and forty carats. Give it a strong electrical charge. The electricity will change the diamond's atoms. From that stone you can form the perfect lens."
I left Madame Vulpes' house in a state of painful excitement. Where would I find a diamond that large? All my family's money could not buy a diamond like that. And even if I had enough money, I knew that such diamonds are very difficult to find.
When I came home, I saw a light in Simon's window. I climbed the stairs to his apartment and went in without knocking. Simon's back was toward me as he bent over a lamp. He looked as if he were carefully studying a small object in his hands. As soon as he heard me enter, he put the object in his pocket. His face became red, and he seemed very nervous.
"What are you looking at?" I asked. Simon didn't answer me. Instead, he laughed nervously and told me to sit down. I couldn't wait to tell him my news.
"Simon, I have just come from Madame Vulpes. She gave me some important information that will help me find the perfect lens. If only I could find a diamond that weighs one hundred forty carats!"
My words seemed to change Simon into a wild animal. He rushed to a small table and grabbed a long, thin knife. "No!" he shouted. "You won't get my treasure! I'll die before I give it to you!"
"My dear Simon," I said, "I don't know what you are talking about. I went to Madame Vulpes to ask her for help with a scientific problem. She told me I needed an enormous diamond. You could not possible own a diamond that large. If you did, you would be very rich. And you wouldn't be living here."
He stared at me for a second. Then he laughed and apologized.
"Simon," I suggested, "let us drink some wine and forget all this. I have two bottles downstairs in my apartment. What do you think?"
"I like your idea," he said.
I brought the wine to his apartment, and we began to drink. By the time we had finished the first bottle, Simon was very sleepy and very drunk. I felt as calm as ever...for I believed that I knew Simon's secret.
(MUSIC)
SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: You have just heard part one of the "The Diamond Lens" by Fitz-James O'Brien. It was adapted for Special English by Dona de Sanctis. Your storyteller was Maurice Joyce.
重点解析
1.roll away 滚滚而去
The seagulls fly off, the waves roll away and we depart.
海鸥飞去，波浪滚滚而去，我们也别离了。
2.day after day 日复一日
I waited for news, day after day, expecting to hear.
我日复一日地等着，期待能听到消息。
3.far away from 远离
It all seemed so far away from here that he found himself quite unable to take it in.
这事看起来好像发生在如此遥远的地方，他发现自己思想上一时难以接受。
4.I filled this room with expensive scientific equipment that I did not know how to use.
我买了各种我根本不知道如何使用的昂贵科学设备，堆满房间。
fillwith 填满
It was a room filled with sad, sober faces.
房间里坐满了人，大家都一脸的忧伤和严肃。
5.But by the end of my first year in the city, I had become an expert with the microscope.
但在这一年行将结束之际，我已经成了显微镜方面的专家了。
by the end of 结束之际
By the end of the holiday I had spent all my money.
到假期结束时，我已经花光了自己所有的钱。
6.My parents were angry at the lack of progress in my medical studies.
我父母为我在学业方面毫无进步而感到愤怒。
lack of 缺乏
This has contributed to the lack of confidence in the police.
这导致了大家对警方缺乏信任。
参考译文
雪莉·格里菲思：现在为您演播，美国之音慢速英语节目，美国故事。
我们今天的故事叫做《钻石透镜》，作者菲茨·詹姆斯·奥布赖恩。我们将分两个部分来讲述这个故事。现在，我们来讲述第一部分，演播毛里斯·乔伊斯。
毛里斯·乔伊斯：我十岁那年，我的一个表兄给了我一架显微镜。我生平第一次，透过它的魔镜去看世界，我看到平日里的云朵滚滚而去。我看到水滴中微生物游来游去。日复一日，夜复一夜，我在显微镜下研究生命。
弄坏我母亲果酱的真菌对我来说是一片神奇的花园。我会取一个绿色菌斑放在我的显微镜下，镜中是美丽的森林，小小的枝头上悬挂着奇异的金银果实。我觉得自己仿佛发现了又一片伊甸花园。
虽然关于我的秘密世界，我未向任何人道出只言片语，我却决定终我一生，来研究这片显微镜下的世界。
我父母却对我另有打算。在我二十岁生日前夕，他们坚持要我学一门专业，尽管我们家境富足，而我真的没必要工作。我决定去纽约学习医学。
这座城市远离我的家乡，所以在那里我能够随心所欲地支配我的时光。只要我每年支付医学院的学费，我旷课家人便永远不会知道。在纽约，我将能够买到很棒的显微镜，并能见到来自世界各地的科学家。在我的梦想上，我会倾注大量的时间和金钱。我满怀希望地离开了家。
到达纽约后两天，我找到了一个住处。这里非常宽阔，足够开辟一个房间，来作我的实验室。我买了各种我根本不知道如何使用的昂贵科学设备，堆满房间。但在这一年行将结束之际，我已经成了显微镜方面的专家了。而我却变得愈发郁郁寡欢了。
我的显微镜虽然昂贵，但却仍然不够强大，无法回答我关于生命的问题。我想象自然界中一定还有秘密，而我的装备能力有限，我无从得知。
我夜不能寐，希望找到完美的透镜——一种具有超强放大能力的仪器。这样的透镜可以让我看到生命在其发展过程中最小的片段。我确信像这样强大的透镜可以建造。而我在纽约的第二年里，就致力于它的建造。
我尝试各种材料。我试过简单的玻璃、水晶甚至宝石。但我却总发现自己在原地打转。
我父母为我在学业方面毫无进步而感到愤怒。自从来到纽约，我没上过一节课。此外，我还在我的实验上挥金无数。
一天，我正在实验室里工作，朱尔·西蒙敲了敲我的门。他住我楼上。我知道他喜欢珠宝、昂贵的衣服以及讲究的生活。不过，他也有些神秘。他总有东西要卖：一幅画，一件稀有的小雕塑，一对昂贵的灯具。
我搞不懂西蒙为什么这样做。他似乎并不缺钱。他有很多朋友都来自纽约上等人家。
当西蒙走进我的实验室时，他非常兴奋。啊，我亲爱的伙伴！”他喘着气说。我真是见到了世界上最神奇的东西！”
他告诉我，他去拜访了一位拥有神奇力量的女人。她能与死者对话，还能读懂活人的心思。为了一试真假，西蒙在一张纸上写了一些关于他自己的问题。这个女人，Madame Vulpes正确地回答了所有的问题。
听了关于那个女人的故事，我起了主意。也许她能帮我找到完美镜头的秘密。两天后，我去了她家。
Madame Vulpes面相丑陋，目光锐利，残忍。她打开门时，一句话也没对我讲，而是把我带进了客厅。我们坐在一个大圆桌旁，她说话了。你想从我这里得到什么？”
“我想和一个在我出生前多年就已经去世的人谈谈。”
“把你的手放在桌子上。”
我们在那里坐了几分钟。房间越来越暗了。但Madame Vulpes没有开灯。我开始觉得自己有点傻。然后我感到一阵猛烈的敲门声。他们摇晃桌子，椅背，脚下的地板，甚至窗户。
Madame Vulpes笑了。今晚他们非常有力。你很幸运。他们要你写下那个你想与之交谈的灵魂的名字。
我从笔记本上撕下一张纸，写下了一个名字。我没有给Madame Vulpes看。
过了一会儿，Madame Vulpes的手开始剧烈颤抖，连桌子都动了起来。她说，那个灵魂现在握住了她的手，会给我写点东西。
我给了她一张纸和一支铅笔。她写了一些东西给了我。写的内容是：“我在这里。问我。”签名“列文虎克”。
我简直不敢相信自己的眼睛。这个名字和我在我的纸上写的毫无二致。我确信像Madame Vulpes这样无知的女人不会知道列文虎克是谁。她为什么会知道发明显微镜的人的名字？
很快，我在另一张纸上写了一个问题。“我怎样才能造出完美的透镜？”列文虎克回信说：“找一颗140克拉的钻石。给它通上强电。电能改变钻石的原子。这样你就可以得到完美的透镜了。”
我离开了Madame Vulpes的家，心里激动，却又痛苦。我到哪里找这么大的钻石啊？我倾尽家财都买不起那样的钻石。即使我有足够的钱，我也知道这些钻石千金难求。
我回到家，我看到西蒙的窗户透出一道光。我爬上楼梯来到他的房间，没有敲门就进去了。西蒙的背朝着我，俯身趴在一盏灯上。他看起来好像在仔细地研究手中的一个小物件。他一听到我进来，就把东西放进口袋。他面色潮红，显得非常紧张。
“你在看什么呢？”我问。西蒙没有回答。相反，他紧张地笑了笑，叫我坐下。我迫不及待地想把我的消息告诉他。
“西蒙，我刚从Madame Vulpes回来。她给了我一些重要的信息，这些信息可以帮助我找到完美的透镜。只要我能找到一颗重140克拉的钻石就好了！”
我的话似乎把西蒙变成了野兽。他冲到一张小桌子上，抓起一把又长又薄的刀。不！”他喊道。你不会得到我的宝贝！我死都不会给你！”
“我亲爱的西蒙，”我说，“我不知道你在说什么。我去找Madame Vulpes，希望解决一个科学问题。她告诉我，我需要一颗巨大的钻石。你不可能拥有一颗那么大的钻石。如果你有，你将非常富有。那样你就不会住在这里了。”
他盯着我看了一会儿。然后笑着对我道歉。
“西蒙，”我提议，“让我们喝点酒，忘掉这一切。”我楼下公寓有两瓶。你觉得怎么样？”
“我喜欢你的主意，”他说。
我把酒带到他的房间，我们喝了起来。当我们喝完第一瓶酒时，西蒙非常困倦，醉醺醺的。我觉得我和以前一样平静，因为我相信我知道西蒙的秘密。
雪莉·格里菲思：您刚刚听到的是《钻石透镜》的第一部分，作者菲茨·詹姆斯·奥布赖恩。Dona De Sanctis将其改编为VOA慢速英语节目。演播毛里斯·乔伊斯。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
