From sailors who were turned into pigs, nymphs that sprouted into trees,
从变成猪的海员，到变成树木的宁芙仙女，
and a gaze that converted the beholder to stone, Greek mythology brims with shape-shifters.
以及可以把目睹者变成石头的凝视，希腊神话充满有变形能力的人物。
The powerful gods usually changed their own forms at will, but for mortals, the mutations were often unwanted.
强大的诸神通常可以随意地变形，但凡人的变形通常是情非得已的。
One such unnerving transformation befell the spinner Arachne.
其中一个令人不安的变形发生在纺纱女郎阿剌克涅身上。
Arachne was the daughter of a tradesman who spent his days dying cloth the deepest shades of purple.
阿剌克涅是个商人的女儿，她的父亲以染深湛的紫色布料为生。
She had a flair for spinning the finest threads, weaving them into flowing fabric, and creating magnificent tapestries.
阿剌克涅拥有纺最细的线、把细线编织成布，然后制造出精美绝伦的挂毯的天赋。
People flocked to watch her hands flying across her loom, as if thread sprung directly from her fingertips.
人们簇拥围观她的双手在织布机上飞梭，细线如同从她手指中吐出。
But as praise for her work grew, so did her pride.
但当人们越发称赞她的作品，她也越发变得骄傲。
Arachne could often be heard boasting about her skills,
阿剌克涅常常夸耀自己的本领，
declaring that her talent surpassed anyone else's -- mortal or divine.
断言自己的天赋超越所有的凡人或神灵。
She refused to see weaving as a gift from the gods.
她拒绝把编织视为来自神灵的福赐。
Rather, she flaunted it as her own personal genius.
反之，她炫耀地说那是她与生俱来的才华。
Unfortunately, the goddess of wisdom and crafts, Athena, overheard Arachne making these claims.
不幸的是，智慧和手工艺之女神雅典娜听到了阿剌克涅这些大胆的言论。
Planning to teach the ungrateful girl a lesson, Athena disguised herself as an old woman and stole amongst the mortals.
为了教训这位忘恩负义的少女，雅典娜乔装成一位老女人，悄悄地混入凡众。
She berated Arachne in public -- how dare the weaver claim herself greater than the gods?
她在众人前严厉地指责阿剌克涅--这位纺织女怎么竟然大胆地声称自己比诸神伟大？
But Arachne only laughed, barely looking up from her loom.
但是阿剌克涅只是大笑，头也不抬地埋头织布。
Provoked, the old woman threw off her cloak to reveal her true form.
老妇人被激怒了，于是抛开斗篷显示了她的真实身份。
If Arachne insisted on defaming the gods, Athena would challenge her to a contest directly.
如果阿剌克涅坚持诋毁诸神，雅典娜就会亲自通过比赛来挑战她。

Masking her shock at the appearance of the grey-eyed goddess, Arachne accepted the challenge.
为了掩饰她对这位灰眼睛女神的出现的震惊，阿剌克涅接受了挑战。
Athena drew up her own glittering loom as a great crowd gathered to watch.
群众蜂拥围观时，雅典娜变出了她那闪闪发亮的织布机。
The weavers began, eyes fixed and shuttles blurring.
两位纺织者开始编织，她们眼睛不眨，梭子嗖嗖地织布。
Athena conjured wisps of cloud from above and slender threads of grass from below in a spectacle of strength.
雅典娜收集天上一缕缕的云彩以及地上纤细的绿草，显示出她令人惊叹的能力。
She wove tremendous scenes that showed the power of the gods:
她编织出了显示诸神力量的画面：
Poseidon riding the waves, Zeus firing thunderbolts, and Apollo hurtling across the sky.
波塞冬驾驭海浪，宙斯发射雷电，以及阿波罗疾速穿越天空。
In Athena's splendid tapestry, the glory of the gods dwarfed mortal life.
在雅典娜壮丽的挂毯上，诸神的荣耀使凡人自惭形秽。
But Arachne had no interest in boosting godly egos.
但是阿剌克涅并没兴趣吹嘘众神的自负心。
Her tapestry showed the gods abusing their power:
她的挂毯揭露了诸神如何滥用权力：
squabbling amongst themselves, drinking and bragging, and meddling in the lives of mortals.
神灵内讧连连、酗酒和自夸，以及干涉凡人的生活。
She represented Zeus as a philanderer, transfiguring himself to ensnare women:
她把宙斯描绘成好色的，为了诱捕女人而不断变形的神：
a swan for Leda, a bull for Europa, a shower of gold for Danae.
为勒达化身为一只天鹅、为欧罗巴化身为一头公牛、为达那厄化身为一阵金雨。
Arachne then turned to the misdemeanors of other gods,
然后，她把矛头转向其他神灵的不正当行为，
from Pluto's abduction of Persephone to Bacchus's wild pursuit of Erigone.
从冥王普路托拐带珀耳塞福涅，到巴克斯痴情地追求厄里戈涅。
Even though she cast the gods in the most unflattering light, Arachne's work shone with her dazzling skill.
虽然阿剌克涅把诸神的丑态暴露无遗，她的作品的确彰显了她精湛的手艺。
Her tapestry was almost alive, filled with movement and lustrous colors that winked triumphantly.
她的挂毯栩栩如生、龙飞凤舞、色彩斑斓，如同一面胜利的旗帜。
When Athena saw Arachne's undeniably better and flagrantly subversive work,
当雅典娜看见阿剌克涅那确实优秀，但又公开亵渎众神的作品时，
she flew into a rage and turned on the human weaver.
她怒火中烧，并迁怒于那位凡人纺织女。
Arachne's glee dimmed as she felt her body shrinking and contorting.
得意的阿剌克涅突然黯然失色，她感到身体始收缩和扭曲。
Her fingers waved wildly as her arms stuck to her sides, and black hair sprouted all over her body.
她的手指猛烈地摇摆，双臂开始紧贴着身体两侧，而全身则长出了黑毛。
The goddess left Arachne with a single spool of thread unfurling from her belly, a slim reminder of her human talent.
那位女神给阿剌克涅留下了一团从腹部延展开的线，暗示着她以前的天赋。
For challenging the assumption that the gods were untouchable, Athena had shrunk her adversary into the first spider.
因为阿剌克涅挑战了“诸神至高无上”的这种说法，雅典娜把她的挑战者变成了世界上第一只蜘蛛。
To this day, Arachne and her children spin out her penance -- or is it undaunted persistence? -- in the shadows of giants.
如今，阿剌克涅和她的后代还在继续进行苦修，吐的丝不知道是代表忏悔，还是代表无畏的毅力。