3.Arkham Asylum Was Once More Cheerful
3.阿卡姆疯人院曾经欣欣向荣
Even the most casual bat fans have vivid images of Arkham Asylum as a place of gothic terror and madness where no one truly gets better. Interestingly, though, this was not always the case. The asylum was introduced in 1974 by Dennis O'Neil, and it originally accommodated the somewhat more playful tone of the Silver Age, allowing villains such as Joker to be treated for their mental health instead of being thrown in jail. However, as Batman's stories grew darker, the asylum itself did as well.
只要是看过《哥谭》的人一定对阿卡姆疯人院有着深刻印象，它是一个有着哥特式恐怖和疯狂的地方，实际上没有人会在那里得到治愈。有趣的是，它曾经并不是这个样子。阿卡姆疯人院最初由丹尼斯·奥尼尔（译注：Dennis O'Neil，美国著名漫画家，蝙蝠侠的创造者之一）在1974年提出，它最初是为小丑这样的大反派提供一个住处来治疗他的精神疾病，而不是把他扔进监狱。但是，随着蝙蝠侠的故事越来越黑暗，阿卡姆疯人院也要随着改变。

In many ways, the reputation of the asylum was cemented by the same book that cemented Grant Morrison's comic book writing career. The book was Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth. While the narrative offered an eerie dreamscape of terror for Batman, it gave some downright frightening history for Arkham Asylum. Its founder, Amadeus Arkham, wanted to treat those who suffered from mental illness like his mother had.
从许多方面来说，《蝙蝠侠：阿卡姆疯人院》（Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth）这本书使阿卡姆疯人院臭名远扬的同时也成就了格兰特·莫里森的漫画写作生涯。尽管该书描述的仅是蝙蝠侠的一个可怕的梦境，但却为阿卡姆疯人院蒙上了黑暗的面纱。阿玛迪斯·阿卡姆（Amadeus Arkham）为了治疗像他的母亲一样患有精神疾病的患者，建立了阿卡姆疯人院，医院也是用他母亲的名字伊丽莎白·阿卡姆（Elizabeth Arkham）命名的。
However, one of his original patients, a man named Martin "Mad Dog" Hawkins, escaped. He raped Arkham's wife and killed both his wife and child. Martin was one of the first patients when Arkham Asylum officially opened. Amadeus insisted on treating him and "accidentally" killed him with voltage from an electric chair. Amadeus became more erratic and bloodthirsty, eventually becoming institutionalized in his own prison and creating the legend that he wanders the halls of the asylum to ensure that no one ever truly becomes well.
但是，医院的一个患者疯狗马丁逃脱，杀害了阿玛迪斯的妻子和孩子，马丁是阿卡姆疯人院正式开张时最初的病人之一。阿玛迪斯坚持要治疗他，并在电椅上"意外"因为高压而杀害了他。后来阿玛迪斯变得更加古怪和嗜血，最终被关进了自己亲手建造的监狱中，也由此创造了他时常在阿卡姆疯人院游荡以确保无人治愈的传奇。

2.Batman Controls The City's Power
2.蝙蝠侠控制了哥谭市的能源

Another fact that literal-minded readers might have trouble reconciling is the idea of Batman's status as an urban legend. After all, in a world so focused on surveillance, there should be webcam live streams every night of the Caped Crusader's antics. So what gives?
许多一般读者很难认同蝙蝠侠城市传奇的地位。毕竟在这个监控遍布的世界，应该会有摄像头监视到蝙蝠侠在黑夜里的一举一动。那么蝙蝠侠的制胜法宝是什么呢？
Batman, as it turns out, has extremely fine control of the city's power. Specifically, he has special boxes hidden throughout the city that let him siphon power from the city and make other adjustments to protect his secrecy. With his trademark originality, Batman has named these his "bat-boxes." They provide a canonical explanation for why the police or government officials haven't long since tracked Batman back to stately Wayne manor. The boxes allow him to turn off cameras, disable tracking devices, and otherwise stay off the radar of any places he is currently occupying or plans to go to. Hence, the legend of Batman is maintained. Some people are convinced he is actually real, while others think he is just a boogeyman used by the police to scare criminals.
结果当然是蝙蝠侠对城市能源有着绝对的控制权。具体来说，他在哥谭市的每一个角落都藏有特殊的能源盒子，用来获得能量和保护他的秘密。由于这是由他发明的，他将这种盒子命名为"bat-boxes（蝙蝠盒）"，它为为什么警察和政府官员无法追踪到韦恩庄园提供了合理的解释。这种盒子可以关闭电子设备，使跟踪器失效，还能躲避雷达的探测。从而使得蝙蝠侠的传奇色彩得以保持。因此，一些人认为蝙蝠侠是存在的，另外一些人则认为他只是警方编造出力吓唬罪犯的超级英雄。

1.Gotham City Is Magically Evil
1.哥谭市曾经也非常黑暗

One aspect of Gotham City that Batman describes frequently is the return to the idea of its constant evil. It is not a good city made bad at some point in the past. In fact, its rotten present state is considered a marked improvement over its immediate past, as Batman has helped drive out both major mob influence and a corrupt police influence. What then could be the source of the town's evil? Aside from the aforementioned bat-demon is a more ancient explanation: an imprisoned warlock.
哥谭市经常被试图被改造成永久黑暗的城市。这座混乱的城市的从前也是很不堪的。与以前相比，哥谭市的现状已经是算好的了，因为蝙蝠侠已经解决了两大黑帮之争，也镇压了哥谭警局的腐败之风。那么谁会是罪恶之源呢？除了上文提到的恶魔外，还有另外一个原因——一位被囚禁的巫师。
The Shadowpact comic introduces the idea of a warlock who has been imprisoned and sleeping in a tomb in Gotham City for millennia for his evil deeds. When he is awakened, he makes the claim that the city's growth and development has been somehow guided by his own evil essence and has given himself the name "Dr. Gotham." The villains Pentacle and Strega wake Doctor Gotham to gain his help in taking over the world and, although he is stopped by the super group Shadowpact, his malevolent influence of Gotham City seems to live on.
在漫画《Shadowpact》中，一位巫师因为他的恶行而被囚禁在墓地中沉睡了几百万年。当他醒来的时候，他声称哥谭能够有如此大的发展都是他的功劳，并把自己叫做"Dr. Gotham（哥谭医生）"。Pentacle和Strega唤醒了他并在他的帮助下企图控制全世界。虽然最终他被阻止了，但还是一直影响着哥谭。

ZC：译 来源：前十网