美国语文第四册) 第78期:荨麻(1)

 　　O papa! I have stung my hand with that nettle¹. 哦！爸爸！那棵荨麻蜇到了我的手。

　　father says: Well, my dear, I am sorry for it; but pull up that large dock leaf you see near it; 爸爸说：亲爱的，我为你感到难过；拔下一片旁边的大酸模叶，

　　now bruise² the juice out of it on the part which is stung. Well, is the pain lessened³? 挤出叶子上的汁，涂在蜇疼了的地方。恩，现在不那么疼了吧？

　　Oh, very much indeed, I hardly feel it now. But I wish there was not a nettle in the world. 哦，确实是，我几乎感觉不到疼了。但我真希望世界上没有荨麻。

　　I am sure I do not know what use there can be in them. 我不知道它们能有什么用处。

　　If you knew anything of botany, Nanny, you would not say so. 娜娜，如果你了解植物学的话就不会这么说了。

　　What is botany, papa? ]Botany, my dear, is the knowledge of plants. 爸爸，什么是植物学? 亲爱的，植物学就是关于植物的学问。

　　Some plants are very beautiful. If the lily were growing in our fields, I should not complain. 一些植物很漂亮。如果我们的地里长出的是百合花，我就没什么可抱怨的了。

　　But this ugly nettle! I do not know what beauty or use there can be in that. 但却是这种难看的荨麻！我真不知道它有什么漂亮之处或者能有什么用处。

　　And yet, Nanny, there is more beauty, use, and instruction in a nettle, than even in a lily. 不是啊，娜娜，荨麻里的妙处、功用和门道可比百合花多多了。

　　O papa, how can you make that out? 哦，爸爸，你是怎么知道的？

　　Put on your gloves, pluck up that nettle, and let us examine it. First, look at the flower. 戴上手套，拔下那棵荨麻，让我们一起来对它进行个考察。首先，看看它的花。

　　The flower, papa? I see no flower, unless those little ragged⁴ knobs are flowers, 爸爸，它的花？我看不到花，除非说那些粗糙的小疙瘩是花。

　　which have neither color nor smell, and are not much larger than the heads of pins. 它们即没颜色又没味道，还没有大头针的头大呢。

　　Here, take this magnifying glass and examine them. 这里，拿着这个放大镜观察它们。

　　Oh, I see now; every little knob is folded up in leaves, like a rosebud⁵. Perhaps there is a flower inside. 噢，我现在看到了；每个小疙瘩都藏在叶子里，像个玫瑰花苞。也许里面有朵花。

　　Try; take this pin and touch the knob. Well, what do you see? 试试，用这个大头针碰碰那个疙瘩。你看见什么了？

　　Oh, how curious! What is curious? The moment I touched it, it flew open. 哦，真奇怪！什么奇怪啊？我碰到它的一瞬间，它就打开了，像施了魔法。

1 nettle   

n.荨麻；v.烦忧，激恼

参考例句：

• We need a government that will grasp the nettle.我们需要一个敢于大刀阔斧地处理问题的政府。
• She mightn't be inhaled as a rose,but she might be grasped as a nettle.她不是一朵香气扑鼻的玫瑰花，但至少是可以握在手里的荨麻。

2 bruise   

n.青肿，挫伤；伤痕；vt.打青；挫伤

参考例句：

• The bruise was caused by a kick.这伤痕是脚踢的。
• Jack fell down yesterday and got a big bruise on his face.杰克昨天摔了一跤，脸上摔出老大一块淤斑。

3 lessened   

减少的，减弱的

参考例句：

• Listening to the speech through an interpreter lessened its impact somewhat. 演讲辞通过翻译的嘴说出来，多少削弱了演讲的力量。
• The flight to suburbia lessened the number of middle-class families living within the city. 随着迁往郊外的风行，住在城内的中产家庭减少了。

4 ragged   

adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的

参考例句：

• A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
• Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。

5 rosebud   

n.蔷薇花蕾，妙龄少女

参考例句：

• At West Ham he was thought of as the rosebud that never properly flowered.在西汉姆他被认为是一个尚未开放的花蕾。
• Unlike the Rosebud salve,this stuff is actually worth the money.跟玫瑰花蕾膏不一样，这个更值的买。