英语听书《白鲸记》第887期

 　　Yet was this half-horrible stolidity¹ in him, involving, too, as it appeared, an all-ramifying heartlessness; 不过，正是他这种有点可怕的迟钝，就不免使他象个十分不近人情的人；

　　yet was it oddly dashed at times, with an old, crutch-like, antediluvian², wheezing³ humorousness, not unstreaked now and then with a certain grizzled wittiness⁴; 然而，说也奇怪，他有时也很健谈，能够显出一种古朴的、转弯抹角的诙谐突梯，时不时说出一种半新半旧的俏皮话来；

　　such as might have served to pass the time during the midnight watch on the bearded forecastle of Noah's ark. 这俏皮话，在挪亚方舟上那个古老的船头楼值夜时，倒是可以解解闷的。

　　Was it that this old carpenter had been a life-long wanderer, whose much rolling, to and fro, not only had gathered no moss⁵; 这个老木匠是不是个终身的飘泊者，这样颠沛飘泊得不但连苔藓都没有找到，

　　but what is more, had rubbed off whatever small outward clingings might have originally pertained⁶ to him? 而且把他本来那点外貌也给磨掉了呢？

　　He was a stript abstract; an unfractioned integral; uncompromised as a new-born babe; living without premeditated reference to this world or the next. 他可真是个彻底的心不在焉的人；一个没有零数的整体；象一个初生婴儿似的冥顽；既不考虑到今生，也不估计到来世地生活着。

　　You might almost say, that this strange uncompromisedness in him involved a sort of unintelligence; 你简直会认为，他这种奇特的冥顽就不免是一种愚钝；

　　for in his numerous trades, he did not seem to work so much by reason or by instinct, 因为在他的各种工作中，他并不象是凭理智，或凭本能干的，

　　or simply because he had been tutored to it, or by any intermixture of all these, even or uneven⁷; 也不完全是因为他曾拜过师傅，或者是理智，本能，拜师傅都各有一点；

　　but merely by a kind of deaf and dumb, spontaneous literal process. 而完全是凭不闻不问、不加思索的依样画葫芦的方法。

　　He was a pure manipulator; his brain, if he had ever had one, must have early oozed⁸ along into the muscles of his fingers. 他是个纯粹的手工匠；他的头脑（如果说他有头脑的话），一定是早就顺着脉络通到他的手指头了。

1 stolidity   

n.迟钝，感觉麻木

参考例句：

• That contrast between flashy inspiration and stolidity may now apply to the world's big central banks. 而今这种创意的灵感和反应上的迟钝的对照也适用于世界上的各大中央银行。 来自互联网

2 antediluvian   

adj.史前的，陈旧的

参考例句：

• His ideas are positively antediluvian!他的思想是纯粹的老古董。
• This antediluvian monetary system has now been replaced by the up-to-date monetary system of Japan.这种旧式的金融体系也已经被现代化的日本系统所取代。

3 wheezing   

v.喘息，发出呼哧呼哧的喘息声( wheeze的现在分词 )；哮鸣

参考例句：

• He was coughing and wheezing all night. 他整夜又咳嗽又喘。
• A barrel-organ was wheezing out an old tune. 一架手摇风琴正在呼哧呼哧地奏着一首古老的曲子。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 wittiness   

机智，临机应变

参考例句：

• That all thanks to our leaders' calmness and wittiness. 这真是多亏干部们的临场冷静与机智。
• I very admire his bravery and wittiness, he is our model. 我非常钦佩他的勇敢、机智，他是我们学习的榜样。

5 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

6 pertained   

关于( pertain的过去式和过去分词 )； 有关； 存在； 适用

参考例句：

• These are the privileges that pertained only to the wealthier class. 这些是属于富有阶级独享的特权。
• And did you feel it, in your heart, it pertained to everything? 而你是否感受到，在你心里，它如何和谐于万物？

7 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

8 oozed   

v.（浓液等）慢慢地冒出，渗出( ooze的过去式和过去分词 )；使（液体）缓缓流出；（浓液）渗出，慢慢流出

参考例句：

• Blood oozed out of the wound. 血从伤口慢慢流出来。
• Mud oozed from underground. 泥浆从地下冒出来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》