了不起的盖茨比（她的声音充满了金钱）

导读：

      盖茨比邀请尼克去黛西家吃午餐，计划是让黛西向汤姆摊牌，从而和汤姆离婚。进入黛西家不久，汤姆正在打电话，好像在和别人争论车子的事。但黛西认为他只是假装，他实际上是在和默特尔说话。之后，汤姆也发觉了黛西和盖茨的暧昧，开始处处为难盖茨比。因此整个场面是极度尴尬和紧张的，期间黛西试图通过开玩笑来缓解气氛，不仅徒劳，反而激化了矛盾。

  尼克注意到黛西和盖茨比说话的方式足以揭示他们的婚外情。这也是为什么说“She's got an indiscreet voice”和“Her voice is full of money”。黛西和汤姆，在尼克看来不仅是轻率的，而且是不负责任的。在这里，尼克对财富所允许的行为感到厌恶。

  The next day was broiling, almost the last, certainly the warmest, of the summer. As my train emerged from the tunnel into sunlight, only the hot whistles of the National Biscuit Company broke the simmering hush at noon. The straw seats of the car hovered on the edge of combustion; the woman next to me perspired delicately for a while into her white shirtwaist, and then, as her newspaper dampened under her fingers, lapsed despairingly into deep heat with a desolate cry. Her pocket-book slapped to the floor.

★Broiling：[ˈbrɔɪlɪŋ] 酷热的。★simmer：[ˈsɪmə(r)]  (冲突、争吵等)酝酿，即将爆发。★Hush：寂静;鸦雀无声。★Combustion：[kəmˈbʌstʃən] 燃烧;燃烧过程。★Perspired：[pəˈspaɪəd] 出汗;排汗;发汗。

  第二天酷热非常，夏日已近尾声，然而这也无疑是夏天中最热的一天。当我乘的火车驶出隧道，行进阳光里时，只有国家饼干公司响亮的汽笛声打破了中午暴风雨到来之前的静寂。客车里的草椅垫热得简直要烧起来了。坐在我旁边的一个女人起先很文静地让汗水渗透她白色的衬衫式连衣裙，后来，在她手指下的报纸也湿润了，她哀叹一声，在酷热中颓然地往后一倒。她的皮夹子啪的一声掉落地上。

　　“Oh, my!” she gasped. ★Gasped：[ɡɑːspt] (尤指由于惊讶或疼痛而)喘气，喘息。

  "哦，老天！"她喘着气说。

   I picked it up with a weary bend and handed it back to her, holding it at arm’s length and by the extreme tip of the corners to indicate that I had no designs upon it—but every one near by, including the woman, suspected me just the same.

★Weary：[ˈwɪəri] (对…)不再感兴趣，不再热心，感到不耐烦。

  我没好气地弯下腰把它捡了起来，递还给了她，与她相隔有一臂之远，捏着钱包的一个角，表示我对它并无企图——可是周围的每一个人，包括那女人，还是疑心我。

　“Hot!” said the conductor to familiar faces. “Some weather! hot! hot! hot! Is it hot enough for you? Is it hot? Is it . . . ?”

  "热！"售票员对熟识的乘客说，"什么鬼天气！热……热……热……你们觉得这天儿热吗？热不热？是不是……？"

   My commutation ticket came back to me with a dark stain from his hand. That any one should care in this heat whose flushed lips he kissed, whose head made damp the pajama pocket over his heart!

★Commutation：[ˌkɒmjuˈteɪʃn] 减刑;代偿;折合偿付;代偿金。★Pajama：[pə'dʒɑːmə] 睡衣。

  我的月票递还给我时还残留他手上的黑汗渍。在这酷热天里，谁还会在乎自己亲吻的是谁的朱唇，谁又会理会谁的脑袋蹭湿了自己的胸前睡衣口袋！

　　. . . Through the hall of the Buchanans’ house blew a faint wind, carrying the sound of the telephone bell out to Gatsby and me as we waited at the door.

    ……盖茨比和我在门口等待时，一丝微风吹过布坎南的门厅，带来了电话铃的声音。

   “The master’s body!” roared the butler into the mouthpiece. “I’m sorry, madame, but we can’t furnish it—it’s far too hot to touch this noon!”

★mouthpiece ：[ˈmaʊθpiːs] (电话的)话筒;(乐器的)吹口;喉舌。

   "主人的尸体？"男管家冲着话筒嚷道，"对不起，太太，这个我们提供不了--今天中午太热了，没法碰！"

　　What he really said was: “Yes . . . yes . . . I’ll see.”

  实际上他讲的是："是……是……我去看看。"

  He set down the receiver and came toward us, glistening slightly, to take our stiff straw hats.

★Glistening：（因湿润或油腻而）闪闪发光。

  他放下了听筒，走向我们，身上泛着微光，接过我们的硬草帽。

 “Madame expects you in the salon!” he cried, needlessly indicating the direction. In this heat every extra gesture was an affront to the common store of life.

★Affront：[əˈfrʌnt] 侮辱;冒犯。

  "太太正在小客厅等二位！"他喊道，一面不必要地指着方向。在这酷热的天气，每一个多余的动作都是不当消耗体能储备。

   The room, shadowed well with awnings, was dark and cool. Daisy and Jordan lay upon an enormous couch, like silver idols weighing down their own white dresses against the singing breeze of the fans.

★Awning：[ˈɔːnɪŋ] (门窗上面的)遮阳篷，雨篷。Idol：圣像;神像。

  这屋被遮阳篷挡得严密，十分阴凉。黛西和乔丹躺在一张巨大的沙发上，好像两座银像各自压住白色衣裙，好抵挡风扇呼呼吹出的轻风。

　　“We can’t move,” they said together.

    "我们动不了了。"她们俩同声说。

　　Jordan’s fingers, powdered white over their tan, rested for a moment in mine.

   乔丹的黝黑色手指上，搽了一层白粉，放在我手指上好一会儿。

　　“And Mr. Thomas Buchanan, the athlete?” I inquired.

   "运动健将托马斯·布坎南先生呢？"我问。

①托马斯·布坎南即上文的汤姆·布坎南。汤姆系托马斯的昵称。

　　Simultaneously I heard his voice, gruff, muffled, husky, at the hall telephone.

  恰在这时，我听见了他的声音，只见他在门厅里粗犷、沉闷、沙哑地打电话。

　　Gatsby stood in the centre of the crimson carpet and gazed around with fascinated eyes. Daisy watched him and laughed, her sweet, exciting laugh; a tiny gust of powder rose from her bosom into the air.

★ Crimson：[ˈkrɪmzn] 深红色的;暗红色的。 Bosom：[ˈbʊzəm] 女人的胸部。  

   盖茨比站在绯红的地毯中央，眼神迷离地四周张望。黛西看着他，发出了她那甜蜜、动人的笑声。仿佛有一小撮粉从她胸口飘散到了空中。

　 “The rumor is,” whispered Jordan, “that that’s Tom’s girl on the telephone.”

   "有谣言说，"乔丹悄悄地说，"来电话的是汤姆的情妇。"

  We were silent. The voice in the hall rose high with annoyance: “Very well, then, I won’t sell you the car at all. . . . I’m under no obligations to you at all . . . and as for your bothering me about it at lunch time, I won’t stand that at all!”

★Annoyance：[əˈnɔɪəns] 恼怒;生气;烦恼。

  我们都保持沉默。门廊里的声音飙升了许多，气恼地说："那好吧，我压根儿不卖你那辆车了……我又不欠你什么……至于你在午餐时间打扰我，我无法忍受！"

　　“Holding down the receiver,” said Daisy cynically.

    “挂了话筒再说。”"黛西冷嘲热讽地说。

  “No, he’s not,” I assured her. “It’s a bona-fide deal. I happen to know about it.”

★bona-fide ：[ˌbəʊnə ˈfaɪdi] 良的；善意的；真实的。

   "不，他不是。"我向她保证道，"真有这么一桩买卖。我碰巧知道这事。"

   Tom flung open the door, blocked out its space for a moment with his thick body, and hurried into the room.

★Flung：(尤指生气地)扔，掷，抛，丢fling的过去分词和过去式。

   汤姆猛然推开门，他粗壮的身躯一时将门口堵住了，然后急匆匆走进了屋子。

　　“Mr. Gatsby!” He put out his broad, flat hand with well-concealed dislike. “I’m glad to see you, sir. . . . Nick. . . .”

    "盖茨比先生！"他伸出了他那宽大、扁平的手，很好地掩饰住了对他的厌恶，"我很高兴见到您，先生……尼克……"

　　“Make us a cold drink,” cried Daisy.

   "给我们来杯冷饮吧！"黛西叫道。

　　As he left the room again she got up and went over to Gatsby and pulled his face down, kissing him on the mouth.

    等他又离开屋子后，她站了起来，走到盖茨比面前，把他的脸拢过来，吻了他的嘴。

　　“You know I love you,” she murmured.

   "你知道我爱你。"她喃喃地说。

　　“You forget there’s a lady present,” said Jordan.

   "你忘了还有一位女士在场。"乔丹说。

　　Daisy looked around doubtfully.

    黛西疑惑地回头看看。

　　“You kiss Nick too.”

    "你也吻尼克吧。"

　　“What a low, vulgar girl!”

    "多低级、下流的女孩子！"

  “I don’t care!” cried Daisy, and began to clog on the brick fireplace. Then she remembered the heat and sat down guiltily on the couch just as a freshly laundered nurse leading a little girl came into the room.

★Clog：（使）阻塞;（使）堵塞。木底鞋; 木屐。Launder：[ˈlɔːndər] 洗熨(衣物);洗(钱)。

   "我不在乎！"黛西大声说，同时在砖砌的壁炉前跳起了木屐舞。后来她想起这会儿天气正热，便不好意思地在沙发上坐了下来，正在这时一个保姆穿着刚洗熨过的衣服，搀着一个小女孩进了屋。

 ★木屐舞：这是一种起源于英国北部乡村的舞蹈，矿工闲暇时间穿着他们的厚大的木鞋有节奏的跳动。

 “Bles-sed pre-cious,” she crooned, holding out her arms. “Come to your own mother that loves you.”

★Croon：[kruːn]低声哼唱； (尤指伤感或不真诚地)轻声说。

   "心--肝，宝--贝，"她轻柔地说，一面伸出双臂，"到爱你的亲娘这里来。"

  The child, relinquished by the nurse, rushed across the room and rooted shyly into her mother’s dress.

★Relinquish：[rɪˈlɪŋkwɪʃ] (尤指不情愿地)放弃。

  保姆一撒手，小孩就从屋子那边跑过来，羞答答地一头扎进她母亲的裙子里。

　 “The bles-sed pre-cious! Did mother get powder on your old yellowy hair? Stand up now, and say—How-de-do.”

  "心--肝，宝--贝啊！妈妈把粉弄到你黄黄的头发上了吗？站起身来，说声—你好。"

　　Gatsby and I in turn leaned down and took the small, reluctant hand. Afterward he kept looking at the child with surprise. I don’t think he had ever really believed in its existence before.

  盖茨比和我先后弯下腰来，握一握她不情愿地伸出的小手。然后他惊奇地盯着那孩子。我想他以前从来没有真正相信过这孩子的存在。

　　“I got dressed before luncheon,” said the child, turning eagerly to Daisy.

   "我在午饭前就换好衣服了。"孩子说，急切地把脸转向黛西。

　　“That’s because your mother wanted to show you off.” Her face bent into the single wrinkle of the small, white neck. “You dream, you. You absolute little dream.”

   "那是因为你妈要显摆你。"她低下头来把脸伏在白嫩细颈上唯一的皱纹里，'你啊，梦一般的存在，你真是小美人。"

　　“Yes,” admitted the child calmly. “Aunt Jordan’s got on a white dress too.”

   "是啊，"小孩平静地答应，"乔丹阿姨也穿了一件白裙子。"

　　“How do you like mother’s friends?” Daisy turned her around so that she faced Gatsby. “Do you think they’re pretty?”

   "你觉得妈妈的朋友怎么样？"黛西把她转过来，让她面对盖茨比，"你觉得他们漂亮吗？"

　　“Where’s Daddy?”

    "爸爸在哪儿？"

　　“She doesn’t look like her father,” explained Daisy. “She looks like me. She’s got my hair and shape of the face.”

   "她长得不像她爸爸，"黛西解释说，"她长得像我，头发和脸型都像我。"

　　Daisy sat back upon the couch. The nurse took a step forward and held out her hand.

  黛西靠在沙发上。保姆走上前一步，伸出了手。

　　“Come, Pammy.”

    "来吧，帕咪。"

　　“Good-by, sweetheart!”

    "再见，宝贝！"

  With a reluctant backward glance the well-disciplined child held to her nurse’s hand and was pulled out the door, just as Tom came back, preceding four gin rickeys that clicked full of ice.

★Precede：在…之前发生(或出现);先于;走在…前面。 Click：使发出咔嗒声。

  很懂规矩的小孩依依不舍地回头看了一眼，抓着保姆的手，就被拉到门外去。此时汤姆也刚好回来，后面跟着四杯杜松子利克酒，里面装满了冰块喀嚓作响。

　　Gatsby took up his drink.

    盖茨比拿起一杯酒。

　　“They certainly look cool,” he said, with visible tension.

   "这酒看着真凉。"他说，明显有些紧张。

　　We drank in long, greedy swallows.

    我们贪杯地喝了许久。

　　“I read somewhere that the sun’s getting hotter every year,” said Tom genially. “It seems that pretty soon the earth’s going to fall into the sun—or wait a minute—it’s just the opposite—the sun’s getting colder every year.

  "我在什么地方读到过，说太阳一年比一年热，"汤姆很和气地说，"好像地球不久就会掉进太阳里去--等一等--恰恰相反--太阳一年比一年冷。"

　　“Come outside,” he suggested to Gatsby, “I’d like you to have a look at the place.”

   "到外面来吧，"他向盖茨比提议说，"我想请你看看这地方。"

I went with them out to the veranda. On the green Sound, stagnant in the heat, one small sail crawled slowly toward the fresher sea. Gatsby’s eyes followed it momentarily; he raised his hand and pointed across the bay.

★stagnant ：[ˈstæɡnənt] (水或空气)不流动而污浊的;停滞的。Momentarily：[ˈməʊməntrəli]短促地;片刻地。

  我跟他们一起到了外面的阳台。在绿色的海湾上，海水在酷热中停滞不动，一条小帆缓缓驶向水质更新鲜的大海。片刻间，盖茨比的目光追随着这条船。他举起了手，指向海湾对面。

　　“I’m right across from you.”

    "我就在你正对面。"

　　 “So you are.”

    "还真是。"

   Our eyes lifted over the rose-beds and the hot lawn and the weedy refuse of the dog-days along-shore. Slowly the white wings of the boat moved against the blue cool limit of the sky. Ahead lay the scalloped ocean and the abounding blessed isles.

★weedy ：[ˈwiːdi] 瘦弱的;弱不禁风的;杂草丛生的;长满杂草的。Refuse：废弃物；垃圾。Scalloped：[ˈskɒləpt] 有扇形饰边的;带荷叶边的。

  我们抬起眼，看着玫瑰花坛，望着炎热的草坪，扫过海岸边热浪里的乱草堆。在碧蓝清凉的天际边，那只船的白翼缓慢地移动。再往前就是水波荡漾的海洋和星罗棋布的宝岛。

　 “There’s sport for you,” said Tom, nodding. “I’d like to be out there with him for about an hour.”

  "你们可以去运动，"汤姆点着头说，"我真想出去跟他在那边玩上个把钟头。"

  We had luncheon in the dining-room, darkened too against the heat, and drank down nervous gayety with the cold ale.

★Ale：麦芽啤酒。

  我们在餐厅里吃的午饭，屋里很阴凉，抵消了些高温。大家喝着凉麦芽酒，饮下紧张的愉悦。

　“What’ll we do with ourselves this afternoon?” cried Daisy, “and the day after that, and the next thirty years?”

  "我们今天下午做什么好呢？"黛西大声说，"还有之后的日子，以及未来三十年？"

  “Don’t be morbid,” Jordan said. “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.”

★Morbid：[ˈmɔːbɪd] 病态的;不正常的。Crisp：[krɪsp] 凉爽的；清新的。

  "别发病了，"乔丹说，"秋天一到，晴空万里，天气凉爽，生活就会重新开始了。"

　“But it’s so hot,” insisted Daisy, on the verge of tears, “and everything’s so confused. Let’s all go to town!”

  "可现在太热了，"黛西固执地说，几乎要落泪，"一切又都混乱不堪。咱们都进城去吧！"

　　Her voice struggled on through the heat, beating against it, molding its senselessness into forms.

  她的声音继续在热浪中挣扎，并对抗着它，把漫无目的的热气塑成一些形状。

　　“I’ve heard of making a garage out of a stable,” Tom was saying to Gatsby, “but I’m the first man who ever made a stable out of a garage.”

   "我听说过把马厩改成车库的，"汤姆正对盖茨比说，"而我是第一个把车库改成马厩的。"

　　“Who wants to go to town?” demanded Daisy insistently. Gatsby’s eyes floated toward her. “Ah,” she cried, “you look so cool.”

   "谁愿意进城去？"黛西执拗地问道。盖茨比的眼睛慢慢朝她看过去。"啊，"她嚷道，'你看起来真酷。"

　　Their eyes met, and they stared together at each other, alone in space. With an effort she glanced down at the table.

  他们的眼光相遇了，凝视着彼此，旁若无人。她好不容易才把视线转回到餐桌上。

　“You always look so cool,” she repeated.

   "你看上去总是那么帅气。"她重复道。

　　She had told him that she loved him, and Tom Buchanan saw. He was astounded. His mouth opened a little, and he looked at Gatsby, and then back at Daisy as if he had just recognized her as some one he knew a long time ago.

  她已向盖茨比吐露过爱意，汤姆·布坎南也看出端倪了。他大为震惊。他的嘴微微张开，看了看盖茨比，又看看黛西，仿佛刚刚才认出她是他很久以前就认识的一个人。

  “You resemble the advertisement of the man,” she went on innocently. “You know the advertisement of the man——”

★Innocently：故作天真地;佯装无知地。

  "你很像广告里那个男人，"她故作天真地继续说，"你知道广告里的那个男人……"

　“All right,” broke in Tom quickly, “I’m perfectly willing to go to town. Come on—we’re all going to town.”

  "好吧，"汤姆赶紧打断了她的话，"我非常乐意进城。走吧--我们都进城去。"

　　He got up, his eyes still flashing between Gatsby and his wife. No one moved.

   他站起来，目光还是在盖茨比和他妻子之间来回游走。谁都没动。

　　“Come on!” His temper cracked a little. “What’s the matter, anyhow? If we’re going to town, let’s start.”

   "走啊！"他的脾气上来了一些，"到底怎么回事？咱们要进城，那就走吧。"

   His hand, trembling with his effort at self-control, bore to his lips the last of his glass of ale. Daisy’s voice got us to our feet and out on to the blazing gravel drive.

★Blazing：[ˈbleɪzɪŋ] 酷热的;炽热的。Gravel：[ˈɡrævl] 沙砾;砾石;石子。

   他的一只手，因强行克制而颤抖起来，将杯中剩下的啤酒举到了唇边。黛西的声音促使我们站了起来，走到外面炽热的石子车道上。

　　“Are we just going to go?” she objected. “Like this? Aren’t we going to let any one smoke a cigarette first?”

  "我们马上就走吗？"她不以为然地说，"就像这样？难道我们就不让人先抽支烟吗？"

　　“Everybody smoked all through lunch.”

   "午餐那会儿大家自始至终都在抽烟。"

  “Oh, let’s have fun,” she begged him. “It’s too hot to fuss.” He didn’t answer.

★Fuss：无谓的激动(或忧虑、活动);大惊小怪;(为小事)大吵大闹，大发牢骚。

   "哦，咱们玩点有趣的吧，"她央求他，"这么热，何必折腾呢。"他没回答。

　　“Have it your own way,” she said. “Come on, Jordan.”

   "随你的便吧，"她说，"来吧，乔丹。"

　　They went up-stairs to get ready while we three men stood there shuffling the hot pebbles with our feet. A silver curve of the moon hovered already in the western sky. Gatsby started to speak, changed his mind, but not before Tom wheeled and faced him expectantly.

  她们上楼去准备东西，我们三个男士就站在那儿，用脚把滚烫的小石子来回拨弄。一弯银月已经悬在西边的天空。盖茨比正欲说话，又改变了主意，闭了嘴，但汤姆已经转过身来正对他，等他说。

　　“Have you got your stables here?” asked Gatsby with an effort.

  "你那些马厩是在这里吗？"盖茨比勉强地问道。

　　“About a quarter of a mile down the road.”

   "沿这条路下去大约四分之一英里。"

　　“Oh.”

   "哦"

　　A pause.

  沉默了一会。

 “I don’t see the idea of going to town,” broke out Tom savagely. “Women get these notions in their heads——”

★savagely ：['sævɪdʒli] 野蛮地。Notion：观念;信念;理解。

  "我真不明白进城去干什么，"汤姆怒气冲冲地说，"女人总是想一出是一出……"

　“Shall we take anything to drink?” called Daisy from an upper window.

  "我们要带点喝的吗？"黛西从楼上窗口喊道。

　　“I’ll get some whiskey,” answered Tom. He went inside.

   "我去拿点威士忌。"汤姆答道。他走进屋子里去。

　　Gatsby turned to me rigidly:

    盖茨比生硬地转向我：

　　“I can’t say anything in his house, old sport.”

    "我在他家里什么都说不出来，老兄。"

　　“She’s got an indiscreet voice,” I remarked. “It’s full of——” I hesitated.

    "她说话很轻率，"我说，"它充满了……"我犹疑了一下。

　　“Her voice is full of money,” he said suddenly.

    "她的声音充满了金钱。"他突然说。

   That was it. I’d never understood before. It was full of money—that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals’ song of it. . . . high in a white palace the king’s daughter, the golden girl. . . .

★Cymbal：[ˈsɪmbl] 钹，铙钹(打击乐器)。

  正是这样。以前的我从来没有懂过。它确是充满了金钱—所以她声音里会有抑扬起伏、清脆如铃响、歌咏似钹鸣的无穷魅力……如同在一座白色宫殿里，高高在上的国王之女，黄金女郎……