《The Last Leaf O Henry》Many artists lived in the Greenwich Village area of New York. Two young women named Sue and Johnsy shared a studio apartment at the top of a three-story building. Johnsy's real name was Joanna.
《最后一片藤叶》欧 亨利许多画家住在纽约的格林尼治村。两个名叫苏和约翰妮的女士共同住在三层楼房顶楼的一个小房间中。约翰妮的真实名字叫乔安娜。
In November, a cold, unseen stranger came to visit the city. This disease, pneumonia, killed many people. Johnsy lay on her bed, hardly moving. She looked through the small window. She could see the side of the brick house next to her building.
11月份,一次从未见过的感冒袭击了这座城市。感冒引起的肺炎死了许多人。约翰妮躺在床上几乎动不了了。她向窗外望着,只能看到靠近她这座楼的一座砖房的外墙。
One morning, a doctor examined Johnsy and took her temperature. Then he spoke with Sue in another room.
一天早晨,一位医生对约翰妮作了检查并测量了她的体温,然后在另一个房间与苏开始交谈。
"She has one chance in -- let us say ten," he said. "And that chance is for her to want to live. Your friend has made up her mind that she is not going to get well. Has she anything on her mind?"
他说:“她只剩下一次机会了——可以说只有10天的时间。这是她可以活下来的机会。你的朋友认为自己的病没法治了。她有什么牵挂吗?”
"She -- she wanted to paint the Bay of Naples in Italy some day," said Sue.
苏说:“她——她希望有一天能够在意大利画那不勒斯海湾。”
"Paint?" said the doctor. "Bosh! Has she anything on her mind worth thinking twice -- a man for example?"
医生说:“画画?白日做梦!她有什么事情值得再三牵挂的吗——比如一个小伙子?”
"A man?" said Sue. "Is a man worth -- but, no, doctor; there is nothing of the kind."
苏说:“一个小伙子?一个小伙子确实值得牵挂——但是可惜没有,医生;没有这样的小伙子。”
"I will do all that science can do," said the doctor. "But whenever my patient begins to count the carriages at her funeral, I take away fifty percent from the curative power of medicines."
医生说:“我会按照科学的方法竭尽全力。但是当我的病人开始掰手指头去数出席自己葬礼的马车数量时,我认为药效会降低50%。”
After the doctor had gone, Sue went into the workroom and cried. Then she went to Johnsy's room with her drawing board, whistling ragtime.
医生走后,苏走进绘画间痛哭失声。然后她带着约翰妮的画板,抽泣着走进约翰妮的房间。
Johnsy lay with her face toward the window. Sue stopped whistling, thinking she was asleep. She began making a pen and ink drawing for a story in a magazine. Young artists must work their way to "Art" by making pictures for magazine stories. Sue heard a low sound, several times repeated. She went quickly to the bedside.
约翰妮脸向着窗户侧卧着。苏停止了抽泣,以为约翰妮睡着了。她开始为一家杂志的一则故事画一张简笔画。年青的画家们必须通过为杂志做画来为艺术而努力。她听到了一个低低的声音,并且重复了许多次。她开始迅速走到床边。
Johnsy's eyes were open wide. She was looking out the window and counting -- counting backward. "Twelve," she said, and a little later "eleven"; and then "ten" and "nine;" and then "eight" and "seven," almost together.
约翰妮的双眼睁得大大的。她瞅着窗外数数——倒着数。她嘴里喃喃自语:“十二”,一小会儿后数到“十一”;之后是“十”和“九”;再后是“八”和“七”,不一会儿就数完了。
Sue looked out the window. What was there to count? There was only an empty yard and the blank side of the house seven meters away. An old ivy vine, going bad at the roots, climbed half way up the wall. The cold breath of autumn had stricken leaves from the plant until its branches, almost bare, hung on the bricks.
苏向窗外望了望。外面有什么好数的呢?只有一座空空如也的院子以及七米开外的一座房子的外墙。还有一棵年久的葡萄藤,根部已经腐烂,藤叶爬到了半墙高。秋天的寒气已经使藤叶脱落,藤枝几乎光光如也,攀附在砖墙之上。
"What is it, dear?" asked Sue.
苏问道:“亲爱的,怎么了?”
"Six," said Johnsy, quietly. "They're falling faster now. Three days ago there were almost a hundred. It made my head hurt to count them. But now it's easy. There goes another one. There are only five left now."
约翰妮静静地答道:“六片。它们现在掉得更快了。三天前还有大约100片。数它们数得我头直发痛。但是现在容易了。又掉了一片。现在只剩下五片了。”
"Five what, dear?" asked Sue.
苏问道:“亲爱的,五片什么?”
"Leaves. On the plant. When the last one falls I must go, too. I've known that for three days. Didn't the doctor tell you?"
“叶子。葡萄藤上的叶子。当最后一片叶子落下时,我也不得不走了。我知道还剩下三天了。医生没有对你说过吗?”
"Oh, I never heard of such a thing," said Sue. "What have old ivy leaves to do with your getting well? And you used to love that vine. Don't be silly. Why, the doctor told me this morning that your chances for getting well real soon were -- let's see exactly what he said - he said the chances were ten to one! Try to eat some soup now. And, let me go back to my drawing, so I can sell it to the magazine and buy food and wine for us."
苏说:“天哪,我从来没有听过这种说法。老葡萄藤叶与你病情好转有什么关系呢?以前你非常喜欢那棵葡萄藤。不要犯傻了。为什么呢,因为今天早上医生告诉我,你痊愈的机会不久就会出现——我们好好考虑一下他的话——他说痊愈的概率非常大!现在喝点汤吧。我去接着画画,好将画卖掉为买些食物与葡萄酒。”
"You needn't get any more wine," said Johnsy, keeping her eyes fixed out the window. "There goes another one. No, I don't want any soup. That leaves just four. I want to see the last one fall before it gets dark. Then I'll go, too."
约翰妮一边两眼紧盯着窗户,一边说道:“你用不着再去买葡萄酒了。又掉了一片叶子。不,我不需要什么汤了。那些叶子只剩下四片了。我想在天黑之前看到最后一片叶子落下。到时候我也该走了。”
"Johnsy, dear," said Sue, "will you promise me to keep your eyes closed, and not look out the window until I am done working? I must hand those drawings in by tomorrow."
苏说:“约翰妮,亲爱的,你能对我许诺把两眼闭上,直到我干完活再注视窗外吗?到明天我必须上交这些作品。”
"Tell me as soon as you have finished," said Johnsy, closing her eyes and lying white and still as a fallen statue. "I want to see the last one fall. I'm tired of waiting. I'm tired of thinking. I want to turn loose my hold on everything, and go sailing down, down, just like one of those poor, tired leaves."
约翰妮闭上双眼,脸色苍白地躺在床上,俨然一具摔碎的雕像,说道:“你一画完就告诉我,我想看着最后一片叶子落下。我等不及了。我懒得思考了。我想对一切都无所谓了,慢慢地死去,就如同一片可怜的、风雨飘摇的叶子。”
"Try to sleep," said Sue. "I must call Mister Behrman up to be my model for my drawing of an old miner. Don't try to move until I come back."
苏说:“尽量睡一会儿吧,我必须给贝尔曼先生打电话,让他作我所画的一幅老矿工画像中的模特。在我回来之前,不要动了。”
Old Behrman was a painter who lived on the ground floor of the apartment building. Behrman was a failure in art. For years, he had always been planning to paint a work of art, but had never yet begun it. He earned a little money by serving as a model to artists who could not pay for a professional model. He was a fierce, little, old man who protected the two young women in the studio apartment above him.
老贝尔曼是住在这座楼地下室的一个画家。在画画上他是一名失败者。许多年了,他始终在计划画出一幅杰作,但却从未着手。他通过为付不起专业模特费用的画家当模特挣一丁点钱。他是一位保护楼上两位女士的勇敢的、不起眼的老头。
Sue found Behrman in his room. In one area was a blank canvas that had been waiting twenty-five years for the first line of paint. Sue told him about Johnsy and how she feared that her friend would float away like a leaf.
苏在贝尔曼的房间中找到了他。在屋子的一角是一张已经等了25年以便进行创作的空白画布。苏将约翰妮的病情以及她对于自己的朋友如同一片叶子一样时刻会随风而逝的恐惧告诉了他。
Old Behrman was angered at such an idea. "Are there people in the world with the foolishness to die because leaves drop off a vine? Why do you let that silly business come in her brain?"
老贝尔曼对这样一种想法非常生气:“世界上有傻得因葡萄藤叶落下而自愿等死的人吗?你为什么会让她产生这样的愚蠢想法?”
"She is very sick and weak," said Sue, "and the disease has left her mind full of strange ideas."
苏答道:“她奄奄一息了,病情使她脑子里满是奇思怪想。”
"This is not any place in which one so good as Miss Johnsy shall lie sick," yelled Behrman. "Some day I will paint a masterpiece, and we shall all go away."
贝尔曼吼道:“这不是一个约翰妮小姐可以好好养病的地方。有一天我会完成一幅杰作,好让我们都可以搬出去。”
Johnsy was sleeping when they went upstairs. Sue pulled the shade down to cover the window. She and Behrman went into the other room. They looked out a window fearfully at the ivy vine. Then they looked at each other without speaking. A cold rain was falling, mixed with snow. Behrman sat and posed as the miner.
当他们上楼时,约翰妮正在睡觉。苏将窗帘放了下来以挡住窗户。她与贝尔曼走进另一个房间。他们惊恐地望着窗外的那棵葡萄藤。然后他们无声地对视了一下。一场阴雨正在下着,其中还夹杂着雪花。贝尔曼坐了下来,开始摆出矿工的姿势。
The next morning, Sue awoke after an hour's sleep. She found Johnsy with wide-open eyes staring at the covered window.
第二天早上,苏在睡了一小时觉之后醒来。她发现约翰妮大睁着双眼看着被挡住的窗户。
"Pull up the shade; I want to see," she ordered, quietly.
她小声地命令道:“拉开窗帘;我想看看。”
Sue obeyed.
苏照做了。
After the beating rain and fierce wind that blew through the night, there yet stood against the wall one ivy leaf. It was the last one on the vine. It was still dark green at the center. But its edges were colored with the yellow. It hung bravely from the branch about seven meters above the ground.
在经历了一夜的狂风暴雨之后,在墙上还剩下一片叶子。这是这棵葡萄藤最后一片叶子了。叶子的中间依然绿中透黑。但是叶子的边上透着黄色。它勇敢地挺立在距离地面七米高的葡萄藤枝上。
"It is the last one," said Johnsy. "I thought it would surely fall during the night. I heard the wind. It will fall today and I shall die at the same time."
约翰妮说:“这是最后一片叶子了。我以为昨天晚上它就会掉下来。我听到了风声。今天它就会掉下来,同时我也会走了。”
"Dear, dear!" said Sue, leaning her worn face down toward the bed. "Think of me, if you won't think of yourself. What would I do?"
苏一边将她苍白的脸扭到床的另一侧,一边说道:“亲爱的,亲爱的!即使你不考虑自己,也应该想想我。我能够怎么办呢?”
But Johnsy did not answer.
但是约翰妮没有应答。
The next morning, when it was light, Johnsy demanded that the window shade be raised. The ivy leaf was still there. Johnsy lay for a long time, looking at it. And then she called to Sue, who was preparing chicken soup.
第二天早上,当天亮的时候,约翰妮命令打开窗帘。葡萄藤叶子依然挂在那里。约翰妮躺在床上等了好长时间,双眼紧盯着这片叶子。然后她招呼正在做鸡汤的苏。
"I've been a bad girl," said Johnsy. "Something has made that last leaf stay there to show me how bad I was. It is wrong to want to die. You may bring me a little soup now."
约翰妮说:“我始终是一个荒唐的女孩子。最后一片叶子依然挂在那里的事实说明了我是多少的荒唐。等死是错的。现在你可以喂我一口汤了。”
An hour later she said: "Someday I hope to paint the Bay of Naples."
一个小时之后,她说:“我希望有一天能够画那不勒斯海湾。”
Later in the day, the doctor came, and Sue talked to him in the hallway.
这一天晚些时候,医生来了,苏在走廊上与他交谈。
"Even chances," said the doctor. "With good care, you'll win. And now I must see another case I have in your building. Behrman, his name is -- some kind of an artist, I believe. Pneumonia, too. He is an old, weak man and his case is severe. There is no hope for him; but he goes to the hospital today to ease his pain."
医生说:“治愈的成败机会是均等的。精心照料你就会成功。现在我必须去看一下这座楼里的另外一位病人。他的名字叫贝尔曼——我想是一位画家。他患的也是肺炎。他是一个年老体弱的老头,病情非常严重。对他来说没有希望了;但是今天他才去医院治疗。”
The next day, the doctor said to Sue: "She's out of danger. You won. Nutrition and care now -- that's all."
第二天,医生对苏说:“她脱离危险了。你成功了。现在需要的就是营养与照料了。”
Later that day, Sue came to the bed where Johnsy lay, and put one arm around her.
那天晚些时候,苏来到约翰妮躺的病床旁边,用一只胳膊抱着她。
"I have something to tell you, white mouse," she said. "Mister Behrman died of pneumonia today in the hospital. He was sick only two days. They found him the morning of the first day in his room downstairs helpless with pain. His shoes and clothing were completely wet and icy cold. They could not imagine where he had been on such a terrible night.
她说:“小东西,我有话要对你说。今天贝尔曼先生在医院去世了。他病了两天。第一天早上,人们在他的地下室发现了病入膏肓的他。他的鞋子与衣服全湿透了,并且冰冷异常。人们不能想象出在这样一个风雨交加之夜他去哪儿了。”
And then they found a lantern, still lighted. And they found a ladder that had been moved from its place. And art supplies and a painting board with green and yellow colors mixed on it.
“然后,人们发现有一盏灯依然亮着。人们发现这盏灯的位置挪动了。旁边还有一些画画用的东西以及着了绿黄颜色的一张画板。”
And look out the window, dear, at the last ivy leaf on the wall. Didn't you wonder why it never moved when the wind blew? Ah, darling, it is Behrman's masterpiece - he painted it there the night that the last leaf fell."
“亲爱的,向窗外望一下,看看墙上挂着的那片葡萄藤叶子吧。你没有想过刮风之时它为何纹丝不动吗?哦,亲爱的,那是贝尔曼先生的杰作——就在那片叶子落下的晚上,他将它画了下来。”
参考资料:www.miaowj.com/zwzx/xxzw/ ... /zwzx_3484.html