J_00795_ch20901

Lesson Nine
Forty Years On
Norah Lofts
 Learning Guide
　　人有时像马一样，须要从后面戳一下才肯动起来，才能不断前进。戳的方式可以多种多样，课文所描述的是其中之一。两个未曾谋面、年龄相仿的远亲，从孩提时期到成年一直想像对方从长相到智力都远远胜过自己。双方家长也不断用对方的成绩激励自己的儿子上进。当两人已过花甲之年，都已小有名气终于见面时，才恍然大悟：原来双方家长玩的是同样的把戏，他们不禁开怀大笑。之后，他们举杯怀念这把戏的导演、他们已故的嘉丽阿姨。不论故事是真是假，难道你不认为一个人的精神面貌对事业成功与否十分重要吗?
1. John Bullyer and I met for the first time in 1956 when we were both in our early sixties, ①but it is true to say that he did more to shape my life than any other person.


2. John Bullyer came into my life through my Aunt Carrie. She was also aunt to John Bullyer, ②whom she referred to as " Little-John-my-other-nephew " all in one word, and she referred to him too often.


　　① …but it is true to say that he did more to shape my life than any other person. 
　　　…but honestly I own him the most for the kind of person I am today. 
　　② whom she referred to as Little-John-Aunt-Carrie's-other nephew had started school on the same day and taken to it like a duck to water.
　　　她把布雷尔干脆称作“我的另一个侄子小约翰。” 
　　　　refer to sb/sth as 把......称为 
　　　My mother told me that John had started school on the same day and enjoyed his school life very much.
3. From Aunt Carrie's point of view it was fortunate, from mine, disastrous, that John Bullyer and I were the same age. Probably hundreds of comparisons were made before I became aware of them. The first that I remember was made soon after I began school where I had lain on the floor and wailed that I wanted to go home. Shortly after that my mother reported that Little-John-Aunt-Carrie's-other nephew had started school on the same day and taken to it like a duck to water.


4. And so it went on. Incredible boy, he knew his nine-times table, ①while I was still hopelessly bogged in the fours; I began to dread Aunt Carrie's formerly most welcome visits. She was certain to produce chocolate or sixpence from her purse; but as soon as she had gone, Mother was sure to say the dread words:


5. " Aunt Carrie was telling me that John Bullyer... " 


　　① …Little-John-Aunt-Carrie's-other nephew had started school on the same day and taken to it like a duck to water. 
　　　“嘉丽阿姨的另一个侄子”跟我同一天开始上学，如鱼得水般地高兴。 　　
　　②…while I was still hopelessly bogged in the fours; 
　　　我那时还在吭哧吭哧地背4的倍数表。 
　　　while I am unable to make progress in the fours 
　　
6. ①The comparisons were, without exception, to my disadvantage. ②The wretched boy never set foot upon a football field without scoring a goal; I became conscious of my inferiority, for I was hopeless at games.


7. To me it seemed sinister that Mother always passed on any small achievement of mine. ③Once, at my prep. school, I had a story in the magazine and Mother was beside herself.


8. " I must have another copy of that, " she said, " so that Aunt Carrie can send it to John Bullyer's mother. " ④What a boomerang that proved! By return of post came the news that John had won a scholarship.


　　① The comparisons were, without exception, to my disadvantage. 
　　　比较的结果总是我不如他。 
　without exception：毫无例外地 
　　　Whenever they compared us, I always turned out to be inferior to John. 
　　② The wretched boy never set foot upon a football field without scoring a goal; I became conscious of my inferiority, for I was hopeless at games.
　　　那个讨厌的家伙，足球赛时，他只要一上场准能得分。在这方面我知道我不如他，对于球赛，我是一窍不通。 
　　　Every time he played a game, he was sure to score a goal. 
　　③ Once, at my prep, school, I had a story in the magazine and Mother was beside herself.
　　　在上小学时有一次一家杂志刊登了我写的一个故事，妈妈真是高兴得忘乎所以。 
　　　Mother was very excited that I had a story in the magazine. 
　　④ What a boomerang that proved! By return of post came the news that John had won a scholarship.
　　　这是适得其反！我收到的回信带来了约翰获得奖学金的消息。 
　　　What mother had done brought about the opposite result. She intended to show off my ability. Instead , my little achievement only made John's success more impressive.
 


 


9. It will seem strange that we boys never met, but in those days Gloucestershire was as far removed, in travelling time, from Suffolk, as New York is today. Aunt Carrie kept saying, " Really, you boys should know one another, I'm sure you'd be such friends, " and once or twice she tried to arrange that John should stay with her in the holidays. Mercifully for me something always prevented him from doing so. 


10. ①I did have, however, one horribly narrow escape. An elderly couple, distant relatives of my father's, were celebrating their golden wedding. They lived in London, and ②they issued such a sentimentally-worded invitation that Father was bound to accept. As soon as he had done so Aunt Carrie came over in a state of excitement. Wasn't the world a small place, the Bullyer family and Father's relatives had once been near neighbours, and all three Bullyers had been invited to the feast. When Aunt Carrie had gone Mother said to me:


11. " You sit there huddled over a book until your back is bent like a bow. Go out and get some air. You look so much better with a little tan. " I realised that ③she and I visualised John Bullyer in the same way, tall and straight, big for his age, with a handsome brown face. I stood up, obediently.  


　　① I did have, however, one horribly narrow escape. 
　　　不过，有一次我是幸免于难。 
　　　I almost had to meet John once, but something prevented our meeting. 
　　② …they issue such a sentimentally-worded invitation that Father was bound to accept.
　　　他们的邀请信措词确实情深意长，爸爸肯定会接受邀请的。 
　　　They were so sincere in the invitation that Father could do nothing but to accept it.
　　③ …she and I visualized John Bullyer in the same way, tall and straight, big for his age, with a handsome brown face.
　　　我们两个人心目中的布雷尔是一样的：身材魁梧挺拔，比同龄人高大，长得很英俊，脸晒得带点褐色。 
　　　I realized that in my mother's mind John Bullyer looked just the same as I imagined　　　tall, straight, strong and handsome.


12. ①Walking made no noticeable difference to my back and the sun remained hidden, so Mother tried another tack:


13. " You'll need a new suit at Easter anyway, you might as well have it now. "


14. On the evening before we were to make our early morning start for London, Mother came into my room and made me try on the new suit. ②I could see, by the expression on her face, that it worked no miracle. ③But Mother did not take defeat easily; looks weren't everything, my manners, at least, should pass muster! So she gave me a few final instructions. I kept saying, " Yes, Mother " and " No,Mother " , and " I'll remember, Mother " . Finally she said: 


　　① Walking made no noticeable difference to my back and the sun remained hidden, so mother tried another tack:
　　　我的背并没有因为散步有明显的改进，太阳也老是躲着不肯出来，所以妈妈就试了另外一个办法（来改进我的形象）。 
　　　Walking did little help to straighten my back and there wasn't much sunshine, so mother thought of another way to improve my looks. 
　　② I could see, by the expression on her face, that it worked no miracles.
　　　从妈妈的表情我可以看出，新衣服也没有创造什么奇迹。 
　　　The look on her face suggested that the new suit failed to make any noticeable changes to me.
　　③ But Mother did not take defeat easily; looks weren't everything. My manners, at least, should pass muster!
　　　可是妈妈不轻易服输；长相不是一切，至少我的举止应该过得去。 
　　　Mother would not admit defeat easily. Physical appearance was not the most important. My social behavior, however, was good enough.
15. " Well, hurry into bed and get a good night's sleep. " 


16. I did not sleep well; I had the worst night I had ever known. My jaws ached. The pain spread up into my head, back into my ears, down into my throat. In addition to my physical woes I had mental agonies; I prayed that something might occur to prevent this meeting.


17. I saw the dawn that morning and heard the first bird chorus. After several centuries had dragged by I heard the alarm go off in my parents' room and thankfully rose from my bed. I washed more thoroughly than usual; then I dressed, and in honour of the occasion, went to the looking glass to arrange my tie. For a moment, I thought that nervousness had affected my eyesight; ①the face that looked back at me was only just recognisable. My ears were hidden by the bulge of my jaws and I seemed to have no neck. 


　　① …the face that looked back at me was only just recognizable. My ears were hidden by the bulge of my jaws and I seemed to have no neck. 
　　　看看镜子里我的那张脸，我勉强能认出是谁。下巴肿得看不见耳朵，我好像连脖子也没有了。 
　　　The face I saw in the mirror could hardly be recognized. It was swollen all over, and I seemed to have neither ears nor a neck.
18. Horrified I reeled into my parents' room.


19. " Do you think I look funny this morning? "


20. They both turned. Mother screamed. Father said, " I wouldn't say funny. You look damned peculiar. "


21. ①It was mumps. It left me open-minded about prayer.


22. Time went on; so did the comparisons. By word of mouth during the holidays, by phrases in letters during term time, I was kept up to date with John's cleverness and progress. ②Thus goaded I began at last to look round for something that I could do, something at which I could excel. When I found it I worked savagely, minding nothing else; let this be mine, John Bullyer could have all the rest. 


　　① It was mumps. It left me open-minded about prayer. 
　　　我得了流行性腮腺炎。这使得我对祷告不再抱有偏见。 
　　　I had developed a case of mumps. This would prevent me from meeting John. Now I had no doubt about the power of prayer. 
　　② Thus goaded I began at last to look round for something that I could do, something at which I could excel.
　　　在这种激励之下，我终于开始努力寻找一件我能够做的事，一件我能做得出众的事。 
　　　Being constantly spurred, I began to search for something that I was able to do, something that I could do better than John.. .
23. I was still a Grub Street hack, counting it a good week in which I made five pounds, when John attained some glittering appointment in India. That ability to master the nine-times table had proved no momentary success. He had developed into some kind of financial wizard. There was a paragraph in the daily papers about this appointment.


24. Aunt Carrie took the cutting to show to my mother. That was her last report. She was dead before her other nephew reached his destination.


25. Three or four times during the next forty years I saw mention of John Bullyer in the press. Those paragraphs recorded a steady success which eventually led to a knighthood when he retired in 1956. On that occasion there was half a newspaper column about him. When asked, in an interview, what he intended to do with his leisure, Sir John replied, " I hope to take up golf; I have never had time to take it seriously. " I pictured him again, lean and tanned, with a head of well-kept grey hair. I was sorry that there was no photograph; ①I could have looked at it almost without fear, I thought. I was, by that time, not unsuccessful in my own line.


　　① I could have looked at it almost without fear, I thought, I was, by that time, not unsuccessful in my own line.
　　　我几乎可以毫无惧色地看他的照片，因为那时我在自己的领域里也不是一事无成。 
　　　I thought, by that time, I had achieved a certain degree of success in my field of writing. I would have been able to look at him without feeling inferior.
26. Late that year, in November, I was in my club, sipping a glass of sherry before dinner. A cough at my elbow made me look round. I saw a short stout man, glitteringly bald, with a little snub nose that looked too small to support the framework of his heavy glasses. Diffidently, he spoke my name and I admitted my identity.①Since I attained a little fame I have on occasion been addressed by strangers and no matter how flatteringly they speak I am always horribly embarrassed.


27. " My name's John B-Bullyer, " stammered the little man. " We once sh-shared an aunt. "


28. I leaped up and shook hands, expressing my pleasure at meeting him at last, and then we settled down to drink sherry together. ②His stammer, like my shyness, soon wore off.


　　① Since I attained a little fame I have on occasion been addressed by strangers… 
　　　我在当地小有名气，因此不时有陌生人与我说话 
　　　Since I became somewhat famous, some strangers would come up to talk to me from time to time. 
　　② His stammer, like my shyness, soon wears off.
　　　很快他不再结巴了，我也不再胆怯了。 
　　　His stammer, like my shyness, soon disappears.
29. " I used to hear so much about you, " he said with a grin. " Then I learned that you were a member here and I could not resist asking someone to point you out to me. ①Though, if you'd looked the least bit as I always imagined I don't think I'd have d-dared to approach you. You see... I grew up with the idea that you were at least eight feet tall, tremendously handsome and more talented than da Vinci. " His grin broadened — and I knew why! " Really, " he said, " the letters Aunt Carrie used to write about you and the way my mother used to read them out. You were the b-bugbear of my life. "


　　① Though, if you'd looked the least bit as I always imagined I don't think I'd have d-dared to approach you. 
　　　过你要是还有一点像我想象你的样子，我想我是不敢走近你的。 
　　　But, if you looked just as a little as handsome and charming as I had imagined, I would not have had the courage to come up to you. 
　　
30. " They were nothing, " I said, " to the letters your mother used to write about you. I was told every time you got a sum right. I always thought of you as nine feet high, better looking than Robert Taylor and more versatile than Churchill. ①So they played the game both ways, did they? "


31. We laughed.


32. We looked at one another. ②Then it probably dawned on us both that the place in which we sat is not the haunt of men who have been failures in life, and that, ③boys being what they are, an occasional prod in the rear is no such bad thing. Together we lifted our glasses, and though neither of us spoke, I know that we drank to the memory of Aunt Carrie.

（单选题）42.He is _____ to me _____ mathematics, that is to say, he is better at mathematics than I am.


A． inferior, in
B． inferior, at
C． superior, in
D． superior, at
【答案】C


【解析】本题考查重要短语be inferior / superior to sb./ sth.。be inferior to sb. in sth. 意思是“在……方面不如某人”，相反的，be superior to sb. in sth. 意思是“在……优越于某人”，该句句意是“他在数学方面优于我，也就是说，他的数学比我好。”


【知识点】重要短语be inferior / superior to sb./ sth.