小王子-chapter14

The Little Prince Chapter 14

The fifth planet was very strange. It was the smallest of all. There was just enough room on it for a street lamp and a lamplighter. 

第五颗行星非常奇怪，是这些星星中最小的一颗。行星上刚好能容得下一盏路灯和一个点路灯的人。

The little prince was not able to reach any explanation of the use of a street lamp and a lamplighter, somewhere in the heavens, on a planet which had no people, and not one house. But he said to himself, nevertheless:

小王子怎么也解释不通：这个坐落在天空某一角落，没有房屋又没有居民的行星，要一盏路灯和一个点灯的人做什么用。

"It may well be that this man is absurd. But he is not so absurd as the king, the conceited man, the businessman, and the tippler. For at least his work has some meaning. 

但他猜想：“可能这个人思想不正常。但他比起国王，比起那个爱虚荣的人，那个实业家和酒鬼，却要好些。因为至少他的工作还有点意义。

When he lights his street lamp, it is as if he brought one more star to life, or one flower. When he puts out his lamp, he sends the flower, or the star, to sleep.

当他点着了他的路灯时，就像增添了一颗星星，或是一朵花。当他熄灭了路灯时，就像让星星或花朵睡着了似的。

That is a beautiful occupation. And since it is beautiful, it is truly useful."

这差事真美妙，就是真正有用的了。”

When he arrived on the planet, he respectfully saluted the lamplighter.

小王子一到了这个行星上，就很尊敬地向点路灯的人打招呼：

"Good morning. Why have you just put out your lamp?"

“早上好。你刚才为什么把路灯熄灭了呢？”

"Those are the orders," replied the lamplighter. "Good morning."

“早上好。这是命令。”点灯的回答道。

"What are the orders?"

“命令是什么？”

"The orders are that I put out my lamp. Good evening."

“就是熄掉我的路灯。晚上好。”

And he lighted his lamp again.

于是他又点燃了路灯。

"But why have you just lighted it again?"

“那么为什么你又把它点着了呢？”

"Those are the orders," replied the lamplighter.

“这是命令。”点灯的人回答道。

"I do not understand," said the little prince.

“我不理解。”小王子说。

"There is nothing to understand," said the lamplighter. "Orders are orders. Good morning."

“没什么好理解的。命令就是命令。”点灯的回答说。“早上好。”

And he put out his lamp.

于是他又熄灭了路灯。

Then he mopped his forehead with a handkerchief decorated with red squares.

然后他拿一块有红方格子的手绢擦着额头。

"I follow a terrible profession. In the old days it was reasonable. I put the lamp out in the morning, and in the evening I lighted it again. I had the rest of the day forrelaxation and the rest of the night for sleep."

“我干的是一种可怕的职业。以前还说得过去，早上熄灯，晚上点灯，剩下的时间，白天我就休息，夜晚我就睡觉……”

"And the orders have been changed since that time?"

“那么，后来命令改变了，是吗？”

"The orders have not been changed," said the lamp lighter. "That is the tragedy! From year to year the planet has turned more rapidly and the orders have not been changed!"

点灯的人说：“命令没有改，惨就惨在这里了！这颗行星一年比一年转得更快，而命令却没有改。”

"Then what?" asked the little prince.

“结果呢？”小王子问。

"Then-- the planet now makes a complete turn every minute, and I no longer have a single second for repose. Once every minute I have to light my lamp and put it out!"

“结果现在每分钟转一圈，我连一秒钟的休息时间都没有了。每分钟我就要点一次灯，熄一次灯！”

"That is very funny! A day lasts only one minute, here where you live!"

“真有趣，你这里每天只有一分钟长？”

"It is not funny at all!" said the lamplighter. "While we have been talking together a month has gone by."

“一点趣味也没有，”点灯人说，“我们俩在一块说话这会儿，就已经过去一个月了。”

"A month?"

“一个月？”

"Yes, a month. Thirty minutes. Thirty days. Good evening."

“对。三十分钟，三十天！晚上好。”

And he lighted his lamp again.

于是他又点着了他的路灯。

As the little prince watched him, he felt that he loved this lamp lighter who was so faithful to his orders.

小王子瞅着他，他喜欢这个点灯人如此忠守命令。

He remembered the sunsets which he himself had gone to seek, in other days,merely by pulling up his chair; and he wanted to help his friend.

这时，他想起了他自己从前挪动椅子寻找日落的事。他很想帮助这位朋友。

"You know," he said, "I can tell you a way. You can rest whenever you want to…"

“告诉你，我知道一种能使你休息的办法，你要什么时候休息都可以。”

"I always want to rest," said the lamplighter.

“我老是想休息。”点灯人说。

For it is possible for a man to be faithful and lazy at the same time.

因为，一个人可以同时是忠实的，又是懒惰的。

The little prince went on with his explanation: "Your planet is so small that three strides will take you all the way around it. To be always in the sunshine, you need only walk along rather slowly. When you want to rest, you will walk-- and the day will last as long as you like."

小王子接着说：“你的这颗行星这样小，你三步就可以绕它一圈。你只要慢慢地走，就可以 一直在太阳的照耀下，你想休息的时候，你就这样走……那么，你要白天又多长它就有多长。”

"That doesn't do me much good," said the lamplighter. "The one thing I love in life is to sleep."

“这办法帮不了我多少忙，生活中我喜欢的就是睡觉。”点灯人说。

"Then you're unlucky," said the little prince.

“真不走运。”小王子说。

"I am unlucky," said the lamplighter. "Good morning."

“真不走运。”点灯人说。“早上好。”

And he put out his lamp.

于是他又熄灭了路灯。

"That man," said the little prince to himself, as he continued farther on his journey, "that man would be scorned by all the others: by the king, by the conceited man, by the tippler, by the businessman. Nevertheless he is the only one of them all who does not seem to me ridiculous. Perhaps that is because he is thinking of something else besides himself."

在接下来的旅途中，小王子自言自语道："这个人一定会被其他那些人，国王呀，爱虚荣的呀，酒鬼呀，实业家呀所瞧不起。可是唯有他，我不觉得荒唐可笑。这可能是因为他所关心的是别的事，而不是他自己。”

He breathed a sigh of regret, and said to himself, again: "That man is the only one of them all whom I could have made my friend. But his planet is indeed too small. There is no room on it for two people…"

他惋惜地叹了口气，并且又自言自语道：“本来这是唯一可以交朋友的人。可是他的星球确实太小了，住不下两个人……”

What the little prince did not dare confess was that he was sorry most of all to leave this planet, because it was blest every day with 1440 sunsets!

小王子没有勇气承认的是：他留恋这颗令人赞美的星星，是因为在那里，每二十四小时就有一千四百四十次日落！