每日英文学习：Light英文空间（21）

每日英文学习：Light英文空间（21）

2019/03/13          星期三            晴

英文版

Mar 13:

She suddenly realised why this place was littered with camel bones.

The bones were such a reminder to passing camels that they, too, were going to die, that they had scared the live ones to death.

When Han Tou was terminally ill, she remembered, he had fantasies of recovering.

His life hung by a thread by then, but he clung on. When he finally realised what was in store for him, he died immediately.

Their camel seemed to be in the depths of despair, because so many other camels had died here.

Even though camels had almost unlimited reserves of strength, the sight of so many bones had broken this one's resolve .

She would never go the same way, Ying thought. Just so long as you felt alive, you would not die.

How could she save this animal that had given up all hope? She could not get inside its head, so she had to find some other way.

In the end. the only idea she could come up with was to give the camel some of the cooking oil. Lan Lan frowned."

This is the last we’ve got, 'she said. 'Who knows how far we,ve got to go.But we can’t abandon our camel here, 'said Ying.

"It came back for us of its own accord 'LanLan gave in. “Fine, at least we'll die together. Or live together,' said Ying.(page 218)

~An except from Selected Stories by Xuemo

Author: Xuemo, translated by Nicky Harman.

中文版

她忽然明白，为啥这地方有那么多的驼骨。那驼骨，明明在提醒驼们：我们死了，你也该死了。这真是可怕的暗示。

记得，憨头患了绝症后，他还一度抱有幻想。那时，他的生命之火一直在微弱地燃烧，总是欲熄未熄。等他终于明白了真相后，马上就死了。

想来，驼也是这样。驼以为，好多驼都死在这儿，它也一定走不出绝境的。有些驼的体力虽能支持，但那暗示，却下子摧垮了它们最后的一点儿信念。

莹儿想，自己可千万不能学那些死去的驼呀。她想，只要心不死，人是死不了的。

她想，如何救这失去了最后一点信心的驼呢？既然无法钻进它的心中，总得想个别的法子。

她想呀想呀，觉得除了给它灌些清油外，也实在没个别的法子。她一说，兰兰拧着眉头解释道，那可是最后一点了，路可能还远呢。

莹儿说，我们总不能丢下它，人家已逃了出去，又来找我们…兰兰说成，大不了，我们死在一起。

莹儿说，就是，活了，一起活。真要死的话，我们和骆驼一起死。（摘自《白虎关》336页到337页）

讲解笔记

【1】Words：

litter /ˈlɪtə/  littering,littered,litters

1.

N-UNCOUNT Litter is rubbish or waste that is left lying around outside. 垃圾

例：

If you see litter in the corridor, pick it up.

如果你看到走廊里有垃圾，就把它捡起来。

ADJ If something is littered with things, it contains many examples of it. 充满的

例：

History is littered with men and women spurred into achievement by a father's disregard.

历史上常有受父亲漠视的刺激而取得成就的男男女女。

terminally ['tə:minəli]

adv.

1.

at the end

terminally ill

hung /hʌŋ/

1.

Hung is the past tense and past participle of most of the senses of . (hang)的多数义项的过去式和过去分词

Hang by a thread

clung /klʌŋ/

1.

Clung is the past tense and past participle of . (cling)的过去式和过去分词

cling to

v.

1.

hold firmly, usually with one's hands

同义词： hold close  /  hold tight  /  clutch

resolve /rɪˈzɒlv/  resolving,resolved,resolves

3.

N-VAR Resolve is determination to do what you have decided to do. 决心

例：

So you're saying this will strengthen the American public's resolve to go to war if necessary?

那么你是说，这将会坚定美国公众在必要时参战的决心？

Break one,s resolve

frown /fraʊn/  frowning,frowned,frowns

1.

V-I When someone frowns, their eyebrows become drawn together, because they are annoyed, worried, or puzzled, or because they are concentrating. 皱眉

例：

Nancy shook her head, frowning.

南希摇摇头，皱着眉头。

PHRASE If you do something of your own accord, you do it because you want to, without being asked or forced. 自愿地

例：

He did not quit as France's prime minister of his own accord.

他不是自愿地辞去法国总理一职的。

scare /skɛə/  scaring,scared,scares

1.

V-T If something scares you, it frightens or worries you. 惊吓

例：

You're scaring me.

你吓着我了。

"I was scared to death when a bright flash went off, " wrote one female user.

reminder /rɪˈmaɪndə/ 

1.

N-COUNT Something that serves as a reminder of another thing makes you think about the other thing. 提醒人记忆之物

例：

The last thing you'd want is a constant reminder of a bad experience.

你最不想要的就是不断让你想起一段糟糕经历的东西。