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夏洛的网 Charlotte's Web
作者：埃尔文·布鲁克斯·怀特 (Elwyn Brooks White) [美国]
在朱克曼家的谷仓里，快乐地生活着一群动物。小猪威尔伯和蜘蛛夏洛建立了真挚的友谊。然而一个坏消息打破了谷仓里的平静：威尔伯在圣诞节将会被人杀死，做成熏肉火腿！作为一只猪，悲痛欲绝的威尔伯似乎只能接受任人宰割的命运了。然而看似渺小的小蜘蛛夏洛却说：“我救你。”于是，夏洛在猪栏上织出了被人类视为奇迹的网上文字，这些赞美威尔伯的文字彻底改变了威尔伯的命运，终于让威尔伯在集市的大赛上赢得特别奖，和一个安享天年的未来。但在这时，蜘蛛夏洛的生命也走到了尽头……之后威尔伯带着悲伤和感恩抚养了夏洛的孩子！
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"Where's Papa going with the ax?" said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast.
“爸爸拿着斧子去哪儿了？”在他们收拾桌子准备吃早饭时，芬问她的母亲。
"Out to the hog house," replied Mrs. Arable. "Some pigs were born last night."
“去猪圈了，”阿拉贝尔太太回答。“昨晚生了几只小猪。”
"I don't see why he needs an ax," continued Fern, who was only eight.
“我不明白他为什么需要一把斧子，”只有八岁的芬继续说。
"Well," said her mother," one of the pigs is a runt. It's very small and weak, and it will never amount to anything. So your father has decided to do away with it."
“哦，”她的母亲说，“其中的一头是个小个子。它长得又小又弱，没有任何可留下来的价值了。所以你爸爸决定去消灭它。”
"Do away with it?" shrieked Fern.
“消灭它？”芬尖叫。
"You mean kill it? Just because it's smaller than the others?"
“你是说杀死它？就因为他比别人的个子小？
Mrs. Arable put a pitcher of cream on the table.
阿拉贝尔太太把一罐乳酪放到桌上。
"Don't yell, Fern!" she said.
“别嚷，芬！”她说。
"Your father is right. The pig would probably die anyway."
“你爸做的对。那头猪不论如何都会死的。”
Fern pushed a chair out of the way and ran outdoors.
芬推开挡在面前的椅子就往门外跑。
The grass was wet and the earth smelled of spring time.
草地湿漉漉的，泥土里散发着春天的气息。
Fern's sneakers were sopping by the time she caught up with her father.
等芬赶上她的爸爸时，她的运动胶鞋全都湿透了。
"Please don't kill it!" she sobbed. "It's unfair." Mr. Arable stopped walking.
“请别杀它！”她呜咽道。“这不公平！”阿拉贝尔先生止住了脚。
"Fern," he said gently, "you will have to learn to control yourself."
“芬，”他温柔的说，“你该学会自我控制。”
"Control myself?" yelled Fern. "This is a matter of life and death, and you talk about controlling myself."
“自我控制？”芬哭叫道，“这可是一件生死大事！你却对我说什么自我控制！”
Tears ran down her cheeks and she took hold of the ax and tried to pull it out of her father's hand.
泪水流到芬的面颊上。她抓住了斧头柄，想把它从父亲手中抢下来。
"Fern," said Mr. Arable, "I know more about raising a litter of pigs than you do. A weakling makes trouble. Now run along!"
“芬，”阿拉贝尔先生说，“养小猪的事我比你知道的多。一个体质差的小猪很难养活的。现在你该放我走了！”
"But it's unfair," cried Fern.
“可是这不公平，”芬哭叫着。
"The pig couldn't help being born small, could it? If I had been very small at birth, would you have killed me?" Mr. Arable smiled.
“这头猪愿意让自己生下来就小吗，它愿意吗？如果我生下来时也很瘦小，你就会杀死我吗？”阿拉贝尔先生微笑了。
"Certainly not," he said, looking down at his daughter with love.
“当然不会了，”他说着，低下头慈爱地望着女儿。
"But this is different. A little girl is one thing, a little runty pig is another."
“但这是不一样的。一个小女孩是一码事儿，一个小瘦猪是另一码事儿。”
"I see no difference," replied Fern, still hanging on to theax.
“我看没什么不一样，”芬回答着，仍死抓着斧柄不放。
"This is the most terrible case of injustice I ever heard of."
“这是我曾经听到过的最恐怖的案件！”
A queer look came over John Arable's face. He seemed almost ready to cry himself.
约翰·阿拉贝尔先生的脸上出现了某种奇特的表情。他好像也要哭了。
"All right," he said.
“好吧，”他说。
"You go back to the house and I will bring the runt when I come in. I'll let you start it on a bottle, like a baby. Then you'll see what trouble a pig can be."
“你先回家吧。等我回家，我会把那头小猪带回来。我将让你用奶瓶喂他，象喂婴儿一样。那时你就会明白一头小猪会多么麻烦了。”
When Mr. Arable returned to the house half an hour later, he carried a carton under his arm. Fern was upstairs changing her sneakers.
半小时后，阿拉贝尔先生胳膊下夹着一个纸板盒回了家。芬正在楼上换她的运动鞋。
The kitchen table was set for breakfast, and the room smelled of coffee, bacon, damp plaster, and wood smoke from the stove.
厨房的桌子上摆好了早餐，房间里都是咖啡，薰肉的香味，湿湿的灰泥味儿，还有从炉子里荡出来的柴火烟味儿。
"Put it on her chair!" said Mrs. Arable.
“把它放到她的椅子上！”阿拉贝尔太太说。
Mr. Arable set the carton down at Fern's place.
阿拉贝尔先生把纸板盒放到芬的位子上。
Then he walked to the sink and washed his hands and dried them on the roller towel.
然后他到洗手池洗了手，用池边滚筒上的毛巾把手擦干。
Fern came slowly down the stairs.
芬慢慢地下了楼。
Her eyes were red from crying.
因为刚刚哭过，她的眼还是红红的。
As she approached her chair, the carton wobbled, and there was ascratching noise.
当她走近她的椅子，纸板盒开始晃动起来，里面传出了抓搔声。
Fern looked at her father.
芬看了看她的父亲。
Then she lifted the lid of the carton. There, inside, looking up at her, was the newborn pig. It was a white one.
然后她掀起了盒盖。从那里面打量着她的，正是那新生的小猪。它是白色的。
The morning light shone through its ears, turning them pink.
早晨的阳光把它的耳朵映得粉红。
"He's yours," said Mr. Arable. "Saved from an untimely death. And may the good Lord forgive me for this foolishness."
“他是你的了，” 阿拉贝尔先生说，“是你使他免于一死。愿上帝能原谅我这愚蠢的行为。”
Fern couldn't take her eyes off the tiny pig.
芬不错眼珠地看着这头小小猪。
"Oh," she whispered. "Oh, look at him! He's absolutely perfect."
“哦，”她轻声赞美，“哦，看他呀！他漂亮极了。”
She closed the carton carefully.
她小心的关上了盖子。
First she kissed her father, then she kissed her mother. Then she opened the lid again, lifted the pig out, and held it against her cheek.
她先吻了爸爸，又吻了妈妈。然后她又揭开盖子，把小猪举起来，让他贴到自己的脸上。
At this moment her brother Avery came into the room.
这时，她的哥哥埃弗里走了进来。
Avery was ten. He was heavily armed an air rifle in one hand, a wooden dagger in the other.
埃弗里十岁了。他的身上可是全副武装呢——一只手里拿着气枪，一只手里攥着一把木制匕首。
"What's that?" he demanded.
“那是什么？”他问。
"What's Fern got?"
“芬得了什么了？”
"She's got a guest for breakfast," said Mrs. Arable.
“她有了一位来吃早餐的客人，” 阿拉贝尔太太说。
"Wash your hands and face, Avery!"
“埃弗里，去洗手洗脸！”
"Let's see it!" said Avery, setting his gun down.
“让我看看它嘛！”埃弗里说着，放下他的枪。
"You call that miserable thing a pig? That's a fine specimen of a pig it's nobigger than a white rat."
“你说这可怜的小东西是一头猪？这不过是一头猪的小型复制品而已——他还没有一只白老鼠大呢。”
"Wash up and eat your breakfast, Avery!" said his mother.
“去洗脸吃饭，埃弗里！”他的妈妈说。
"The school bus will be along in half an hour."
“半小时内校车就要来了。”
"Can I have a pig, too, Pop?" asked Avery.
“我也能有一头小猪吗，爸？”埃弗里问。
"No, I only distribute pigs to early risers," said Mr. Arable.
“不，我只把小猪送给早起的人，” 阿拉贝尔先生说，
Fern was up at daylight, trying to rid world of injustice.
“为了制止这世界上的不公正行为，芬天刚亮就起床了。
As a result, she now has a pig. A small one, to be sure, but nevertheless a pig.
结果，她现在有了一头小猪。当然了，他的确是特别小，可不管怎么说这都是一头小猪。
It just shows what can happen if a person get sout of bed promptly.
这只是表明，如果一个人能迅速地从床上爬起来，会有什么样的事情发生。
"Let's eat!" But Fern couldn't eat until her pig had had a drink of milk.
让我们开饭吧！”但是芬要等到她的小猪喝完牛奶后才肯吃饭。
Mrs. Arable found a baby's nursing bottle and a rubber nipple.
阿拉贝尔太太找出了一个婴儿用的奶瓶和奶嘴儿。
She poured warm milk into the bottle, fitted the nipple over the top, and handed it to Fern.
她把温乎乎的牛奶倒进奶瓶里，又把奶嘴儿安上，才把奶瓶递给了芬。
"Give him his breakfast!" she said.
“给他吃早餐吧！”她说。
A minute later, Fern was seated on the floor in the corner of the kitchen with her infant between her knees, teaching it to suck from the bottle.
一分钟后，芬坐在厨房角落里的地板上，把她的小宝贝抱在膝头，开始教他如何从瓶中喝奶。
The pig, although tiny, had a good appetite and caught on quickly.
这小猪虽然那么小，却有一个好胃口，而且也学得很快。
The school bus honked from the road.
路上响起了校车的喇叭声。
"Run!" commanded Mrs. Arable, taking the pig from Fern and slipping a doughnut into her hand. Avery grabbed his gun and another doughnut.
“快跑！” 阿拉贝尔太太命令着，把小猪从芬那里抱下来，将一张油煎圈饼放到她的手上。埃弗里赶忙抓起他的枪和另一张油煎圈饼。
The children ran out to the road and climbed into the bus.
孩子们跑到路边，上了校车。
Fern took no notice of the others in the bus.
在车里，芬没有注意其他的人。
She just sat and stared out of the window, thinking what a blissful world it was and how lucky she was to have entire charge of a pig.
她只是坐在那里朝车窗外看，想着这是个多美好的世界，自己又是多么幸运，居然可以拥有一头小猪。
By the time the bus reached school, Fern had named her pet, selecting the most beautiful name she could think of.
在车开到学校的那一刻，芬已经给她的宝贝起好了名字，选的是她能想到的最漂亮的名字。
"Its name is Wilbur," she whispered to herself.
“它的名字是威伯。”她喃喃的自语。
She was still thinking about the pig when the teacher said: "Fern, what is the capital of Pennsylvania?"
“芬，宾夕法尼亚洲的首府叫什么？”当老师在课堂里问她时，她还在想着那头小猪。
"Wilbur," replied Fern, dreamily.
“威伯。”芬出神的回答。
The pupils giggled. Fern blushed.
同学们格格地笑起来。芬脸红了。
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