第2章 小美人鱼 The Little Mermaid（1/2）

《小美人鱼》，1836 年

the Little raid, 1836

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安徒生认为，凭借《小美人鱼》，他创作出了自己最动人的童话故事之一。

with “the Little raid,” Andersen believed that he had created one of his ost ovg fairy tales.

“我与我的角色同甘共苦。” 他反复对朋友们这样讲，他的读者也承受了他笔下那美丽水生生物的痛苦。

“I suffer with y characters,” he told his friends aga and aga, and his readers too have ehe pa of his beautiful aquatic creature.

《欢乐满人间》系列书籍的作者 p.L. 特拉弗斯发现汉斯?克里斯蒂安?安徒生是折磨艺术的大师。

p.L.travers, author of the ary popps books, found hans christian Andersen to be a aster i of torture.

“我多么希望看到邪恶的继母被油煎……” 她宣称，“而不是忍受小美人鱼或者穿红鞋的女孩那漫长的痛苦。”

“how uch rather would I see wicked stepothers boiledoil...,” she decred, “thahe protracted agony of the Little raid or the girl who wore the Red Shoes.”

在安徒生的故事里，苦难可能成为一种精神优越的标志，他笔下那些受压迫的主人公在忍受了看似无尽的屈辱之后常常胜利归来。

In Andersen’s tales, suffergbee a badge of spiritual superiority, and his downtrodden protagonists often erge triuphant after endurg seegly endless huiliations.

小美人鱼有着世俗的野心，并非朝着默默忍受痛苦的方向。

the little raid has worldly abitions that rundires other than silent sufferg.

被上层世界所吸引，她渴望航海、爬山并探索禁地。

drawn to the upper world, she is eager to sail the seas, clib ountas, and explore forbiddeory.

她穿上男孩的衣服，和王子一起骑马，以前所未有的方式跨越性别界限。

donng boy’s clothg, she goes horseback ridg with the prce, crossg gender boundariesued ways.

尽管她对冒险和生活充满热情，而且尽管她有着异教的天性，但她是一个富有同情心的生物，不愿意为了自己而牺牲王子的生命。

For all her passion for adventure and life, she is, despite her pagan nature, a creature of passion, unwillg to sacrifice the prce’s life for her own.

驱使她探寻人类世界的强烈好奇心也恰恰是导致她失败的原因，从而陷入特拉弗斯觉得如此令人苦恼的痛苦境地。

the spirited curiosity that ipels her to seek out the world of huans is also precisely what defeats her, leadg to the dition of sufferg that travers found so troublg.

迪士尼动画版的《小美人鱼》（1989 年）与启发它的故事有很大的偏离。

the aniated disney version of “the Little raid” (1989) deviates sharply fro the tale that spired it.

它可能以一场婚姻幸福地结尾，但正如玛丽娜?沃纳所指出的，“女性欲望的问题在这部电影中占主导地位，这也许是它在小女孩中极受欢迎的原因：小美人鱼爱丽儿口中说出‘想要’这个动词的频率比其他任何词都高 —— 直到她的舌头被割掉。”

It ay end happily with a arriage, but as ara warner pots out, “the issue of feale desire doihe fil, and ay at for its trendo popurity aong little girls: the verb ‘want’ falls fro the lips of Ariel, the Little raid, ore often than any other—until her tongue is cut out”.

不过，迪士尼版本在很多方面让安徒生的故事保持活力，即便它的女主人公和结局与启发它的故事截然不同。

Still, the disney version hasany ways kept Andersen’s story alive, even if it has a heroe and an endg radically different fro the story that spired it.

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在大海深处，海水蓝得像最美丽的矢车菊，清澈得像水晶，那里非常非常深；

Far outthe o, where the water is as be as the prettiest flower, and as clear as crystal, it is very, very deep;

深得实际上任何缆绳都无法测量：

so deep, ihat no cable uld fatho it:

许多教堂的尖塔一个接一个地堆积起来，也无法从海底到达海面。

any church steeples, piled one upon another, would not reach fro the grouh to the surface of the water above.

海王和他的臣民就住在那里。

there dwell the Sea Kg and his subjects.

我们可不能想象海底除了光秃秃的黄沙就什么都没有。

we t not iagihat there is nothg at the botto of the sea but bare yellow sand.

不，当然不是；

No, deed;

那里生长着最奇特的花卉和植物；

the ost sgur flowers and pnts grow there;

它们的叶子和茎非常柔韧，水最轻微的波动都会使它们晃动，仿佛它们有生命似的。

the leaves and stes of which are so pliant, that the slightest agitation of the water caes the to stir as if they had life.

大大小小的鱼在枝杈间游动，就像陆地上鸟儿在树林间飞翔一样。

Fishes, be and sall, glide beeen the branches, as birds fly aong the trees here upon nd.

在最深的地方，矗立着海王的城堡。

In the deepest spot of all, stands the castle of the Sea Kg.

它的城墙是用珊瑚建成的，长长的哥特式窗户是用最清澈的琥珀做成的。

Its walls are built of ral, and the long, gothidows are of the clearest aber.

屋顶是由贝壳构成的，随着水流过贝壳会开合。

the roof is ford of shells, that open and close as the water flows over the.

它们的外观非常美丽，因为每个贝壳里都有一颗闪闪发光的珍珠，这珍珠适合做女王的王冠。

their appearance is very beautiful, foreach lies a glitterg pearl, which would be fit for the diade of a queen.

海王已经鳏居多年，他年迈的母亲为他管家。

the Sea Kg had been a widower for any years, and his aged other kept hoe for hi.

她是一个非常聪明的女人，并且对自己的高贵出身极为自豪；

She was a very wise woan, and exceedgly proud of her high birth;

因此她在尾巴上戴了十二只牡蛎；

on that at she wore elve oysters oail;

而其他同样出身高贵的人只被允许戴六只。

while others, also of high rank, were only allowed to wear six.

然而，她非常值得高度赞扬，尤其是她对小海公主们，也就是她的孙女们的照顾。

She was, however, deservg of very great praise, especially for her care of the little sea - prcesses, her grand - daughters.

她们是六个美丽的孩子；

they were six beautiful children;

但最小的那个是最漂亮的；

but the you was the prettiest of the all;

她的皮肤像玫瑰花瓣一样清澈娇嫩，她的眼睛像最深的海洋一样湛蓝；

her sk was as clear and delicate as a rose - leaf, and her eyes as be as the deepest sea;

但是，和其他所有人一样，她没有脚，她的身体末端是一条鱼尾。

but, like all the others, she had , and her body endeda fish’s tail.

她们整天在城堡的大厅里玩耍，或者在从墙壁上生长出来的有生命的花朵间嬉戏。

All day long they pyedthe great halls of the castle, or aong the livg flowers that grew out of the walls.

大大的琥珀色窗户敞开着，鱼儿游了进来，就像我们打开窗户时燕子飞进我们的房子一样，不同的是鱼儿游向公主们，从她们手中吃食，还让公主们抚摸自己。

the rge aber dows were open, and the fish swa , jt as the swallows fly to our hoes when we open the dows, exceptg that the fishes s to the prcesses, ate out of their hands, and allowed theselves to be stroked.

城堡外面有一个美丽的花园，里面生长着鲜红和深蓝的花朵，还有像火焰般的花朵；

outside the castle there was a beautiful garden,which grew bright red and dark be flowers, and blossos like fs of fire;

果实像金子一样闪闪发光，叶子和茎干不停地来回摆动。

the fruit glittered like gold, and the leaves and stes waved to and fro tually.

大地本身是极细的沙子，但蓝得像燃烧的硫磺火焰。

the earth itself was the fi sand, but be as the f of burng sulphur.

一切都笼罩着一种奇特的蓝色光辉，仿佛它被上面的空气所包围，透过这空气蓝天闪耀着，而不是深海的黑暗深处。

over everythg y a peculiar be radiance, as if it were surrounded by the air fro above, through which the be sky shoead of the dark depths of the sea.

在平静的天气里，可以看到太阳，看起来像一朵紫色的花，光线从花萼中流泻出来。

In cal weather the sun uld be seen, lookg like a purple flower, with the light streag fro the calyx.

每位年轻的公主在花园里都有一小块地，在那里她可以随心所欲地挖掘和种植。

Each of the young prcesses had a little plot of groundthe garden, where she ight dig and pnt as she pleased.

一个把她的花坛布置成鲸鱼的形状；

one arranged her flower - bed to the for of a whale;

另一个认为把自己的花坛布置成小美人鱼的形状更好；

ahought it better to ake hers like the figure of a little raid;

但最小的公主的花坛是圆的，像太阳一样，里面种着像日落时阳光一样红的花朵。

but that of the you was round like the sun, and taed flowers as red as his rays at su.

她是个奇怪的孩子，安静又爱思考；

She was a strange child, quiet and thoughtful;

当她的姐妹们为从沉船残骸中得到的奇妙东西而高兴时，她除了自己那像太阳一样的美丽红花，只关心一座美丽的大理石雕像。

and while her sisters would be delighted with the wonderful thgs whieptg a beautiful arble statue.

这是一个英俊男孩的雕像，由纯白色的石头雕刻而成，是从一艘沉船落到海底的。

It was the representation of a handso boy, carved out of pure white stone, which had fallen to the botto of the sea fro a wreck.

她在雕像旁种了一棵玫瑰色的垂柳。

She pnted by the statue a rose - lored weepg willow.

它长得非常茂盛，很快就把新鲜的枝条垂在雕像上，几乎垂到蓝色的沙滩上。

It grew splendidly, and very soon hung its fresh branches over the statue, alost down to the be sands.

影子带有紫罗兰色的色调，像树枝一样来回摆动；

the shadow had a violet tt, and waved to and fro like the branches;

看起来好像树冠和树根在嬉戏，试图互相亲吻。

it seed as if theof the tree and the root were at py, and tryg to kiss each other.

没有什么比听关于海面之上的世界更让她快乐的了。

Nothg gave her so uch pleasure as to hear about the world above the sea.

她让她的老祖母把所知道的关于船只、城镇、人和动物的一切都告诉她。

She ade her old grandother tell her all she knew of the ships and of the towns, the people and the anials.

对她来说，听说陆地上的花有香味，而海底的花没有；这似乎是最奇妙和最美丽的事情。

to her it seed ost wonderful aiful to hear that the flowers of the nd should have fragrance, and not those below the sea;

森林里的树应该是绿色的；

that the trees of the forest should be green;

树林里的鱼能唱得如此甜美，听它们唱歌是一种极大的乐趣。

and that the fishes aong the trees uld sg so sweetly, that it was quite a pleasure to hear the.

她的祖母把小鸟叫做鱼，否则她就不会理解祖母的话了；因为她从未见过鸟。

her grandother called the little birds fishes, or she would not have uood her; for she had never seen birds.

“当你到了十五岁的时候，” 祖母说，“你将被允许从海里升起来，在月光下坐在岩石上，这时大船正从旁边驶过；然后你将看到森林和城镇。”

“when you have reached your fifteenth year,” said the grand - other, “you will have perission to rise up out of the sea, to sit on the rocksthe oonlight, while the great ships are sailg by; and then you will see both forests and towns.”

第二年，姐妹中的一个就十五岁了：但由于每个姐妹都比下一个大一岁，最小的那个在轮到她从海底升起来像我们一样看到陆地之前，还得等五年。

In the follog year, one of the sisters would be fifteen: but as each was a year youhaher, the you would have to wait five years before her turn ca to rise up fro the botto of the o, ahe earth as we do.

然而，每个姐妹都承诺告诉其他人她第一次出访看到了什么，以及她认为最美丽的东西；因为她们的祖母告诉她们的还不够；有太多东西她们想要了解。

however, each proised to tell the others what she saw on her first visit, and what she thought the ost beautiful; for their grandother uld not tell the enough; there were so any thgs on which they wanted ration.

她们中没有人像最小的那个那样渴望轮到自己，她要等的时间最长，而且她是如此安静和爱思考。

None of the longed so uch for her turn to e as the you, she who had loi to wait, and who was so quiet and thoughtful.

许多夜晚，她站在敞开的窗户旁，透过深蓝色的海水向上看，看着鱼儿用鱼鳍和鱼尾四处泼水嬉戏。

any nights she stood by the open dow, lookg up through the dark be water, and watg the fish as they spshed about with their fs and tails.

她能看到月亮和星星微弱地闪烁着；

She uld see the oon and stars shg fatly;

但是透过海水，它们看起来比我们眼中的更大。

but through the water they looked rger than they do to our eyes.

当有像乌云一样的东西在她和它们之间经过时，她知道那要么是一头鲸鱼在她头顶游过，要么是一艘满载人类的船，人类从没想到一个美丽的小美人鱼正站在他们下方，朝着船的龙骨伸出她洁白的双手。

when sothg like a bck cloud passed beeen her and the, she khat it was either a whale swig over her head, or a ship full of huan begs, who never iagihat a pretty little raid was standih the, holdg out her white hands towards the keel of their ship.

大姐一到十五岁，就被允许升到海面上去了。

As soon as the eldest was fifteen, she was allowed to rise to the surface of the o.

当她回来的时候，她有成百件事要讲述；

when she ca back, she had hundreds of thgs to talk about;

但是她说，最美好的事情是在月光下，躺在靠近海岸的宁静海水中的沙洲上，凝视附近的一个大城镇，那里的灯光像数百颗星星一样闪烁；

but the ost beautiful, she said, was to liethe oonlight, on a sandbank,the quiet sea, he ast, and to gaze on a rge town nearby, where the lights were klg like hundreds of stars;

去听音乐声、马车的喧闹声和人类的说话声，然后听到教堂尖塔上传来欢快的钟声；

to listen to the sounds of the ic, the noise of carriages, and the voices of huan begs, and then to hear the rry bells peal out fro the church steeples;

因为她不能靠近所有那些美妙的事物，她比以往任何时候都更渴望它们。

and becae she uld not go o all those wonderful thgs, she longed for the ore than ever.

哦，最小的妹妹不是急切地听着所有这些描述吗？

oh, did not the you sister listen eagerly to all these descriptions?

之后，当她站在敞开的窗户前透过深蓝色的海水向上望时，她想起了那座大城市，想起了那里的喧嚣与嘈杂，甚至幻想自己能听到海底深处教堂的钟声。

and afterwards, wheood at the open dow lookg up through the dark be water, she thought of the great city, with all its btle and noise, and even fancied she uld hear the sound of the church bells, downthe depths of the sea.

又过了一年，二姐得到许可升到水面，可以随意游动。

In another year the sed sister received perission to rise to the surface of the water, and to swi about where she pleased.

她升出水面的时候，正值太阳落山，她说这是最美丽的景色。

She rose jt as the sun was settg, and this, she said, was the ost beautiful sight of all.

整个天空看起来像金子一样，还有她说不出名字的紫罗兰色和玫瑰色的云彩在她头顶飘浮；

the whole sky looked like gold, while violet and rose - lored clouds, which she uld not describe, floated over her;

而且，一群野天鹅朝着夕阳飞去，速度比云彩还要快，看起来就像横在海面上的一条长长的白色面纱。

and, still ore rapidly than the clouds, flew a rge flock of wild swans towards the settg sun, lookg like a long white veil across the sea.

她也朝着太阳游去；

She also swa towards the sun;

但是太阳沉入了波浪之中，云彩和大海的玫瑰色也渐渐褪去。

but it sunk to the waves, and the rosy tts faded fro the clouds and fro the sea.

接着就轮到三姐了；

the third sister’s turn followed;

她是她们当中最勇敢的，她沿着一条宽阔的河流向上游去，这条河流入大海。

she was the boldest of the all, and she s a broad river that eptied itself to the sea.

在河岸上，她看到绿色的山丘上长满了美丽的葡萄藤；

on the banks she saw green hills vered with beautiful ves;

宫殿和城堡从森林中高耸的树木间隐隐露出；

paces and castles peeped out fro aid the proud trees of the forest;

她听到鸟儿在歌唱，阳光非常强烈，她常常不得不潜入水下以冷却她发烫的脸。

she heard the birds sgg, and the rays of the sun were so powerful that she was obliged often to dive dower to ol her burng face.

在一条狭窄的小溪里，她发现了一群小人类孩子，全身赤裸，正在水里嬉戏；

In a narrow creek she found a whole troop of little huan children, quite naked, and sp about ier;

她想和他们一起玩，但是他们非常惊恐地逃走了。

she y with the, but they fleda great fright;

然后一只黑色的小动物来到水边；

and then a little bial ca to the water;

那是一只狗，但她不知道，因为她以前从未见过狗。

it was a dog, but she did not know that, for she had never before seen one.

这只动物对着她狂吠，非常可怕，她被吓坏了，赶忙冲回大海。

this anial barked at her so terribly that she beca frightened, and rhed back to the open sea.

但她说她永远不会忘记那美丽的森林、绿色的山丘和那些能在水中游泳的可爱小孩子，尽管他们没有鱼尾。

but she said she should never fet the beautiful forest, the green hills, and the pretty little children who uld swi ier, although they had not fish’s tails.

四姐比较胆小；

the fourth sister was ore tiid;

她待在大海中央，但她说那里和靠近陆地的地方一样美丽。

she reaedthe idst of the sea, but she said it was quite as beautiful there as he nd.

她能看到周围许多英里远的地方，头顶的天空看起来像一个玻璃钟。

She uld see for so any iles around her, and the sky above looked like a bell of gss.

她看到过船只，但距离非常远，看起来就像海鸥。

She had seen the ships, but at such a great distahat they looked like sea - gulls.

海豚在海浪中嬉戏，大鲸鱼从鼻孔里喷水，直到看起来好像有上百个喷泉在四处喷水。

the dolphs sportedthe waves, and the great whales spouted water fro their nostrils till it seed as if a hundred fountas were pygevery dire.

五姐的生日在冬天；

the fifth sister’s birthday ourredthe ter;

所以当轮到她的时候，她看到了其他人第一次上去时没有看到的东西。

so wheurn ca, she saw what the others had not seen the first ti they went up.

大海看起来非常绿，巨大的冰山四处漂浮着，她说每一座都像一颗珍珠，但比人类建造的教堂更大更高。

the sea looked quite green, and rge icebergs were floatg about, each like a pearl, she said, but rger and loftier than the churches built by n.

它们有着最奇特的形状，并且像钻石一样闪闪发光。

they were of the ost sgur shapes, and glittered like diaonds.

她坐在最大的一座冰山上，让风轻拂她的长发，她注意到所有的船只都快速驶过，并且尽可能地远离冰山，好像它们害怕冰山似的。

She had seated herself upon one of the rgest, ahe d py with her long hair, and she rearked that all the ships sailed by rapidly, and steered as far away as they uld fro the iceberg, as if they were afraid of it.

傍晚时分，太阳西沉，乌云布满天空，雷声隆隆，闪电交加，红色的光芒映照在冰山上，冰山在汹涌的海面上摇晃颠簸。

towards eveng, as the su down, dark clouds vered the sky, the thunder rolled and the lightng fshed, and the red light glowed on the icebergs as they rocked and tossed on the heavg sea.

所有船上的帆都因恐惧和颤抖而收起，而她却平静地坐在漂浮的冰山上，看着蓝色的闪电，看着它的叉状闪光射向大海。

on all the ships the sails were reefed with fear and treblg, while she sat cally on the floatg iceberg, watg the be lightng, as it darted its forked fshes to the sea.

当姐妹们最初被允许升到海面时，她们每个人都为看到的新奇而美丽的景象感到高兴；

when first the sisters had perission to rise to the surface, they were each delighted with the new aiful sights they saw;

但现在，作为成年女孩，她们可以随时去，并且已经对此变得漠不关心了。

but now, as grown - up girls, they uld go when they pleased, and they had bee different about it.

她们希望自己能再次回到水里，一个月过去了，她们说海底

they wished theselves back aga ier, and after a onth had passed they said it was uch ore beautiful down beloleasao be at ho.

然而，常常在傍晚时分，五个姐妹会互相挽着手臂，一排排地升到海面。

Yet often,the eveng hours, the five sisters would iheir ars round each other, and rise to the surface,a row.

她们的嗓音比任何人的都更动听；

they had ore beautiful voices than any huan beg uld have;

在暴风雨来临之前，当她们预料到一艘船将会沉没时，她们会游到船前，甜美地歌唱在海底能找到的快乐，并且请求水手们如果沉到海底不要害怕。

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