雙語悅讀《木偶奇遇記》30
一個安靜的讀書角，透過閱讀文學名著學語言，是學習英語的絕佳方法。“單詞短語應用”是提煉每篇文章的重點短語，並附有例句進而提升短語運用能力。靜水流深，讓閱讀迴歸本質，一起悅讀！
Chapter25
Pinocchio promises the Fairy to be good and to study, as he is growing tired of being a Marionette, and wishes to become a real boy.
匹諾曹答應仙女做一個聽話的孩子而且要好好學習，因為他已經厭倦了做木偶，想成為一個真正的男孩。
If Pinocchio cried much longer， the little woman thought he would melt away， so she finally admitted that she was the little Fairy with Azure Hair。
如果匹諾曹再哭下去，小婦人都要被他撕心裂肺的哭聲融化了，於是終於承認她就是那個天藍色頭髮的小仙女。
“You rascal of a Marionette！ How did you know it was I？” she asked， laughing。
“你這個調皮鬼！你怎麼發現是我的？”小婦人笑著說。
“My love for you told me who you were。”
“我太愛您了，一眼就認出是您了。”
“Do you remember？ You left me when I was a little girl and now you find me a grown woman。 I am so old， I could almost be your mother！”
“你還記得嗎？你離開我的時候，我還是個小女孩，而你現在看到的是一個小婦人。一位年紀大得幾乎可以當你媽媽的小婦人！”
“I am very glad of that， for then I can call you mother instead of sister。 For a long time I have wanted a mother， just like other boys。 But how did you grow so quickly？”
“這樣我很開心，因為那樣我就不用叫您姐姐，可以叫您媽媽了。一直以來，我都希望像其他孩子一樣有個媽媽。不過，您是怎麼長得怎麼快的呢？”
“That‘s a secret！”
“這是一個秘密！”
“Tell it to me。 I also want to grow a little。 Look at me！ I have never grown higher than a penny’s worth of cheese。”
“告訴我吧，我也想長大一點。看看我，從來沒有高過一便士的乳酪。”
“But you can‘t grow，” answered the Fairy。
“但你是不會長大的，”仙女回答。
“Why not？”
“為什麼不會長大？”
“Because Marionettes never grow。 They are born Marionettes， they live Marionettes， and they die Marionettes。”
“因為木偶永遠都不會長大。他們出生時是木偶，在世時是木偶，死了還是木偶。”
“Oh， I’m tired of always being a Marionette！” cried Pinocchio disgustedly。 “It‘s about time for me to grow into a man as everyone else does。”
“噢，我厭倦了總是做木偶！”匹諾曹厭煩地大叫。“現在我想像其他人一樣成長為一個男人。”
“And you will if you deserve it —”
“如果你配做一個人的話，你就能做人了”
“Really？ What can I do to deserve it？”
“真的嗎？我要怎麼做才配得上呢？”
“It’s a very simple
matter
。 Try to act like a well-behaved child。”
“非常簡單。只要你學著做一個好孩子就行了。”
“Don‘t you think I do？”
“難道我不是個好孩子嗎？”
“Far from it！ Good boys are obedient， and you， on the contrary —”
“差遠了！好孩子聽話，而你呢，恰恰相反——”
“And I never obey。”
“我從來不聽話。”
“Good boys love study and work， but you —”
“好孩子喜歡學習，喜歡工作，但是你呢”
“And I， on the contrary， am a lazy fellow and a tramp all year round。”
“而我，恰恰相反，好吃懶做，整天遊手好閒。”
“Good boys always tell the truth。”
“好孩子永遠講真話。”
“And I always tell lies。”
“而我總是撒謊。”
“Good boys go gladly to school。”
“好孩子很樂意上學。”
“And I get sick if I go to school。 From now on I’ll be different。”
“如果我去上學我就會生病。從現在開始我要與眾不同。”
“Do you promise？”
“你保證？”
“I promise。 I want to become a good boy and be a comfort to my father。 Where is my poor father now？”
“我保證。我要成為一個好孩子，這對爸爸是一個安慰。我爸爸現在在哪？”
“I do not know。”
“我不知道。”
“Will I ever be lucky enough to find him and embrace him once more？”
“我還能有這份幸運嗎，我還能再見到他，擁抱他嗎？”
“I think so。 Indeed， I am sure of it。”
“我認為有，真的，我保證。”
At this answer， Pinocchio‘s happiness was very great。 He grasped the Fairy’s hands and kissed them so hard that it looked as if he had lost his head。 Then lifting his face， he looked at her lovingly and asked： “Tell me， little Mother， it isn‘t true that you are dead， is it？”
聽到這個回答，匹諾曹高興地忘乎所以，抓起仙女的手不顧一切地親吻。然後仰著臉，熱烈地看著仙女問道：“告訴我，好媽媽，你的死不是真的。”
“It doesn’t seem so，” answered the Fairy， smiling。
“似乎不是，”仙女笑著回答。
“If you only knew how I suffered and how I wept when I read‘Here lies — ’”
“要是你知道，當我讀到‘這裡躺著……’那些文字，我是多麼痛苦，哭得多麼傷心……”
“I know it， and for that I have forgiven you。 The depth of your sorrow made me see that you have a kind heart。 There is always hope for boys with hearts such as yours， though they may often be very mischievous。 This is the reason why I have come so far to look for you。 From now on， I‘ll be your own little mother。”
“我知道，就因為這些我原諒了你。你的悲傷是真真切切的，這讓我明白，你仍有一顆善良的心。像你這樣善良的孩子總是有希望的，儘管他們常常很調皮。這就是我遠道而來找你的原因。從現在起，我就是你的媽媽。”
“Oh！ How lovely！” cried Pinocchio， jumping with joy。
“啊，真是太好了！”匹諾曹大叫，興奮地跳起來。
“You will obey me always and do as I wish？”
“你要聽我的話，我說什你就做什麼。”
“Gladly， very gladly， more than gladly！”
“樂意，非常樂意，沒有比這更讓我高興的事了！”
“Beginning tomorrow，” said the Fairy， “you’ll go to school every day。”
“從明天開始，”仙女說，你每天都要去上學。
Pinocchio‘s face fell a little。
匹諾曹立刻就沒那麼激動了。
“Then you will choose the trade you like best。”
“選一門你最喜歡的行業。”
Pinocchio became more serious。
匹諾曹變得更嚴肅了。
“What are you mumbling to yourself？” asked the Fairy。
“你在嘀咕什麼呢？”仙女問。
“I was just saying，” whined the Marionette in a whisper， “that it seems too late for me to go to school now。”
“我只是說，”木偶小聲地抱怨，“我現在才去上學，似乎遲了點。”
“No， indeed。 Remember it is never too late to learn。”
“不會的，真的，你記著，讀書學習是永遠不嫌遲的。”
“But I don’t want either trade or profession。”
“可是我什麼都不想學。”
“Why？”
“為什麼？”
“Because work wearies me！”
“因為工作實在是太累人了！”
“My dear boy，” said the Fairy， “people who speak as you do usually end their days either in a prison or in a hospital。 A man， remember， whether rich or poor， should do something in this world。 No one can find happiness without work。 Woe be tide the lazy fellow！ Laziness is a serious illness and one must cure it immediately； yes， even from early childhood。 If not， it will kill you in the end。”
“我的孩子，”仙女說，“說這話的人，最後通常是要麼進了監獄，要麼進了醫院。一個人，活在這世上，無論貧窮還是富有，都應該做點什麼，不勞動的人是不會獲得幸福的。懶惰的人是不會有善終的。懶惰是一種很嚴重的病，必須立即糾正，對，就從幼兒早期開始，否則，這個病最終會毀了你。”
These words touched Pinocchio‘s heart。 He lifted his eyes to his Fairy and said seriously： “I’ll work； I‘ll study； I’ll do all you tell me。 After all， the life of a Marionette has grown very tiresome to me and I want to become a boy，
no matter
how hard it is。 You
promise that， do you not？”
匹諾曹似乎有所觸動。他抬起頭，望著仙女說：“我要工作，我要學習；你說的話我全都照辦。說實話，我已經厭倦了木偶那樣的生活。不管有多難，我都要變成一個真正的男孩。你說過我可以的，對不對？”
“Yes， I promise， and now it is up to you。”
“是的，我說過，現在就看你的了。”
單詞、短語應用：
matter: n&v
作名詞：
①it‘s only a matter of time；
It’s only a matter of time when does the plan come into operation。
計劃什麼時候實施只是時間問題。
②as a matter of sth；
He invited her to his wedding as a matter of courtesy。
出於禮貌他邀請了她參加他的婚禮。
作動詞
③重要，要緊；
It doesn‘t matter to me what will other people think of me。
別人會怎麼看我並不重要。
It doesn’t matter what you wear， as long as you look neat and tidy。
穿什麼不要緊，只有乾淨整潔就行。