寫在前面

10月7日，2021年諾貝爾文學(xué)獎(jiǎng)“桂冠”花落坦桑尼亞小說家阿布拉扎克·古爾納(Abdulrazak Gurnah)。瑞典文學(xué)院說，古爾納“不妥協(xié)于殖民主義的影響和難民處在不同文化與大陸間鴻溝的命運(yùn)”，他將此“富有同情心地滲透到”其作品當(dāng)中。

那么今天，我們就來閱讀一篇古爾納的雙語(yǔ)短篇小說——《我母親在非洲住過農(nóng)場(chǎng)》，是對(duì)電影《走出非洲》的反寫，旨在打破人們對(duì)非洲的浪漫幻想，還原非洲的現(xiàn)實(shí)。譯者林曉妍。

文章篇幅很長(zhǎng)，故只選取了其中幾句話進(jìn)行翻譯賞析。但還是有很多知識(shí)點(diǎn)可供大家細(xì)細(xì)品味的。

pdf文檔獲取方式：同名公眾號(hào)后臺(tái)回復(fù)：古爾納。??

翻譯賞析

The house stood on a slope, at the bottom of which ran a small stream. The farm ran behind the house for six acres on both sides of the stream. She always remembered the first night she spent on the farm, and the deep silence of the country.?

房子建在一個(gè)斜坡上，斜坡底部有一條小溪。農(nóng)場(chǎng)在房子后，溪流兩側(cè)占地六英畝。她一直記得在農(nóng)場(chǎng)度過的第一個(gè)晚上，以及鄉(xiāng)村的沉寂。

這一段是對(duì)非洲農(nóng)場(chǎng)的景色描寫，先來看第一句：

The house stood on a slope, at the bottom of which ran a small stream.

房子建在一個(gè)斜坡上，斜坡底部有一條小溪。

「stood」是對(duì)過去情況的描述，其原型stand不要傻傻地譯為“站”，在此處表示“位于”之意，相當(dāng)于我們熟悉的be located和be situated。

來看一個(gè)例句：

It was a little town standing by the sea那座小鎮(zhèn)坐落在海邊。

「slope」為“斜坡”，故此處，我們也可以譯作“這座房子坐落在斜坡上”。?

「at the bottom of which ran a small stream」接下來這句定語(yǔ)從句，是修飾斜坡的，「at the bottom of」意為“在...底部”，此處即“在斜坡底部”，由于地點(diǎn)狀語(yǔ)位于句首，故其后采用倒裝ran a small stream，

「run」修飾液體有“流淌”之意，故此處譯者譯作存在句「有一條小溪?」，也可處理為「有小溪流經(jīng)?」。

The farm ran behind the house for six acres on both sides of the stream.

?農(nóng)場(chǎng)在房子后，溪流兩側(cè)占地六英畝。

此處的數(shù)量單位「acre」要注意為“英畝”，英畝是英美制面積單位，一般在英國(guó)、美國(guó)等地區(qū)使用，1英畝=0.004 047平方千米。再補(bǔ)充一短語(yǔ)「acres of」，意為“大量”，例如：巨大的空間：acres of room.

「stream」是“溪流”，作為文學(xué)翻譯中常見的意象，我們還要掌握它的同義表達(dá)，brook還有creek。

She always remembered the first night she spent on the farm, and the deep silence of the country.

她一直記得在農(nóng)場(chǎng)度過的第一個(gè)晚上，以及鄉(xiāng)村的沉寂。

「the first night she spent on the farm」：這個(gè)定語(yǔ)從句中，the first night是先行詞，關(guān)系代詞被省略，充當(dāng)spent的賓語(yǔ)，我們?cè)谑褂脮r(shí)，切忌誤用when。試比較兩例：

She always remembered the first night (that) she spent on the farm.(the first night做spent的賓語(yǔ)，關(guān)系代詞that省略)

She always remembered the first night when she spent time grazing sheep by the farm.（spent的賓語(yǔ)是time，the first night做時(shí)間狀語(yǔ)，要用到關(guān)系副詞when，相當(dāng)于on which，關(guān)系副詞不可省略）

故翻譯時(shí)，直接把night譯為賓語(yǔ)即可，得到：她在農(nóng)場(chǎng)度過的第一晚。

「the deep silence of the country」deep silence翻譯的很好，譯作“沉寂”，也不妨處理為四字格“萬(wàn)籟俱寂”。

At various times in the year, the room she slept in was also used as a store, so there were splash marks and plant juices which had soaked into the whitewashed wall and could not now be removed.?

在一年中的不同時(shí)間，她睡覺的那個(gè)房間也被用作商店，所以有飛濺的痕跡和植物汁滲入白色的墻壁，無(wú)法去除。

At various times in the year, the room she slept in was also used as a store,

在一年中的不同時(shí)間，她睡覺的那個(gè)房間也被用作商店，

「At various times in the year」指“在一年中的不同時(shí)間”，漢譯英的話介詞不要出錯(cuò)；

「was used as a store」很好理解——“被用來做商店”之意。而如果是“專門留出，專門用于做某事呢”？希望大家能記住set apart這個(gè)詞組，英文釋義為To reserve something for a specific use，可以接時(shí)間，地點(diǎn)，金錢等。例如：

Traditionally, these days were set apart for prayer and fasting.

傳統(tǒng)上，這幾天是專門用于禱告和齋戒的。

Two rooms were set apart for?use as libraries.?

留出兩個(gè)房間作為圖書室。

You must set apart some money for the future.?

你必須留出一些錢來以備將來之用。

so there were splash marks and plant juices which had soaked into the whitewashed wall and could not now be removed.?

所以有飛濺的痕跡和植物汁滲入白色的墻壁，無(wú)法去除。

「so there were splash marks and plant juices which had soaked into the whitewashed wall and could not now be removed.」難點(diǎn)就在于這句話里的定語(yǔ)從句，先行詞是「splash marks and plant juices」，分別表示“飛濺的痕跡和植物汁液”，splash既可做動(dòng)詞又可做名詞，表示“飛濺”或“飛濺的液體”，juice不做“果汁”解，而要譯作“汁液”，此外，植物汁液還常用sap表示，兩者在定語(yǔ)從句里做主語(yǔ)。

定語(yǔ)從句里的謂語(yǔ)動(dòng)詞為「soaked into the whitewashed wall and could not now be removed.?」：soak本身是“打濕”之意，那么soak in/into，往里頭打濕，就是“滲入，滲進(jìn)去”之意。此時(shí)，譯者采用的翻譯技巧是：從定語(yǔ)從句的結(jié)構(gòu)中跳脫出來，直接把先行詞部分譯作定語(yǔ)從句的話題，即“有飛濺的痕跡和植物汁液”，再處理為主謂句，此時(shí)得到：有飛濺的痕跡和植物汁滲入白色的墻壁，無(wú)法去除。

雙語(yǔ)閱讀

My Mother Lived on a Farm in Africa

我母親在非洲住過農(nóng)場(chǎng)

`My mother lived on a farm in Africa,' she heard her daughter Khadija say. She preferred to be called Kadi, especially in front of her friends, and Munah tried her best to remember. She and her friends, the usual two, Clare and Amy, had been watching Out of Africa on the video that afternoon. They did that most Sunday afternoons, took turns to go to each other's houses to watch videos. It was video in their house anyway, DVD in the others.

我母親在非洲住過農(nóng)場(chǎng)，她聽到女兒卡迪加說，穆娜盡力記住卡迪加更喜歡被稱為卡迪，尤其是在她的朋友面前。那天下午，卡迪加和她的朋友，通常是和克萊爾、艾米一直在看《走出非洲》。大多數(shù)星期天下午她們都是這樣度過，輪流去各家看電影錄像。在卡迪家里看影像，在其他人家里看DVD。

Then when the film finished, and in the brief silence that sometimes follows the end of a story, Kadi said that. It was an echo of the film's repeated dirge, I had a farm in Africa, spoken like a hoarse lament over the landscape, to make Karen Blixen into a tragedy. Lost love, lost farm, lost paradise, the Fall. Then Kadi said that: My mother lived on a farm in Africa.

當(dāng)電影結(jié)束時(shí)，或是在故事結(jié)尾后的短暫沉默中，卡迪那樣說。這是對(duì)電影中重復(fù)挽歌的模仿；我在非洲有一個(gè)農(nóng)場(chǎng)，用嘶啞的聲音說著，像是為這片土地哀嘆，讓凱倫·布力圣陷入悲劇之中。失去愛情，失去農(nóng)場(chǎng)，失去天堂，最后破落?？ǖ辖又f了那話：我母親在非洲住過農(nóng)場(chǎng)。

Munah wanted to rush in there and tell them that it wasn't like that. It was nothing like that. But she heard someone snigger just a second after Kadi spoke, and that made her hesitate and retreat. It was Amy, she thought, giggling with surprise or pleasure. Did your mum really!? Perhaps Kadi's remark was nothing more than a boastful exchange between adolescent friends.

穆娜想要沖進(jìn)去告訴她們不是那樣，根本不是那樣的。但在卡迪說話之后，她聽到有人嗤之以鼻，這讓她猶豫不決。她想，這是艾米，驚訝或開心地咯咯笑。你媽媽真的??？也許卡迪的話只不過是青少年朋友之間的吹噓。

It was one of the stories of her childhood back home. When the children were younger; they loved to hear the stories. They would sometimes prompt her to tell one, as if they had recognized a cue in something she had said. Jamal, her elder, used to remember them in detail, and speak about the people who appeared in them as if he knew them. Oh, Uncle Abdalla is always like that with money, isn't he?

這是她童年的故事之一。孩子們小的時(shí)候，總喜歡聽故事。他們有時(shí)會(huì)催著她講故事，好像他們能從中得到啟示。她最大的孩子賈馬爾常常準(zhǔn)確地記得這些故事，談?wù)摴适轮械娜耍秃孟裾J(rèn)識(shí)他們一樣。哦，亞伯達(dá)拉叔叔總是喜歡讓別人付錢講故事，不是嗎？

Really mean. Now Jamal was old enough to answer back and stay out all night, sleeping over at a friend's house but really doing who knows what. His clothes had the slightly nauseating smell of sweat and smoke and cheap food that she associated with the places young people went to, but he shouted and sulked at her if she went into his room to sort through his clothes for the wash. He liked them as they were. He walked in a disjointed shuffle, as if his legs and hips were dissolving slowly under him. In any case, he no longer had any interest in her childhood spectres. Or when he had no choice but to show interest, because she had reminded him of someone he once used to speak about with some familiarity, he nodded his head constantly, eager for her to finish, anxious for her not to allow the story to sprawl as she used to.

真是小氣?，F(xiàn)在賈馬爾長(zhǎng)大了，開始頂嘴了，還整夜待在外面，在朋友家里睡覺，不知道在做什么。他衣服上的汗水和煙，還有廉價(jià)食物的味道，都讓穆娜想到年輕人去的那些地方，如果她走進(jìn)賈馬爾的房間去收拾臟衣服，他會(huì)生氣地大聲吼叫，他喜歡這些味道，他走路拖沓，就像雙腿和臀部慢慢在他身下溶解。無(wú)論如何，他對(duì)她童年的幽靈不再有任何興趣?；蛘咭?yàn)樗嵝阉?jīng)熟悉的故事人物，他別無(wú)選擇只能表現(xiàn)出興趣聽時(shí)，他不斷點(diǎn)頭，迫切希望她結(jié)束故事，希望她不要像以往那樣擴(kuò)展故事。

Kadi did not remember with the same fidelity, and often had to be reminded. Yes, you do know who he is, my Uncle Omar, who owned the farm where I went to live for several weeks when I was fourteen.?

卡迪沒有那么真切地記住故事，經(jīng)常不得不提醒她。是的，你知道他是誰(shuí)，奧馬爾姨夫，我14歲的時(shí)候在他的農(nóng)場(chǎng)住過幾周。

Then unexpectedly, at times she would remember. Like now, after watching some empire nostalgia and passion, she remembered the farm and told her friends, My mother lived on a farm in Africa. Only it was nothing like that, no sweeping drive and horses and crystal glass, no servants, no subject people to save from themselves. She was the subject people, subject to life and to others, sent from here to there and back by those who loved her and owned her. That was what made Kadi's friend snigger. She knew very well it could not have been anything like the beautiful life they had just seen on the television. She would have known without reflection that Kadi's mother could not have lived on a farm in the real Africa of open skies and deep shadows, and avenues of acacia and lamplit verandas. More likely, Kadi's mother's Africa was the other one that you also caught glimpses of on television, streets crowded with people, and dusty fields full of children clinging to their mothers.

出乎意料的是，卡迪有時(shí)會(huì)記得像現(xiàn)在這樣，在看了一些帝國(guó)的懷舊激情電影后，她想起了農(nóng)場(chǎng)，然后告訴她的朋友，我的母親在非洲住過農(nóng)場(chǎng)。但那個(gè)農(nóng)場(chǎng)和電影里一點(diǎn)也不一樣，沒有飛馳而過的車馬和水晶玻璃，沒有仆人，沒有人可以自救。她是受管制的人，服從于生命和其他人，被那些愛她并擁有她的人從這里送到那里，再送回來。這就是卡迪的朋友竊笑的原因她非常清楚，不可能像她們剛剛在電視上看到的美好生活一樣。不用多想，她就會(huì)知道卡迪的母親不可能生活在真正的非洲農(nóng)場(chǎng)里，那里有開闊的天空和濃濃的樹蔭，有刺槐大道和燈火通明的走廊。更可能的是，卡迪母親的非洲是你在電視上瞥到的另一個(gè)非洲，街道上擠滿了人，塵土飛揚(yáng)的田野里孩子依偎著母親。

Perhaps Kadi's friend did not know she thought like that. Perhaps she did not snigger. It made Munah feel foolish that she had even considered rushing in there to rail at them. She wondered at the bitter taste the feeling left behind. Was it her age? She had heard a plea in what Kadi said. Please pretend that my mother looked like that when she was in Africa, and that I look like you. Perhaps it was not a plea at all, and Kadi could only think of Africa as the pictures she had just seen and could only see her mother living like that.

也許卡迪的朋友不知道她這么想，也許她沒有竊笑。穆娜感到自己很愚蠢，她甚至想沖進(jìn)去對(duì)她們抱怨。她好奇那種感覺留下的苦澀味道。是她的年齡？她聽到卡迪的請(qǐng)求。請(qǐng)假裝我媽媽在非洲時(shí)的樣子，假裝我像你。也許這根本不是一個(gè)請(qǐng)求，卡迪只能把非洲想象為她剛看到的照片，只能看到她母親像那樣生活。

They were fourteen years old, and she would have embarrassed them, and Kadi most of all, if she had gone in there and told them that the farm she lived in was nothing like that make-believe luxury, that it was small and paltry and human, that it was not in Africa, but in a real place with names for everything, from the smell of grass and leaves to the smallest change in the weather.

她們已經(jīng)14歲了，她會(huì)讓他們感到尷尬，最重要的是卡迪。如果她進(jìn)去了，告訴她們，她住的那個(gè)農(nóng)場(chǎng)和那個(gè)虛構(gòu)的奢侈品一點(diǎn)也不一樣，它小而且貧帶也有人，它不在非洲，而是在一個(gè)真實(shí)的地方，從草和葉子的氣味到天氣的最小變化，一切都有名字。

She had not moved since her daughter spoke, paralysed by the rage she felt. Then slowly the rage receded, and was replaced by regret and spreading guilt. What was there to feel such rage about? They lived in different worlds. Her warmhearted daughter and her kind friends would weep over the fate of a wounded turtle or a stranded seal, but would turn away with indifference from the mean suffering of those they had learned to think of as deserving of it.

自女兒說了那句話，她沒有動(dòng)過，因憤怒而呆滯。等憤怒慢慢退去，這種感覺被遺憾和一陣內(nèi)疚取代。有什么能讓人感到如此憤怒？她們生活在不同的世界。熱心的女兒和她善良的朋友會(huì)為受傷的烏龜或擱淺的海豹的命運(yùn)而哭泣，但她們會(huì)對(duì)那些受苦難的人漠不關(guān)心，因?yàn)樗齻冋J(rèn)為這是那些人應(yīng)得的。

Memories troubled her. She could not forget. She did not even know why some things would not leave her. She wondered if that was how it was with all those people she saw in the streets who were far away from their homes. She wondered how distance made remembering different.

回憶困擾著她，她無(wú)法忘記，她甚至不知道為什么有些事情一直纏繞著她。她想知道如果是這樣的話，那她在街上看到的那些離家很遠(yuǎn)的人是不是也這樣。她想知道距離是否使人記憶不同。

The arrangements were made in her earshot, but as if she was a casual listener rather than the person whom they concerned. Her father was absent, away for some months already and not expected in the near future. When she was a child, she never wondered at these long absences of her father. She became so used to them that she did not really notice, or rather only became aware of them when their father was living at home. Things happened when he was living with them, as if their mother waited until he was back before making any decisions or carrying out any big task. Maybe this was how he liked it too, or maybe they had to wait for the money he brought back from his long absences before they could get anything done. In later years, Munah thought her mother slowed down in his absence, and that the life she and her sister lived with her was subdued.

這些安排她是聽不到的，好像她是一個(gè)隨便的聽眾，而不是他們所關(guān)心的人。父親不在，已經(jīng)離開好幾個(gè)月了，短時(shí)間內(nèi)也不會(huì)出現(xiàn)。小時(shí)候，她從來沒有想過為何父親長(zhǎng)期不見。她習(xí)慣了，也沒有特意注意到，或者只是在父親住在家里時(shí)才意識(shí)到這些。當(dāng)父親和她們住在一起時(shí)，好像母親直到父親回來，才會(huì)做出任何決定或執(zhí)行任何重大任務(wù)。也許這也是他喜歡的方式，或者也許她們必須等著他帶回來的錢才能做事情。在后來的幾年里，穆娜認(rèn)為母親在父親不在時(shí)放慢了速度，而她和姐姐與母親一起生活的日子是被抑制的。

The weight of things became too heavy for her at this one time, and she became unwell. She sat for lengths of time with her head in her hands, complaining of headaches and unable to do the simplest things. Munah and her elder sister Hawa tiptoed round her, sat with her when her slow breathing was the only sound between them, tried to keep their bickering down. They were helpless with her tears. When they started, nothing could stop their mother's tears until, so it seemed, she had shed all of them. Sometimes she cried all day long over a petty offence or a small hurt, until in the end all three of them were paralysed with weeping over their incomprehensible pain.

這一次，事情對(duì)母親來說太沉重了，她不舒服。她長(zhǎng)時(shí)間手抱著頭坐著，抱怨頭痛讓她不能做最簡(jiǎn)單的事情。穆娜和她的姐姐哈瓦在她周圍輕輕地走動(dòng)，當(dāng)她緩慢的呼吸是她們之間唯一的聲音時(shí)，她們坐在她身邊，試圖停止?fàn)幊?。她們不知道該怎么安慰母親。當(dāng)她們開始安慰時(shí)，沒有什么可以阻止母親的眼淚，直到她似乎已經(jīng)流完了淚。有時(shí)她整天都會(huì)因?yàn)檩p微的冒犯或小傷而哭泣，直到最后她們?nèi)齻€(gè)都因?yàn)殡y以理解的痛苦哭到渾身無(wú)力。

One day their Aunt Amina came to visit, and it was then that Munah heard the arrangements that would take her to the country. Aunt Amina, who was their mother's elder sister, said that the two of them were too much work, and that she would take Munah away with her until their mother was feeling less tired. `Hawa can look after her mother and allow her to rest and get her health back. You come to the country and we'll find work for you.'

有一天，阿米娜姨媽來探望。這時(shí)，穆娜聽到了將她帶到鄉(xiāng)下的安排。阿米娜姨媽是他們母親的姐姐，她說兩個(gè)孩子太累了，她會(huì)把穆娜帶走，直到母親不那么累了。“哈瓦可以照顧母親，讓她休息，恢復(fù)健康。你去鄉(xiāng)下，我們會(huì)給你找點(diǎn)活干。

Later she could not remember if anyone said anything about missing school, but it was one of the first things Munah herself thought. A few days off school. Within the hour Munah had made a bundle of her belongings for a few days' stay and was walking beside her aunt to the bus halt, wearing one of the new silky shawls her father had brought as a gift the last time he came home. She remembered that, because it was the first time she wore it. The farm was only fifteen miles out of town, and she had visited several times as a child, and she saw Uncle Omar four or five times a year because he sometimes called on them when he came to town. She had no idea that she would spend weeks there.

后來她不記得是否有人說過失學(xué)，但這是穆娜自己想到的第一件事。離開學(xué)校幾天。一小時(shí)之內(nèi)，穆娜就把幾天的隨身物品準(zhǔn)備好了，披著父親上次回家時(shí)帶來的新絲綢披肩，和姨媽一起走到公交車站。她記得這個(gè)是因?yàn)檫@是她第一次戴著它。農(nóng)場(chǎng)距離城鎮(zhèn)只有15英里看到的，她小時(shí)候曾去過多次，她每年見到奧馬爾姨父四五次，因?yàn)樗麃礞?zhèn)上時(shí)，偶爾會(huì)打電話給他們。她不知道她會(huì)在那里度過幾個(gè)星期。

Uncle Omar did not smile much, but you knew it was not because he was annoyed or unhappy. He just did not smile, although he did when he saw Munah walking up the footpath to the house. He was sitting on the covered porch, weaving a basket out of palm leaves. Then he looked up when he heard them walking from the road, and his face turned into a speechless smile.

奧馬爾姨父不愛笑，但這不是因?yàn)樗鷼饣虿婚_心。他只是不笑，但當(dāng)他看到穆娜走向房子的時(shí)候，他笑了。他坐在帶頂?shù)拈T廊里，用棕桐葉編籃子。當(dāng)他聽到她們從路上走來時(shí)，他抬起頭，臉上出現(xiàn)了無(wú)聲的笑容。

The house stood on a slope, at the bottom of which ran a small stream. The farm ran behind the house for six acres on both sides of the stream. She always remembered the first night she spent on the farm, and the deep silence of the country. It was not really silence, because there were scratchings and rustlings and an indescribable suspension of the inaudible noises of night. It was a silence that leaped at her with a muted roar when she went out to the outhouse. In her sleep she heard raucous yells that were gone when she opened her eyes, and she heard the thick breathing of the frogs in the stream.

房子建在一個(gè)斜坡上，斜坡底部有一條小溪。農(nóng)場(chǎng)在房子后，溪流兩側(cè)占地六英畝。她一直記得在農(nóng)場(chǎng)度過的第一個(gè)晚上，以及鄉(xiāng)村的沉寂。這不是真正的寂靜，因?yàn)橛泄尾恋穆曇艉蜕成陈?，以及夜間無(wú)法形容的無(wú)聲的暫歇段。當(dāng)她走到外屋時(shí)，寂靜帶著無(wú)聲的吼聲向她撲過來。睡眠中聽到的沙啞的喊叫聲，在睜開眼睛時(shí)消失了，她聽到溪水中青蛙沉重的呼吸聲。

They gave her a room of her own. `You'll be here for a few weeks,' Aunt Amina said, `so make yourself comfortable.' The house was small, just two rooms and a store, not a shack but a small farmer's dwelling. At various times in the year, the room she slept in was also used as a store, so there were splash marks and plant juices which had soaked into the whitewashed wall and could not now be removed. The small window was barred and looked away from the stream, up the slope towards a grove of banana trees.

他們給她一間自己的房間?！澳銜?huì)在這里住幾個(gè)星期，”阿米娜姨媽說，“隨意點(diǎn)。”房子很小，只有兩個(gè)房間和一個(gè)商店，不是棚屋，而是一個(gè)小農(nóng)宅。在一年中的不同時(shí)間，她睡覺的那個(gè)房間也被用作商店，所以有飛濺的痕跡和植物汁滲入白色的墻壁，無(wú)法去除。小窗戶被封上了，遠(yuǎn)離溪流，溪水沿著斜坡流向一片香蕉樹。

In the day, she was expected to stay close to Aunt Amina, and wait for chores to be given to her. She understood it was really to keep an eye on her because she was fourteen and a girl. She helped with sweeping the yard, with cooking, with washing clothes and with cleaning the fruit and packing it in the baskets for transport to the market in town. It was tiring at first, but she settled into a dull routine that she found surprisingly pleasant. In the afternoons, if she was not too tired and Uncle Omar was in the mood, he showed her the work on the farm, and sometimes took her out to the road where they walked as far as the huge mango tree where people waited for the bus to town. There was also a little shop there, and the shopkeeper made coffee for them while Uncle Omar stopped to exchange greetings and news with the people sitting on the bench. `Go and greet the people inside,' he said the first time. After that she always went to greet the women in the house and sat with them until Uncle Omar had finished his conversation with the men sitting under the tree.

白天，她希望與阿米娜姨媽離得近點(diǎn)，等待她安排做家務(wù)。她明白她應(yīng)該和姨媽在一起，因?yàn)樗?4歲了，而且是個(gè)女孩。她幫著清掃院子，做飯，洗衣服，清洗水果，把水果裝在籃子里，運(yùn)到鎮(zhèn)上市場(chǎng)。起初很累，但她習(xí)慣了重復(fù)單調(diào)的事，覺得異常愉快。下午，如果她不是很累，奧馬爾姨夫心情好，他就帶她看農(nóng)場(chǎng)的工作，有時(shí)帶她走到大路上，一直走到人們等公交的巨大芒果樹下。那里有一家小店，當(dāng)奧馬爾姨夫停下與坐在板凳上的人互相問候和交流消息時(shí)，店主為他們煮咖啡?！叭ズ屠锩娴娜舜蛘泻?，”第一次的時(shí)候他這樣說。之后，她每次都與房子里的女人打招呼，和她們坐在一起，直到奧馬爾姨夫與坐在樹下的人聊完。

One day, another man rose from the conversation and walked with them. He was many years younger than Uncle Omar, perhaps in his early thirties, with a smiling face and bright curious eyes. His name was Issa, Uncle Omar told her, and he was their nearest neighbour. She walked behind them and could hear from the tone of their voices that they liked each other.?

有一天，一個(gè)男人從談話中站起來，和他們走在一起。他比奧馬爾姨夫年輕很多，也許他剛?cè)鲱^，臉上帶著笑容，眼睛明亮，充滿好奇。奧馬爾姨夫告訴她，他叫伊薩，是他們最近的鄰居。她走在他們后面，從他們的聲音中可以聽出，他們喜歡彼此。后來她發(fā)現(xiàn)，伊薩經(jīng)常來拜訪他們，之前他陪著妻子和孩子到奔巴島去看親戚了。當(dāng)他來的時(shí)候，他和奧馬爾姨夫一起坐在門廊里，聊著笑著，喝著咖啡。有時(shí)，阿米娜姨媽和他們坐在一起，他是個(gè)好朋友。她問候他的妻子和孩子，有時(shí)稱他兒子。

Issa usually called on them often, she found out later, but he had been away accompanying his wife and children on a visit to their relatives in Pemba. When he came, he sat with Uncle Omar in the porch, chatting and laughing and drinking coffee. Sometimes Aunt Amina sat with them, he was such a good friend. She asked after his wife and children and sometimes called him son.

后來她發(fā)現(xiàn)，伊薩經(jīng)常來拜訪他們，之前他陪著妻子和孩子到奔巴島去看親戚了。當(dāng)他來的時(shí)候，他和奧馬爾姨夫一起坐在門廊里，聊著笑著，喝著咖啡。有時(shí)，阿米娜姨媽和他們坐在一起，他是個(gè)好朋友。她問候他的妻子和孩子，有時(shí)稱他兒子。

He always asked for Munah to come and greet him. Munah could not help noticing that he glanced at her when no one was looking. She could not help noticing his interest. It went on like that for many days, and as time passed his visits became daily, and her body became heated under his scrutiny and his stolen glances. His looks became less hurried, and one day he gave her a secret smile. She smiled back and looked away, pleased.

他總是要求穆娜來迎接他。穆娜注意到，當(dāng)沒人看的時(shí)候，他瞥了她一眼。她不禁注意到他的興趣。這持續(xù)了很多天，慢慢地，他每天都來一次，她的身體在他的審視和偷偷的目光下變得發(fā)熱。他的表情變得不那么匆忙了，有一天他沖她神秘一笑。她回笑一下，別過頭，心里很高興。

It was impossible to mistake what was going on. Uncle Omar looked nervous and uncomfortable when she appeared while Issa was there. Aunt Amina always had something for her to do. Neither of them said anything to her. His smiles and glances thrilled her but also frightened her, but since he said nothing and her uncle and aunt were so vigilant, she felt safe, as if in a game.

接下來發(fā)生的事絕不可能弄錯(cuò)。當(dāng)伊薩在那里時(shí)，穆娜一出現(xiàn)，奧馬爾姨夫就看起來很緊張，不舒服。阿米娜姨媽總是使穆娜有事可做口他們什么都沒對(duì)她說，伊薩的微笑和目光使她激動(dòng)，但也使她害怕，但由于他什么也沒說，她姨夫和姨媽都很警惕，她覺得很安全，好像在游戲中。

One night he appeared at her window. Perhaps it wasn't the first time, perhaps he had done so before. The window was high in the wall, and had two wooden shutters. When she first arrived she was afraid of the country darkness and shut both shutters. Later she took to keeping one open. She woke up with a sense that something had happened, and her eyes went directly to the window. There was enough glow in the night air for her to see a silhouette of a head at the window. She could not prevent a frightened gasp before she put a hand over her mouth. It took only an instant, and then she knew it was Issa. She steadied herself, as if she was still asleep, and after a moment she heard his breathing. She realized that some straining quality in it must have been what woke her up. The head disappeared after a while, but she dared not shut the window, in case he reached in for her when she went to shut it. She lay awake for most of the night, dozing and waking, her face turned towards the window.

一天晚上，他出現(xiàn)在她的窗口。也許這不是第一次，也許他以前就這樣做過。窗戶在墻上很高的地方，有兩扇木制百葉窗。當(dāng)她第一次在這里時(shí)，她害怕鄉(xiāng)下的黑暗，把兩扇百葉窗都關(guān)上了。后來她一直開著一扇。感覺到發(fā)生了什么事，她醒了，眼睛直接看向窗戶。夜晚的微光足以讓她看到窗戶上一個(gè)頭的影子。手捂住嘴之前，她無(wú)法抑制，發(fā)出恐懼的吸氣聲。只一瞬，她認(rèn)出是伊薩。她使自己鎮(zhèn)定，假裝還在睡覺，過了一會(huì)兒，她聽到他的呼吸聲。她意識(shí)到一定是緊張喚醒她的。一會(huì)兒那頭消失了，但是她不敢關(guān)上窗戶，以防在關(guān)窗時(shí)他伸手拉她。一晚上，大部分時(shí)間她都處于清醒狀態(tài)，迷糊一會(huì)，又醒來，她的臉一直朝向窗戶。

The next morning she went to look outside and saw that there was a small mound of hard earth that he would have stood on to look in, although even then he would have had to hang on by the bars on the window. When Issa came to visit that afternoon, she stayed inside the yard and heard a tremor in her voice as she called out a greeting.?

第二天早上，她去外面，看到有一個(gè)堅(jiān)硬的小土堆，他也許站在這上面往里看，盡管他還不得不靠在窗戶欄上。當(dāng)天下午，伊薩來時(shí)，她待在院子里，當(dāng)她打招呼時(shí)，她聽到自己的聲音在顫抖。

That night she shut both shutters and lay awake, waiting for him. She heard him when he arrived, and sensed his hand on the shutter, pushing at it. `Don't hide from me,' he said softly, pleading. She lay in the dark, listening to his breathing. After a moment she heard the soft thud as he let go of the window bars. She could not bear the fear of it, and told Aunt Amina when she saw her in the morning. Aunt Amina said nothing for a moment, just looked sad, as if Munah had given her news of a terrible loss. `Don't say anything to Omar,' she said.

那天晚上，她關(guān)上兩扇百葉窗，醒著，等他。她聽到他到了，感覺到他的手在百葉窗上，推著它。“不要躲著我，”他溫柔地說，帶著懇求。她躺在黑暗中，聽著他的呼吸聲。過了一會(huì)兒，她聽到他放開窗戶欄時(shí)發(fā)出的輕微砰砰聲。她無(wú)法忍受這種恐懼，早上看到阿米娜姨媽時(shí)，她告訴了姨媽。阿米娜姨媽有一會(huì)兒什么都沒說，只是看起來很傷心，好像穆娜給了她一個(gè)巨大損失的消息?！安灰鷬W馬爾說，”她說。

She told her to get her things ready, and within the hour they were on their way to the bus halt under the mango tree. Uncle Omar could not understand the rush. `Has something happened?' he asked.

姨媽告訴她準(zhǔn)備好她的東西，并在一小時(shí)內(nèi)她們出發(fā)去芒果樹下的公交站。奧馬爾姨夫不知道為什么這么匆忙?！鞍l(fā)生什么事了嗎？”他問。

`No,' Aunt Amina told him. `I just forgot that I'd promised to take her back today. She's been here for weeks, you know.'

“沒有，”阿米娜姨媽告訴他。“我只是忘了，我答應(yīng)今天帶她回家。你知道她已經(jīng)在這兒待了好幾個(gè)星期了?！?/p>

Munah heard Kadi calling for her. `Where are you?' she called out.

穆娜聽到卡迪叫她。“你在哪兒？”她喊道。

She came into the kitchen, fourteen and smiling, safe as houses, and came to where Munah was sitting at the table with her memories. She leaned over her mother from behind, her long hair falling round her mother's head.

卡迪走進(jìn)廚房，14歲的孩子，微笑著，十分穩(wěn)重。她來到穆娜坐著回憶的桌子旁。她從后面靠在母親身上，長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的頭發(fā)落在母親的頭上。

`What are you doing?' she asked, kissing the top of her head and then retreating. Without waiting for an answer she said: `We're going round to Amy's. I'll be back in a couple of hours.'

“你在干嘛？”卡迪問道，親吻她的頭頂，后退一步。沒有等待媽媽說話，卡迪就說：“我們要去艾米家了，幾個(gè)小時(shí)后回來?！?/p>

`It wasn't like that, the farm in Africa,' Munah said.

“非洲農(nóng)場(chǎng)并不是那樣的，”穆娜說。

`Oh, you heard,' Kadi said. `I was just winding them up, trying to make them jealous.'

“媽媽，你聽到了？”卡迪說。“我只是那樣說，想讓她們嫉妒?！?