【人物/雙語(yǔ)】瑪麗·貝爾：十一歲的連環(huán)殺手
縱觀歷史，邪黨惡徒層出不窮。從小偷小摸到殺人放火，抑或連環(huán)殺手也都屢見不鮮。
Throughout history, plenty of evil, ignoble characters have come and gone. From murderers and thieves to the unspeakable acts of history’s most prolific serial killers.
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但說(shuō)到連環(huán)殺手，你腦海里出現(xiàn)的形象肯定不會(huì)是個(gè)孩子。一個(gè)年僅十一歲的孩子怎么可能犯下這種罪行。但可嘆的是，這樣的案件確實(shí)存在。
However, when one pictures such a character, it would be unthinkable to imagine a child. One as young as eleven-years-old, carrying out such deeds – but, alas, such a case exists.
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瑪麗·貝爾（Mary Bell）的故事令人毛骨悚然。從天真無(wú)邪走向陰險(xiǎn)惡毒。到底是什么，使得一個(gè)年幼無(wú)辜犯下如此令人費(fèi)解的暴行？是什么使她走上了這條不歸之路？
The haunting chronicles of Mary Bell detail a chilling story. One where innocence becomes malevolence. How could a child, so young and innocent, commit such unfathomable acts of brutality? What twisted forces sent her down such a path?
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這個(gè)問(wèn)題至今沒有一個(gè)明確的答案，仍舊懸而未決。但我們可以從其幽暗的人生中一瞥人性的復(fù)雜。
The case of Mary Bell, the eleven-year-old serial killer, is a puzzle that defies simple answers. It is an unsettling account. It invites us to navigate the murky depths of her story and delve into the complexities of human nature.
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貝爾動(dòng)蕩的童年 Bell’s Troubled Upbringing
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瑪麗·貝爾早年的生活環(huán)境動(dòng)蕩不安。她的母親是一位名為貝蒂（Betty）的年輕女子，精神狀況不穩(wěn)定?，旣惥徒瞪谶@樣艱巨的條件下。
Mary Bell’s early life was marred by a tumultuous and disturbing upbringing. Born to a young, mentally unstable mother named Betty, Mary entered the world under challenging circumstances.
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她的母親是名妓女，很少待在家里。她沒有讓瑪麗過(guò)上穩(wěn)定的生活，常常將她丟下不顧。從人們對(duì)其家庭賬戶進(jìn)行調(diào)查，貝蒂對(duì)瑪麗早年的虐待從中一覽無(wú)余。
Her mother worked as a prostitute and often left the family. She left Mary to fend for herself without the comfort of a stable home life. Family accounts also reveal a horrifying picture of Betty’s treatment of Mary during her formative years.
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根據(jù)檢方指控，早在瑪麗五歲時(shí)，貝蒂就曾多次試圖殺死瑪麗，而她本人卻稱之為意外?，旣愡€多次遭受了其母（貝蒂）的性虐待。
Disturbing allegations say Betty attempted to end Mary’s life on multiple occasions. She disguised the attempts as accidents. Mary was subjected to repeated sexual abuse at the hands of her mother. The trauma began at just five years old.
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瑪麗在紐卡斯?fàn)枺∟ewcastle）的史考茲塢（Scotswood）長(zhǎng)大。史考茲塢是個(gè)貧困區(qū)，家庭暴力與犯罪行為都是家常便飯。她也因此對(duì)其他孩子充滿敵意，時(shí)常打砸盜竊。
Mary grew up in the poorer Scotswood area of Newcastle. She was exposed to a harsh environment rife with domestic violence and criminal behavior. This only normalized her acts of aggression towards other children, as well as vandalism and theft.
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她雖然屢屢越界，但人們權(quán)當(dāng)她在尋求關(guān)注。人們也就忽視了她說(shuō)的話——“我是個(gè)殺人犯”，只當(dāng)這是她的胡言亂語(yǔ)?？上?，她并不是在吹牛。
She had disruptive behavior and gained a reputation for attention-seeking. This made it easier to dismiss her alarming proclamation, “I am a murderer,” as just another one of her idle boasts – unfortunately, it was no empty claim.
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第一次謀殺 The First Murder
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1968年5月25日，瑪麗·貝爾11歲生日的前一天，她犯下了第一起謀殺罪。
On May 25, 1968, just a day before turning eleven, Mary Bell committed her first murder.
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但瑪麗的暴力傾向其實(shí)早就出現(xiàn)了。當(dāng)日的幾周前，5月11日，瑪麗和她的朋友諾瑪·喬伊斯·貝爾（Norma Joyce Bell）正與當(dāng)?shù)匾幻龤q的男孩一同玩耍。據(jù)消息稱，這名男孩摔倒后受了重傷。此次事件被視為意外，兩名女孩沒有受到任何責(zé)罰。
However, Bell displayed a propensity for violence earlier than that. Weeks before, on May 11, Mary and her friend Norma Joyce Bell were playing with a local three-year-old boy. Supposedly, the boy fell and suffered severe injuries. The incident was labeled an accident, and both girls escaped punishment.
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第二天，5月12日，三名不同女孩的母親紛紛報(bào)警，稱瑪麗毆打了她們的孩子，還曾掐住她們的脖子。警方迅速對(duì)瑪麗進(jìn)行了約談和教育，但并沒有以青少年犯罪的罪名起訴她。
The next day, May 12, the mothers of three young girls informed the police that Mary had attacked and choked their children. Mary was quickly interviewed and lectured by authorities. But no juvenile charges were filed.
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不到兩周后，瑪麗·貝爾便成為了一名殺人犯。根據(jù)警方隨后收集的證據(jù)，她在史考茲塢一所破舊房屋中兇殘地勒死了一名名叫馬丁·布朗（Martin Brown）的四歲孩童，事發(fā)地就在她家附近。
Less than two weeks later, Mary Bell would become a murderer. According to evidence gathered later, she brutally strangled four-year-old Martin Brown in a run-down house in Scotswood, not far from her home in Newcastle.
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警方認(rèn)為她是獨(dú)立作案。馬丁·布朗案的作案手法極其暴力殘忍。瑪麗在作案前后的行為也讓人費(fèi)解，使人不安。
Authorities believed she committed this crime alone. The murder of Martin Brown was particularly violent and gruesome. Mary’s behavior before and after the murder was puzzling and disturbing.
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犯案后，瑪麗同諾曼一起闖入了史考茲塢的一家托兒所，并留下紙條稱對(duì)此次謀殺負(fù)責(zé)。然而，馬丁的死亡并沒有給瑪麗的暴行劃上句號(hào)。
Afterward, Mary and Norma broke into and vandalized a nursery in Scotswood. They left notes that claimed responsibility for the killing. However, Mary’s propensity for violence wouldn’t end with the killing of poor Martin.
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第二起謀殺 The Second Murder
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瑪麗·貝爾的第二起謀殺發(fā)生在兩個(gè)月后。公眾也因此次事件而震驚不已。
Mary Bell’s second murder occurred two months after her first. And it shocked and appalled the community even further.
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7月31日，三歲的布萊恩·豪威（Brian Howe）在家附近的空地失蹤。警方對(duì)該區(qū)域展開搜索，在混凝土塊中發(fā)現(xiàn)了其尸體。這名男孩是被勒死的。警方還在現(xiàn)場(chǎng)發(fā)現(xiàn)，其腿部以及腹部還有多處因剃刀和剪刀造成的割傷。
On July 31, three-year-old Brian Howe disappeared from a vacant lot near his home. When police searched the area, they found his lifeless body among the concrete blocks. The young boy had been strangled. His legs and stomach were mutilated by a razor and scissors that were found at the scene.
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令人毛骨悚然的是，警方報(bào)告還提到男孩的腹部被刻有“N”字母，而隨后又被刻改為“M”。謀殺現(xiàn)場(chǎng)的種種信息表明，犯罪者很有可能是一名兒童。于是警方便開始對(duì)當(dāng)?shù)貎和归_調(diào)查。
Disturbingly, police reports concluded that an “N” was carved into his stomach. But this was then changed by someone else to an “M”. The force used in the murder indicated that the culprit was likely a child. So the police started investigating local children.
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警方發(fā)現(xiàn)瑪麗與她朋友諾曼·貝爾對(duì)謀殺發(fā)生時(shí)的去向表述有矛盾。最終發(fā)現(xiàn)，兩名女孩都與該案有關(guān)，二人一同進(jìn)行了犯罪行為。與上次相同，她們使用了勒頸的方式進(jìn)行謀殺。
They discovered that Mary and her friend Norma Bell had contradictory accounts of their whereabouts at the time of the murder. Eventually, both girls were implicated in the killing, which they had committed together. Once again, they used strangulation as their method of murder.
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這場(chǎng)犯罪的傳播之廣泛，細(xì)節(jié)之兇殘，兇手之年輕使得該案成為了英格蘭史上最臭名昭著的案件之一。讓人們不禁思考，是什么讓一個(gè)孩子犯下如此殘忍兇惡的罪行。
These highly publicized crimes, disturbing details, and Mary’s age made this case one of the most infamous in England’s history. It left many people wondering what could lead a child to commit such cruel and heinous acts.
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起訴與定罪 Charged and Convicted
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警方在發(fā)現(xiàn)了馬丁·布朗的尸體后，并未在其身上發(fā)現(xiàn)明顯的謀殺跡象。這個(gè)懸而未決的案件使得警方愁眉不展。
There were no visible signs of foul play following the chilling discovery of Martin Brown’s lifeless body. This left investigators perplexed and with an open case on their hands.
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調(diào)查人員而后將馬丁案與布萊恩案聯(lián)系起來(lái)，真相便很快就浮出了水面。
However, the truth would soon come to light. Investigators would start to put together the case between Martin’s tragic fate and the killing of Brian Howe.
瑪麗·貝爾與諾曼·貝爾作為此次調(diào)查的中心，最終被以兩項(xiàng)過(guò)失殺人罪起訴。但隨著法庭程序的進(jìn)行，1968年12月17日，事件卻發(fā)生了改變。諾曼·貝爾被判無(wú)罪，自由釋放，而瑪麗·貝爾的命運(yùn)則有所不同。
The two girls at the center of the investigation, Mary Bell and Norma Bell, were ultimately charged with two counts of manslaughter. The court proceedings, however, took a dramatic turn on December 17, 1968. Norma Bell walked free after being acquitted. But Mary Bell faced a different fate.
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陪審團(tuán)根據(jù)精神醫(yī)生的評(píng)估報(bào)告，認(rèn)為瑪麗具有“典型精神病癥狀”。陪審團(tuán)最終判定瑪麗犯有過(guò)失殺人罪。主審法官稱她為危險(xiǎn)人物，強(qiáng)調(diào)她會(huì)對(duì)其他孩子構(gòu)成嚴(yán)重威脅。
The jury was guided by the assessments of psychiatrists. They identified Mary as displaying “classic symptoms of psychopathy.” The jury ended up convicting Mary of manslaughter. The presiding judge described her as a dangerous individual. They emphasized the grave risk she posed to other children.
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最終，瑪麗被判處不定期監(jiān)禁，被關(guān)押在蘭開夏郡圣海倫斯的紅河堤教養(yǎng)院。
As a consequence, Mary was sentenced to indefinite imprisonment. She began her detention at the Red Bank secure unit in St. Helens, Lancashire.
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媒體對(duì)于瑪麗鋪天蓋地的報(bào)道和追蹤吊足了觀眾的胃口。英國(guó)大小新聞媒體都希望能對(duì)她進(jìn)行采訪。甚至瑪麗的母親貝蒂，也無(wú)恥地利用了這場(chǎng)悲劇，向報(bào)社提供出售消息。還拿出聲稱是瑪麗手稿的文章賣給記者。
The media’s voracious appetite for Mary’s story consumed public attention after her conviction. The British press fervently pursued her narrative. Even her mother, Betty, shamelessly capitalized on the tragedy. She sold stories to the press and provided reporters with writings she claimed were Mary’s.
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1977年9月，瑪麗嘗試越獄，又一次上了頭版頭條。但幾天后就被警方抓獲。
Mary managed to make headlines again in September 1977 after she briefly escaped from prison. But she was caught just days later.
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出獄后的瑪麗·貝爾 Mary Bell’s Life After Prison
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12年后，瑪麗·貝爾終于走出了監(jiān)獄。23歲的她更名改姓，默默開始了新的生活。
After a long twelve years, Mary Bell was finally released from prison. Now 23 years old, she embarked on a new life under anonymity and with a different identity.
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1984年5月25日，她甚至還生下了一名女兒。但盡管如此，記者依舊曝光了她們的行蹤。母女二人不得不遠(yuǎn)走他鄉(xiāng)。
She even welcomed a daughter on May 25, 1984. Eventually, though, reporters unveiled their whereabouts. The duo had to flee their home.
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2003年5月21日，瑪麗通過(guò)高等法院贏得了勝訴，為自己和女兒獲取了終身匿名權(quán)。隨后，永久保護(hù)某人身份的法院命令被統(tǒng)稱為“瑪麗·貝爾法令”。
In a significant legal victory on May 21, 2003, Bell secured lifelong anonymity for herself and her daughter by a ruling of the High Court. Subsequently, court orders permanently safeguarding someone’s identity became known as “Mary Bell orders.”
2009年，媒體報(bào)道瑪麗已經(jīng)是一名外祖母。這最后一篇報(bào)道給瑪麗扭曲黑暗、而又引人好奇的人生寫下了終章。
In 2009, it came to light that Bell had become a grandmother. This marked another final chapter in her twisted, intriguing life.
詞匯 Vocabulary
serial killer /?s?ri?l ?k?l?r/ n. 連環(huán)殺手
innocence /??n?s?ns/ n. 無(wú)罪，清白
malevolence /m??l?v?l?ns/ n. 惡意，惡毒
unfathomable /?n?f?θ?m?bl/ adj. 難以理解的，深不可測(cè)的
murky /?m?rki/ adj. 暗淡的，模糊的
tumultuous /tju?m?lt?u?s/ adj. 動(dòng)蕩的，騷亂的
allegation /??l??ɡe???n/ n. 指控，指責(zé)
vandalism /?v?nd?l?z?m/ n. 破壞行為，故意破壞
propensity /pr??p?ns?ti/ n. 傾向，偏好
severe /s??v?r/ adj. 嚴(yán)重的，劇烈的
choke /?o?k/ v. /n. 窒息，阻塞
juvenile /??u?v??na?l/ adj. 青少年的，幼稚的
strangle /?str??ɡ?l/ v. 勒死，掐死
run-down /?r?n?da?n/ adj. 破舊的，衰弱的
nursery /?n?rs?ri/ n. 托兒所，苗圃
vacant lot /?ve?k?nt lɑt/ n. 空地，空地場(chǎng)地
razor /?re?z?r/ n. 剃刀，刮胡刀
culprit /?k?lpr?t/ n. 罪犯，肇事者
contradictory /?kɑntr??d?kt?ri/ adj. 矛盾的，相互矛盾的
heinous /?he?n?s/ adj. 極惡的，令人發(fā)指的
manslaughter /?m?ns?l?t?r/ n. 過(guò)失殺人，非故意殺人
acquitted /??kw?t?d/ adj. 被宣判無(wú)罪的
psychiatrists /sa??ka???tr?sts/ n. 精神病醫(yī)生，精神科醫(yī)生
psychopathy /sa??k?p?θi/ n. 精神病性，精神變態(tài)
shamelessly /??e?ml?sli/ adv. 無(wú)恥地，不知羞恥地
unveil /?n?vel/ v. 揭露，公開
anonymity /??n??n?m?ti/ n. 匿名，無(wú)名狀態(tài)
intriguing /?n?tri?ɡ??/ adj. 引人入勝的，有趣的
往期鏈接 Link
來(lái)源：https://www.historydefined.net/mary-bell/
翻譯/校對(duì)/整理：QuasimodoW9
