Chapter 8

CHAPTER VIII Anne's Bringing-up Is Begun For reasons best known to herself, Marilla did not tell Anne that she was to stay at Green Gables until the next afternoon. During the forenoon she kept the child busy with various tasks and watched over her with a keen eye while she did them. By noon she had concluded that Anne was smart and obedient, willing to work and quick to learn; her most serious shortcoming seemed to be a tendency to fall into daydreams in the middle of a task and forget all about it until such time as she was sharply recalled to earth by a reprimand or a catastrophe. When Anne had finished washing the dinner dishes she suddenly confronted Marilla with the air and expression of one desperately determined to learn the worst. Her thin little body trembled from head to foot; her face flushed and her eyes dilated until they were almost black; she clasped her hands tightly and said in an imploring voice:

第八章 安妮开始接受教养 玛丽拉出于只有自己清楚的原因，直到第二天下午才告诉安妮，她可以留在绿山墙。 整个上午，她都让小家伙忙着做各种各样的活，还一直睁着敏锐的眼睛盯着她干活。 到中午，玛丽拉已经得出结论：安妮聪明听话，愿意干活还学得快； 她最严重的缺点似乎就是干着干着活就会走神发呆，把一切都忘干净，直到被厉声斥责或是出了差错才猛地回过神。 安妮洗完晚餐的碗碟后，突然走到玛丽拉面前，那副神态就像抱了最坏的打算，一定要问出结果。 她瘦小的身子从头到脚都在发抖； 她脸蛋涨红，眼睛睁得大大的，大到几乎变成了深黑色； 她紧紧攥着双手，用恳求的声音说道：

"Oh, please, Miss Cuthbert, won't you tell me if you are going to send me away or not? I've tried to be patient all the morning, but I really feel that I cannot bear not knowing any longer. It's a dreadful feeling. Please tell me." "You haven't scalded the dishcloth in clean hot water as I told you to do," said Marilla immovably. "Just go and do it before you ask any more questions, Anne." Anne went and attended to the dishcloth. Then she returned to Marilla and fastened imploring eyes of the latter's face. "Well," said Marilla, unable to find any excuse for deferring her explanation longer, "I suppose I might as well tell you. Matthew and I have decided to keep you-that is, if you will try to be a good little girl and show yourself grateful. Why, child, whatever is the matter?" "I'm crying," said Anne in a tone of bewilderment. "I can't think why. I'm glad as glad can be. Oh, GLAD doesn't seem the right word at all. I was glad about the White Way and the cherry blossoms-but this! Oh, it's something more than glad. I'm so happy. I'll try to be so good. It will be

"哦，求求你，卡斯伯特小姐，你能不能告诉我，你到底要不要送我走呀？ 我一整个早上都拼命耐着性子等，可我真的受不了再这么悬着心了。 这种感觉太难受了。 求求你告诉我吧。" "你根本没按我交代的，把洗碗布放进滚开的清水里烫过，"玛丽拉语气坚定地说。 "先去把这件事做完，再问别的问题，安妮。" 安妮听话去烫洗碗布了。 然后她回到玛丽拉身边，用恳求的目光紧紧盯着玛丽拉的脸。 "好吧，"玛丽拉找不到再多拖延解释的借口了，"我想我还是告诉你吧。 马修和我决定留下你——前提是你要努力做个好孩子，懂得感恩。 哎呀孩子，你这是怎么了？" "我在哭呀，"安妮困惑地说道。 "我也说不上我为什么要哭。 我真的高兴坏了。 哦，光说‘高兴’好像根本不对。 之前看到白桦道和樱花我就很高兴，可这次不一样！ 哦，这可比高兴还要好太多了。 我太幸福了。 我一定会努力做个好孩子的。 这会是

uphill work, I expect, for Mrs. Thomas often told me I was desperately wicked. However, I'll do my very best. But can you tell me why I'm crying?" "I suppose it's because you're all excited and worked up," said Marilla disapprovingly. "Sit down on that chair and try to calm yourself. I'm afraid you both cry and laugh far too easily. Yes, you can stay here and we will try to do right by you. You must go to school; but it's only a fortnight till vacation so it isn't worth while for you to start before it opens again in September." "What am I to call you?" asked Anne. "Shall I always say Miss Cuthbert? Can I call you Aunt Marilla?" "No; you'll call me just plain Marilla. I'm not used to being called Miss Cuthbert and it would make me nervous." "It sounds awfully disrespectful to just say Marilla," protested Anne. "I guess there'll be nothing disrespectful in it if you're careful to speak respectfully. Everybody, young and old, in Avonlea calls me Marilla except the minister. He says Miss Cuthbert-when he thinks of it."

挺难的一件事，我知道，托马斯太太总说我坏得不行。 不过我一定会拼尽全力做好的。 可你能告诉我，我为什么会哭吗？" "我猜是因为你太激动太紧张了，"玛丽拉不以为然地说。 "坐到那把椅子上，好好冷静下来。 我真觉得你太容易哭也太容易笑了。 没错，你可以留在这里，我们会好好对你的。 你必须去上学； 不过还有两周就放暑假了，所以不用提前去，等到九月开学再去就好。" "我该怎么称呼你呢？"安妮问道。 "我一直叫你卡斯伯特小姐可以吗？ 我能叫你玛丽拉姨妈吗？" "不行，你就直接叫我玛丽拉。 我不习惯别人叫我卡斯伯特小姐，那会让我浑身不自在。" 直接叫你玛丽拉，听起来太不尊重了呀，安妮不服地说。 "只要你说话恭恭敬敬的，就谈不上不尊重。 阿冯利所有人，不管年纪大小，都叫我玛丽拉，只有牧师除外。 他才叫我卡斯伯特小姐——只有他记得的时候才这么叫。"

"I'd love to call you Aunt Marilla," said Anne wistfully. "I've never had an aunt or any relation at all-not even a grandmother. It would make me feel as if I really belonged to you. Can't I call you Aunt Marilla?" "No. I'm not your aunt and I don't believe in calling people names that don't belong to them." "But we could imagine you were my aunt." "I couldn't," said Marilla grimly. "Do you never imagine things different from what they really are?" asked Anne wide-eyed. "No." "Oh!" Anne drew a long breath. "Oh, Miss-Marilla, how much you miss!" "I don't believe in imagining things different from what they really are," retorted Marilla. "When the Lord puts us in certain circumstances He doesn't mean for us to imagine them away. And that reminds me. Go into the sitting room, Anne-be sure your feet are clean and don't let any flies in-and bring me out the illustrated card that's on the mantelpiece. The Lord's Prayer is on it and you'll devote your spare time this afternoon to

"我好想叫你玛丽拉姨妈呀，"安妮满心向往地说。 "我从来没有过姨妈，也没有过任何亲人——连外婆都没有。 叫你姨妈会让我觉得，我真的是属于你的。 我就不能叫你玛丽拉姨妈吗？" "不行。我不是你的姨妈，我不赞成乱称呼不对的名分。" "可是我们可以想象你就是我的姨妈呀。" "我不想这么想象，"玛丽拉严肃地说。 "你从来不会把事情想得和现实不一样吗？"安妮睁大眼睛问道。 "不会。" "哦！" 安妮长长吸了一口气。 "哦，玛丽拉，你错过了多少有意思的事呀！" "我才不认同要把事情空想成和现实不一样的样子，"玛丽拉反驳道。 "上帝把我们放在什么样的处境里，本就不是让我们靠空想把它变走的。 话说到这我刚好想起一件事。 去客厅，安妮——脚一定要擦干净，别把苍蝇带进去——把壁炉台上那张印着图的卡片拿给我。 卡片上印着主祷文，今天下午你有空的时候要好好

learning it off by heart. There's to be no more of such praying as I heard last night." "I suppose I was very awkward," said Anne apologetically, "but then, you see, I'd never had any practice. You couldn't really expect a person to pray very well the first time she tried, could you? I thought out a splendid prayer after I went to bed, just as I promised you I would. It was nearly as long as a minister's and so poetical. But would you believe it? I couldn't remember one word when I woke up this morning. And I'm afraid I'll never be able to think out another one as good. Somehow, things never are so good when they're thought out a second time. Have you ever noticed that?" "Here is something for you to notice, Anne. When I tell you to do a thing I want you to obey me at once and not stand stock-still and discourse about it. Just you go and do as I bid you." Anne promptly departed for the sitting-room across the hall; she failed to return; after waiting ten minutes Marilla laid down her knitting and marched after her with a grim expression. She found Anne standing motionless before a picture hanging on the wall between the two

把它完完整整背下来。 “再也不许像我昨晚听见的那样祷告了。” “我想我肯定笨手笨脚的，”安妮抱歉地说，“可是你看呀，我从来没练习过祷告嘛。 你总不能要求人家第一次试祷告就做得很好吧，对不对？ 我上床之后就想出了一段超棒的祷告，就像我答应你的那样。 它差不多和牧师的祷告一样长，还特别有诗意呢。 可是你敢信吗？ 我今天早上一醒，一个字都记不起来了。 而且我怕我再也想不出这么好的祷告了。 不知道怎么回事，重新想出来的东西从来都不如第一次好。 你也发现这点了对不对？” “安妮，有件事你给我记清楚。 我吩咐你做事的时候，要立刻照做，不许呆呆站在那儿说一堆废话。 赶紧按我说的去做。” 安妮马上动身去了大厅对面的客厅； 却没见她回来； 等了十分钟，玛丽拉放下毛线活，脸色阴沉，大步追了过去。 她发现安妮一动不动站在那两者之间墙面上挂着的画跟前

windows, with her eyes astar with dreams. The white and green light strained through apple trees and clustering vines outside fell over the rapt little figure with a half-unearthly radiance. "Anne, whatever are you thinking of?" demanded Marilla sharply. Anne came back to earth with a start. "That," she said, pointing to the picture-a rather vivid chromo entitled, "Christ Blessing Little Children"-"and I was just imagining I was one of them-that I was the little girl in the blue dress, standing off by herself in the corner as if she didn't belong to anybody, like me. She looks lonely and sad, don't you think? I guess she hadn't any father or mother of her own. But she wanted to be blessed, too, so she just crept shyly up on the outside of the crowd, hoping nobody would notice her-except Him. I'm sure I know just how she felt. Her heart must have beat and her hands must have got cold, like mine did when I asked you if I could stay. She was afraid He mightn't notice her. But it's likely He did, don't you think? I've been trying to imagine it all out-her edging a little nearer all the time until she was quite close to Him; and then He would look at her and put His

窗户之间，她双眼闪着梦幻的光。 白绿相间的光线透过外面的苹果树和缠密的藤蔓，洒在这入神的小身影上，蒙着一层奇异的柔光。 “安妮，你到底在想什么？”玛丽拉厉声问道。 安妮猛地回过神来。 “那个呀，”她指着那幅画说——那是一幅色彩鲜亮的石印画，名叫《基督赐福》 《小孩子》——我刚刚在想象我就是其中一个孩子，就是那个穿蓝裙子的小姑娘，独自站在角落，就像我一样无依无靠。 她看起来孤单又难过，你觉得是不是？ 我猜她也没有自己的爸爸妈妈。 可是她也想要得到赐福呀，所以她就害羞地悄悄挤到人群边上，希望除了祂之外，没人会注意到她。 我太懂她是什么感受了。 她肯定心砰砰跳，手也发冷，就像我当初问你能不能留下我的时候一样。 她怕祂注意不到她。 不过很有可能 祂注意到她了，你说对不对？ 我一直在脑补整个场景——她一点点往那边挪，直到离祂很近很近； 然后祂会看着她，把祂的