老人与海

He's headed almost east, he thought. That means he is tired and going with the current. Soon he will have to circle. Then our true work begins. After he judged that his right hand had been in the water long enough he took it out and looked at it. "It is not bad," he said. "And pain does not matter to a man." He took hold of the line carefully so that it did not fit into any of the fresh line cuts and shifted his weight so that he could put his left hand into the sea on the other side of the skiff.

鱼几乎是在朝东方走，他想。这表示它已经累了，所以顺着海流前进。不久后它就要开始打转了，那时我们便要真正展开对决了。他断定右手在水中已经泡得够久了，于是便把它拿出来瞧一瞧。「还不坏嘛！」他说：「何况疼痛对一个人来说是算不了什么的。」他小心地握着绳子，免得线绳磨擦到新伤口，然后把绳子在肩上的重量转移一下，以便将左手由船的另一侧放进水里。

"You did not do so badly for something worthless," he said to his left hand. "But there was a moment when I could not find you." Why was I not born with two good hands? He thought. Perhaps it was my fault in not training that one properly. But God knows he has had enough chances to learn. He did not do so badly in the night, though, and he has only cramped once. If he cramps again let the line cut him off. When he thought that he knew that he was not being clear-headed and he thought he should chew some more of the dolphin. But I can't, he told himself.

「以废物来说，你还不算太差劲。」他对着自己的左手说。「不过有一阵子我根本就找不到你。」为什么我没能生下来就有两只健全的好手呢？他想。也许错在我没有好好训练另外一只手。但是上帝知道，它有够多的机会可以学习的了。不过话说回来，它昨晚表现还不算太差，只抽过一次筋，如果再抽筋的话，就让这条线绳把它断好了。当他觉得他发现自己的头脑并不大清楚时，就会认为应该再多吃一点海豚。

It is better to be light-headed than to lose your strength from nausea. And I know I cannot keep it if I eat it since my face was in it. I will keep it for an emergency until it goes bad. But it is too late to try for strength now through nourishment. You're stupid, he told himself. Eat the other flying fish. It was there, cleaned and ready, and he picked it up with his left hand and ate it chewing the bones carefully and eating all of it down to the tail.

但是他又告诉自己，不行，宁可头昏眼花，也比呕吐失去体力要好。我晓得我吃了一定会吐的，因为刚才我的脸还在上面呢。直到它坏了之前，我非到必要不吃它。但是现在要靠吸取营养来维持体力，实在太迟了。你真笨，他告诉自己，何不把另一条飞鱼吃了。那条飞鱼已被处理得干干净净，随时可供食用他用左手拿起来放进嘴中，并小心地嚼着骨头，他从头到尾把它吃得精光。

It has more nourishment than almost any fish, he thought. At least the kind of strength that I need. Now I have done what I can, he thought. Let him begin to circle and let the fight come. The sun was rising for the third time since he had put to sea when the fish started to circle. He could not see by the slant of the line that the fish was circling. It was too early for that. He just felt a faint slackening of the pressure of the line and he commenced to pull on it gently with his right hand. It tightened, as always.

飞鱼几乎比任何一种鱼都更富营养，他想。至少它可以让我产生所需要的力气。他想，现在我能作的都已经做了。就让那条大鱼开始打转吧！让这场战斗来临吧！自从出海以来太阳已是第三次升起了，这时鱼才开始打转。他由绳子的倾斜度并看不出鱼正在打转，现在还太早看不出来。他只感觉绳索上的张力较松弛了，于是他开始慢慢地用右手拉绳，如往常一样绳子又拉紧了。

But just when he reached the point where it would break, line began to come in. He slipped his shoulders and head from under the line and began to pull in line steadily and gently. He used both of his hands in a swinging motion and tried to do the pulling as much as he could with his body and his legs. His old legs and shoulders pivoted with the swinging of the pulling. "It is a very big circle," he said. "But he is circling." Then the line would not come in any more and he held it until he saw the drops jumping from it in the sun. Then it started out.

但是当绳子达到几乎断裂边缘的时候，它开始可以往里面收回来了。他把肩膀和背脊由绳下钻过来，开始很缓慢又稳健地把绳子往里面收回来。他用两只手左右摇晃地拉着绳子，并且尽量使出身体和腿的力量，把绳子往里面拉。他苍老的腿和肩膀顺着拉绳时的摇摆而扭动着。「可真是个大圈子呀，」他说。「它确实在打转了。」接下来绳子没办法再收进来了，他仍紧握着它，直到看见绳子上在阳光下迸出水珠来，才松开一点。

And the old man knelt down and let it go grudgingly back into the dark water. "He is making the far part of his circle now," he said. I must hold all I can, he thought. The strain will shorten his circle each time. Perhaps in an hour I will see him. Now I must convince him and then I must kill him. But the fish kept on circling slowly and the old man was wet with sweat and tired deep into his bones two hours later. But the circles were much shorter now and from the way the line slanted he could tell the fish had risen steadily while he swam.

老人跪下来，很心不甘情不愿地把绳子放回深暗的水中。「它现在正转到圈子的外弧，」他说。「我必须尽全力握好绳子，」他想。绳子拉紧后，它每一次打转都会使圆弧缩小。也许再过一个小时我就会看到它了，现在我必须要制服它，然后我必须杀了它。但是这条鱼继续慢慢地打转，两个小时之后，老人已汗流浃背、疲倦彻骨。但是圆弧已经小多了，由绳索的倾斜度，他可以晓得鱼已经慢慢地游上来了。

For an hour the old man had been seeing black spots before his eyes and the sweat salted his eyes and salted the cut over his eye and on his forehead. He was not afraid of the black spots. They were normal at the tension that he was pulling on the line. Twice, though, he had felt faint and dizzy and that had worried him. "I could not fail myself and die on a fish like this," he said. "Now that I have him coming so beautifully, God help me endure. I'll say a hundred Our Fathers and a hundred Hail Marys. But I cannot say them now."

大约有一小时之久，老人眼前持续地出现一个黑点，咸咸的汗水淹着眼睛以及眼睛上方和额头上的伤口。他并不担心眼前的黑点，因为拉线绳而眼冒金星是紧张状态下正常的现象，然而，令他担心的是，这已是他第二次感觉头晕目眩了。「我可不能不争气呀，为了这么一条鱼送掉了老命，」他说。「既然我已经够这么漂亮地把它弄到手了，上帝请帮助我再撑下去，我会念一百遍『天主经』、一百次『圣母经』，只是我现在没办法念。」

Consider them said, he thought. I'll say them later. Just then he felt a sudden banging and jerking on the line he held with his two hands. It was sharp and hard-feeling and heavy. He is hitting the wire leader with his spear, he thought. That was bound to come. He had to do that. It may make him jump though and I would rather he stayed circling now. The jumps were necessary for him to take air. But after that each one can widen the opening of the hook wound and he can throw the hook. "Don't jump, fish," he said. "Don't jump."

就当作已经念过好了，他想。我以后会念的。就在这时候，他突然感觉到手中握着的绳子猛然间被扯动，感觉很是猛烈、沉重。现在它正在用它的尖嘴猛击钓钩与线绳之间的金属线，他想。这终究是会发生的，它必须这么做不过这样做或许会使它跳起来，但现在我宁愿它继续打转。为了呼吸空气它必需跳起来。但它每跳一次就会把它嘴上的伤痕加大，最后就可以挣脱钩子。「鱼啊！不要跳。」他说。「不要跳。」

The fish hit the wire several times more and each time he shook his head the old man gave up a little line. I must hold his pain where it is, he thought. Mine does not matter. I can control mine. But his pain could drive him mad. After a while the fish stopped beating at the wire and started circling slowly again. The old man was gaining line steadily now. But he felt faint again. He lifted some seawater with his left hand and put it on his head. Then he put more on and rubbed the back of his neck.

鱼又攻击了那金属线好几次。每次它一摇头，老人只好把线又放出去一点。我不能增加它的痛苦，他想。我的痛苦算不了什么，我可以控制得住，可是它的痛苦会让它发疯的。过了一会以后，鱼停止攻击钓钩上的金属线，又开始慢慢地旋转。老人现在可以稳定地收回一点线了。但是他又感到一阵晕眩。他用左手从海里撩起一点水来，洒在头上，然后，又多撩了一点水揉搓颈背。

"I have no cramps," he said. "He'll be up soon and I can last. You have to last. Don't even speak of it." He kneeled against the bow and, for a moment, slipped the line over his back again. I'll rest now while he goes out on the circle and then stand up and work on him when he comes in, he decided. It was a great temptation to rest in the bow and let the fish make one circle by himself without recovering any line. But when the strain showed the fish had turned to come toward the boat, the old man rose to his feet and started the pivoting and the weaving pulling that brought in all the line he gained.

「我并没有抽筋，」他说。「它很快就会上来了，我可以支撑下去的。你必须撑下去，想都不必想。」他靠着船头跪了一会儿，然后又把线绳背在背上。当它往外弧打转的时候，我要休息一下，等它转进来的时候，我再站起来好好对付它，他这么决定了。能在船头上休息一下真是太舒服了，就让鱼自己去转一圈，我也别收回任何线来吧。但是，当绳子的张力显示鱼已经靠近船身时，老人站起来，摇晃着身子和双手，尽量把线绳收回来。

I'm tireder than I have ever been, he thought, and now the trade wind is rising. But that will be good to take him in with. I need that badly. "I'll rest on the next turn as he goes out," he said, "I feel much better. Then in two or three turns more I will have him." His straw hat was far on the back of his head and he sank down into the bow with the pull of the line as he felt the fish turn.

此刻的我比任何时候都更疲倦，他想。现在贸易风已经吹起了，我可以借着风把它弄过来。我太需要这样的帮助了。「当他再往外打转的时候，我再休息，」他说。「我感觉好多了。它再转个两三圈，我就可以逮到它了。」他的草帽掉在脑后，当他才刚感觉到鱼转动时，就一股脑儿地被绳子的拉力拖倒在船头上。

You work now, fish, he thought. I'll take you at the turn. The sea had risen considerably. But it was a fair weather breeze and he had to have it to get home. "I'll just steer south and west," he said. "A man is never lost at sea and it is a long island." It was on the third turn that he saw the fish first. He saw him first as a dark shadow that took so long to pass under the boat that he could not believe its length. "No," he said. "He can't be that big."

鱼啊！你尽量挣扎吧，他想。等你转弯时，我再把你弄过来。海水已经升得相当高。这正是微风吹拂的好天气，他还得靠这阵风才能回家。「我只管往西南方航驶就是了，」他说。「真正的男人在海上是从来都不会迷失的，何况，那可是个狭长的岛。」当鱼转了第三圈时，他头一次看到了这条鱼。起先他看见这条鱼的黑影游过船底，花了很长的时间才完过通过，他几乎不能相信它有这么的长。「不，」他说。「它不可能那么大。」