安东·契诃夫/Anton Chekhov
One fine evening, a no less fine government clerk called Ivan Dmitritch Tchervyakov was sitting in the second row of the stalls, gazing through an opera glass at the Cloches de Corneville. He gazed and felt at the acme of bliss. But suddenly... In stories one so often meets with this "But suddenly". The authors are right: life is so full of surprises! But suddenly his face puckered up, his eyes disappeared, his breathing was arrested... he took the opera glass from his eyes, bent over and..."Aptchee!!!" he sneezed as you perceive. It is not reprehensible for anyone to sneeze anywhere. Peasants sneeze and so do police superintendents, and sometimes even privy councillors. All men sneeze. Tchervyakov was not in the least confused, he wiped his face with his handkerchief, and like a polite man, looked round to see whether he had disturbed anyone by his sneezing. But then he was overcome with confusion. He saw that an old gentleman sitting in front of him in the first row of the stalls was carefully wiping his bald head and his neck with his glove and muttering something to himself. In the old gentleman, Tchervyakov recognized Brizzhalov, a civilian general serving in the Department of Transport.
"I have spattered him," thought Tchervyakov, "he is not the head of my department, but still it is awkward. I must apologise."
Tchervyakov gave a cough, bent his whole person forward, and whispered in the general's ear.
"Pardon, your Excellency, I spattered you accidentally..."
"Never mind, never mind."
"For goodness sake excuse me, I...I did not mean to."
"Oh, please, sit down! Let me listen!"
Tchervyakov was embarrassed, he smiled stupidly and fell to gazing at the stage. He gazed at it but was no longer feeling bliss. He began to be troubled by uneasiness. In the interval, he went up to Brizzhalov, walked beside him, and overcoming his shyness, muttered:
"I spattered you, your Excellency, forgive me ...you see... I didn't do it to..."
"Oh, that's enough... I'd forgotten it, and you keep on about it!" said the general, moving his lower lip impatiently.
"He has forgotten, but there is a fiendish light in his eye," thought Tchervyakov, looking suspiciously at the general. "And he doesn't want to talk. I ought to explain to him... that I really didn't intend... that it is the law of nature or else he will think I meant to spit on him. He doesn't think so now, but he will think so later!"
On getting home, Tchervyakov told his wife of his breach of good manners. It struck him that his wife took too frivolous a view of the incident; she was a little frightened, but when she learned that Brizzhalov was in a different department, she was reassured.
"Still, you had better go and apologise," she said, "or he will think you don't know how to behave in public."
"That's just it! I did apologise, but he took it somehow queerly... he didn't say a word of sense. There wasn't time to talk properly."
Next day Tchervyakov put on a new uniform, had his hair cut and went to Brizzhalov's to explain; going into the general's reception room he saw there a number of petitioners and among them the general himself, who was beginning to interview them. After questioning several petitioners the general raised his eyes and looked at Tchervyakov.
"Yesterday at the Arcadia, if you recollect, your Excellency," the latter began, "I sneezed and...accidentally spattered...Exc..."
"What nonsense! It's beyond anything! What can I do for you," said the general addressing the next petitioner.
"He won't speak," thought Tchervyakov, turning pale; "that means that he is angry...No, it can't be left like this...I will explain to him."
When the general had finished his conversation with the last of the petitioners and was turning towards his inner apartments, Tchervyakov took a step towards him and muttered:
"Your Excellency! If I venture to trouble your Excellency, it is simply from a feeling I may say of regret!... It was not intentional if you will graciously believe me."
The general made a lachrymose face, and waved his hand.
"Why, you are simply making fun of me, sir," he said as he closed the door behind him.
"Where's the making fun in it?" thought Tchervyakov, "there is nothing of the sort! He is a general, but he can't understand. If that is how it is I am not going to apologise to that fanfaron any more! The devil takes him. I'll write a letter to him, but I won't go. By Jove, I won't."
So thought Tchervyakov as he walked home; he did not write a letter to the general, he pondered and pondered and could not make up that letter. He had to go next day to explain in person.
"I ventured to disturb your Excellency yesterday," he muttered, when the general lifted enquiring eyes upon him, "not to make fun as you were pleased to say. I was apologizing for having spattered you in sneezing...and I did not dream of making fun of you. Should I dare to make fun of you, if we should take to making fun, then there would be no respect for persons, there would be..."
"Be off!" yelled the general, turning suddenly purple, and shaking all over.
"What?" asked Tchervyakov, in a whisper turning numb with horror.
"Be off!" repeated the general, stamping.
Something seemed to give way in Tchervyakov's stomach. Seeing nothing and hearing nothing he reeled to the door, went out into the street, and went staggering along... Reaching home mechanically, without taking off his uniform, he lay down on the sofa and died.
一个美好的夜晚，庶务官伊凡·德米特里·切尔维亚科夫，坐在剧院第二排，正心情愉悦地拿着望远镜观看轻歌剧《科尔涅维利的钟声》。看着演出，他感觉自己到达了幸福的巅峰。但突然间……小说里经常出现这个“但突然间”。作家们是对的：生活中的确会有种种意想不到的事情。但突然间，他的脸皱了起来，眼睛眯起，呼吸停滞……他拿下望远镜，低下头，便……“阿嚏”一声！！！你看，他打喷嚏了。在任何地方，打个喷嚏很正常嘛。庄稼汉打喷嚏，警长打喷嚏，甚至政府议员也偶尔会打个喷嚏，无人例外。切尔维亚科夫不紧不慢地掏出小手绢擦了擦脸，又极其文雅地环视了四周，看看他的喷嚏是否溅着什么人了。这时，他恐慌起来。他看到，坐在前排座椅上的一个小老头，正用手套小心地擦着他的秃头和脖子，还自个儿嘟哝着什么。切尔维亚科夫认出，那是布里扎洛夫将军，交通部门的文官。
“我打喷嚏溅着他了！”切尔维亚科夫想，“虽说他不是我所在部门的上级，不过也挺尴尬，得向他道歉才行。”
切尔维亚科夫咳了一声，身子往前倾了倾，凑到将军的耳边低声说道：
“大人阁下请见谅，我的唾沫星儿不小心溅着您了……”
“不要紧，不要紧。”
“看在上帝的分上，恳请您原谅。我……我是无心的……”
“哎，坐下吧！我要听歌剧了！”
切尔维亚科夫尴尬极了，只好傻傻地笑了笑，而后盯着台上发呆。他就这样看着，已不再有幸福感。他的心开始上下乱跳。幕间休息时，他走到布里扎洛夫那边，在他周围走来走去，终于鼓起勇气，怯怯地说道：
“我溅着您了，大人……请您宽恕……您明白……我不是有意的……”
“哎，行了……我都忘了，你怎么还没忘呢！”说完，将军撇了下嘴唇，显然已经不耐烦了。
“他说他忘了，但眼神怎么还是怒气十足！”切尔维亚科夫想着，又疑惑地瞧了瞧将军。“他连话都懒得说了。我得解释清楚，我的确出于无心……这是常理……要不他会以为我故意吐他。现在他不这么想，但过后他会这么想的！”
到家后，切尔维亚科夫告诉妻子自己的失态。令他吃惊的是，妻子对此不屑一顾。她起先有点紧张，但后来布里扎洛夫说是“别的部门的”，她也就不再放在心上。
“不过，你最好去赔个不是，”她说，“要不他会觉得你毫无公德！”
“对，对，对！我道过歉了，但刚才他怪怪的……没说一句中听的话，当然也没有细谈的时间。”
第二天，切尔维亚科夫刮了脸，穿上新制服，去向布里扎洛夫解释。走进将军的接待室，他看到有许多人在那里请求接见。将军也在，并且已开始接见了。询问过几人后，将军抬起头，望了望切尔维亚科夫。
“要是大人还能记得，昨天在阿尔卡吉亚剧场，”庶务官开口说道，“我打了一个喷嚏，不小心溅着您了……恳请您原……”
“乱弹琴！我怎么不知道！”说着，将军扭过头，朝下个来访者说道：“说，什么事？”
“他不想提那件事！”切尔维亚科夫想着，顿时脸色煞白，“那他肯定发脾气了……不行，这事不能就这样过去……我得跟他说清楚……”
当将军和最后一名来访者结束谈话，刚要回内室，这时，切尔维亚科夫快步跟上去，又胆怯地说道：
“大人！如果小人斗胆打扰了大人，那只能说，是因为内心愧疚！……恳请您谅解，大人！我真的不是故意的！”
将军哭丧着脸，朝他挥了挥手。
“别取笑我了，先生！”将军说着，就闪进了门。
“这怎么是取笑他呢？”切尔维亚科夫想，“不是那么回事啊！他是将军，怎么会不明白啊！如果这样，我再也不向这个道貌岸然者道歉了！见鬼了！给他写封信吧，我再也不来了！真的，再也不来了！”
切尔维亚科夫就这样边想边回到了家里。他没有给将军写信。他想啊想，怎么也想不出该怎么写这封信。他不得不次日亲自向将军本人解释。
“我昨天打搅了大人，”看着将军那疑惑的目光，他怯怯地说道，“我不是像你讲的那样，我是认真的，不是来开玩笑的。我是来向您道歉的，我打喷嚏时溅着您了。大人……说那是开玩笑，我可从来没这样想过。我怎么敢开玩笑呢？如果真的是跟大人您开玩笑，就是对大人您的不敬……就是……”
“滚开！”将军大喝道，脸色顿时发青，浑身颤抖。
“啊？”切尔维亚科夫怯怯地问道，立刻呆在那里。
“滚开！！”将军跺了一下脚，又喊道。
切尔维亚科夫感到肚子里有东西碎了，他头晕目眩，挣扎着退到门口。他来到街上，跌跌撞撞地往前走……他昏昏沉沉地回到家里，制服也没脱，身子横在沙发上，后来就死了。
心灵小语
这篇小说通过对幽默可笑的人和事的描写，反映了当时社会的极端恐怖所造成的人们的精神异化、性格扭曲及心理变态，表现了作家对黑暗社会的抗议及对思想庸俗、生活猥琐的小市民的“哀其不幸”与“怒其不争”，表明了作家对罪恶制度的无泪控诉，具有深刻的社会意义。
W词汇笔记
reprehensible [?repri'hens?b?l] adj. 应受谴责的
例 It was reprehensible of him to be so disloyal.
他如此不忠，应受谴责。
apologise [?'p?l?d?aiz] v. 道歉
例 They do not have the courage to apologise for their actions.
他们没有勇气为自己的行为道歉。
embarrassed [im'b?r?st] adj. 尴尬的；拮据的；局促不安的
例 She was embarrassed when they asked her age.
他们问她的年龄时，她窘得很。
venture ['vent??(r)] v. 冒险；敢于；冒昧地说
例 He ventured his life to save a little girl from drowning.
他冒生命危险救起了一个小女孩，使她免于淹死。
S小试身手
看着演出，他感觉自己到达了幸福的巅峰。
译____________________________________________
令他吃惊的是，妻子对此不屑一顾。
译____________________________________________
切尔维亚科夫感到肚子里有东西碎了，他头晕目眩，挣扎着退到门口。
译____________________________________________
P短语家族
Tchervyakov was not in the least confused, he wiped his face with his handkerchief, and like a polite man, looked round to see whether he had disturbed anyone by his sneezing.
look round to：向四周看，环顾
造____________________________________________
Reaching home mechanically, without taking off his uniform, he lay down on the sofa and died.
lie down：躺下
造____________________________________________