At a lull in the entertainment the man looked at me and smiled.
在文娛節(jié)目中間休息的時(shí)候，那個(gè)男的看著我微笑。
lull [l?l] n. 中場(chǎng)休息 a short period of calm in which little happens
"Your face is familiar," he said, politely. "Weren't you in the Third Division during the war?"
“您很面熟，”他很客氣地說，“戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)期間您不是在第一師嗎？”
division??[d??v??(?)n] ?n.〈軍〉師
"Why, yes. I was in the Ninth Machine-Gun Battalion."
“正是啊。我在步兵二十八連?！?/p>
machine-gun??[m???i?nɡ?n] ?n.??機(jī)槍, 機(jī)關(guān)槍 vt.??用機(jī)槍掃射
battalion??[b??t?l??n] ?n.??營；大隊(duì)
"I was in the Seventh Infantry until June nineteen-eighteen. I knew I'd seen you somewhere before."
“我在十六連，直到一九八年六月，我剛才就知道我以前在哪兒見過您的?！?/p>
infantry??[??nf?ntr?] ?n.??步兵，步兵部隊(duì)（集合名稱）
We talked for a moment about some wet, grey little villages in France. Evidently he lived in this vicinity for he told me that he had just bought a hydroplane and was going to try it out in the morning.
我們談了一會(huì)兒法國的一處陰雨、灰暗的小村莊，顯而易見他就住在附近，因?yàn)樗嬖V我他剛買了一架水上飛機(jī)，并且準(zhǔn)備明天早晨去試飛一下。
hydroplane??[?ha?dr?ple?n] ?n.??水上飛機(jī)
"Want to go with me, old sport? Just near the shore along the Sound."
“愿意跟我一塊去嗎，老兄？就在海灣沿著岸邊轉(zhuǎn)轉(zhuǎn)?！?/p>
old sport ? 老伙計(jì)
"What time?"
“什么時(shí)候？”
"Any time that suits you best."
“隨便什么時(shí)候，對(duì)你合適就行?！?/p>
It was on the tip of my tongue to ask his name when Jordan looked around and smiled.
我已經(jīng)話到了嘴邊想問他的名字，這時(shí)喬丹掉轉(zhuǎn)頭水朝我一笑。
"Having a gay time now?" she inquired.
“現(xiàn)在玩得快話吧？”她問。
gay??[ɡe?] ?adj. ?愉快的；快樂的
"Much better." I turned again to my new acquaintance. "This is an unusual party for me. I haven't even seen the host. I live over there----" I waved my hand at the invisible hedge in the distance, "and this man Gatsby sent over his chauffeur with an invitation."
“好多了?！蔽矣值艮D(zhuǎn)臉對(duì)著我的新交，“這對(duì)我來說是個(gè)奇特的晚會(huì)。我連主人都還沒見到哩。我就住在那邊……”我朝著遠(yuǎn)處看不見的的籬笆把一揮?！斑@位姓蓋茨比的派他的他司機(jī)過來送了一份請(qǐng)?zhí)??！?/p>
For a moment he looked at me as if he failed to understand.
他朝我望了一會(huì)兒，似乎沒聽懂我的話。
"I'm Gatsby," he said suddenly.
“我就是蓋茨比”他突然說。
"What!" I exclaimed. "Oh, I beg your pardon."
“什么！”我叫了一聲，“噢，真對(duì)不起?！?/p>
"I thought you knew, old sport. I'm afraid I'm not a very good host."
“我還以為你知道哩，老兄。我恐怕不是個(gè)很好的主人。”
He smiled understandingly--much more than understandingly. It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced--or seemed to face--the whole external world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just so far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself and assured you that it had precisely the impression of you that, at your best, you hoped to convey. Precisely at that point it vanished--and I was looking at an elegant young rough-neck, a year or two over thirty, whose elaborate formality of speech just missed being absurd. Some time before he introduced himself I'd got a strong impression that he was picking his words with care.
他心領(lǐng)神會(huì)地一笑——還不止心領(lǐng)神會(huì)。這足極為罕見的笑容，其中含有永久的善意的表情，這你一輩子也不過能遇見四二次。它面對(duì)——或者似乎面對(duì)——整個(gè)永恒的世界一剎那，然后就凝注在你身上，對(duì)你表現(xiàn)出不可抗拒的偏愛。他了解你恰恰到你本人希望被了解的程度，相信你如同你樂于相信你自己那樣，并且教你放心他對(duì)你的印象正是你最得意時(shí)希望給予別人的印象。恰好在這一刻他的笑容消失了——于是我看著的不過是一個(gè)風(fēng)度翩翩的年輕漢子，三十一二歲年紀(jì)，說起話來文質(zhì)彬彬，幾乎有點(diǎn)可笑。在他作自我介紹之前不久，我有一個(gè)強(qiáng)烈的印象，覺得他說話字斟句酌。
reassurance ?[?ri????u?r?ns]?n.? something that is said or done which makes someone feel calmer and less worried or frightened about a problem
roughneck ?[?r?f.nek] n. a worker on an?oilrig?(= a large piece of equipment for getting oil from underground) ; ?MAINLY US AND AUSTRALIAN ENGLISH INFORMAL?a person who is rough and rude, usually a man
Almost at the moment when Mr. Gatsby identified himself a butler hurried toward him with the information that Chicago was calling him on the wire. He excused himself with a small bow that included each of us in turn.
差不多在蓋茨比先生說明自己身份的那一刻，一個(gè)男管家急急忙忙跑到他跟前報(bào)告他芝加哥有長(zhǎng)途電話找他。他微微欠身道歉，把我們大家——包括在內(nèi)。
"If you want anything just ask for it, old sport," he urged me.?
"Excuse me. I will rejoin you later."
“你想要什么盡管開口，老兄，”他懇切地對(duì)我說，“對(duì)不起，過會(huì)兒再來奉陪?！?/p>
When he was gone I turned immediately to Jordan--constrained to assure her of my surprise. I had expected that Mr. Gatsby would be a florid and corpulent person in his middle years.
他走開之后，我馬上轉(zhuǎn)向喬丹——迫不及待地要告訴她我感到的驚異。我本來以為蓋茨比先生是個(gè)紅光滿面、肥頭大耳的中年人。
constrain??[k?n?stre?n] v.??強(qiáng)使；強(qiáng)逼
florid??[?fl?r?d] ?adj. 過分花哨的; 紅的（臉）
corpulent??[?k??pj?l?nt] ?adj.??肥胖的；肥大的
"Who is he?" I demanded. "Do you know?"
“他是誰？”我急切地問，“你可知道？”
"He's just a man named Gatsby."
“他就是一個(gè)姓蓋茨比的人唄?！?/p>
"Where is he from, I mean? And what does he do?"
“我是問他是哪兒來的？他又是干什么的？”
"Now YOU're started on the subject," she answered with a wan smile.
"Well,--he told me once he was an Oxford man."
“現(xiàn)在你也琢磨起這個(gè)題目來了，”她厭倦地笑道，“唔，他告訴過我他上過牛津大學(xué)?！?/p>
wan??[w?n] ?adj.??面帶病容的；面帶倦容的；憔悴的
A dim background started to take shape behind him but at her next remark it faded away.
關(guān)于他的模糊的背景開始顯現(xiàn)出來，但是隨著她的下一句話又立即消大了。
"However, I don't believe it."
“可是，我并不相信。”
"Why not?"
“為什么不信？”
"I don't know," she insisted, "I just don't think he went there."
“我不知道，”她固執(zhí)地說，“我就是不相信他上過牛津?！?/p>
Something in her tone reminded me of the other girl's "I think he killed a man," and had the effect of stimulating my curiosity. I would have accepted without question the information that Gatsby sprang from the swamps of Louisiana or from the lower East Side of New York.?That was comprehensible.?
她的語氣之中有點(diǎn)什么使我想起另外那個(gè)姑娘說的“我想他殺過一個(gè)人”，其結(jié)果是打動(dòng)了我的好奇心。隨便說蓋茨比出身于路易斯安那州的沼澤地區(qū)也好，出身于紐約東城南區(qū)也好，我都可以毫無疑問地接受。那是可以理解的。
spring from: appear suddenly from（somewhere）突然從（某處）出現(xiàn)
But young men didn't--at least in my provincial inexperience I believed they didn't--drift coolly out of nowhere and buy a palace on Long Island Sound.
但是年紀(jì)輕的人不可能——至少我這個(gè)孤陋寡聞的多余人認(rèn)為他們不可能——不知從什么地方悄悄地出現(xiàn)，在長(zhǎng)島海灣買下一座宮殿式的別墅。
provincial ? [pr??v?n?(?)l] ?adj. 粗俗的，偏狹的，一省居民所特有的（語言、衣著等）
"Anyhow he gives large parties," said Jordan, changing the subject with an urbane distaste for the concrete. "And I like large parties. "They're so intimate. At small parties there isn't any privacy."
“不管怎樣，他舉行大型宴會(huì)，”喬丹像一般城里人一樣不屑于談具體細(xì)節(jié)，所以改換了話題，“而我也喜歡大型宴會(huì)。這樣親熱得很。在小的聚會(huì)上，三三兩兩談心倒不可能?！?/p>
intimate ?[??nt?m?t] ?adj. 親近的；親密的；熟悉的
There was the boom of a bass drum, and the voice of the orchestra leader rang out suddenly above the echolalia of the garden.
大鼓轟隆隆一陣響，接著突然傳來樂隊(duì)指揮的聲音，蓋過了花園里嘈雜的人聲。
boom ?[bu?m] ?n.??隆隆響
Echolalia 模仿言語 (also known as?echologia?or?echophrasia) is defined as the unsolicited?repetition of vocalizations?made by another person (by the same person is called?palilalia).?
"Ladies and gentlemen," he cried. "At the request of Mr. Gatsby we are going to play for you Mr. Vladimir Tostoff's latest work which attracted so much attention at Carnegie Hall last May. If you read the papers you know there was a big sensation." He smiled with jovial condescension and added "Some sensation!" whereupon everybody laughed.
“女士們，先生們，”他大聲說，“應(yīng)蓋茨比先生的要求，我們現(xiàn)在為各位演奏弗拉迪米爾·托斯托夫先生的最新作品，這部作品五月里在卡內(nèi)基音樂廳曾經(jīng)引起許多人的注意。各位看報(bào)就知道那是轟動(dòng)一時(shí)的事件?！彼麕еp松而居高臨下的神氣微微一笑，又說：“可真叫轟動(dòng)！”這句話引得大家都放聲大笑。
jovial ? [?d???v??l] adj. 友好的；天性快活的；愉快的
condescension??[k?nd??sen?(?)n] ?n.??屈尊，俯就
whereupon??[we?r??p?n] ?conj.??于是
"The piece is known," he concluded lustily, "as 'Vladimir Tostoff's Jazz History of the World.' "
“這支樂曲，”他最后用洪亮的聲音說，“叫做《弗拉迪米爾·托斯托夫的爵土音樂世界史》?！?/p>
lustily ?[`l?stIlI] ?精力充沛地; 起勁地; 健壯地
The nature of Mr. Tostoff's composition eluded me, because just as it began my eyes fell on Gatsby, standing alone on the marble steps and looking from one group to another with approving eyes.
托斯托夫先生這個(gè)樂曲是怎么回事，我沒有注意到，因?yàn)檠葑嘁婚_始，我就一眼看到了蓋茨比單獨(dú)一個(gè)人站在大理石臺(tái)階上面，用滿意的目光從這一群人看到那一群人。
elude ?[??lu?d] v. If something that you want eludes you, you do not succeed in achieving it; If a piece of information eludes you, you cannot remember it; to not be caught by someone
His tanned skin was drawn attractively tight on his face and his short hair looked as though it were trimmed every day. I could see nothing sinister about him. I wondered if the fact that he was not drinking helped to set him off from his guests, for it seemed to me that he grew more correct as the fraternal hilarity increased.
他那曬得黑黑的皮膚很漂亮地緊繃在臉上，他那短短的頭發(fā)看上去好像是每天都修剪似的。我看不出他身上有什么詭秘的跡象。我納悶是否他不喝酒這個(gè)事實(shí)有助于把他跟他的客人們截然分開，因?yàn)槲矣X得隨著沆瀣一氣的歡鬧的高漲，他卻變得越發(fā)端莊了。
trimmed ?[tr?md] adj. 切邊；平衡的；縱傾的；修整過的?If clothes and other cloth items are trimmed, they are decorated, especially around the edges
sinister??[?s?n?st?(r)] ?adj. 不吉的；不祥的；兇惡的
fraternal??[fr??t??n(?)l] ?adj. 兄弟的，兄弟般的
hilarity??[h??l?r?t?] ?n.??歡樂；熱鬧
When the "Jazz History of the World" was over girls were putting their heads on men's shoulders in a puppyish, convivial way, girls were swooning backward playfully into men's arms, even into groups knowing that some one would arrest their falls--but no one swooned backward on Gatsby and no French bob touched Gatsby's shoulder and no singing quartets were formed with Gatsby's head for one link.
等到《爵士音樂世界史》演奏完畢，有的姑娘像小哈巴狗一樣樂滋滋地靠在男人肩膀上，有的姑娘開玩笑地向后暈倒在男人懷抱里，甚至倒進(jìn)人群里，明知反正有人會(huì)把她們托住——可是沒有人暈倒在蓋茨比身上，也沒有法國式的短發(fā)碰到蓋茨比的肩頭，也沒有人組織四人合唱團(tuán)來拉蓋茨比加入。
puppyish ?[`p?pII?] ?adj. 小狗的；小狗天性的
convivial??[k?n?v?v??l] ?adj. 歡宴的, 愛吃喝交際的；歡樂的, 樂天的
swoon??[swu?n] ?v. 著迷, 神魂顛倒?to feel a lot of pleasure, love, etc. because of something or someone
"I beg your pardon."
“對(duì)不起。”
Gatsby's butler was suddenly standing beside us.
蓋茨比的男管家忽然站在我們身旁。
"Miss Baker?" he inquired. "I beg your pardon but Mr. Gatsby would like to speak to you alone."
“貝克小姐？”他問道，“對(duì)不起，蓋茨比先生想單獨(dú)跟您談?wù)劇！?/p>
"With me?" she exclaimed in surprise.
“跟我談？”她驚奇地大聲說。
"Yes, madame."
“是的，小姐?！?/p>
She got up slowly, raising her eyebrows at me in astonishment, and followed the butler toward the house. I noticed that she wore her evening dress, all her dresses, like sports clothes--there was a jauntiness about her movements as if she had first learned to walk upon golf courses on clean, crisp mornings.
她慢慢地站了起來，驚愕地對(duì)我揚(yáng)了揚(yáng)眉毛，然后跟著男管家向房子走去。我注意到她穿晚禮服，穿所有的衣服，都像穿運(yùn)動(dòng)服一樣——她的動(dòng)作有一種矯健的姿勢(shì)，仿佛她當(dāng)初就是在空氣清新的早晨在高爾夫球場(chǎng)上學(xué)走路的。
jauntiness ?['d??:ntinis] ?n. 活潑；高興；洋洋得意
I was alone and it was almost two. For some time confused and intriguing sounds had issued from a long many-windowed room which overhung the terrace. Eluding Jordan's undergraduate who was now engaged in an obstetrical conversation with two chorus girls, and who implored me to join him, I went inside.
我獨(dú)自一人，時(shí)間已快兩點(diǎn)了。有好一會(huì)兒，從陽臺(tái)上面一間長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的、有許多窗戶的房間里傳來了一陣陣雜亂而引人人勝的聲音。喬丹的那位大學(xué)生此刻正在和兩個(gè)歌舞團(tuán)的舞女大談助產(chǎn)術(shù)，央求我去加人，可是我溜掉了，走到室內(nèi)去。
overhang??[??v??h??] ?v. ?倒懸, 懸垂; 吊在…上; 向…伸出; 威脅, 逼近
terrace??[?ter?s] ?n. 傾斜的平地, 臺(tái)地, 梯田；陽臺(tái), 平臺(tái), 平屋頂
obstetrical ?[-trIkl] adj.?產(chǎn)科(學(xué))的;分娩的
The large room was full of people. One of the girls in yellow was playing the piano and beside her stood a tall, red haired young lady from a famous chorus, engaged in song. She had drunk a quantity of champagne and during the course of her song she had decided ineptly that everything was very very sad--she was not only singing, she was weeping too. Whenever there was a pause in the song she filled it with gasping broken sobs and then took up the lyric again in a quavering soprano. The tears coursed down her cheeks--not freely, however, for when they came into contact with her heavily beaded eyelashes they assumed an inky color, and pursued the rest of their way in slow black rivulets. A humorous suggestion was made that she sing the notes on her face whereupon she threw up her hands, sank into a chair and went off into a deep vinous sleep.
大房間里擠滿了人。穿黃衣的姑娘有一個(gè)在彈鋼琴，她身旁站著一個(gè)高高的紅發(fā)少婦，是從一個(gè)有名的歌舞團(tuán)來的，正在那里唱歌。她已經(jīng)喝了大量的香擯，在她唱歌的過程中她又不合時(shí)宜地認(rèn)定一切都非常非常悲慘——她不僅在唱，而且還在哭。每逢曲中有停頓的地方，她就用抽抽噎噎的哭聲來填補(bǔ)，然后又用震顫的女高音繼續(xù)去唱歌詞。眼淚沿著她的面頰往下流——可不是暢通無阻地流，因?yàn)檠蹨I一碰到畫得濃濃的睫毛之后就變成了黑墨水，像兩條黑色的小河似的慢慢地繼續(xù)往下流。有人開玩笑，建議她唱臉上的那些音符，她聽了這話把兩手向上一甩，倒在一張椅子上，醉醺醺地呼呼大睡起來。
ineptly ?[i'neptli]?adv. 不適當(dāng)?shù)兀粺o能地
gasping ?? ['ɡɑ:spi?] ?adj. 喘氣的；痙攣的
quavering ? adj. 顫抖的；震動(dòng)的
soprano??[s??prɑ?n??] ?n.女高音; 最高音
rivulet??[?r?vj?l?t] ?n.??小河, 小溪
vinous??[?va?n?s] ?adj.??葡萄酒的；像葡萄酒的
"She had a fight with a man who says he's her husband," explained a girl at my elbow.
“她剛才跟一個(gè)自稱是她丈夫的人打過一架。”我身旁一個(gè)姑娘解釋說。
at your elbow: 在手旁, 伸手可及, 在近旁 ?(keeps book at his elbow 手不釋卷)
I looked around. Most of the remaining women were now having fights with men said to be their husbands. Even Jordan's party, the quartet from East Egg, were rent asunder by dissension. One of the men was talking with curious intensity to a young actress, and his wife after attempting to laugh at the situation in a dignified and indifferent way broke down entirely and resorted to flank attacks--at intervals she appeared suddenly at his side like an angry diamond, and hissed "You promised!" into his ear.
我向四周看看，剩下的女客現(xiàn)在多半都在跟她們所謂的丈夫吵架。連喬丹的那一伙，從東卵來的那四位，也由于意見不和而四分五裂了。男的當(dāng)中有一個(gè)正在勁頭十足地跟一個(gè)年輕的女演員交談，他的妻子起先還保持尊嚴(yán)，裝得滿不在乎，想一笑置之，到后來完全垮了，就采取側(cè)面攻擊——不時(shí)突然出現(xiàn)在他身邊，像一條袖脊蛇憤怒時(shí)口腔里發(fā)出嘶嘶聲一般，對(duì)著他的耳朵從牙縫里擠出一句話：“你答應(yīng)過的！”
quartet??[kw???tet] ?n.??四重奏, 四重唱, 四重奏樂團(tuán) （亦作：quartette）
rend??[rend] ?v.??rent, rending ?割裂, 劈開；扯破, 撕碎
asunder??[??s?nd?(r)] ?adv. 分開；離散
dissension??[d??sen?(?)n] ?n. 分歧；不同
flank??[fl??k] ?n. 脅腹, 肋骨與臂部之間的部位；側(cè)面
hiss??[h?s] ?v. 發(fā)出嘶嘶聲
