读《飘》36章23

Frank might have been a successful business man in the easy days before the war

弗兰克在战前那些太平日子里也许能够做一个成功的商人，

but he was so annoyingly old-fashioned, she thought,

至于现在，她觉得他已古板到了令人讨厌的地步，

and so stubborn about wanting to do things in the old ways, when the old ways and the old days were gone.

还在顽固地想按老办法行事，而这些老办法早已跟旧时代同时一去不复返了。

He was utterly lacking in the aggressiveness needed in these new bitter times.

残酷无情的新时代所需要的是侵略性，而这正是他所完全缺乏的。

Well, she had the aggressiveness and she intended to use it, whether Frank liked it or not.

思嘉自己倒具有这种侵略性，也想施展它，不管弗兰克是否喜欢。

They needed money and she was making money and it was hard work.

他们需要钱，她正在挣钱，但这是一项艰苦的工作。

The very least Frank could do, in her opinion, was not to interfere with her plans which were getting results.

照她看来，弗兰克至少不应该去干涉她正在取得成果的那些计划。

With her inexperience, operating the new mill was no easy job

由于她缺乏经验，经营这个新厂可不是容易的事。

and competition was keener now than it had been at first,

keener:热衷于;渴望;热心的;热情的;热切;(对…)着迷

现在的竞争比刚开始时更加激烈了，

so she was usually tired and worried and cross when she came home at nights.

因此她每天夜里回家总是筋疲力尽，心事重重，而且烦恼不堪。

And when Frank would cough apologetically and say:

在这种情况下，每当弗兰克带着歉意地干咳一声说：

“Sugar, I wouldn't do this," or “I wouldn't do that, Sugar, if I were you,"

“宝贝儿，我可不会干这种事”，或者“宝贝儿，我要是你，就决不会干那件事”，

it was all she could do to restrain herself from flying into a rage,and frequently she did not restrain herself.

这时思嘉只能按捺住自己不大发脾气，不过她经常是按捺不住的。

If he didn't have the gumption to get out and make some money, why was he always finding fault with her?

要是他自己没有勇气闯出去挣点钱回来，他为什么还要找她的茬儿呢？

And the things he nagged her about were so silly!

nagged:唠叨;不停地抱怨;不断困扰;老使人烦恼;

而且他找茬儿的地方又尽是些可笑的事！

What difference did it make in times like these if she was being unwomanly?

在这样的年头，即使她干得不像个女人，又有什么关系？

Especially when her unwomanly sawmill was bringing in money they needed so badly,

何况这个不是女人所应干的木厂还在不断地赚钱，而这些钱又是他们所非常需要的！

she and the family and Tara, and Frank too.

——她自己、这个家和塔拉，还有弗兰克

Frank wanted rest and quiet.

弗兰克需要休息和安静。

The war in which he had served so conscientiously had wrecked his health, cost him his fortune and made him an old man.

conscientiously:认真地;良心上;

他所虔诚服役的那场战争已经损坏了他的健康，断送了他的财产，而且使他成了一个老头儿。

He regretted none of these things

对于所有这些，他全不后悔。

and after four years of war, all he asked of life was peace and kindliness, loving faces about him and the approval of friends.

经过这四年战争之后，他对生活只求平安无事，和和气气，周围是亲善的面孔，处处受到朋友们的赞扬。

He soon found that domestic peace had its price,

但不久他便发现现在家里要得到安宁是需要付出代价的，

and that price was letting Scarlett have her own way, no matter what she might wish to do.

那就是要让思嘉随心所欲，不论她想干什么都依从她。

So, because he was tired, he bought peace at her own terms.

由于他感到疲劳，他便按照她提出的条件买了个安宁。

Sometimes, he thought it was worth it to have her smiling when she opened the front door in the cold twilights,

有时他认为这个代价还是很值得的，他在寒冷的黄昏从外面回来，思嘉微笑着替他开前门，

kissing him on the ear or the nose or some other inappropriate place,

在他的耳朵、鼻子或其他某个不合适的地方吻一下，

to feel her head snuggling drowsily on his shoulder at night under warm quilts.

snuggling:(使)依偎，紧贴，蜷伏;

drowsily:懒洋洋地;昏昏欲睡地;

或者晚上在暖和的被窝里感觉到她的头睡意矇眬地偎在他肩膀上。

Home life could be so pleasant when Scarlett was having her own way.

只要思嘉能随心所欲，家庭生活便可以过得满愉快。

But the peace he gained was hollow, only an outward semblance,

不过他所得到的安宁是空的，徒有其表而已，

for he had purchased it at the cost of everything he held to be right in married life.

因为他付出的代价是放弃了婚后生活中他认为理当享受的一切。

"A woman ought to pay more attention to her home and her family and not be gadding about like a man," he thought. “Now, if she just had a baby--”

“一个女人总得更多地关心自己的家和家里人，不该像个男人那样在外面闲荡，”他想道。“现在要是她有一个孩子——”

He smiled when he thought of a baby and he thought of a baby very often.

一想到孩子他就微笑了，而且他经常在想孩子呢。

Scarlett had been most outspoken about not wanting a child, but then babies seldom waited to be invited.

可思嘉却直截了当地宣称她不要孩子，而孩子也很少是等在那里一请便来的呀。

Frank knew that many women said they didn't want babies but that was all foolishness and fear.

弗兰克知道许多女人说不要孩子，只不过是愚蠢和害怕罢了。

If Scarlett had a baby, she would love it and be content to stay home and tend it like other women.

content:满意;满足;愿意;

要是思嘉有了孩子，她一定会爱他的，一定会像其他女人一样甘心情愿待在家里抱娃娃了。

Then she would be forced to sell the mill and his problems would be ended.

到那个时候她便只好卖掉那木厂，他的问题也就迎刃而解了。

All women needed babies to make them completely happy and Frank knew that Scarlett was not happy.

所有的女人都要有了孩子以后才觉得十分愉快，而弗兰克知道思嘉现在是不愉快的。

Ignorant as he was of women, he was not so blind that he could not see she was unhappy at times.

虽然他对女人一无所知，但思嘉有时觉得不愉快这一点，他还不至于压根儿看不见吧。

Sometimes he awoke at night and heard the soft sound of tears muffled in the pillow.

muffled:沉闷的;压抑的;模糊不清的;

有时他半夜醒来，听到身边有蒙着枕头的轻轻啜泣声，

The first time he had waked to feel the bed shaking with her sobbing, he had questioned, in alarm:“Sugar, what is it?"

他头一次醒来感觉到她抽泣得连床都震动了的时候，曾惊恐地问过她：“宝贝儿，怎么回事呀，”

and had been rebuked by a passionate cry: “Oh, let me alone!”

rebuked:指责;批评;

可是她生气地一声斥责：“唔，别管我！”他就这样给顶了回去，从此再也不吭声了。

Yes, a baby would make her happy and would take her mind off things she had no business fooling with.

不错，有了孩子能使她愉快起来，而且会使她的脑子摆脱那些与她不相干的傻事。

Sometimes Frank sighed, thinking he had caught a tropic bird,

有时弗兰克独自叹息，觉得自己抓到了一只热带鸟，

all flame and jewel color, when a wren would have served him just as well. In fact, much better.

它一身光焰，色彩斑斓，但对于他来说，只要有只鹪鹩也就行了。实际上那会更好一些。