Chapter 2 Life in Lilliput
第2章 在利力浦特的生活
I was careful to behave as well as possible,to persuade the King to give me my freedom.
为了说服国王给我自由,我特别小心,尽可能表现得好些。
Lilliputians soon began to lose their fear of me.
利力浦特人很快就消除了他们对我的畏惧心。
They called me the Man-Mountain.
他们称我为人山,
Sometimes I lay down and let them dance on my hand,and from time to time children came to play games in my hair.
有时我躺下,让他们在我手上跳舞,孩子们偶尔到我的头发里来做游戏。
By now I was able to speak their language well.
这时候,他们的话我已经能说得很好了。
One day the King invited me to watch the regular entertain-ments,which are greatly enjoyed by him,his family,and his lords and ladies.
有一天国王邀请我去看定期表演,这是他、他的家人、以及他的王公和贵妇们极为欣赏的。
I was most interested in the rope-dancing.
我对他们的绳舞特别感兴趣。
A very thin rope is fixed thirty centimetres above the ground.
一条极细的绳子固定在离地30厘米的位置,
People who want to become the King's most important officials jump and dance on this rope,and whoever jumps highest with-out falling gets the best job.
想成为国王的重臣的人在绳上跳来跳去、手舞足蹈,跳得最高又不摔下来的人就会获得最好的职位。
Sometimes the King orders his lords to dance on the rope,to show that they can still do it.
有时国王也叫王公到绳子上去舞蹈,以表明他们仍然能做。
This sport is,of course,rather dangerous,and there are occasional deaths as a result.
这种运动当然是相当危险的,因此死亡时有发生,
It seems a strange way of choosing of-ficials.
这似乎是一种古怪的选拔官员的法子。
关于《格列佛游记》
但是回到家中后,格列佛因为已经习惯了慧骃族良好的品质,而对家人的气味有厌恶之意,便买了两匹马,天天与他们谈心,安度晚年。