Lesson 3 Blackmail
全文翻譯
訛詐
阿瑟·黑利
1.負(fù)責(zé)旅館保安工作的奧格爾維探長(zhǎng)在他那個(gè)神秘的電話里說好一個(gè)鐘頭以后到克羅伊敦夫婦的套房里來，實(shí)際上過了兩個(gè)小時(shí)才到。結(jié)果，當(dāng)外面門上的電鈴終于微弱地嗡嗡響起時(shí)，公爵夫婦的神經(jīng)都緊張到了極點(diǎn)。
2.公爵夫人親自去開門。之前她找借口把女仆打發(fā)了出去。那個(gè)圓臉的男秘書，見到狗就怕得要死，公爵夫人狠心地讓他去遛遛貝德林頓狼犬。但是這兩個(gè)人隨時(shí)都會(huì)回來，一想到這些，公爵夫人的緊張情緒就放松不下來。
3.奧格爾維吐著煙霧進(jìn)了屋。到了起居室的時(shí)候，公爵夫人直直得盯著這個(gè)大肥佬嘴里抽了一半的雪茄，“我丈夫和我都討厭濃煙味，請(qǐng)您把它滅了好吧?”
4.探長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)著厚厚的雙下巴，臉上的豬眼睛譏諷地打量了公爵夫人一眼。然后他掃視了一圈這個(gè)寬敞豪華、設(shè)施完備的房間，看到公爵這時(shí)背朝窗戶神色茫然地面對(duì)著他們。
5.“你們這套房間布置得倒挺講究的呢?！眾W格爾維慢條斯理地取出那讓人討厭的雪茄，敲掉煙灰，然后把煙蒂扔向右邊的裝飾性壁爐，但沒扔進(jìn)去，煙蒂掉到地毯上，他也不在意。
6.公爵夫人繃緊了嘴唇，尖刻地說，“我想你不是來談?wù)摲块g裝飾的吧?！?/span>
7.他表示欣賞地輕聲笑起來，肥胖的身子跟著抖動(dòng)?！安皇堑?，夫人，當(dāng)然不是!不過我確實(shí)喜歡高雅的東西。”他壓低了他那別扭的尖嗓音接著說，“比如像你們那輛小轎車，就是停在旅館這八的那輛，是美洲豹牌的吧?”
8.“嗯!”這聲音不像是從克羅伊敦公爵嘴里發(fā)出來的，倒像是從鼻子中呼出來的。他的夫人馬上瞪了他一眼以示警告。
9.“我們的車子礙你什么事了?”
10.公爵夫人的話似乎給探長(zhǎng)提了醒，探長(zhǎng)的態(tài)度馬上就變了。他突然問道，“這兒還有別的人么?”
11.公爵回答道，“沒有。我們?cè)缇桶阉麄兌即虬l(fā)出去了?！?/span>
12.“還是檢查一下的好?！边@個(gè)大胖子動(dòng)作出奇地快，打開所有的門往里看，對(duì)整個(gè)套房前前后后地搜查了一遍。顯然他對(duì)整套房間的布局是很清楚的。最后他再次打開外面的房門又關(guān)上，滿意地回到了起居室。
13.公爵夫人坐在一張直靠背椅上，奧格爾維還是站著。
14.“我說，”他開口了，“你們倆肇事后逃跑了吧?！?/span>
15.她直視著他的眼睛?！澳阍诤缎┦裁?”
16.“別裝了，夫人。這不是鬧著玩兒?！彼统鲆恢卵┣?，把煙頭咬掉?！皥?bào)紙你們已經(jīng)看過了吧，電臺(tái)里也不斷地廣播呢。”
17.克羅伊敦公爵夫人那本來很蒼白的雙頰變得通紅?！澳愕脑捳媸翘珢盒?，太荒唐了……”
18.“你給我——閉嘴!”奧格爾維突然粗魯?shù)貨_口而出，他此時(shí)兇相畢露，先前裝出的那副和藹勁兒蕩然無存。他全然沒把公爵放在眼里，竟然把那支還沒點(diǎn)燃的雪茄在對(duì)方的鼻子底下晃了一晃?！澳懵犖艺f，尊敬的閣下。這事兒現(xiàn)在鬧得滿城風(fēng)雨——警察，市長(zhǎng)，所有的人都知道了。一旦他們查出昨夜的事是誰干的，是誰撞死了那小孩和她的母親，然后卻逃之天天，他們一定會(huì)嚴(yán)加懲處，不管肇事者是誰，也不管他們有著多么顯赫的爵位?，F(xiàn)在我知道了真相，假如我照章辦事的話，沒等你眨眼，警察就來了。但是我要講講公道，所以先到你們這兒來聽聽你們自己的想法。”他的豬眼睛眨巴了幾下，隨即沉下臉來?！耙悄銈兿氡蛔プ?，就直說吧?！?/span>
19.克羅伊敦公爵夫人依仗著三個(gè)半世紀(jì)祖?zhèn)飨聛淼陌谅煨?，并沒有輕易低頭。她猛地一下跳了起來，怒容滿面，灰綠色的眼睛里噴射出火光，直瞪瞪地逼視著一堆肥肉的探長(zhǎng)。熟悉她的人都會(huì)被她的聲調(diào)嚇得矮掉半截?！澳氵@下流的無賴，敢在我這兒撒野!”
20.奧格爾維雖然有股自信勁兒，也不禁為之一震。但在這時(shí)克羅伊敦公爵插話了：“你這樣也不是個(gè)辦法，老婆子。按探長(zhǎng)的話試試也好。”他面向奧格爾維說道：“你剛才說的我們撞人的事是真的，肇事者是我，是我開車撞死那小姑娘的。”
21.“這才像話，”奧格爾維說著點(diǎn)燃了那支剛掏出來的雪茄?！拔覀冞@才談到點(diǎn)子上?！?/span>
22.克羅伊敦公爵夫人累了，以認(rèn)輸?shù)淖藙?shì)頹然坐回到椅子上。她的手在顫抖，為了掩飾，她雙手握在一起，問道：“你都知道些什么?”
23.“好吧，那我可說了?！碧介L(zhǎng)慢慢騰騰地，一邊悠然地吐出一團(tuán)青色的雪茄煙霧，一邊瞟向公爵夫人，眼里的嘲弄好像故意要激起她的反感似的。但公爵夫人只是厭惡地皺了皺鼻子，一言不發(fā)。
24.奧格爾維手指著公爵說：“昨晚入夜不久，你去了愛爾蘭海灣的林迪娛樂城。你是開著你們那輛心愛的美洲豹去的，并且還帶著一個(gè)情婦。如果你不挑眼的話，至少，我猜你會(huì)這么稱她的?！?/span>
25.說到這兒，奧格爾維帶著壞笑看了看公爵夫人。見此情形，公爵厲聲道：“說下去!”
26.“好啊”——那張自鳴得意的胖臉又轉(zhuǎn)了回來——“據(jù)我所知，你賭錢贏了一百，然后全花在酒吧里。你準(zhǔn)備同一些有頭有臉的人物再賭一百，這時(shí)你夫人坐出租車趕到了那兒?！?/span>
27.“你是怎么知道這一切的?”
28.“實(shí)話跟你說吧，公爵——我在這個(gè)城市和這個(gè)旅館呆了很長(zhǎng)時(shí)間了。到處都有我的朋友。我?guī)退麄儯麄円矌臀?。比如說告訴我哪兒發(fā)生了些什么事兒，住在這個(gè)旅館的人們所做的事情，凡是有點(diǎn)兒出格的，很少能瞞得過我。大多數(shù)旅客回我知道。”都不知道我會(huì)了解他們的事，他們也不認(rèn)識(shí)我。他們以為自己的那些小秘密不為人知，有些也確實(shí)不為人知——可是這一回我知道。”
29.公爵冷冷地說，“原來如此。”
30.“有一件事我想弄明白。我生性好奇，夫人，你是如何猜到他的去處的呢?”
31.公爵夫人說道，“既然你知道得這么多….…跟你說也無所謂了。我丈夫習(xí)慣在打電話時(shí)做記錄，而打完電話后總是忘了盡銷毀掉?！?/span>
32.探長(zhǎng)連連咂嘴，責(zé)備地說：“公爵，這種習(xí)慣未免太不謹(jǐn)慎了，瞧它給你帶來多大的麻煩。那么,我估計(jì)接下來你開車帶著夫人一起回家了。盡管后來的結(jié)果表明，如果她來開車，可能不會(huì)出事?！?
33.“我夫人不會(huì)開車?！?/span>
34.奧格爾維明白了似的點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭?！斑@個(gè)是清楚了。反正，我估計(jì)你當(dāng)時(shí)是已經(jīng)喝醉了，但是還好……”
35.公爵夫人打斷了他的話：“這么說你并不知道實(shí)情!你知道的事情都不能肯定!你拿不出任何真憑實(shí)據(jù)來證實(shí)……”
36.“夫人，凡是需要證實(shí)的，我都能證實(shí)。”
37.公爵提醒夫人，“老婆子，還是先讓他把話說完吧?！?/span>
38.“就是嘛，”奧格爾維說道?！白昧寺犖抑v。昨天夜里，我看見你們進(jìn)來的——為了避免經(jīng)過門廳，你們走的是地下室，而且倆人看起來都是驚魂未定的樣子。我那時(shí)也剛進(jìn)來，就想知道是怎么回事兒。我說過了，我這人生性好奇?！?/span>
39.公爵夫人吸了一口氣，“說下去?！?/span>
40.“昨晚深夜，撞人的消息傳開了。我預(yù)感到是你們，就悄悄地去車庫里檢查了一下你們的汽車。你們大概沒注意到—它剛好停在遠(yuǎn)處一個(gè)角落里，又隱藏在一個(gè)柱子后面，其他司機(jī)開車經(jīng)過根本看不到?！?/span>
41.公爵舔了舔嘴唇?！拔蚁氍F(xiàn)在停車位置已經(jīng)無關(guān)緊要了?！?/span>
42.“但你有可能會(huì)在那兒留下點(diǎn)蛛絲馬跡，”奧格爾維承認(rèn)道。“不管怎么說，我的發(fā)現(xiàn)促使我去偵察了一番——警察局的人和我相熟，我去詢問了一下?！彼Ｏ聛硗铝丝跓煟艉头蛉藙t靜靜地等候著。雪茄煙頭發(fā)出紅光時(shí)，他對(duì)它細(xì)看了一眼，又接著說下去?！八麄兡莾河腥|西做為追查的線索。一個(gè)前燈的框圈，那一定是撞到那孩子和女人時(shí)從車上掉下來的；一些前燈玻璃的碎片；另外通過檢查那小孩的衣服，他們判斷車上應(yīng)該有一種摩擦痕跡?！?/span>
43.“一種什么?”
44.“公爵夫人，假如你把衣服和硬物摩擦，尤其和汽車防護(hù)板這種光滑閃亮的硬物摩擦?xí)r的話，上面會(huì)留下類似指紋的痕跡。警察局的化驗(yàn)室像提取指紋一樣處理這種痕跡——涂上藥粉、痕跡便顯現(xiàn)出來了?！?/span>
45.“這倒挺新鮮的，”公爵好像是在談?wù)撌裁磁c己無關(guān)的事情似的?！拔乙郧翱刹恢馈！?/span>
46.“知道的人不多。不過，在這件案子上，我想那也沒多大關(guān)系。你們車上有一只前燈打碎了，框圈也掉了。警察一定會(huì)認(rèn)為你們的車子就是肇事車。即使沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)擦痕和血跡也會(huì)這么認(rèn)為。哦，我還忘了告訴你們，車上有許多血跡，盡管在黑漆表面上不怎么明顯。”
47.“天哪!”公爵夫人一手捂著臉，轉(zhuǎn)過身去。
48.她的丈夫問道，“依你看該怎么辦?”
49.大胖子搓著雙手，低下頭看著自己那又大又肥的手指?！拔覄偛乓呀?jīng)說過，我是來先聽你們的想法的?！?/span>
50.公爵絕望地說，“我還能說什么呢?你什么都知道了?！彼胪ζ鹦貋?，可就是挺不起來?！澳氵€是通知警方來處理此事容吧?！?1.“其實(shí)呢，這事也不用著急?！彼莿e扭的尖嗓音里帶著一種沉思的聲調(diào)。禍已經(jīng)闖了，再急也不能讓那小孩和她的母親復(fù)生。況且，公爵，你是不會(huì)喜歡警察局的處理的。真的，閣下，你絕不會(huì)喜歡的。”
52.公爵夫婦聽完這話后慢慢抬起了眼睛。
53.“我倒是希望，”奧格爾維說，“你們倆能想出點(diǎn)兒什么辦法來。”
54.公爵遲疑地說：“我聽不明白?！?/span>
55.“我聽明白了，”克羅伊敦公爵夫人說。“你想要錢，是不是?你是來這兒敲詐我們的?！?/span>
56.她要是想以這話來震懾住對(duì)方的話，那她的期望就落空了。探長(zhǎng)只聳了聳肩。“隨你怎么說，夫人，我不在乎。我來這兒的目的是為了幫助你們擺脫困境，但我也要吃飯呀。”
57.“你得了錢便對(duì)你所知道的事守白如瓶嗎?”
58.“可能會(huì)吧?！?/span>
59.“但照你所說的來看，”此刻公爵夫人已恢復(fù)了往日鎮(zhèn)定自若的神態(tài)，她指出，“那根本沒用，反正車子遲早會(huì)被人發(fā)現(xiàn)的?！?/span>
60.“那你們也只能去碰碰運(yùn)氣了。不過車子也不一定會(huì)被發(fā)現(xiàn)，有些情況我還沒對(duì)你們講呢?！?/span>
61.“快說吧?！?/span>
62.奧格爾維說，“有些情況我自己也還沒有完全弄明白。撞到那孩子時(shí)，你們的車子是往城外開，而不是往城里開的吧?！?/span>
63.“我們走錯(cuò)了路，”公爵夫人說道。“不知為什么方向弄反了。新奧爾良的街道彎彎曲曲，是很容易走錯(cuò)方向的。后來我們是從小路繞回來的。”
64.“我想也是這樣的，”奧格爾維點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭，表示明白了?！暗絽s沒想到這種情況，他們正在搜查那些開車去城外的人。所以，他們這會(huì)兒只正在郊區(qū)和城外小鎮(zhèn)里進(jìn)行搜索。他們也可能會(huì)回頭搜索市區(qū)，但眼下還不會(huì)來。”
65.“他們多久會(huì)回來呢?”
66.“三四天以后吧。他們先要搜很多地方?！?/span>
67.“那又有什么用呢——拖延幾天而已?”
68.“也許會(huì)有用，”奧格爾維說?！爸灰獩]人注意到你們的車子—沒有人發(fā)現(xiàn)它停在哪兒，放在那兒可能比較安全。只要你能把它弄走?！?/span>
69.“你是說弄出這個(gè)州去?”
70.“我的意思是離開南方。”
71.“沒那么容易吧?”
72.“是不容易，夫人。各個(gè)鄰州—得克薩斯、阿肯色、密西西比、亞拉巴馬以及其余各州都會(huì)密切注意一輛損壞得象你這輛一樣的車子。”
73.公爵夫人想了想?！翱刹豢梢韵刃蘩硪幌履?修得好的話，我們會(huì)出大價(jià)錢?！?/span>
74.探長(zhǎng)使勁搖著頭?！澳菢拥脑?，還不如現(xiàn)在就去警察局投案自首。路易斯安那州境內(nèi)的每一家修理廠都已接到通知，一旦發(fā)現(xiàn)像你們那樣需要修理的汽車，要立即向警方報(bào)告。修車廠會(huì)報(bào)警的，你們的事誰都知道。”
75.克羅伊敦公爵夫人極力控制自己那脫韁野馬般的的思緒。她知道保持自己頭腦的冷靜和理智至關(guān)重要。方才那幾分鐘的談話氣氛似乎變得非常隨意，仿佛所討論的只是一些無關(guān)緊要的家?，嵤?而并非人命關(guān)天。她想就這么談下去。她再次意識(shí)到，她必須擔(dān)當(dāng)起唱主角的責(zé)任。此時(shí)此刻，她正在和這個(gè)惡毒的肥佬之間的交易，而她的丈夫只是一名緊張而被動(dòng)的旁觀者。無所謂，是禍躲不過。要緊的是提前考慮好所有可能性。她突然想出了一個(gè)主意。
76.“你說警方拿到了我們車上掉下來的一件東西，叫什么來著？”
77.“框圈?！?/span>
78.“它會(huì)成為追查的線索嗎?”
79.奧格爾維點(diǎn)頭肯定?！八麄兡懿槌鏊菑氖裁礃拥钠嚿系粝聛淼摹a(chǎn)廠家，車型，也許還能查出出廠年份，或者是大致的出廠時(shí)間。那車燈玻璃碎片也可以起到同樣作用。但由于你們的車子是外國(guó)的，查起來可能得花幾天的工夫?！?/span>
80.“幾天過后，”她追問道，“警方就會(huì)知道他們要找的是一輛美洲豹嗎?”
81.“我想是這樣?！?/span>
82.今天是星期二。根據(jù)這家伙所講的情況，他們最多只能拖到星期五或星期六。盤算過后，公爵夫人發(fā)現(xiàn)了當(dāng)下問題的關(guān)鍵。假使買通了這個(gè)探長(zhǎng)，他們唯一的機(jī)會(huì)——非常渺茫的機(jī)會(huì)—就在于迅速將汽車弄走。若能弄到北方某個(gè)城市里去，那兒人們不知道新奧爾良發(fā)生的車禍和警方的搜查行動(dòng)，車子就可以神不知鬼不覺地在那里修好，這樣罪證也就消滅了。那么,即使以后再懷疑到克羅伊敦夫婦頭上，也找不到什么證據(jù)。但車子如何才能弄走呢?
83.毫無疑問，這個(gè)粗俗的探長(zhǎng)說的是真話：要想把車子開到北方，沿途所要經(jīng)過的各州都會(huì)像路易斯安那州一樣警惕和注意的，所有的公路巡警都會(huì)留心注意一輛前燈破損、沒有框圈的車子，也許還會(huì)設(shè)有路障。很容易被目光銳利的警察抓到。
84.但這還是有可能做得到的。只要能夠夜間行車，白天把汽車隱藏起來。有許多地方遠(yuǎn)離高速公路，沒有警察看守。這樣做風(fēng)險(xiǎn)很大，但總比坐以待斃好。他們可以走鄉(xiāng)間小道，為掩人耳目，也可以選擇不大會(huì)有人走的路線。
85.但還存在其他的一些麻煩……現(xiàn)在該對(duì)那些問題加以考慮了。走小路必須要熟悉地形才行，克羅伊敦夫婦可不熟悉地形，而且他們倆對(duì)看地圖都不怎么在行。另外，行車途中不能不停車加油，到時(shí)候他們的言談舉止會(huì)暴露自己的身份而引人注意。不過……這些險(xiǎn)是非冒不可的。
86.非冒不可嗎?
87.公爵夫人面對(duì)著奧格爾維?！澳阋嗌馘X?”
88.這猝然的問話讓奧格爾維吃了一驚?！斑怼蚁肽銈兗沂欠浅Ｓ绣X的?！?/span>
89.她冷冷地說：“我問你要多少?！?/span>
90.探長(zhǎng)那雙豬眼睛眨巴了一下。“一萬美元?！?/span>
91.盡管這數(shù)目比她所預(yù)料的多了一倍，她卻不動(dòng)聲色。“要是我們付了這樣一筆巨款，能得到什么樣的回報(bào)呢?”
92.大胖子似乎被這話問糊涂了?！拔乙呀?jīng)說過，我可以對(duì)自己知道的一切守口如瓶?！?/span>
93.“要是我們不付錢呢?”
94.他聳了聳肩?！拔蚁聵堑介T廳里去，打電話?！?/span>
95.“不，”話說得斬釘截鐵?！拔覀儾粫?huì)付錢給你?！?/span>
96.克羅伊敦公爵不安地移動(dòng)著身子，探長(zhǎng)那滾圓的臉漲得通紅?！奥犖艺f，夫人……”
97.她專橫地打斷他的話?！拔也宦?，你給我聽著?！彼o緊盯住他的臉，漂亮、高顴骨的臉上一副極為傲慢的神態(tài)?！拔覀兗词垢跺X給你也沒什么用，頂多也只是拖延幾天時(shí)間罷了。你把這一點(diǎn)已經(jīng)講得很清楚了。
98.“你們有機(jī)會(huì)………”
99.“住口!”她眼睛死死地盯住他，厲聲呵斥道。他忍氣吞聲，繃著臉不吭氣了。
100.克羅伊敦公爵夫人知道，接下來的事也許會(huì)是她一生中所做的最重大的事。決不能出半點(diǎn)差錯(cuò)，不能因自己的見識(shí)狹隘而優(yōu)柔寡斷或舉棋不定。要想贏大錢，就得下大注。她想對(duì)這大胖子的貪心賭一把，而且要恰到好處，才能保證萬無一失。
101.她果斷地宣布，“我們不會(huì)付給你一萬美元，但我們會(huì)付給你二萬五千美元。”
102.探長(zhǎng)的眼珠子都鼓起來了。
103.“作為回報(bào)，”她不動(dòng)聲色地繼續(xù)說道，“你得把我們的汽車開到北方去?！?/span>
104.奧格爾維依然目瞪口呆。
105.“二萬五千美元，”她重復(fù)道。現(xiàn)在先付一萬，等你到芝加哥與我們碰面時(shí)再付一萬五?！?/span>
106.大胖子舔了舔自己的嘴唇，依然一言未發(fā)，那雙圓圓的小眼睛直盯住她的雙眼，好像不相信似的。一陣沉默。
107.后來，在她目不轉(zhuǎn)睛的逼視下，他微微點(diǎn)了一下頭。
108.又是一陣沉默。最后奧格爾維說話了：“夫人，這支雪茄讓您煩心了吧?”
109.她點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭，大胖子隨即將它掐滅了。
(摘自《大飯店》,1965)
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練習(xí)答案
Ⅱ.
A.
1.The Duchess had expected that the detective was coming for the accident.She wanted to keep the secret from the maid and the?secretary,so she sent them out beforehand.
2.No,Ogilvie didn't show any respect to the Duke and the Duchess.
He knew their secret,spied on the Croydons'and got evidence against them,so he intends to be in an advantageous position?from?the very beginning.
3.The Duke committed a hit-and-run crime.It was a serious crime.
4.The previous night he saw the Duke and his wife entering the hotel through the basement instead of the lobby,both of them?looking right shaken.When the word about the hit-and-run was out,he went over to the garage and took a look at their car.He?found that the headlight of the car was busted,the trim ring was gone,a brush trace was there?and there was plenty of blood,though?it didn't show too much on the black paint.All these were important evidence for the crime.
5.Ogilvie came to talk with them and asked them to “suggest something"rather than reported the evidence to the police and“get it?over",which made the Duchess reach the conclusion that Ogilvie had come to blackmail them.
He also gave a hint by coming to their suite,telling them that they were involved in the hit-and-run and saying "I got to live".
6.Because every repair shop in New Orleans had been told to report to the police when a car needing repair like theirs came in.
7.Knowing the greed of the detective,the Duchess offered him a large sum so that he could not resist the temptation and would?agree to drive the car to the north.
8.Yes,he did.He suggests obedience to the Duchess in the last sentence.
?
B.
1.One evening,when driving back?from gambling house,a Duke and a Duchess,living in a luxurious hotel in New Oreland,knocked down and killed a woman and her child.They drove away after the accident.Later,the accident caused some sensational?reactions in the city.The house detective of the hotel noticed the unusualness of the Duke and the Duchess,so he examined the?Duke's car and found that the Duke was just the murderer.Then he wanted to blackmail the Duke,so he didn't report to the police.At first,the Duchess and Duke denied their crime,but facing profound evidences given by the detective,they had to admit they?killed the woman and her child.Then the detective said he could keep the secret if they give him a large sum of money.The Duke?was a coward,so it was the Duchess that had to deal with the detective.The clever Duchess figured out that to avoid being?discovered,they must drove the car out of the city.So she offered the detective twice the money he demanded provide he drives the?car to Chicago up in the north.The greedy detective accepted the Duchess's requirement.
2.The theme of the story is the blackmailing and counter blackmailing and the major conflicts in this story is between the Croydons(the Duke and the Duchess)and the chief house officer—Ogilvie.
3.The third-person narrative voice is applied because the narrator is totally outside the events so that the narrator can not only tell?the reader everything related to the story,including the time,place and the protagonists who did it,but also reveal how the characters?thought and felt.For instance,in the story"Blackmail",paragraphs 75 and 82 vividly depicted how the Duchess was thinking of?concocting a clever plan to bring about a turning point in their currently disadvantageous situation.
4.The action of the events moves very fast,so that the reader is always kept in suspense.The three characters in the story are?mainly portrayed through verbal confrontations.It's not only the intense conflicts between the characters,but also the conflicts?within each character that hold the readers'?interest and attention.
5.The differences in social status between the Duchess and the chief house detective are shown through their different speeches and?manners.
1)Due to her noble blood,good education and breeding,the speech of the Duchess is refined,elegant and well-structured,while the
speech of the chief house detective is coarse,ungrammatical and slangy.
2)The Duchess is an arrogant,shrewd and imperious woman with a strong character;she doesn't yield easily;she is bossy even her
husband is submissive to her;she masterminds the cover-up after the traffic accident and offers Ogilvie more money than he has
expected;facing Ogilvie,unlike her husband,she is always concentrated and able to keep the situation under control.All this says
something about her social status and her breeding.
The chief house detective is vulgar,greedy,ill-mannered and unscrupulous.For example,he comes into the suite smoking a cigar,and when the Duchess protests,he just throws his cigar on the carpet and ignores it.And when the Duchess offers to pay him 25thousand dollars,he licks his lip with his eyes bulging.All these depictions show how repulsive this character is.
6.The writer builds up the suspense of the story through the vivid depictions of the meeting of?the?Croydons and the chief house?detective and through the distinctive characters who are unpredictable,changing or growing with?actions,rounded and three-dimensional in the story.So the readers are attracted to the story.
The section of Paragraphs 1-22 mainly introduces the meeting of the house detective?Ogilvie with the Duke and the Duchess,and?also describes the Croydon's hit-and-run accident in their Jaguar,Ogilvie's blackmailing,the Duke's breakdown and the Duchess's?helplessness before the facts.
This section is the introduction to the whole story.It sets the stage for the confrontations between Ogilvie and the Duchess,and?prepares for the coming climax of the story.
-
7.The plot doesn't evolve in a straightforward way;there are quite a few twists and turns?in the storyline.The turning point of the?story comes at Paragraph 100,when the Duchess decides to?gamble on Ogilvie's greed and prepares to offer him 25 thousand?dollars,which is much more than Ogilvie has asked for.
8.Arthur Hailey is skillful?in portraying the characters in his novels.The characterization in this story is achieved through describing?their look,the place they live in,clothes,furniture,cars,etc.,and most importantly,their speech and manners.
1)For example,Ogilvie is portrayed?as?a vulgar,coarse,unscrupulous,greedy and ill-mannered villain in this novel.He has piggy?eyes,a gross jowled face and an obese body.He speaks in falsetto,which is inconsistent with a man as fat as he is.
Knowing that the Croydons were in the hit-and-run,he comes to the hotel?suite to blackmail them regardless of what they may think?or feel.He comes into the room smoking his cigar and asks for ten thousand dollars to remain quiet,and when the Duchess protests,he just throws his cigar on the carpet and ignores it.Later on he takes out a fresh cigar,and waves it under the Duchess's nose,which is very cunning,greedy,rude and ill-mannered indeed.
Through the ungrammatical and slangy language he uses such as "there's things""you was..”"musta"“shoulda"etc.,we can draw?a conclusion that he is poorly educated.
2)The Duke is timid and weak.He is fond of drinking,gambling and women.And in this story,responsible for killing a woman and?a child,he is frightened to death and eager to escape the responsibility.Facing Ogilvie,he?is rather passive and at a loss about how to?deal with the situation and just let his wife in charge of the whole situation.
3)The Duchess,in contrast with the Duke,is stronger in character.She is,arrogant,shrewd and imperious even her husband is?submissive to her.In the whole process of dealing with Ogilvie,dominant and composed,she tries hard to pretend that they have?nothing to do with the traffic accident.After sizing up the whole situation,she offers to pay much more than Ogilvie requires,which
is out of everyone's expectation.And finally she successfully makes Ogilvie an accomplice in the cover-up of the hit-and-run crime.
?
Ⅲ.
1.Ogilvie suddenly yelled out the vulgar words,throwing away his pretending polite manner.
2.When they find who killed the mother and the kid and then ran away,they'll?deal out the maximum punishment,and they will?not?care who will be punished in this case or what their social position is.
3.The Duchess,born to be proud in a noble family with a history of three centuries and fifty years,did not lower herself easily.
4.The Duchess was a good actress and she appeared so firm about their innocence that,for a brief moment,Ogilvie felt unsure?if his?assumption about them was right.But the moment was very short and passed quickly.
5.The house detective was in no hurry.He enjoyed his cigar and puffed a cloud of blue cigar smoke in a relaxed manner.At the?same time,his eyes were fixed disdainfully on the Duchess as if he was openly daring her to object to his smoking a cigar,as she had?done earlier.
6.If anybody who stays in this hotel does anything wrong,improper or unusual,I always get to know about it.There isn't much that?can escape me.
7.The Duchess kept firm and tight control of her mind which is working quickly.The Duchess?is thinking quickly,but at the same?time keeping her thoughts under control.
8.Furthermore,when they stopped for petrol,as it would be necessary,their speech/and manner would reveal their identity.British?English would be particularly noticeable in the South.
9.She mustn't make any mistakes in her plan,or waver in mind and show indecision or deal with the situation carelessly due to?small-mindedness.In other words she had to take a big chance,to do something very daring,so she must be bold,resolute,decisive?and rise to the occasion.
?
IV.
A.
1.suite:a set of rooms,usually expensive in?a hotel
2.pointedly:directly and sharply
3.well-appointed:excellently furnished and arranged
4.set-up:arrangement of furniture etc.
5.hit-and-run:hitting and then escaping,usually of an automobile driver who flees from the scene of an accident in which he or she?is involved
6.blandness:smoothness in manner or flavor of food
7.spring to one's feet:to stand up suddenly
8.unspeakable:extremely bad blackguard:scoundrel,villain
9.flicker:to burn or shine with an unsteady light that goes on and off quickly;to move with a light wavering motion
10.oblige:to do something someone has asked you to do
11.tuck away:to hide so as to be difficult to find
12.shaken:upset and shocked
13.call:need
14.rivet:to fasten with a rivet;to fix or hold(eyes,attention etc.)firmly imperious:overbearing,arrogant and domineering
?
B.
1.it is beneficial and worthwhile
2.real/true
3.deal out the most severe punishment
4.of no use/useless
5.explain it clearly and in detail
6.anyway
7.lively and fashionable
8.the hotel staff in charge of car parking
9.pays attention to/notices
10.call the police
11.sought after by the police
12.pretty wealthy/well-to-do
?
C.
1.sarcastic指嘲笑的，sardonic意為諷刺的，指行為的風(fēng)格、態(tài)度。
2.self-confidence是褒義詞，意思是自信；self-assurance帶有貶義，指過分相信自己的能力，自負(fù)。
3.accuse意思是指責(zé)，用法廣泛。charge意思是控告，一般與法律或罪行相關(guān)。
4.tired指疲勞或疲倦；weary指厭倦，不能或不愿繼續(xù)下去。
5.slowly指能表示動(dòng)作很慢。但leisurely表示悠閑的，帶有享受的意味。
6.oblige指對(duì)某人施恩惠，語氣比help重。
7.discreetly除和careful相似表示小心仔細(xì)意思外，還表示嚴(yán)謹(jǐn)自律。
8.nervous指人心里緊張，不一定流于外表；tense可表示外表上和心理的緊張，句子中公爵夫人通過公爵的外表就可以看得出他很緊張。
9.eventuality指可能出現(xiàn)的結(jié)果，possibility指可能發(fā)生的事情。
10.respite指暫時(shí)的緩解或休息；relief指徹底擺脫痛苦、疲勞、憂慮，兩者有程度上的差別。例：The teatime is a welcome?respite from hard work.喝茶的時(shí)間是刻苦工作后令人愉快地短暫休息。He heaved a sigh of relief when all?the work has?finished.所有工作都做完以后，他欣慰地松了一口氣。
?
V.
A.
1.There is no need for hurry.Take your time.
2.Are you suggesting that I am telling a lie?
3.He tried every means to conceal the fact.
4.Our chance to succeed is very slim.Nevertheless we shall do our utmost.
5.We will have our meeting at 10 tomorrow morning unless notified otherwise.
6.Neither of us is adept at figures.
7.Would it be possible to reach that place before dark assuming we set out at 5 am?
8.He was reluctant to comply with her request.
9.I know you are from the South of China.Your accent has betrayed you.
10.We have no alternative in this matter.
B.
1.但是這兩個(gè)人隨時(shí)都會(huì)回來，一想到這些，公爵夫人的緊張情緒就放松不下來。
2.奧格爾維吐著煙霧進(jìn)了屋。
3.奧格爾維慢條斯理地取出那讓人討厭的雪茄，敲掉煙灰，然后把煙蒂扔向右邊的裝飾性壁爐。
4.“現(xiàn)在我知道了真相，假如我照章辦事的話，沒等你眨眼，警察就來了。”
5.她猛地一下跳了起來，怒容滿面，灰綠色的眼睛里噴射出火光，直瞪瞪地逼視著一堆肥肉的探長(zhǎng)。
6.“新奧爾良的街道彎彎曲曲，是很容易走錯(cuò)方向的?！?/span>
7.“那樣的話，還不如現(xiàn)在就去警察局投案自首?！?/span>
8.她再次意識(shí)到，她必須擔(dān)當(dāng)起唱金角的責(zé)任。此時(shí)此刻，她正在和這個(gè)惡毒的肥佬之間的交易，而她的丈夫只是一名緊張而被動(dòng)的旁觀者。
9.她緊緊盯住他的臉，漂亮、高顴骨的臉上一副極為傲慢的神態(tài)。
10.“我們即使付錢給你也沒什么用，頂多也只是拖延幾天時(shí)間罷了。”
C.
See the translation of the text.
VI.
1.Junior did not invite Pecola out of hospitality.He just wanted to attract her to his house so that he could bully and make fun of?her.
2.When Pecola entered the house she was surprised at how beautiful it was.She was filled with admiration.
3.Junior suddenly threw the cat into her face.The cat was also surprised and clawed her face in an effort to right itself.Pecola was?frightened and tears came to her eyes.Meanwhile Junior was laughing wildly,enjoying the pleasure of seeing Pecola suffer.Pecola?wanted to leave the place but Junior shut the door,saying,"You're my prisoner".The cat moved around Pecola and she touched the?cat gently and the cat iked it a lot.Seeing this,Junior snatched the cat from her and began to swing the cat around by holding one of?its hind legs.Pecola tried to stop this cruel act,but Junior wouldn't let go of the cat.The two struggled of the cat and both fell Junior?releasing the cat in mid-motion.The cat was thrown with full?force against the window and lay motionless on the radiator.When?Junior's mother Geraldine came home,Junior told her that Pecola killed the cat.Geraldine ordered Pecola to get out,calling her"nasty little black bitch".Outside,Pecola held her head down against the cold and snow.
4.From this episode we can learn that Junior was a cruel and dishonest boy.He made Pecola suffer and got pleasure from doing so.He accused Pecola of killing the cat while it was he who swung the cat around and caused the cat's death.
Pecola was a poor,vulnerable black girl.She was treated badly by Junior and his mother.When she got out of the house,she felt so?cold and helpless.The snowflakes dying on the pavement is symbolic of the dying of hope for Pecola.
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