王爾德經典作品：認真的重要性

本故事根據奧斯卡王爾德經典作品《認真的重要性》（The Importance of Being Earnest）改編。今天我們講故事的第三部分。

傑克向格溫德倫求婚成功，但是她的媽媽布萊克內爾夫人卻對此頗有微詞。與此同時，阿爾傑農對傑克的表妹塞西莉產生了興趣...

Episode 3 : Lost and Found

Narrator

講述者

Jack has asked Gwendolen to marry him. She thinks his name is Ernest, her favourite name, and has happily accepted. But her mother, Lady Bracknell, is not pleased about the engagement. She wants to ask Jack some questions about his background and finances.

傑克向格溫德倫求婚，她以為傑克的名字叫厄內斯特，她很喜歡這個名字，就愉快地答應了。但是她的母親，布萊克內爾夫人，卻對這樁婚姻很不滿意，她想問傑克一些關於他家庭背景以及財務狀況的問題。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Now, Mr Worthing, I am quite prepared to add your name to my list of eligible young men for my daughter if you answer my questions in a suitable way... Do you smoke?

沃辛先生，如果你能認真回答我幾個問題，我就考慮將你放進我的准女婿名單里，可以嗎？

Jack

傑克

Well, yes, I do.

好吧，可以。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

I"m glad to hear it. How old are you?

非常好。你今年多大了？

Jack

傑克

Twenty-nine.

29歲。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

The best age to be married in my opinion. What is yourincome?

正是結婚的最好年齡。你的收入有多少？

Jack

傑克

Between seven and eight thousand a year.

一年七八千。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Seven and eight thousand. Do you own a house?

七八千，你有房子嗎？

Jack

傑克

Well, I have a country house with some land.

好吧，我鄉下有所房子，還有一些土地。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

A country house! How many bedrooms? You have a town house, I hope? A girl like Gwendolen could not be expected to live in the country.

鄉下的房子！有多少間卧室？我希望你能有一所城裡的房子。像格溫德倫這樣的女孩可不希望住在鄉下。

Jack

傑克

Well, I own a house in Belgrave Square, but I rent it to Lady Bloxham.

好吧，我在貝爾格雷廣場有一所房子，但是我將它租給了布洛克薩姆夫人。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Very well. Now to more minor subjects. Are your parents living?

非常好，現在問細一點，你的父母還健在嗎？

Jack

傑克

I have lost both my parents.

雙親都已不在。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

To lose one parent, Mr Worthing, is unlucky; to lose both looks like carelessness. Who was your father?

失去一個至親說明你很不幸，兩個都不在了的話，表示你很沒心啊！你的父親是誰？

Jack

傑克

I"m afraid I don"t know. The fact is, Lady Bracknell, I said I had lost my parents. It would be more truthful to say that my parents lost me... I was... well, I was found.

恐怕我也不知道。其實，夫人，我說雙親都不在的意思是，我找不到他們了。我是...我是被撿來的...

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Found!

被撿來的！

Jack

傑克

ThelateMr Cardew, one of the kindest gentlemen I"ve ever met, found me, and gave me the name of Worthing, because he happened to have a ticket for Worthing in his pocket at the time. Worthing is in Sussex. It"s the most delightful seaside resort...

卡杜先生撿來的我，他已經去世了，他是我見過最好的人。是他給我取的沃辛這個名字，因為當時他口袋裡正好有一張去沃辛的車票。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Where did this kind gentleman find you?

這位好心人在哪裡撿到的你？

Jack

傑克

In a handbag.

在一個手袋裡。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

A handbag?

手袋？

Jack

傑克

Yes, Lady Bracknell, I was in a handbag - a rather large, black handbag, with handles to it.

是的，夫人，我當時就被裝在一個手袋裡，一個挺大的黑色手袋，上面還有提手。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

And where did Mr Cardew come across this ordinary handbag?

卡杜先生在哪發現的這個手袋呢？

Jack

傑克

In thecloakroomat Victoria Station. It was given to him by mistake instead of his own.

在維多利亞火車站的衣帽間里。他當時錯把這個手袋當成自己的了。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

The cloakroom at Victoria Station?

維多利亞火車站的衣帽間里？

Jack

傑克

Yes.

是的

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Mr Worthing, I have to say I feel rather confused by what you have just told me. To start life in a bag, whether it had handles or not, shows a lack of respect for family life. As for the bag being found in a cloakroom at a railway station, that isn"t the best way to begin a successful life in society today.

沃辛先生，我不得不說我被你說的話弄迷糊了。在一個手袋裡開始人生，不管是什麼樣的袋子，也是對家庭生活的一種不敬。至於說你在火車站的衣帽間里被撿到，這種說法更加與你現在成功的人生不相配。

Jack

傑克

May I ask you then what I should do? I would do anything to ensure Gwendolen"s happiness.

那您說我應該怎麼做？我會竭盡全力來保證格溫德倫的幸福。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

I would strongly advise you, Mr Worthing, to acquire some relations as soon as possible, and to try to produce at least one parent.

我強烈建議你去儘可能尋找一些親戚關係，努力去找到你父親或者母親。

Jack

傑克

Well, I don"t see how I can do that. I can produce the bag now. It"s at home. That should be enough for you, surely, Lady Bracknell.

好吧，我不知道怎麼辦。不過我可以找到那個手袋，就在我家裡放著呢。這應該夠了吧，布萊克內爾夫人。

Lady Bracknell

布萊克內爾夫人

Mr Worthing! You can hardly imagine that I and Lord Bracknell would allow our only daughter to marry into a cloakroom, andform an alliancewith a parcel? Goodbye, Mr Worthing!

沃辛先生！你以為我和布萊克內爾大人會將女兒嫁給一個從更衣室撿來的人嗎？我們絕不會和一個手袋結親家的。沃辛先生！

Jack

傑克

Goodbye!

再見！

Algernon

阿爾傑農

How did it go? Oh, didn"t it go well, old boy? Did Gwendolen refuse you?

進行的怎麼樣了？不順利嗎夥計？格溫德倫拒絕你了嗎？

Jack

傑克

Oh, as far as Gwendolen is concerned, we are engaged. Her mother, though, is perfectly unbearable. She"s a monster... I beg your pardon, Algy, I shouldn"t talk about your aunt in that way in front of you.

格溫德倫那裡當然沒問題，但是她的媽媽太難搞了，簡直就是個女魔。請原諒，阿傑，我不該在你面前這樣談論你的姑媽。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

My dear boy, I love people being rude about my relations. It"s the only thing that makes meput up withthem.

兄弟，我喜歡別人對我的親戚們不客氣。這是唯一我可以容忍他們的地方。

Jack

傑克

You don"t think Gwendolen could become like her mother, do you, Algy?

你覺得格溫德倫將來會變得像他媽一樣嗎？

Algernon

阿爾傑農

Gwendolen is the most sensible, intellectual girl I know. But all women become like their mothers. That is theirtragedy. By the way, did you tell Gwendolen about being Ernest in town, and Jack in the country?

格溫德倫是個很通情達理的女孩，又很聰明，但是女人都會變得像她們的媽媽。這也是她們的悲劇。順便問一下，你告訴格溫德倫你有倆名字的事了嗎？

Jack

傑克

My dear fellow, the truth isn"t the sort of thing you tell a nice, sweet girl.

親愛的夥計，事實並不是像你哄小女孩那樣的。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

What about your brother? What about Ernest?

你的弟弟厄內斯特怎麼樣了？

Jack

傑克

Oh, I shall have finished with him by the weekend. I"ll say he died in Paris from a severe cold.

我這周就把他的事了結。到時候我會說他病死在巴黎了。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

But I thought you said that... Cecily was interested in Ernest? Won"t she be very sad?

但是，你說了以後，塞西莉那麼喜歡厄內斯特，他會傷心嗎？

Jack

傑克

Oh, that"s all right. Cecily is not a silly romantic girl, I am glad to say. She has got a good appetite, goes on long walks, and pays little attention to her lessons.

沒關係的，塞西莉並不是那種傻白甜，她還是會吃得好睡得香的，該怎麼過怎麼過。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

I would like to see Cecily.

我想見見塞西莉。

Jack

傑克

I will take very good care you never do. She is very pretty, and she is only just eighteen.

有我在你不會見到她的，她很漂亮，才18歲。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

Have you told Gwendolen about Cecily?

你告訴格溫德倫關於塞西莉的事了嗎？

Jack

傑克

Oh! Cecily and Gwendolen are certain to be extremely good friends. Half an hour after they have met, they will be calling each other "sister".

噢！她倆一定會成為很好的朋友的，她倆見面不到半小時就會親如姐妹一樣。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

Women only do that when they have called each other a lot of other things first. Now, my dear boy, if we want to get a good table at Willis"s for dinner, we must go. It"s nearly seven.

女人就是這樣，一旦她們互相給對方許多稱呼，就開始親密起來了。我親愛的兄弟，如果我們想要在威利斯餐館找到一個好座位吃晚餐，我們現在就得出發了，都快七點了。

Narrator

講述者

Just then, Gwendolen comes in and tells Jack that she will always love him, even if they don"t get married. She asks him for his address in the country, and Algernon - listening quietly - secretly writes it down. Jack takes Gwendolen to her carriage and Algernon is left on his own, with a smile on his face.

就在這時，格溫德倫進來告訴傑克她會永遠愛他，即便無法結婚。她向傑克要了他在鄉下的地址。阿爾傑農在一旁安靜地聽著，偷偷地記下了。傑克將格溫德倫送回馬車裡，此時，阿爾傑農臉上露出一絲微笑。

(A bell rings)

（鈴響）

Lane

萊恩

You called, sir.

有何吩咐，先生。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

Tomorrow, Lane, I"m going Bunburying.

萊恩，明天我要去旅遊。

Lane

萊恩

Yes, sir.

好的，先生。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

I"m going to Hertfordshire. I shall probably not be back until Monday. You can prepare all my Bunbury clothes.

我要去赫特福德郡。可能要到周一才回來，你去幫我準備路上用的衣服吧。

Lane

萊恩

Yes, sir.

是的，先生。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

I hope tomorrow will be a fine day, Lane.

我希望明天是個好天氣，萊恩。

Lane

萊恩

It never is, sir.

不可能的，先生。

Algernon

阿爾傑農

Lane, you are a perfect pessimist.

萊恩，你真是個完美的悲觀主義者啊。

Lane

萊恩

I do my best to give satisfaction, sir.

我盡量讓您滿意，先生。

辭彙：

income：收入

late：這裡指的是去世的

cloakroom ：衣帽間

decent ：優雅的

form an alliance：結盟

put up with：忍受

tragedy：悲劇

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