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1、TheAntandtheGrasshopper蚂蚁和蚱蜢The Ant and the Grasshopper When I was a very small boy I was made to learn by heart certain of the fables of La Fontaine, and the moral of each was carefully explained to me. Among those I learnt was The Ant and The Grasshopper which is devised to bring home to the young
2、 the useful lesson that in an imperfect world industry is rewarded and giddiness punished. In this admirable fable (I apologize for telling something which everyone is politely, but inexactly, supposed to know) the ant spends a laborious summer gathering its winter store, while the grasshopper sits
3、on a blade of grass singing to the sun. Winter comes and the ant is comfortably provided for, but the grasshopper has an empty larder: he goes to the ant and begs for a little food. Then the ant gives him her classic answer: “What were you doing in the summer time?” “Saving your presence, I sang, I
4、sang all day, all night.” “You sang. Why, then go and dance.” I do not ascribe it to perversity on my part, but rather to the inconsequence of childhood, which is deficient in moral sense, that I could never quite reconcile myself to the lesson. My sympathies were with the grasshopper and for some t
5、ime I never saw an ant without putting my foot on it. In this summary (and as I have discovered since, entirely human) fashion I sought to express my disapproval of prudence and common sense. I could not help thinking of this fable when the other day I saw George Ramsay lunching by himself in a rest
6、aurant. I never saw anyone wear an expression of such deep gloom. He was staring into space. He looked as though the burden of the whole world sat on his shoulders. I was sorry for him: I suspected at once that his unfortunate brother had been causing trouble again. I went up to him and held out my
7、hand. “How are you?” I asked. “I”m not in hilarious spirits,” he answered. “Is it Tom again?” He sighed. “Yes, its Tom again.” “Why don”t you chuck him? You”ve done everything in the world for him. You must know by now that he”s quite hopeless.” I suppose every family has a black sheep. Tom had been
8、 a sore trial to his for twenty years. He had begun life decently enough: he went into business, married, and had two children. The Ramsays were perfectly respectable people and there was every reason to suppose that Tom Ramsay would have a useful and honourable career. But one day, without warning,
9、 he announced that he didn”t like work and that he wasn”t suited for marriage. He wanted to enjoy himself. He would listen to no expostulations. He left his wife and his 1 office. He had a little money and he spent two happy years in the various capitals of Europe. Rumours of his doings reached his
10、relations from time to time and they were profoundly shocked. He certainly had a very good time. They shook their heads and asked what would happen when his money was spent. They soon found out: he borrowed. He was charming and unscrupulous. I have never met anyone to whom it was more difficult to r
11、efuse a loan. He made a steady income from his friends and he made friends easily. But he always said that the money you spent on necessities was boring; the money that was amusing to spend was the money you spent on luxuries. For this he depended on his brother George. He did not waste his charm on
12、 him. George was a serious man and insensible to such enticements. George was respectable. Once or twice he fell to Tom”s promises of amendment and gave him considerable sums in order that he might make a fresh start. On these Tom bought a motorcar and some very nice jewellery. But when circumstance
13、s forced George to realize that his brother would never settle down and he washed his hands of him, Tom, without a qualm, began to blackmail him. It was not very nice for a respectable lawyer to find his brother shaking cocktails behind the bar of his favourite restaurant or to see him waiting on th
14、e boxseat of a taxi outside his club. Tom said that to serve in a bar or to drive a taxi was a perfectly decent occupation, but if George could oblige him with a couple of hundred pounds he didn”t mind for the honour of the family giving it up. George paid. Once Tom nearly went to prison. George was
15、 terribly upset. He went into the whole discreditable affair. Really Tom had gone too far. He had been wild, thoughtless, and selfish, but he had never before done anything dishonest, by which George meant illegal; and if he were prosecuted he would assuredly be convicted. But you cannot allow your
16、only brother to go to gaol. The man Tom had cheated, a man called Cronshaw, was vindictive. He was determined to take the matter into court; he said Tom was a scoundrel and should be punished. It cost George an infinite deal of trouble and five hundred pounds to settle the affair. I have never seen
17、him in such a rage as when he heard that Tom and Cronshaw had gone off together to Monte Carlo the moment they cashed the cheque. They spent a happy month there. For twenty years Tom raced and gambled, philandered with the prettiest girls, danced, ate in the most expensive restaurants, and dressed b
18、eautifully. He always looked as if he had just stepped out of a bandbox. Though he was fortysix you would never have taken him for more than thirtyfive. He was a most amusing companion and though you knew he was perfectly worthless you could not but enjoy his society. He had high spirits, an unfaili
19、ng gaiety, and incredible charm. I never grudged the contributions he regularly levied on me for the necessities of his existence. I never lent him fifty pounds without feeling that I was in his debt. Tom Ramsay knew everyone and everyone knew Tom Ramsay. You could not approve of him, but you could
20、not help liking him. 2 Poor George, only a year older than his scapegrace brother, looked sixty. He had never taken more than a fortnight”s holiday in the year for a quarter of a century. He was in his office every morning at ninethirty and never left it till six. He was honest, industrious, and wor
21、thy. He had a good wife, to whom he had never been unfaithful even in thought, and four daughters to whom he was the best of fathers. He made a point of saving a third of his income and his plan was to retire at fiftyfive to a little house in the country where he proposed to cultivate his garden and
22、 play golf. His life was blameless. He was glad that he was growing old because Tom was growing old too. He rubbed his hands and said: “It was all very well when Tom was young and goodlooking, but he”s only a year younger than I am. In four years he”ll be fifty. He won”t find life so easy then. I sh
23、all have thirty thousand pounds by the time I”m fifty. For twentyfive years I”ve said that Tom would end in the gutter. And we shall see how he likes that. We shall see if it really pays best to work or be idle.” Poor George! I sympathized with him. I wondered now as I sat down beside him what infam
24、ous thing Tom had done. George was evidently very much upset. “Do you know what”s happened now?” he asked me. I was prepared for the worst. I wondered if Tom had got into the hands of the police at last. George could hardly bring himself to speak. “Youre not going to deny that all my life I”ve been
25、hardworking, decent, respectable, and straightforward. After a life of industry and thrift I can look forward to retiring on a small income in giltedged securities. I”ve always done my duty in that state of life in which it has pleased Providence to place me.” “True.” “And you can”t deny that Tom ha
26、s been an idle, worthless, dissolute, and dishonourable rogue. If there were any justice he”d be in the workhouse.” “True.” George grew red in the face. “A few weeks ago he became engaged to a woman old enough to be his mother. And now she”s died and left him everything she had. Half a million pound
27、s, a yacht, a house in London, and a house in the country.” George Ramsay beat his clenched fist on the table. “Its not fair, I tell you, its not fair. Damn it, its not fair.” I could not help it. I burst into a shout of laughter as I looked at George”s wrathful face, I rolled in my chair, I very ne
28、arly fell on the floor. George never forgave me. But Tom often asks me to excellent dinners in his charming house in Mayfair, and if he occasionally borrows a trifle from me, that is merely from force of habit. It is never more than a sovereign. 3 蚂蚁和蚱蜢 威廉毛姆 当我还是个小男孩的时候，就有人教我背诵拉封丹的寓言故事，并细心地给我讲解每一个故事
29、的寓意。记得有一则名为“蚂蚁和草蜢”的寓言，它向孩子们揭示了一个有益的启示：在不完美的社会里存在着奖勤罚懒的规则。 在这则绝妙的寓言中，小蚂蚁劳累了整整一个夏天，储备冬粮，而草蜢则坐在草叶上对着太阳放声歌唱。冬天到了，小蚂蚁粮食充足而草蜢则粮仓空空。他到蚂蚁家去乞讨食物，蚂蚁给了他一个经典式的回答： “你整个夏天都在忙什么？” “恕我直言，我在唱歌，我在唱歌，我整日整夜在唱歌。” “原来你在唱歌。那么你就接着唱吧，接着跳吧。” 其中的寓意我一直难以接受。我认为不是因为自己过于执拗，而是因为儿时不合逻辑的思维，那时尚未形成健全的道德观。我非常同情那只草蜢，甚至有一段时间我一见到蚂蚁就非踩上一脚不
30、可，以这种简明的方式来表明自己看不惯蚂蚁这种审慎、理性的做法。 前几天，当我看到乔治独自在餐馆用餐，我禁不住想起了这则寓言。我从未见到过任何人有如此阴郁的表情。他怔怔地望着前面，看上去似乎全世界的重担都落到了他一个人肩膀上。我为他感到难过。我怀疑是他不争气的兄弟又给他惹了麻烦。我走过去，向他伸出了手。 “你好吗？”我问。 “就是心里不太高兴。”他答道。 “又是汤姆惹的吗？” 他叹了口气。 “是的，又是他。” “干嘛还要管他？你已经做得仁至义尽。你该知道他已经是无可救药的了。” 我认为家家户户都有败类。二十年来汤姆一直是个令家人头疼的家伙。他的人生起步颇为体面：开始做生意，后来结婚而且有两个孩子
31、。拉姆齐一家人非常受人尊敬，完全有理由相信汤姆会有一个成功而风光的人生。但有一天，事先没有任何征兆，他声称自己讨厌工作，而且也不适合婚姻生活。他要享受人生。他不听任何人的规劝，就离开了妻子，离开了办公室。他有点钱，在欧洲不同国家的首都快快活活地过了两年。有关他的种种行为的传闻不时传到了亲戚的耳朵里，他们都深感震惊。毫无疑问，他生活得很开心。亲戚们无可奈何地摇着头说，等他把钱花完了看他怎么办。他们很快发现：他靠借债过日子。他富有魅力，而且厚颜无耻。他向我借钱时，我从未遇到过比他更难以拒绝的人。他从朋友那里获得稳定的收入，而且特别善于交友。他经常说把钱花在生活必需品上毫无意义，而有趣的花钱方式是用
32、它来享受奢华。为此他依赖哥哥乔治来满足他的享受，但他的魅力在乔治身上没有白费。乔治是一个一本正经的人，对汤姆的花言巧语丝毫没有察觉，同时他也是个正派的人，有一两次轻信了汤姆要改过自新的诺言，给了他一笔数目可观的钱让他重新开始生活。汤姆用这笔钱买了一辆汽车和一些漂亮的珠宝饰物。但当事实使乔治明白他的弟弟决不会安定下来，因而不想再管他时，汤姆开始敲诈乔治，良心上丝毫没有感到不安。当一位受人尊重的律师发现自己的弟弟在自己喜爱的餐馆的柜台后面调制鸡尾酒，或看见他坐在出租马车的驭座上等候在自己常去的俱乐部外面时，终究感到有点不光彩。汤姆说，做餐馆酒吧服务员或赶出租马车完全是个体面的职业，但如果乔治愿意给
33、他几百英镑的话，他不会介 4 意为了家族的荣誉放弃这种职业。乔治如数照付了。 有一次汤姆差点坐牢。这让乔治非常不安。他后来还介入了整个让人丢尽脸面的事情。汤姆的确太过分了。他粗野、卤莽、自私，但他从前从未干过任何骗人的事，也就是乔治所指的非法的事。如果汤姆被起诉，他肯定会被判刑的。可是乔治总不能让唯一的弟弟去坐牢。被汤姆欺骗的那个人叫克朗萧，他是个报复心极强的人。他坚决要和汤姆对簿公堂；他说汤姆是个恶棍，理应受到法律制裁。结果乔治花费了相当的精力和500英镑才平息了此事。但当他听到汤姆和克朗萧两人把支票兑换成现金后马上到蒙特卡洛去了，我从未见他如此暴跳如雷过。他们两人还在蒙特卡洛高高兴兴过了一
34、个月。 二十年来，汤姆时常吃喝嫖赌、出入豪华宾馆、打扮入时。他经常衣冠楚楚。尽管他已经四十有六，但你决不会把他看成是三十五岁以上的人。和他相处令你非常开心，尽管你知道他一文不值，但还是会禁不住愿意和他交往。他兴高采烈，快乐无比， 魅力十足。他经常向我要钱购买生活必须品，但我总是慷慨解囊。每当他向我借50英镑时，我总是感觉欠了他的债。无人汤姆不认识，无人不认识汤姆。你也许不欣赏他，但你无法不喜欢他。 可怜的乔治，他比这个鲜廉寡耻的弟弟仅年长一岁，看起来却像六十岁。二十五年来他每年的休假从未超过两个星期。他每天早晨九点半到办公室，直到六点才离开。他正直、勤奋、值得人们尊敬。他有个贤妻。他从未背叛过
35、她，甚至连不忠的念头也从未有过。他有四个女儿，他是个最称职不过的父亲。他总是尽量省下三分之一的收入，打算在五十五岁退休后住到乡村里的一栋小房子里。他可以在那里种花养草，打打高尔夫球。他的一生无可挑剔。他很高兴自己一天天变老，因为汤姆也在变老，他搓搓手说道： “不错，汤姆年轻英俊时过得很快活。 但他只比我小一岁。再有四年他就五十了。那时侯他就会知道生活不容易。到五十岁时，我将有三万英镑的积蓄。二十五年来我一直认为他最终会穷困潦倒。等着瞧吧，汤姆将怎样忍受这样的日子。等着瞧吧，是努力工作有好报还是游手好闲有好报。” 可怜的乔治，我很同情他。当我在他旁边坐下之后，我仍不知道汤姆到底干了什么不光彩的事
36、。乔治显然很心烦。“你知道现在发生什么事了吗”？ 我做好了最坏的准备。我猜想汤姆可能最终已落入警察之手。乔治几乎说不下去了。 “你不会否认吧，我这一辈子勤勤恳恳、为人正派、令人尊重，光明正大。我勤奋劳动，俭朴生活了一辈子，期望退休时能靠从金边股票中获得一笔小小的收入。我尽心尽职了一生，对此上帝感到很满意。” “是这样。” “你不能否认吧，汤姆是个无所事事、一无是处、生活放荡和不知廉耻的恶棍。如果真有公理的话，他应该呆在劳教所里”。 “是这样。” 乔治的脸涨得通红。 “几星期以前他和一位大得几乎可以当他母亲的女人订了婚，现在这个女人死了，她的一切都留给了他。五十万 英镑，一艘游艇，在伦敦的一栋房宅和乡下一栋别墅。” 乔治捏紧的拳头重重地砸在桌子上。 “这不公平。我敢说，这不公平，他妈的，这太不公平了。” 我再也忍不住了。看着乔治愤怒的表情，我禁不住哈哈大笑，我在椅子里笑得前仰后合，几乎掉到地板上。乔治永远不会原谅我。不过，汤姆经常邀我到他在梅费尔漂亮的豪宅里去就餐。尽管他时而会向我借点钱，那也仅仅是出于习惯，从来没超过一英镑。 5
