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1、牛津书虫1象人三、象人Chapter 1The Creature in the ShopMy name is Dr Frederick Treves. I am a doctor at the London Hospital. One day in 1884, I saw apicture in the window of a shop near the hospital. I stopped in front of the shop and looked at thepicture. At first I felt interested, then I felt angry, then af
2、raid. It was a horrible, ugly picture. Therewas a man in the picture, but he did not look like you and me. He did not look like a man. He lookedlike an elephant.I read the writing under the picture. It said：Come in and see the Elephant Man. 2 pence. I opened the door and went in.There was a man in t
3、he shop. He was a dirty man in an old coat with a cigarette in his mouth. Whatdo you want？he asked.Id like to see the elephant man, please, I said.The man looked at me angrily. Well, you cant, he said. The shops closing now. You can comeback tomorrow. Im sorry, I said. But I would like to see him no
4、w. I have no time tomorrowI have a lot of workto do. But I can give you more than 2 pence. The man looked at me carefully. Then he took the cigarette out of his mouth and smiled with hisyellow teeth.All right, sir, he said. Give me twelve pence then. I gave him the money and he opened a door at the
5、back of the shop. We went into a little room. Theroom was cold and dark, and there was a horrible smell in it.A creature sat on a chair behind a table. I say a creature, because it was not a man or a woman, likeyou or me. The creature did not move or look at us. It sat very quietly on the chair in t
6、he cold, dark,dirty room, and looked at the table. The creature had a cloth over its head, because of the cold. Onthe table in front of it, there was a dead flower.Stand up! said the shopkeeper, loudly.The creature stood up slowly. It took the old cloth off its head, and put it on the chair.I looked
7、 at the creature and felt sad. I am a doctor, so I know a lot about accidents and ill people. Isee horrible, ugly things every day. But this creature, this thing, was the worst of all. There were nomen or women in the hospital like him.He wore some old trousers, but no shirt, coat, or shoes, so I co
8、uld see his body very well. His headwas the most interesting thing. It was very, very biglike an enormous bag with a lot of books in it.The head did not have much hair, and there was another bag of brown, dirty skin at the back of it.This skin came down below his neck. I could not see one of his eye
9、s very well, because a lot of skincame down in front of his face, too.An enormous red tooth came out of his mouth, under his nose. It looked like an elephants tooth.The mouth and nose were like holes in the face. The face could not smile or laugh or look angry orsad, because the skin could not move.
10、 It was dead, like an elephants face.There were more bags of dirty skin on the front and back of the creatures body. These bags camedown to his legs. The right arm was enormous, and there were bags of skin on it, too. The right handwas like a mans foot.But the left hand the left arm and the left han
11、d were beautiful! The left arm had wonderful skin, andthe fingers of the left hand were long and beautiful. It was like a young womans hand!Walk, Merrick! said the shopkeeper angrily. Come on, quickly, move! He hit the creature withhis hand.Slowly, the creature walked across the room. But he could n
12、ot walk well. His legs were very big andfat, and he had a bad back. He could not walk far without a stick.All right, thank you, I said. Let him sit down. I dont want to see any more. I felt ill, and thesmell in the room was very bad.Yes, sir, said the shopkeeper. Sit down, Merrick. We went out of th
13、e room and closed the door. The shopkeeper smiled at me with his yellow teeth.Wonderful, sir, isnt it？he said. The best Elephant Man in England! Hundreds of people come tosee him, you know, hundreds! I take him all over the country, I do! Yes, very interesting, I said. Can I sit down？Yes, sir, of co
14、urse. Heres a chair. He looked at me, smiling. Would you like a glass of water,sir？Yes, please, I said. Then I looked at the things in the dirty shop. There were two or three badapples and some old black bananas：that was all. Er, nono, thank you. Im all right, I said. Didyoudid you call the creature
15、 Merrick？Thats right, sir. Joseph Merrick. The best ElephantMan in England! I take him all over the country,you know. Lots of people want to see him. Yes, I see. Do you get a lot of money？Well, sometimes we do, sir, yes. But its difficult, you see, sir, because of the police. The policedont like us,
16、 you see, sir. So we cant stay in a town very long. We usually move every week. Yes, I see. Well, anyway, Mrer？Silcock, sir. Simon Silcock. Yes, well, Mr Silcock, Im a doctor at the London Hospital. My name is Dr Treves. I thinkthiser this man Joseph Merrick is very interesting, and I would like to
17、see him at the hospital. Iwant to look at him more carefully, you see.Yes sir, I see. But how can he get to the hospital？Its going to be difficult. Why, man？ The hospitals not far from here. Well, yes, sir. I know. But, you see, Merrick cant walk very well. He needs help. You can come with him. Do y
18、ou want more money？Is that it？Well, yes, sir, I do. But, you see, people are afraid of him too In the road, little boys always runafter him and hit him. Then the police get angry because people are afraid. Sometimes they take usto prison. I see, I said. Well, how can he come to the hospital, then？Br
19、ing a cab, sir, said Silcock. You can take him to the hospital in a cab. Chapter 2The CardSo next day, at seven oclock, I came to the shop in a cab. There were not very many people in theroad, because it was early in the morning. In November it is dark at seven oclock in the morning,and I could not
20、see the shop very well. I waited five minutes. A postman walked past. Then the doorof the shop opened, and the creature, Merrick , came out.I could not see his face or his body. He had an enormous black hat on his head, like a big box. Agrey cloth came down from the hat, in front of his face. There
21、was a hole in the cloth in front of hiseyes. He could see out of the hole but I could not see in. He wore a long black coat, too. The coatbegan at his neck, and ended at his feet, so I could not see his arms, his body, or his legs. On his feethe wore big shoes, like old bags.He had a stick in his le
22、ft hand, and he walked very slowly. I opened the door of the cab, and got out.Good morning, Mr Merrick, I said. Can you get in？Elpmyupasteps, he said.Im sorry, I said. I dont understand. For a minute he stood by the door of the cab and said nothing. Then he hit the cab with his stick.STEPS! he said
23、loudly. Help me up the steps! Then I understood. There were three steps up into the cab, and he could not get up them.Yes, I see. Im sorry, I said. Let me help you. I took his left hand and began to help him. My right hand was behind his back. I felt very strange.His left hand was like a young woman
24、s, but his back under the coat, was horrible. I could feel thebags of old skin on his back under the coat.He put one enormous foot on the first step, and then he stopped. After a minute, he moved hissecond foot slowly. Then he stopped and waited again.Hello, sir. Can I help you？I looked behind me. I
25、t was the postman. And behind him, I could see three young boys. One of theboys laughed.The postman smiled. Is the gentleman ill？he asked.I thought quickly. Yes. But this is a lady, not a gentle-man. Im a doctor, and shes ill. Take her hand,so I can help her better. The postman took Merricks left ha
26、nd, and I helped him with two hands from behind. Slowly, veryslowly, Merrick went up the steps and into the cab.One boy was very near the cab. He called to his friends.Come and see this, boys! A fat lady in a black coat! And look at that enormous hat! The boys laughed. They were very near the cab to
27、o, now. I closed the door quickly.Thank you, I said to the postman.Thats all right, sir, he said. Shes a strange lady, sir, isnt she？Shes ill, thats all, I said quickly. Were going to the hospital. Goodbye, and thank you. The cab drove down the road to the hospital. I locked at Merrick. That was dif
28、ficult, wasnt it？Isaid.At first he said nothing, but then he spoke. His voice was very strange, but I listened to himcarefully, and I could understand him.The steps were very difficult, he said. But most things are difficult for me. Yes, I said. Nothing is easy for you, is it？No, he said. He was ver
29、y quiet for a minute. Then he said, Who are you, sir？Who am I？Oh, Im sorry, My name is Dr Treves. Here, this is my card. I gave him a card with my name on. Then I thought, That was no good. This man cant read. ButMerrick took the card and looked at it very carefully. Then he put it in his trousers p
30、ocket.I did not talk to him very much at the hospital. I looked at his head and arms and legs and body verycarefully. Then I wrote the important things about him in a little book. A nurse helped me. Merricklooked at her sometimes, but she did not smile at him or talk to him. I think she was afraid o
31、f him. Ithink Merrick was afraid too, because he was very quiet.At four oclock I took him back to the shop in a cab. The next day I looked in the shop windowagain, but the picture was not there.Chapter 3A Letter toThe TimesI did not see Merrick again for two years. Then, one day, the police found hi
32、m. He had my card inhis hand, so they brought him to the London Hospital. He was very tired, hungry, and dirty, so I puthim to bed in a quiet little room. But he could not stay at the hospital. He was not ill, and of coursethe beds in the hospital are for ill people. We have no beds for hungry peopl
33、e, or ugly people.I told the Hospital Chairman, Mr Cars Gomm, about Merrick. He listened carefully, and then hewrote a letter to the editor of The Times newspaper.From The Times, December 4th, 1886A Letter to the Editor.Dear Sir,I am writing to you about a man in our hospital. He needs your help. Hi
34、s name is Joseph Merrick,and he is 27 years old. He is not ill, but he cannot go out of the hospital because he is very, very ugly.Nobody likes to look at him, and some people are afraid him. We call him The Elephant Man.Two years ago, Merrick lived in a shop near the London Hospital. For two pence,
35、 people could seehim and laugh at him. One day Dr Frederick Trevesa hospital doctorsawMerrick, broughthim to this hospital, and looked at him carefully. Dr Treves could not help Merrick, but he gave himhis card.Then the shopkeeper, Silcock, took merrick to Belgium. A lot of people in Belgium wanted
36、to seehim, and so after a year Merrick had 50. But then Silcock took Merricks 50, left Merrick inBelgium, and went back to London.Merrick came back to London by himself. Everyone on the train and the ship looked at him, andlaughed at him. In London, the police put him in prison. But then they saw Dr
37、Trevess card, andbrought Merrick to the London Hospital.This man has no money, and he cannot work. His face and body are very, very ugly, so of coursemany people are afraid of him. But he is a very interesting man. He can read and write, and hethinks a lot. He is a good, quiet man. Sometimes he make
38、s things with his hands and givesthem tothe nurses, because they are kind to him.He remembers his mother, and he has a picture of her. She was beautiful and kind, he says. But henever sees her now. She gave him to Silcock a long time ago.Can the readers of The Times help us？ This man is not ill, but
39、 he needs a home. We can give him aroom at the hospital, but we need some money. Please write to me at the London Hospital.Yours faithfully,F. C. Carr Gomm.Chairman of the London HospitalThe readers of The Times are very kind people. They gave us a lot of money. After one week, wehad 50, 000, so Mer
40、rick could live in the Hospital for all his life. We could give him a home.Chapter 4Merricks First HomeWe gave Merrick two rooms at the back of the hospital. One room was a bathroom, so he couldhave a bath every day. Soon his skin was much better, and there was no horrible smell.The second room had
41、a bed, table , and chairs. I visited him every day, and talked to him. He lovedreading, and talking about books. At first he did not know many books：the Bible, and one or twonewspapers, thats all. But I gave him some books of love stories, and he liked them very much. Heread them again and again, an
42、d talked about them often. For him, the men and women in thesebooks were alive, like you and me. He was very happy.But sometimes it was difficult for him. At first, one or two people in the hospital laughed at Merrickbecause he was ugly. Sometimes, they brought their friends to look at him. One day
43、a new nursecame to the hospital, and nobody told her about Merrick. She took his food to his room, and openedthe door. Then she saw him. She screamed, dropped the food on the floor, and ran out of the room.I was very angry with the nurse, and went to see Merrick. He was not happy about it, but he wa
44、s notvery angry. I think he felt sorry for the girl.People dont like looking at me. I know that, Dr 26Treves, he said. They usually laugh or scream.Well, I dont want nurses to laugh at you, Joseph, I said angrily. I want them to help you. Thank you, doctor, he said, in his strange slow voice. But it
45、s not important. Everyone laughs atme. I understand that. I looked at him sadly. In his one good hand, his left hand, he had the little picture of his mother. Helooked at the picture for a minute, and then put it by a flower on the table. A tear ran out of his eyeand down the skin of his enormous, u
46、gly face.Dr Treves, he said, slowly. You and the nurses arevery kind, and Im very happy here. Thank youvery much. ButI know I cant stay here long, andI would like to live in a lighthouse, after thehospital, please. A lighthouse, or a home for blind people. I think those are the best places for me.Wh
47、at do you mean？I ashed. Why？He did not look at me. He put the flower on the picture and looked at it carefully.Lighthouses have sea all round them, dont they ？ he said. Nobody could look at me in alighthouse, so I would be happy there. And blind people can see nothing, so they couldnt see me,could they？But Joseph, I said. This is your home. You live here now. You arent going to leave the hospital. 28Not todsy, perhaps, he said. But soon. You are a kind man, Dr Treves. But I cant stay here verylong. I have no money. I smiled. Joseph
