Pre-reading
Question: Why did Robinson name the man Friday?
Intensive Reading
I took the man to my cave. The cave was my secret. Nobody could find us there. I gave him bread, meat and some water. He was so tired that he fell asleep almost immediately.
我把这个人带到我的洞穴。这个洞穴是我的秘密。在那里没有人能找到我们。我给他面包,肉和一些水。他太累了,几乎立刻就睡着了。
I had an opportunity to look at him. I saw that he was young, slim but very strong. I thought that he was about 25 years old. He had long black hair, dark skin and a pleasant face.
我有机会看看他。我看见他年轻苗条但强壮。我觉得他大约25岁左右。他有着黑色长发、深色皮肤和一张和善的脸。
I let him sleep and I went outside. I stayed near the cave and I watched for the cannibals. But they didn’t look for us.
我让他睡,我走到外面。我留在洞穴附近,提防食人族。但他们没来找我们。
Three hours later, the man came out of the cave. He showed me how happy he was that he was alive and safe.
三个小时后,这个人走出了洞穴。他向我展示安全地活着他是多么开心。
I started speaking to him. I named him Friday. It was Friday when I saved his life. I told him my name and I taught him “yes” and “no”.
我开始跟他说话。我叫他星期五。我救他的那天是星期五。我告诉他我的名字,并教他“是”和“不是”。
We stayed in the cave that night. The next day, we went on top of the hill. I saw through my telescope that the canoes were gone. We were alone on the island. We went carefully to the beach. First we went to the place where we hid the bodies of the dead cannibals.
那天晚上我们一起待在洞穴里。第二天我们来到山顶上。我通过望远镜看到独木舟不见了。只有我们俩在岛上。我们小心翼翼地来到海滩。首先,我们来到藏着死去的食人族尸首的地方。
Notes:
1. fall asleep: 睡着,fall在这里做系动词,表示的是“进入某种状态”,其他例子包括fall ill, fall silent等。
2. slim: 苗条的,指的是褒义的瘦,类似的词还有:slender,指“优美的苗条”;lean,指“健康有型的瘦”。
3. pleasant: 这里指的是“友善的,和善的”。
4. watch for: 密切注视; 提防。
Exercise:
What did the man look like?