He had the emotional stability of a six-year-old child. When he felt out of sorts, he would rave and stamp, or sink into suicidal gloom and talk darkly of going to the East to end hisdays as a Buddhist monk. Ten minutes later, when something pleased him he would rush out of doors and run around the garden, or jump up and down off the sofa, or stand on his head. He could be grief-stricken over the death of a pet dog, and he could be callous and heartlessto a degree that would have made a Roman emperor shudder.
他的感情犹如六岁孩童一般,极易波动,他一不高兴,动辄捶胸顿足,破口大骂,要不就情绪一落千丈,泄气地说什么要去东方削发为僧,了此残生。十分钟后,倘若有什么事使他高兴了,他会冲出门去,在庭院里东奔西跑,要不就在沙发上又蹦又跳或者来个拿大顶。他会因爱犬死了而悲痛欲绝,也会冷酷无情到令古罗马皇帝也不寒而栗。
He was almost innocent of any sense of responsibility. Not only did he seem incapable of supporting himself, but it never occurred to him that he was under any obligation to do so. He was convinced that the world owed him a living. In support of this belief, he borrowed moneyfrom everybody who was good for a loan — men, women, friends, or strangers. He wrote begging letters by the score, sometimes groveling without shame, at others loftily offering his intended benefactor the privilege of contributing to his support, and being mortally offended if the recipient declined the honor. I have found no record of his ever paying or repaying money to anyone who did not have a legal claim upon it.
他几乎没有丝毫责任感。他不仅似乎无力养活自己,而且从未想到过有什么养活自己的责任。他确信世人应该供养他。基于这一信念,他向一切拿得出钱的人借款——不分男女,不分朋友或是素不相识的人。乞讨信他一写就是二十来封。有时低声下气,不知天下有羞耻事;有时趾高气扬地把资助他的殊荣恩赐给他看中的捐助人,要是领受人谢绝这一荣誉,他会气得半死。我没有发现任何记录,表明他曾把钱付给或归还任何不采取法律手段讨钱的借款人。
来源:可可英语 //m.moreplr.com/daxue/201612/467710.shtml