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229.An artist's time
第229课 艺术家的机遇
He lived in a simple room, vacant except for the mattress on the floor and the desk in the corner.
他居住的房间很简朴，除了地上铺的床垫，角落里的书桌之外，可谓空空如也。
He was completely and utterly determined to translate his vague ideas onto paper
他下定决心，要将自己朦胧的思想付诸纸端，
in a way that would personally validate his existence.
以此证实自我的存在。
Until his novel was completely written, he would make no idle utterance,
在小说写完之前，他不作无聊琐碎之谈，
take no vacation, or vacate his apartment but for shopping once a week.
不休假日，足不出户，一周只外出购物一次。
All of the other rooms in his head were empty,
他头脑里的所有其他“房间”都空着，
but the room entitled "Artistic Drive" held a "No Vacancy" sign.
但称为“艺术魄力”的“房间”挂着“客满”的标牌。
It was filled with a special kind of valor about which only the artist knows.
这间“屋子”充满一种特殊的勇气，只有这位艺术家才了解。
To his friends, his family, and all who cared for him, he would have to vanish for quite some time.
对于他的朋友，家人，以及所有关心他的人而言，他突然消失了一段时间。
On this project, his mind was not variable.
在这个计划上，他坚定不移。
He had come to this stage in his life after reading of the accomplishments of great men.
处在这个生命阶段，他早已读过有关伟大人物的成就。
Edward Jenner had developed the vaccine after his wife witnessed Turkish women vaccinating each other.
爱德华·詹纳在妻子发现土耳其妇女彼此预防接种之后研制出疫苗。
Isaac Newton set out to prove the inherent validity of order in the universe.
艾萨克·牛顿试图证明宇宙秩序的内在合理性。
William the Conqueror, valiant Norman leader, sailed across the English Channel and vanquished the Anglo-Saxons.
英勇的诺曼领袖征服者威廉驶过英吉利海峡，征服了盎格鲁-撒克逊人。
None of these men acted in a vacuum.
这些人没有一个脱离实际环境。
They were able to react in a meaningful, valid manner to the environment in which they were placed.
他们对所处环境做出的反应有针对性，恰到好处。
They rose above the vapid, everyday concerns of the masses.
他们超越了大众乏味的日常事务。
They sought variation in their lives and welcomed the variability that life offered.
他们追求生活中的变化多样，愉快地接受生活所给予的丰富多彩。
They weren't seeking any safety valves.
他们不寻求任何安全阀门。
This was the primary reason he now set down to write his novel.
这就是他现在安心写作小说的主要原因。
The other was more immediate. Life is short. There may not be a tomorrow.
另一原因更为直接。生命短促，或许明朝不再。
He remembered reading a story about the nuclear bomb over Hiroshima.
他记得曾读过广岛上空核弹的故事。
A man was sitting on bank steps waiting for the bank to open when he was instantly vaporized.
一个男子坐在银行台阶上，等候银行开门，突然之间他像气体一样蒸发。
Such immediate vaporization can happen to anyone, if not literally then at least metaphorically.
这种瞬时的蒸发可能发生在任何人头上，如果不是真正意义上的，至少也是比喻意义上的。
John sought to breathe in the sweet vapors of life and regurgitate them in the form of art. Now was his time.
约翰设法吸入生命芬芳的气体，将其以艺术形式重新表现出来。现在他的机会来了。
