雙語小說連載:《董貝父子》第11章 Part 5大綱

'I have had some communication with the Doctor, Mrs Pipchin,' said Mr Dombey, hitching his chair anxiously a little nearer to the fire, 'and he does not consider Paul at all too young for his purpose. He mentioned several instances of boys in Greek at about the same age. If I have any little uneasiness in my own mind, Mrs Pipchin, on the subject of this change, it is not on that head. My son not having known a mother has gradually concentrated much - too much - of his childish affection on his sister. Whether their separation - ' Mr Dombey said no more, but sat silent.

“我跟博士通過一些信，皮普欽太太，”董貝先生急忙把他的椅子向爐火拉近一點，說道，“他根本不認爲保羅上他那裏去年齡太小。他舉例說明好幾個跟他同年齡的孩子都在那裏學習希臘語。如果我本人心中對這個變動的問題有什麼小小的不安的話，皮普欽太太，那不是在那一方面。我的兒子生下來就失去了母愛，所以就把他好多（太多了）幼稚的感情逐漸傾注到他姐姐的身上，因此他們兩人分離開來是否會——”董貝先生沒有再說下去，而是沉默地坐着。

'Hoity-toity!' exclaimed Mrs Pipchin, shaking out her black bombazeen skirts, and plucking up all the ogress within her. 'If she don't like it, Mr Dombey, she must be taught to lump it.' The good lady apologised immediately afterwards for using so common a figure of speech, but said (and truly) that that was the way she reasoned with 'em.

“哎呀，這算什麼！”皮普欽太太抖動着她的黑色的拜巴辛毛葛的裙子，大聲喊道，一邊把她內心中惡魔般的性情全都顯露出來。“如果她不喜歡這樣，董貝先生，那麼就得教她好歹忍着點。”這位善良的太太接着立刻對她採用這樣粗俗的語言表示抱歉，但她說，這就是她跟他們論斷事理的方法，這一點倒是真的。

Mr Dombey waited until Mrs Pipchin had done bridling and shaking her head, and frowning down a legion of Bitherstones and Pankeys; and then said quietly, but correctively, 'He, my good madam, he.'

皮普欽太太昂起頭來，搖晃了兩下，同時對着無數個比瑟斯通與潘基皺了皺眉頭；董貝先生等待她把這些動作做完之後，平靜地但是正確地說道，“我說的是他，我的好夫人，他。”

Mrs Pipchin's system would have applied very much the same mode of cure to any uneasiness on the part of Paul, too; but as the hard grey eye was sharp enough to see that the recipe, however Mr Dombey might admit its efficacy in the case of the daughter, was not a sovereign remedy for the son, she argued the point; and contended that change, and new society, and the different form of life he would lead at Doctor Blimber's, and the studies he would have to master, would very soon prove sufficient alienations. As this chimed in with Mr Dombey's own hope and belief, it gave that gentleman a still higher opinion of Mrs Pipchin's understanding; and as Mrs Pipchin, at the same time, bewailed the loss of her dear little friend (which was not an overwhelming shock to her, as she had long expected it, and had not looked, in the beginning, for his remaining with her longer than three months), he formed an equally good opinion of Mrs Pipchin's disinterestedness. It was plain that he had given the subject anxious consideration, for he had formed a plan, which he announced to the ogress, of sending Paul to the Doctor's as a weekly boarder for the first half year, during which time Florence would remain at the Castle, that she might receive her brother there, on Saturdays. This would wean him by degrees, Mr Dombey said; possibly with a recollection of his not having been weaned by degrees on a former occasion.

皮普欽太太的管理制度本可以很容易地把同樣的治療方法也應用到保羅身上任何不舒適的地方；但是那隻冷酷的灰色眼睛十分敏銳地看出，儘管董貝先生可以允許這個處方在他的女兒身上發揮效力，但它卻並不是醫治他兒子的特效藥；她認清了這一點，於是就解釋說，環境的變化，新的社交場所，他在布林伯博士學校中所過的不同的生活方式以及他必須學會的課程，將很快就會把他的注意力充分轉移了。由於這個意見與董貝先生自己的希望與看法是一致的，這就使得這位紳士對皮普欽太太的智慧有了更高的評價；由於皮普欽太太在這同時爲失去她親愛的小朋友而嘆息（對她來說，這並不是一個使她不知所措的打擊，因爲她早就預料到這一點，一開始就沒有指望他跟她待在一起的時間會超過三個月），所以他對皮普欽太太沒有私心這一點也產生了同樣良好的印象。顯然，他對這個問題已經思前顧後地進行了考慮，因爲他已經構想出一個計劃，並把它通告給這位惡魔：頭半年他把保羅送到博士的學校中去，作爲一個每週在那裏寄膳寄宿六天的學生，在這期間弗洛倫斯將留在城堡中，這樣她可以在星期六把弟弟接到她那裏去。董貝先生說，這樣就將使他逐步地“斷奶”；可能他曾回想起上一次他是沒有經過逐步斷奶的過程的。

Mr Dombey finished the interview by expressing his hope that Mrs Pipchin would still remain in office as general superintendent and overseer of his son, pending his studies at Brighton; and having kissed Paul, and shaken hands with Florence, and beheld Master Bitherstone in his collar of state, and made Miss Pankey cry by patting her on the head (in which region she was uncommonly tender, on account of a habit Mrs Pipchin had of sounding it with her knuckles, like a cask), he withdrew to his hotel and dinner: resolved that Paul, now that he was getting so old and well, should begin a vigorous course of education forthwith, to qualify him for the position in which he was to shine; and that Doctor Blimber should take him in hand immediately.

董貝先生在結束會晤的時候，希望在他兒子在布賴頓學習期間，皮普欽太太仍保留她作爲保羅的總管理人與監督員的職務。然後他吻吻保羅，跟弗洛倫斯握握手，看到比瑟斯通少爺露着氣派莊嚴的衣領，拍拍潘基小姐的頭，使她哭了起來（她身上的這個部位特別敏感，因爲皮普欽太太習慣於用她的指關節來敲它，敲出聲音來，就像敲桶一樣）；在這之後，他回到旅館吃晚飯，並作出了決定：由於保羅已經長大，也長健康了，從今以後他就應該開始接受一個充實的教育過程，以便使他有能力擔當起他將大顯身手的職務；布林伯博士應當立即把他接到手裏，負責對他進行指導。

註釋：exclaim vi. 呼喊，驚叫；大聲叫嚷
vt. 大聲說出
vi.呼喊，驚叫；大聲叫嚷
例句：
(1) You exclaim, as you cuddle, hug, and kiss.
你驚歎，當你擁抱，擁抱，親吻。
(2) Glory to you! We exclaim with a joyful soul.
到你的光榮﹗我們與歡樂的靈魂呼喊。
(3) I can not help but exclaim, how terrible figures!
我不禁驚歎，多麼可怕的數字！
(4) A closer look, you might exclaim that she is half-breed!
再仔細看看，或許你會驚歎原來她也是混血兒！
(5) "The camera loves her! "is what they exclaim when they see it.
當找到夢寐以求的女演員時，他們會驚呼：“攝影機愛死她了！”
(6) For this is the love and light sweet, let people exclaim envy.
渴望這是甜蜜的愛戀，發光地讓人羨慕不已，驚歎不已。
(7) "Why, man alive, I can't do it! " he heard Tighe exclaim one day.
“哎呀！我可不能做這件事！”有一天他聽到泰伊大聲喊道。
(8) I can not help but exclaim that have such a beautiful Beijing place.
我不禁讚歎，原來北京還有這麼美麗的地方。

qualify vt. 限制；使具有資格；證明…合格
vi. 取得資格，有資格
[ 過去式qualified 過去分詞qualified 現在分詞qualifying ]
詞組：
qualify for 合格；有…的資格
qualify as 取得……資格；作爲……合適
例句：
(1) So does this qualify as a bubble?
那麼這是否稱得上是泡沫呢？
(2) His skills qualify him for the job.
他的技術使他有資格擔任這項工作。
(3) No problem. I guess I qualify then.
沒問題，我想我符合這個條件。
(4) That might qualify as bullying, too.
那也許也能稱的上是欺負。
(5) I qualify it as a plot.
我說它是一個陰謀。
(6) Can you qualify yourself for the job?
你能證明自己有能力擔任這一工作嗎?。
(7) Where are you going to work when you qualify ?
取得資格後，你打算在哪裏工作?。
(8) Qualify at practice to be able to enter the race.
在實踐鍛鍊，纔能有資格進入比賽。