In one of the windows over the garage the curtains had been moved aside a little, and Myrtle Wilson was peering down at the car. So engrossed was she that she had no consciousness of being observed, and one emotion after another crept into her face like objects into a slowly developing picture. Her expression was curiously familiar—it was an expression I had often seen on women’s faces, but on Myrtle Wilson’s face it seemed purposeless and inexplicable until I realized that her eyes, wide with jealous terror, were fixed not on Tom, but on Jordan Baker, whom she took to be his wife.
在車行上面一扇窗戶面前，窗簾向旁邊拉開了一點，茉特爾·威爾遜正在向下窺視著這輛車子。她那樣全神貫注，因此她毫不覺察有人在注意她，一種接一種的感情在她臉上流露出來，好像物體出現(xiàn)在一張慢慢顯影的照片上。她的表情熟悉得有點蹊蹺--這是我時常在女人臉上看到的表情，可是在茉特爾·威爾遜的臉上，這種表情似乎毫無意義而且難以理解，直到我明白她那兩只充滿妒火、睜得大大的眼睛并不是盯在湯姆身上，而是盯在喬丹·貝克身上，原來她以為喬丹是他的妻子。
engross ?[in?ɡr?us]v. 用大字體書寫,吸引,占用,使全神貫注,獨占
inexplicable??[?n?ekspl?k?b(?)l] adj.??無法解釋的；難理解的
There is no confusion like the confusion of a simple mind, and as we drove away Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic. His wife and his mistress, until an hour ago secure and inviolate, were slipping precipitately from his control. Instinct made him step on the accelerator with the double purpose of overtaking Daisy and leaving Wilson behind, and we sped along toward Astoria at fifty miles an hour, until, among the spidery girders of the elevated, we came in sight of the easy-going blue coupe.
一個簡單的頭腦陷入慌亂時是非同小可的，等到我們車子開走的時候，湯姆感到驚慌失措，心里像油煎一樣。他的妻子和情婦，直到一小時前還是安安穩(wěn)穩(wěn)、不可侵犯的，現(xiàn)在卻猛不防正從他的控制下溜走。本能促使他猛踩油門，以達(dá)到趕上黛西和把威爾遜拋在腦后的雙重目的，于是我們以每小時五十英里的速度向阿斯托里亞飛馳而去。直到在高架鐵路蜘蛛網(wǎng)似的鋼架中間，我們才看見那輛逍遙自在的藍(lán)色小轎車。
inviolate??[?n?va??l?t] adj.不受侵犯的，不受褻瀆的?something that is inviolate cannot be attacked, changed, or destroyed
precipitate [pr??s?p.?.te?t] v.?FORMAL? to make something happen suddenly or sooner than expected
girder??[?ɡ??d?(r)]n.??大梁，桁
“Those big movies around Fiftieth Street are cool,”suggested Jordan.“I love New York on summer afternoons when every one’s away. There’s something very sensuous about it—overripe, as if all sorts of funny fruits were going to fall into your hands.”
"五十號街附近那些大電影院很涼快，"喬丹提議說，"我愛夏天下午的紐約，人都跑光了。有一種非常肉感的滋味--熟透了，仿佛各種奇異的果實都會落到你手里。"
sensuous??[?sensj??s] adj.??給人以美的享受的；激發(fā)美感的
overripe??[??v??ra?p] adj. 過熟的，成熟過頭的
The word“sensuous”had the effect of further disquieting Tom, but before he could invent a protest the coupe came to a stop, and Daisy signaled us to draw up alongside.
"肉感"這兩個字使湯姆感到更加惶惶不安，但他還沒來得及找話來表示反對，小轎車已經(jīng)停了下來，黛西打著手勢叫我們開上去并排停下。
“Where are we going?”she cried.
"我們上哪兒去？"她喊道。
“How about the movies?”
"去看電影怎樣？"
“It’s so hot,”she complained.“You go. We’ll ride around and meet you after.”With an effort her wit rose faintly,“We’ll meet you on some corner. I’ll be the man smoking two cigarettes.”
"太熱了，"她抱怨道，"你們?nèi)グ?。我們?nèi)ザ刀碉L(fēng)，過會兒再和你們碰頭。"她又勉強(qiáng)講了兩句俏皮話。"我們約好在另一個路口和你們碰頭。我就是那個抽著兩支香煙的男人。"
“We can’t argue about it here,”Tom said impatiently, as a truck gave out a cursing whistle behind us.“You follow me to the south side of Central Park, in front of the Plaza.”
"我們不能待在這里爭論，"湯姆不耐煩地說，這時我們后面有一輛卡車的司機(jī)在拼命按喇叭，"你們跟我開到中央公園南邊廣場飯店前面。"
Several times he turned his head and looked back for their car, and if the traffic delayed them he slowed up until they came into sight. I think he was afraid they would dart down a side street and out of his life forever.
有好幾次他掉過頭去向后看，找他們的車子，如果路上的交通把他們耽誤了，他就放慢速度，直到他們重新出現(xiàn)。我想他生怕他們會鉆進(jìn)一條小街，從此永遠(yuǎn)從他生活里消失。
dart?(MOVE QUICKLY) [dɑ?t] v. to move quickly or suddenly
But they didn’t. And we all took the less explicable step of engaging the parlor of a suite in the Plaza Hotel.
可是他們并沒有。而我們大家都采取了這個更難理解的步驟--在廣場飯店租用了一間套房的客廳。
explicable??[?ekspl?k?b(?)l] adj. 可說明的；可解釋的
parlor??[?pɑ?l?(r)] n. 起居室
The prolonged and tumultuous argument that ended by herding us into that room eludes me, though I have a sharp physical memory that, in the course of it, my underwear kept climbing like a damp snake around my legs and intermittent beads of sweat raced cool across my back. The notion originated with Daisy’s suggestion that we hire five bath-rooms and take cold baths, and then assumed more tangible form as“a place to have a mint julep.”Each of us said over and over that it was a“crazy idea.”—we all talked at once to a baffled clerk and thought, or pretended to think, that we were being very funny. . . .
那場長時間的、吵吵嚷嚷的爭論，以把我們都趕進(jìn)那間屋子而告終、我現(xiàn)在也弄不清是怎么回事了，雖然我清清楚楚記得，在這個過程中，我的內(nèi)衣像一條濕漉漉的蛇一樣順著我的腿往上爬，同時一陣陣?yán)浜怪闄M流俠背。這個主意起源于黛西的建議，她要我們租五間浴室去洗冷水澡，后來才采取了"喝杯涼薄荷酒的地方"這個更明確的形式。我們每一個人都翻來覆去地說這是個"餿主意"--我們大家同時開口跟一個為難的旅館辦事員講話，自認(rèn)為或者假裝認(rèn)為，我們這樣很滑稽……
tumultuous??[tju?m?ltj??s] adj. 喧囂的；騷亂的
elude?(NOT REMEMBER)?[??lu?d] v. FORMAL? If a piece of information eludes you, you cannot remember it
intermittent ?[?int?(?)?mit?nt] adj. 間歇的,斷斷續(xù)續(xù)的
baffle [?b?f.?] v. to cause someone to be completely unable to understand or explain something
The room was large and stifling, and, though it was already four o’clock, opening the windows admitted only a gust of hot shrubbery from the Park. Daisy went to the mirror and stood with her back to us, fixing her hair.
那間房子很大但是很悶，雖然已經(jīng)是四點了，但打開窗戶只不過能感受到從公園里的灌木叢刮來一股熱風(fēng)。黛西走到鏡子前面，背朝我們站著，理她的頭發(fā)。
shrubbery??[??r?b?r?]n.??-ries??（庭園中的）灌木栽植地，灌木叢生處
“It’s a swell suite,”whispered Jordan respectfully, and every one laughed.
"這個套間真高級。"喬丹肅然起敬地低聲說，引得大家都笑了起來。
“Open another window,”commanded Daisy, without turning around.
"再打開一扇窗戶。"黛西命令道，連頭也不回。
“There aren’t any more.”
"沒有窗戶可開了。"
“Well, we’d better telephone for an axe——”
"那么我們頂好打電話要把斧頭……"
“The thing to do is to forget about the heat,”said Tom impatiently.“You make it ten times worse by crabbing about it.”
"正確的辦法是忘掉熱，"湯姆不耐煩地說，"像你這樣嘮嘮叨叨只會熱得十倍的難受。"
crab ?[kr?b] ?抱怨, 找碴兒?someone who becomes annoyed easily about unimportant things
He unrolled the bottle of whiskey from the towel and put it on the table.
他打開毛巾拿出那瓶威士忌來放在桌上。
“Why not let her alone, old sport?”remarked Gatsby.“You’re the one that wanted to come to town.”
"何必找她的碴呢，老兄？"蓋茨比說，"是你自己要進(jìn)城來的。"
There was a moment of silence. The telephone book slipped from its nail and splashed to the floor, whereupon Jordan whispered,“Excuse me.”—but this time no one laughed.
沉默了一會。電話簿從釘子上滑開，啪的一聲掉到地上，于是喬丹低聲說："對不起。"但是這一次沒人笑了。
“I’ll pick it up,”I offered.
"我去撿起來。"我搶著說。
“I’ve got it.”Gatsby examined the parted string, muttered“Hum!”in an interested way, and tossed the book on a chair.
"我撿到了。"蓋茨比仔細(xì)看看斷開的繩子，表示感興趣地"哼"了一聲，然后把電話簿往椅子上一扔。
“That’s a great expression of yours, isn’t it?”said Tom sharply.
"那是你得意的口頭撣，是不是？"湯姆尖銳地說。
“What is?”
"什么是？"
“All this ‘old sport’ business. Where’d you pick that up?”
"張口閉口都是'老兄'。你是從哪里學(xué)來的？"
“Now see here,Tom,”said Daisy, turning around from the mirror,“if you’re going to make personal remarks I won’t stay here a minute. Call up and order some ice for the mint julep.”
"你聽著，湯姆，"黛西說，一面從鏡子前面掉轉(zhuǎn)身來，"如果你打算進(jìn)行人身攻擊，我就一分鐘都不待。打個電話要點冰來做薄荷酒。"
As Tom took up the receiver the compressed heat exploded into sound and we were listening to the portentous chords of Mendelssohn’s Wedding March from the ballroom below.
湯姆一拿起話筒，那憋得緊緊的熱氣突然爆發(fā)出聲音，這時我們聽到門德爾松的《婚禮進(jìn)行曲》驚心動魄的和弦從底下舞廳里傳上來。
portentous??[p???tent?s] adj. 預(yù)兆的,兇兆的; 有…危險的; 自負(fù)的; 不尋常的,難以置信的
“Imagine marrying anybody in this heat!”cried Jordan dismally.
"這么熱竟然還有人結(jié)婚！"喬丹很難受地喊道。
“Still—I was married in the middle of June,”Daisy remembered,“Louisville in June! Somebody fainted. Who was it fainted,Tom?”
"盡管如此--我就是在六月中旬結(jié)婚的，"黛西回憶道，"六月的路易斯維爾！有一個人昏倒了?；璧沟氖钦l，湯姆？"
“Biloxi,”he answered shortly.
"畢洛克西。"他簡慢地答道。
“A man named Biloxi.‘blocks’ Biloxi, and he made boxes—that’s a fact—and he was from Biloxi,Tennessee.”
"一個姓'畢洛克西'的人。'木頭人'畢洛克西，他是做盒子的--這是事實--他又是田納西州畢洛克西市的人。"
木頭人、盒子在原文里都和畢洛克西諧音。
“They carried him into my house,”appended Jordan,“because we lived just two doors from the church. And he stayed three weeks, until Daddy told him he had to get out. The day after he left Daddy died.”After a moment she added as if she might have sounded irreverent,“There wasn’t any connection.”
"他們把他抬進(jìn)我家里，"喬丹補充說，"因為我們住的地方和教堂隔著兩家的距離。他一住就住了三個星期，直到爸爸叫他走路。他走后第二天爸爸就死了。"過了一會她又加了一句話說，"兩件事井沒有什么聯(lián)系。"
“I used to know a Bill Biloxi from Memphis,”I remarked.
"我從前也認(rèn)識一個孟菲斯人叫比爾·畢洛克西。"我說。
孟菲斯（Memphis），田納西州的城市。
“That was his cousin. I knew his whole family history before he left. He gave me an aluminum putter that I use to-day.”
"那是他堂兄弟。他走以前我對他的整個家史都一清二楚了。他送了我一根打高爾夫球的輕擊棒，我到今天還在用。"
aluminum??[??lu?m?n?m] n.〈化〉鋁（元素符號為：Al）
putter ?[?p?t?(r)] n.〈高爾夫〉輕擊棒；短球桿
The music had died down as the ceremony began and now a long cheer floated in at the window, followed by intermittent cries of “Yea-ea-ea!” and finally by a burst of jazz as the dancing began.
婚禮一開始音樂就停了，此刻從窗口又飄進(jìn)來一陣很長的歡呼聲，接著又是一陣陣"好啊--好--啊"的叫喊，最后響起爵士樂的聲音，跳舞開始了。
“We’re getting old,”said Daisy.“If we were young we’d rise and dance.”
"我們都衰老了，"黛西說，"如果我們還年輕的話，我們就會站起來跳舞的。"
“Remember Biloxi,”Jordan warned her.“Where’d you know him,Tom?”
"別忘了畢洛克西。"喬丹警告她，"你是在哪兒認(rèn)識他的，湯姆？"
“Biloxi?”He concentrated with an effort.“I didn’t know him. He was a friend of Daisy’s.”
"畢洛克西？"他聚精會神想了一會，"我不認(rèn)識他。他是黛西的朋友。"
“He was not,”she denied.“I’d never seen him before. He came down in the private car.”
"他才不是哩，"她否認(rèn)道，"我在那以前從來沒見過他。他是坐你的專車來的。"
“Well, he said he knew you. He said he was raised in Louisville. Asa Bird brought him around at the last minute and asked if we had room for him.”
"對啦，他說他認(rèn)識你。他說他是在路易斯維爾長大的。阿莎·伯德在最后一分鐘把他帶來，問我們是否有地方讓他坐。"
Jordan smiled.
喬丹笑了一笑。
“He was probably bumming his way home. He told me he was president of your class at Yale.”
"他多半是不花錢搭車回家。他告訴我他在耶魯是你們的班長。"
Tom and I looked at each other blankly.
湯姆和我彼此茫然地對看。
“Biloxi?”
"畢洛克西？"
“First place, we didn’t have any president——”
"首先，我們壓根兒沒有班長……"
Gatsby’s foot beat a short, restless tattoo and Tom eyed him suddenly.
蓋茨比的腳不耐煩地連敲了幾聲，引起湯姆突然瞧了他一眼。
“By the way, Mr. Gatsby, I understand you’re an Oxford man.”
"說起來，蓋茨比先生，我聽說你是牛津校友。"
“Not exactly.”
"不完全是那樣。"
“Oh, yes, I understand you went to Oxford.”
"哦，是的，我聽說你上過牛津。"
“Yes—I went there.”
"是的，我上過那兒。"
A pause. Then Tom’s voice, incredulous and insulting:
停頓了一會。然后是湯姆的聲音，帶有懷疑和侮辱的口吻：
“You must have gone there about the time Biloxi went to New Haven.”
"你一定是在畢洛克西上紐黑文的時候去牛津的吧。"
Another pause. A waiter knocked and came in with crushed mint and ice but, the silence was unbroken by his “thank you.”and the soft closing of the door. This tremendous detail was to be cleared up at last.
又停頓了一會。一個茶房敲門，端著敲碎了的薄荷葉和冰走進(jìn)來，但是他的一聲"謝謝您"和輕輕的關(guān)門聲也沒打破沉默。這個關(guān)系重大的細(xì)節(jié)終于要澄清了。
“I told you I went there,”said Gatsby.
"我跟你說過了我上過那兒。"蓋茨比說。
“I heard you, but I’d like to know when.”
"我聽見了，可是我想知道在什么時候。"
“It was in nineteen-nineteen, I only stayed five months. That’s why I can’t really call myself an Oxford man.”
"是一九一九年，我只待了五個月。這就是為什么我不能自稱是牛津校友的原因。"
Tom glanced around to see if we mirrored his unbelief. But we were all looking at Gatsby.
湯姆瞥了大家一眼，看看我們臉上是否也反映出他的懷疑。但是我們都在看著蓋茨比。
“It was an opportunity they gave to some of the officers after the Armistice,”he continued.“We could go to any of the universities in England or France.”
"那是停戰(zhàn)以后他們?yōu)橐恍┸姽偬峁┑臋C(jī)會，"他繼續(xù)說下去，"我們可以上任何英國或者法國的大學(xué)。"
I wanted to get up and slap him on the back. I had one of those renewals of complete faith in him that I’d experienced before.
我真想站起來拍拍他的肩膀。我又一次感到對他完全信任，這是我以前體驗過的。
Daisy rose, smiling faintly, and went to the table.
黛西站了起來，微微一笑，走到桌子前面。
“Open the whiskey,Tom,”she ordered,“and I’ll make you a mint julep. Then you won’t seem so stupid to yourself. . . . Look at the mint!”
"打開威士忌，湯姆，"她命令道，"我給你做一杯薄荷酒。然后你就個會覺得自己那么蠢了……你看這些薄荷葉子！"
“Wait a minute,”snapped Tom,“I want to ask Mr. Gatsby one more question.”
"等一會，"湯姆厲聲道，"我還要問蓋茨比先生一個問題。"
“Go on,”Gatsby said politely.
"請問吧。"蓋茨比很有禮貌地說。
“What kind of a row are you trying to cause in my house anyhow?”
"你到底想在我家里制造什么樣的糾紛？"
They were out in the open at last and Gatsby was content.
他們終于把話挑明了，蓋茨比倒也滿意。
“He isn’t causing a row.”Daisy looked desperately from one to the other.“You’re causing a row. Please have a little self-control.”
"他沒制造糾紛，"黛西驚惶地看看這一個又看看那一個，"你在制造糾紛。請你自制一點兒。"
“Self-control!”Repeated Tom incredulously.“I suppose the latest thing is to sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere make love to your wife. Well, if that’s the idea you can count me out. . . . Nowadays people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions, and next they’ll throw everything overboard and have intermarriage between black and white.”
"自制！"湯姆不能置信地重復(fù)道，"我猜想最時髦的事情大概是裝聾作啞，讓不知從哪兒冒出來的阿貓阿狗跟你老婆凋情。哼，如果那樣才算時髦，你可以把我除外……這年頭人們開始對家庭生活和家庭制度嗤之以鼻，再下一步他們就該拋棄一切，搞黑人和白人通婚了。"
Flushed with his impassioned gibberish, he saw himself standing alone on the last barrier of civilization.
他滿口胡言亂語，臉漲得通紅，儼然自以為單獨一個人站在文明最后的壁壘上。
“We’re all white here,”murmured Jordan.
"我們這里大家都是白人嘛。"喬丹咕噥著說。
“I know I’m not very popular. I don’t give big parties. I suppose you’ve got to make your house into a pigsty in order to have any friends—in the modern world.”
"我知道我不得人心。我不舉行大型宴會。大概你非得把自己的家搞成豬圈才能交朋友--在這個現(xiàn)代世界上。"
Angry as I was, as we all were, I was tempted to laugh whenever he opened his mouth. The transition from libertine to prig was so complete.
盡管我和大家一樣感到很氣憤，每次他一張口我就忍不住想笑。一個酒徒色鬼竟然搖身一變就成了道學(xué)先生。
libertine??[?l?b?ti?n] n. 放蕩不羈的人; 淫蕩的人
prig??[pr?ɡ] n. 自命不凡者；道學(xué)先生；一本正經(jīng)的人
