小王子 第16期:蘑菇人

He stared at me, thunderstruck.

他驚訝地看著我。

Matters of consequence!

正經(jīng)事?

He looked at me there, with my hammer in my hand, my fingers black with engine-grease, bending down over an object which seemed to him extremely ugly.

他瞅著我手拿錘子，手指沾滿了油污，伏在一個在他看來丑不可言的機件上。

You talk just like the grown-ups!

你說話就和那些大人一樣!

That made me a little ashamed.

這話使我有點難堪。

But he went on, relentlessly: "You mix everything up together...You confuse everything."

可是他又尖刻無情地說道：“你什么都分不清…你把什么都混在一起!”

He was really very angry.

他著實非常惱火。

He tossed his golden curls in the breeze.

搖動著腦袋，金黃色的頭發(fā)隨風顫動著。

I know a planet where there is a certain red-faced gentleman.

我到過一個星球，上面住著一個紅臉先生。

He has never smelled a flower.

他從來沒聞過一朵花。

He has never looked at a star.

他從來沒有看過一顆星星。

He has never loved any one.

他什么人也沒有喜歡過。

He has never done anything in his life but add up figures.

除了算帳以外，他什么也沒有做過。

And all day he says over and over, just like you: "I am busy with matters of consequence!"

他整天同你一樣老是說：“我有正經(jīng)事，我是個嚴肅的人”。

And that makes him swell up with pride.

這使他傲氣十足。

But he is not a man– he is a mushroom!"

他簡直不象是個人，他是個蘑菇。

A what?

是個什么?

A mushroom!

是個蘑菇!

The little prince was now white with rage.

小王子當時氣得臉色發(fā)白。

The flowers have been growing thorns for millions of years.

幾百萬年以來花兒都在制造著刺，

For millions of years the sheep have been eating them just the same.

幾百萬年以來羊仍然在吃花。

And is it not a matter of consequence to try to understand why the flowers go to so much trouble to grow thorns which are never of any use to them?

要搞清楚為什么花兒費那么大勁給自己制造沒有什么用的刺，這難道不是正經(jīng)事?

Is the warfare between the sheep and the flowers not important?

難道羊和花之間的戰(zhàn)爭不重要?

Is this not of more consequence than a fat red-faced gentleman's sums?

這難道不比那個大胖子紅臉先生的帳目更重要?

And if I know–I, myself–one flower which is unique in the world, which grows nowhere but on my planet,

如果我認識一朵人世間唯一的花，只有我的星球上有它，別的地方都不存在，

but which one little sheep can destroy in a single bite some morning, without even noticing what he is doing–Oh! You think that is not important!

而一只小羊胡里胡涂就這樣把它一下子毀掉了，這難道不重要?