跳蛙讲义

A Brief introduction to “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”:

“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is a comic frontier边境；边界，边缘；尚待开发的领域and western tale, together with many tall过分的夸张的 tales, which Mark Twain heard in the western mining camps in 1861. It was included in his short-story collection The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County and Other Sketches, also his first book which contains twenty-seven short stories and sketches. At the beginning of the short story, a cultured有教养的；人工培养的；耕作了的Easterner relates his recent visit to a talkative old man at a western mining camp. Rather than providing information that the Easterner is looking for, the old man keeps him waiting while he spins 杜撰a tale about a betting man and his pet frog. Jim Smiley was addicted to gambling. He bet on anything from the death of Parson Walker's wife to fights between his bulldog斗牛犬 pup, Andrew Jackson, and other dogs. One day a stranger to the town agreed to bet on a frog jumping higher than Jim's frog, Daniel Webster. When Jim wasn't looking, the stranger poured a quail n.鹌鹑；鹌鹑肉；<美俚>女大学生vi.沮丧；畏缩，胆怯；感到恐惧vt.使沮丧；使畏缩shot into Daniel Webster's mouth, making it impossible for him to jump at all. The stranger won the $40 bet and escaped before Jim realized the con.

Exercise: Mark the following statements True or False according to the information provided in the text. （备注：答案附在小说末尾）FFTTFTFTTF

F1) The writer came all the way from the East in order to find Jim Smiley to make a bet.

F2) The setting of the short story is in Angel's Camp, a small town of miners in the east coast.

T3) As the narrator of the story about the jumping frog, Simon Wheeler was a good-natured and

talkative man.

T4) The writer tried to inquire after Leonidas W. Smiley, only to be told a story about Jim Smiley. F5) All through his account, Wheeler kept smiling or frowning, showing his interest and

enthusiasm towards his story.

T6) Jim Smiley was a very eccentric man because he was crazy about betting on almost anything. F7) Jim Smiley was so crazy about betting that he even once went to Mexico to bet on a

straddle-bug.

T8) Jim Smiley?s bull-pup, Andrew Jackson, won him quite a lot of bets because its strong suit was

to bite its opponent?s hind leg.

T9) Daniel Webster, the frog possessed by Smiley, was claimed to be able to outjump any frog in

Calaveras County.

F10) Jim Smiley was swindled four dollars by the stranger who filled his jumping frog with quail

shot.

Please read “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”:

In compliance [k?m?pla??ns]n.服从，听从；承诺；柔软度；顺度with顺从，如 the request of a friend of mine, who wrote me from the

hereunto到此为止，迄今append附加；添加；贴上the result. I have a lurking潜伏，埋伏；潜藏，潜在；偷偷地行动

East, I called on拜访（某人）；叫；号召；要求good-natured和善的；性格好的，脾气好的；温厚的；好说话儿, garrulous old Simon Wheeler, and inquired after查询，查阅（信息、资料等）；问候my friend's friend, Leonidas W. Smiley, as requested to do, and I

suspicion that Leonidas W. Smiley is a myth; and that my friend never knew such a personage [?p?:s?n?d?]n.人，（尤指）要人，名人;

and that he only conjectured [k?n?d??kt??]n.推测，猜想；设想，揣度；想像；计划vt.& vi.推测，猜想；估量；揣摩；设想that if I asked

old Wheeler about him, it would remind him of his infamous Jim Smiley, and he would go to work and bore令人厌烦；钻孔；用钻、挖或掘的方式打通me to death with some exasperating [?ɡ

?z?sp??ret??]adj.使人恼怒的v.激怒，触怒reminiscence [?r?m??n?s?ns]n.旧事，回忆；回忆录of him as long and as tedious

as it should be useless to me. If that was the design, it succeeded.

I found Simon Wheeler dozing打盹儿，打瞌睡；假寐

earnestness and sincerity,

which showed me plainly that, so far from his imagining that there was anything ridiculous or funny about his story, he regarded it as a really important matter, and admired its two heroes as men of transcendent adj.卓越的，至高无上的；超然的n.卓越的人，尤物；

comfortably by the barroom酒吧间 stove窑；干燥室，烘房of the 超越认识的事物genius in

n?s]n.手腕，手dilapidated [d??l?p??det?d]adj.残破的，失修的；荒废的，衰败的；finesse [f??破旧tavern [?t?v?rn]n.小旅馆，客栈；酒馆in the decayed 段；技巧，策略；纤细；偷

牌vt.巧妙处理；以偷牌方

[d??ked]adj.烂了的，腐败的mining camp of Angel's, and I noticed

式先出；施巧计；[牌]偷牌vi.施展巧计；偷牌. I let

that he was fat and bald-headed, and had an expression of winning获胜的，赢的；成功的，胜利的；吸引人的；迷人的gentleness温和；和善；彬彬有礼；高贵and simplicity朴素；质朴，天真；卑贱；无知upon his tranquil安静的；平静的；宁静的countenance表情；脸，面孔；赞同，支持；鼓励. He

garrulous: 喋喋不休的 hereunto: 这里以下 append: 赘述 lurking: 隐约的 conjecture: 猜想

infamous:无耻的,厚脸皮的

exasperating reminiscence: 让人生气的回忆 dilapidated: 破烂不堪的 bald-headed: 秃头的 tranquil: 宁静安详的

him go on in his own way, and never interrupted him once.

\Leonidas W. H'm, Reverend Le--well, there was a feller男朋友 here once by the name of名叫，以…的名义Jim Smiley, in the winter of '49--or may be it was the spring of '50--I don't recollect exactly, somehow, though what makes me think it was one or the other is because I remember the big flume [flum]n.水槽；

斜槽；液槽；水道v.顺流搬运；用槽引水；利用水槽；造水槽warn't

roused up, and gave me good-day. I told him a friend had commissioned me to make some inquiries about a cherished companion of his boyhood named Leonidas W. Smiley-- Rev. Leonidas W. Smiley, a young minister of the Gospel, who he had heard was at one time a resident of Angel's Camp. I added that if Mr. Wheeler could tell me anything about this Rev. Leonidas W. Smiley, I would feel under many obligations to him. Simon Wheeler backed me into a corner and blockaded me there with his chair, and then sat down and reeled n.卷轴；卷盘；卷筒；绕在卷轴上的线（或金属丝、胶卷等）vt.卷；绕vi.蹒跚，摇晃；来回旋转；眩晕off滔滔不绝地谈论the monotonous narrative which follows

this paragraph. He never smiled, he never frowned, he never changed his voice from the gentle-flowing key to which he tuned his initial sentence, he never betrayed显露 the slightest suspicion of enthusiasm; but all through the interminable冗长的；无止境的；没完没了narrative there ran a vein气质，倾向 of impressive

finished when he first came to the camp; but any way, he was the curiousest man about always betting on anything that turned up you ever see, if he could get anybody to bet on the other side; and if he couldn't he'd change sides. Any way that suited the other man would suit him--any way just so's he got a bet, he was satisfied. But still he was lucky, uncommon lucky; he most always

come out winner. He was always ready and laying for <非正>暗中等待（伺机攻击），埋伏着等待a chance; there couldn't be no solit'ry thing mentioned but that feller'd offer to bet on it, and take any side you please, as I was just telling you. If there was a horse-race, you'd find him flush or you'd find him busted突击搜查（或搜捕）；（使）降级，降低军阶 失败，输个精光at the end of it; if there was a dog-fight, he'd bet on it; if there was a cat-fight, he'd bet on it; if there was a chicken-fight, he'd bet on it; why, if there was two birds setting on a fence, he would bet you which one would fly first; or if there was a camp-meeting, he would be there reg'lar to bet on Parson Walker, which he judged to be the best exhorter劝勉者，告诫者，提倡者about here, and he was, too, and a good man. If he even see a straddle叉开腿；跨坐；不表明态度；[军]向（目标）作夹叉射击[轰炸] -bug昆虫；陷，瑕疵；细菌，病菌；窃听器屎壳郎start to go anywheres, he would bet you

抱怨；困扰，折磨vi.叱责，抱怨；困扰，焦虑n.挑剔的人；马，老马, but that

was only in fun, you know, because, of course, she was faster than that--and he used to win money on that horse, for all she was so slow and always had the asthma气喘，哮喘, or the

distemper n.大瘟热，不高兴，病异状vt.用胶画颜料画，使发狂, or the consumption肺病；耗尽；[医学]消耗性疾病, or

how long it would take him to get to--to wherever he was going to, and if you took him up, he would foller that straddle-bug to Mexico but what除非 he would find out where he was bound for开往…，以…

为目的地；开赴and how long he was on the road. Lots of the boys here

has seen that Smiley and can tell you about him. Why, it never made no difference to him--he'd bet on any thing--the dangdest 荒唐透顶的feller. Parson Walker's wife laid very sick once, for a good while, and it seemed as if they warn't going to save her; but one morning he come in, and Smiley up and asked him how she was, and he said she

注释：

commission: 委托 cherished: 受人爱戴的 Rev.: 对僧侣、牧师的尊称 obligation: 感激 blockade: 封闭

reel off: 滔滔不绝地谈论 frown: 皱眉 betray: 显露

interminable: 无止尽的

transcendent genius in finesse: 智谋方面的奇才 recollect: 记得，回忆起 flume: 渡槽 warn?t: =wasn?t

just so?s: 只要=so long as solit?ry: 单一的=solitary

flush: 因兴奋而脸红，神采飞扬 bust: 失败，输个精光 exhorter: 劝勉者 straddle-bug: 屎壳郎 take up: 接受打赌 foller: 跟随=follow but what: 除非

dangest: 荒唐透顶的

something of that kind. They used to give her two or three hundred yards start, and then pass her under way; but always at the fag-end废渣，终点 of the race she'd get excited and desperate-like, and come

cavorting [k??v?rt]vi.跳跃and straddling up, and

scattering her legs

around limber肢翼, sometimes in the air, and sometimes out to one side amongst the fences, and kicking up m-o-r-e dust and raising mo-r-e

racket n.（网球等）球拍；〈美俚〉勒索金钱，讹诈，敲诈，骗局；（四周有围墙的）拍打回力网球，硬壁回力球；喧骚，吵闹，嚷闹，扰嚷，喧骚嘈杂的集会，狂欢v.嚷闹，吵闹，纵情欢闹；用球拍打with her

coughing and sneezing and blowing her nose—and always fetch up到达；停止；<非正>呕出；把…带到楼上at the

was considerable better--thank the Lord for his inf'nit' mercy--and coming on so smart that with the blessing of Prov'dence she'd get well yet; and Smiley, before he thought, says, “Well, I'll resk two-and-a-half she don't anyway.”

Thish-yer Smiley had a mare母马，母驴；<天>月球表面阴暗部；〈外〉海；骒马--the boys called her the fifteen-minute nag vt.不断找岔，stand just about a neck

ahead, as near as you could cipher n.密码；零；

不重要的人；无价值的东西

vt.用密码书写it down勉强分出胜负.

And he had a little

small bull-pup, that to look at him you'd think he warn't worth a cent but to set around and look ornery 脾气坏的and lay for a chance to steal something. But as soon as money was up on him he was a different dog; his under-jaw'd begin to stick out伸出来；竖起；坚持；断言like the fo'-castle of a steamboat, and his teeth would uncover and shine like the furnaces. And a dog might tackle着手处理；[橄榄球]擒住并摔倒（一名对方球员）；给（马）配上挽具him and bully-rag嘲笑捉弄 him, and bite him, and throw him over his shoulder two or three times, and Andrew Jackson--which was the name of the pup--Andrew Jackson would never let on but 除…之外what he was satisfied, and hadn't expected nothing else--and the bets being doubled and doubled on the other side all the time, till the money was all up; and then all of a sudden he would grab that other dog jest n.笑话，玩笑；戏谑，诙谐；笑柄vi.开玩笑，打趣；取笑，嘲弄by the j'int of his hind后面的 leg and freeze to it--not chaw [t??]v.嚼，咀嚼n.一满

口，一口，咀嚼物, you understand, but only just grip and hang on till they throwed up the sponge海绵,认输 if it was a year. Smiley always

come out winner on that pup, till he harnessed治理；给（负重的动物）套轭具；给…穿铠甲a dog once that didn't have no hind legs, because they'd been sawed off锯去，锯掉in a circular圆形的环形的 saw, and when the thing had gone along进行；赞同；兜风；陪伴far enough, and the money was all up, and he come to make a

snatch n.抢；一阵子，一下工夫；很小的数量；<美俚>诱拐vi.作出握住或抢夺的动作；很快接受for his pet holt [holt]n.<古>小林，林丘，林地；

小森林, 最爱咬的地方he see in a minute how he'd been imposed on把…加于；强与…为伴；使硬缠着；给…带来麻烦, and how the other dog had him in the door逼入死角，逼入绝境, so to speak, and he

mare: 母马

nag: 驽马，老爷马 for all: 虽然 asthma: 哮喘

distemper: 瘟热病 consumption: 肺痨 fag-end: 终点

cavort: 欢快地跑，腾跃 racket: 喧闹

fetch up: 最终到达

cipher down:勉强分出胜负 bull-pup: 牛头狗 ornery: 坏脾气的；卑下的；(口语)下贱样

fo?-castle: 前甲板上的水手舱

tackle: 拉扯

bully-rag: 戏弄，摔打 Andrew Jackson: 美国第七任总统，此处指狗名 j?int: 关节=joint freeze: 紧咬不放

throw up the sponge: 认输 harness: 与(狗)打斗

pet holt: 最爱咬的地方, 应为pet hold see: 应为saw

have him in the door: 逼入死角，逼入绝境

?peared: 好像=appeared shuck out: 咬得遍体鳞伤 limp off: 一瘸一拐地走开 stuff: 高超本领，优良品质 his?n: 应为his

out.

Well,

thish-yer

'peared surprised, and then he looked sorter discouraged-like, and didn't try no more to win the fight, and so he got shucked out vt.剥壳，剥外皮，脱去n.壳，外皮，荚；毫无价值的东西 咬得遍体鳞伤bad. He gave Smiley a look, as much as to say his heart was broke, and it was his fault, for putting up a dog that hadn't no hind legs for him to take holt of, which was his main dependence in a fight, and then he limped n.跛行；挣扎着慢慢前进；（诗的）韵律紊乱vi.一瘸一拐地走；困难地航行adj.无力的；无生气的；易弯的；松软的off一瘸一拐地走开a piece and laid

Smiley had rat-tarriers捉耗子的狗, and chicken cocks小公鸡, and tom-cats公猫 and all of them kind of things, till

you couldn't rest, and you couldn't fetch nothing for him to bet on but he'd match you. He ketched a frog one day, and took him home, and said he cal'lated to educate him; and so he never done nothing for

three months but set in his back yard and learn that

down and died. It was a good pup, was that Andrew Jackson, and would have made a name for himself if he'd lived, for the stuff高超本领，优良品质was in him and he had genius--I know it, because he hadn't no opportunities to speak of, and it don't stand to reason that a dog could make such a fight as he could under them circumstances if he hadn't no talent. It always makes me feel sorry when I think of that last fight of his'n, and the way it turned

Prov?dence: 上帝 resk: 打赌=risk

Thish-yer: 你那位斯迈利=This your

frog to jump. And you bet you he did learn him, too. He'd give him a little punch behind, and the next minute you'd see that frog whirling in the air like a doughnut油炸圈饼--see him turn one summerset翻筋斗, or may be a couple, if he got a good start, and come down flat-footed and all right, like a cat. He got him up so in the matter of ketching flies, and kep' him in practice so constant, that he'd nail钉住；抓住；使固定；揭露a fly every time as fur as he could see him. Smiley said all a frog wanted was education, and he could do 'most anything--and I believe him. Why, I've seen him set Dan'l Webster down here on this floor--Dan'l Webster was the name of the frog--and sing out, \spring straight up and snake沿…曲折前进（或延伸）；<美>/<口>拖，拉（木

材等）a fly off'n the counter there, and flop down一屁股坐在on the

floor ag'in as solid as a gob n.凝块，口，<俚>美国水兵vi.吐唾沫of mud,

and fall to开始；落到…；被击败；倒在scratching the side of his head with his hind foot as indifferent as if he hadn't no idea he'd been doin' any more'n any frog might do. You never see a frog so modest and straightfor'ard as he was, for all尽管， 虽然he was so gifted. And when it come to fair and square jumping on a dead level空层；静水位；静态电平；绝对高程, he could get over more ground at one straddle than any animal of his breed属种类血型 you ever see. Jumping on a dead level was his strong suit强项, you understand; and when it come to that, Smiley would ante up 下赌注money on him as long as he had a red一分钱. Smiley was monstrous丑陋的；巨大的；畸形的；与传说中怪物相象的proud of his frog, and well he might be, for fellers [俚](=fellow)伙伴, 小伙子that had traveled and been everywheres, all said he laid over胜过 any frog that ever they see.

Well, Smiley kep' the beast in a little lattice [?l?t?s]n.格子框架；类似格子框架的设计vt.把…制成格子状；用格子覆盖或装饰box, and

he used to fetch him downtown sometimes and lay for a bet. One day a feller--a stranger in the camp, he was--come acrost him with his box, and says:

\

And Smiley says, sorter indifferent-like, \might be a parrot, or it might be a canary [k??n?ri]n.[动]金丝雀；淡黄色；（十六世纪流行于法国及西班牙的）加那利舞；加那利白葡萄酒, maybe, but it ain't--it's only just a frog.\

And the feller took it, and looked at it careful, and turned it round this way and that, and says, \\I should judge--he can outjump any frog in Calaveras county.\

The feller took the box again, and took another long, particular look,

whirl: 旋转

doughnut: 油炸圈饼 summerset: 翻筋斗 as fur as: 应为as far as Dan'l Webster: 美国政客(1782-1852),此处指青蛙名 sing out: 大声讲

quicker?n: =quicker than off?n: =off on

flop down: 猛地落下 ag?in: =again

on a dead level: 在同一平面上

strong suit: 强项 ante up: 下赌注 red: (俚语) 一分钱 monstrous: 极度的，极端的 lay over: 胜过，比…强 canary: 金丝雀 ain?t: 应为isn?t

careful: 应为carefully so ?tis: 的确是，应为so it is don?t see no p'ints: 看不出 opinion and I'll resk forty dollars that he can outjump any frog in Calaveras County.\

And the feller studied a minute, and then says, kinder sad like, \I'm only a stranger here, and I ain't got no frog; but if I had a frog, I'd bet you.\

and give it back to Smiley, and says, very deliberate蓄意的；深思熟虑的；慎重的, \

that's any better'n any other frog.\

\you don't,\Smiley says. \you understand frogs and maybe you don't understand 'em; maybe you've had experience,

and prized珍视珍惜估and maybe you ain't only a amature, as it were. Anyways, I've got my

rat-tarrier: 捉耗子的狗 chicken cock: 小公鸡 tom-cat: 公猫

ketched: 逮到，应为caught

never done nothing: 应为never did anything learn: 教会=teach punch: 猛击

And then Smiley says, \all right--that's all right--if you'll hold my box a minute, I'll go and get you a frog.\And so the feller took the box, and put up his forty dollars along with Smiley's, and set down to wait.

So he set there a good while thinking and thinking to himself, and then he got the frog out

价 his mouth open and took a teaspoon茶匙 and filled him full of quail shot--filled him pretty near up to his

chin--and set him on the floor. Smiley he went to the swamp and

slopped around vi.溢出，泼出；在泥浆（或雪泥）中走vt.（液体）晃出；使（某物）溢出或泼出；休息，放松，偷懒 费力地走in the mud for a long

钮扣孔vt.强迫听或谈me

and recommenced:

kinder: 有点儿=kind of prize: 撬开

quail shot: 铅砂弹，用于打鹌鹑

slop around:费力地走 alongside: 并排 git: (口语)开始 hyste up: 耸起肩膀 budge: 移动一下 anchor out: (船)抛锚 didn?t have no idea: =had no idea

jerk his thumb: 扬起大拇指 throw off: 故意输掉 baggy: 宽松下垂的，此处指肚子鼓鼓的 heft: 掂量

Why blame my cats if: 如果…才怪哩！ belch out: 吐出，喷出 by your leave: (插入语)请原谅，对不起

vagabond: 流浪汉，流氓混混 sociable: 好客的，好交际的 buttonhole: 强留某人谈话

time, and finally he ketched a frog, and fetched him in, and give him

to this feller, and says:

\if you're ready, set him alongside of Dan'l, with his forepaws just even with Dan'l's, and I'll give the word.\\touched up（对图画或文章等）做小的修改；润色；唤醒；对…起刺激作用the frogs from behind, and the new frog hopped off起飞 lively, but Dan'l give a heave举起；波动；隆起；呕吐, and hysted up耸起肩膀 his shoulders--so--like a Frenchman, but it warn't no use--he couldn't

budge vt.& vi.（使）稍微移动；（使）改变主意，（使）让步；（立场等）动摇；推动n.（毛向外翻的）羔羊皮；革囊；〈美方〉酒adj.用羔羊皮装饰的；<古>浮夸的；自负的；庄严的; he was planted as solid as a church, and he couldn't no more stir than if he was anchored抛锚，抛锚泊船；使固定，使稳固；使稳定；在…任节目主持人out. Smiley was a good

deal surprised, and he was disgusted反感厌恶 too, but he didn't have no idea what the matter was, of course. The feller took the money and started away; and when he was going out at the door, he sorter（sort of） jerked vt.猛拉；把（牛肉）

切成薄片晒干vt.& vi.（使…）猝然一动[颤动]his thumb over his

shoulder--so--at Dan'l, and says again, very deliberate, \he says, \frog.\

Smiley he stood scratching his head and looking down at Dan'l a long time, and at last says, \throwed off迅速脱掉；摆脱 故意输掉 for--I wonder if there ain't something the matter with him--he 'pears to look mighty 非常，很baggy袋状的；宽松下垂的, somehow.\绒毛 of the neck, and hefted举…以掂重量；举起him, and says, \cats if he don't weigh five pounds!\and turned him upside down and he belched vi.打嗝，嗳气；喷出，吐出；埋怨，抱怨vt.打嗝，嗳气；喷射，喷出；态度蛮横地发出（叱咤等）n.打嗝，嗳气；喷出物；喷吐，喷射；劣质啤酒out喷出 a double handful of shot. And then he see how it was, and he was the maddest man--he set the frog down and took out after追

赶，追捕 that feller, but he never ketched him. And----

(Here Simon Wheeler heard his name called from the front yard, and got up to see what was wanted.) And turning to me as he moved away, he said: \set where you are, stranger, and rest easy--I ain't going to be gone a second.\

But, by your leave, 请原谅，对不起I did not think that a continuation of the history of the enterprising vagabond [?v?ɡ??bɑnd]n.流浪者，游手好闲者adj.流浪的；流浪者的；漂泊的；声名狼藉的Jim Smiley would be likely to afford me much information concerning the Rev. Leonidas W. Smiley, and so I started away.

At the door I met the sociable Wheeler returning, and he buttonholed n.keys to the T or F exercise:

\thish-yer Smiley had a yaller [?j?l?]n.<美俚>黄色adj.黄色的, one-eyed cow that didn't have no tail, only jest a short stump（被砍下的树的）树桩；残余部分，假肢；（板球三柱门的）柱；残余部分like a bannanner, and----\

However, lacking both time and inclination爱好, I did not wait to hear about the afflicted cow, but took my leave.

yaller: 应为yellow

jest: 应为just stump: 凸起物 bannanner: 应为banana inclination: 兴趣

afflicted: 饱受折磨的，遭罪的

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