Rip Van Winkle
“I can’t tolerate it any more. I want to escape from this thunder. Oh my goodness, sounding in my ears all day”, Rip Van Winkle murmured. It was night. Rip lay on the bed and next to him was Dame Van Winkle, snoring loudly. Rip had been bothered by her snoring for almost 10 years. According to him, every night Dame Rip Winkle falls asleep as soon as she lays down but he has to bury himself in his pillow and count sheep to help him finally fall asleep. Tonight, having witnessed the skipping of 1000 sheep, Rip still couldn't fall asleep. Many ideas sprang into his still working mind, ideas relevant to an escape plan which Rip had plotted alone in his mind many, many times. But tonight a new idea occurred to him and Rip decided to write them down lest he forget. When Dame Rip Winkle turned over and uttered some vague words Rip immediately stopped writing and waited her snoring to begin again. For the first time Rip regarded her snore as the most wonderful sound in the world. It wasn't until midnight that Rip finished his escape plan, and then Rip finally had a sound sleep.
The next day, when his stronghold was routed by Dame Rip Winkle, disgraced and depressed,Rip made his mind to flee from the family and from his termagant wife. Followed by his faithful friend Wolf, Rip took his gun and strolled away into the woods. Along the way Rip pretended to
greet his neighbors as usual, meanwhile he turned his escape plan over and over in his mind. First, he went into the mysterious mountain and stayed there for about 20 years with his faithful friend—Wolf.20 years is long enough for Dame Van Winkle to soften her temper and forget her huaband.Next,till his children grew up and his shrewish wife was too old to clamor any more,he would come back with an excellent excuse that he had been sleeping for 20 years after drinking the wine provided the strange Dutch,who were often mentioned in this remote and traditional village to add some pleasure to the monotonous life.What an exceptional excuse,Rip thought.Finally,he would live with his children, making up fairytales,chatting with the young, and rambling leisurely everyday. The seemingly watertight plan helped Rip hide himself in the mountain for nearly 20 years, and he only appeared again in the village when he couldn’t put up with his lonely life after Wolf sneaked away one day. Much to his surprise, 20 years had seen the great changes in the village. Even the King had been replaced by someone he didn’t know. Rip had been away so long that he wasn’t recognized by anyone except his daughter. Fortunately, after a while people began to believe his story and some bold people even went to the mountain to search out the dutch in vain.
Rip had finally fulfilled his escape plan and succeeded in getting rid of his wife’s snoring as Dame Rip Winkle had already died in unexpected
circumstances. Rip spent the rest of his life idling away, day by day.
第二篇:Rip van winkle中英对照
Rip van winkle, however, was one of those happy mortals, of foolish, well-oiled dispositions, who take the world easy, eat white bread or brown, whichever can be got with least thought or trouble, and would rather starve on a penny than work for a pond. If left to himself, he would have whistled life away in perfect contentment; but his wife kept continually dinning in his ears about his idleness, his carelessness, and the ruin he was bringing on his family. Morning, noon, and night, his tongue was incessantly going, and every thing he said or did was sure to produce a torrent of household eloquence. Rip had but one way of replying all lectures of the kind, and that, by frequent use, had grown into a habit. He shrugged his shoulders, shook his head, cast up his eyes, but said nothing. This, however, always provoked a fresh volley from his wife, so that he was fain to draw off his forces, and take to the outside of the house——the only side which, in truth, belongs to a hen-pecked husband.
瑞普.凡.温克尔,一个凡夫俗子,为人乐观,品行憨厚,天生圆滑,与世无争,只要不劳他思索,不费其吹灰之力,粗茶淡饭便可打发他,他宁可缺少一个便士而挨饿,也不愿为挣一英镑而工作。如果依着他的想法,他便会自鸣得意地吹着口哨,以此虚度光阴,但他妻子总会在他耳边唠叨他的好逸恶劳、粗心大意和他给家庭造成的伤害。无论早晨、中午、晚上,他总会滔滔不绝,而他所说或所做的势必会引来家人的一连串的唠叨。他总会用同一种方式回应所有好心人的劝导,
久而久之便成了一种习惯。他会耸耸肩,摇摇头,闭着眼,什么也不说,而这往往会引起他妻子连续不断的辱骂。因此,他总是欣然交出大权整日在外游荡。说实话,这在另一方面说明他是个妻管严。