诗翁彼豆故事集 第14期:男巫的毛心脏(4)

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　　As we have already seen, Beedle's first two tales attracted criticism of their themes of generosity¹, tolerance² and love. 我们已经看到，彼豆的前两个故事，因为其慷慨、忍耐和仁爱的主题而招致了批评。

　　“The Warlock's Hairy Heart”, however, does not appear to have been modified or much criticised in the hundreds of years since it was first written; the story as I eventually read it in the original runes was almost exactly that which my mother had told me. 而《男巫的毛心脏》自最初写成的几百年来，似乎无人修改过，也很少有人对其作出过批评。我最后读到的这个故事的如尼文原始版本，几乎和我母亲跟我讲的完全一样。

　　That said, “The Warlock's Hairy Heart” is by far the most gruesome of Beedle's offerings, and many parents do not share it with their children until they think they are old enough not to suffer nightmares. 也就是说，《男巫的毛心脏》绝对是彼豆作品中最令人毛骨悚然的一个故事，许多父母一直等到自己的孩子长大到不至于做噩梦的时候才会讲给他们听。

　　Note. 1: According to her own diary, Beatrix Bloxam never recovered from overhearing this story being told by her aunt to her older cousins. 注释一：根据她个人日记的记载，彼阿特丽克斯·布洛克萨姆女士自从无意中听到了婶婶对她堂兄们讲这个故事后，就一直没能从中恢复过来。

　　“Quite by accident, my little ear fell against the keyhole. I can only imagine that I must have been paralysed with horror, for I inadvertently heard the whole of the disgusting story, not to mention ghastly details of the dreadfully unsavoury affair of my uncle Nobby, the local hag and a sack of Bouncing Bulbs. “很偶然的，我的小耳朵靠在了锁眼上。我只能想像我一定是被吓得目瞪口呆了，因为我无意中听到了整个恶心的故事，更别提我一些关于我叔叔诺比极其讨厌的外遇、一个当地的丑老太婆和一袋跳跳根的令人毛骨悚然的细节。

　　The shock almost killed me; I was in bed for a week, and so deeply traumatised was I that I developed the habit of sleepwalking back to the same keyhole every night, until at last my dear papa, with only my best interests at heart, put a Sticking Charm on my door at bedtime.” 这个打击差点要了我的命；我在床上躺了一个礼拜，由于形成了每天晚上梦游都走到同个锁眼处的习惯，我受到了精神创伤，直到最后我亲爱的爸爸为了我的最佳利益着想，在睡前为我的门下上黏贴咒。”

　　Apparently³ Beatrix could find no way to make “The Warlock's Hairy Heart” suitable for children's sensitive ears, as she never rewrote it for The Toadstool Tales. 很显然布洛克萨姆女士没办法使《男巫的毛心脏》适合儿童听，所以她从未在《毒菌故事集》里重写这个故事。

　　Why, then, the survival of this grisly tale? 那么，为什么这个恐怖的故事能保存下来呢？

　　I would argue that “The Warlock's Hairy Heart” has survived intact through the centuries because it speaks to the dark depths in all of us. 我认为，《男巫的毛心脏》之所以历经几个世纪还完好如初，是因为它道出了我们每个人最阴暗的内心世界。

　　It addresses one of the greatest, and least acknowledged, temptations of magic: the quest for invulnerability. 它表达了一种最强大，同时最不被人承认的魔法诱惑：追求金刚不坏之身。

　　Of course, such a quest is nothing more or less than a foolish fantasy. 当然，这样的追求无异于痴心妄想。

　　No man or woman alive, magical or not, has ever escaped some form of injury, whether physical, mental or emotional. 任何一个活着的男人或女人，不管会不会魔法，都摆脱不了某种形式的伤害，肉体的、精神的或情感的。

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