諾貝爾文學經典:《寵兒》第2章Part 9

One-Ton Lady spit at them, but her bulk shortened her aim and they got a big kick out of thehelpless meanness in her little eyes. Arabian Nights Dancer cut her performance to three minutesinstead of the usual fifteen she normally did-earning the gratitude of the children, who couldhardly wait for Abu Snake Charmer, who followed her.
Denver bought horehound, licorice, peppermint and lemonade at table manned by a littlewhitegirl in ladies' high-topped shoes. Soothed by sugar, surrounded by (a) a crowd of people who didnot find her the main attraction, who, in fact, said, "Hey, Denver," every now and then, pleased herenough to consider the possibility that Paul D wasn't all that bad. In fact there was something abouthim — when the three of them stood together watching Midget dance — that made the stares ofother Negroes kind, gentle, something Denver did not remember seeing in their faces. Several evennodded and smiled at her mother, no one, apparently, able to withstand sharing the pleasure Paul having. He slapped his knees when Giant danced with Midget; when Two-Headed Mantalked to himself. He bought everything Denver asked for and much she did not. He teased Setheinto tents she was reluctant to enter. Stuck pieces of candy she didn't want between her lips. WhenWild African Savage shook his bars and said wa wa, Paul D told everybody he knew him back in Roanoke.
Paul D made a few acquaintances; spoke to them about what work he might find. Sethe returnedthe smiles she got. Denver was swaying with delight. And on the way home, although leadingthem now, the shadows of three people still held hands.
A FULLY DRESSED woman walked out of the water. She barely gained the dry bank of thestream before she sat down and leaned against a mulberry tree. All day and all night she sat there,her head resting on the trunk in a position abandoned enough to crack the brim in her straw ything hurt but her lungs most of all. Sopping wet and breathing shallow she spent those hourstrying to negotiate the weight of her eyelids. The day breeze blew her dress dry; the night windwrinkled it. Nobody saw her emerge or came accidentally by. If they had, chances are they wouldhave hesitated before approaching her. Not because she was wet, or dozing or had what soundedlike asthma, but because amid all that she was smiling. It took her the whole of the next morning tolift herself from the ground and make her way through the woods past a giant temple of boxwoodto the field and then the yard of the slate-gray house. Exhausted again, she sat down on the firsthandy place — a stump not far from the steps of 124. By then keeping her eyes open was less of aneffort. She could manage it for a full two minutes or more. Her neck, its circumference no widerthan a parlor-service saucer, kept bending and her chin brushed the bit of lace edging her dress.
Women who drink champagne when there is nothing to celebrate can look like that: their strawhats with broken brims are often askew; they nod in public places; their shoes are undone. Buttheir skin is not like that of the woman breathing near the steps of 124. She had new skin, linelessand smooth, including the knuckles of her hands. By late afternoon when the carnival was over,and the Negroes were hitching rides home if they were lucky — walking if they were not — thewoman had fallen asleep again. The rays of the sun struck her full in the face, so that when Sethe,Denver and Paul D rounded the curve in the road all they saw was a black dress, two unlaced shoesbelow it, and Here Boy nowhere in sight.
"Look," said Denver. "What is that?"

“一噸女士”向他們吐唾沫，可她的大塊頭降低了實際效果，於是她小眼睛裏無能的卑劣讓他們過足了癮。“天方夜譚舞女”把通常十五分鐘的表演減到三分鐘———這讓孩子們不勝感激，因爲他們等不及她下面的那個“阿布蛇魔術師”了。
在腳蹬女式高靿鞋的白人小姑娘掌管的櫃檯上，丹芙要了夏至草汁、甘草汁、薄荷汁和檸檬汁。糖水進肚，神清氣爽，身旁又圍了一羣人———那些人並不青睞她，實際上不時地稱呼她“喂，丹芙”———丹芙很高興開始覺得保羅?D或許不算太壞。說實話，他是有點特別之處———他們仨站住一起看侏儒舞的時候———使得其他黑人的目光和藹、溫柔起來，丹芙從不記得在他們臉上見到過那種表情。有幾個人甚至衝她媽媽點頭、微笑，顯然，沒有人能夠抗拒同保羅?D分享他的快樂。當巨人和侏儒跳舞，還有雙頭人自言自語的時候，他樂得直拍大腿。他給丹芙買了她要的每一樣東西，還有好多她沒要的。他好說歹說把塞絲哄進她不願進的帳篷。把她不想吃的糖果塞滿她的嘴。當“非洲野人”舞着棒子哇哇亂叫時，保羅?D告訴每一個人他早在羅厄諾克時就認識這傢伙了。
保羅D結識了幾個人，跟他們談了他想找什麼樣的工作。塞絲對她得到的微笑也回之一笑。丹芙沉醉在喜悅中。在回家的路上，儘管投到了他們前面，三個人的影子依然手牽着手。
一個穿戴齊整的女人從水中走出來。她好不容易纔夠到乾燥的溪岸，上了岸就立即靠着一棵桑樹坐下來。整整一天一夜，她就坐在那裏，將頭自暴自棄地歇在樹幹上，草帽檐都壓斷了。身上哪兒都疼，肺疼得最厲害。她渾身精溼，呼吸急促，一直在同自己發沉的眼皮較量。白天的輕風吹乾她的衣裙；晚風又把衣裙吹皺。沒有人看見她出現，也沒有人碰巧從這裏經過。即便有人路過，多半也會躊躇不前。不是因爲她身上溼淋淋的，也不是因爲她打着瞌睡或者發出哮喘似的聲音，而是因爲她同時一直在微笑。第二天，她花了整整一個上午從地上爬起來，穿過樹林，經過一座高大的黃楊木神殿進入田野，向石板色房子的宅院走來。她再一次筋疲力盡，就近坐下———坐在離124號的臺階不遠的一個樹樁上。這時她睜開雙眼已經不那麼費勁了，能堅持整整兩分鐘還要多。她那周長不足一個茶碟的脖子一直彎着，下巴摩擦着她裙衣上鑲的花邊。
只有那些在非慶祝場合也喝香檳酒的女人才那副模樣：斷了檐的草帽總是歪戴着；在公共場所跟人隨便點頭；鞋帶也不繫好。但是她們的皮膚可不如這個在124號的臺階附近喘息的女人。她的皮膚是新的，沒有皺紋，而且光滑，連手上的指節都一樣。狂歡節結束時已臨近黃昏，黑人們要是走運就搭車回家———不然就得步行。這時那個女人又睡着了。陽光直射在她整個臉頰上，所以塞絲、丹芙和保羅?D在歸途中拐過彎來，只看見一條黑裙子和下邊兩隻鞋帶散開的鞋，而“來，小鬼”卻無影無蹤了。
“瞧，“丹芙道，”那是什麼？”