III. Language Points The Woman Who Would Not Tell ------- The woman who was not willing to reveal the wounded soldier to the Confederate Army. 不愿告密的女人

tell: reveal a secret 泄露秘密；告发 Promise you won’t tell. 你要保证不泄露出去。

2. But I could picture her as she was in the story she told me. ---- ----But I could form a picture in my mind of what she looked like in the story she told me. 但我可以想象到故事里她的容貌。

picture: imagine; form a picture of in the mind 想象

在黑暗中我无法看到他的 脸，但是不知怎地我却能想 象出他的表情。 I couldn’t see his face in the dark, but I could somehow picture his expression. 在黑暗中我无法看到他的 脸，但是不知怎地我却能想 象出他的表情。

I can’t quite picture her as the world-record holder of the women’s high-jump. She doesn’t look like an athlete at all. 我不能想象她是女子跳高世界纪录的保持者。她看起来根本不像运动员。

as: conj. in the way in which 以……的方式，正如（如同）……那样

I have told this story just as it happened. 我已如实地讲了这一情况。

take sb. to court: take legal action against sb. 对某人提出诉讼

I told him that I would take him to court if he did not repay the money in a week. 我告诉他如果他在一个星期内不还钱的话，我将对他提出诉讼。

3. One of her brothers was killed at Gettysburg, another taken prisoner.-------One of her brothers died at Gettysburg, another one was put into prison. 他一个兄弟死在了葛底斯堡，一个被俘进了监狱。

take prisoner: seize or hold someone with limited freedom of movement 俘虏某人

那个老兵冒着被俘的危险救了这个小孩。 The old soldier saved the child at the risk of being taken prisoner. 那个老兵冒着被俘的危险救了这个小孩。

Gettysburg:葛底斯堡，美国宾 夕法尼亚南部城镇。美国南北 战争中葛底斯堡战役的战场。 该战役是整个战争中最惨酷的， 也是整个战争的转折点。后来 美国总统林肯在此发表著名的 葛底斯堡演说，提出“民有、民 治、民享”

( “government of the people, by the people, for the people” ) .

4. He had been checking a farmhouse half a mile away from the Van Metre home, a farmhouse he thought was empty. 他在察看距离范·米特的家半英里远的一所农舍，本以为那是一座空房子。

5. … in the stained blue uniform…: Blue was the color of the uniforms worn by the Union soldiers while the Confederates wore gray uniforms. ……那个身着污渍斑 斑的蓝军服……

6. It was like walking into a nightmare: those awful bandages, that dreadful smell. That’s what war is really like, child: no bugles and banners. Just pain and filth, futility and death.

-------Here Aunt Bettie is saying that war is not so glorious or romantic as some people describe it. In reality it only brings about pain and filth, futility and death.

我就像步入一场恶梦： 可怕的绷带，吓人的气味。 孩子，那才是战争的真实 写照：没有军号，也没有 战旗。有的只是痛苦和污 秽，无益与死亡。

7. Then she went out into the cool air and leaned against the house, trying not to be sick as she thought of what she had seen------ that smashed right hand, that missing left leg.

然后她走出农舍，到外面 呼吸一点清凉的空气，她 倚在屋旁，想到她所见到 的这一切，——他那只打 烂的右手，那条失去的左 腿，真是恶心难忍。

be sick: throw up what is in the stomach; vomit 呕吐

The patient had been sick several times today. (He has vomited several times today.) 这个病人今天已呕吐几次 了。

8. The man’s papers Bettie found in the attic established his identity.------ The man’s documents……told her who he was. 贝蒂在顶楼上找到的伤兵的证件，证实了他的身份。

文件，资料；证明书 papers: documents telling who one is or giving one official permission to do sth., for example a passport, visa, and identity card. 文件，资料；证明书

9.…should report the presence of this Union officer to the Confederate army------should report to the Confederate army that there was a Union officer in her farmhouse.

应该把这个联邦政府军官 的情况向南方联邦的军队报告

presence: the fact or state of being present （某人于某地方的）在场， （某事物的）存在；出席

那个年轻人早已注意到 她在宴会上。 The young man had been well aware of her presence at the party. 那个年轻人早已注意到 她在宴会上。

Your presence is requested at the meeting. 敬请出席参加会议。

10….waiting, and hoping, and not knowing -------- …waiting for him to come back, and hoping he was all right, yet not knowing where he was or when he could come back. 等着他，盼着他，可又毫无 音信。

对我来说似乎唯一重要的就是 设法使她的丈夫重新回到她的 身边。 11. It seems to me that the only thing that mattered was to get her husband back to her. 对我来说似乎唯一重要的就是 设法使她的丈夫重新回到她的 身边。

matter: vi. be important 重要，要紧

It does not matter if I miss the last bus because I can go there by bike. 我如果没有赶上最后一班公 共汽车也没有什么关系，因 为我可以骑车去。

I don’t think anybody matters to her apart from herself. 我认为她一心只顾自己， 从不考虑别人。

恢复（某事）；重新（做某事） get back to: cause to return to (sth. or doing sth. such as an activity); reach (a place) again 恢复（某事）；重新（做某事）

My mother always tries to get me back to work as soon as I’m better. 我母亲总是想让我身体好 一些就去上班。

12. Slowly, patiently, skillfully, James Van Metre’s wife fanned the spark of life that flickered in Henry Bedell.------- She brought the dying man (Henry Bedell) back to life in the way that she would fan a dying fire into flame again.

詹姆斯·范·米特的妻子慢 慢地、耐心地、巧妙地点 燃了亨利·比德尔身上奄奄 一息的生命火花。

扇 fan: vt. to make a current of air blow onto (sb. /sth.) with or as if with a fan 扇

Cool one’s face by fanning it with a newspaper 用报纸扇风使脸凉快

Her wild behaviour merely fanned the fames of his jealousy. 她那放肆的举动只是把他的 妒火完全扇起。

13. ….with what she had: with the few (kinds of) drugs and medicines she had “Almost none” in the sentence above implies that she did have some (kinds of)drugs and medicines. ……尽其所有……

比德尔的伤口突然又恶化 起来了。 flare up: 14. The inflection in Bedell’s wounds flared up. 比德尔的伤口突然又恶化 起来了。 flare up:

(1) burn suddenly and more intensely 火焰突然变旺 The fire flared up as I put more logs on it. 我加上了几块木柴，火 顿时旺起来。

(2) reach a more violent state; suddenly become angry, violent, etc. 达到更激烈的状态； 突然发怒

Violence had flared up again in the Middle East. 中东地区暴乱再起。

My asthma tends to flare up on smoggy days. (3) (of disease) suddenly become worse （指疾病）复发 My asthma tends to flare up on smoggy days. 我的哮喘病一到烟雾迷蒙 天就容易复发。

15. or: otherwise; if not 否则 Hurry or you’ll miss the train. 快点儿，否则你就会错 过火车。

16. I’ll get it from the Yankees at Harpers Ferry. 我将设法从驻扎在哈珀斯渡口的北方佬那里搞到。

17. see that / see to it that: make sure that; take care that 确保；务必，保证

See (to it) that you always carry your passport. 你得常带着你的护照。

See that all the doors are locked before you leave. 你一定要查看一下门都 锁好再走。

18. brush aside: disregard, ignore 不理，漠视

He brushed aside my objections to his plan. 他不理睬我对他计划的反对意见。

He was very hurt when you brushed him aside. 你把他冷落一边，他非 常伤心。

19. bring through: save (sb.) from (an illness, etc.) 使人渡过（困难，危机等）；救治，救活

The people’s courage brought them through the war. 人民凭借勇气渡过了战 争年代。

The doctor brought Mother through a serious illness. 医生将母亲从重病中挽救过来。

20. So it was arranged that Mr. Sam, one of Bettie’s neighbors and friends, should go and help Bettie deliver Bedell to Union headquarters at Harpers Ferry in his wagon.

于是，他们作了安排，由贝蒂的邻居和朋友萨姆先生用他的运货马车协助贝蒂将比德尔送交驻守在哈珀斯渡口的联邦政府军司令部。

21. Only an hour from the Union lines: When they came to a place which was only an hour’s drive from the lines of defence of the Union Amy,… 在离联邦政府军防线仅有1小 时的路程时……

22….and the other man went sprawling: the other man fell to the ground with his legs and arms spreading out. 另一个歹徒也躺倒地上。

23. brush: remove with or as if with a brush 掸，拂