OUT OF THE GATE.

 Out of the glorious city gate

A great throng¹ came.

A mighty² throng that swelled³ and grew

Around a face that all men knew—

A man who bore a noted⁴ name—

Gathered to listen to his fate.

The Judge sat high. Unbroken black

Around, above, and at his back.

The people pressed for nearer place,

Longing⁵, yet shamed, to watch that face;

And in a space before the throne

The prisoner stood, unbound, alone.

So thick they rose on every side,

There was no spot his face to hide.

Then came the Herald⁶, crying clear,

That all the listening crowd should hear;

Crying aloud before the sun

What thing this fallen man had done.

He—who had held a ruler’s place

Among them, by their choice and grace—

He—fallen lower than the dust—

Had sinned against his public trust!

The Herald ceased. The Poet arose,

The Poet, whose awful art now shows

To this poor heart, and heart of every one,

The horror of the thing that he had done.

“O Citizen! Dweller⁷ in this high place!

Son of the city! Sharer in its pride!

Born in the light of its fair face!

By it fed, sheltered, taught, and glorified⁸!

Raised to pure manhood by thy city’s care;

Made strong and beautiful and happy there;

Loving thy mother and thy father more

For the fair town which made them glad before;

Finding among its maidens⁹ thy sweet wife;

Owing to it thy power and place in life;

Raised by its people to the lofty stand

Where thou couldst execute their high command;

Trusted and honored, lifted over all,—

So honored and so trusted, didst thou fall!

Against the people—who gave thee the power—

Thou hast misused¹⁰ it in an evil hour!

Against the city where thou owest all all—

Thy city, man, within whose guarding wall

Lie all our life’s young glories—ay, the whole!

The home and cradle of the human soul!

Against thy city, beautiful and strong,

Thou, with the power it gave, hast done this wrong!”

Then rose the Judge. “Prisoner, thy case was tried

Fairly and fully¹¹ in the courts inside.

Thy guilt¹² was proven, and thou hast confessed,

And now the people’s voice must do the rest.

I speak the sentence which the people give:

It is permitted thee to freely live,

Redeem¹³ thy sin by service to the state,

But nevermore within this city’s gate!”

Back rolled the long procession, sad and slow,

Back where the city’s thousand banners blow.

The solemn music rises glad and clear

When the great gates before them open near,

Rises in triumph, sinks to sweet repose¹⁴,

When the great gates behind them swing and close.

Free stands the prisoner, with a heart of stone.

The city gate is shut. He is alone.

1 throng   

n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集

参考例句：

• A patient throng was waiting in silence.一大群耐心的人在静静地等着。
• The crowds thronged into the mall.人群涌进大厅。

2 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

3 swelled   

增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情）

参考例句：

• The infection swelled his hand. 由于感染，他的手肿了起来。
• After the heavy rain the river swelled. 大雨过后，河水猛涨。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

6 herald   

vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎

参考例句：

• In England, the cuckoo is the herald of spring.在英国杜鹃鸟是报春的使者。
• Dawn is the herald of day.曙光是白昼的先驱。

7 dweller   

n.居住者，住客

参考例句：

• Both city and town dweller should pay tax.城镇居民都需要纳税。
• The city dweller never experiences anxieties of this sort.城市居民从未经历过这种担忧。

8 glorified   

美其名的，变荣耀的

参考例句：

• The restaurant was no more than a glorified fast-food cafe. 这地方美其名曰餐馆，其实只不过是个快餐店而已。
• The author glorified the life of the peasants. 那个作者赞美了农民的生活。

9 maidens   

处女( maiden的名词复数 )； 少女； 未婚女子； （板球运动）未得分的一轮投球

参考例句：

• stories of knights and fair maidens 关于骑士和美女的故事
• Transplantation is not always successful in the matter of flowers or maidens. 花儿移栽往往并不成功，少女们换了环境也是如此。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

10 misused   

v.使用…不当( misuse的过去式和过去分词 )；把…派作不正当的用途；虐待；滥用

参考例句：

• He misused his dog shamefully. 他可耻地虐待自己的狗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had grossly misused his power. 他严重滥用职权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

12 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

13 redeem   

v.买回，赎回，挽回，恢复，履行（诺言等）

参考例句：

• He had no way to redeem his furniture out of pawn.他无法赎回典当的家具。
• The eyes redeem the face from ugliness.这双眼睛弥补了他其貌不扬之缺陷。

14 repose   

v.(使)休息；n.安息

参考例句：

• Don't disturb her repose.不要打扰她休息。
• Her mouth seemed always to be smiling,even in repose.她的嘴角似乎总是挂着微笑，即使在睡眠时也是这样。