FIVE Strange Death 10

10
FOR TEN YEARS I had been away from my village. Now I stood before Second Grandma’s grave,affecting the hypocritical display of affection I had learned from high society, with a bodyimmersed so long in the filth¹ of urban life that a foul² stench oozed³ from my pores. I had paid myrespects at many gravesites before coming to that of the woman whose short but magnificent lifeconstitutes a page in the most heroic and most bastardly history of my hometown. Her eerie,supernatural death had awakened⁴ in the souls of Northeast Gaomi Township a mysteriousemotion that germinated⁵, grew, and became strong, flowing slowly through the memories ofvillage elders like a sweet scarlet⁶ syrup⁷ that fortified⁸ us and made us capable of facing the worldof the future.
On each of my previous visits to the village, the power of that mysterious emotion wasrevealed in the drunken eyes of those old-timers. Comparisons are always risky⁹, but when Iapproach them logically, I discover to my horror that in my ten years away from the village Ihave seen eyes like that only in the fragile heads of pet rabbits, turned red by boundless¹⁰ desire.
There are, it appears, two separate human races, each evolving in accordance with its own valuesystem. What frightens me is that my eyes, too, have taken on that crafty¹¹ look, and that I havebegun to utter only the words that others have spoken, themselves repeating the words of stillothers. Have I no voice of my own?
Second Grandma leaps from her grave holding a golden-hued mirror, the deep lines of amocking grin tilting¹² the corners of her full lips. ‘You’re no grandson of mine. Look at yourself!’
Her clothes flutter, and everything is the same as when she was put in her coffin¹³, yet she isyounger and lovelier than I had imagined; the messages carried by her voice prove that she isinfinitely more thoughtful and profound than I. Her thoughts are liberal, dignified¹⁴, and richlyresilient, yet serene¹⁵ and firm, whereas mine float tentatively in the air like the transparentmembrane of a reed flute¹⁶.
I look at my reflection in Second Grandma’s brass¹⁷ mirror. As I’d feared, the clever look of apet rabbit shines in my eyes; words that belong to others, not to me, emerge from my mouth, justas the words emerging from Second Grandma’s mouth on her deathbed belonged to others, not toher. My body is covered with the seals of approval of famous people.
I am scared to death.
‘Grandson!’ she says magnanimously. ‘Come home! You’re lost if you don’t. I know youdon’t want to, I know you’re scared of all the flies, of the clouds of mosquitoes, of snakesslithering across the damp sorghum¹⁸ soil. You revere¹⁹ heroes and loathe²⁰ bastards²¹, but who amongus is not the “most heroic and most bastardly”? As you stand before me now, I can smell the pet-rabbit odour you brought with you from the city. Quick, jump into the Black Water River andsoak there for three days and nights – I only hope that when the catfish²² in the river drink thestench that washes off your body they won’t grow rabbit ears!’
Second Grandma returns swiftly to her grave. The sorghum stands straight and silent; the sun’srays are wet and scorching²³ hot; there is no wind. The grave is covered with weeds whosefragrance fills my nostrils²⁴. It is as though nothing has happened. Off in the distance I hear thehigh-pitched songs of peasants tilling their fields.
The sorghum around the grave is a variety brought in from Hainan Island; the lush greensorghum now covering the rich black soil of Northeast Gaomi Township is all hybrid²⁵. Thesorghum that looked like a sea of blood, whose praises I have sung over and over, has beendrowned in a raging flood of revolution and no longer exists, replaced by short-stalked, thick-stemmed, broad-leafed plants covered by a white powder and topped by beards as long as dogs’
tails. High yield, with a bitter, astringent²⁶ taste, it is the source of rampant²⁷ constipation. With theexception of cadres above the rank of branch secretary, all the villagers’ faces are the colour ofrusty iron.
How I loathe hybrid sorghum.
Hybrid sorghum never seems to ripen²⁸. Its grey-green eyes seem never to be fully²⁹ opened. Istand in front of Second Grandma’s grave and look out at those ugly bastards that occupy thedomain of the red sorghum. They assume the name of sorghum, but are bereft³⁰ of tall, straightstalks; they assume the name of sorghum, but are devoid³¹ of the dazzling sorghum colour.
Lacking the soul and bearing of sorghum, they pollute the pure air of Northeast Gaomi Townshipwith their dark, gloomy, ambiguous faces.
Being surrounded by hybrid sorghum instils³² in me a powerful sense of loss.
As I stand amid the dense³³ hybrid sorghum, I think of surpassingly beautiful scenes that willnever again appear: in the deep autumn of the eighth month, under a high, magnificently clearsky, the land is covered by sorghum that forms a glittering sea of blood. If the autumn rains areheavy, the fields turn into a swampy³⁴ sea, the red tips of sorghum rising above the muddy yellowwater, appealing stubbornly to the blue sky above. When the sun comes out, the surface of thesea shimmers³⁵, and heaven and earth are painted with extraordinarily³⁶ rich, extraordinarily majesticcolours.
That is the epitome³⁷ of mankind and the beauty for which I yearn³⁸, for which I shall alwaysyearn.
Surrounded by hybrid sorghum, whose snakelike leaves entwine themselves around my body,whose pervasive³⁹ green poisons my thoughts, I am in shackles⁴⁰ from which I cannot break free; Igasp and groan⁴¹, and because I cannot free myself from my suffering I sink to the depths ofdespair.
Then a desolate⁴² sound comes from the heart of the land. It is both familiar and strange, like mygranddad’s voice, yet also like my father’s voice, and like Uncle Arhat’s voice, and like theresonant singing voices of Grandma, Second Grandma, and Third Grandma, the woman Liu. Theghosts of my family are sending me a message to point the way out of this labyrinth⁴³:
You pitiable, frail⁴⁴, suspicious, stubbornly biased⁴⁵ child, whose soul has been spellbound bypoisonous wine, go down to the Black Water River and soak in its waters for three days and threenights – remember, not a day more or a day less – to cleanse⁴⁶ yourself, body and soul. Then youcan return to your real world. Besides the yang of White Horse Mountain and the yin of theBlack Water River, there is also a stalk of pure-red sorghum which you must sacrifice everything,if necessary, to find. When you have found it, wield⁴⁷ it high as you re-enter a world of densebrambles and wild predators⁴⁸. It is your talisman⁴⁹, as well as our family’s glorious totem and asymbol of the heroic spirit of Northeast Gaomi Township!

1 filth   

n.肮脏，污物，污秽；淫猥

参考例句：

• I don't know how you can read such filth.我不明白你怎么会去读这种淫秽下流的东西。
• The dialogue was all filth and innuendo.这段对话全是下流的言辞和影射。

2 foul   

adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规

参考例句：

• Take off those foul clothes and let me wash them.脱下那些脏衣服让我洗一洗。
• What a foul day it is!多么恶劣的天气！

3 oozed   

v.（浓液等）慢慢地冒出，渗出( ooze的过去式和过去分词 )；使（液体）缓缓流出；（浓液）渗出，慢慢流出

参考例句：

• Blood oozed out of the wound. 血从伤口慢慢流出来。
• Mud oozed from underground. 泥浆从地下冒出来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 awakened   

v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到

参考例句：

• She awakened to the sound of birds singing. 她醒来听到鸟的叫声。
• The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation. 公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 germinated   

v.（使）发芽( germinate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• First, the researchers germinated the seeds. 研究人员首先让种子发芽。 来自辞典例句
• In spring they are germinated and grown for a year in beds. 春季里，他们在苗床发芽并生长一年。 来自辞典例句

6 scarlet   

n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的

参考例句：

• The scarlet leaves of the maples contrast well with the dark green of the pines.深红的枫叶和暗绿的松树形成了明显的对比。
• The glowing clouds are growing slowly pale,scarlet,bright red,and then light red.天空的霞光渐渐地淡下去了，深红的颜色变成了绯红，绯红又变为浅红。

7 syrup   

n.糖浆，糖水

参考例句：

• I skimmed the foam from the boiling syrup.我撇去了煮沸糖浆上的泡沫。
• Tinned fruit usually has a lot of syrup with it.罐头水果通常都有许多糖浆。

8 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

9 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

10 boundless   

adj.无限的；无边无际的；巨大的

参考例句：

• The boundless woods were sleeping in the deep repose of nature.无边无际的森林在大自然静寂的怀抱中酣睡着。
• His gratitude and devotion to the Party was boundless.他对党无限感激、无限忠诚。

11 crafty   

adj.狡猾的，诡诈的

参考例句：

• He admired the old man for his crafty plan.他敬佩老者的神机妙算。
• He was an accomplished politician and a crafty autocrat.他是个有造诣的政治家，也是个狡黠的独裁者。

12 tilting   

倾斜，倾卸

参考例句：

• For some reason he thinks everyone is out to get him, but he's really just tilting at windmills. 不知为什么他觉得每个人都想害他，但其实他不过是在庸人自扰。
• So let us stop bickering within our ranks.Stop tilting at windmills. 所以，让我们结束内部间的争吵吧！再也不要去做同风车作战的蠢事了。

13 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

14 dignified   

a.可敬的，高贵的

参考例句：

• Throughout his trial he maintained a dignified silence. 在整个审讯过程中，他始终沉默以保持尊严。
• He always strikes such a dignified pose before his girlfriend. 他总是在女友面前摆出这种庄严的姿态。

15 serene   

adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的

参考例句：

• He has entered the serene autumn of his life.他已进入了美好的中年时期。
• He didn't speak much,he just smiled with that serene smile of his.他话不多，只是脸上露出他招牌式的淡定的微笑。

16 flute   

n.长笛；v.吹笛

参考例句：

• He took out his flute, and blew at it.他拿出笛子吹了起来。
• There is an extensive repertoire of music written for the flute.有很多供长笛演奏的曲目。

17 brass   

n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器

参考例句：

• Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

18 sorghum   

n.高粱属的植物，高粱糖浆，甜得发腻的东西

参考例句：

• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。
• They made sorghum into pig feed.他们把高粱做成了猪饲料。

19 revere   

vt.尊崇，崇敬，敬畏

参考例句：

• Students revere the old professors.学生们十分尊敬那些老教授。
• The Chinese revered corn as a gift from heaven.中国人将谷物奉为上天的恩赐。

20 loathe   

v.厌恶，嫌恶

参考例句：

• I loathe the smell of burning rubber.我厌恶燃着的橡胶散发的气味。
• You loathe the smell of greasy food when you are seasick.当你晕船时，你会厌恶油腻的气味。

21 bastards   

私生子( bastard的名词复数 )； 坏蛋； 讨厌的事物； 麻烦事 （认为别人走运或不幸时说）家伙

参考例句：

• Those bastards don't care a damn about the welfare of the factory! 这批狗养的，不顾大局！ 来自子夜部分
• Let the first bastards to find out be the goddam Germans. 就让那些混账的德国佬去做最先发现的倒霉鬼吧。 来自演讲部分

22 catfish   

n.鲶鱼

参考例句：

• Huge catfish are skinned and dressed by hand.用手剥去巨鲇的皮并剖洗干净。
• We gigged for catfish off the pier.我们在码头以鱼叉叉鲶鱼。

23 scorching   

adj. 灼热的

参考例句：

• a scorching, pitiless sun 灼热的骄阳
• a scorching critique of the government's economic policy 对政府经济政策的严厉批评

24 nostrils   

鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Her nostrils flared with anger. 她气得两个鼻孔都鼓了起来。
• The horse dilated its nostrils. 马张大鼻孔。

25 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

26 astringent   

adj.止血的，收缩的，涩的；n.收缩剂，止血剂

参考例句：

• It has an astringent effect.这个有止血的作用。
• Green persimmons are strongly astringent.绿柿子非常涩。

27 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

28 ripen   

vt.使成熟；vi.成熟

参考例句：

• I'm waiting for the apples to ripen.我正在等待苹果成熟。
• You can ripen the tomatoes on a sunny windowsill.把西红柿放在有阳光的窗台上可以让它们成熟。

29 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。

30 bereft   

adj.被剥夺的

参考例句：

• The place seemed to be utterly bereft of human life.这个地方似乎根本没有人烟。
• She was bereft of happiness.她失去了幸福。

31 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

32 instils   

v.逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输( instil的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Providing first instils a sense of obligation in that person to help in return. 先给予的做法可以灌输一种责任感给那个人，使其回过头来帮助对方。 来自互联网

33 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

34 swampy   

adj.沼泽的，湿地的

参考例句：

• Malaria is still rampant in some swampy regions.疟疾在一些沼泽地区仍很猖獗。
• An ox as grazing in a swampy meadow.一头牛在一块泥泞的草地上吃草。

35 shimmers   

n.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的名词复数 )v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The hot pavement sent up shimmers. 晒热的道路浮起热气晃动的景象。 来自辞典例句
• Sunlight shimmers on the waters of the bay. 阳光在海湾的水面上闪烁。 来自辞典例句

36 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

37 epitome   

n.典型，梗概

参考例句：

• He is the epitome of goodness.他是善良的典范。
• This handbook is a neat epitome of everyday hygiene.这本手册概括了日常卫生的要点。

38 yearn   

v.想念；怀念；渴望

参考例句：

• We yearn to surrender our entire being.我们渴望着放纵我们整个的生命。
• Many people living in big cities yearn for an idyllic country life.现在的很多都市人向往那种田园化的生活。

39 pervasive   

adj.普遍的；遍布的，(到处)弥漫的；渗透性的

参考例句：

• It is the most pervasive compound on earth.它是地球上最普遍的化合物。
• The adverse health effects of car exhaust are pervasive and difficult to measure.汽车尾气对人类健康所构成的有害影响是普遍的，并且难以估算。

40 shackles   

手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊

参考例句：

• a country struggling to free itself from the shackles of colonialism 为摆脱殖民主义的枷锁而斗争的国家
• The cars of the train are coupled together by shackles. 火车的车厢是用钩链连接起来的。

41 groan   

vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音

参考例句：

• The wounded man uttered a groan.那个受伤的人发出呻吟。
• The people groan under the burden of taxes.人民在重税下痛苦呻吟。

42 desolate   

adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂

参考例句：

• The city was burned into a desolate waste.那座城市被烧成一片废墟。
• We all felt absolutely desolate when she left.她走后，我们都觉得万分孤寂。

43 labyrinth   

n.迷宫；难解的事物；迷路

参考例句：

• He wandered through the labyrinth of the alleyways.他在迷宫似的小巷中闲逛。
• The human mind is a labyrinth.人的心灵是一座迷宫。

44 frail   

adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的

参考例句：

• Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了，身体虚弱，不便独居。
• She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上，看上去特别虚弱。

45 biased   

a.有偏见的

参考例句：

• a school biased towards music and art 一所偏重音乐和艺术的学校
• The Methods: They employed were heavily biased in the gentry's favour. 他们采用的方法严重偏袒中上阶级。

46 cleanse   

vt.使清洁，使纯洁，清洗

参考例句：

• Health experts are trying to cleanse the air in cities. 卫生专家们正设法净化城市里的空气。
• Fresh fruit juices can also cleanse your body and reduce dark circles.新鲜果汁同样可以清洁你的身体,并对黑眼圈同样有抑制作用。

47 wield   

vt.行使，运用，支配；挥，使用(武器等)

参考例句：

• They wield enormous political power.他们行使巨大的政治权力。
• People may wield the power in a democracy.在民主国家里，人民可以行使权力。

48 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

49 talisman   

n.避邪物，护身符

参考例句：

• It was like a talisman worn in bosom.它就象佩在胸前的护身符一样。
• Dress was the one unfailling talisman and charm used for keeping all things in their places.冠是当作保持品位和秩序的一种万应灵符。