Book 7 Chapter 3 The Bells

After the morning in the pillory¹, the neighbors of Notre- Dame² thought they noticed that Quasimodo's ardor³ for ringing had grown cool. Formerly⁴, there had been peals⁵ for every occasion, long morning serenades, which lasted from prime to compline; peals from the belfry for a high mass, rich scales drawn⁷ over the smaller bells for a wedding, for a christening, and mingling⁸ in the air like a rich embroidery⁹ of all sorts of charming sounds. The old church, all vibrating and sonorous¹⁰, was in a perpetual joy of bells. One was constantly conscious of the presence of a spirit of noise and caprice, who sang through all those mouths of brass¹¹. Now that spirit seemed to have departed; the cathedral seemed gloomy, and gladly remained silent; festivals and funerals had the simple peal⁶, dry and bare, demanded by the ritual, nothing more. Of the double noise which constitutes a church, the organ within, the bell without, the organ alone remained. One would have said that there was no longer a musician in the belfry. Quasimodo was always there, nevertheless; what, then, had happened to him? Was it that the shame and despair of the pillory still lingered in the bottom of his heart, that the lashes¹² of his tormentor's whip reverberated¹³ unendingly in his soul, and that the sadness of such treatment had wholly extinguished in him even his passion for the bells? or was it that Marie had a rival in the heart of the bellringer of Notre-Dame, and that the great bell and her fourteen sisters were neglected for something more amiable¹⁴ and more beautiful?

It chanced that, in the year of grace 1482, Annunciation Day fell on Tuesday, the twenty-fifth of March. That day the air was so pure and light that Quasimodo felt some returning affection for his bells. He therefore ascended¹⁵ the northern tower while the beadle below was opening wide the doors of the church, which were then enormous panels of stout¹⁷ wood, covered with leather, bordered with nails of gilded¹⁸ iron, and framed in carvings¹⁹ "very artistically²⁰ elaborated."

On arriving in the lofty bell chamber²¹, Quasimodo gazed for some time at the six bells and shook his head sadly, as though groaning²² over some foreign element which had interposed itself in his heart between them and him. But when he had set them to swinging, when he felt that cluster of bells moving under his hand, when he saw, for he did not hear it, the palpitating octave ascend¹⁶ and descend²³ that sonorous scale, like a bird hopping²⁴ from branch to branch; when the demon²⁵ Music, that demon who shakes a sparkling bundle of strette, trills and arpeggios, had taken possession of the poor deaf man, he became happy once more, he forgot everything, and his heart expanding, made his face beam.

He went and came, he beat his hands together, he ran from rope to rope, he animated²⁶ the six singers with voice and gesture, like the leader of an orchestra who is urging on intelligent musicians.

"Go on," said he, "go on, go on, Gabrielle, pour out all thy noise into the Place, 'tis a festival to-day. No laziness, Thibauld; thou art relaxing; go on, go on, then, art thou rusted²⁷, thou sluggard²⁸? That is well! quick! quick! let not thy clapper be seen! Make them all deaf like me. That's it, Thibauld, bravely done! Guillaume! Guillaume! thou art the largest, and Pasquier is the smallest, and Pasquier does best. Let us wager²⁹ that those who hear him will understand him better than they understand thee. Good! good! my Gabrielle, stoutly³⁰, more stoutly! Eli! what are you doing up aloft there, you two Moineaux (sparrows)? I do not see you making the least little shred³¹ of noise. What is the meaning of those beaks³² of copper³³ which seem to be gaping³⁴ when they should sing? Come, work now, 'tis the Feast of the Annunciation. The sun is fine, the chime must be fine also. Poor Guillaume! thou art all out of breath, my big fellow!"

He was wholly absorbed in spurring on his bells, all six of which vied with each other in leaping and shaking their shining haunches, like a noisy team of Spanish mules³⁵, pricked³⁶ on here and there by the apostrophes of the muleteer.

All at once, on letting his glance fall between the large slate³⁷ scales which cover the perpendicular³⁸ wall of the bell tower at a certain height, he beheld³⁹ on the square a young girl, fantastically dressed, stop, spread out on the ground a carpet, on which a small goat took up its post, and a group of spectators collect around her. This sight suddenly changed the course of his ideas, and congealed⁴⁰ his enthusiasm as a breath of air congeals⁴¹ melted rosin. He halted, turned his back to the bells, and crouched⁴² down behind the projecting roof of slate, fixing upon the dancer that dreamy, sweet, and tender look which had already astonished the archdeacon on one occasion. Meanwhile, the forgotten bells died away abruptly⁴³ and all together, to the great disappointment of the lovers of bell ringing, who were listening in good faith to the peal from above the Pont du Change, and who went away dumbfounded, like a dog who has been offered a bone and given a stone.

 

自从在刑台受刑的那个早晨之后，人们便发觉伽西莫多演奏钟乐的热情低落了。在那以前，遇到什么事都要敲钟，早祷钟，晚祷钟，高音弥撒钟，婚礼钟，洗礼钟，一长串的钟声弥漫在空气里，好象是各种钟声交织成的一幅织锦。那古老的教堂全身颤动着，震荡着，仿佛笼罩在永恒的欢乐里面。

人们觉得有一个喧闹的精灵不停地在那些铜嘴里歌唱。现在那个精灵好象离去了，那座大教堂仿佛死掉了似的悄无声息。不管是节日或举行丧礼的日子，都只有单调的钟声，又枯燥又无味，不过是表示仪式罢了。构成一座教堂的二重奏——内部的风琴声和外部的钟声——，现在就只剩下风琴声了。似乎音乐家已经不在那些钟塔里了，但伽西莫多还是生活在那里。有什么事在使他苦恼？是不是刑台上的耻辱与失望依旧盘据在他的心头？是不是施刑人的鞭打还在不断扰乱他的灵魂？那种悲惨的酷刑消灭了他全部的热情，甚至消灭了他对那些钟的热情。或者，是否在这圣母院敲钟人的心里玛丽有了一个情敌，使那口大钟同她的十四个姐妹由于另一个更美丽更可爱的人而遭到了冷淡？

公元一四八二年的御告节到来了，那天正当三月二十五日，礼拜二，空气非常纯洁轻柔。伽西莫多觉得自己对那些钟又有了一种爱恋心情。当教堂仆役把下面的每道大门打开来的时候，伽西莫多爬到了北边那座钟塔上。那些门是用橡木做成的，包着兽皮，钉着镀金的铁钉，装饰着“最精致”的雕刻。

到了钟塔的最高一层，伽西莫多悲哀地摇着头向那六口大钟望了一会，仿佛在感叹它们和他之间有什么奇怪的东西已经插了进来。可是当他把它们推动起来，当他感觉到那一群钟在他手底下摇晃，当他看到（因为他是听不到的）八度音程在那些发音器上象鸟儿在许多树枝中间跳来跳去的时候，当那音乐的精灵，那使节奏颤音和清音四处传播的精灵迷住了那不幸的聋子的时候，他又快乐起来了，他忘记了一切，他的心舒展了，脸上露出了笑容。

他走来走去，拍着手，从这根绳子跳到那根绳子，用声音和动作鼓励那六个音乐家，就象一位乐队指挥在激励天才的演奏者一般。

“奏鸣吧，”他说道，“奏鸣吧，加布西耶，把你的声音倾泻到广场上去。今天是节日呢。蒂波，你别偷懒，你太慢啦。动弹呀，动弹呀，难道你生锈了吗，懒东西！好了，快些！快些！要快得让人看不见你的摆动。让他们都象我一样给震聋吧。就是这样，就是这样，蒂波，好极了！居约姆，居约姆，你是最大的一口钟，巴斯居耶是最小的一口钟，可是它奏鸣得比你好，我可以保证大家都认为它比你还要响亮呢。好呀，好呀，我的加布西耶，再响些！哎呀，你俩在那上面干什么呀，你们这两只麻雀？我没听见你们响出一点声音。那两张在该唱歌的当儿却打着呵欠的铜嘴有什么用处？喏，干活呀！今天是御告节，阳光好极了，应该奏一阵很好的钟乐。可怜的居约姆，你气都透不过来啦，我的胖朋友！”

他全心全意地在调教那些钟，它们一个赛一个地起劲跳跃着，摇摆着漂亮的腰肢，好象一群被赶骡人吆喝着的西班牙骡子。

忽然，他从挡着钟塔的山墙的石板中间向下望去，望见广场上有一位装束古怪的姑娘，看见她停下来把一条毯子铺在地上，一只小羊走来站在毯子上，一群观众便在她的四周围拢来。这个景象忽然使他改变了主意，仿佛空气使溶化的树脂凝住似的，把他对音乐的热情冻结起来了。他再也不动了，转身背对着那些钟，蜷伏在石板的单斜檐后面，用那已经使副主教惊讶过一次的梦沉沉的温柔的眼光盯着跳舞姑娘。这时那些被遗忘的钟便一齐静下来了，使爱听这些钟声的人非常失望，他们本来正在欧项热桥上快乐地倾听着，这时只好怏怏地走开了，这正好象一条狗，在人家给它看过一块肉之后却扔给了它一块石头。

1 pillory   

n.嘲弄；v.使受公众嘲笑；将…示众

参考例句：

• A man has been forced to resign as a result of being pilloried by some of the press.一人因为受到一些媒体的抨击已被迫辞职。
• He was pilloried,but she escaped without blemish.他受到公众的批评，她却名声未损地得以逃脱。

2 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

3 ardor   

n.热情，狂热

参考例句：

• His political ardor led him into many arguments.他的政治狂热使他多次卷入争论中。
• He took up his pursuit with ardor.他满腔热忱地从事工作。

4 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

5 peals   

n.（声音大而持续或重复的）洪亮的响声( peal的名词复数 )；隆隆声；洪亮的钟声；钟乐v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She burst into peals of laughter. 她忽然哈哈大笑起来。
• She went into fits/peals of laughter. 她发出阵阵笑声。 来自辞典例句

6 peal   

n.钟声；v.鸣响

参考例句：

• The bells of the cathedral rang out their loud peal.大教堂响起了响亮的钟声。
• A sudden peal of thunder leaves no time to cover the ears.迅雷不及掩耳。

7 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

8 mingling   

adj.混合的

参考例句：

• There was a spring of bitterness mingling with that fountain of sweets. 在这个甜蜜的源泉中间，已经掺和进苦涩的山水了。
• The mingling of inconsequence belongs to us all. 这场矛盾混和物是我们大家所共有的。

9 embroidery   

n.绣花，刺绣；绣制品

参考例句：

• This exquisite embroidery won people's great admiration.这件精美的绣品，使人惊叹不已。
• This is Jane's first attempt at embroidery.这是简第一次试着绣花。

10 sonorous   

adj.响亮的，回响的；adv.圆润低沉地；感人地；n.感人，堂皇

参考例句：

• The sonorous voice of the speaker echoed round the room.那位演讲人洪亮的声音在室内回荡。
• He has a deep sonorous voice.他的声音深沉而洪亮。

11 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。

12 lashes   

n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 )；鞭子；突然猛烈的一击；急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• Mother always lashes out food for the children's party. 孩子们聚会时，母亲总是给他们许多吃的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Never walk behind a horse in case it lashes out. 绝对不要跟在马后面，以防它突然猛踢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 reverberated   

回响，回荡( reverberate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射

参考例句：

• Her voice reverberated around the hall. 她的声音在大厅里回荡。
• The roar of guns reverberated in the valley. 炮声响彻山谷。

14 amiable   

adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的

参考例句：

• She was a very kind and amiable old woman.她是个善良和气的老太太。
• We have a very amiable companionship.我们之间存在一种友好的关系。

15 ascended   

v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 ascend   

vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上

参考例句：

• We watched the airplane ascend higher and higher.我们看着飞机逐渐升高。
• We ascend in the order of time and of development.我们按时间和发展顺序向上溯。

18 gilded   

a.镀金的，富有的

参考例句：

• The golden light gilded the sea. 金色的阳光使大海如金子般闪闪发光。
• "Friends, they are only gilded disks of lead!" "朋友们，这只不过是些镀金的铅饼！ 来自英汉文学 - 败坏赫德莱堡

19 carvings   

n.雕刻( carving的名词复数 )；雕刻术；雕刻品；雕刻物

参考例句：

• The desk was ornamented with many carvings. 这桌子装饰有很多雕刻物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town. 贝雕是该城的特产。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 artistically   

adv.艺术性地

参考例句：

• The book is beautifully printed and artistically bound. 这本书印刷精美，装帧高雅。
• The room is artistically decorated. 房间布置得很美观。

21 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

22 groaning   

adj. 呜咽的, 呻吟的 动词groan的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• She's always groaning on about how much she has to do. 她总抱怨自己干很多活儿。
• The wounded man lay there groaning, with no one to help him. 受伤者躺在那里呻吟着，无人救助。

23 descend   

vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降

参考例句：

• I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。
• We're not going to descend to such methods.我们不会沦落到使用这种手段。

24 hopping   

n. 跳跃 动词hop的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The clubs in town are really hopping. 城里的俱乐部真够热闹的。
• I'm hopping over to Paris for the weekend. 我要去巴黎度周末。

25 demon   

n.魔鬼，恶魔

参考例句：

• The demon of greed ruined the miser's happiness.贪得无厌的恶习毁掉了那个守财奴的幸福。
• He has been possessed by the demon of disease for years.他多年来病魔缠身。

26 animated   

adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
• We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。

27 rusted   

v.（使）生锈( rust的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• I can't get these screws out; they've rusted in. 我无法取出这些螺丝，它们都锈住了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• My bike has rusted and needs oil. 我的自行车生锈了，需要上油。 来自《简明英汉词典》

28 sluggard   

n.懒人；adj.懒惰的

参考例句：

• I will not,like a sluggard,wear out my youth in idleness at home.我不愿意象个懒人一样待在家里，游手好闲地把我的青春消磨掉。
• Seryozhka is a sluggard.谢辽日卡是个懒汉，酒鬼。

29 wager   

n.赌注；vt.押注，打赌

参考例句：

• They laid a wager on the result of the race.他们以竞赛的结果打赌。
• I made a wager that our team would win.我打赌我们的队会赢。

30 stoutly   

adv.牢固地，粗壮的

参考例句：

• He stoutly denied his guilt.他断然否认自己有罪。
• Burgess was taxed with this and stoutly denied it.伯杰斯为此受到了责难，但是他自己坚决否认有这回事。

31 shred   

v.撕成碎片，变成碎片；n.碎布条，细片，些少

参考例句：

• There is not a shred of truth in what he says.他说的全是骗人的鬼话。
• The food processor can shred all kinds of vegetables.这架食品加工机可将各种蔬菜切丝切条。

32 beaks   

n.鸟嘴( beak的名词复数 )；鹰钩嘴；尖鼻子；掌权者

参考例句：

• Baby cockatoos will have black eyes and soft, almost flexible beaks. 雏鸟凤头鹦鹉黑色的眼睛是柔和的，嘴几乎是灵活的。 来自互联网
• Squid beaks are often found in the stomachs of sperm whales. 经常能在抹香鲸的胃里发现鱿鱼的嘴。 来自互联网

33 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

34 gaping   

adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大

参考例句：

• Ahead of them was a gaping abyss. 他们前面是一个巨大的深渊。
• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

35 mules   

骡( mule的名词复数 )； 拖鞋； 顽固的人； 越境运毒者

参考例句：

• The cart was pulled by two mules. 两匹骡子拉这辆大车。
• She wore tight trousers and high-heeled mules. 她穿紧身裤和拖鞋式高跟鞋。

36 pricked   

刺，扎，戳( prick的过去式和过去分词 )； 刺伤； 刺痛； 使剧痛

参考例句：

• The cook pricked a few holes in the pastry. 厨师在馅饼上戳了几个洞。
• He was pricked by his conscience. 他受到良心的谴责。

37 slate   

n.板岩，石板，石片，石板色，候选人名单；adj.暗蓝灰色的，含板岩的；vt.用石板覆盖，痛打，提名，预订

参考例句：

• The nominating committee laid its slate before the board.提名委员会把候选人名单提交全体委员会讨论。
• What kind of job uses stained wood and slate? 什么工作会接触木头污浊和石板呢？

38 perpendicular   

adj.垂直的，直立的；n.垂直线，垂直的位置

参考例句：

• The two lines of bones are set perpendicular to one another.这两排骨头相互垂直。
• The wall is out of the perpendicular.这墙有些倾斜。

39 beheld   

v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟

参考例句：

• His eyes had never beheld such opulence. 他从未见过这样的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soul beheld its features in the mirror of the passing moment. 灵魂在逝去的瞬间的镜子中看到了自己的模样。 来自英汉文学 - 红字

40 congealed   

v.使凝结，冻结( congeal的过去式和过去分词 )；（指血）凝结

参考例句：

• The cold remains of supper had congealed on the plate. 晚餐剩下的冷饭菜已经凝结在盘子上了。
• The oil at last is congealed into a white fat. 那油最终凝结成了一种白色的油脂。 来自《简明英汉词典》

41 congeals   

v.使凝结，冻结( congeal的第三人称单数 )；（指血）凝结

参考例句：

• Water congeals to ice. 水凝结成冰。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Blood congeals to form a clot. 血凝结成块。 来自《简明英汉词典》

42 crouched   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He crouched down beside her. 他在她的旁边蹲了下来。
• The lion crouched ready to pounce. 狮子蹲下身，准备猛扑。

43 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。