(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Captain Benito Cereno hurried aboard his ship. It was ready to sail. A bright sun and a soft breeze promised good weather ahead. The ship's anchor was raised. And the San Dominick -- old but still seaworthy - moved slowly out of the harbor of Valparaiso, on the west coast of Chile. It was carrying valuable products and slaves up the Pacific coast to Callao, another Spanish colonial port near Lima, Peru. The slaves, both male and female, slept on deck. They were not chained, because their owner, Don Alexandro, said they were peaceful. The San Dominick moved steadily forward under a clear sky. The weather showed no sign of change. Day after day, the soft breeze kept the ship on course toward Peru. Slave traffic between Spain's colonial ports in this year of seventeen ninety-nine had been steady. But there were few outbreaks of violence. What happened, therefore, on board the San Dominick could not have been expected.
On the seventh day out, before daybreak, the slaves rose up in rebellion. They swept through the ship with handspikes and hatchets moving with the fury of desperate men. The attack was a complete surprise. Few of the crew were awake. All hands, except the two officers on the watch, lay in a deep untroubled sleep. The rebels sprang upon the two officers and left them half dead. Then, one by one, they killed eighteen of the sleeping crew. They threw some overboard, alive. A few hid and escaped death. The rebels tied up seven others, but left them alive to navigate the ship. As the day began to break, Captain Cereno came slowly, carefully up the steps toward the chief rebel leader, Babo, and begged for mercy. He promised to follow Babo's commands if he would only put an end to the killings. But this had no effect. Babo had three men brought up on deck and tied. Then, the three Spaniards were thrown overboard. Babo did this to show his power and authority -- that he was in command. Babo, however, promised not to murder Captain Cereno. But everything he said carried a threat. He asked the captain if in these seas there were any Negro countries. "None," Cereno answered. "Then, take us to Senegal or the neighboring islands of Saint Nicholas." Captain Cereno was shaken. "That is impossible!" he said. "It would mean going around Cape Horn. And this ship is in no condition for such a voyage. And we do not have enough supplies, or sails or water." "Take us there, anyway," Babo answered sharply, showing little interest in such details. "If you refuse, we will kill every white man on board."
Captain Cereno knew he had no choice. He told the rebel leader that the most serious problem in making such a long voyage was water. Babo said they should sail to the island of Santa Maria near the southern end of Chile. He knew that no one lived on the island. But water and supplies could be found there. He forced Captain Cereno to keep away from any port. He threatened to kill him the moment he saw him start to move toward any city, town or settlement on shore. Cereno had to agree to sail to the island of Santa Maria. He still hoped that he might meet along the way, or at the island itself, a ship that could help him. Perhaps -- who knows -- he might find a boat on the island and be able to escape to the nearby coast of Arruco. Hope was all he had left. And that was getting smaller each day. Captain Cereno steered south for Santa Maria. The voyage would take weeks. Eight days after the ship turned south, Babo told Captain Cereno that he was going to kill Don Alexandro, owner of the slaves on board. He said it had to be done. Otherwise, he and the other slaves could never be sure of their freedom. He refused to listen to the captain's appeals, and ordered two men to pull Don Alexandro up from below and kill him on deck. It was done as ordered. Three other Spaniards were also brought up and thrown overboard. Babo warned Cereno and the other Spaniards that each one of them would go the same way if any of them gave the smallest cause for suspicion.
Cereno decided to do everything possible to save the lives of those remaining. He agreed to carry the rebels safely to Senegal if they promised peace and no further bloodshed. And he signed a document that gave the rebels ownership of the ship and its cargo. Later, as they sailed down the long coast of Chile, the wind suddenly dropped. The ship drifted into a deep calm. For days, it lay still in the water. The heat was fierce; the suffering intense. There was little water. That made matters worse. Some of those on board were driven mad. A few died. The pressure and tension made many violent. And they killed a Spanish officer. After a time, a breeze came up and set the ship free again. And it continued south. The voyage seemed endless. The ship sailed for weeks with little water on board. It moved through days of good weather and periods of bad weather. There were times when it sailed under heavy skies, and times when the wind dropped and the ship lay be-calmed in lifeless air. The crew seemed half dead. At last, one evening in the month of August, the San Dominick reached the lonely island of Santa Maria. It moved slowly toward one of the island's bays to drop anchor. Not far off lay an American ship. And, the sight of the ship caught the rebels by surprise.
The slaves became tense and fearful. They wanted to sail away, quickly. But their leader, Babo, opposed such a move. Where could they go? Their water and food were low. He succeeded in bringing them under control and in quieting their fears. He told them they had nothing to fear. And they believed him. Then, he ordered everyone to go to work, to clean the decks and put the ship in proper and good condition, so that no visitor would suspect anything was wrong. Later, he spoke to Captain Cereno, warning him that he would kill him if he did not do as he was told. He explained in detail what Cereno was to do and say if any stranger came on board. He held a dagger in his hand, saying it would always be ready for any emergency. The American vessel was a large tradeship and seal hunter, commanded by Captain Amasa Delano. He had stopped at Santa Maria for water.
On the American ship, shortly after sunrise, an officer woke Captain Delano, and told him a strange sail was coming into the bay. The captain quickly got up, dressed and went up on deck. Captain Delano raised his spy glass and looked closely at the strange ship coming slowly in. He was surprised that there was no flag. A ship usually showed its flag when entering a harbor where another ship lay at anchor. As the ship got closer, Captain Delano saw it was damaged. Many of its sails were ripped and torn. A mast was broken. And the deck was in disorder. Clearly the ship was in trouble. The American captain decided to go to the strange vessel and offer help. He ordered his whale boat put into the water, and had his men bring up some supplies and put them in the boat. Then they set out toward the mystery ship. As they approached, Captain Delano was shocked at the poor condition of the ship. He wondered what could have happened...
重点解析
1.one by one 一个一个；一个接一个
The students entered the classroom one by one.
学生们一个挨一个地走进教室。
2.promise to 许诺做；承诺
Claire had made me promise to tell her the truth.
克莱尔要我保证把真相告诉她。
3.on board 到船上；上船
We went on board and saw these people packed shoulder to shoulder on the decks.
我们上了船，看见这些人在甲板上肩挨着肩挤在一起。
4.be sure of 对……有把握；确定
I hope so, but nobody can be sure of the future.
我希望能这样，可是对未来谁也没有把握。
参考译文
《班尼托西兰诺》。贝尼托·塞雷诺船长匆匆上船，船只准备起航。阳光明媚，微风习习，预示着会有好天气。船锚升起，圣多明尼克号虽然很古旧了，但仍然适宜航海，它缓缓驶离智利西海岸的瓦尔帕莱索港。当时，它正把贵重的物品和奴隶沿着太平洋海岸运往秘鲁利马附近的另一个西班牙殖民地港口卡劳。奴隶们，无论男女，都睡在甲板上。他们没有被锁住，因为他们的主人唐·亚历山德罗，说他们很和睦。圣多明尼克号在晴空下稳健前进。天气没有变化的迹象。一天又一天，微风让船继续驶向秘鲁。1799年，西班牙殖民地港口之间的奴隶交易一直很稳定。但很少发生暴力事件。因此，人们无法预料圣多明尼克号上要发生的事情。
第七天，天还没亮，奴隶们就起来反抗。他们挥舞着长矛和斧头，满怀绝望的人们愤怒地在船上横扫。这次袭击完全出乎意料。船员中几乎没有人醒着，除了值班的两名军官外，所有人都安然无恙地睡着。反叛者猛扑到那两名军官身上，险些让他们丧命。然后，他们一个接一个地杀了18名熟睡的船员。他们把一些船员活生生的扔进海里。一些船员躲起来，逃过一劫。反叛者把另外7人绑起来，但没有杀死他们，而是让他们来驾驶这艘船。天亮了，塞雷诺船长慢慢地过来，小心翼翼地走向反叛者首领巴博，乞求宽恕。他答应只要巴博停止杀戮，他就会听从巴博的命令。但这并没用。巴博把三个人带到甲板上绑起来，然后，三个西班牙人被扔下船。巴博这样做是为了显示他的权力和权威，说明他掌控一切。然而，巴博保证不会杀害塞雷诺船长。但他说的每一句话都带着威胁。他问船长，在这些海域里是否有黑人所在的国家。“没有，”塞雷诺回答。“那么，带我们去塞内加尔或邻近的圣尼古拉斯群岛。”塞雷诺船长吓了一跳。“这不可能！”他说。“这意味着要绕合恩角转一圈，这艘船不适合进行这种航行。我们也没有足够的物资、船帆和水。”“不管怎样，带我们去那儿，”巴博尖锐地回答，对这些细节不感兴趣。“如果你拒绝去做，我们会杀了船上所有的白人。”
塞雷诺船长知道自己别无选择。他告诉叛乱者首领，进行如此长的航程，最严重的问题是水。巴博说，他们应该航行到智利南端的圣玛利亚岛。他知道岛上没有人居住，但在那儿能找到水和补给品。他强迫塞雷诺船长远离任何港口。他威胁说，他看到船只开始驶向海岸上的任何城市、城镇或定居点时，就会杀了他。塞雷诺不得不同意航行到圣玛利亚岛。他仍然希望在途中，或者在岛上能遇到一艘可以帮助他的船。谁知道呢，他也许能在岛上找到一艘船，然后逃到附近的阿鲁科海岸。他只剩下希望了，而且希望一天天变得渺茫。塞雷诺船长向南驶向圣玛丽亚，这次航行需要几周时间。八天后，船只转向南方，巴博告诉塞雷诺船长，他要杀死船上奴隶的主人唐·亚历山德罗。他说必须这么做，否则，他和其他奴隶永远不能保证他们的自由。他拒绝听从船长的恳求，命令两个人把唐·亚历山德罗从下面拉上来，在甲板上杀死他。反叛者遵照命令行事。另外三名西班牙人也被带上甲板，被扔下船。巴博警告切里诺和其他西班牙人，如果任何人稍有疑虑，他们每个人都会落得如此地步。
塞雷诺决定尽一切可能，挽救其余人的生命。他同意，如果反叛者承诺保持和平，不再杀人，他将把反叛者安全带到塞内加尔。他签署了一份文件，让反叛者拥有这艘船和货物的所有权。后来，他们沿着智利漫长的海岸线航行时，风势突然减弱。船渐渐平静下来。几天来，这艘船静静地停在海里。炎热的天气；剧烈的痛苦。饮水剩的很少，这让情况变得更糟。船上有些人被逼疯了，一些人死了。压力和紧张使许多人变得残暴。他们杀了一名西班牙军官。它继续向南行驶，航程似乎没有尽头。它航行了几周，船上的饮水已经很少了。这艘船既经历过好天气，又经历过恶劣天气。有时，它在阴沉的天气中航行。有时风停了，船就在死气沉沉的空气中停下来。船员们都是半死不活的样子。最后，在八月的一个晚上，圣多米尼克号到达偏僻的圣玛利亚岛。它慢慢地在岛上的一个海湾处停靠下来后抛锚。不远处停着一艘美国船只。这艘船的出现也让反叛者大吃一惊。
奴隶们变得紧张又恐惧，他们想迅速驶离这里。但他们的首领巴博反对这样做。他们能去哪儿？他们的水和食物不多，他成功地控制住他们，平息了他们的恐惧。他告诉他们没什么好怕的，他们相信了他。然后，他命令每个人都去工作，清理甲板，使船处于良好的状态，这样来访的人就不会怀疑有问题。后来，他和塞雷诺船长谈话，警告他，如果他不按命令去做，就把他杀掉。他详细地解释道，如果有陌生人上船，塞雷诺要做什么、说什么。他手里拿着一把匕首，说这把匕首可以随时应付任何紧急情况。这艘美国船只是一艘大型商船，也猎取海豹，由阿玛萨·德拉诺船长指挥。他在圣玛利亚停下来，补充饮水。
太阳升起后不久，那艘美国船只上的一名军官叫醒了德拉诺船长，告诉他一艘带有奇怪船帆的船只正驶入海湾。船长很快起床，穿好衣服，来到甲板上。德拉诺船长举起望远镜，仔细地看着那艘缓缓驶来的怪异船只。他很惊讶这艘船没有国旗，船只通常在进入另一艘船停泊的港口时会展示其旗帜。当那艘船越来越近时，德拉诺船长看到它受到损坏。它的许多船帆都被撕破了，一根桅杆断了，甲板上一片混乱。很明显，这艘船遭遇了麻烦。美国船只的船长决定到那艘奇怪的船上去帮忙。他下令把捕鲸船放进水里，并让他的人把一些供给品放到捕鲸船上。然后，他们驶向那艘神秘的船只。当他们离近时，德拉诺船长对这艘船的恶劣状况感到震惊。他想知道发生了什么事......
