重温经典:柯南·道尔英文原著中的福尔摩斯[1]
《神探夏洛克》圣诞特辑在新年上映了,这次“神夏”回到了1895年,回到了最初,伦敦迷雾中那个颀长瘦削的身影。
片中充满了对原著致敬的小细节,让原著粉们激动了,毕竟,那是初心。
所以,不如我们借此机会来回顾经典,重温一下柯南道尔笔下的那个古怪又迷人的侦探形象。
山鹰般的面容
演绎过福尔摩斯的演员无数,但也许杰里米·布雷特(Jeremy Brett)版的福尔摩斯最符合原著形象了吧。
His very person and appearance were such as to strike the attention of the most casual observer. In height he was rather over six feet, and so excessively lean that he seemed to be considerably taller.
他的相貌和外表极为引人注目,即便是最不经意的人看见了也难忘。他有六英尺多高,身体异常瘦削,因此显得格外颀长。
His eyes were sharp and piercing; and his thin, hawk-like nose gave his whole expression an air of alertness and decision. His chin, too, had the prominence and squareness which mark the man of determination.
他目光锐利;细长的鹰钩鼻子使他的相貌显得格外机警、果断;下颚方正而突出,说明他是个非常有毅力的人。
极端工作狂
福尔摩斯是个极端工作狂,有案可破时,浑身似有使不完的精力,在无事可做时却萎靡不振。
Nothing could exceed his energy when the working fit was upon him; but now and again a reaction would seize him, and for days on end he would lie upon the sofa in the sitting-room, hardly uttering a word or moving a muscle from morning to night.
在他高兴工作的时候,绝没有人能比得上他那份旺盛的精力;可是常常也会上来一股相反的劲头,整天地躺在起居室的沙发上,从早到晚,几乎一言不发,一动不动。
他这样描述自己对任何可以刺激头脑的事物的渴求:
My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I am in my own proper atmosphere. I can dispense then with artificial stimulants. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. I crave for mental exaltation.
一遇无事可做的时候,我就会心绪不宁起来。给我难题,给我工作,给我最深奥的密码,给我最复杂的分析工作,这样我才觉得最舒适,才不需要人为的刺激。我非常憎恶平淡的生活,我追求精神上的兴奋。
而且,他有一个怪癖:思考的时候不吃饭。
It was one of his peculiarities that in his more intense moments he would permit himself no food, and I have known him to presume upon his iron strength until he has fainted from pure inanition.
他在比较紧张的时候不让自己吃东西,这是他的一个古怪特性。我见过他滥用自己的体力,直到由于营养不足而晕倒。
对此,侦探自己的解释是:
The faculties become refined when you starve them. Why, surely, as a doctor, my dear Watson, you must admit that what your digestion gains in the way of blood supply is so much lost to the brain. I am a brain, Watson. The rest of me is a mere appendix. Therefore, it is the brain I must consider.
饥饿可以使人体机能变得敏锐。那,我亲爱的华生,做为一个医生,你必须承认,消化过程得到的供血量等于脑力所损失的供血量。我就是一个大脑,华生。除此以外我的身体只是一个附件。所以,我只考虑大脑的需要。
文艺范儿
福尔摩斯会拉小提琴的这个设定无疑给这个严肃冷静的侦探形象增添了一抹浪漫色彩。
That he could play pieces, and difficult pieces, I knew well, because at my request he has played me some of Mendelssohn's Lieder, and other favourites.
我深知他能拉出一些曲子,而且还是一些很难拉的曲子。因为在我的请求之下,他曾经为我拉过几支门德尔松的短歌和一些他所喜爱的曲子。
When left to himself, however, he would seldom produce any music or attempt any recognized air.
可是当他独自一人的时候,他就难得会拉出什么象样的乐曲或是大家所熟悉的调子了。
但对于福尔摩斯个人来说,小提琴似乎是帮助他思考的工具。
Leaning back in his arm-chair of an evening, he would close his eyes and scrape carelessly at the fiddle which was thrown across his knee. Sometimes the chords were sonorous and melancholy. Occasionally they were fantastic and cheerful.
黄昏时,他靠在扶手椅上,闭上眼睛,信手弹弄着平放在膝上的提琴。有时琴声高亢而忧郁,有时又古怪而欢畅。
Clearly they reflected the thoughts which possessed him, but whether the music aided those thoughts, or whether the playing was simply the result of a whim or fancy was more than I could determine.
显然,这些琴声反映了当时支配着他的某种思潮,不过这些曲调是否助长了他的这种思潮,或者仅仅是一时兴之所至,我就无法断言了。