EZCNN 易英网

Greek Legends Get a Makeover 希腊神话新篇：神火之贼

 

课文朗读

 

课文讲解

 

繁體中文譯本

 

For centuries, Greek mythology has captivated people’s imaginations with action-packed tales of epic battles and heroic quests. But what if, instead of just existing in the mists of legend, the gods and monsters of these tales continued to live among us in the real world today? This is the compelling basis of the wildly popular book series Percy Jackson & The Olympians.

几世纪以来，希腊神话里高潮迭起、犹如史诗般壮丽的战役与英雄的冒险故事，带给人们无限的想象空间，令人神往不已。不过要是故事里的诸神与怪兽不只存在于神话的迷雾里，而是一直跟我们一起生活在当今的现实世界中呢？这个假设正是大受欢迎的《波西杰克森》系列小说其引人入胜的故事基础。

 

Written by American author Rick Riordan, these modern-day myths are set, not in Greece, but in the USA. Our hero, Percy Jackson, is a twelve-year-old boy whose life is turned upside down when he discovers that he’s actually a demigod, or “half blood.” His father is none other than Poseidon, god of the sea. Over five books, we follow Percy on his adventures as he encounters all kinds of fearsome creatures and proves his courage and heroism time after time.

由美国作家雷克，莱尔顿执笔，这些现代版神话的场景不是设定在希腊，而是在美国。故事的主人翁波西．杰克森是名12岁的男孩，当他发现自己其实是半神半人的「混血人」时，他的人生顿时天翻地覆，变得乱七八糟。而他的父亲不是别人，正是海神波塞顿。在这5本书里，我们随着波西的历险，与他一起面对各种骇人的动物，看着他一次次证明自己的胆识与英勇。

 

Part of the charm of the series is its depiction of a world in which the modern and mythical are fused together. For instance, Olympus, the home of the gods, is located on top of New York’s Empire State Building, while the underworld can be found beneath a recording studio in Los Angeles. Unlike Percy, however, mere mortals are blissfully unaware that this parallel world even exists.

这一系列故事的迷人之处在于对现代与神话交融的世界之刻画。例如，众神的居所奥林帕斯山位于纽约帝国大厦的顶楼；而冥界则位于洛杉矶一间录音室的下方。不过，不同于波西，一般凡人很幸运地对这另一个平行世界的存在浑然不觉。

 

Besides being the central character, Percy is the stories’ narrator. He’s a bold yet sensitive kid whose humorous observations give the writing an extra personal touch. As he reacts to the increasingly bizarre events happening all around him, he takes the reader on a fantastic journey that won’t be forgotten in a hurry!

除了担任主角外，波西也是故事的主述者。他是个胆大心细的孩子，其幽默的观察评论为文字增添了个人风格。当他响应发生在他生活周遭那些越来越奇诡的事件时，他也引领读者踏上一段精采绝伦、短时间难以忘怀的历险旅程。

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

captivate [ˋkæptə͵vet] v. 使着迷

quest [kwɛst] n. 寻找；追求；探索

compelling [kəmˋpɛlɪŋ] adj. 令人激动的; 极为有趣的

turn upside down 完全颠倒

none other than 不是别人而正是 the very famous or important person or thing; the very [person] (expresses surprise)

adventure [ədˋvɛntʃɚ] n. 冒险

fuse [fjuz] v. 融合；结合

beneath [bɪˋniθ] prep. 在……之下

mere [mɪr] adj. 仅仅的，只不过的

mortal [ˋmɔrt!] n. 人，凡人

parallel [ˋpærə͵lɛl] adj. 平行的

sensitive [ˋsɛnsətɪv] adj. 敏感的

observation [͵ɑbzɝˋveʃən] n. 观察；观测

 

More Information

单词发音

 

in the mists of 在....的重重迷雾中

demigod [ˋdɛmə͵gɑd] n. 半神半人（神和人所生的后代）

encounter [ɪnˋkaʊntɚ] v. 遭遇（敌人）

time after time 无数次; 屡次; 一再 again and again; repeatedly.

underworld [ˋʌndɚ͵wɝld] n.（大写）阴间，地狱

blissfully [ˋblɪsfəlɪ] adv. 幸福地；充满喜悦地

unaware [͵ʌnəˋwɛr] adj. 不知道的；未察觉到的

narrator [næˋretɚ] n.〔书﹑戏剧等中的〕叙述者﹐讲解人﹐解说人

touch [tʌtʃ] n. 格调，风格；特点

bizarre [bɪˋzɑr] adj. 古怪的; 奇异的

 

 

 

课文朗读

 

课文讲解

 

When we first meet Percy in Book One of the series, The Lightning Thief, he is about to be expelled from his sixth straight school. He just seems to have the unfortunate habit of attracting trouble wherever he goes. What’s more, he thinks he’s going crazy, as he keeps seeing terrifying visions, such as his math teacher turning into a monster and trying to kill him, which nobody else notices.

波西在系列第一集《神火之贼》初次登场时，他正要被连续第六所学校退学。他似乎有种不幸的「习惯」，不管去哪里总会惹祸上身。不仅于此，他觉得自己快得失心疯，因为他老是会看到恐怖的异象，好比他的数学老师变成一只怪兽追杀他，但似乎都没有人察觉。

 

Although he’s troubled and confused by events at school, Percy feels safe once he’s back home for the holidays with his mother, with whom he shares a strong bond. They travel together to their favorite seaside holiday spot, but danger follows them there in the shape of a vicious Minotaur – a half-man, half-bull beast from the Greek myths. Percy escapes the Minotaur’s clutches but, tragically, his mother perishes.

尽管他对在学校发生的那些怪事感到忧虑又困惑，一旦放假回家与妈妈相聚时，波西就觉得很安心，因为他和妈妈感情非常好。他们一起到最喜欢的海边渡假景点旅游，不过危险却以希腊神话里一只名叫「弥诺陶」的半人半牛残暴怪兽形象悄悄地尾随在后。波西惊险逃过弥诺陶的魔掌，但悲惨的是，他亲爱的妈妈却因此命丧黄泉。

 

Still reeling from his sudden loss, Percy is brought by his best friend Grover to a hidden summer camp for demigods, Camp Half-Blood. Grover, as it happens, isn’t what he appears, either. He is actually a mythical creature called a satyr. Once at Camp Half-Blood, Percy learns the incredible truth about his godly origins and befriends a group of fellow demigod children. He’s just starting to feel at home at the camp when his newfound peace is rudely interrupted by the shocking news that the lightning bolt of Zeus, king of the gods, has been stolen. Even worse, Percy’s father Poseidon is the prime suspect! If the lightning bolt isn’t recovered somehow, a war between the gods will erupt, which could spell total destruction for Earth!

尚未从突如其来的丧亲之恸中平复过来的波西，被他最要好的死党格罗佛送到专门为「混血人」而办的地下夏令营──「混血营」。结果，格罗佛亦非表面所见那般。他其实是一种名为羊男的神话动物。到了混血营后，波西得知自己令人难以置信的神祇身世，并和一群同是混血人的小孩结为好友。正当他开始适应营队的生活时，初获的平静又被一则震惊众人的消息硬生生打断──众神之王宙斯的「闪电火」遭窃。更糟的是，波西的父亲海神波塞顿居然是头号嫌犯！不论用何种方式，要是闪电火没能物归原主的话，众神间将会爆发一场战争，而这场战争有可能会招致地球彻底毁灭。

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

be about to 即将, 正要

expel [ɪkˋspɛl] v. 驱逐，赶走

what’s more 更重要的是, 更有甚者,而且

terrifying [`tɛrəˏfaɪɪŋ] adj. 极其可怕的; 骇人听闻的

bond [bɑnd] n.（个人或团体之间的）密切联系

perish [ˋpɛrɪʃ] v. 死去；暴卒

reel [ril] v.〔尤指遭受打击或震惊而〕惊魂未定

interrupt [͵ɪntəˋrʌpt] v. 中断〔某人的〕行动; 打扰

even worse 更糟糕地

suspect [ˋsʌspɛkt] n. 嫌疑犯；可疑分子

recover [rɪˋkʌvɚ] v. 重新获得；重新找到

somehow [ˋsʌm͵haʊ] adv. 以某种方式；用某种方法

erupt [ɪˋrʌpt] v. 爆发

destruction [dɪˋstrʌkʃən] n. 破坏；毁灭

 

More Information

单词发音

 

troubled [ˋtrʌb!d] adj. 忧虑的; 烦恼的; 苦恼的

spot [spɑt] n. 娱乐场所; 旅游胜地; 场所; 地点

vicious [ˋvɪʃəs] adj. 邪恶的; 凶险的; 会造成伤害的

escape someone’s clutches 逃脱某人的魔掌

satyr [ˋsætɚ] n. 萨梯〔古希腊神话中半人半羊的神〕

fellow [ˋfɛlo] adj. 同伴的；同事的；同类的

newfound [ˈnjuˌfaʊnd] adj. 新发现的; 新得到的

lightning bolt [bolt] 闪电

spell [spɛl] v. 招致

 

 

 

课文朗读

 

课文讲解

 

Percy’s mentor Chiron, a centaur, is convinced that Hades, lord of the underworld, is responsible for the theft, and not Poseidon. So, to clear his father’s name, Percy embarks on a daunting mission: traveling across America to L.A., where he plans to confront Hades and retrieve the stolen bolt. At the same time, he secretly hopes that he can find his mother in the underworld and bring her back to life.

波西的导师奇戎是半人马，他深信须对窃盗事件负责的人是冥界之王黑帝斯，而不是海神波塞顿。因此，为了洗刷父亲的污名，波西展开了艰巨的寻物任务：他横越美国一路找到洛杉矶，计划在那里与冥王黑帝斯对质，并取回失窃的闪电火。同时，他也偷偷在心底期盼能在冥界找到妈妈，并让她起死回生。

 

Accompanied by Grover and a half-blood girl named Annabeth, Percy survives a hazardous cross-country journey, battling more frightful beasts along the way. At one point, he runs into Ares, god of war, who appears as a huge leather-bound biker and gives him a backpack full of provisions. Once in the underworld, though, Percy discovers that Hades not only doesn’t have the bolt but he actually believes Percy is the thief. It is then that Percy realizes he’s been tricked by Ares, as the missing lightning bolt has been planted inside the backpack he is carrying. He manages to escape back to the surface but has to leave his dead mother behind. In a final dramatic confrontation, Percy proves he’s a true son of Poseidon by defeating Ares with the help of his sea-god powers.

有了格罗佛与一名叫安娜贝斯的混血女孩陪伴，波西安然渡过了危机重重的横越美国之旅，一路上与更多令人为之丧胆的野兽交战。他在途中遇到一身摩托车骑士皮衣打扮的战神阿瑞斯，阿瑞斯给了他一只装满食粮的背包。不过到了冥界后，波西才发现冥王黑帝斯不仅没有闪电火，而且还认为波西才是真正的小偷。直到那刻，波西才发现自己被阿瑞斯摆了一道，因为原本遭窃的闪电火早已事先被藏在他这一路上背着的背包里。他勉强逃了出来回到陆面上，但只能让死去的妈妈留在冥界。在最后一场戏剧化的对峙中，波西证明了他是海神波塞顿的儿子绝非浪得虚名，他运用海神的力量打败了阿瑞斯。

 

The story concludes happily as Percy returned to New York to give the lightning bolt back to Zeus, and he is overjoyed to learn that his mother has been brought back to life by Hades. However, his adventures have only just begun. This February, with the release of The Lightning Thief movie, Percy Jackson will be starting his on-screen adventures, too. No mortal should miss it!

故事结局圆满，波西再度回纽约，并将闪电火交还给宙斯。当他得知冥王黑帝斯让他的母亲死而复生，简直欣喜若狂。不过波西的历险才正刚开始呢。今年2月将上映《神火之贼》的电影，届时波西．杰克森将会在大银幕上展开历险，凡人千万不能错过！

 

−by David Vickers

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

theft [θɛft] n. 偷窃，盗窃

embark [ɪmˋbɑrk] v. 从事，着手 [（+on/in/upon）]

confront [kənˋfrʌnt] v. 勇敢地面对；遭遇

retrieve [rɪˋtriv] v. 重新得到，取回

bring someone back to life 使复生；使复活

accompany [əˋkʌmpənɪ] v. 陪同，伴随

run into 偶然碰到 to meet or find by chance

trick [trɪk] v. 恶作剧；戏弄

manage [ˋmænɪdʒ] v. 设法做到；勉力完成 [+to-v]

surface [ˋsɝfɪs] n.〔水或陆地的〕表面

dramatic [drəˋmætɪk] adj. 戏剧性的

defeat [dɪˋfit] v. 战胜，击败

release [rɪˋlis] n. 发行，发表；发行的书（或电影等）

 

More Information

单词发音

 

mentor [ˋmɛntɚ] n. 良师益友; 导师﹐指导者

centaur [ˋsɛntɔr] n.【希神】半人半马的怪物

clear someone’s name 还人清白

daunting [ˋdɔntɪŋ] adj. 令人怯步的；使人气馁的

survive [sɚˋvaɪv] v. 从……中逃生

hazardous [ˋhæzɚdəs] adj. 有危险的；冒险的

frightful [ˋfraɪtfəl] adj. 可怕的

at one point 一度；在某一刻

leather-bound 用皮革包边儿的

biker [ˋbaɪkɚ] n. 摩托车骑士（尤其参加不良少年帮派者）

provision [prəˋvɪʒən] n. 食物；粮食

overjoyed [͵ovɚˋdʒɔɪd] adj. 狂喜的，极度高兴的

 

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief HD Movie Trailer