美国的民间传说 - Folk Tales

Folk Tales (Part 1 of 6)美国的民间传说

In the world of American folk tales, almost anything can happen: A cowboy rides a tornado without a saddle. A huge lumberjack digs the Great Lakes to give his giant blue ox drinking water. A rabbit's big mouth gets him stuck in a bunch of tar. Sometimes, though, this world seems more like real life: A young farmer plants apple trees everywhere he goes. A man wins a race against a machine. Above all, this fantasy world finds people struggling against circumstances--and winning.

在美国民间传说的世界中，几乎任何事都可能发生：一位牛仔可以不用马鞍而骑在龙卷风上；一个身材宏伟的伐木工人挖了「大湖」，好给他蓝色的巨牛喝水；或是一只兔子因为爱说话而被卡在焦油里。虽然如此，有时候传奇世界又似乎更像真实生活：一位年轻农夫在他所到之处种下苹果树；一个男人在比赛中胜过一台机器。综观在这些充满了幻想的世界里，人们总是与环境对抗——而最后赢得了胜利。

tornado (n) 龙卷风；飓风

saddle (n) 马鞍

tar (n) 黑油；焦油

Folk Tales (Part 2 of 6)美国的民间传说

Tall tales, extraordinary tales of ordinary people and events, sprang from the days of the American pioneers. As the early settlers faced a rugged environment, they told stories of superhuman heroes. Paul Bunyan was a giant lumberjack who helped settle the Northwestern Territory. Bunyan could cut down a whole forest in less than an hour. His giant blue ox, Babe, could carry off the logs in one load.

在美国先民拓荒的岁月中，流传出许多平凡人和事的夸大传奇。由于早期的移民者面临了恶劣的环境，他们便传说着一些超人式的英雄人物。保罗．邦阳是一位伐木的大力士，他帮助到西北部来拓荒的移民安顿生活，他可以在一小时内砍完整片森林，而他蓝色的巨牛——宝贝，可以一车就拉完所有的木材。

Folk Tales (Part 3 of 6)美国的民间传说

Pecos Bill was the hero of American cowboys. Bill almost single-handedly tamed the rough wilderness in the American Southwest. He was so tough he used a rattlesnake for a lasso to rope in his cattle.

Not all American folk tales are so far from the truth. Some developed from real historical events. For example, Johnny Apple seed planted thousands

of acres of apple trees in the Midwest. He gave apple seeds to everyone he met, encouraging them to plant trees, too. In fact, the real person behind

the legend was John Chapman, an early pioneer. Chapman did indeed own many apple orchards.

培寇士．比尔则是美国牛仔们的英雄，他几乎单独驯服了美国的西南部荒漠，他很厉害可以用响尾蛇作绳索套住他的牛。

并不是所有的美国民间传说都这么离谱，有些故事仍是从真实的历史事件发展出来的。例如：钱宁．艾坡西（苹果子）在中西部种植了好几千亩的苹果树，他送苹果种子给所有他见到的人，并且鼓励他们种树。事实上，在此传奇背后的真实人物是约翰．查普曼，一位早期的拓荒者，查普曼则确实拥有很多苹果。rattlesnake (n) 响尾蛇

orchard (n) 果园

single-handedly (adv) 独自地

Folk Tales (Part 4 of 6)美国的民间传说

Another legend grew up around John Henry, a black laborer helping dig a tunnel on a railroad line. A man with a steam drill boasted he could do the work of 20 men using hammers. John Henry challenged him to a race. After John Henry won, so the legend goes, he died from exhaustion. Actually, after winning the race, John Henry was killed by the collapse of the tunnel.

另外一个传奇则围绕着约翰．亨利，他是一个在火车路线上协助挖隧道的黑人劳工。有一个带着蒸气钻洞机的男人自夸说，他一个人可以抵得上二十个拿铁锤的工人。于是约翰．亨利就向他挑战，这个故事流传的结果是说在约翰．亨利大胜之后，即因体力耗竭而过世，然而事实上，在赢了比赛之后，约翰．亨利是因隧道倒塌而葬身其中的。

tunnel (n) 隧道

hammer (n) 铁锤

Folk Tales (Part 5 of 6)美国的民间传说

Some folk tales have come directly from the pages of American literature. Uncle Remus and his stories about Brer (Brother) Rabbit delight many young Americans. The most famous one, "Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby," tells how a big-mouthed rabbit gets himself into--and then out of--trouble. The writer, Joel Chandler Harris, heard many of the stories from slaves on a Southern plantation. Another popular tale came from the pen of Washington Irving. Rip Van Winkle, a poor farmer from New England, falls asleep during a hunting trip and sleeps for 20 years. When he awakens, his whole world has changed.

有些民间传说直接来自美国文学作品。瑞莫斯叔叔和他的兔老弟的故事就带给年轻的美国人许多欢乐的时光，他最有名的故事「兔子老弟和焦油宝宝」，述说了一只大嘴巴的兔子如何陷入麻烦，又如何逃脱。这些故事的作者乔伊．千德勒．哈里斯从南方大庄园上的黑奴那儿听来了许多故事。另一个很受欢迎的传说是出自于华盛顿．尔文的笔下：瑞普．范恩．文克是一个新英格兰区的贫穷农夫，他去野外打猎时睡着了，而且一睡就是二十年，当他醒来的时候，整个世界都已经改变了。

big-mouthed (adj) 大嘴巴的；爱说话的

Folk Tales (Part 6 of 6)美国的民间传说

Of course, Americans didn't invent folk tales. Every culture has its own stories of common people dealing with life's challenges. Often these tales are passed down orally from generation to generation. Some of them, like Snow White, Cinderella and even Santa Claus, exist in different versions all over the world. Many others are unique to the cultures that tell them. But all reflect a common hope: to live "happily ever after."

当然，民间传说并不是美国人所发明的。在每个文化中都有属于它们自己的故事，这些故事讲述着平凡人如何面对生活的挑战。通常这些故事都是一代代地以口相传，其中有些以不同的版本流传在世界各地，比如说白雪公主、灰姑娘，甚至是圣诞老公公。而有许多传说则是某特定文化才独有的。然而所有的故事都反映出人们一个共同的愿望：那就是「从此过着幸福快乐的生活」。

orally (adv) 口头地

reflect (v) 反映