Unit 2

Text A A Clean,Well-Lighted Place

Ernest Hemingway

It was very late and everyone had left the cafe except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light.In the day time the street was dusty,but at night the dew settled the dust and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he felt the difference.The two waiters inside the cafe knew that the old man was a little drunk,and while he was a good client they knew that if he became too drunk he would leave without paying,so they kept watch on him.

"Last week he tried to commit suicide,"one waiter said.

"Why?"

"He was in despair."

"What about?"

"Nothing."

"How do you know it was nothing?"

"He has plenty of money."

They sat together at a table that was close against the wall near the door of the cafe and looked at the terrace where the tables were all empty except where the old man sat in the shadow of the leaves of the tree that moved slightly in the wind.A girl and a soldier went by in the street.The street light shone on the brass number on his collar.The girl wore no head covering and hurried beside him.

"The guard will pick him up,"one waiter said.

"What does it matter if he gets what he's after?"

"He had better get off the street now.The guard will get him.They went by five minutes ago."

The old man sitting in the shadow rapped on his saucer with his glass.The younger waiter went over to him.

"What do you want?"

The old man looked at him."Another brandy,"he said.

"You'll be drunk,"the waiter said.The old man looked at him.The waiter went away.

"He'll stay all night,"he said to his colleague."I'm sleepy now.I never get into bed before three o'clock.He should have killed himself last week."

The waiter took the brandy bottle and another saucer from the counter inside the cafe and marched out to the old man's table.He put down the saucer and poured the glass full of brandy.

"You should have killed yourself last week,"he said to the deaf man.The old man motioned with his finger."A little more,"he said.The waiter poured on into the glass so that the brandy slopped over and ran down the stem into the top saucer of the pile."Thank you,"the old man said.The waiter took the bottle back inside the cafe.He sat down at the table with his colleague again.

"He's drunk now,"he said.

"He's drunk every night."

"What did he want to kill himself for?"

"How should I know."

"How did he do it?"

"He hung himself with a rope."

"Who cut him down?"

"His niece."

"Why did they do it?"

"Fear for his soul."

"How much money has he got?"

"He's got plenty."

"He must be eighty years old."

"Anyway,I should say he was eighty."

"I wish he would go home.I never get to bed before three o'clock.What kind of hour is that to go to bed?"

"He stays up because he likes it."

"He's lonely.I'm not lonely.I have a wife waiting in bed for me."

"He had a wife once,too."

"A wife would be no good to him now."

"You can't tell.He might be better with a wife."

"His niece looks after him.You said she cut him down."

"I know."

"I wouldn't want to be that old.An old man is a nasty thing."

"Not always.This old man is clean.He drinks without spilling.Even now,drunk.Look at him."

"I don't want to look at him.I wish he would go home.He has no regard for those who must work."

The old man looked from his glass across the square,then over at the waiters.

"Another brandy,"he said,pointing to his glass.The waiter who was in a hurry came over.

"Finished,"he said,speaking with that omission of syntax stupid people employ when talking to drunken people or foreigners."No more tonight.Close now."

"Another,"said the old man.

"No.Finished."The waiter wiped the edge of the table with a towel and shook his head.

The old man stood up,slowly counted the saucers,took a leather coin purse from his pocket and paid for the drinks,leaving half a peseta tip.The waiter watched him go down the street,a very old man walking unsteadily but with dignity.

"Why didn't you let him stay and drink?"the unhurried waiter asked.They were putting up the shutters."It is not half-past two."

"I want to go home to bed."

"What is an hour?"

"More to me than to him."

"An hour is the same."

"You talk like an old man yourself.He can buy a bottle and drink at home."

"It's not the same."

"No,it is not,"agreed the waiter with a wife.He did not wish to be unjust.He was only in a hurry.

"And you?You have no fear of going home before your usual hour?"

"Are you trying to insult me?"

"No,hombre,only to make a joke."

"No,"the waiter who was in a hurry said,rising from pulling down the metal shutters."I have confidence.I am all confidence."

"You have youth,confidence,and a job,"the older waiter said."You have everything."

"And what do you lack?"

"Everything but work."

"You have everything I have."

"No.I have never had confidence and I am not young."

"Come on.Stop talking nonsense and lock up."

"I am of those who like to stay late at the cafe,"the older waiter said.

"With all those who do not want to go to bed.With all those who need a light for the night."

"I want to go home and into bed."

"We are of two different kinds,"the older waiter said.He was now dressed to go home."It is not only a question of youth and confidence although those things are very beautiful.Each night I am reluctant to close up because there may be someone who needs the cafe."

"Hombre,there are bodegas open all night long."

"You do not understand.This is a clean and pleasant cafe.It is well lighted.The light is very good and also,now,there are shadows of the leaves."

"Good night,"said the younger waiter."Good night,"the other said.Turning off the electric light he continued the conversation with himself,It was the light of course but it is necessary that the place be clean and pleasant.You do not want music.Certainly you do not want music.Nor can you stand before a bar with dignity although that is all that is provided for these hours.What did he fear?It was not a fear or dread.It was a nothing that he knew too well.It was all a nothing and a man was a nothing too.It was only that and light was all it needed and a certain cleanness and order.Some lived in it and never felt it but he knew it all was nada y pues nada y nada y pues nada.Our nada who art in nada,nada be thy name thy kingdom nada thy will be nada in nada as it is in nada.Give us this nada our daily nada and nada us our nada as we nada our nadas and nada us not into nada but deliver us from nada;pues nada.Hail nothing full of nothing,nothing is with thee.He smiled and stood before a bar with a shining steam pressure coffee machine.

"What's yours?"asked the barman.

"Nada."

"Otro loco mas,"said the barman and turned away.

"A little cup,"said the waiter.

The barman poured it for him.

"The light is very bright and pleasant but the bar is unpolished,"the waiter said.

The barman looked at him but did not answer.It was too late at night for conversation.

"You want another copita?"the barman asked.

"No,thank you,"said the waiter and went out.He disliked bars and bodegas.A clean,well-lighted cafe was a very different thing.Now,without thinking further,he would go home to his room.He would lie in the bed and finally,with daylight,he would go to sleep.After all,he said to himself,it's probably only insomnia.Many must have it.

Notes to the Text

1.Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway(July 21,1899-July 2,1961),an American author and journalist.His economical and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction,while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations.Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the mid-1950s,and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954.He published seven novels,six short story collections,and two non-fiction works.Three novels,four collections of short stories,and three non-fiction works were published posthumously.Many of these are considered classics of American literature.

2.A Clean,Well-Lighted Place

It was first published in Scribner's Magazine in 1933 and also included in Hemingway's 1933 collection Winner Take Nothing.

3.brass number

It is the name tag attached to a soldier's collar or other parts of his clothes.

4.peseta

It is the currency of Spain between 1869 and 2002.The Spanish Law of June 26,1864 decreed that in preparation for joining the Latin Monetary Union(set up in 1865),the peseta became a subdivision of the peso with 1 peso equals 5 pesetas.

5.bodegas

It is a Spanish word referring to a wine bar.

6."nada y pues nada y nada y pues nada.Our nada who art in nada,nada be thy name thy kingdom nada thy will be nada in nada as it is in nada.Give us this nada our daily nada and nada us our nada as we nada our nadas and nada us not into nada but deliver us from nada;pues nada.Hail nothing full of nothing,nothing is with thee."

Hemingway's coining of lines in The Lord's Prayer,a central prayer in Christianity,replacing words with"nada"which means"nothing".The original lines are"Our Father in heaven,/hallowed be your name./Your kingdom come,/your will be done,/on earth as it is in heaven./Give us this day our daily bread,/and forgive us our debts,/as we also have forgiven our debtors./And lead us not into temptation,/but deliver us from evil."

7.Hail nothing full of nothing,nothing is with thee.

Again the coining of lines from The Hail Mary Prayer,a traditional Catholic prayer asking for the intercession of the Virgin Mary,the mother of Jesus.The original lines are:"Hail Mary,full of grace./Our Lord is with thee."

8.Otro loco mas

Spanish,another crazy person.

9.copita

Spanish,a glass of sherry.

Words and Expressions

brandy[ˈbrændɪ]n.　an alcoholic liquor distilled from wine or fermented fruit juice白兰地酒

brass[brɑːs]n.　a yellowish alloy of copper and zinc，sometimes including small amounts of other metals，but usually 67 percent copper and 33 percent zinc 黄铜

dignity[ˈdɪgnɪtɪ]n.　the quality or state of being worthy of esteem or respect 尊严；自尊

dread[dred]n.　terror or apprehension as to sth to the future；great fear恐惧；畏惧；令人恐惧的事物

dusty[ˈdʌstɪ]adj.　covered or filled with dust 布满灰尘的

hail[heɪl]v.　to greet or acclaim enthusiastically 致敬；打招呼

insomnia[ɪnˈsɒmnɪә]n.　sleeplessness，an inability to fall asleep or to stay asleep as long as desired 失眠

insult[ɪnˈsʌlt]v.　to treat with gross insensitivity，insolence，or contemptuous rudeness侮辱

nasty[ˈnɑːstɪ]adj.　sharply unpleasant 肮脏的；令人厌恶的

omission[əˈmɪʃən]n.　the act or an instance of omitting；something omitted or neglected省略

rap[ræp]v.　to hit sharply and swiftly；strike（轻快地）敲击

reluctant[rɪˈlʌktənt]adj.　feeling or showing aversion，hesitation，or unwillingness 勉强的

saucer[ˈsɔːsə（r）]n.　a small shallow dish having a slight circular depression in the center for holding a cup 茶杯托

slightly[ˈslaɪtlɪ]adv.　to a small degree or extent；somewhat 轻微地

slop[slɒp]v.　to spill liquid on 溢出

stem[stem]n.　a slender stalk supporting or connecting another plant part，such as a leaf or flower；the slender upright support of a wineglass or goblet（花草的）茎；（高脚酒杯的）脚

syntax[ˈsɪntæks]n.　the study of the rules whereby words or other elements of sentence structure are combined to form grammatical sentences 句法；句法学

terrace[ˈterəs]n.　a raised flat platform 台阶

thee[ðiː]n.　the objective case of thou，you[古]你（宾格）

unjust[ʌnˈdʒʌst]adj.　violating principles of justice or fairness；unfair 不公平的

unpolished[ʌnˈpɒlɪʃt]adj.　not smooth and shiny 无光泽的；未磨光的

Exercises

I.Read the text carefully and answer the following questions.

1.Please briefly summarize the plot of the story.

2.Who is the protagonist of the story?Please give each character of the story a brief introduction and analysis.

3.Why does the old man want to stay in the small café and get drunk every evening?

4.What does the old waiter mean when he explains that the old man needs a clean,well-lighted café?

5.What does the old waiter himself want?

6.Why can't the young waiter understand them?

7.What significance does the title"A Clean Well-Lighted Place"carry concerning the theme of the story?

8.What is the tone of the story?How does the tone help to reinforce the theme of the story?

9.How well do you understand Hemingway's style?Do you find it pleasant?

10.What is/are the theme(s)of the story?How is the fact that Hemingway is one of the spokesmen of the"Lost Generation"related to the theme(s)of this story?

II.Paraphrase.

1.—Why did they do it?

—Fear for his soul.

2.Anyway I should say he was eighty.

3.I wish he would go home.I never get to bed before three o'clock.What kind of hour is that to go to bed?

4."Finished,"he said,speaking with that omission of syntax stupid people employ when talking to drunken people or foreigners.

5.—What is an hour?

—More to me than to him.

6.With all those who do not want to go to bed.With all those who need a light for the night.

III.Multiple choice.

1.At dawn the street is deserted________a few passing trucks.

A.except B.except for C.apart from D.besides

2.I will go with you________I have a cold.

A.except B.except for C.apart from D.besides

3.I know nothing about him________he is an archeologist.

A.except B.except for C.apart from D.except that

4.The African Fern Pine died for lack________water.

A.in B.for C.of D./

5.You might as well spare your sympathy elsewhere.She never lacks________friends.

A.in B.for C.of D./

6.Traditional food systems lacking________reliable refrigeration and sanitary packaging are dangerous vectors for diseases.

A.in B.for C.of D./

7.Hsun's face was like the full moon________it had whiskers though every day he shaved.

A.except B.except for C.except that D.apart from

8.It was interesting,in a sense,being treated just like a dog or cat.One could see everything,and go unnoticed,________being scolded.

A.except that B.except while C.except when D.except for

9.It is necessary that the problem________discussed.

A.be B.is C.will be D.were

10.It is strange that he________so much money.

A.has B.have C.had D.has had

IV.Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words.

1.Jennet fell for a pop singer________her mother planned to engage her to an architect.

2.________I didn't know much about her case,I could tell her what I had learned about the recovery of stroke patients.

3.Young people like to________away the hours chatting with someone she didn't know on the Internet.

4.By Friday most staff had fled the area fearing________their safety.

5.These youngsters are motivated not by a desire to achieve,but by fear________failure.

6.When they asked him if he wanted to quit the project,William said"No________".

7.When night set in,Ben began to fear________his compatriots left in the cave.

8.I________him to make progress.

9.Nanny________I can help her with the chores.

10.I________a pleasant journey.

V.Cloze.Choose the right words to fill the blanks from the box.

nothing　takes　not　apparently　effect　though　whose　in　off　as

The most sizable of the books of Hemingway that were published posthumously is Islands in the Stream.The first,longest,and best section of the novel deals with the summer vacation of Thomas Hudson,a famous American painter,[1]three sons are with him on the island of Bimini.Hudson is,[2],much loved and respected by everyone,without having to exhibit any qualities of lovableness,[3]his respectability is never[4]doubt.He has done well in his art,though not in his two marriages.He supervises the ritual of his youngest sons'initiation into manhood,which[5]the form of battling with big fish,a good father but somewhat remote,priest-like,no pal.The two sons go[6]after their holiday.After a few days Hudson receives a telegram telling him that they,with their mother,the second wife,have been killed in a car accident.

In the second part of the novel Hudson learns that his eldest son,a fighter pilot in the Second World War,has been killed in combat.The first wife,the mother,unexpectedly arrives.She is an actress cheering up the front-line troops.She knows[7]of the death of her son.

But the bad news is casually imparted and[8]casually received."Tell me,is he dead?""Sure."Then,in the third part,Hudson goes off to look for the survivors of a Nazi submarine sunk off the Cuban coast,leading a crew of six in his camouflaged yacht.He succeeds,or tells himself he succeeds,in[9]thinking about his dead sons.Then he is wounded seriously—perhaps mortally:we are not permitted to be sure.Perhaps Hemingway was desperately superstitious about depicting what would in[10]be his own death.

VI.Translation.

Section A Translate the following sentences into Chinese.

1.The waiter poured on into the glass so that the brandy slopped over and ran down the stem into the top saucer of the pile.

2.The waiter watched him go down the street,a very old man walking unsteadily but with dignity.

3."We've made it!"exclaimed Nick,all smiles.

4.With all those who do not want to go to bed.With all those who need a light for the night.

5.Certainly,you do not want music.Nor can you stand before a bar with dignity although that is all that is provided for these hours.

6.I am of those who feel reluctant to change.

7.So it impressed me as a clean,well-lighted place.

8.Once in a while people who wonderfully impressed did not tip well.

9."Finished,"he said,speaking with that omission of syntax stupid people employ when talking to drunken people or foreigners."No more tonight.Close now."

10.While many of them were good cooks,nobody could duplicate George as a chef.

Section B Translate the following sentences into English.

1.我记得许多年前好几次情绪低落，几乎都绝望了。

2.他有什么好抱怨的？他已经得到自己想要的了。

3.你们尊重过我的感情吗？

4.快把瓶盖儿盖好，要不果汁就流出来了。

5.电脑内存已经被盗了，现在后悔有什么用呢？

6.我们准备在本周五给艾伦一个意外惊喜，为他举办个晚会。请各位不要把这事儿泄露出去了。

7.一小时对我来说比对他更重要。

8.我老板最近总是表现得信心百倍的样子，我忍不住猜想这是为什么。

9.听到这个消息后他泪流满面。

10.他本该上星期找人来修车的。

VII.Writing.

Please write a brief comment on Ernest Hemingway's story"A Clean Well-Lighted Place"elaborating on your understanding of the story.