Hello, Stephen Fry here. I’m gonna read you a little bit from my new book Mythos. And this is the story of Pandora who was created by the Gods as a revenge for mankind having the impertinence to accept the gift of fire from Prometheus, which the Gods never wanted them to have. So they created the first woman and her name was Pandora which means “all-gifted”.
大家好，我是史蒂芬·弗莱。我要给大家朗读一段小故事，来自我的新书《神话》。这是潘多拉的故事，众神创造潘多拉，其用意是报复人类。惩罚人类不懂珍惜普罗米修斯为他们盗取圣火，而众神并不希望人类拥有火种。于是，众神创造出第一个女人，给她取名“潘多拉”，意为“获得一切天赋的女人”。
And she was given a jar often called the box. But it’s actually a jar to take with her to marry her husband Epimetheus, and it was something she was not allowed to open. Epimetheus and Pandora were very much in love. That could not be denied.
并赠予她一个陶罐，后来被称作“潘多拉魔盒”.这实际上是个陶罐,潘多拉便带着这个罐子嫁给了丈夫埃庇米修斯。众神嘱咐她：这个罐子绝不能被打开。埃庇米修斯和潘多拉非常相爱，这点毋庸置疑。
Pandora’s beauty and entertainment was such as to delight him every day. And in return, his facile ability to live always for the moment and never to fret about the future gave her a sense of life as a light and lovely adventure.
潘多拉的美貌和热情让他每天都过得愉悦欢欣。反观埃庇米修斯，他是那种永远享受当下，从不会为未来而烦恼的人，这也让她的生活变得轻松惬意又美好。
But one little itch tickled her. One little fly buzzed around her. One little worm burrowed inside that jar. She kept it on a shelf in their bedroom. When Epimetheus had asked about it, she laughed: “Oh, just a silly thing that Hephaestus made to remind me of Olympus. It’s no value.” “Pretty though,” said Epimetheus, giving it no further thought.
可是她心里总有点痒痒的。像一只小苍蝇飞在身边嗡嗡叫。又像一只小虫子钻进心窝里，都是那个罐子呀。她将陶罐置于卧室的架子上，每当埃庇米修斯问起，她都一笑置之：“喔，不过是赫准斯托斯做的小纪念品啦，让我一直记挂着奥林匹斯山，不值钱的。”“但挺漂亮的。” 埃庇米修斯嘟囔着，并没有多想。
One afternoon, when her husband was away practicing the discus with his friends, Pandora approached the jar and ran her finger around the rim of its sealed lid. Why had Zeus even mentioned that there was nothing interesting inside it. He would never have said such a thing if truly there weren’t.
有一天下午，丈夫与三五好友约着出门练习掷铁饼。潘多拉来到陶罐前，她用手指来回轻抚密封的瓶盖。如果这罐子里没啥好东西，那宙斯干嘛要反复强调这点呢？要是真的没什么的话，宙斯是绝不会白费口舌的。
She pieced the logic of it together in her mind: If you give a friend an empty jar, you would never concern yourself with mentioning that the jar was empty. Your friend might look inside one day and see that for themselves!
她整理了下思路，又在脑海里回想了一遍：“如果你送朋友一个空罐子，你根本不会平白无故多提一句‘这罐子是空的哦~’因为你朋友说不定哪天就会打开罐子，亲眼看看里面有什么。”
So why should you take the trouble to repeat that this jar contained nothing of any interest? There could only be one explanation. There was something of great interest inside! Something of value or power; something either enchanting or enchanted.
那你干嘛还要不厌其烦，反复强调地说，“这罐子里头没啥好看的？！”“那么，就只能有一种解释，这罐子里头绝对大有文章。也许是价值连城的宝贝，也许是能蛊惑人心或诅咒的宝贝。”
But no! She had sworn never to open it. “A promise is a promise!” She said to herself, and straight away felt very virtuous. She believe it is her duty to resist the spell of the jar, which now really seemed almost to be singing out to her in the most alluring way was excessively vexing to have an object so bewitching in her bedroom where it could taunt and tempt her every morning and every night.
不行！她曾许下诺言绝不会打开罐子。“一诺千金嘛！”她暗暗提醒自己，顿时，自豪感油然而生：这是多么高尚的情操。她坚信这是神赐的使命，要经受住罐子对她的蛊惑。此时此刻，这陶罐似乎正在她耳边哼唱着一曲蛊惑人心的歌谣。在卧室里摆着这么个磨人心智的东西实在太恼人。每日每夜，不停地诱惑、折磨、嘲弄着她。
Temptation loses much of its power when removed from sight. Pandora went to the small back garden and next to a sundial that a neighbour had given them as a wedding gift. She dug a hole and buried the jar deep in the ground. She patted the earth flat and wheeled the heavy sundial on its plinth over the hiding place. There!
眼不见为净，只要不看见它，诱惑力便会降至最低。潘多拉来到小小的后花园，在邻居送来的结婚礼物——日晷旁边，她挖了一个坑，将陶罐深埋于地下。之后她将坑填平，最后将笨重的日晷依着底座旋转，覆盖陶罐的埋藏之处。搞定！
For the next week, she was as gay and skittish and happy as a person had ever been. Epimetheus fell even more in love with her, and invited their friends over to feast and heard a song he had written in her honour. It was a happy and successful party, the last festival that the Golden Age was ever to know.
接下来的一周，她从未有过这般好心情，欢欣鼓舞、怡然自乐。这更加深了埃庇米修斯对她的宠爱。他邀请朋友们来家中聚餐，邀请大家欣赏，他为她谱写的一曲歌谣。这是一次快乐又圆满的聚会。这也是黄金时代为人所知的最后一场盛会。
That night, perhaps a little flushed with the praise that had flowed so freely in her direction. Pandora found it’s hard to sleep. Through the window of her bedroom, the moonlight shone down on the garden. The sundial’s gnomon gleamed like a silver blade.
那天夜里，或许是因为太多的溢美之词如潮水般向她涌来而脸红心跳，潘多拉辗转反侧、难以入眠。透过卧室窗户向外望去，皎洁的月光洒满整个花园。日晷的晷针仿若银色的刀片一般闪闪发亮。
And once again, she thought she heard the music of the jar. Epimetheus was sleeping happily beside her. The moonbeam was danced in the garden.
又一次，她仿佛听到了陶罐里传出的美妙音符。埃庇米修斯在她身旁沉睡于美梦中。月光仿若在花园里欢快跳起了舞蹈。
Unable to stand it any longer, Pandora leaped from her matrimonial bed, and was out in the garden unrolling the base of the sundial and scrabbling at the earth before she had time to tell herself that this was the wrong thing to do. She pulled the jar from its hiding place and twisted at the lid.
再也无法忍受下去了，潘多拉从床上一跃而起，直接冲向了后花园。旋转日晷底座，双手胡乱刨着地上的泥土，她根本无暇顾及自己正在做的这件事究竟正确与否。她从隐蔽的地下取出陶罐，拧开盖子。
Its wax and seal gave way and she pulled it free. There was a fast fluttering, the furious flapping of wings and a wild wheeling and whirling in her ears. “Oh! Glorious flying creatures!”
封印蜡剥落，她胡乱撕扯下来。一团黑影猛地冲了出来，它们愤怒拍动着翅膀，在她耳边来回盘旋飞舞。“喔！光荣伟大的飞物啊！”
But no, they were not glorious at all. Pandora cried out in pain and fright as she felt something leathery brush her neck followed by a sharp and terrible prick of pain as some sting or bite pierced her skin.
可惜，它们并不是光荣而伟大的。在剧烈疼痛和恐惧之中，潘多拉惊声尖叫，某种类似皮革的东西不断拂过她的脖颈。接着，一阵尖锐可怕的刺痛涌来，像是被灼伤或被叮咬，刺破她的皮肤。
More and more flying shapes buzzed from the mouth of the jar. A great cloud of them chattering, screaming, and howling in her ears. Through the swirling fog of these dreadful creatures she saw the face of her husband, as he came outside to see what was happening. He was white with horror and fright.
越来越多的黑影从罐口涌出，振翅高飞、嗡嗡作响。像是一团黑云，在她耳边吵闹着、尖叫着、咆哮着。这群可怕的生物盘旋成一股浓烟，透过这团浓烟，她看见了丈夫的面容。他刚刚走出来想看看发生了什么。看到如此恐怖的场面，他震惊到脸色煞白。
With a great cry, Pandora summoned up the courage and strength to close the lid and seal the jar. On the garden wall, in the shape of a wolf, Zeus looked on smiling, the most terrible and wicked smile.
潘多拉大声呼喊，鼓起最后一点勇气和残存的力气，她盖上盖子，封住了罐口。花园的墙壁上，宙斯以狼形现身，望着他们面带笑容，那是多么可怕、多么邪恶的笑容啊。
As like a cloud of locusts, the shrieking, wailing creatures dawed the air and circled the garden below them in a great vortex before flying up and away, over the town, over the countryside, and around the world, settling like a pestilence wherever man had habitation.
那群尖叫哀号着的生物，像一团蝗虫，似乎凝结了空气，形成巨大的旋涡状，在花园中来回盘旋飞舞，之后才慢慢飞走。飞过这座小镇、飞过遥远的农田、飞过整个世界。只要是人类栖息的地方，它们便像瘟疫一般蔓延开来。
And what were they, these shapes? They were mutant descendants, the dark and evil children of both Nyx and Erebus. They were born of Apate (“Deceit”), Geras (“Old Age”), Oizys (“Misery”), Momus (“Blame”), Keres(“Violent Death”). They were the offshoots of Ate (“Ruin”) and Eris (“Discord”).那么，这些黑影究竟是什么？它们是黑暗女神尼克斯和厄瑞波斯的子嗣。它们畸形黑暗且凶恶狠毒。它们分别是“欺骗之神”阿帕特、“衰老之神”格拉斯，“悲哀之神”俄菊斯，“谴责之神”莫默思，“残暴死亡之神”克雷斯。还有“毁灭之神”阿忒和“纷争之神”厄里斯的子嗣。
These were their names. Ponos(“Hardship”), Limos (“Starvation”), Algos (“Pain”) , Dysnomia (“Anarchy”), Pseudea (“Lies”), Neikea (“Quarrels”), Amphillogiai (“Disputes”), Makhai(“Wars”), Hysminai (“Battles”), Androktasiai and Phonoi (“Manslaughters” and “Murders”).它们的名字如下：“困苦之神”帕诺斯，“饥荒之神”利莫斯，“痛苦之神”阿勒贡斯，“混乱无序之神”戴斯诺米亚，“谎言之神”普修得亚，“争端之神”倪克亚，“争执之神”安费洛格亚，“战争之神”马克海，“斗争之神”许斯密纳伊，“屠戮之神”安德罗克达斯亚和“谋杀之神”弗诺伊。
Illness, violence, deceit, misery, and want had arrived. They would never leave the earth. What Pandora did not know was that when she shut the lid of the jar so hastily, she forever imprisoned inside one last daughter of Nyx. One last little creature was left behind to neat its wings hopelessly in the jar forever. Its name was Elpis, Hope.
疾病、暴力、欺骗、痛苦和贫困降临人间。从此再也不会离开。然而，潘多拉并不知道，当她匆忙关上盒盖的时候，却将尼克斯的最后一个女儿永远囚禁在了陶罐里。这只小小的生物被关在里面，永远如此无助又无望地扑打着翅膀。它的名字叫厄尔庇斯，“希望之神”。
RachelEmber
宙斯这个老混蛋(*｀へ´*)