# 第三册 Lesson 22 By heart 熟记台词

## 一、课文原文

Some plays are so successful that they run for years on end. In many ways, this is unfortunate for the poor actors who are required to go on repeating the same lines night after night. One would expect them to know their parts by heart and never have cause to falter. Yet this is not always the case.

A famous actor in a highly successful play was once cast in the role of an aristocrat who had been imprisoned in the Bastille for twenty years. In the last act, a gaoler would always come on to the stage with a letter which he would hand to the prisoner. Even though the noble was expected to read the letter at each performance, he always insisted that it should be written out in full.

One night, the gaoler decided to play a joke on his colleague to find out if, after so many performances, he had managed to learn the contents of the letter by heart. The curtain went up on the final act of the play and revealed the aristocrat sitting alone behind bars in his dark cell. Just then, the gaoler appeared with the precious letter in his hands. He entered the cell and presented the letter to the aristocrat. But the copy he gave him had not been written out in full as usual. It was simply a blank sheet of paper. The gaoler looked on eagerly, anxious to see if his fellow actor had at last learnt his lines. The noble stared at the blank sheet of paper for a few seconds. Then, squinting his eyes, he said: 'The light is dim. Read the letter to me.' And he promptly handed the sheet of paper to the gaoler. Finding that he could not remember a word of the letter either, the gaoler replied: 'The light is indeed dim, sire. I must get my glasses.' With this, he hurried off the stage. Much to the aristocrat's amusement, the gaoler returned a few moments later with a pair of glasses and the usual copy of the letter which he proceeded to read to the prisoner.

## 二、重点词汇详解

| 单词 | 音标 | 词性 | 释义 | 用法说明 |
|------|------|------|------|----------|
| run | /rʌn/ | v. | （戏剧）连演 | run for years连演好几年 |
| lines | /lainz/ | n. | 台词 | learn one's lines背台词 |
| falter | /'fɔ:ltə/ | v. | 支吾，结巴 | =hesitate, stumble |
| cast | /ka:st/ | v. | 选派……扮演角色 | be cast in the role of扮演……角色 |
| role | /rəul/ | n. | 角色 | play a role扮演角色 |
| aristocrat | /'æristəkræt/ | n. | 贵族 | aristocracy n. 贵族阶级 |
| imprison | /im'prizən/ | v. | 关押 | prison n. 监狱；imprisonment n. 监禁 |
| gaoler | /'dʒeilə/ | n. | 监狱看守 | =jailer（美式拼写） |
| colleague | /'kɔli:g/ | n. | 同事 | 区别：college大学 |
| curtain | /'kə:tn/ | n. | 幕布 | the curtain goes up幕启 |
| reveal | /ri'vi:l/ | v. | 使显露 | reveal the truth揭露真相 |
| cell | /sel/ | n. | 单人监房 | cell phone手机；cell在此指牢房 |
| blank | /blæŋk/ | adj. | 空白的 | a blank sheet of paper一张白纸 |
| squint | /skwint/ | v. | 眯着眼看 | squint at眯着眼看 |
| dim | /dim/ | adj. | 昏暗的 | dim light昏暗的光线 |
| sire | /saiə/ | n. | 陛下 | 古代仆人对国王的尊称 |
| proceed | /prə'si:d/ | v. | 继续进行 | proceed to do接着做 |

## 三、语法知识点

### 1. on end——连续不断地
- **for years on end**——连续好几年
- 表示时间的持续
- 类似：for hours on end / for days on end

### 2. go on + 现在分词——继续做某事
- **go on repeating** = 继续重复
- 区别：

| 结构 | 含义 | 例句 |
|------|------|------|
| go on doing | 继续做同一件事 | go on reading 继续读 |
| go on to do | 接着做另一件事 | go on to read 接着读（另一篇） |

### 3. Yet this is not always the case.
- the case表示"情况、实情"
- 意为"然而情况并非总是如此"
- 常用句型：That's not the case.（情况并非如此）

### 4. insist that + 虚拟语气
- **he always insisted that it should be written out in full**
- insist后接宾语从句时，常用虚拟语气 **(should) + 动词原形**
- should可省略：he insisted that it be written out in full

### 5. play a joke on...——拿……开玩笑
- =play a trick on
- 例：The gaoler decided to play a joke on his colleague.

### 6. Much to sb.'s sth.——给某人带来很大的……
- **Much to the aristocrat's amusement**——使贵族感到非常可笑的是
- much为副词，修饰介词短语to one's amusement
- 类似结构：much to one's surprise / disappointment / relief

### 7. 现在分词作状语
- **squinting his eyes**——眯着眼（伴随状语）
- **Finding that he could not remember...**——发现记不住（原因状语）

## 四、重点句型分析

### 1. One would expect them to know their parts by heart
- **by heart** = 熟记，凭记忆
- know/learn...by heart 熟记/背诵……
- 标题By heart即由此而来

### 2. The noble stared at the blank sheet of paper for a few seconds.
- **stare at** 凝视
- 几秒钟的沉默制造戏剧性悬念

### 3. "The light is dim. Read the letter to me."
- 贵族机智地将球踢给狱卒
- 简短对话，效果极佳

### 4. "The light is indeed dim, sire. I must get my glasses."
- 狱卒用同样的借口脱身
- 两人都记不住台词，却都巧妙应对

## 五、课文翻译

有些剧目十分成功，以致连续上演好几年。这样一来，可怜的演员们可倒霉了。因为他们需要一夜连着一夜地重复同样的台词。人们以为，这些演员一定会把台词背得烂熟，绝不会临场结巴的，但情况却并不总是这样。

有一位名演员曾在一出极为成功的剧目中扮演一个贵族角色，这个贵族已在巴士底狱被关押了20年。在最后一幕中，狱卒手持一封信上场，然后将信交给狱中那位贵族。尽管那个贵族每场戏都得念一遍那封信，但他还是坚持要求将信的全文写在信纸上。

一天晚上，狱卒决定与他的同事开一个玩笑，看看他反复演出这么多场之后，是否已将信的内容记熟了。大幕拉开，最后一幕戏开演，贵族独自一人坐在铁窗后阴暗的牢房里。这时狱卒上场，手里拿着那封珍贵的信。狱卒走进牢房，将信交给贵族。但这回狱卒给贵族的信没有像往常那样把全文写全，而是一张白纸。狱卒热切地观察着，急于想了解他的同事是否记熟了台词。贵族盯着白纸看了几秒钟，然后，眼珠一转，说道："光线太暗，请给我读一下这封信。"说完，他一下子把信递给了狱卒。狱卒发现自己连一个字也记不住，于是便说："陛下，这儿光线的确太暗了，我得去把眼镜拿来。"他一边说着，一边匆匆下台。贵族感到非常好笑的是：一会儿工夫，狱卒重新登台，拿来一副眼镜以及平时使用的那封信，然后为那囚犯念了起来。

## 六、语言点精讲

### 写作手法
- **幽默故事**：全文围绕一个"记不住台词"的玩笑展开
- **戏剧性反讽**：狱卒想考验贵族，结果自己也没记住台词
- **机智应对**：贵族用"光线太暗"巧妙转嫁，狱卒用"去拿眼镜"完美脱身
- **首尾对比**：开头"人们以为演员会背熟台词"，结尾"谁也没记住"

### 文化背景
- **巴士底狱（Bastille）**：法国巴黎的著名监狱，1789年被攻陷，成为法国大革命的开端象征
- **sire**：古代仆人对国王的尊称，现代仅用于故事和剧本
- 19世纪戏剧中，演员确实需要长期重复演出同一角色

## 七、课后练习要点

1. 词汇：掌握falter, cast, blank, squint, proceed, reveal等重点词
2. 语法：insist that虚拟语气；go on doing/to do区别；Much to one's...结构
3. 句型：by heart熟记；play a joke on；on end连续不断
4. 理解：最终谁读了那封信？——狱卒，因为他自己也记不住，只好去拿真正的信

## 八、本课小结

- 核心词汇：falter, cast, blank, squint, proceed, reveal, dim, aristocrat
- 核心语法：insist that虚拟语气、go on doing/to do区别、现在分词作状语
- 核心句型：by heart, play a joke on, much to one's..., on end
- 写作特色：幽默反讽、戏剧性对话、机智应对