The Oval Portrait

　　愛倫 坡著

　　< 1 >

　　THE CHATEAU into which my valet had ventured to make forcible entrance, rather than permit me, in my desperately wounded condition, to pass a night in the open air, was oneof those piles of commingled gloom and grandeur which have so long frowned among the Appennines, not less in fact than in the fancy of Mrs. Radcliffe. To all appearance it hadbeen temporarily and very lately abandoned. We established ourselves in one of the smallest and least sumptuously furnished apartments. It lay in a remote turret of the building.Its decorations were rich, yet tattered and antique. Its walls were hung with tapestry and bedecked with manifold and multiform armorial trophies, together with an unusually greatnumber of very spirited modern paintings in frames of rich golden arabesque. In these paintings, which depended from the walls not only in their main surfaces, but in very manynooks which the bizarre architecture of the chateau rendered necessary- in these paintings my incipient delirium, perhaps, had caused me to take deep interest; so that I bade Pedro to close the heavy shutters of the room- since it was already night- to light the tongues of a tall candelabrum which stood by the head of my bed- and to throw open far and wide the fringed curtains of black velvet which enveloped the bed itself. I wished all this done that I might resign myself, if not to sleep, at least alternately to the contemplation of these pictures, and the perusal of a small volume which had been found upon the pillow, and which purported to criticise and describe them.

　　我受了重傷，我的隨從不忍心讓我在外面過(guò)夜，就領(lǐng)我闖進(jìn)了一座城堡。這是座巍峨地聳立在亞平寧山區(qū)多年的一座陰森而雄壯的城堡，決不亞于拉德克利夫夫人在她的小說(shuō)中所幻想的那種。從各種跡象來(lái)看，城堡的主人離去的時(shí)間不會(huì)太久。我們主仆兩人在一間最狹孝陳設(shè)最美的屋子里住下來(lái)。它位于這座城堡邊上的一個(gè)塔樓里。看得出室內(nèi)原來(lái)的裝飾相當(dāng)富麗，但現(xiàn)在已破舊不堪了。四壁懸掛著花毯和各種各樣的戰(zhàn)利品，此外還掛著許多惟妙惟肖的繪畫，畫框都是金色花紋的，連墻角都掛著畫。也許是傷勢(shì)過(guò)重，我的神志不甚清醒，只是呆呆地望著這些畫出神。這時(shí)天色已晚，我吩咐彼德羅把百葉窗全都關(guān)上。把屋里的蠟燭統(tǒng)統(tǒng)點(diǎn)亮，然后拉開床前的黑天鵝絨帷慢。這樣。即使我不能入睡，至少也可以安靜地欣賞一番這些畫，也可以讀一讀枕頭上放著的一本小書，那是對(duì)這些畫進(jìn)行解釋和評(píng)價(jià)的書。

　　< 2 >

　　Long- long I read- and devoutly, devotedly I gazed. Rapidly and gloriously the hours flew by and the deep midnight came. The position of the candelabrum displeased me, and outreaching my hand with difficulty, rather than disturb my slumbering valet, I placed it so as to throw its rays more fully upon the book.

　　But the action produced an effect altogether unanticipated. The rays of the numerous candles (for there were many) now fell within a niche of the room which had hitherto been thrown into deep shade by one of the bed-posts. I thus saw in vivid light a picture all unnoticed before. It was the portrait of a young girl just ripening into womanhood. I glanced at the painting hurriedly, and then closed my eyes. Why I did this was not at first apparent even to my own perception. But while my lids remained thus shut, I ran over in my mind my reason for so shutting them. It was an impulsive movement to gain time for thought- to make sure that my vision had not deceived me- to calm and subdue my fancy for a more sober and more certain gaze. In a very few moments I again looked fixedly at the painting.

　　That I now saw aright I could not and would not doubt; for the first flashing of the candles upon that canvas had seemed to dissipate the dreamy stupor which was stealing over my senses, and to startle me at once into waking life.

　　The portrait, I have already said, was that of a young girl. It was a mere head and shoulders, done in what is technically termed a vignette manner; much in the style of the favorite heads of Sully. The arms, the bosom, and even the ends of the radiant hair melted imperceptibly into the vague yet deep shadow which formed the back-ground of the whole. The frame was oval, richly gilded and filigreed in Moresque. As a thing of art nothing could be more admirable than the painting itself. But it could have been neither the execution of the work, nor the immortal beauty of the countenance, which had so suddenly and so vehemently moved me. Least of all, could it have been that my fancy, shaken from its half slumber, had mistaken the head for that of a living person. I saw at once that the peculiarities of the design, of the vignetting, and of the frame, must have instantly dispelled such idea- must have prevented even its momentary entertainment. Thinking earnestly upon these points, I remained, for an hour perhaps, half sitting, half reclining, with my vision riveted upon the portrait. At length, satisfied with the true secret of its effect, I fell back within the bed. I had found the spell of the picture in an absolute life-likeliness of expression, which, at first startling, finally confounded, subdued, and appalled me. With deep and reverent awe I replaced the candelabrum in its former position. The cause of my deep agitation being thus shut from view, I sought eagerly the volume which discussed the paintings and their histories. Turning to the number which designated the oval portrait, I there read the vague and quaint words which follow:

　　我拿著書，一一對(duì)著畫欣賞起來(lái)。不知不覺已至半夜，燭臺(tái)的位置離我很遠(yuǎn)，我又不忍心喚醒酣睡的隨從，費(fèi)了好大力氣才將燭臺(tái)端在手中，以便照亮手中的這本書。

　　燭臺(tái)上插著好多支蠟燭，交織的燭光照在了室內(nèi)的一個(gè)壁龕上，原先這個(gè)壁龕被一根柱子遮住了。此時(shí)我轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身來(lái)才發(fā)現(xiàn)剛才根本沒有注意到的一幅畫，畫上是一個(gè)妙齡少女。我朝她匆匆地瞥了一眼，就閉上了眼睛，連我自己都不理解為什么我會(huì)這佯。稍后，我尋思一下，我之所以閉上眼睛是為了能平靜地思考一下是否視覺欺騙了我，也為了能定睛看個(gè)清楚。片刻之后，我便睜開眼睛仔細(xì)地端詳起這幅畫像來(lái)。我已經(jīng)看得很清楚，再也不用懷疑什么了。燭光把畫面照得通亮，剛才那種恍惚的幻覺已經(jīng)蕩然無(wú)存了，神志也變得十分清醒。

　　正如我開始所見，畫上是個(gè)少女。只畫了頭部和雙肩，用的是半身暈映畫像法，和薩利的頭像畫法很接近。雙膀、胸脯、明亮的頭發(fā)和畫面背景協(xié)調(diào)地溶為一體。畫框是橢圓形的，還鍍了金，作為一件藝術(shù)品，這幅畫真令人贊嘆不已。但是，不論是作品的高超藝術(shù)，還是畫中人的美色艷姿，都不至于這樣突如其來(lái)地打動(dòng)我的心弦。不管我怎樣的神志不清，總不會(huì)把畫中人當(dāng)成現(xiàn)實(shí)活動(dòng)中的人。我半坐半倚，一邊認(rèn)真地思考著，一邊還是緊緊地盯著畫像。就這樣，大約過(guò)了一個(gè)時(shí)辰。我逐漸領(lǐng)會(huì)到了這幅畫的構(gòu)思、畫法、畫框的特色以及其中的奧秘，于是我把燭臺(tái)放回原來(lái)的地方，然后仰面躺在床上。是的，是畫中人的神情逼真生動(dòng)的魅力，才使我初見這幅畫時(shí)心情十分激動(dòng)，由于躺在床上看不到畫像，于是我拿起那本評(píng)述這些繪畫及指明出處的書來(lái)。翻到標(biāo)明橢圓形的肖像的那一頁(yè)，看到了如下一段文字枯澀、詞句含蓄的說(shuō)明：

　　< 3 >

　　"She was a maiden of rarest beauty, and not more lovely than full of glee. And evil was the hour when she saw, and loved, and wedded the painter. He, passionate, studious, austere, and having already a bride in his Art; she a maiden of rarest beauty, and not more lovely than full of glee; all light and smiles, and frolicsome as the young fawn; loving and cherishing all things; hating only the Art which was her rival; dreading only the pallet and brushes and other untoward instruments which deprived her of the countenance of her lover. It was thus a terrible thing for this lady to hear the painter speak of his desire to pourtray even his young bride. But she was humble and obedient, and sat meekly for many weeks in the dark, high turret-chamber where the light dripped upon the pale canvas only from overhead. But he, the painter, took glory in his work, which went on from hour to hour, and from day to day. And be was a passionate, and wild, and moody man, who became lost in reveries; so that he would not see that the light which fell so ghastly in that lone turret withered the health and the spirits of his bride, who pined visibly to all but him. Yet she smiled on and still on, uncomplainingly, because she saw that the painter (who had high renown) took a fervid and burning pleasure in his task, and wrought day and night to depict her who so loved him, yet who grew daily more dispirited and weak. And in sooth some who beheld the portrait spoke of its resemblance in low words, as of a mighty marvel, and a proof not less of the power of the painter than of his deep love for her whom he depicted so surpassingly well. But at length, as the labor drew nearer to its conclusion, there were admitted none into the turret; for the painter had grown wild with the ardor of his work, and turned his eyes from canvas merely, even to regard the countenance of his wife. And he would not see that the tints which he spread upon the canvas were drawn from the cheeks of her who sate beside him. And when many weeks bad passed, and but little remained to do, save one brush upon the mouth and one tint upon the eye, the spirit of the lady again flickered up as the flame within the socket of the lamp. And then the brush was given, and then the tint was placed; and, for one moment, the painter stood entranced before the work which he had wrought; but in the next, while he yet gazed, he grew tremulous and very pallid, and aghast, and crying with a loud voice, 'This is indeed Life itself!' turned suddenly to regard his beloved:- She was dead!

　　“她是個(gè)絕代佳人，無(wú)憂無(wú)慮地過(guò)著日子。當(dāng)她與畫家一見鐘情、結(jié)為夫妻之后，命運(yùn)開始變化。畫家勤奮好學(xué)，嚴(yán)肅矜持，酷愛藝術(shù)。她天真活潑、美麗可愛。她熱愛一切，心里只恨被她視為情敵的藝術(shù)，她恨那些調(diào)色板、畫筆等，因?yàn)榱钊松鸁┑漠嬀邐Z走了對(duì)她的愛。當(dāng)她聽說(shuō)畫家要給她畫像的時(shí)候，又氣又怕。但她天性溫柔恭順，為了丈夫她還是在塔樓頂上一間幽暗的小屋里一連坐了幾個(gè)星期，那里僅有一縷光線從頭頂照射到畫布上。畫家的心全部沉浸在他的作品中，已經(jīng)忘卻了世間除此而外的一切，因此他也絲毫沒有注意到自己已經(jīng)摧殘了新娘的心。她毫無(wú)怨言，始終如一地展現(xiàn)著笑容，因?yàn)樗_始理解這位享有盛名的畫家的甘苦和如醉如癡的樂趣，是藝術(shù)的感召力使他夜以繼日地專心繪畫，她心里像一團(tuán)火似地愛著他，可身體卻日見憔悴。大凡見過(guò)這幅畫的人，無(wú)不為之所動(dòng)，皆認(rèn)為是一個(gè)奇跡。從畫面上不僅可以看出畫家精湛的技能，而且也可以看出他對(duì)妻子摯愛的深度。當(dāng)他的工作接近尾聲的時(shí)候，他的專心致志也已到了發(fā)狂的程度，他不準(zhǔn)許任何人進(jìn)入塔樓，只顧兩眼盯著畫布，根本未注意妻子的容貌。他甚至已經(jīng)忘記了畫布上涂抹的色彩來(lái)自妻子的朱顏。幾個(gè)星期以后，除了嘴唇和眼睛尚未著色以外，其它部分都畫好了。這時(shí)畫家妻子的精神才猶如燈火般回光返照，他便終于完成了畫稿。畫家站在自己用心血?jiǎng)?chuàng)作的畫像前，一時(shí)看得出了神，過(guò)了一會(huì)兒，不禁自言自語(yǔ)道：‘簡(jiǎn)直像活的一樣！’說(shuō)完轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)頭去看妻子：她已經(jīng)死了！”