中國(guó)成語(yǔ)故事中英對(duì)照 半途而廢

半途而廢

During the Warring States Period (475-221BC), there was a man called Yue Yangzi in State Yue. One day he saw a piece of gold on the road and picked it up. He took it home and gave it to his wife. But his wife was not happy. The virtuous woman said, "I hear that a man of morality doesn't drink a thief's water and a man of probity refuses to accept alms. What do you think of the action of picking up another's lost valuable and possessing it for one's own?"

戰(zhàn)國(guó)時(shí)期，魏國(guó)有個(gè)叫樂(lè)羊子的人。有一天，樂(lè)羊子在路上看到一塊金子，他就撿起金子，帶回了家并把它拿給妻子看?？伤拮右稽c(diǎn)兒也不高興。這個(gè)賢惠的女人對(duì)他說(shuō)："我聽(tīng)人說(shuō)'壯士不飲盜泉之水;廉潔的人不食嗟來(lái)之食'。把別人遺失的貴重之物撿起來(lái)?yè)?jù)為己有，你怎么看待這種行為呢?"

Yue Yangzi, feeling ashamed, sent the gold back to where he found it.

樂(lè)羊子聽(tīng)了妻子的話，覺(jué)得很慚愧，就把那塊金子又扔到原來(lái)的地方。

the next year, Yue Yangzi felt that he should go out and visit scholars to enrich his knowledge. So he set off.

第二年，樂(lè)羊子離開(kāi)家到了一個(gè)很遠(yuǎn)的地方，去拜師求學(xué)。

A year later, he came back home suddenly."Why have you returned?" asked his wife in surprise, "You've only spent one year studying with scholars.""I come back because I missed you very much."

一年后，樂(lè)羊子突然回到家中，他的妻子很驚訝地問(wèn)： "你怎么回來(lái)了?你才和那些學(xué)者學(xué)了一年呀。"樂(lè)羊子說(shuō)："我太想你了，所以回來(lái)看看。"

Without saying anything, his wife took a pair of scissors and went to the loom at which she had worked. Pointing at the half done brocade, she proclaimed : "This brocade is woven from the finest silk. I wove one strand after another to produce the brocade. Now if I cut it, all my previous work will be wasted. It's the same with your studies. You can acquire knowledge only through diligence. Now, you've stopped halfway. Isn't it the same as cutting the brocade on the loom?"

他的妻子聽(tīng)了以后，二話不說(shuō)，拿起把剪刀走到她的織布機(jī)前。她指著那塊已經(jīng)完成了一半的錦緞?wù)f： "這塊錦緞?dòng)玫氖亲詈玫慕z。我一絲絲的累積來(lái)織成這錦緞。如果我現(xiàn)在把它剪斷，就等于前功盡棄。你求學(xué)也是這樣。如果現(xiàn)在停止，和剪斷織布機(jī)上的錦緞?dòng)惺裁磪^(qū)別?"

Yue Yangzi was moved by what she said. He again left home to visit scholars.

樂(lè)羊子被妻子的話所感動(dòng)，于是立刻離開(kāi)家，繼續(xù)拜師求學(xué)。

Several years later he became a learned man.

幾年后，樂(lè)羊子終于完成學(xué)業(yè)，成為一個(gè)博學(xué)的人。