晨韵推荐：双语美文--哈利波特与凤凰社 Chapter 11（下）

绚斓晨韵

'It's a figure of speech！' said Nearly Headless Nick, now so annoyed his head was trembling ominously on his partially severed neck. 'I assume I am still allowed to enjoy the use of whichever words I like, even if the pleasures of eating and drinking are denied me！ But I am quite used to students poking fun at my death, I assure you！'
'Nick, he wasn't really laughing at you！' said Hermione, throwing a furious look at Ron.
Unfortunately, Ron's mouth was packed to exploding point again and all he could manage was 'Node iddum eentup sechew,' which Nick did not seem to think constituted an adequate apology. Rising into the air, he straightened his feathered hat and swept away from them to the other end of the table, coming to rest between the Creevey brothers, Colin and Dennis.
'Well done, Ron,' snapped Hermione
'What？' said Ron indignantly, having managed, finally, to swallow his food. Tin not allowed to ask a simple question？'
'Oh, forget it,' said Hermione irritably, and the pair of them spent the rest of the meal in huffy silence.
Harry was too used to their bickering to bother trying to reconcile them; he felt it was a better use of his time to eat his way steadily through his steak and kidney pie, then a large plateful of his favourite treacle tart.
“那是一种修辞手法！”差点没头的尼克恼火极了，脑袋在割开一半的脖子上危险地颤动着，“我想，我仍然可以享受随心所欲地说话的自由，尽管我已经不再拥有吃喝的乐趣！但是我已经习惯了同学们拿我的死亡开玩笑，我可以告诉你！”
“尼克，他并不是真的在嘲笑你！”赫敏说，生气地白了罗恩一眼。
不幸的是，罗恩的嘴里又塞得快要爆炸了，他只能含糊不清地嘟哝一句“不是有意嘲笑你”，而尼克似乎认为这句道歉过于轻描淡写。他一下子飞到空中，正了正插着羽毛的帽子，离开他们飘向了桌子的另一头，坐到克里维家的两兄弟——科林和丹尼斯中间去了。
“你干的好事，罗恩！”赫敏严厉地说。
“什么？”罗恩总算把满嘴的东西咽了下去，不服气地说，“我问一个简单的问题都不允许吗？”
“行了，别说啦。”赫敏没好气地说。在后来吃饭的时候，他们俩一直气鼓鼓地沉默着。
哈利对他们闹口角已经见怪不怪，觉得犯不着去给他们调解。他觉得正好利用这个时间津津有味地享用他的牛排和腰子馅饼，接着是满满一大盘他最喜欢的糖浆水果馅饼。
When all the students had finished eating and the noise level in the Hall was starting to creep upwards again, Dumbledore got to his feet once more. Talking ceased immediately as all turned to face the Headmaster. Harry was feeling pleasantly drowsy now. His four-poster bed was waiting somewhere above, wonderfully warm and soft . . .
'Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices,' said Dumbledore. 'First-years ought to know that the Forest in the grounds is out-of-bounds to students - and a few of our older students ought to know by now, too.' （Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged smirks.）
'Mr Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he tells me is the four-hundred-and-sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr Filch's office door.
'We have had two changes in staffing this year. We are very pleased to welcome back Professor Grubbly-Plank, who will be taking Care of Magical Creatures lessons; we are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.'
There was a round of polite but fairly unenthusiastic applause, during which Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged slightly panicked looks; Dumbledore had not said for how long Grubbly-Plank would be teaching.
Dumbledore continued, 'Tryouts for the house Quidditch teams will take place on the - '
同学们都吃饱喝足了，礼堂的声音渐渐嘈杂起来，这时邓布利多又一次站起身。说话声立刻停止了，大家都把脸转向了校长。哈利这会儿已经感到有点昏昏欲睡了。他那张四柱床正在楼上某个地方等着他呢，那么温暖而柔软……
“好了，既然我们都正在消化又一顿无比丰盛的美味，我请求大家安静一会儿，听我像往常一样讲讲新学期的注意事项。”邓布利多说，“一年级新生应该知道，狩猎场里的禁林是学生不能进去的——这一点，我们的几位高年级同学现在也应该知道了。”（哈利、罗恩和赫敏交换着调皮的笑容。）
“管理员费尔奇先生请求我，他还告诉我这已经是第四百二十六次了，请求我提醒你们大家，课间不许在走廊上施魔法，还有许多其他规定，都列在那张长长的单子上，贴在费尔奇先生办公室的门上。
“今年，我们的教师队伍有两个变动。我们非常高兴地欢迎格拉普兰教授回来，她将教你们保护神奇生物课。我们同样高兴地介绍乌姆里奇教授，我们的黑魔法防御术课的新老师。”
礼堂里响起一片礼貌的、但不很热情的掌声，哈利、罗恩和赫敏则交换了一个略微有些紧张的目光。邓布利多没有说格拉普兰要教多长时间。
邓布利多继续说道：“学院魁地奇球队的选拔将于——”
He broke off, looking enquiringly at Professor Umbridge. As she was not much taller standing than sitting, there was a moment when nobody understood why Dumbledore had stopped talking, but then Professor Umbridge cleared her throat, 'Hem, hem,' and it became clear that she had got to her feet and was intending to make a speech.
Dumbledore only looked taken aback for a moment, then he sat down smartly and looked alertly at Professor Umbridge as though he desired nothing better than to listen to her talk. Other members of staff were not as adept at hiding their surprise. Professor Sprout's eyebrows had disappeared into her flyaway hair and Professor McGonagall's mouth was as thin as Harry had ever seen it. No new teacher had ever interrupted Dumbledore before. Many of the students were smirking; this woman obviously did not know how things were done at Hogwarts.
Thank you, Headmaster,' Professor Umbridge simpered, 'for those kind words of welcome.'
Her voice was high-pitched, breathy and little-girlish and, again, Harry felt a powerful rush of dislike that he could not explain to himself; all he knew was that he loathed everything about her, from her stupid voice to her fluffy pink cardigan. She gave another little throat-clearing cough （'hem, hem'） and continued.
'Well, it is lovely to be back at Hogwarts, I must say！' She smiled, revealing very pointed teeth. 'And to see such happy little faces looking up at me！'
Harry glanced around. None of the faces he could see looked happy. On the contrary, they all looked rather taken-aback at being addressed as though they were five years old.
'I am very much looking forward to getting to know you all and I'm sure we'll be very good friends！'
Students exchanged looks at this; some of them were barely concealing grins.
他猛地顿住话头，询问地望着乌姆里奇教授。由于她站起来并不比坐着的时候高出多少，所以一时间谁也不明白邓布利多为什么突然停住不说了，这时只听乌姆里奇教授清了清嗓子：“咳，咳。”大家这才明白她已经站起来，正准备发表讲话呢。
邓布利多只是一刹那间显出惊讶的神情，接着他就机敏地坐了下去，专注地望着乌姆里奇教授，似乎正迫不及待地想听她说话呢。其他教师则没有这样巧妙地掩饰他们的惊诧。斯普劳特教授的眉毛都快蹿到她飘拂的头发里去了，麦格教授把嘴巴抿得那么紧，是哈利从没见过的。以前从没有哪位新教师打断过邓布利多。许多学生都在暗暗发笑：这个女人显然不懂得霍格沃茨的规矩。
“谢谢你，校长，”乌姆里奇教授假笑着说，“谢谢你说了这么热情的欢迎辞。”
她的声音又高又尖，还带着气声，像小姑娘的声音一样，哈利又感到一种突如其来的强烈反感，他自己也不能解释这是为什么。他只知道他讨厌这个女人的一切，从她那假模假式的声音，到她身上那件毛绒绒的粉红色开襟毛衣。她又轻轻咳嗽几下清了清嗓子（咳，咳），继续往下说道：“嗯，我必须说，能回到霍格沃茨真是太好了！”她咧嘴微笑着，露出嘴里很尖的牙齿，“看到这些愉快的小脸蛋朝上望着我，太好了！”
哈利朝周围看了看，他看到的面孔没有一张是愉快的。相反，他们都显得很吃惊，居然有人把他们当成五岁的小孩子。
“我迫切地希望早日认识你们大家，我相信我们会成为非常好的朋友！”
同学们听了这句话，互相交换着目光。有些人几乎毫不掩饰地露出了一脸坏笑。
'I'll be her friend as long as I don't have to borrow that cardigan,' Parvati whispered to Lavender, and both of them lapsed into silent giggles.
Professor Umbridge cleared her throat again （'hem, hem'）, but when she continued, some of the breathiness had vanished from her voice. She sounded much more businesslike and now her words had a dull learned-by-heart sound to them.
The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the wizarding community must be passed down the generations lest we lose them for ever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching.'
Professor Umbridge paused here and made a little bow to her fellow staff members, none of whom bowed back to her. Professor McGonagall's dark eyebrows had contracted so that she looked positively hawklike, and Harry distinctly saw her exchange a significant glance with Professor Sprout as Umbridge gave another little 'hem, hem' and went on with her speech.
'Every headmaster and headmistress of Hogwarts has brought something new to the weighty task of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. There again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between permanence and change, between tradition and innovation . . .'
“我会跟她做朋友的，只要别让我借她那件开襟毛衣。”帕瓦蒂小声对拉文德说，两个人都不出声地哧哧笑了起来。
乌姆里奇教授又清了清嗓子（咳，咳），可是当她继续说话时，她声音里的一些气声听不见了。现在她的声音变得一本正经得多，话也说得干巴巴的，好像那些话早就熟记在她心里似的。
“魔法部一向认为，教育青年巫师是一项十分重要的事情。你们与生俱来的一些宝贵天赋，如果不在认真细致的指导下得到培养和锻炼，可能会毫无结果。魔法世界独有的古老的技艺，必须代代相传，不然就会消失殆荆我们的祖先积累下的珍贵的魔法知识宝库，必须由那些有幸从事高贵的教育职业的人们对它们加以保护、补充和完善。”
说到这里，乌姆里奇教授停住话头，对着其他老师微微鞠了一躬，而他们谁也没有朝她回礼。麦格教授的两道黑眉毛紧紧拧在一起，使她看上去活像一只老鹰，而且哈利清清楚楚地看见，当乌姆里奇又轻轻“咳，咳”两下继续她的演讲时，麦格教授和斯普劳特教授交换了一个意味深长的目光。
“霍格沃茨的历届校长，在肩负管理这所历史名校的重任时都有所创新，这是完全应该的，因为如果没有进步，就会停滞，就会衰败。然而同时，为进步而进步的做法是绝不应当鼓励的，我们的传统经过千锤百炼，经常是不需要拙劣的修正的。要达到一种平衡，在旧与新的之间，在恒久与变化之间，在传统与创新之间……”
Harry found his attentiveness ebbing, as though his brain was slipping in and out of tune. The quiet that always filled the Hall when Dumbledore was speaking was breaking up as students put t heir heads together, whispering and giggling. Over on the Ravenclaw table Cho Chang was chatting animatedly with her friends. A few seats along from Cho, Luna Lovegood had got out The Quibbler again. Meanwhile, at the Hufflepuff table Ernie Macmillan was one of the few still staring at Professor Umbridge, but he was glassy-eyed and Harry was sure he was only pretending to listen in an attempt to live up to the new prefect's badge gleaming on his chest.
Professor Umbridge did not seem to notice the restlessness of her audience. Harry had the impression that a full-scale riot could have broken out under her nose and she would have ploughed on with her speech. The teachers, however, were still listening very attentively, and Hermione seemed to be drinking in every word Umbridge spoke, though, judging by her expression, they were not at all to her taste.
'. . . because some changes will be for the better, while others will come, in the fullness of time, to be recognised as errors of judgement. Meanwhile, some old habits will be retained, and rightly so, whereas others, outmoded and outworn, must be abandoned. Let us move forward, then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness and accountability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfecting what needs to be perfected, and pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited.'
She sat down. Dumbledore clapped. The staff followed his lead, though Harry noticed that several of them brought their hands together only once or twice before stopping. A few students joined in, but most had been taken unawares by the end of the speech, not having listened to more than a few words of it, and before they could start applauding properly, Dumbledore had stood up again.
哈利发现自己的注意力渐渐不集中了，似乎他的大脑开起了小差。邓布利多说话时四下里鸦雀无声，现在同学们都在交头接耳，窃窃私语，咯咯发笑，礼堂里一片嘈杂。在那边拉文克劳的桌上，秋·张正在兴高采烈地跟朋友们聊天。和她隔着几个座位的卢娜·洛夫古德又掏出了那本《唱唱反调》。与此同时，在赫奇帕奇的桌上，厄尼·麦克米兰是仍然盯着乌姆里奇教授的为数不多的几个同学之一，但是他的目光呆滞无神，哈利可以肯定他只是在假装认真听讲，为的是不辜负他胸前那枚崭新的、闪闪发光的级长徽章。
乌姆里奇教授似乎没有注意到听众的坐立不安。哈利有一种感觉，即使她鼻子底下发生一场大规模的暴动，她也会继续慢条斯理地演讲下去。然而教师们一个个听得都很仔细，赫敏似乎全神贯注地把乌姆里奇说的每一个字都听进去了，但从她的表情看，这些话她并不爱听。
“……因为有些变化取得了好的效果，而另一些变化到了适当的时候，就会被发现是决策失误。同时，有些旧的习惯将被保留，这是无可厚非的，而有些习惯已经陈旧过时，就必须抛弃。让我们不断地前进，进入一个开明、高效和合乎情理的新时代，坚决保持应该保持的，完善需要完善的，摒弃那些我们应该禁止的。”
她坐了下去。邓布利多开始鼓掌，其他教师也跟着拍手，但哈利注意到他们有些人只拍了一两下就把手放下了。几个学生也一起鼓掌，但大多数学生只听了两三句就开了小差，这会儿根本没有意识到讲话已经结束，没等他们开始好好鼓掌，邓布利多就又站了起来。
Thank you very much, Professor Umbridge, that was most illuminating,' he said, bowing to her. 'Now, as I was saying, Quidditch tryouts will be held . . .'
'Yes, it certainly was illuminating,' said Hermione in a low voice.
'You're not telling me you enjoyed it？' Ron said quietly, turning a glazed face towards Hermione. That was about the dullest speech I've ever heard, and I grew up with Percy.'
'I said illuminating, not enjoyable,' said Hermione. 'It explained a lot.'
'Did it？' said Harry in surprise. 'Sounded like a load of waffle to me.'
There was some important stuff hidden in the waffle,' said Hermione grimly.
'Was there？' said Ron blankly.
'How about: "progress for progress's sake must be discouraged"？ How about: "pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited"？'
'Well, what does that mean？' said Ron impatiently.
“非常感谢你，乌姆里奇教授，你的讲话非常有启发性。”说着，他冲她欠了欠身，“好了，正如我刚才说的，魁地奇球的选拔将于……”
“是啊，确实很有启发性。”赫敏压低声音说。
“你该不是说你听得津津有味吧？”罗恩小声问，神情呆滞的脸转向赫敏，“这大概是我听到过的最枯燥乏味的讲话了，而我还是在珀西身边长大的呢。”
“我说的是有启发性，不是有趣味性，”赫敏说，“它能说明许多问题。”
“是吗？”哈利惊讶地说，“在我听来像一大通废话。”
“废话里藏着一些重要的东西。”赫敏严肃地说。
“是吗？”罗恩茫然地问。
“什么叫‘为进步而进步的做法是决不应当鼓励的’？什么叫‘摒弃那些我们应该禁止的’？”
“哎呀，到底是什么意思呢？”罗恩不耐烦地说。