Difficulties in Reading the Importance of Being Earnest (4-act version)

温酒残菊

Difficulties in Reading the Importance of Being Earnest (4-act version)

Need help. When reading through the Original 4-act play of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, I was baffled by some lines, the meaning of which I can’t quite make out. Please help me.

I.
Jack: [very irritable indeed, to Algernon] Good heavens! And what nonsense are you reading, Algy? [Takes book from him] The Army List? Well, I don’t suppose you knew it was the Army List. And you’ve got it open at the wrong page. Besides, there is the thing staring you in the face. M. Generals … Mallam – what ghastly names they have – Markby……(Act IV)

What does “Besides, there is the thing staring you in the face” mean? Does “the thing” allude to Cecily, and thus the line means “besides, Cecily is staring you in the face”? Or is it a set-phrase of something?

II.

Lady Bracknell: That is not the destiny I propose for Gwendolen. Algernon, of course, can choose for himself. [Pulls out her watch] Come, dear, we have already missed five, if not six, trains. To miss any more might expose us to comment on the platform.

By “To miss any more might expose us to comment on the platform”, does the author mean “leave them to be commented or humiliated by others on the platform” or “leave them on the platform complaining in vain”?


III.


ALGERNON: My departure will not long be delayed. I have come to bid you good-bye, Miss Cardew. I am informed that a dog-cart has been already ordered for me. I have no option but to go back again into the cold world.
CECILY: I hardly know, Mr. Worthing, what you can mean by using such an expression. The day, even for the month of July, is unusually warm.
MISS PRISM: Profligacy is apt to dull the senses.
ALGERNON: No doubt. I am far from defending the weather. I think, however, that it is only my duty to mention to you, Miss Prism, that Dr Chasuble is expecting you in the vestry.

Here, does “I am far from defending the weather” mean “I’m far from dull in sensing the weather” or does “defending” here simply mean defend in sense of protection?

IV.

What is a “Novel with a purpose”? Does it refer to any meaningful novel in broad sense or does it refer to motivating or inspiring ones?

V.  

In Act IV, when everyone is skimming books to find out Jack’s Christian name, Jack didn’t assign Gwendolen any book, saying that “Gwendolen—no, it would agitate you too much. Leave these researches to less philosophic natures like ours.” What does “Philosophic natures” mean?

Looking forward to your opinions, thanks very much.

keatslover

1. there is the thing staring you in the face. 这是个set phrase ,指的是下面要提到的不太好的事情。
2. 可能是指再错过几趟车，站台上有人就会说我们了。
3. 显然是在就cold world 玩弄的双关语的游戏。
4. 需要更多的上下文，“带有目的的小说”，可能是指小说主题比较明确的 ，也可能指的别的。
5： philosophic natures 意思是 people who tend to think philosophically ,一句带有玩笑意义的话。

温酒残菊

原帖由 keatslover 于 2008-5-2 18:22 发表
1. there is the thing staring you in the face. 这是个set phrase ,指的是下面要提到的不太好的事情。
2. 可能是指再错过几趟车，站台上有人就会说我们了。
3. 显然是在就cold world 玩弄的双关语的游戏。
4. 需 ...

感谢济慈情人的指点。我四处求助都无人回应，得蒙版主指点，感激零涕。想再跟你落实一下具体意思。
1.Jack一开始认为Algy乱翻书，说他犯得不对页，然后刚好查到了他们要查的名字，这应该是好事，为什么中间会插说发生不好的事情呢？是故意把好事说成不好的事？
2.to comment 套用一个语法现象，叫“主动表被动”？
3.他说世界冰冷，她说天气很热，他说“我自然是不会为天气辩护的”，这样理解对否？
4.这个我大致觉得就是维多利亚时代对小说的分类，分为有意义和没意义，有主旨和没主旨吧，不知道中文有没有对应的文学概念？
5.那个哲学思辨的气质理解为心思细腻多愁善感是否妥贴？
还望济慈情人兄继续不吝指教。

残菊
08.5.2

keatslover

第一个 要看there is the thing staring you in the face. M. Generals … Mallam – what ghastly names they have – Markby…… 这后面是什么， 某事物stare sb in the face 这个结构指的是，1： 某件事情很明显2： 某事情不可避免，如果按第二意义理解，就有不太好的意思,具体还要看后面。
第二个 这个是 expose sb to 的结构，后面的comment 没有必要有什么被动结构什么的 ，因为它应该是个名词，虽然读其含义时，似乎带有被动的意思。
第三，开始时说cold world 是比喻，第二个人多半是佯装不知，说天气很热，第三人评论说是profligacy 使人感觉麻木了。algernon 回答是毫无疑问是如此，但是他并不准备在这里就天气的事情进行讨论或者辩护。因他还有事情要通知。
第四,NOVEL WITH A PURPOSE 并非文学评论的专门术语，为人们一般讲话时的语言，小说有意义无意义，有主旨没有主旨，在任何时代都存在，不一定就是维多利亚时候就是如此。而且这个purpose 也可能指的是带有社会目的的小说，因为oscar wilde 是唯美派，对于小说的社会功用可能会有所提及。
第五 你可以那么理解的，因为前面有提过他讲话的对象很容易agitate.

我是这么理解的，看对你是不是有所帮助。

[ 本帖最后由 keatslover 于 2008-5-3 12:06 编辑 ]

温酒残菊

再次感谢，有几分晓畅之感了。
再就第一点来说，基本可以确定是“近在眼前”的意思了，Jack等一班人翻书翻了半天，忽然发现就在眼前。那个M什么的，就是按姓氏索引，最后到了Moncreiff，就找到他们要找的名字了。不过在“have the book open at the wrong page”跟“Besides”之间的逻辑关联我还不太明白。“你翻的页数不对，再说了，要找的东西就在眼前嘛”，如果页数不对，东西字不能在眼前，这是王尔德故意营造的矛盾么？再请兄台指教。
后面几点，对济慈情人的观点心悦诚服。
感激不尽。

残菊
08.5.3

keatslover

我手头暂时没有这本书（压在箱子里，暂时翻不出来） 网上找了一下，但是似乎和你的原文有些不同，你能否发出这段话前面和后面的若干段，以作参考。

温酒残菊

这个与市面流行版本不太一致,是Original 4-act play.
在Algy和Jack兄弟相认后,增补了一部分寻书情节.
大致情节就是Jack给在场每个人都分了几本书,分工合作一起查Christian Name.

CECILY I am so sorry, Uncle Jack. But Generals don't seem to be even alluded to in the "History of our own times", although it is the best edition. The one written in collabora¬tion with the typewriting machine.

MISS PRISM To me, Mr Moncrieff, you have given two copies of the Price Lists of the Civil Service Stores. I do not find Generals marked anywhere. There seems to be either no demand or no supply.

LADY BRACKNELL This treatise, the "Green Carnation", as I see it is called, seems to be a book about the culture of exotics. It contains no reference to Generals in it. It seems a morbid and middle-class affair.

JACK [very irritable indeed, to ALGERNON] Good Heavens! and what nonsense are you reading, Algy? [Takes book from him] The Army List? Well, I don't suppose you knew it was the Army List. And you've got it open at the wrong page. Besides, there is the thing staring you in the face. M. Generals . . . Mallam—what ghastly names they have— Markby, Migsby, Mobbs, Moncrieff, Moncrieff! Lieutenant 1840, Captain, Lieutenant-Colonel, Colonel, General i860. Christian names, Ernest John. [Puts book very quietly down and speaks quite calmly] I always told you, Gwendolen, my name was Ernest, didn't I? Well, it is Ernest after all. I mean it naturally is Ernest.

这里后面又接上3幕版的结尾,大团圆了.
感谢济慈情人长期以来的帮助提点.

残菊
08.5.4

keatslover

从这个上下文看来，那个the thing 指的是要找名字之类的东西，之所以用besides ，是指责的语气：我想你不知道那就是army list ，连页数都翻错了，而且要找的东西清清楚楚地就在那里。。。。。。  我是大致这么理解的。

keatslover

另外，你太客气了，相互帮助是应该的。

温酒残菊

几个纠结的问题大致解决了。
还是要再次特别感谢济慈情人的，人间有真情那，
我跑了几个论坛，四处发帖，都不闻回音，唯独此间得蒙版主的款款帮助，殷殷指点。
谢谢济慈情人。

残菊
08.5.5