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《The Chameleon》《变色龙》节选
作者：Anton Chekhov（安东·契诃夫）
首次发表日期：1884年9月8日
首次发表刊物：《花絮》Oskolki
收录集子：《契诃夫短篇小说精选》
创作背景：
小说创作于沙皇俄国统治时期，
揭露当时俄国基层官吏媚上欺下的黑暗现实。
英文原文
One sweltering summer afternoon,
the town’s market square lay bathed in blazing sunlight.
Most pedestrians dragged their feet slowly,
shops stood with half-closed shutters,
and the heavy heat hung in the air,
making every person sleepy and listless.
A police constable named Ochumelov strode across the square,
his official overcoat draped firmly over his shoulders.
In one hand,
he carried a bundle of goods seized from a street peddler.
Close behind him followed a young assistant policeman,
who held a sieve filled with confiscated gooseberries.
There was no urgent task to handle,
so Ochumelov wandered at a casual pace,
casting lazy glances at storefronts and passers-by as he patrolled.
All at once,
a shrill scream cut through the dull stillness,
mixed with the high-pitched yelping of a small dog.
“Stop it! Grab it! Don’t let it escape!”
someone shouted loudly.
A local goldsmith, Hryukin,
stumbled rushing out of a timber yard.
He held up his right hand,
where fresh blood trickled down from his wounded finger.
He chased frantically after a tiny spotted dog with a narrow, pointed face.
Terrified,
the puppy scrambled forward,
its thin legs shaking,
desperate to flee.
Curious townsfolk quickly gathered into a tight crowd.
They loved witnessing trivial, dramatic happenings on the square
and crowded together,
craning their necks to watch the commotion.
“What is this disorder?”
Ochumelov pushed his way into the circle,
frowned hard,
and squared his shoulders to show his official authority.
“Who raised that cry?
What trouble has taken place here?”
Hryukin held his bleeding finger high,
his voice trembling with anger.
“I was walking past the timber yard,
minding my own business.
This little dog darted out suddenly
and sank its teeth into my finger.
I earn my living by making gold ornaments.
This finger is the tool I depend on to feed my family.
Now I cannot work properly.
I demand compensation from the dog’s owner.”
Ochumelov stared coldly at the trembling puppy,
and his face hardened into a stern expression.
“Very well,
I will look into this case at once.
The owner of this dog must take full responsibility.
If this dog bites people freely,
we cannot allow dangerous dogs to run loose in public.
Make a written record.
This dog ought to be destroyed right away.
Can anyone tell me who owns this dog?”
A quiet voice came out from the surrounding crowd:
“I believe this might be the general’s dog.”
The moment these words reached his ears,
Ochumelov’s whole facial expression flipped completely.
His frown faded instantly.
He turned toward Hryukin with a reproachful tone.
“Hold on a moment.
How could such a tiny, delicate puppy hurt you?
It is far too small to reach your finger.
You must have scraped your finger by accident yourself,
and now you try to cheat money out of others.
Everyone knows you love stirring up trouble for petty gains.”
“But it bit me, officer!
All these people saw it!”
Hryukin argued anxiously.
“That is nonsense,”
Ochumelov replied sharply.
“Generals keep fine, valuable breeds of dogs.
This is a precious little pet.
You yourself are to blame for this incident.”
Right then,
the young policeman beside him spoke softly.
“I do not think this belongs to the general.
The general has never raised dogs like this one.”
Ochumelov’s attitude shifted for the second time.
“Are you certain of that?
If it does not belong to the general,
then its owner must be punished.
Hryukin has suffered an injury.
The owner shall pay for the loss,
and we shall drive the dog away.”
Before long,
another voice from the crowd put forward a new guess.
“Maybe it still belongs to the general.
I saw a dog just like this at the general’s yard a few days ago.”
Ochumelov changed his stance again.
“It is easy for a common man to tell lies.
The puppy is fragile;
it could never bite such a strong man.
Hryukin is a troublemaker,
and he deserves no sympathy.”
Finally,
the general’s old servant pushed through the crowd.
When he caught sight of the puppy,
he smiled gently.
“This puppy belongs to the general’s brother.
He has come to visit recently,
and he brought the little dog with him.”
Upon hearing this,
Ochumelov’s face broke into a warm, flattering smile.
He bent down carefully and stroked the trembling dog.
“What a lovely little creature!
Such a clever puppy!
It was only playing with you, Hryukin.
You are making a big fuss over nothing.”
He turned to the servant and said politely,
“Please take this precious puppy home safely.
Tell your master what a lovely dog he has.”
Then he shot a threatening glare at Hryukin.
The crowd burst into laughter.
Hryukin stood rooted to the spot,
filled with embarrassment and rage.
Ochumelov pulled his overcoat tighter around his body
and marched off across the square,
continuing his patrol as if nothing had happened.
译文
一个闷热的夏日午后，
小镇集市广场被灼热的阳光笼罩。
路上的行人脚步迟缓，
店铺的百叶窗半掩着，
厚重的热浪弥漫在空中，
所有人都昏昏沉沉、提不起精神。
警官奥楚蔑洛夫裹着军大衣穿过广场，
军大衣牢牢披在肩上。
他一只手里，
拎着从摊贩那里收缴来的一包货物。
紧随其后跟着年轻巡警，
手里捧着一筛没收上来的醋栗。
没有紧急公务要处理，
奥楚蔑洛夫慢悠悠地巡逻，
慵懒地扫视街边店铺和来往行人。
忽然，
一声尖利的喊叫打破沉闷，
夹杂着小狗细细的哀鸣。
“抓住它！拦住它！别让它跑了！”
有人大声喊道。
首饰匠赫留金，
跌跌撞撞从木柴场冲出来。
他高高举起右手，
鲜血顺着受伤的手指往下流淌。
他拼命追赶一只尖脸、长着黄斑的小狗。
小狗满心恐惧，
慌乱地向前逃窜，
细细的四肢不停发抖，
一心想要逃走。
好奇的居民很快围成一圈。
大家都爱看广场上这类琐碎又热闹的小事，
纷纷挤上前，
伸长脖子看热闹。
“这里乱哄哄的是怎么回事？”
奥楚蔑洛夫挤进人群，
紧紧皱起眉头，
挺直肩膀摆出官威。
“是谁在大喊？
这里发生了什么？”
赫留金举着流血的手指，
声音因为愤怒而颤抖。
“我刚刚路过木柴场，
安分地走路。
这只小狗突然窜出来，
一口咬在了我的手指上。
我靠做首饰谋生，
这根手指是我养家糊口的本钱。
现在我没法干活了。
我要求狗主人赔偿我的损失。”
奥楚蔑洛夫冷冷盯着瑟瑟发抖的小狗，
神情变得十分严厉。
“好，
我立刻查清这件事。
狗主人必须承担全部责任。
如果这只狗随便咬人，
我们不能放任恶犬在街上乱跑。
做好笔录。
这条狗应当立刻处理掉。
谁知道这是谁家的狗？”
人群里传来压低的声音：
“这好像是将军家的狗。”
话音刚落，
奥楚蔑洛夫脸上的神色瞬间完全反转。
眉头一下子舒展开。
他转头责备赫留金。
“等一下。
这么小巧柔弱的小狗怎么可能咬伤你？
它个头太小，根本够不到你的手指。
一定是你自己不小心刮伤了手，
现在想要讹别人的钱。
大家都清楚，你总爱为了一点好处寻衅闹事。”
“警官，确实是它咬我的！
所有人都看见了！”
赫留金焦急地争辩。
“一派胡言，”
奥楚蔑洛夫厉声说道。
“将军养的都是名贵品种，
这是珍贵的宠物。
这件事，责任在你自己。”
就在这时，
身旁年轻巡警小声开口。
“我觉得这不是将军家的狗。
将军从来没有养过这种小狗。”
奥楚蔑洛夫第二次变了态度。
“你确定吗？
如果不是将军家的狗，
那就必须惩处狗主人。
赫留金受了伤，
主人要赔偿损失，
并且把这条狗赶走。”
没过多久，
人群里又有人给出新的猜测。
“说不定还是将军家的，
前几天我在将军院里见过一模一样的小狗。”
奥楚蔑洛夫再次改口。
“普通人随口乱说很正常。
小狗那么弱小，
不可能咬伤强壮的成年人。
赫留金就是个爱找茬的人，
不值得同情。”
最后，
将军家的老仆人挤开人群。
他一看见小狗，
温和地笑了。
“这是将军弟弟带来的小狗。
他最近过来做客，
把小狗一起带来了。”
听完这话，
奥楚蔑洛夫脸上堆起谄媚热情的笑容。
他小心翼翼弯腰，抚摸发抖的小狗。
“多可爱的小家伙！
多机灵的小狗！
它只是和你闹着玩而已，赫留金。
你实在是小题大做。”
他转向仆人客气地说，
“麻烦您好好把这只珍贵小狗带回家。
转告主人，这小狗讨人喜欢。”
说完，他恶狠狠地瞪了赫留金一眼。
围观的人群哄然大笑。
赫留金僵在原地，
满心难堪与气愤。
奥楚蔑洛夫把军大衣裹得更紧，
大步穿过广场，
继续巡逻，
仿佛刚才这场闹剧从来没有发生。
🔍长难句赏析与拆解
原句一
A police constable named Ochumelov strode across the square,
his official overcoat draped firmly over his shoulders.
In one hand,
he carried a bundle of goods seized from a street peddler.
Close behind him followed a young assistant policeman,
who held a sieve filled with confiscated gooseberries.
句式解读
本句融合过去分词后置定语、
独立主格结构、
who引导非限制性定语从句，
是场景描写典型句。
1. named Ochumelov、seized from a street peddler、
filled with confiscated gooseberries
都是过去分词作后置定语，
精简句式；
2. his official overcoat draped firmly over his shoulders
是独立主格，
补充伴随状态；
3. who引导定语从句，
补充巡警的信息。
整段铺陈人物出场，
勾勒警官身份，
为后文反复变脸铺垫，
适合读后续写人物描写。
句子主干：
A police constable strode across the square.
He carried a bundle of goods.
A young assistant policeman followed.
原句二
The moment these words reached his ears,
Ochumelov’s whole facial expression flipped completely.
He turned toward Hryukin with a reproachful tone.
句式解读
The moment 引导时间状语从句，
相当于as soon as，
译为“一……就……”，
专门用来表现人物瞬间的情绪转变。
精准凸显奥楚蔑洛夫变脸速度极快，
反差强烈，
是塑造势利虚伪人物的高分句型。
句子主干：
Ochumelov’s facial expression flipped.
He turned toward Hryukin.
📖全篇句式特点
契诃夫典型短句讽刺风格，
叙事简洁干脆，对话占很大比重。
多用短句推动情节，节奏明快；
穿插分词定语、
The moment时间状语从句，
快速切换人物态度。
没有华丽辞藻，依靠言行反差制造讽刺效果。
对话简短直白，每一次改口都形成鲜明对比，
将人物趋炎附势、见风使舵的丑态直观展现，
讽刺藏在平静叙事之中。
核心词汇
1. constable
/ˈkʌnstəbl/
警官
名词（n.）
2. sweltering
/ˈsweltərɪŋ/
闷热的
形容词（adj.）
3. confiscate
/ˈkɒnfɪskeɪt/
没收，充公
动词（v.）
4. reproachful
/rɪˈprəʊtʃfl/
责备的，指责的
形容词（adj.）
5. precious
/ˈpreʃəs/
珍贵的
形容词（adj.）
6. scramble
/ˈskræmbl/
仓促逃窜，争抢
动词（v.）
7. commotion
/kəˈməʊʃn/
骚动，喧闹
名词（n.）
8. flattering
/ˈflætərɪŋ/
谄媚的，讨好的
形容词（adj.）
9. compensation
/ˌkɒmpenˈseɪʃn/
赔偿，补偿金
名词（n.）
10. patrol
/pəˈtrəʊl/
巡逻
动词（v.）
💡主旨品读
《变色龙》是契诃夫经典讽刺短篇。
全文围绕广场小狗咬人这件小事展开，
核心就是警官奥楚蔑洛夫的多次态度转变。
他判断是非的标准，
从来不依靠事实与法理，
只看狗的主人是不是权贵。
“变色龙”就是奥楚蔑洛夫的代名词，
代表着媚上欺下、
没有固定立场的官吏。
军大衣是重要意象，
既是身份外衣，
也是他掩饰内心慌乱的道具。
围观群众最后的哄笑，
暗含底层民众看透官场虚伪，
却无力改变现实的无奈。
小说借一件街头小事，
批判沙皇时代腐朽的警察制度：
公平可以随意更改，
权贵才是最高标尺，
深刻揭露专制社会里扭曲的奴性风气。
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