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《The Metamorphosis》《变形记》节选
作者：Franz Kafka（弗朗茨·卡夫卡）
创作时间：1912年秋冬
首次发表日期：1915年10月
首次发表刊物：德国《白色书页》Die Weißen Blätter
收录集子：《卡夫卡中短篇小说全集》
创作背景：
本文创作于奥匈帝国衰落的社会转型期，
工业化机械化生活压迫个体人性，
普通人沦为麻木的谋生工具，丧失自我与自由。
卡夫卡以荒诞超现实笔法，
书写现代人的生存异化、精神压抑与命运无奈。
英文原文
One morning,
when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams,
he found himself transformed unexpectedly in his bed
into a huge and horrible vermin.
He lay flat on his hard, armour-like back,
and if he lifted his head slightly upward,
he could observe his broad brown belly,
slightly domed and divided by firm arches
into many stiff, separate sections.
The thin soft bedding was hardly able to cover his bulging belly
and looked extremely loose,
as if it might slide down to the floor at any moment.
Numerous thin legs,
pitifully slender and weak
compared with his enormous body size,
waved tremblingly and helplessly in the air
right before his confused eyes.
“What on earth has happened to me?”
he whispered inwardly in great shock and confusion.
He tried to convince himself that this was merely a strange dream,
but the vivid sensation of his strange body
told him clearly that it was completely real.
It was not a dream at all.
His bedroom remained quiet and familiar,
a small ordinary room for an ordinary clerk.
The familiar walls,
the simple desk,
the chair and the window
were all exactly where they had always been.
Nothing in the room had changed except himself.
On the wooden desk,
large quantities of colorful textile samples
were spread out neatly and orderly.
As a hard-working traveling salesman,
Gregor spent almost every day traveling from city to city,
visiting different clients
and promoting various textile products
to earn money for his whole family.
Above the desk hung a beautiful framed picture,
which he had carefully cut out from a fashion magazine
and mounted in a delicate gilded frame months ago.
The picture showed an elegant young lady
dressed in luxurious winter fur clothing.
She wore a soft fur hat and a thick fur boa around her neck,
sitting straight and gracefully,
holding a large fur muff
that completely covered her slender forearms and hands.
Gregor slowly turned his tired and dull eyes toward the window.
Outside the window,
the sky was covered with thick grey clouds,
and cold continuous drizzle kept falling quietly.
The raindrops tapped softly and monotonously
on the metal windowsill,
creating a dull sound
that deepened his inner depression and sadness.
The entire world looked gloomy, lifeless and depressing.
He hoped that he could close his eyes again,
continue to sleep for a longer time,
and wake up from this terrifying and absurd transformation.
He wished to get rid of all the weird feelings and troubles,
and return to his normal human appearance.
However,
he soon realized that it was absolutely impossible.
For many years,
he had been firmly accustomed to sleeping on his right side.
But his newly transformed body structure
was completely different from before,
making it extremely difficult for him
to adjust his sleeping posture freely.
No matter how hard he twisted his body,
how violently he struggled and rolled,
he would always slide back and lie stiffly on his back.
He attempted again and again without pause,
closing his eyes tightly
to avoid seeing his shaking and twisted thin legs.
After dozens of painful attempts,
a faint but lasting dull pain gradually appeared on his side,
forcing him to stop all meaningless struggles.
He lay motionless on the bed,
feeling helpless, confused and extremely desperate.
He thought of his boring and exhausting daily life,
the endless business trips,
the indifferent customers,
the irregular meals,
and the lonely life without sincere friendship.
He had endured all hardships silently for years,
devoting his youth and energy
to supporting his family’s ordinary life,
yet he finally fell into such an unbelievable and tragic situation.
译文
一天清晨，
格里高尔·萨姆沙从纷乱的梦魇中醒来，
意外发现自己躺在床上，
变成了一只巨大且丑陋的害虫。
他僵硬地平躺着，
背部坚硬如铁甲一般，
只要微微抬起头部，
就能看见自己宽阔的褐色腹部，
腹部微微隆起，
被坚硬的骨架分割成一块块僵硬的区域。
轻薄柔软的被褥根本盖不住隆起的腹部，
显得十分松垮，
仿佛随时都会滑落至地面。
密密麻麻的细腿，
相较于庞大的身躯显得无比纤细孱弱，
在他惊恐的眼前无助地、颤抖地胡乱晃动。
“我到底发生了什么？”
他内心无比震惊、满是困惑地喃喃自问。
他试图告诉自己这只是一场离奇的噩梦，
但身体真切怪异的触感
清晰地告诉他，眼前的一切都是真实的。
这根本不是梦境。
他的卧室依旧安静又熟悉，
只是一间普通职员的狭小房间。
熟悉的墙壁、
简易的书桌、
椅子和窗户，
一切都保持着原本的模样。
房间里万物如常，
唯独他自己彻底变了模样。
木质书桌上，
摆放着大量色彩各异的布料样品，
整齐地摊开着。
作为一名勤恳的巡回推销员，
格里高尔几乎日日奔波于各个城市，
拜访形形色色的客户，
推销各类纺织品，
以此养家糊口、支撑全家生计。
书桌上方挂着一幅精致的装框画，
这是他数月前从时尚杂志精心裁剪，
装入精致镀金画框的装饰画。
画中是一位优雅的年轻女子，
身着华贵的冬季皮草服饰。
她头戴柔软皮帽、颈绕厚实皮草围脖，
身姿端正优雅，
手中捧着宽大的皮手筒，
将纤细的前臂与双手完全护住。
格里高尔缓缓将疲惫呆滞的目光移向窗外。
窗外的天空被厚重的灰云笼罩，
绵绵冷雨静静飘落。
雨滴单调轻柔地敲打在金属窗台上，
沉闷的声响，
愈发加重了他内心的压抑与悲伤。
整个世界阴沉死寂、毫无生机。
他多希望可以再次闭上双眼，
沉沉睡去，
从这场荒诞可怖的异变中苏醒过来。
他渴望摆脱所有怪异的体感与困境，
变回原本正常的人类模样。
但他很快明白，
一切已然无法挽回。
多年以来，
他早已习惯朝右侧侧卧入睡。
可如今异变后的身体构造彻底改变，
让他再也无法自由调整睡姿。
无论他如何扭动身躯、
奋力翻滚挣扎，
最终都会僵硬地仰面躺回原处。
他一遍又一遍徒劳尝试，
紧紧闭住双眼，
不愿看见自己扭曲颤动的细腿。
数十次痛苦的挣扎过后，
腰侧传来一阵隐隐持续的钝痛，
迫使他停下所有毫无意义的抗争。
他静静躺在床上，
满心无助、迷茫、深陷绝望。
他回想起自己枯燥疲惫的生活，
无休止的出差奔波、
冷漠疏离的客户、
毫无规律的三餐、
没有真挚陪伴的孤独人生。
多年来他默默承受所有艰辛，
耗尽青春与精力撑起整个家庭，
最终却落入这般难以置信的悲惨境地。
🔍长难句赏析与拆解
原句一
He lay flat on his hard, armour-like back,
and if he lifted his head slightly upward,
he could observe his broad brown belly,
slightly domed and divided by firm arches
into many stiff, separate sections.
句式解读
本句为文本核心典型句，
由并列句、条件状语从句、
过去分词后置定语多重结构构成。
1. if 引导条件状语从句，
铺垫人物观察自身的动作前提；
2. slightly domed and divided…
为过去分词后置定语，
修饰名词belly，
精简句式、细化外形描写；
3. 句式层次严谨，
客观细致刻画身体异变特征，
营造荒诞、冰冷的写实氛围。
句子主干：
He lay on his back,
and he could observe his belly.
原句二
No matter how hard he twisted his body,
how violently he struggled and rolled,
he would always slide back and lie stiffly on his back.
句式解读
本句为书面高频典型句，
由 No matter how 引导双重让步状语从句。
从句连续强化人物主观抗争，
主句凸显无法逆转的客观现实，
形成强烈反差，
深刻体现主人公命运的被动与无力，
是塑造人物困境的经典语法句式。
句子主干：
He would slide back and lie on his back.
原句三
But his newly transformed body structure
was completely different from before,
making it extremely difficult for him
to adjust his sleeping posture freely.
句式解读
本句为文本核心高分典型句，
包含现在分词作结果状语、
形式宾语经典句型。
1. making…为现在分词结果状语，
引出身体异变带来的后果；
2. make it difficult for sb. to do sth.
为规范形式宾语结构，
是书面写作必备句型，
客观体现人物的生理困境。
句子主干：
His body structure was different,
making it difficult to adjust posture.
📖全篇句式特点
全文采用卡夫卡标志性冷静荒诞的叙事笔法，
句式规整严谨、书面性极强。
全篇以陈述句为主体，
大量运用分词后置定语、
让步状语从句、
条件状语从句、
分词结果状语与形式宾语句型。
句式长短错落、逻辑严密，
无口语化表达、无主观抒情。
以极度客观克制的文字，
描写极度荒诞的人生异变，
用冷静叙事与离奇情节的反差，
凸显现代人生存异化、命运被动、精神孤独的核心主旨，
语法结构丰富，适配精读与写作积累。
核心词汇
1. transform
/trænsˈfɔːm/
使变形，使改观
动词（v.）
2. vermin
/ˈvɜːmɪn/
害虫，丑恶生物
名词（n.）
3. armour-like
/ˈɑːmər laɪk/
铁甲般的
形容词（adj.）
4. dome
/dəʊm/
呈拱形隆起
动词（v.）
5. stiff
/stɪf/
僵硬的，坚硬的
形容词（adj.）
6. textile
/ˈtekstaɪl/
纺织品，织物
名词（n.）
7. gilded
/ˈɡɪldɪd/
镀金的
形容词（adj.）
8. muff
/mʌf/
皮手筒
名词（n.）
9. monotonous
/məˈnɒtənəs/
单调沉闷的
形容词（adj.）
10. desperate
/ˈdespərət/
绝望的，徒劳的
形容词（adj.）
💡主旨品读
本篇《变形记》节选以极致荒诞的开篇叙事，
讲述普通人一夜之间躯体异化的离奇遭遇。
主人公格里高尔勤恳隐忍、常年奔波劳碌，
终生被工作、责任、生计束缚，
从未拥有自我生活与精神自由。
突如其来的虫化异变，
是现实压力的极致象征与艺术放大。
作者借荒诞虚构情节，
揭露现代社会机械化生存对人性的压榨，
诠释个体被生活异化、被命运裹挟、
无力反抗、无从逃脱的人生困境，
暗含对现代人生存状态与精神困境的深刻批判。
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