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I walked alongside my father, clutching his right hand. All my clothes were new: the black shoes, the green school uniform, and the red cap. They did not make me happy, however, as this was the day I was to be thrown into school for the first time.
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My mother stood at the window watching our progress, and I turned towards her from time to time, hoping she would help. We walked along a street lined with gardens,and fields planted with crops, pears, and date palms.
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“Why school?” I asked my father.“What have I done?”
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“Im not punishing you,” he said, laughing.“Schools not a punishment. Its a place that makes useful men out of boys.Dont you want to be useful like your brothers?”
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I was not convinced. I did not believe there was really any good to be had in tearing me away from my home and throwing me into the huge,highwalled building.
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When we arrived at the gate we could see the courtyard, vast and full of boys and girls.“Go in by yourself,” said my father,“and join them.Put a smile on your face and be a good example to others.”
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I hesitated and clung to his hand, but he gently pushed me from him.“Be a man,” he said.“Today you truly begin life. You will find me waiting for you when its time to leave.”
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I took a few steps. Then the faces of the boys and girls cameinto view. I did not know a single one of them, and none of them knew me. I felt I was a stranger who had lost his way. But then some boys began to glance atme in curiosity, and one of them came over and asked, “Who brought you?”
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“My father,” I whispered.
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“My fathers dead,” he said simply.
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I did not know what to say. The gate was now closed. Some of the children burst into tears. The bell rang. A lady came along, followed by a group of men. The men began sorting us into ranks. We were formed into an intricate pattern in the great courtyard surrounded by high buildings; from each floor we were overlooked by a long balcony roofed in wood.
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That day my sister, for one brief moment, showed me a very precious side of herself, a side she had never shown before. Or maybe I had never looked deeply enough. With tears running down my cheeks, I turned and looked out the window toward the terminal. I saw my sister standing at the window smiling and waving to me. As the plane backed out of the gate,I saw her lips say “I love you.” I smiled back because for the first time, I knew she really did. |
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“This is your new home,”said the woman.“There are mothers and fathers here, too. Everything that is enjoyable and beneficial is here. So dry yourtears and face life joyfully.”
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Well, it seemed that my misgivings had had no basis. From the first moments I made many friends and fell in love with many girls. I had never imagined school would have this rich variety of experiences.
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Our path, however, was not totally sweet and unclouded. We had to beobservant and patient. It was not all a matter of playing and fooling around. Rivalries could bring about pain and hatred or give rise to fighting. And while the lady would sometimes smile, she would often yell and scold. Even more frequently she would resort to physical punishment.
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In addition, the time for changing one’s mind was over and gone andthere was no question of ever returning to the paradise of home. Nothing lay ahead of us but exertion, struggle, and perseverance. Those who were able took advantage of the opportunities for success and happiness that presented themselves.
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The bell rang, announcing the passing of the day and the end of work. The children rushed toward the gate, which was opened again. I said goodbye tofriends and sweethearts and passed through the gate. I looked around but found no trace of my father, who had promised to be there. I stepped aside to wait. When I had waited for a long time in vain, I decided to return home on my own. I walked a few steps, then came to a startled halt. Good Lord ! Where was the street lined with gardens? Where had it disappeared to? When did all these cars invade it? And when did all these people come to rest on its surface? How did these hills of rubbish find their way to cover its sides? And where were the fields that bordered it? High buildings had taken over, the street was full of children, and disturbing noises shook the air. Here and there stood conjurers showing off their tricks or making snakes appear from baskets. Then there was a band announcing the opening of a circus, with clowns and weight lifters walking in front.
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Good God! I was in a daze. My head spun. I almost went crazy. How could all this have happened in half a day, between early morning and sunset? I would find the answer at home with my father. But where was my home? I hurried towards the crossroads, because I remembered that I had to cross the street to reach our house, but the stream of cars would not let up. Extremely irritated, I wondered when I would be able to cross.
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I stood there a long time, until the young boy employed at theironing shop on the corner came up to me.
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He stretched out his arm and said, “Grandpa, let me take you across.” |
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1 About the author and the text：
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Naguib Mahfous
(纳吉布·马福兹)was born in 1911in a suburb of Cairo and was educated at the Secular University in that city. Mahfous is the first Arabic language author awarded the Nobel Prize in literature (1988). Sixteen of his novels have been adapted for films and his prose works have been compared in spirit and tone to the social realism of Balzac and Dickens.His most famous work The Cairo Trilogy(1957)is a sequence of novels that describes the changes in three generations of a middleclass Cairo family.“Half a Day” first appeared in The Time and the Place and Other Stories which was published in 1991 by the school press of American University in Cairo.The changes described in the text about this little town in a way show the changes of the whole country during this time.
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2 ... as this was the day I was to be thrown into school for the first
time.(para.1)
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“To be to do sth.” is a way to talk about the future, especially when this is going to happen according to some official plan or personal arrangement. More examples:
The president of the university is to visit Hong Kong in December.
The boy felt nervous because he was soon to leave home for the first time.
Neil was happy that he was to be taken to the Zoo that afternoon.
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3. A lady came along， followed by a group of men.
(para.11)
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Notice that the past participle phrase (过去分词短语) “followed by a group of men” is more closely related to “A lady” than to “came along”. It tells the reader something about the lady: She was followed by a group of men.We thereforesay that the past participle phrase serves as a complement (补语) to the noun phrase (名词短语) “A lady”. One more example:
She sat in the middle, dressed in white.
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4. We also had our first introduction to language.
(para.14)
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The word “introduction” is formed by introduce (v.) ＋ tion. It is an example of word formation (构词法), which tells us how to form new words in English. There are several ways to do it. For example, you can add a letter or a group of letters to the beginning of a word (=a prefix前缀) or to the end of a word (=a suffix 后缀）and change the meaning or function of the word,which is called affixation（加缀法). Examples:
un (prefix)＋clouded (adj.) → unclouded (adj.) (Adding this prefix changes the meaning of the word.）
produce (v.)＋ tion (suffix)→production(n.) (Adding this suffix changes the function of the word.)
Note: The silent “e”at the end of a word is often dropped.
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5. ...we were told the story of the Creator of the universe.
(para.14)
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Christians believe that the world was created by God. So here “Creator” means God.
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6. Good Lord! Where was the street...
(para.17)
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“Good Lord!” is a common exclamation (感叹句) which shows surprise. So is “Good God!” in para.18. “Lord” means God.
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