Предварительные сведения

Приводимый ниже отрывок взят из романа Дорис Лессинг «Хороший террорист» (“The Good Terrorist” by Doris Lessing). Роман описывает группу людей, самовольно вселившихся в заброшенное здание без каких-либо на то законных оснований. Основные члены группы – это активисты левого толка, некоторые из них готовы на насилие для достижения своих политических целей. Главный персонаж романа – это Алиса (Alice), бунтующая против своего буржуазного воспитания. Она ближе всего к Джасперу (Jasper), который моложе её и настроен более идеалистично, возможно, даже фанатично. Джаспер часто ссорится с ней, поскольку иногда она продолжает вести себя как представительница своего класса. В описываемой ниже сцене Алиса о политической демонстрации, в которой Джаспер был арестован:

1It was getting dark when Alice woke. She heard Bert’s laugh, a deep ho, ho, ho, from the kitchen. (a) That’s not his own laugh, a deep thought. I wonder what that would be like? Tee hee hee more likely. No, he made that laugh up for himself. Reliable and comfortable. Manly. Voices and laughts, we make them up… Roberta’s made-up voice, comfortable. And that was Pat’s quick voice and her laugh. Her own laugh? Perhaps. Soo they were both back and that meant that Jasper was too. Alice was out of her sleeping bag, and tugging on a sweater, a smile on her face that went with her feelings for Jasper: admiration and wistful love.

2But Jasper was not in the kitchen with the other two, who were glowing, happy, fulfilled, and eating fish and chips.

3(b)’It’s all right, Alice,’ said Pat, pulling out a chair for her. ‘They arrested him, but it’s not serious. He’ll be in court tomorrow morning at Enfield. Back here by lunchtime.’

4(c)’Unless he’s bound over?’ asked Bert.

5(d)’He was bound over for two years in Leeds, but that ended last month.’

20Alice sat thinking so intently that the kitchen, Bert and Pat, even the house around her vanished. She was down at the scene of the picket. The van loaded with newspapers appeared in the gates, its sinister gleaming look telling everyone to hate it; the pickets surged forward, shouting; and there was Jasper, as she had seen him so often, his pale face distorted with a look of abstracted and dedicated hate, his reddish crop of gleaming hair.

(x)He was always the first to be arrested, she thought proudly, he was so dedicated, so obviously – even to the police – self – sacrificing. Pure.

21But there was something that didn’t fit.

22(y)She said, ‘Did you decide not to get arrested for any reason, Bert?’

23Because, if that had been so, one could have expected Jasper too to have returned home.

24(z)Bert said, ‘Jasper found someone down there, someone who might be very useful to us.’

25At once the scene fell into shape in Alice’s mind, (aa)’Was he one of the three you didn’t know?’

26(bb)’That’s it,’ said Bert. ‘That’s it exactly.’ He yawned. (cc)He said, ‘I hate to have to ask, but could you let me have the twenty pounds? (dd)Jasper said I should ask you.’

27Alice counted out the money. She did not let her gaze rise from this task.

28(ee)Pat said nicely. ‘That little bundle won’t last long at this rate.’

29(ff)’No.’

30(gg)Alice was praying: Let Bert go. Let him go upstairs. I want to talk to Pat. She was thinking this so hard that she was not surprised when he stood up and (hh) said, ‘I’m going to drop around to Felicity’s and get myself a real bath.’

31(jj)’I’ll come in a minute,’ said Pat.

32Bert went, and the two women sat on.

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Дата публикации: 28-04-2013
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