《踩面包的姑娘》，1859 年

the Girl who trod on the Loaf, 1859

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《踩面包的姑娘》无疑是安徒生故事中最不适合儿童阅读的一篇，其中展现的惩罚令人不寒而栗，这种惩罚超出了 19 世纪英美和欧洲儿童文学中过度惩戒的范畴。

\"the Girl who trod on the Loaf\" is without doubt the least child - friendly of Andersen’s narratives, with a chilling display of punishment beyond the disciplinary excesses found in nineteenth - century Anglo - American and European children’s literature.

即使是 1845 年法兰克福医生海因里希?霍夫曼（heinrich hoffmann）所着的臭名昭着的《蓬头彼得》（Struwwelpeter），书中有孩子划火柴后被火焰吞噬或者吸吮拇指后失去拇指这样的画面，相比之下也显得温和了。

Even the notorious Struwwelpeter of 1845 by the Frankfurt physician heinrich hoffmann, with its images of children going up in flames after lighting matches or losing their thumbs after sucking them, looks tame by parison.

安徒生的标题指的是民歌《踩面包的姑娘》，这首歌激发了他重新讲述这个姑娘的故事。凯瑟琳?戴维斯（Kathryn davis）在以这首民歌命名的小说中讲述了这个情节的起源：

Andersen’s title refers to the folksong \"the Girl who trod on the Loaf,\" which inspired his retelling of the girl’s story. Kathryn davis, in her novel named after the folksong, gives an account of the plot’s origins:

原本是一首民歌，《踩面包的姑娘》（pigen, der tr?dte p? br?det），它记述了波美拉尼亚西博（Sibbo）镇一个爱慕虚荣的年轻女子的悲惨命运，她因为爱一双鞋胜过一个面包而受到惩罚，在被泥坑吞没之前要 “像巨石一样被冻住”。

originally a folksong, \"pigen, der tr?dte p? br?det,\" it chronicles the horrible fate of a vain young woman from the town of Sibbo, in pomerania, whose punishment for loving a pair of shoes more than a loaf of bread is to be \"frozen like a boulder\" before she’s swallowed up in a mud puddle.

18 世纪末，这首歌以单面大活页的形式出版，尽管它有着生硬的说教和拖沓的韵律（“哦，人类的灵魂要记住，\/ 摒弃骄傲的诱惑，\/ 把其他罪恶都抛在身后，\/ 它们是她的毁灭之源……”），但它因激发了汉斯?克里斯蒂安?安徒生（hans christian Andersen）的同名故事而被人们记住。

toward the end of the eighteenth century the song was published as a broadside and despite its heavy - handed morality and plodding rhymes (\"o human soul keep this in mind, \/ Abandon pride’s temptations, \/ And leave all other sins behind, \/ they were her ruination...\") it’s remembered for having inspired hans christian Andersen’s story of the same name.

“英格” 这个名字是安徒生创造的，他可能是受到了斯拉格尔斯（Slagelse）那个令人厌恶的校长的妻子英格?迈斯林（Inger meisling）的启发。

the name “Inger” was Andersen’s invention, and he may have been inspired by Inger meisling, the wife of the detested schoolmaster in Slagelse.

安徒生坦然承认在创作故事时有报复心理：“很多时候，当人们做出恼人的举动而我又无法回击时，我就会写一个故事，把他们写进故事里。”

Andersen freely admitted the role of revenge in his construction of narratives: “many times when people have behaved in an irritating way and I have been unable to hit back, I have written a story and put them into it”.

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从前有个姑娘，为了不弄脏鞋子而踩在面包上，她因此遭遇的不幸是众所周知的。

there was once a girl who trod on a loaf to avoid soiling her shoes, and the misfortunes that happened to her in consequence are well known.

她叫英格；她是个穷苦的孩子，但是很骄傲、任性，而且性情恶劣、残忍。在她还很小的时候，她就喜欢捉苍蝇，扯掉它们的翅膀，让它们只能爬行。再大一点的时候，她会捉金龟子和甲虫，然后用大头针把它们穿起来。

her name was Inge; she was a poor child, but proud and presuming, and with a bad and cruel disposition. when quite a little child she would delight in catching flies, and tearing off their wings, so as to make creeping things of them. when older, she would take cockchafers and beetles, and stick pins through them.

然后她把一片绿叶或者一小片纸推向它们的脚，当这些可怜的小生物抓住它并紧紧抓住，在挣扎着摆脱大头针时翻来覆去，她就会说：“金龟子在看书呢；看它把书页翻得多欢。”

then she pushed a green leaf, or a little scrap of paper towards their feet, and when the poor creatures would seize it and hold it fast, and turn over and over in their struggles to get free from the pin, she would say, “the cockchafer is reading; see how he turns over the leaf.”

随着年龄增长，她不但没有变好，反而变得更坏了，不幸的是，她长得很漂亮，这就使得本应受到严厉斥责的时候却被原谅了。

She grew worse instead of better with years, and, unfortunately, she was pretty, which caused her to be excused, when she should have been sharply reproved.

“你任性的意志需要严厉的手段来克服，” 她母亲常对她说。“你小时候常常踩我的围裙，可我担心有一天你会踩碎我的心。” 唉！这种担心变成了现实。

“Your headstrong will requires severity to conquer it,” her mother often said to her. “As a little child you used to trample on my apron, but one day I fear you will trample on my heart.” And, alas! this fear was realized.

英格被带到了一些富人家里，这些富人住得很远，他们把她当作自己的孩子一样对待，给她穿得非常漂亮，于是她变得更加骄傲和傲慢了。

Inge was taken to the house of some rich people, who lived at a distance, and who treated her as their own child, and dressed her so fine that her pride and arrogance increased.

她在那儿待了大约一年的时候，她的女恩人对她说：“英格，你应该回去看看你的父母了。”

when she had been there about a year, her patroness said to her, “You ought to go, for once, and see your parents, Inge.”

于是英格出发去看望她的父母；但她只是想在家乡炫耀自己，好让人们看看她有多漂亮。

So Inge started to go and visit her parents; but she only wanted to show herself in her native place, that the people might see how fine she was.

她到了村子的入口处，看到年轻的男女雇工们站在一起聊天，她自己的母亲也在他们中间。

She reached the entrance of the village, and saw the young laboring men and maidens standing together chatting, and her own mother amongst them.

英格的母亲正坐在一块石头上休息，面前放着一捆她从树林里捡来的柴枝。

Inge’s mother was sitting on a stone to rest, with a fagot of sticks lying before her, which she had picked up in the wood.

于是英格转身回去了；她穿着那么漂亮的衣服，却为自己衣衫褴褛、在森林里拾柴的母亲感到羞耻。

then Inge turned back; she who was so finely dressed she felt ashamed of her mother, a poorly clad woman, who picked up wood in the forest.

她转身回去不是出于对母亲贫穷的怜悯，而是出于骄傲。

She did not turn back out of pity for her mother’s poverty, but from pride.

又过了半年，她的女主人说：“英格，你应该再回家去看望你的父母了，我会给你一个大的小麦面包带给他们，我相信他们见到你会很高兴的。”

Another half - year went by, and her mistress said, “you ought to go home again, and visit your parents, Inge, and I will give you a large wheaten loaf to take to them, they will be glad to see you, I am sure.”

于是英格穿上她最好的衣服和新鞋子，把裙子提起来，然后出发了，她小心翼翼地走着，好让脚保持干净整洁，这样做本身并没有错。

So Inge put on her best clothes, and her new shoes, drew her dress up around her, and set out, stepping very carefully, that she might be clean and neat about the feet, and there was nothing wrong in doing so.

但是当她来到小径穿过沼泽地的地方时，她发现有一些小水坑和大片的泥泞，于是她把面包扔进泥里，踩在上面，这样她就可以不弄湿脚而通过了。

but when she came to the place where the footpath led across the moor, she found small pools of water, and a great deal of mud, so she threw the loaf into the mud, and trod upon it, that she might pass without wetting her feet.

但是当她一只脚站在面包上，另一只脚抬起准备向前迈步时，面包开始在她脚下下沉，越来越低，直到她完全消失，泥水坑的水面上只留下几个气泡，表明她沉下去的地方。这就是这个故事。

but as she stood with one foot on the loaf and the other lifted up to step forward, the loaf began to sink under her, lower and lower, till she disappeared altogether, and only a few bubbles on the surface of the muddy pool remained to show where she had sunk. And this is the story.

但是英格去了哪里呢？她沉入地下，来到了沼泽女妖那里，沼泽女妖总是在那里酿酒。

but where did Inge go? She sank into the ground, and went to the marsh woman, who is always brewing there.

沼泽女妖和小精灵少女们有亲属关系，小精灵少女们很出名，因为有歌颂她们的歌曲，也有描绘她们的画作。

the marsh woman is related to the elf maidens, who are well - known, for songs are sung and pictures painted about them.

但是关于沼泽女妖，人们只知道在夏天当草地上起雾的时候，那是因为她正在草地下面酿酒。

but of the marsh woman nothing is known, except that when a mist arises from the meadows, in summer time, it is because she is brewing beneath them.

英格沉到了沼泽女妖的酿酒坊里的一个地方，没有人能在那里长时间忍受。

to the marsh woman’s brewery Inge sank down to a place which no one can endure for long.

和沼泽女妖的酿酒坊相比，一堆泥巴就算是宫殿了；英格掉下去的时候，四肢发抖，很快就变得像大理石一样冰冷僵硬。

A heap of mud is a palace pared with the marsh woman’s brewery; and as Inge fell she shuddered in every limb, and soon became cold and stiff as marble.

她的脚还紧紧地粘在面包上，面包把她往下拉，就像金黄的麦穗把麦秆压弯一样。

her foot was still fastened to the loaf, which bowed her down as a golden ear of corn bends the stem.

很快一个邪恶的幽灵就附在了英格身上，把她带到了一个更糟糕的地方，在那里她看到成群不幸的人在痛苦地等待着仁慈之门向他们敞开，每个人心中都有一种痛苦而永恒的不安感。

An evil spirit soon took possession of Inge, and carried her to a still worse place, in which she saw crowds of unhappy people, waiting in a state of agony for the gates of mercy to be opened to them, and in every heart was a miserable and eternal feeling of unrest.

要描述这些人所遭受的各种折磨太费时间了，但是英格的惩罚是像一尊雕像一样站在那里，她的脚被固定在面包上。

It would take too much time to describe the various tortures these people suffered, but Inge’s punishment consisted in standing there as a statue, with her foot fastened to the loaf.

她可以转动眼睛，看到周围所有的痛苦，但她不能转头；当她看到人们看着她时，她以为他们在欣赏她漂亮的脸蛋和漂亮的衣服，因为她仍然虚荣又骄傲。但是她已经忘记了在沼泽女妖的酿酒坊里时她的衣服变得多么脏，上面沾满了泥巴；一条蛇还缠在了她的头发里，垂在她的背上，而从她衣服的每一个褶皱里都探出一只大蟾蜍，像哮喘的贵宾犬一样呱呱叫着。

She could move her eyes about, and see all the misery around her, but she could not turn her head; and when she saw the people looking at her she thought they were admiring her pretty face and fine clothes, for she was still vain and proud. but she had forgotten how soiled her clothes had bee while in the marsh woman’s brewery, and that they were covered with mud; a snake had also fastened itself in her hair, and hung down her back, while from each fold in her dress a great toad peeped out and croaked like an asthmatic poodle.

最糟糕的是折磨着她的可怕饥饿感，而她又不能弯腰掰下她所站着的面包的一块。不；她的背太僵硬了，她的整个身体就像一根石柱。

worse than all was the terrible hunger that tormented her, and she could not stoop to break off a piece of the loaf on which she stood. No; her back was too stiff, and her whole body like a pillar of stone.

然后无翅的苍蝇爬到了她的脸和眼睛上；她不停地眨眼，但它们飞不走，因为它们的翅膀被拔掉了；这加上她所感受到的饥饿，是可怕的折磨。

And then came creeping over her face and eyes flies without wings; she winked and blinked, but they could not fly away, for their wings had been pulled off; this, added to the hunger she felt, was horrible torture.

“如果这种情况持续太久，” 她说，“我将无法忍受。” 但这种情况确实持续着，她不得不忍受，而自己却无能为力。

“If this lasts much longer,” she said, “I shall not be able to bear it.” but it did last, and she had to bear it, without being able to help herself.

一滴眼泪，接着是许多滚烫的眼泪，落在她的头上，滚过她的脸和脖子，滴到她脚下的面包上。

A tear, followed by many scalding tears, fell upon her head, and rolled over her face and neck, down to the loaf on which she stood.

谁会为英格哭泣呢？她在世上还有一位母亲，母亲为孩子流下的悲伤的眼泪总会抵达孩子的心田，但这些眼泪常常增加痛苦而不是减轻痛苦。

who could be weeping for Inge? She had a mother in the world still, and the tears of sorrow which a mother sheds for her child will always find their way to the child’s heart, but they often increase the torment instead of being a relief.

英格能听到她已经离开的那个世界里人们所说的关于她的一切，每个人似乎对她都很残忍。

And Inge could hear all that was said about her in the world she had left, and every one seemed cruel to her.

她踩面包这件犯下的罪孽在人间传开了，因为当她穿过沼泽地并消失的时候，山上的牧童看到了她。