作者：Franz Kafka 卡夫卡
出版社：外语教学与研究出版社
格式: AZW3, DOCX, EPUB, MOBI, PDF, TXT
变形记(外研社双语读库)试读：
I第一章One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a horrible vermin. He lay on his armor-like back, and if he lifted his head a little he could see his brown belly, slightly domed and divided by arches into stiff sections. The bedding was hardly able to cover it and seemed ready to slide off any moment. His many legs, pitifully thin compared with the size of the rest of him, waved about helplessly as he looked.
一天清晨，当格雷戈尔·萨姆沙从恼人的梦中惊醒时，发现自己在床上变成了一只可怕的害虫。他躺在盔甲般的背上，稍一抬头就可以看到棕色的、微微鼓起、被一条条拱形分成僵硬的小块的肚皮。铺盖几乎都盖不住肚子，看上去随时都可能滑落下来。他那许多条腿，在身体其他部分的对比下，真是小得可怜。在他的注视下，它们无助地挥舞着。
"What's happened to me?" he thought. It wasn't a dream. His room, a proper human room although a little too small, lay peacefully between its four familiar walls. A collection of textile samples lay spread out on the table—Samsa was a travelling salesman—and above it there hung a picture that he had recently cut out of an illustrated magazine and housed in a nice, gilded frame. It showed a lady fitted out with a fur hat and fur boa who sat upright, raising a heavy fur muff that covered the whole of her lower arm towards the viewer.“我这是怎么了？”他想。这并不是在做梦。虽然他的房间非常小，但确实是个普通人的房间，静静地躺在四堵熟悉的墙壁之间。桌上平摊着一堆纺织物样品——萨姆沙是个旅行推销员——桌子正上方挂着一幅画。那幅画是他最近从插画杂志上剪下来的，并用镀金的漂亮相框装裱了起来。画上是一位贵妇，头戴裘皮帽，脖子上围着裘皮围巾，笔直地坐着。她扬起手臂，向观赏者展示着覆盖了整个小臂的厚重的裘皮手筒。
Gregor then turned to look out the window at the dull weather. Drops of rain could be heard hitting the pane, which made him feel quite sad. "How about if I sleep a little bit longer and forget all this nonsense," he thought, but that was something he was unable to do because he was used to sleeping on his right, and in his present state couldn't get into that position. However hard he threw himself onto his right, he always rolled back to where he was. He must have tried it a hundred times, shut his eyes so that he wouldn't have to look at the floundering legs, and only stopped when he began to feel a mild, dull pain there that he had never felt before.
随后，格雷戈尔转向窗外看了看阴沉沉的天气。雨滴击打着窗玻璃，这种声音让他感到非常忧伤。“不如我再多睡一会儿，把这些荒谬的事都忘了。”他这么想着，但是却做不到。因为他习惯朝右睡，而现在这种情况下，他没法换成那个姿势。不管他多么费劲地想让自己翻到右侧，最后总是滚回了原处。他怎么也试了有上百次。他闭着眼睛，这样就不必看那些挣扎着的腿。直到他开始感觉到一丝从未有过的隐约、轻微的疼痛时，才停止尝试。
"Oh, God," he thought, "what a strenuous career it is that I've chosen! Travelling day in and day out. Doing business like this takes much more effort than doing your own business at home, and on top of that there's the curse of travelling, worries about making train connections, bad and irregular food, contact with different people all the time so that you can never get to know anyone or become friendly with them. It can all go to Hell!"He felt a slight itch up on his belly; pushed himself slowly up on his back towards the headboard so that he could lift his head better; found where the itch was, and saw that it was covered with lots of little white spots which he didn't know what to make of; and when he tried to feel the place with one of his legs he drew it quickly back because as soon as he touched it he was overcome by a cold shudder.“哦，天哪！”他心想，“我选择了一份多么辛苦的职业啊！日复一日地长途跋涉。做这种生意比自己在家做买卖更费精力，此外还有长途奔走带来的诸多弊端：一班接一班地赶火车，糟糕且不规律的饮食，每天与不同的人打交道——你永远都不可能了解任何人或是和他们成为朋友。让这一切都见鬼去吧！”他感觉腹部有阵轻微的瘙痒，于是倚着后背，慢慢将自己推向床头板，这样他就能更好地抬起头来。他找到了瘙痒处，看到上面被很多不知名的小白点覆盖着。他试着用一条腿触摸那里，却又迅速将其缩回，因为一碰到那里，他就不由自主地打了一个寒颤。
He slid back into his former position. "Getting up early all the time," he thought, "it makes you stupid. You've got to get enough sleep. Other travelling salesmen live a life of luxury. For instance, whenever I go back to the guest house during the morning to copy out the contract, these gentlemen are always still sitting there eating their breakfasts. I ought to just try that with my boss; I'd get kicked out on the spot. But who knows, maybe that would be the best thing for me. If I didn't have my parents to think about I'd have given in my notice a long time ago, I'd have gone up to the boss and told him just what I think, tell him everything I would, let him know just what I feel. He'd fall right off his desk! And it's a funny sort of business to be sitting up there at your desk, talking down at your subordinates from up there, especially when you have to go right up close because the boss is hard of hearing. Well, there's still some hope; once I've got the money together to pay off my parents' debt to him—another five or six years I suppose—that's definitely what I'll do. That's when I'll make the big change. First of all though, I've got to get up, my train leaves at five."
他又滑下来，恢复了先前的姿势。“总是起得太早，”他想，“会让你变得愚蠢。你应该拥有充足的睡眠。其他的旅行推销员都过着奢华的生活。比方说，不管哪天早上我回到旅馆誊写合同，那些绅士们总是还坐在那里吃早餐。我应该当着老板的面那样试试看，不过可能会被当场解雇。但是，谁知道呢，也许对我来说那再好不过了。要不是考虑到父母，我早就交上了辞呈。我会直接去找老板，告诉他我的真实想法，告诉他我想做什么，让他知道我的感受。他也许会惊讶得从桌子上跌下来！有趣的是，他总是坐在桌子上，盛气凌人地与自己的下属谈话。特别是他听力不是很好，你必须靠他足够近。好吧，仍然还有一线希望。一旦我攒够了钱来付清父母欠他的债务——我看还要五六年——到时候我肯定会那么干的。到那时我就会改头换面。不过当务之急是赶快起床，因为火车五点就要开了。”
And he looked over at the alarm clock, ticking on the chest of drawers. "God in Heaven!" he thought. It was half past five and the hands were quietly moving forwards, it was even later than half past, more like quarter to six. Had the alarm clock not rung? He could see from the bed that it had been set for four o'clock as it should have been; it certainly must have rung. Yes, but was it possible to quietly sleep through that furniture-rattling noise? True, he had not slept peacefully, but probably all the more deeply because of that. What should he do now? The next train went at seven; if he were to catch that he would have to rush like mad and the collection of samples was still not packed, and he did not at all feel particularly fresh and lively. And even if he did catch the train he would not avoid his boss's anger as the office assistant would have been there to see the five o'clock train go, he would have put in his report about Gregor's not being there a long time ago. The office assistant was the boss's man, spineless, and with no understanding. What about if he reported sick? But that would be extremely strained and suspicious as in five years of service Gregor had never once yet been ill. His boss would certainly come round with the doctor from the medical insurance company, accuse his parents of having a lazy son, and accept the doctor's recommendation not to make any claim as the doctor believed that no-one was ever ill but that many were workshy. And what's more, would he have been entirely wrong in this case? Gregor did in fact, apart from excessive sleepiness after sleeping for so long, feel completely well and even felt much hungrier than usual.
他看了下闹钟，它在五斗橱上滴滴答答地敲着。“上帝啊！”他想。五点半了，指针正静悄悄地往前移动。甚至已经过了五点半，差不多是六点差一刻。难道闹钟没响？同往常一样，他定了四点的闹钟，在床上应该看得见。闹钟肯定已经响过。是的，可是在那震动家具的巨大铃声中，他怎么可能安详地睡着呢？的确，他睡得并不安稳，但也许正是由于这样，他睡得更沉了。他现在该怎么办呢？下一班火车是七点，如果他想赶上这班车，就得火速行动。那堆样品还没打包，而且他觉得自己头脑一点也不清晰、精力一点也不充沛。即使他能赶上火车，也躲不过老板的怒火。因为办公室助理会在火车站目送五点钟的火车离开，他早就会向老板报告格雷戈尔一直没出现。助理是老板的走狗，没有一点骨气，一点也不体谅人。要是报告说自己生病了呢？但那也太牵强，太可疑了，因为在这五年的工作时间里，格雷戈尔从未生过病。老板肯定会带着医疗保险公司的医生去格雷戈尔家，斥责他的父母亲养了一个懒惰的儿子；他还会采纳医生的建议，不给任何赔偿。因为医生坚信没人生过病，很多人不过是懒得上班。再说，这样他不就完全不诚实了吗？事实上，除了睡了太久而有些极度困倦，格雷戈尔感觉非常好，甚至觉得比往常更饿了。
He was still hurriedly thinking all this through, unable to decide to get out of the bed, when the clock struck quarter to seven. There was a cautious knock at the door near his head. "Gregor," somebody called—it was his mother—"it's quarter to seven. Didn't you want to go somewhere?"That gentle voice! Gregor was shocked when he heard his own voice answering, it could hardly be recognized as the voice he had had before. As if from deep inside him, there was a painful and uncontrollable squeaking mixed in with it, the words could be made out at first but then there was a sort of echo which made them unclear, leaving the hearer unsure whether he had heard properly or not. Gregor had wanted to give a full answer and explain everything, but in the circumstances contented himself with saying:"Yes, mother, yes, thank-you, I'm getting up now."The change in Gregor's voice probably could not be noticed outside through the wooden door, as his mother was satisfied with this explanation and shuffled away. But this short conversation made the other members of the family aware that Gregor, against their expectations was still at home, and soon his father came knocking at one of the side doors, gently, but with his fist. "Gregor, Gregor," he called, "what's wrong?"And after a short while he called again with a warning deepness in his voice:"Gregor! Gregor!"At the other side door his sister came plaintively:"Gregor? Aren't you well? Do you need anything?"Gregor answered to both sides:"I'm ready, now," making an effort to remove all the strangeness from his voice by enunciating very carefully and putting long pauses between each, individual word. His father went back to his breakfast, but his sister whispered:"Gregor, open the door, I beg of you."Gregor, however, had no thought of opening the door, and instead congratulated himself for his cautious habit, acquired from his travelling, of locking all doors at night even when he was at home.
他仍匆忙地思索着所有这一切，还是无法决定是否要起床，这时六点三刻的钟声响了。离他头很近的那扇门上响起了一阵谨慎的敲门声。“格雷戈尔，”有人在喊——那是他的母亲，“七点差一刻了。你不是要出门吗？”多么温柔的声音！当格雷戈尔听到自己的回答时，感到非常震惊，那根本就不像他以前的声音。他现在的声音中仿佛杂着一种来自身体深处的、痛苦的、无法控制的吱吱声。开始的时候，这些话语还可以分辨出来，但是随后响起了一阵回音，让话语变得很模糊，让听者无法确定有没有听清。格雷戈尔想给一个圆满的答案来解释一切；但是在这种情况下，他只能安慰自己说：“好的，妈妈，好的，谢谢！我这就起来。”隔着木头门，外面的人可能没有觉察到格雷戈尔的声音发生了变化。母亲对这个解释很满意，于是拖着步子离开了。但是，这次短暂的交谈让家里其他成员意识到，格雷戈尔出人意料地还在家里。过了一会儿，父亲来到某扇侧门边轻轻地敲了敲，但用的是拳头。“格雷戈尔，格雷戈尔，”他喊道，“出什么事了？”片刻之后，他又用一种低沉的声音警告道：“格雷戈尔！格雷戈尔！”而妹妹也在另一扇侧门关切地问道：“格雷戈尔？你不舒服吗？你需要什么东西吗？”格雷戈尔向两边回答道：“我已经准备好了。”他小心翼翼地发音并拖长每个单词之间的停顿，竭力消除声音中的怪异。父亲回去吃他的早餐，但是他的妹妹仍低声说：“格雷戈尔，请开门，我求你。”然而，格雷戈尔不仅没有任何想开门的念头，反而还庆幸自己在旅行中养成了谨慎的好习惯——即使是在家里，晚上他也会把门都锁上。
The first thing he wanted to do was to get up in peace without being disturbed, to get dressed, and most of all to have his breakfast. Only then would he consider what to do next, as he was well aware that he would not bring his thoughts to any sensible conclusions by lying in bed. He remembered that he had often felt a slight pain in bed, perhaps caused by lying awkwardly, but that had always turned out to be pure imagination and he wondered how his imaginings would slowly resolve themselves today. He did not have the slightest doubt that the change in his voice was nothing more than the first sign of a serious cold, which was an occupational hazard for travelling salesmen.
首先，他希望不受到任何干扰，安静地起床、穿衣，最重要的是吃早饭。只有这样他才能考虑下一步将做什么，因为他很明白，躺在床上无法从思绪中得出任何明智的结论。他记得以前躺在床上的时侯，经常感觉到一阵轻微的疼痛，那可能是由于躺的姿势不正确所引起的。但是那种疼痛总是被证实为纯属幻想。他想知道，他今天的幻想该如何慢慢消除。他一点也没有怀疑过，声音的变化无非就是重感冒的前兆，这对旅行推销员来说只不过是一种职业病。
It was a simple matter to throw off the covers; he only had to blow himself up a little and they fell off by themselves. But it became difficult after that, especially as he was so exceptionally broad. He would have used his arms and his hands to push himself up; but instead of them he only had all those little legs continuously moving in different directions, and which he was moreover unable to control. If he wanted to bend one of them, then that was the first one that would stretch itself out; and if he finally managed to do what he wanted with that leg, all the others seemed to be set free and would move about painfully. "This is something that can't be done in bed," Gregor said to himself, "so don't keep trying to do it".
扔掉被子是件轻而易举的事，他只需稍微起身，被子便自行滑落。但是接下来的事就有困难了，尤其是因为他的身体异常宽大。以前他会用胳膊和手将自己撑起，但现在取而代之的是那些不停朝各个方向乱摆的细腿，而它们又不在他的掌控之下。如果他想让其中的一条腿弯曲，那条腿总是会第一个伸直。就算如他所愿，那条腿弯曲了，而其他的腿就好像被释放了一样，费力地挥舞着。“这种事在床上可干不了，”格雷戈尔自言自语道，“不能再这么试下去了。”
The first thing he wanted to do was get the lower part of his body out of the bed, but he had never seen this lower part, and could not imagine what it looked like; it turned out to be too hard to move; it went so slowly; and finally, almost in a frenzy, when he carelessly shoved himself forwards with all the force he could gather, he chose the wrong direction, hit hard against the lower bedpost, and learned from the burning pain he felt that the lower part of his body might well, at present, be the most sensitive.
首先，他要做的就是让身体的下部离开床，但是他从来没有看到过下部，也无法想象它是什么样子。事实证明想要移动太难了，进展相当缓慢。最后，他像是极度疯狂了一样，使出浑身力气，只管将自己向前推。可是这时，他选错了方向，猛地一下撞到床柱子下端，而这剧烈的疼痛感让他意识到，现在身体的下部很可能就是最敏感的部位。
So then he tried to get the top part of his body out of the bed first, carefully turning his head to the side. This he managed quite easily, and despite its breadth and its weight, the bulk of his body eventually followed slowly in the direction of the head. But when he had at last got his head out of the bed and into the fresh air it occurred to him that if he let himself fall it would be a miracle if his head were not injured, so he became afraid to carry on pushing himself forward the same way. And he could not knock himself out now at any price; better to stay in bed than lose consciousness.
因此，他小心地将头转向一边，试着让身体的上部离开床。这点他很轻易就做到了，尽管身体很宽、很重，大部分的躯体最终还是沿着头部的方向慢慢移动了。可是，当他的头终于离开床，暴露在新鲜空气中时，他突然意识到如果让自己跌落下去，头部要是不受伤那简直就是奇迹。因此他不敢继续以同样的方式推着自己前进。而且，他无论如何也不能把自己撞昏过去；呆在床上总比失去意识强。
It took just as much effort to get back to where he had been earlier, but when he lay there sighing, and was once more watching his legs as they struggled against each other even harder than before, if that was possible, he could think of no way of bringing peace and order to this chaos. He told himself once more that it was not possible for him to stay in bed and that the most sensible thing to do would be to get free of it in whatever way he could at whatever sacrifice. At the same time, though, he did not forget to remind himself that calm consideration was much better than rushing to desperate conclusions. At times like this he would direct his eyes to the window and look out as clearly as he could, but unfortunately, even the other side of the narrow street was enveloped in morning fog and the view had little confidence or cheer to offer him. "Seven o'clock, already," he said to himself when the clock struck again, "seven o'clock, and there's still a fog like this."And he lay there quietly a while longer, breathing lightly as if he perhaps expected the total stillness to bring things back to their real and natural state.
他花了同样大的力气回到先前的位置，但是当他躺在那里叹气，并再次看着他的腿时，它们挣扎得更厉害了。如果这一切是真的，他真是想不出什么办法让混乱的局面回归平静和秩序。他再次告诫自己不能躺在床上，最明智的做法是，不惜任何代价，想尽千方百计将自己从床上解放出来。不过，与此同时他也不忘提醒自己，与其草率下结论，远不如静下心来思考。在这种时刻，他往往会将眼睛投向窗外，尽可能清楚地往外看。但不幸的是，连窄窄的街道的另一边都被晨雾包裹了，这种风景并没给他带来丝毫自信或是雀跃。“已经七点了，”闹钟再次敲响时，他自言自语道，“都七点了，雾还是这么浓。”他静静地在那里多躺了一会儿，轻轻地呼吸，仿佛他在期待这种完全的沉静能将一切带回真实、自然的状态。
But then he said to himself:"Before it strikes quarter past seven I'll definitely have to have got properly out of bed. And by then somebody will have come round from work to ask what's happened to me as well, as they open up at work before seven o'clock."And so he set himself to the task of swinging the entire length of his body out of the bed all at the same time. If he succeeded in falling out of bed in this way and kept his head raised as he did so he could probably avoid injuring it. His back seemed to be quite hard, and probably nothing would happen to it falling onto the carpet. His main concern was for the loud noise he was bound to make, and which even through all the doors would probably raise concern if not alarm. But it was something that had to be risked.
但是，他接着又想：“七点一刻的闹钟敲响之前，我无论如何也要彻底离开床。到时候，公司里会有人来访，并向我询问发生了什么事,因为他们不到七点就开工了。”于是，他开始动手，想将整个身体一下子都晃下床去。如果他成功地用这种方法掉下床，并始终抬着头，那么他就有可能避免把头碰伤。他的背好像很硬，即使跌到地毯上，应该也不会有什么事。他主要担心的是可能会制造出很大的噪音。就算这声音透过所有的门之后没有引起惊慌，也可能引起别人的不安。但是，这个险不得不冒。
When Gregor was already sticking half way out of the bed—the new method was more of a game than an effort, all he had to do was rock back and forth—it occurred to him how simple everything would be if somebody came to help him. Two strong people—he had his father and the maid in mind—would have been more than enough; they would only have to push their arms under the dome of his back, peel him away from the bed, bend down with the load and then be patient and careful as he swung over onto the floor, where, hopefully, the little legs would find a use. Should he really call for help though, even apart from the fact that all the doors were locked? Despite all the difficulty he was in, he could not suppress a smile at this thought.
当格雷戈尔正卡在下床的途中——这种新方法如其说是在努力，还不如说是场游戏，他要做的只是来回摆动——他突然想到，要是有人来帮他一把，一切该是多么简单啊！恐怕来两个强壮的人——他的脑海里浮现出父亲和女仆——就已经绰绰有余了。他们只需用手臂从他背后的弓形处一推，让他离开床。因为负重，他们得弯下身子。之后，当他落向地板时，他们得耐心、谨慎——但愿那些细小的腿在那里能发挥点作用。可是，他真的应该请求帮助吗？何况所有的门还锁住了。尽管处境艰难，一想到这个念头，他就情不自禁地笑了起来。
After a while he had already moved so far across that it would have been hard for him to keep his balance if he rocked too hard. The time was now ten to eight and he would have to make a final decision very soon. Then there was a ring at the door of the flat. "That'll be someone from work," he said to himself, and froze very still, although his little legs only became all the more lively as they danced around. For a moment everything remained quiet. "They're not opening the door," Gregor said to himself, caught in some nonsensical hope. But then of course, the maid's firm steps went to the door as ever and opened it. Gregor only needed to hear the visitor's first words of greeting and he knew who it was—the chief clerk himself. Why did Gregor have to be the only one condemned to work for a company where they immediately became highly suspicious at the slightest shortcoming? Were all employees, every one of them, louts, was there not one of them who was faithful and devoted who would go so mad with pangs of conscience that he couldn't get out of bed if he didn't spend at least a couple of hours in the morning on company business? Was it really not enough to let one of the trainees make enquiries—assuming enquiries were even necessary—did the chief clerk have to come himself, and did they have to show the whole, innocent family that this was so suspicious that only the chief clerk could be trusted to have the wisdom to investigate it? And more because these thoughts had made him upset than through any proper decision, he swung himself with all his force out of the bed. There was a loud thump, but it wasn't really a loud noise. His fall was softened a little by the carpet, and Gregor's back was also more elastic than he had thought, which made the sound muffled and not too noticeable. He had not held his head carefully enough, though, and hit it as he fell; annoyed and in pain, he turned it and rubbed it against the carpet.
不一会儿，他就已经移动了很远，这让他不能摆动得太厉害，否则就难以保持平衡。还差十分钟就到八点，他必须迅速做出最后的决定。就在这个时候，公寓的门铃响了。“可能是有公司的人来了。”他暗自想道。他浑身呆滞，可是那些小细腿却越来越活跃，不停地挥舞着。有那么一会儿，一切都很平静。“他们不打算开门。”格雷戈尔满怀某种荒谬的希望，自言自语道。但是，接着，女仆就像往常一样迈着稳健的步伐走向门口，把门打开。只需听来访者打招呼的话语，格雷戈尔就知道是谁——公司主任亲自到访。为什么只有格雷戈尔一个人该为公司卖命呢？哪怕只犯一丁点错误，他们也会立刻怀疑他。难道所有的员工，他们所有的人，全都是废物？难道他们中就没有一个忠心耿耿、诚实可信的吗？难道没有人会像他这样，因为下不了床，早上没法在公司业务上花几个小时，良心上就极其过不去吗？就算询问确实很有必要，难道派一个实习生来询问不行吗？非得让主任亲自出马？非得告知整个无辜的家庭，这件事是如此蹊跷，以至于只有主任才值得信任，才有智慧将事情调查清楚？由于这些想法比任何恰当的决定更让他心烦意乱，他使出浑身解数将自己摇出床外。他落地时发出了“砰”的一声，但也不是什么巨大的声音。地毯在他跌落时起了一点缓冲作用。格雷戈尔的背部比想象中的更有弹性，这样声音就被掩盖了，不太明显。他不够小心，没有把头抬得足够高，因此跌下来的时候将它撞着了。他感到懊恼、疼痛，就把头转过去，在地毯上来回擦着。
"Something's fallen down in there," said the chief clerk in the room on the left. Gregor tried to imagine whether something of the sort that had happened to him today could ever happen to the chief clerk too; you had to concede that it was possible. But as if in gruff reply to this question, the chief clerk's firm footsteps in his highly polished boots could now be heard in the adjoining room. From the room on his right, Gregor's sister whispered to him to let him know:"Gregor, the chief clerk is here.""Yes, I know," said Gregor to himself; but without daring to raise his voice loud enough for his sister to hear him.“有东西掉下来了。”主任在左边的房间里说。格雷戈尔猜想，今天在他身上发生的这种事是否也会在主任身上发生。你不得不承认确实有可能。但是，他听到主任穿着高高的、锃亮的皮靴，在隔壁房间踏着沉重的步子，就像是粗鲁地回应这个问题一样。在右边的房间里，格雷戈尔的妹妹低声向他报告：“格雷戈尔，主任来了。”“嗯，我知道了。”格雷戈尔自言自语道，但是他不敢说得太大，以免被妹妹听见。
"Gregor," said his father now from the room to his left, "the chief clerk has come round and wants to know why you didn't leave on the early train. We don't know what to say to him. And anyway, he wants to speak to you personally. So please open up this door. I'm sure he'll be good enough to forgive the untidiness of your room."Then the chief clerk called:"Good morning, Mr. Samsa.""He isn't well," said his mother to the chief clerk, while his father continued to speak through the door. "He isn't well, please believe me. Why else would Gregor have missed a train! The lad only ever thinks about the business. It nearly makes me cross the way he never goes out in the evenings; he's been in town for a week now but stayed home every evening. He sits with us in the kitchen and just reads the paper or studies train timetables. His idea of relaxation is working with his fretsaw. He's made a little frame, for instance, it only took him two or three evenings, you'll be amazed how nice it is; it's hanging up in his room; you'll see it as soon as Gregor opens the door. Anyway, I'm glad you're here; we wouldn't have been able to get Gregor to open the door by ourselves; he's so stubborn; and I'm sure he isn't well, he said this morning that he is, but he isn't.""I'll be there in a moment," said Gregor slowly and thoughtfully, but without moving so that he would not miss any word of the conversation. "Well I can't think of any other way of explaining it, Mrs. Samsa," said the chief clerk, "I hope it's nothing serious. But on the other hand, I must say that if we people in commerce ever become slightly unwell then, fortunately or unfortunately as you like, we simply have to overcome it because of business considerations.""Can the chief clerk come in to see you now then?" asked his father impatiently, knocking at the door again. "No," said Gregor. In the room on his right there followed a painful silence; in the room on his left his sister began to cry.“格雷戈尔，”现在父亲在左边房间里说，“主任来了，他想知道为什么你没坐早班火车离开。我们也不知道该跟他说什么。不管怎么说，他现在想跟你面谈。那么，请把房门打开吧！我相信他不会介意你的房间乱糟糟的。”随后，主任喊道：“早上好，萨姆沙先生！”“他不舒服，”正当父亲继续隔着门说话时，母亲对主任说，“他不舒服，请相信我。哪会有其他的原因能让格雷戈尔错过火车！这孩子一心只想着公事。他晚上从不出门，这都快让我气死了。他在镇上已经一周了，但每晚都呆在家里。他和我们一起坐在厨房里，只看看报纸或是研究火车时刻表。他的娱乐方式就是用圆锯制作东西。比方说，他只花两三个晚上就做好一个小木框，您一定会赞叹它有多么精致！那个木框就挂在他的房间里，格雷戈尔一打开门，您就能看到。不管怎么说，很高兴您能来这里。我们没法让格雷格尔打开门，他太固执了。我相信他是不舒服，今天早上他还说他还好的，但是他确实是不舒服。”“我马上就来。”格雷戈尔缓慢而谨慎地回答道。但是，此时他并没有移动，这样就不会漏掉他们交谈时说的每一句话。“萨姆沙太太，我实在想不出其他的方法来解释这件事。”主任说道，“我希望这件事并不严重。但是，从另一方面来说，不管您认为这是幸运也好，是不幸也罢，我只能说，做生意的人哪怕是有一丁点不舒服，考虑到生意，也得自己硬撑着。”“现在主任可以进来看你吗？”父亲再次敲响了门，不耐烦地问道。“不能。”格雷戈尔回答道。他右边的房间陷入了令人痛苦的沉寂之中；左边的房间开始传来了妹妹的哭声。
So why did his sister not go and join the others? She had probably only just got up and had not even begun to get dressed. And why was she crying? Was it because he had not got up, and had not let the chief clerk in, because he was in danger of losing his job and if that happened his boss would once more pursue their parents with the same demands as before? There was no need to worry about things like that yet. Gregor was still there and had not the slightest intention of abandoning his family. For the time being he just lay there on the carpet, and no-one who knew the condition he was in would seriously have expected him to let the chief clerk in. It was only a minor discourtesy, and a suitable excuse could easily be found for it later on, it was not something for which Gregor could be sacked on the spot. And it seemed to Gregor much more sensible to leave him now in peace instead of disturbing him with talking at him and crying. But the others didn't know what was happening, they were worried, that would excuse their behavior.
为什么妹妹不加入其他人中呢？她可能是刚刚起床，甚至还没开始穿衣服。可是为什么她要哭泣呢？是因为他没起床，没让主任进来？还是因为他正面临着被炒鱿鱼的危险？还是因为如果被炒，老板又会故技重施，向他们的父母追讨债务？其实，现在还没必要担心这种事。格雷戈尔仍旧在那里，压根就没有想过抛弃自己家庭。此时他正躺在地毯上。只要了解他处境的人，都不会苛求他会让主任进来。这只不过是一个微不足道的失礼行为，以后很容易就找到一个合乎情理的理由来解释。格雷戈尔也不会因为这点事就被当场解雇。对格雷戈尔而言，与其通过谈话或是哭泣来打扰他，还不如让他一个人静一会儿，这似乎更加明智。但是其他人并不知道发生了什么事，他们都很担心——这倒让他们的举止变得情有可原。
The chief clerk now raised his voice, "Mr. Samsa," he called to him, "what is wrong? You barricade yourself in your room, give us no more than yes or no for an answer, you are causing serious and unnecessary concern to your parents and you fail—and I mention this just by the way—you fail to carry out your business duties in a way that is quite unheard of. I'm speaking here on behalf of your parents and of your employer, and really must request a clear and immediate explanation. I am astonished, quite astonished. I thought I knew you as a calm and sensible person, and now you suddenly seem to be showing off with peculiar whims. This morning, your employer did suggest a possible reason for your failure to appear, it's true—it had to do with the money that was recently entrusted to you—but I came near to giving him my word of honor that that could not be the right explanation. But now that I see your incomprehensible stubbornness I no longer feel any wish whatsoever to intercede on your behalf. And nor is your position all that secure. I had originally intended to say all this to you in private, but since you cause me to waste my time here for no good reason I don't see why your parents should not also learn of it. Your turnover has been very unsatisfactory of late; I grant you that it's not the time of year to do especially good business, we recognize that; but there simply is no time of year to do no business at all, Mr. Samsa, we cannot allow there to be."
主任提高了音量。“萨姆沙先生，”他喊道，“你怎么了？你把自己关在房间里，对我们的回答只有是或不是，你毫无必要地给你的父母造成了很严重的担忧。而且你不去——我只是顺便提下——你以一种闻所未闻的方式不去履行你的工作义务。我谨代表你的父母和老板跟你讲话，郑重要求你立刻给出一个清晰的解释。我感到震惊，非常之震惊。我一直觉得你是一个沉着、明智的人，但是现在你好像突然表现得太过随性。今天早上，对于你今天没到这件事，老板确实想到了一个可能的理由。没错，这可能是与最近交托给你的那笔钱有关——但是我在他面前为你做了担保，事情绝不是那样的。但是，现在我是见识了你那不可理喻的固执劲，无论如何，我再也不想替你说情。你的职位也不会那么保险。我原本想私下跟你说这些，但是既然你让我在此无来由地浪费时间，那我也没什么理由瞒着你父母。你近期的营业额很不尽人意。我知道现在不是一年里做大买卖的旺季，这点我承认，但是也不是什么生意都没法做。萨姆沙先生，我们绝不允许这种事发生。”
"But Sir," called Gregor, beside himself and forgetting all else in the excitement, "I'll open up immediately, just a moment. I'm slightly unwell, an attack of dizziness, I haven't been able to get up. I'm still in bed now. I'm quite fresh again now, though. I'm just getting out of bed. Just a moment. Be patient! It's not quite as easy as I'd thought. I'm quite alright now, though. It's shocking, what can suddenly happen to a person! I was quite alright last night, my parents know about it, perhaps better than me, I had a small symptom of it last night already. They must have noticed it. I don't know why I didn't let you know at work! But you always think you can get over an illness without staying at home. Please, don't make my parents suffer! There's no basis for any of the accusations you're making; nobody's ever said a word to me about any of these things. Maybe you haven't read the latest contracts I sent in. I'll set off with the eight o'clock train, as well, these few hours of rest have given me strength. You don't need to wait, sir; I'll be in the office soon after you, and please be so good as to tell that to the boss and recommend me to him!"“但是，先生，”一激动格雷戈尔就忘了其他所有的事，他喊道，“我马上开门，请稍等。我感觉有点不舒服，一阵头晕，一直起不了床。现在我还在床上。不过，现在精神又好了。我正准备起床。马上就好。请耐心点！这并不像我想得那么容易。不过，现在我很好。真是让人震惊，怎么突然就发生了这种事！我昨晚上还好好的，我父母知道，或许比我知道得更清楚，其实昨晚上就已经有轻微的症状。他们肯定已经觉察到了。我不知道为什么工作时没向您报告！但是人总觉得不用呆在家里病就可以痊愈。请不要让我父母难受了！您的那些控诉毫无根据。关于这些事，没人跟我提过一个字。您可能没看过我最近交上去的合约书。我将搭乘八点的火车出发，还有，这几个小时的休息已经让我恢复了体力。先生，您不必等我。我随后就去办公室，麻烦您好心地转告老板，并且替我说点好话吧！”
And while Gregor gushed out these words, hardly knowing what he was saying, he made his way over to the chest of drawers—this was easily done, probably because of the practice he had already had in bed—where he now tried to get himself upright. He really did want to open the door, really did want to let them see him and to speak with the chief clerk; the others were being so insistent, and he was curious to learn what they would say when they caught sight of him. If they were shocked then it would no longer be Gregor's responsibility and he could rest. If, however, they took everything calmly he would still have no reason to be upset, and if he hurried he really could be at the station for eight o'clock. The first few times he tried to climb up on the smooth chest of drawers he just slid down again, but he finally gave himself one last swing and stood there upright; the lower part of his body was in serious pain but he no longer gave any attention to it. Now he let himself fall against the back of a nearby chair and held tightly to the edges of it with his little legs. By now he had also calmed down, and kept quiet so that he could listen to what the chief clerk was saying.
格雷戈尔一边滔滔不绝地说着这些话——他几乎都不知道自己说了什么——一边向五斗橱方向爬去——可能是因为在床上已经练习过，他很容易就到了橱柜那儿——并试着让自己直立起来。他确实很想打开门，很想让他们看看他，很想跟主任谈谈。那些人的心情是如此的迫切，而他也急于想知道当他们看到他时会说些什么。如果他们感到震惊，那就不再是格雷戈尔的责任了，而他就能休息了。但是，如果他们很镇定地接受这一切，他就没理由继续萎靡下去。如果他抓紧时间，八点钟应该能赶到车站。开始几次，他试着爬上光滑的五斗橱，结果一次又一次地滑落下来。终于，他完成了最后一次摆动，直立了起来。身体下部传来一阵剧痛，但他已毫不在意。现在他让自己背靠着附近一把椅子的椅背，并用他那些小细腿紧紧地夹住椅子边缘。此刻，他已经平静下来，保持安静，这样就可以听到主任在说什么。
"Did you understand a word of all that?" the chief clerk asked his parents, "surely he's not trying to make fools of us". "Oh, God!" called his mother, who was already in tears, "he could be seriously ill and we're making him suffer. Grete! Grete!" she then cried. "Mother?" his sister called from the other side. They communicated across Gregor's room. "You'll have to go for the doctor straight away. Gregor is ill. Quick, get the doctor. Did you hear the way Gregor spoke just now?""That was the voice of an animal," said the chief clerk, with a calmness that was in contrast with his mother's screams. "Anna! Anna!" his father called into the kitchen through the entrance hall, clapping his hands, "get a locksmith here, now!"And the two girls, their skirts swishing, immediately ran out through the hall, wrenching open the front door of the flat as they went. How had his sister managed to get dressed so quickly? There was no sound of the door banging shut again; they must have left it open; people often do in homes where something awful has happened.“你们听懂他说什么了吗？”主任问他的父母，“他应该不是在耍我们吧。”“噢，上帝啊！”母亲泪流满面，喊道，“他可能患了重病，而我们却让他遭受痛苦。格蕾特！格蕾特！”她接着喊道。“妈妈？”妹妹从另一边喊道。他们隔着格雷戈尔的房间交流。“你必须立刻去找医生。格雷戈尔生病了。快点，去找医生。你听到格雷戈尔刚才说话的方式了吗？”“那是动物的声音。”主任说道，与母亲的尖叫相反，他显得很平静。“安娜！安娜！”父亲从门厅走到厨房，他拍着手，“赶快找个锁匠来！”两个女孩立刻跑出大厅，裙子发出窸窸窣窣的声音。她们拧开前门，出去了。妹妹怎么穿衣服这么快呢？没有传来关门的砰砰声，他们肯定是把门开着；通常家里发生什么糟糕的事情时，人们就会这么做。
Gregor, in contrast, had become much calmer. So they couldn't understand his words any more, although they seemed clear enough to him, clearer than before—perhaps his ears had become used to the sound. They had realized, though, that there was something wrong with him, and were ready to help. The first response to his situation had been confident and wise, and that made him feel better. He felt that he had been drawn back in among people, and from the doctor and the locksmith he expected great and surprising achievements—although he did not really distinguish one from the other. Whatever was said next would be crucial, so, in order to make his voice as clear as possible, he coughed a little, but taking care to do this not too loudly as even this might well sound different from the way that a human coughs and he was no longer sure he could judge this for himself. Meanwhile, it had become very quiet in the next room. Perhaps his parents were sat at the table whispering with the chief clerk, or perhaps they were all pressed against the door and listening.
和他们相反，格雷戈尔变得更加平静了。所以，他们再也没法听懂他的话。但是，他们的声音对他来说却是相当清楚，甚至比以前听得更清楚——也许他的耳朵已经习惯了这种声音。不过，他们已经意识到他出了事，并准备给他提供帮助。面对这种情况，他们的的第一反应很沉着、睿智，这使他感觉好多了。他觉得自己被拉回了人群中，尽管无法辨认哪个是医生，哪个是锁匠，他还是期待他们能取得伟大而惊人的成就。接下来无论说了什么都至关重要，因此，为了让自己的声音尽可能清晰，他轻轻地咳嗽了一声，但又很小心地让声音显得不太响亮。因为即使是轻声的咳嗽，也很容易让人听出它与人类咳嗽声的差别，而他自己已经无法对此作出判断了。与此同时，隔壁的房间变得非常安静。也许父母正坐在桌子旁边与主任低声耳语，或者他们全都双耳紧贴房门，正在窃听。
Gregor slowly pushed his way over to the door with the chair. Once there he let go of it and threw himself onto the door, holding himself upright against it using the adhesive on the tips of his legs. He rested there a little while to recover from the effort involved and then set himself to the task of turning the key in the lock with his mouth. He seemed, unfortunately, to have no proper teeth—how was he, then, to grasp the key?—but the lack of teeth was, of course, made up for with a very strong jaw; using the jaw, he really was able to start the key turning, ignoring the fact that he must have been causing some kind of damage as a brown fluid came from his mouth, flowed over the key and dripped onto the floor. "Listen," said the chief clerk in the next room, "he's turning the key."Gregor was greatly encouraged by this; but they all should have been calling to him, his father and his mother too:"Well done, Gregor," they should have cried, "keep at it, keep hold of the lock!"And with the idea that they were all excitedly following his efforts, he bit on the key with all his strength, paying no attention to the pain he was causing himself. As the key turned round he turned around the lock with it, only holding himself upright with his mouth, and hung onto the key or pushed it down again with the whole weight of his body as needed. The clear sound of the lock as it snapped back was Gregor's sign that he could break his concentration, and as he regained his breath he said to himself:"So, I didn't need the locksmith after all". Then he lay his head on the handle of the door to open it completely.
格雷戈尔推着椅子，慢慢向门口移去。一到门口，他就丢开椅子，扑到门上，利用腿尖端的粘性抓着门，好让自己能直立地站着。他休息了一小会儿，让自己恢复体力，接着他开始试图用嘴巴拧动插在锁孔里的钥匙。不幸的是，他似乎没有真正意义上的牙齿——该如何抓紧钥匙呢？——但是，强有力的下颌当然可以弥补没有牙齿的缺陷。他确实可以用下颌扭动钥匙，不去管这样做必定会造成的一些伤害：棕色的液体从嘴里流出来，溢满钥匙，滴落在地板上。“听着，”主任在隔壁房间里说道，“他正在拧钥匙。”这让格雷戈尔倍受鼓舞，但是他们本该一直大声地对着他喊，包括他的父亲和母亲：“格雷戈尔，干得好！”他们本该喊道：“顶住，抓紧锁！”一想到自己的努力让他们都感到振奋，格雷戈尔就竭尽全力咬住钥匙，丝毫不在意这一行为给他带来的疼痛。钥匙转动，锁也随之而转动。他仅靠嘴巴让自己保持直立，他紧紧咬住钥匙，或是根据需要集中全身重量将钥匙往下推。锁反弹了回来，发出清脆的响声，这表明格雷戈尔可以放松一下了。他喘了一口气，对自己说：“看来，我根本就不需要锁匠。”接着，他把头靠在门把手上，将门完全打开。
Because he had to open the door in this way, it was already wide open before he could be seen. He had first to slowly turn himself around one of the double doors, and he had to do it very carefully if he did not want to fall flat on his back before entering the room. He was still occupied with this difficult movement, unable to pay attention to anything else, when he heard the chief clerk exclaim a loud "Oh!" which sounded like the soughing of the wind. Now he also saw him—he was the nearest to the door—his hand pressed against his open mouth and slowly retreating as if driven by a steady and invisible force. Gregor's mother, her hair still disheveled from bed despite the chief clerk's being there, looked at his father. Then she unfolded her arms, took two steps forward towards Gregor and sank down onto the floor into her skirts that spread themselves out around her as her head disappeared down onto her breast. His father looked hostile, and clenched his fists as if wanting to knock Gregor back into his room. Then he looked uncertainly round the living room, covered his eyes with his hands and wept so that his powerful chest shook.
他只能用这种方法才能打开门，因此门完全打开的时候，他们并没有看见他。首先他得让自己慢慢地从双扇门中的一扇的背面转过来，如果他不想在进房间时摔得四脚朝天，就得小心翼翼地转过去。他依然专注于这个高难度的动作，没法注意其他东西。这时，他听到了主任一声响亮的惊叫“啊！”听起来像是飕飕的风声。此时，他也看见了主任——主任离门最近——他用手按住张大的嘴巴，缓慢地后退，仿佛被一股稳定、无形的力量所驱赶。格雷戈尔的母亲看着他的父亲，尽管主任在场，她的头发还是像刚起床那样蓬乱。接着，她张开双臂，向前朝格雷戈尔走了两步，瘫倒在她那向地板四散开来的裙子上。她的头垂落到胸前，几乎看不见。父亲看起来充满了敌意，紧握拳头，好像是想将格雷戈尔打回他的房间。随后，他很不确定地环顾客厅四周，用双手捂着眼睛哭泣，他那强有力的胸膛也因此而颤抖。
So Gregor did not go into the room, but leant against the inside of the other door which was still held bolted in place. In this way only half of his body could be seen, along with his head above it which he leant over to one side as he peered out at the others. Meanwhile the day had become much lighter; part of the endless, grey-black building on the other side of the street—which was a hospital—could be seen quite clearly with the austere and regular line of windows piercing its facade; the rain was still falling, now throwing down large, individual droplets which hit the ground one at a time. The washing up from breakfast lay on the table; there was so much of it because, for Gregor's father, breakfast was the most important meal of the day and he would stretch it out for several hours as he sat reading a number of different newspapers. On the wall exactly opposite there was photograph of Gregor when he was a lieutenant in the army, his sword in his hand and a carefree smile on his face as he called forth respect for his uniform and bearing. The door to the entrance hall was open and as the front door of the flat was also open he could see onto the landing and the stairs where they began their way down below.
因此格雷戈尔并没有走进房间，只是倚着另一扇门的内侧，这扇门仍然好好地锁着。这样就只能看到他一半的身子和上半只脑袋。他歪着身子，窥视着他们。此时，天色亮了很多。街道对面那座庞大的、灰黑色环状建筑物的一部分——那是医院——能看得清清楚楚，透过一排简陋的、整齐的窗户可以看到医院的正面。雨一直下个不停，大颗的雨点一滴滴坠下，敲打着地面。早饭时用过餐具还放在餐桌上，数量很多，因为格雷戈尔的父亲认为，早餐是一天中最重要的一顿饭。在用餐时他要看很多种不同的报纸，因此早餐时间甚至会延长至几个小时。餐桌正对面的墙上挂着格雷戈尔的照片，那时他在军队里是中尉。照片里的他手中握剑，脸上挂着无忧无虑的笑容，他的制服和风度让人肃然起敬。通向门廊的门是敞开的，由于公寓的前门也开着，他可以看到楼梯平台和朝下走时用的楼梯。
"Now, then," said Gregor, well aware that he was the only one to have kept calm, "I'll get dressed straight away now, pack up my samples and set off. Will you please just let me leave? You can see," he said to the chief clerk, "that I'm not stubborn and like I like to do my job; being a commercial traveler is arduous but without travelling I couldn't earn my living. So where are you going, in to the office? Yes? Will you report everything accurately, then? It's quite possible for someone to be temporarily unable to work, but that's just the right time to remember what's been achieved in the past and consider that later on, once the difficulty has been removed, he will certainly work with all the more diligence and concentration. You're well aware that I'm seriously in debt to our employer as well as having to look after my parents and my sister, so that I'm trapped in a difficult situation, but I will work my way out of it again. Please don't make things any harder for me than they are already, and don't take sides against me at the office. I know that nobody likes the travelers. They think we earn an enormous wage as well as having a soft time of it. That's just prejudice but they have no particular reason to think better it. But you, sir, you have a better overview than the rest of the staff, in fact, if I can say this in confidence, a better overview than the boss himself—it's very easy for a businessman like him to make mistakes about his employees and judge them more harshly than he should. And you're also well aware that we travelers spend almost the whole year away from the office, so that we can very easily fall victim to gossip and chance and groundless complaints, and it's almost impossible to defend yourself from that sort of thing, we don't usually even hear about them, or if at all it's when we arrive back home exhausted from a trip, and that's when we feel the harmful effects of what's been going on without even knowing what caused them. Please, don't go away, at least first say something to show that you grant that I'm at least partly right!"“那么，现在，”格雷戈尔说，他很清醒地意识到，自己是唯一保持镇静的人，“我立刻穿上衣服，打包好样品，马上出发。你们能让我走吗？您很清楚，”他对主任说，“我并不固执，我喜欢我的工作。做一名旅行推销员很艰难，但是如果不四处奔波，我就没法谋生。您要去哪儿，回办公室吗？是吗？您会如实汇报一切吗？一个人暂时无法工作是完全有可能的，但这正好是回顾他过去取得的成就，思考他以后将创造的业绩的大好时机。一旦困难得到解决，他肯定会加倍勤奋，更加专注地工作。您很清楚，我欠了我们老板大笔债务，而且还得照顾我的父母和妹妹，因此我已经陷入了困境，但是我会再次找到解决问题的办法。请您不要给我难上加难，也不要在办公室为难我。我知道没人喜欢旅行推销员。他们认为我们不仅赚了大钱，而且工作时间自由。这只不过是偏见，但是他们又没有任何特别的理由不这么想。但是您，先生，比起其他员工，您对此有更深刻的见解。事实上，我可以在私底下说，对此您比老板的见解更深刻——像他那样的商人很容易对员工产生误解，并且用更加苛刻的标准来判断他们。您也非常清楚，我们旅行推销员几乎全年都不在办公室，因此很容易沦为流言蜚语、突发事件以及无端抱怨的受害者。然而，对于这种事情，我们没法为自己辩护，因为这些事我们听都没听说过。只有当我们筋疲力尽地结束旅行回来时，才知道一直发生的事情产生的不良影响，甚至连这些事究竟因何而起都不知道。请您不要离开，我所说的话总该有些是对的吧，您至少得说点什么，以表明您对此赞同吧！”
But the chief clerk had turned away as soon as Gregor had started to speak, and, with protruding lips, only stared back at him over his trembling shoulders as he left. He did not keep still for a moment while Gregor was speaking, but moved steadily towards the door without taking his eyes off him. He moved very gradually, as if there had been some secret prohibition on leaving the room. It was only when he had reached the entrance hall that he made a sudden movement, drew his foot from the living room, and rushed forward in a panic. In the hall, he stretched his right hand far out towards the stairway as if out there, there were some supernatural force waiting to save him.
但是格雷戈尔刚开始说话，主任就鼓着嘴转过身去。离开时，他肩膀颤抖着，回头望了格雷戈尔一眼。格雷戈尔说话的时候，他没有保持不动，而是镇定地往门口移去，他的目光一直注视着格雷戈尔。他移动得非常缓慢，仿佛有某种秘密不然他离开房间。直到抵达门廊时，他才猛冲起来：将脚迈出客厅，惊慌失措地奔向前去。在大厅里，他远远地伸出右手去够楼梯，好像外面有一股超自然的力量在等着解救他。
Gregor realized that it was out of the question to let the chief clerk go away in this mood if his position in the firm was not to be put into extreme danger. That was something his parents did not understand very well; over the years, they had become convinced that this job would provide for Gregor for his entire life, and besides, they had so much to worry about at present that they had lost sight of any thought for the future. Gregor, though, did think about the future. The chief clerk had to be held back, calmed down, convinced and finally won over; the future of Gregor and his family depended on it! If only his sister were here! She was clever; she was already in tears while Gregor was still lying peacefully on his back. And the chief clerk was a lover of women, surely she could persuade him; she would close the front door in the entrance hall and talk him out of his shocked state. But his sister was not there, Gregor would have to do the job himself. And without considering that he still was not familiar with how well he could move about in his present state, or that his speech still might not—or probably would not—be understood, he let go of the door; pushed himself through the opening; tried to reach the chief clerk on the landing who, ridiculously, was holding on to the banister with both hands; but Gregor fell immediately over and, with a little scream as he sought something to hold onto, landed on his numerous little legs. Hardly had that happened than, for the first time that day, he began to feel alright with his body; the little legs had the solid ground under them; to his pleasure, they did exactly as he told them; they were even making the effort to carry him where he wanted to go; and he was soon believing that all his sorrows would soon be finally at an end. He held back the urge to move but swayed from side to side as he crouched there on the floor. His mother was not far away in front of him and seemed, at first, quite engrossed in herself, but then she suddenly jumped up with her arms outstretched and her fingers spread shouting:"Help, for pity's sake, Help!"The way she held her head suggested she wanted to see Gregor better, but the unthinking way she was hurrying backwards showed that she did not; she had forgotten that the table was behind her with all the breakfast things on it; when she reached the table she sat quickly down on it without knowing what she was doing; without even seeming to notice that the coffee pot had been knocked over and a gush of coffee was pouring down onto the carpet.
格雷戈尔意识到，决不能让主任在这种情绪下离开，除非他想让自己在公司的地位陷入极度的危险之中。父母并不理解这件事情。这些年来，他们深信格雷戈尔一生都会干这份工作。此外，他们目前需要担心的事情太多了，没有闲暇考虑将来的问题。但是，格雷戈尔确实想到了未来。必须得阻止主任，让他平静下来，说服他，并最终赢得他的支持。格雷戈尔和全家的未来就全靠这一点了！要是妹妹在这儿该多好啊！她很聪明。当格雷戈尔还静静地仰卧着的时候，她就已经泪流满面。主任很喜欢女人，她一定可以说服他。她应该关上门廊处的大门，跟他交谈，让他摆脱震惊的状态。但是妹妹不在这里，格雷戈尔得亲自出马。格雷戈尔没有考虑到自己在现在这种状况下活动方便是否方便，也没想过他的话语仍然不能——可能再也不能——被人听懂。他放开门，使自己挤过通道，试图直达主任所在的楼梯平台。而主任正滑稽地用双手握着楼梯扶手。可是，格雷戈尔马上就栽了跟头——他摸索着想抓住某个东西，并发出了低低的尖叫声——他那许许多多细小的腿着地了。甫一着地，他便第一次感到身体舒服了，这在那天还是第一次。这些细小的腿稳稳地踏在坚实的地板上。令他欣慰的是，它们完全听从他的指挥，他想去哪，它们就竭尽全力带他去哪。于是他相信所有的不幸最终都会消失。他蜷在地板上，左右摇摆着，压抑住想要移动的冲动。母亲在前面离他不远处，起初她像是完全呆住了；不过接着她突然跳起来，伸展胳膊，张开手指，大叫道：“救命，我的天啊，救命！”她低头的样子表明她想更加清楚地看看格雷戈尔，但她下意识地拼命后退又表明她根本就不想。她忘了她身后的餐桌上还放着早餐时用过的餐具。到了桌子边，她毫无意识地迅速坐在了上面。她甚至好像没注意到咖啡壶被打翻了，咖啡洒了出来，泼在地毯上。
"Mother, mother," said Gregor gently, looking up at her. He had completely forgotten the chief clerk for the moment, but could not help himself snapping in the air with his jaws at the sight of the flow of coffee. That set his mother screaming anew, she fled from the table and into the arms of his father as he rushed towards her. Gregor, though, had no time to spare for his parents now; the chief clerk had already reached the stairs; with his chin on the banister, he looked back for the last time. Gregor made a run for him; he wanted to be sure of reaching him; the chief clerk must have expected something, as he leapt down several steps at once and disappeared; his shouts resounding all around the staircase. The flight of the chief clerk seemed, unfortunately, to put Gregor's father into a panic as well. Until then he had been relatively self controlled, but now, instead of running after the chief clerk himself, or at least not impeding Gregor as he ran after him, Gregor's father seized the chief clerk's stick in his right hand (the chief clerk had left it behind on a chair, along with his hat and overcoat), picked up a large newspaper from the table with his left, and used them to drive Gregor back into his room, stamping his foot at him as he went. Gregor's appeals to his father were of no help, his appeals were simply not understood, however much he humbly turned his head his father merely stamped his foot all the harder. Across the room, despite the chilly weather, Gregor's mother had pulled open a window, leant far out of it and pressed her hands to her face. A strong draught of air flew in from the street towards the stairway, the curtains flew up, the newspapers on the table fluttered and some of them were blown onto the floor. Nothing would stop Gregor's father as he drove him back, making hissing noises at him like a wild man. Gregor had never had any practice in moving backwards and was only able to go very slowly. If Gregor had only been allowed to turn round he would have been back in his room straight away, but he was afraid that if he took the time to do that his father would become impatient, and there was the threat of a lethal blow to his back or head from the stick in his father's hand any moment. Eventually, though, Gregor realized that he had no choice as he saw, to his disgust, that he was quite incapable of going backwards in a straight line; so he began, as quickly as possible and with frequent anxious glances at his father, to turn himself round. It went very slowly, but perhaps his father was able to see his good intentions as he did nothing to hinder him, in fact now and then he used the tip of his stick to give directions from a distance as to which way to turn. If only his father would stop that unbearable hissing! It was making Gregor quite confused. When he had nearly finished turning round, still listening to that hissing, he made a mistake and turned
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