1、本书作者詹妮弗芭斯特是位资历很深的教师和作家。她生活在英国西南的德文郡。1 Toby remembersMy name is TobyIm an old man，eighty-three this springMy house is right in the middle of Stratford-upon-Avon，and I can watch the street market from my windowBut I live very quietly nowIm just an old man，sitting in a chairI once knew the greatest man
2、 in EnglandFor thirty years I was his friendI worked with him in the theatre，through the good times and the bad timeHe was a good friend to meHe was also the best playwright，the best poet，that ever lived in EnglandWill Shakespeare was his nameI saw all his plays in the theatrePeople loved themThey s
3、houted，laughed and cried，ate oranges，and called for moreAll kinds of peopleKings，Queens，Princes，great lords and ladies，poor people，the boys who held the horseseveryoneWill Shakespeare could please them allHe put me in a play onceWell，he used my name-TobyTwelfth Night was the play，I rememberSir Toby
4、BelchHe was a big fat man，who liked drinking too much and having a good timeQueen Elizabeth the First watched that play-on Twelfth Night，the 6th of January，1601She liked it，tooWills dead now，of courseHes been dead more than thirty years，and no one sees his plays nowThe Puritans have closed all the t
5、heatresTheres no singing，no dancing，no playsIt wasnt like that in my young daysWe had a good time in London，Will and IIve no teeth now，and my hair has all fallen out，but I can still thinkand rememberI remember when Will and I were young，just boys really1 托比的回忆我叫托比，一位年迈的老人，今年春天年过83岁。家住艾汶河畔斯特拉福镇中心，透过窗
6、户，便可以望到街道的闹市。我的生活平和宁静，毕竟我已是一位要在轮椅上安度晚年的老头子了。我曾认识英国的一位最伟大的人物。我与他相交30年，同在剧团工作，也共同度过人生中欢乐与艰辛的岁月。他是我的好友，也是英国有史以来最优秀的剧作家，最杰出的诗人。他就是威尔莎士比亚。我看过他所有上演的戏剧。这些戏剧颇受欢迎，也一度令观众狂喜大悲，不过他们都希望能看到他更多的戏剧。形形色色的人，上自国王、王后、王子和豪富名女，下至贫苦百姓和牵马的脚夫所有的人，威尔莎士比亚都能令他们开心欢娱。他曾将我写进剧本，剧中用了我的原名托比。我记得剧名为第十二夜，剧中的托比培尔契爵士又大又胖而且喜欢酗酒行乐。女王伊丽莎白一世
7、于1601年1月6号观看了此剧第十二夜，也很喜欢。当然威尔现在已不在人世，他过世都30多年了，如今没有人能看到他的戏。自从清教徒关闭了所有的剧院，就不再有歌声、舞蹈和戏剧了。如今的情形同我年轻时与威尔在伦敦度过的快乐时光相比已经大不一样了。现在虽然我一副老态，没有牙齿，头发也掉光了，但我还能思考还能回忆，我记得威尔和我年轻的时候，还是孩子的时候2 Stratford-upon-AvonIt was a sunny day in October 1579 when I first met Will，just outside Stratford，near a big field of apple
8、treesI saw a boy up in one of the treesHe had red hair and looked about two years older than meWhat are you doing up there？I calledJust getting a few apples，he said，smilingThose are Farmer Nashs apples，I said，and hell send his dogs after you if he sees youMr Nash has gone to market，the boy saidCome
9、on！Theyre good applesThe next minute I was up the tree with himBut Will was wrongFarmer Nash wasnt at the market，and a few minutes later we saw his angry red face above the wall on the far side of the fieldWill and I ran like the wind and only stopped when we reached the riverWe sat down to eat our
10、applesWill was fifteen，and lived in Henley Street，he told meHis father was John Shakespeare，and he had a sister，Joan，and two younger brothers，Gilbert and RichardThere was another sister who died，I learnt laterAnd the next year he had another brother，little Edmundthe baby of the familyNow，what about
11、you？he askedTheres only me and my sister，I saidMy parents are dead，and we live with my mothers brother：Hes a shoe-maker in Ely Street and I work for himWhat do you do？I go to Mr Jenkins school in Church Street，Will saidEvery day，from seven oclock until five oclockNot Sundays，of courseI was sorry for
12、 himIsnt is boring？I askedSometimesUsually its all rightHe lay back and put his hands behind his headBut we have to read and learn all these Latin writersI want to read modern writers，and Eng-lish writers，like Geoffrey ChaucerCan you read？Of course I can read！I saidI went to schoolWill sat up and be
13、gan to eat another appleI want to be a writer，he saidA poetI want that more than anything in the worldWe were friends from that day，until the day he diedWe met nearly every day，and he taught me a lot about books and poetry and writersHe always had his nose in a bookWhen Will left school，he worked fo
14、r his father in Henley StreetJohn Shakespeare was a glove-maker，and he had other business too，like buying and selling sheepBut Will wasnt interestedWhat are we going to do，Toby？he said to me one dayWe cant spend all our lives making shoes and gloves！Well，I said，we could run away to sea and be sailor
15、sSail round the world，like Francis DrakeDrake sailed back to Plymouth in 1581，after his three-year journey round the world，but we were still in StratfordWe made lots of plans，but nothing ever came of themWill was still reading a lot and he was already writing poems himselfHe sometimes showed them to
16、 me，and I said they were very goodI didnt really know anything about poetry then，but he was my friendWill was not happy with his writingIve got so much to learn，Toby，he saidSo much to learnPoor WillHe had a lot to learn about women，tooOne day in October 1582 he came to my house with a long faceIll n
17、ever leave Stratfordhe saidWhy not？I askedWell get away one dayYoull seePerhaps you will，he said，but Im going to be married in a few weeks timeTo Anne HathawayMy mouth fell open and stayed openMarried！To Anne Hathaway？Is that the Hathaways over at Shottery？Yes，Will saidI was working on some shoes on
18、 the table，and Will picked one up and looked at itWell，er，shes a fine girl，of course，I said uncomfort-ablyButbut，Will，shes twenty-six and youre only eighteen！I know，Will saidBut Ive got to marry herOh no！I saidYou mean，shesThats right，said WillIn about six months time Im going to be a father2 艾汶河畔的斯
19、特拉福镇我第一次遇见威尔是在1579年10月的一天。那天，阳光明媚，就在斯特拉福镇外一座大苹果园附近，我看见有棵苹果树上坐着一位小男孩，长着红棕色头发，看模样大概大我两岁。“你在上边干什么？”我叫道。“摘苹果。”他笑着答道。“那可是纳什农场主的苹果，”我说，“如果他发现了，就要放狗咬你的。“纳什先生去集市了，”男孩说道，“来吧！苹果不错。一会儿我也上了树。但是威尔错了，纳什先生并没去集市，几分钟后我们看见果园那端墙头露出一张气得发红的脸。威尔和我见势撒腿就跑，一口气跑到河边才坐下来吃苹果。威尔告诉我，他15岁，住在亨里街。家中有父亲约翰莎士比亚，妹妹琼和两个弟弟，吉尔伯特和理查。我后来听说他另
20、有一位姐姐死了。第二年他又添了一个弟弟威尔家的赤子小埃德蒙。“那么你呢？”他问道。“家里只有我和姐姐，”我说，“父母死后我们住在舅舅家。他是埃利街的一个鞋匠，我为他打工。你现在干什么？“我在教堂街詹金斯先生的学校就读，”威尔说，“每天从上午7点到下午5点上学，当然不包括星期天。我真为他难过。“这难道不乏味吗？”我问道。“偶尔有这种感觉，不过通常觉得学校的生活也不错。”他仰身躺下，双手枕着头，“在学校，我们不得不学习所有那些拉丁作家的作品。可我只想阅读现代作家和英国作家的作品，比如杰弗利乔叟。你会看书吗？“当然会啦！”我说，“我上过学。威尔坐起来又吃了一个苹果。“我想成为作家，”他继续说道，“诗
21、人。世上再没有比这更令我神往的。自那天起我们就成了莫逆之交，直到他过世。我们几乎每天见面，他教了我许多书本和文学上的知识。他总是埋头博览群书。威尔离开学校后就在亨里街帮助父亲料理生意。约翰莎士比亚是一位手套工匠，同时经营其他生意，如羊的买卖生意。但威尔对做生意却不感兴趣。“托比，接下来你有何打算？”有一天他问我。“我们不能一辈子都做鞋和做手套吧！“对呀，”我说，“我们跑到海上当海员会，像弗朗西斯杜雷克一样环绕地球航行。杜雷克在环绕地球航行三年后于1581年回到普利茅斯，可我们还是呆在斯特拉福镇。尽管也制定了种种计划，但始终未付诸行动。这段时间威尔依然博览群书并开始自己写诗，偶尔给我看他写的诗。
22、虽然嘴上我都说他的诗写得好，实际上我对诗歌是一窍不通。只不过他是我的好友我才这么说而已。威尔对自己的诗歌并不满意。“托比，我要学的东西太多了。”他说，“实在太多了。可怜的威尔。他还得学会了解每个人。1582年10月的一天他来到我的住处，神情沉郁。“我永远不能离开斯特拉福镇了。”他说。“为什么不能？”我问道，“总有一天我们会离开此地。你等着瞧。“或许你还行，”他说，“但过几个星期我就要结婚了。同安哈瑟维结婚。一听此言我张着嘴愣了好久。“结婚。哈瑟维结婚？你是说肖特雷邻乡哈瑟维家的女儿？“没错，”威尔说。当时我在做鞋，威尔拿起桌上一支鞋，看看。“当然，嗯，她是个好姑娘，”我同情地说道，“不过不过，
23、威尔，她已经26岁了，你才18岁呀！“我知道，”威尔说，“但是我非娶她不行。“哦，不可能这样吧！”我说，“你是说，她已经”“你猜对了，”威尔说道，“再过6个月我就要当爸爸了。3 The actors come to townWill married Anne Hathaway in November，and she came to live in Henley StreetJohn Shakespeare was pleased that his oldest son was married，but I dont think Wills mother wanted him to marry s
24、o youngFamilies cost a lot of money，and John Shakespeare was having a lot of money troubles in those daysTimes were hard in Henley StreetSusanna was born the next MayAll babies look the same to me，but Will was very pleased with herLook，Toby，shes got my eyes，he said happilyShes going to be as beautif
25、ul as the Queen of Egypt，and as clever as King SolomonOh yes？I saidAll parents talk like that about their childrenI dont believe a word of itI didnt see much of Wills wifeI knew she didnt like meTo her，I was one of Wills wild friends，who got him into troubleShe came from a very serious，Puritan famil
26、yLots of church-going，and no singing or dancingSoon there was another baby on the way，and one evening in February 1585 I hurried round to Henley Street to hear the newsWills sister，Joan，opened the door，and then Will came running down the stairsIts two of them！he saidTwins！A girl and a boyIsnt that w
27、onderful！Will had some good friends，Hamnet and Judith Sadler，and he called the twins after themJohn Shakespeare was very pleased to have his first grandson，and everyone was happyFor a whileWill and I still went around together when we couldHe was still reading，and writing，and soon I could see a chan
28、ge in himHe was twenty-three now，and he was not happy with his lifeStratfords too small，Toby，he saidToo slowToo quietToo boringIve got to get awayYes，but how？I askedYouve got a familythree young children，rememberHe didnt answerIn the summer months companies of players often came to small towns，and i
29、n 1587 five different companies cameWill and I always went to see the playsWill loved to talk to the actors and to listen to all their stories of LondonThe Queens Men came to Stratford in June，and we went to see the playI dont remember what it wasI know that I laughed a lot，and that Will said it was a stupid play，with not a word of poetry in itWhy dont you write a play yourself？I told him
