By William Saroyan
They were to eat peaches，as planned，after her nap，and now she sat across from the man who would have been a total stranger except that he was in fact her father。They had been together again（although she couldn't quite remember when they had been together before）for almost a hundred years now，or was it only since day before yesterday？Anyhow，they were together again，and he was kind of funny。First，he had the biggest mustache she had ever seen on anybody，although to her it was not a mustache at all；it was a lot of red and brown hair under his nose and around the ends of his mouth。Second，he wore a blue and white striped jersey instead of a shirt and tie，and no coat。His arms were covered with the same hair，only it was a little lighter and thinner。He wore blue slacks，but no shoes and socks，He was barefoot，and so was she，of course。
He was at home。She was with him in his home in Paris，if you could call it a home。He was very old，especially for a young man of thirty six，he had told her；and she was six，just up from sleep on a very hot afternoon in August。
That morning，on a little walk in the neighbor hood，she had seen peaches in a box outside a small store and she had stopped to look at them，so he had bought a kilo。Now，the peaches were on a large plate on the card table at which they sat。
There were seven of them，but one of them was flawed。It looked as good as others，almost the size of a tennis ball，nice red fading to light green，but where the stem had been there was now a break that went straight down into the heart of the seed。
He placed the biggest and best looking peach on the small plate in front of the girl，and then took the flawed peach and began to remove the skin。When he had half the skin off the peach he ate that side，neither of them talking，both of them just being there，and not being excited or anything，no plans，that is。
The man held the half eaten peach in his fingers and looked down into the cavity，into the open seed。The girl looked too。
While they were looking，two feelers poked out from the cavity。They were attached to a kind of brown knob head，which followed the feelers，and then two large legs took a strong grip on the edge of the cavity and hoisted some of the rest of whatever it was out of the seed，and stopped there a moment，as if to look around。
The man studied the seed dweller，and so，of course，did the girl。
The creature paused only a fraction of a second，and then continued to come out of the seed，to walk down the eaten side of the peach to wherever it was going。
The girl had never seen anything like it，a whole big thing made out of brown color，a knob head，feelers，and a great many legs。It was very active too。Almost businesslike，you might say。The man placed the peach back on the plate。The creature moved off the peach onto the surface of the white plate。There it came to a thoughtful stop。
“Who is it？”the girl said。
“Gaston。”
“Where does he live？”
“Well，he used to live in this peach seed，but now that the peach has been harvested and sold，and I have eaten half of it，it looks as if he's out of house and home。”“Aren't you going to squash him？”
“No，of course not，why should I？”
“He is a bug。He is ugh。”
“Not at all。He is Gaston the grand boulevardier。”
“Everybody hollers when a bug comes out of an apple，but you don't holler or anything。”
“Of course not。How should we like it if somebody hollered every time we came out of our house？”
“Why would they？”
“Precisely。So why should we holler at Gaston？”
“He is not the same as us。”
“Well，not exactly，but he's the same as a lot of other occupants of peach seeds。Now，the poor fellow hasn't got a home，and there he is with all that pure design and handsome form，and no where to go。”
“Handsome？”
“Gaston is just about the handsomest of his kind I've ever seen。”
“What's he saying？”
“Well，he's a little confused。Now，inside that house of his he had everything in order。Bed here，porch there，and so forth。”
“Show me。”
The man picked up the peach，leaving Gaston entirely alone on the white plate。He removed the peeling and ate the rest of the peach。
“Nobody else I know would do that。”the girl said。“They'd throw it away。”
“I can't imagine why。It's a perfect good peach。”
He opened the seed and placed the two sides not far from Gaston。The girl studied the open halves。
“Is that where he lives？”
“It's where he used to live。Gaston is out in the world and on his own now。You can see for yourself how comfortable he was in there。He had everything。”
“Now what has he got？”
“Not very much，I'm afraid。”
“What's he going to do？”
“What are we going to do？”
“Well，we're not going to squash him，that's one thing we're not going to do。”the girl said。
“What are we going to do，then？”
“Put him back？”
“Oh，that house is finished。”
“Well，he can't live in our house，can he？”
“Not happily。”
“Can he live in our house at all？”
“Well，he could try，I suppose。Don't you want to eat a peach？”
“Only if it's a peach with somebody in the seed。”
“Well，see if you can find a peach that has an opening at the top，because if you can，that'll be a peach in which you're likeliest to find somebody。”
The girl examined each of the peaches on the big plate。
“They're all shut。”she said。
“Well，eat one，then。”
“No。I want the same kind that you ate，with somebody in the seed。”
“Well，to tell you the truth，the peach I ate would be considered a bad peach，so of course stores don't like to sell them。I was sold that one by mistake，most likely。And so now Gaston is without a home，and we've got six perfect peaches to eat。”
“I don't want a perfect peach。I want a peach with people。”
“Well，I'll go out and see if I can find one。”
“Where will I go？”
“You'll go with me，unless you'd rather stay。I'll only be five minutes。”
“If the phone rings，what shall I say？”
“I don't think it'll ring，but if it does，say hello and see who it is。”
“If it is my mother，what shall I say？”
“Tell her I've gone to get you a bad peach，and anything else you want to tell her。”
“If she wants me to go back，what shall I say？”
“Say yes if you want to go back。”
“Do you want me to？”
“Of course not，but the important thing is what you want，not what I want。”
“Why is that the important thing？”
“Because I want you to be where you want to be。”
“I want to be here。”
“I'll be right back。”
He put on socks and shoes，and a jacket，and went out。She watched Gaston trying to find out what to do next。Gaston wandered around the plate，but everything seemed wrong and he didn't know what to do or where to go。
The telephone rang and her mother said she was sending the chauffeur to pick her up because there was a little party for somebody's daughter who was also six，and then tomorrow they would fly back to New York。
“Let me speak to your father。”she said。
“He's gone to get a peach。”
“One peach？”
“One with people。”
“You haven't been with your father two days and already you sound like him。”
“There are peaches with people in them。I know。I saw one of them come out。”
“A bug？”
“Not a bug。Gaston。”
“Who？”
“Gaston the grand something。”
“Somebody get a peach with a bug in it，and throws it away，but not him。He makes up a lot of foolishness about it。”
“It's not foolishness。”
“All right，all right，don't get angry at me about a horrible peach bug of some kind。”
“Gaston is right here，just outside his broken house，and I'm not angry at you。”
“You'll have a lot of fun at the party。”
“OK。”
“We'll have fun flying back to New York，too。”
“OK。”
“Are you glad you saw your father？”
“Of course I am。”
“Is he funny？”
“Yes。”
“Is he crazy？”
“Yes。I mean，no。He just doesn't holler when he sees a bug crawling out of a peach seed or anything。He just looks at it carefully。But it is just a bug，isn't it，really？”
“That's all it is。”
“And we have to squash it？”
“That's right。I can't wait to see you，darling。These two days have been like two years to me。Good bye。”
The girl watched Gaston on the plate，and she actually didn't like him。He was all ugh，as he had been in the first place。He didn't have a home anymore and he was wandering around on the white plate and he was silly and wrong and ridiculous and useless and all sorts of other things。She cried a little，but only inside，because long ago she had decided she didn't like crying because if you ever started to cry it seemed as if there was so much to cry about you almost couldn't stop，and she didn't like that at all。The open halves of the peach seed were wrong，too。They were ugly or something。They weren't clean。
The man bought a kilo of peaches but found no flawed peaches among them，so he bought another kilo at another store，and this time his luck was better，and there were two that were flawed。He hurried back to his flat and let himself in。
His daughter was in her room，in her best dress。
“My mother phoned。”she said，“and she's sending the chauffeur for me because there's another birthday party。”
“Another？”
“I mean，there's always a lot of them in New York。”
“Will the chauffeur bring you back？”
“No。We're flying back to New York tomorrow。”
“Oh。”
“I liked being in your house。”
“I liked having you here。”
“Why do you live here？”
“This is my home。”
“It's nice，but it's a lot different from our home。”
“Yes，I suppose it is。”
“It's kind of like Gaston's house。”
“Where is Gaston？”
“I squashed him。”
“Really？Why？”
“Everybody squashes bugs and worms。”
“Oh。Well。I found you a peach。”
“I don't want a peach anymore。”
“OK。”
He got her dressed，and he was packing her stuff when the chauffeur arrived。He went down the three flights of stairs with his daughter and the chauffeur，and in the street he was about to hug the girl when he decided he had better not。They shook hands instead，as if they were strangers。
He watched the huge car drive off，and then he went around the corner where he took his coffee every morning，feeling a little，he thought，like Gaston on the white plate。
正如计划好的那样，他们要在她小睡之后吃桃子。现在，她就坐在这个男人对面。这个人，虽然事实上是她的爸爸，但却让她觉得那么陌生。好像是过了几乎一百年，他们又在一起了（虽然她记不得这之前他们什么时候在一起呆过），或者就是前天他们刚刚聚在一起？无论如何，他们现在呆在一起，而他看起来有点滑稽。首先，他长着那么多胡子。以前她从来没有看见过别人有那样的胡子，即便在她看来，那根本不是胡子，而是他鼻子下面、嘴角周围长的头发，浓密的红褐色的头发。其次，他穿着蓝白相间的运动衫，而不是穿着衬衣，打着领带，他也不穿大衣。他胳膊上长满了和脸上一样的毛发，只不过胳膊上的少一些，也没有那么浓密。他穿着蓝色的宽松裤子，但是没有穿鞋子，也没有穿袜子。他光着脚，当然，她也光着脚。
他在自己的家里。她和他一起呆在他巴黎的家里，如果你可以把它叫做家的话。他看起来很老，特别是对一个36岁的年轻男子来说显得很老。他告诉过她，他36岁。而她才6岁。那是8月的一个炎热的下午，她刚刚午睡醒来。
那天上午，他们在周围散步的时候，她看见一家小商店门外的箱子里有桃子。她还停下脚步去看那些桃子，所以他就买了一千克桃子。眼下，桃子就在扑克牌桌上的一个很大的盘子里放着，他们坐在桌边。
盘子里有七个桃子，但其中有一个是坏的。这个桃子看起来和别的桃子一样好，有网球那么大，中心是漂亮的红色，颜色向两边渐渐变成淡绿色。可是，本该是根部的地方现在开裂了，一直裂到桃核的中心部位。
他把那个最大、最好看的桃子放在小姑娘面前的小盘子里，然后拿起这个坏桃子，开始剥皮。皮剥了一半，他就把剥过皮的那边吃掉。他们谁也没有说话。两个人只是坐在那里，没有兴奋的感觉或者别的什么情绪，只是坐着吃桃子。
男人用手指夹住吃了一半的桃子，低头往桃子上的虫洞里看，看那个露在外面的桃核。女孩也往那里看。
他们正在看着，突然从洞里伸出两个触角。触角长在一个像是圆圆的、棕色的头上。这头紧接着也伸出洞来，然后两条大大的腿有力地在洞边上一蹬，又移动余下的部分身体，不管叫做什么，都从洞里拔出来。又在那儿停了一下，好像在查看四周的情况。
男人观察着这个住在桃核里的东西，当然，女孩也在观察。
这个东西仅仅停了一下，就继续向桃核外面爬，沿着已经吃过的那边爬，爬向它想去的任何地方。
女孩从没有见过这样的东西：整个身躯这么庞大，棕色，圆圆的头，触角，还有这么多的腿。也很有活力。你也许会说，很有闯劲，有效率。男人又把手里拿的桃子放回盘子里。这个东西从桃子上爬下来，又爬上了白色的盘子。在那儿，它不动了，一副沉思的样子。“他是谁？”女孩问。
“他是加斯顿。”
“他住在哪里？”
“哦，过去他住在这个桃核里。可是，桃子长熟以后被摘下来，然后又卖掉，并且我把这个桃子的一半都吃了。这样的话，他看来没有住的地方，也没有家了。”
“你会把他弄死吗？”
“不，当然不会，我为什么要弄死他呢？”
“他是一只虫子。他……吁……”
“根本不是。他是加斯顿，了不起的离家游子。”
“看见苹果里爬出来一只虫子，谁都会惊叫，可你既不大声叫喊，也没有别的反应。”
“我当然不会。如果每次我们出门都有人惊叫，我们会是什么感受呢？”
“他们为什么要大叫？”
“对啊，问得好。所以我们为什么要对加斯顿大声叫喊呢？”
“他和我们不一样。”
“是，是不完全一样。但他和桃核里许许多多的别的居住者是一样的。眼下，这个可怜的家伙没有家了，所以就只好停在那儿。纵使他有着单纯、漂亮的外表和形状，却不知道可以去哪里。”
“漂亮？”
“加斯顿是我所见过的他们这一类里最漂亮的虫子。”
“那他在说什么？”
“哦，他有一些困惑。你看，在他住的那个房子里面他把一切都收拾得井井有条。床在这儿，门廊在那儿，等等。”
“给我看看。”
男人拿起桃子，这样一来，加斯顿就完完全全孤孤单单地留在盘子里。他把剥过的皮去掉，然后吃掉了剩下的桃子。
“我认识的人谁也不会这样做，”女孩说，“他们都会把桃子扔掉的。”
“我想象不出那是为什么。这是个上好的桃子。”
他把桃核掰开，又把这两半桃核放在离加斯顿不远的地方。女孩仔细看着这两瓣掰开的桃核。
“那就是他住的地方吗？”
“那是他过去住的地方。眼下加斯顿无家可归，孤零零地留在这个世界上，要依靠自己了。你可以看看他过去在自己家里过得有多舒服。他什么都不缺。”
“那现在他还有什么？”
“恐怕没多少东西了。”
“他会怎么做？”
“我们会怎么做？”
“噢，我们不会弄死他。不会这样做。”女孩回答。
“然后呢？我们会怎么做？”
“把他放回去？”
“不，他的家已经毁掉了。”
“可是，他总不能住在我们家里，是吗？”
“就是住在我们家他也不会幸福。”
“那他到底可不可以住在我们家呢？”
“哦，我想，他可以试试。想吃桃子吗？”
“只吃桃核里面住着人的桃子。”
“好吧，看你能不能找到顶端有开口的桃子。因为，如果你能找到这样的桃子，你就很有可能会在里面发现居住者。”
女孩仔细地看了看大盘子里放着的每一个桃子。
“没有一只开口的。”她说。
“那好，那就吃一个吧。”
“不。我要你吃过的那种，桃核里面有居住者。”
“噢，说实话，我刚才吃的桃子，别人会认为是坏桃。所以商店不愿意卖这样的桃子。很可能那个坏桃是被当成好桃卖给我的。所以才搞得加斯顿没有了家，而现在我们有六个没有一点问题的桃子可以吃。”
“我不要没有一点问题的桃子。我要里面住着人的桃子。”
“好吧，我出去看看能不能找到这样的桃子。”
“我该去哪儿？”
“你可以跟我一块儿去，除非你想呆在家里。我五分钟后回来。”
“如果电话铃响了，我该怎么说？”
“我觉得没有人会打电话来。但如果电话真的响了，你就问声‘你好’，看看是谁。”
“如果是我妈妈打来的电话，我该怎么说呢？”
“告诉她我出去给你买坏桃子了。还有你想告诉她什么，就说什么。”
“如果她想让我回去，我该怎么说呢？”
“如果你想回去，就答应她。”
“你想让我回去吗？”
“当然不。但重要的是你想干什么，而不是我想怎么样。”
“为什么说这个很重要？”
“因为我想让你呆在你想呆的地方。”
“我想呆在这儿。”
“我马上就回来。”
他穿上袜子，穿上鞋子，又穿上一件外套，就出去了。她注视着加斯顿，加斯顿努力想弄清楚下一步怎么做。他沿着盘子爬着，可是一切看来都不对头，所以他不知道怎么做，或者该到哪里去。
电话铃响起来。那是她的妈妈。说她要让司机过来接她，因为一个什么人的女儿也六岁了，会为她举行一个小型的派对，她们要去参加。还有，明天她们就要飞回纽约。
“让你爸爸听电话。”她说。
“他去买一个桃子。”
“一个桃子？”
“一个里面住着人的桃子。”
“你和你爸爸才呆了不到两天，说话方式就已经跟他一样了。”
“有里面住着人的桃子，我知道的。我刚才看见一个人从里面爬出来。”
“一只虫子？”
“不是虫子。是加斯顿。”
“谁？”
“加斯顿，了不起的离家游子。”
“别人碰到一个里面有虫子的桃子，就会把桃子扔掉，但他不这样。他会编出来一堆荒唐、愚蠢的说法。”
“不是荒唐、愚蠢的说法。”
“好了，好了，不要因为一只可怕的什么虫子生我的气。”
“加斯顿就在这儿，就在他被拆掉了的家的外面。还有，我没有生你的气。”
“你会在派对上玩得很高兴。”
“对。”
“我们飞回纽约，也很有意思。”
“对。”
“见到你爸爸，你高兴吧？”
“当然高兴。”
“他很有意思吧？”
“是的。”
“他很荒唐吧？”
“是的。我意思是说，他一点不荒唐。当他看见一只虫子从桃核或什么里面爬出来的时候，他不惊叫。他只是小心地看着他。可是，那就只是一只虫子，是吗？说真的。”
“那就是一只虫子而已。”
“那我们必须弄死他吗？”
“对呀。亲爱的，我迫不及待地想看见你。对我来说，这两天就像是两年。再见。”
女孩注视着盘子里的加斯顿。实际上，她并不喜欢他。他很恶心，虫子一开始就让人觉得恶心。现在他不再有家了，只是沿着盘子爬啊爬。他很愚蠢，不合时宜，很可笑，除非……她小声哭了一会儿，但只是在心里哭了一会儿。原因是很久以前她就不喜欢哭了，原因是一旦你开始哭，就好像有太多的事需要哭，你几乎止不住哭声。而她根本不愿意那样做。那掰开的两半桃核也不对劲，丑陋，或者别的什么不干净。
男人买了两斤桃子，可是里面找不到一个坏桃子。于是就到另一家商店又买了两斤桃子。这一次他的运气好一些，里面有两个桃子都是坏的。他急急忙忙回到自己的公寓，进了门。
他的女儿坐在自己的房间里，身上穿着最漂亮的裙子。
“我妈妈打过电话了，”她说，“她会让司机来接我，因为，又有一个生日派对要参加。”
“又一个？”
“我是说，在纽约，总是会有很多派对。”
“司机会把你送回来吗？”
“不。明天我们要飞回纽约了。”
“噢。”
“我喜欢呆在你家里。”
“有你在这儿，我很高兴。”
“你为什么住在这儿？”
“这是我家。”
“这儿很好，但是，和我们的家非常不一样。”
“是的，我想是的。”
“这儿有点像加斯顿的家。”
“加斯顿在哪儿？”
“我把他弄死了。”
“真的？为什么？”
“谁见到虫子都会把虫子捏死。”
“这样啊。算了。我给你买到了一个桃子。”
“我不想吃桃子了。”
“好吧。”
他给她穿好衣服。正在为她收拾东西的时候，司机到了。他和女儿还有司机一起走下三段楼梯。在大街上，他正要拥抱女儿，突然决定最好还是不要这样做。最后，他们握握手，像是陌生人一样。
他注视着那辆巨大的车开走，然后拐过街角。他每天上午在那儿上班。他想，他觉得自己有点像白色盘子里的加斯顿。
鹦鹉学舌
William Saroyan威廉·萨洛杨
威廉·萨洛杨出生于1908年，逝世于1981年，美国小说家、剧作家。三岁时父亲去世，他和家里孩子一起被送到加利福尼亚洲奥克兰的孤儿院，五年后才得以和母亲重聚。这一段经历后来曾出现在他的作品中。萨洛杨从13岁起开始写作，发表过将近40本书和剧本。作品富有人情味和幽默感，不事雕琢，语言简练生动。My Name Is Aram（《我叫阿拉木》）是作家追忆童年生活的作品。话剧The Time of Your Life（《你这一辈子》）和长篇小说The Human Comedy（《人间喜剧》）等是威廉·萨洛杨的代表作。《你这一辈子》曾获得普利策奖，作家拒绝领奖，却接受了这部作品获得的另一个奖项，戏剧评论家奖（Drama Critics Circle Award），“因为（这个奖）不牵涉钱”。
莺声燕语
Background Knowledge
普利策奖（Pulitzer Prize）
普利策奖美国最著名的年度大奖之一，包括普利策新闻奖及普利策小说奖、戏剧奖、传记作品奖、诗歌奖、历史着作奖和音乐奖等共21种奖项。
普利策奖由美国著名的报纸编辑和出版家约瑟夫·普利策（Joseph Pulitzer）出资设立。1903年，普利策写下遗嘱，决定出资兴办哥伦比亚新闻学院和建立普利策奖金，由哥伦比亚大学董事会掌管他遗赠的基金。根据他的遗嘱，1912年开办了哥伦比亚新闻学院，1917年起设立了普利策奖。
多年来，普利策奖一直是美国最具权威性的大奖之一，也是美国新闻界、文学界、戏剧界和音乐界的杰出人才全力角逐的对象。近一个世纪以来，普利策奖对高质量的新闻报导和文艺创作起到了不可磨灭的推动作用。
牛角挂书
New Words
poke vt。&；vi。伸出；戳出
hoist vt。把……吊起，升起n。吊起；举起；提升；起重器械
holler[主美国口语]vi。1.（为引起他人注意或因疼痛而）呼叫；叫喊
例句：Do you hear someone holler？你听到有人在喊叫吗？
2.抱怨，诉苦，发牢骚
例句：Housewives often holler about high cost of living。
主妇们常常抱怨生活费用昂贵。
vt。喊叫，大喊，喊叫
例句：He hollered that he had never bullied anyone。他大喊着说他从未欺负过任何人。
boulevardier n。[法语]逛巴黎林阴大街（及其他繁华地方）的常客
纨袴子弟，花花公子，公子哥儿；（尤指经常逛游乐场所的）时髦人物
cavity n。洞，凹处；腔
T
猴老师有话说
est Yourself
1.Multiple Choice Questions
1）It looked as good as others，……nice red fading to light green，……into the heart of the seed。
A。枯萎B。衰弱C。消逝D。褪色
2）While they were looking，two feelers poked out from the cavity。
A。伸出；翻弄B。探听；刺探
C。碰；戳D。拨弄；搅动
3）They were attached to a kind of brown knob head。
A。添加；附加B。使喜爱；使依恋
C。连接；缚D。把……归因于
4）Aren't you going to squash him？
A。镇压B。把……压扁（或压碎、压烂）
C。硬塞；硬放D。使哑口无言
5）Oh，that house is finished。
A。完成B。用完；耗尽
C。润饰D。毁掉；使变为无价值（或无用等）
2.grip是非常重要的一个词，你能说出下面关于grip的短语的意思吗？
1）be at grips with
2）bring someone to grips with
3）come（get）to grips（with）
4）get（take）a grip of（on）
5）have a grip on
6）keep a firm（或tight）grip on
7）lose one's grip
Keys：
1.1）D2）A3）C4）B5）D
2.1）在与……搏斗；正在认真处理（或对付）
例：be at grips with the poverty and disease in the country 在与乡村的贫困和疾病斗争
2）使某人面临（某事）；使某人与……做斗争
3）（与……）争论；（与……）冲突；认真对待（或解决）……设法对付……
例：She needs to come to grips with reality。她需要认真面对现实。
4）a。掌握，了解b。（完全）控制；支配
例：get a grip on oneself 控制住自己
5）a。掌握，理解[亦作have a grip of]b。抓住，吸引（观众、听众等）
例：have a grip on an audience 对观众有吸引力
6）对……实行严密的控制
例：keep a firm grip on one's children 牢牢管住子女
7）lose one's grip失去控制