The Shepherd, the Tiger, and the Fox
文章来源: 文章作者: 发布时间:2007-05-26 06:41 字体: [ ]  进入论坛
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
A shepherd brought his sheep into the field to graze1, and sat down under a tree to rest. Suddenly a tiger came out of the woods.

The shepherd picked up his staff and jumped up.

The tiger was just about to spring at the man when he saw the staff and got frightened. He thought it was a gun. They stared at each other, and neither dared to make the first move.

At that moment, a fox came running by. He saw that the tiger and the shepherd were afraid of each other and decided2 to turn the situation to his own advantage.

He ran up to the tiger and said: "Cousin tiger, there is no reason to be afraid of a man. Jump on him, get him down, and have a good meal."

"You're cunning," growled3 the tiger, "but you have no brains. Look at him---he has a gun. He'll fire, and that will be the end of me. Be off with your stupid advice."

"Well, if that's the case, I'll go and ask him not to shoot you. What will you give me if I save you?"

"Anything you ask."

The fox ran to the shepherd and said: "Uncle shepherd, why are you standing4 here? The tiger wants to make a meal of you. I just persuaded him to wait a while. What will you give me if I save you?"

And the shepherd promised: "Anything you ask."

The fox ran to the tiger and said:

"Cousin tiger, you'll have a long life. I just persuaded the shepherd not to shoot you. Hurry up and run now! I'll see you later. If he gets angry again, he'll fire his gun and it will be the end of you."

The tiger turned and leaped away as fast as he could

And the fox came back to the shepherd. "Uncle shepherd, you did not forget your promise?"

"No," said the shepherd. "Tell me what you want."

"I don't want much, only a bite out of your leg. That will be enough for me."

The shepherd stretched out his leg. But just as the fox was about to sink his teeth into it, the shepherd screamed. The fox jumped back.

"Who made that noise?"

"What do you care? Take your bite, and be done with it."

"Oh, no! I won't come near you before you tell me who made that noise," said the frightened fox.

"In that case, I will tell you," answered the shepherd. "Last year we had a bad winter in the village. We had nothing to eat. And then my sheep dog had two puppies5. Well . . . I was so hungry, I ate them. Now the pups have grown up in my stomach. I guess they smell you and want to get at you, so they are barking."

The fox got even more frightened, but he would not show it. He said with dignity: "I'd have no trouble handling your pups. But I must run and see the tiger on some urgent business. Hold back your sheep dogs for a while. When I come back, I'll teach them such a lesson that they will never attack foxes again.

"Very well, make it quick," said the shepherd.

And the fox went streaking6 off into the woods, happy to get away with his life.

After he caught his breath, he set out to look for the tiger: perhaps he would have better luck with him.

"Well, cousin tiger," the fox said when he found him. "I saved your life when you were frightened of the shepherd, and you made a promise. Now you must keep it!"

"What promise?" roared the tiger. "I am no cousin to you. I am the shah of these woods. Who dares to say that I was frightened?"

And he raised his paw to strike the fox down.

"There is no gratitude7 in this world," the fox said to himself, and slunk into his hole to teach his children to stay away from men and tigers.



点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 graze 46DyU     
v.(牲畜)吃草;放牧;擦过(牲畜);n.擦伤
参考例句:
  • There is good grassland here for your cattle and horses to graze on.这里有很好的草地供你们放牧牛马。
  • Nothing serious.Just a graze.没关系,就破了一点皮。
2 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
3 growled 65a0c9cac661e85023a63631d6dab8a3     
v.(动物)发狺狺声, (雷)作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 );低声咆哮着说
参考例句:
  • \"They ought to be birched, \" growled the old man. 老人咆哮道:“他们应受到鞭打。” 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He growled out an answer. 他低声威胁着回答。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
5 puppies 679f34ba1ec7d7ee1f1718acc24f53d7     
n.(常指不满一岁的)小狗(puppy的复数);小狗,幼犬( puppy的名词复数 );浅薄自负的年轻男子
参考例句:
  • a litter of puppies 一窝小狗
  • The bitch bore six puppies. 母狗生了六只小狗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 streaking 318ae71f4156ab9482b7b884f6934612     
n.裸奔(指在公共场所裸体飞跑)v.快速移动( streak的现在分词 );使布满条纹
参考例句:
  • Their only thought was of the fiery harbingers of death streaking through the sky above them. 那个不断地在空中飞翔的死的恐怖把一切别的感觉都赶走了。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
  • Streaking is one of the oldest tricks in the book. 裸奔是有书面记载的最古老的玩笑之一。 来自互联网
7 gratitude p6wyS     
adj.感激,感谢
参考例句:
  • I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
  • She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。
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