Greek Myths · chapter 4 of 6
The Best Weaver
织布比赛
Arachne brags that she weaves better than the goddess Athena. Then Athena walks in the door.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 阿拉克涅是一个女孩。她织布，织得最好。大家都爱看她织布。
Ālākèniè shì yí gè nǚhái. Tā zhī bù, zhī de zuì hǎo. Dàjiā dōu ài kàn tā zhī bù.
Arachne was a girl who wove cloth better than anyone. Everyone loved to watch her weave.
- Arachne 看！我织的鸟，好像真的鸟！
Kàn! Wǒ zhī de niǎo, hǎoxiàng zhēn de niǎo!
Look! My birds look like real birds!
- Neighbor 真漂亮！阿拉克涅，谁教你织布的？
Zhēn piàoliang! Ālākèniè, shéi jiāo nǐ zhī bù de?
So beautiful! Arachne, who taught you to weave?
Chapter 4 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of Greek Myths is free, and so are The Second Cup of Tea, Mulan, The Butterfly Lovers, Journey to the West: The Monkey King, Cinderella, The Night of the Nian, Chang'e and the Moon, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, Aesop's Fables, Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, The Ugly Duckling, Pangu and Nüwa: How the World Began, Beauty and the Beast, The Magic Lotus Lantern, Alice in Wonderland, Zhong Kui the Demon Queller, The Odyssey, Robin Hood, Jiang Ziya Goes Fishing, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Kitchen God from start to finish.
- Arachne 没有人教我。我自己会！
Méiyǒu rén jiāo wǒ. Wǒ zìjǐ huì!
Nobody taught me. I just know how!
- Neighbor 别人说，是女神雅典娜教你的。她最会织布！
Biérén shuō, shì nǚshén Yǎdiǎnnà jiāo nǐ de. Tā zuì huì zhī bù!
People say the goddess Athena taught you. She weaves the best!
- Arachne 雅典娜？我比她织得好！
Yǎdiǎnnà? Wǒ bǐ tā zhī de hǎo!
Athena? I weave better than she does!
- Neighbor 小声点！女神会听见的！
Xiǎoshēng diǎn! Nǚshén huì tīngjiàn de!
Quiet! The goddess might hear you!
- Arachne 让她来！我不怕！
Ràng tā lái! Wǒ bú pà!
Let her come! I'm not afraid!
- Athena 阿拉克涅。你说，你织得比我好？真的吗？
Ālākèniè. Nǐ shuō, nǐ zhī de bǐ wǒ hǎo? Zhēn de ma?
Arachne. You say you weave better than I do? Is that so?
- Arachne 啊……你是……雅典娜？
Ā… nǐ shì… Yǎdiǎnnà?
Oh... you're... Athena?
- Athena 是我。我们比一比，好吗？
Shì wǒ. Wǒmen bǐ yi bǐ, hǎo ma?
It's me. Shall we have a contest?
- Arachne 好……好！我不怕！
Hǎo… hǎo! Wǒ bú pà!
Okay... okay! I'm not afraid!
- Narrator 她们坐下来，一起织布。
Tāmen zuò xiàlái, yìqǐ zhī bù.
They sat down and wove side by side.
- Athena 我织了大山，也织了大海，还有很多花。
Wǒ zhī le dà shān, yě zhī le dà hǎi, hái yǒu hěn duō huā.
I wove great mountains and the wide sea, and many flowers.
- Arachne 我织了神。神也会哭，也会不高兴，也会做错事。
Wǒ zhī le shén. Shén yě huì kū, yě huì bù gāoxìng, yě huì zuòcuò shì.
I wove the gods. Gods cry too, get upset, and make mistakes.
- Athena 你的布……真漂亮。比我的还漂亮。
Nǐ de bù… zhēn piàoliang. Bǐ wǒ de hái piàoliang.
Your cloth... is really beautiful. More beautiful than mine.
- Arachne 我说过！我织得最好！
Wǒ shuō guo! Wǒ zhī de zuì hǎo!
I told you! I weave the best!
- Athena 可是你不怕神，也不听别人说话！
Kěshì nǐ bú pà shén, yě bù tīng biérén shuōhuà!
But you don't respect the gods, and you don't listen to anyone!
- Athena 从今天起，你要一直织布！
Cóng jīntiān qǐ, nǐ yào yìzhí zhī bù!
From today, you will weave forever!
- Arachne 我的手！我的腿！我变小了！我的头呢？
Wǒ de shǒu! Wǒ de tuǐ! Wǒ biàn xiǎo le! Wǒ de tóu ne?
My hands! My legs! I'm getting small! Where is my head?
- Narrator 阿拉克涅变成了一只小蜘蛛。
Ālākèniè biànchéng le yì zhī xiǎo zhīzhū.
Arachne became a little spider.
- Arachne the Spider 我变成蜘蛛了？可是……我的手还会织！
Wǒ biànchéng zhīzhū le? Kěshì… wǒ de shǒu hái huì zhī!
I'm a spider? But... I can still weave!
- Arachne the Spider 看！我织了网！我的网好大！
Kàn! Wǒ zhī le wǎng! Wǒ de wǎng hǎo dà!
Look! I made a web! My web is so big!
- Athena 小蜘蛛，你的网很漂亮。你织吧，不要停。
Xiǎo zhīzhū, nǐ de wǎng hěn piàoliang. Nǐ zhī ba, bú yào tíng.
Little spider, your web is lovely. Keep weaving. Don't stop.
- Arachne the Spider 我会织！可是……我以后会听别人说话。
Wǒ huì zhī! Kěshì… wǒ yǐhòu huì tīng biérén shuōhuà.
I will! But... from now on, I'll listen to others.
- Hermes 好看的网！我得走了！有个爸爸做了翅膀，要飞过大海！
Hǎokàn de wǎng! Wǒ děi zǒu le! Yǒu gè bàba zuò le chìbǎng, yào fēi guò dàhǎi!
Lovely web! I have to run! A father has made wings, and he's going to fly across the sea!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What does Arachne say about Athena?
“我比她织得好！”
- How do Arachne and Athena decide who is better?
“我们比一比，好吗？”
- Why is Athena angry at the end of the contest?
“你不怕神，也不听别人说话！”
- What does Arachne become?
“阿拉克涅变成了一只小蜘蛛。”
- What does the spider promise?
“我以后会听别人说话。”