The Great Gatsby · chapter 16 of 20
Before Dawn
天亮以前
Before dawn Nick finds Gatsby in his dark, dusty house. Nick begs him to leave, but Gatsby stays, and at last tells Nick who he really is.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 那天夜里，尼克一直睡不着。
Nà tiān yèli, Níkè yìzhí shuì bu zháo.
That night, Nick couldn't sleep at all.
- Nick Carraway 茉特尔死了，开车的是黛西。盖茨比还在她的窗户下边吗？
Mòtè'ěr sǐ le, kāichē de shì Dàixī. Gàicíbǐ hái zài tā de chuānghu xiàbian ma?
Myrtle is dead, and Daisy was the one driving. Is Gatsby still under her window?
- Narrator 天亮以前，他走过草地，去了盖茨比家。门开着。
Tiān liàng yǐqián, tā zǒu guò cǎodì, qù le Gàicíbǐ jiā. Mén kāizhe.
Before dawn he crossed the lawn to Gatsby's house. The door was open.
Chapter 16 is part of SayMei Stories Unlimited ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Part 1 of The Great Gatsby (chapters 1–6) is free, and The Second Cup of Tea, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, The Kitchen God, Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, Chang'e and the Moon, Alice in Wonderland and Judge Dee's Cases are free from start to finish.
- Nick Carraway 盖茨比？你在这儿吗？
Gàicíbǐ? Nǐ zài zhèr ma?
Gatsby? Are you here?
- Jay Gatsby 在，老兄。我守了一夜。什么事都没有。
Zài, lǎoxiōng. Wǒ shǒu le yí yè. Shénme shì dōu méiyǒu.
I'm here, old sport. I kept watch all night. Nothing happened.
- Jay Gatsby 四点钟，她在那扇窗后边站了一会儿，然后关了灯。
Sì diǎn zhōng, tā zài nà shàn chuāng hòubian zhàn le yíhuìr, ránhòu guān le dēng.
At four she stood at that window for a minute. Then she turned out the light.
- Nick Carraway 屋里怎么一点儿光都没有？
Wū li zěnme yìdiǎnr guāng dōu méiyǒu?
Why isn't there any light at all in here?
- Jay Gatsby 灯在哪儿，我也找不到。房子太大了。
Dēng zài nǎr, wǒ yě zhǎo bu dào. Fángzi tài dà le.
Even I can't find the lights. The house is too big.
- Nick Carraway 这是你自己的家啊！你看，屋里都是灰。
Zhè shì nǐ zìjǐ de jiā a! Nǐ kàn, wū li dōu shì huī.
It's your own house! Look, there's dust everywhere.
- Jay Gatsby 来，我们把窗户上的布拿开吧。
Lái, wǒmen bǎ chuānghu shang de bù ná kāi ba.
Come on, let's pull the curtains back from the windows.
- Nick Carraway 盖茨比，你得走。黄色的车，警察很快就会找到的。
Gàicíbǐ, nǐ děi zǒu. Huángsè de chē, jǐngchá hěn kuài jiù huì zhǎodào de.
Gatsby, you have to go away. The police will find the yellow car soon.
- Jay Gatsby 不行，我不能走。再说，我得知道黛西想做什么。
Bù xíng, wǒ bù néng zǒu. Zàishuō, wǒ děi zhīdào Dàixī xiǎng zuò shénme.
No, I can't leave. Besides, I have to know what Daisy is going to do.
- Nick Carraway 盖茨比，你到底是谁？
Gàicíbǐ, nǐ dàodǐ shì shéi?
Gatsby, who are you, really?
- Jay Gatsby 我的真名字叫詹姆斯·盖茨。小时候，我家在北达科他，很穷。
Wǒ de zhēn míngzi jiào Zhānmǔsī Gàicí. Xiǎo shíhou, wǒ jiā zài Běidákētā, hěn qióng.
My real name is James Gatz. When I was a boy, my family lived in North Dakota, and we were very poor.
- Nick Carraway 詹姆斯·盖茨？那“盖茨比”呢？
Zhānmǔsī Gàicí? Nà “Gàicíbǐ” ne?
James Gatz? Then what about “Gatsby”?
- Jay Gatsby 是我自己起的。十七岁那年，我上了科迪先生的船。
Shì wǒ zìjǐ qǐ de. Shíqī suì nà nián, wǒ shàng le Kēdí xiānsheng de chuán.
I made it up myself. The year I was seventeen, I went aboard Mr. Cody's boat.
- Nick Carraway 后来，你就认识了黛西？
Hòulái, nǐ jiù rènshi le Dàixī?
And later you met Daisy?
- Jay Gatsby 对。她是我认识的第一个好人家的女孩。
Duì. Tā shì wǒ rènshi de dì yī gè hǎo rénjiā de nǚhái.
Yes. She was the first nice girl I had ever known.
- Jay Gatsby 我很穷，可是我没告诉她。我让她觉得，我家跟她家一样有钱。
Wǒ hěn qióng, kěshì wǒ méi gàosu tā. Wǒ ràng tā juéde, wǒ jiā gēn tā jiā yíyàng yǒu qián.
I was poor, but I didn't tell her. I let her think my family was as rich as hers.
- Jay Gatsby 后来，战争来了。我去了欧洲，又去了牛津。她没有等我。
Hòulái, zhànzhēng lái le. Wǒ qù le Ōuzhōu, yòu qù le Niújīn. Tā méiyǒu děng wǒ.
Then the war came. I went to Europe, and then to Oxford. She didn't wait for me.
- Nick Carraway 她跟汤姆结婚了。
Tā gēn Tāngmǔ jiéhūn le.
She married Tom.
- Jay Gatsby 她也许爱过他，可是只爱了一会儿。她更爱我。
Tā yěxǔ àiguo tā, kěshì zhǐ ài le yíhuìr. Tā gèng ài wǒ.
Maybe she loved him, but only for a minute. She loved me more.
- Narrator 天亮了。管花园的人来了。
Tiān liàng le. Guǎn huāyuán de rén lái le.
Day broke. The gardener came.
- The Gardener 盖茨比先生，秋天快到了。您看，游泳池的水，今天放掉吧？
Gàicíbǐ xiānsheng, qiūtiān kuài dào le. Nín kàn, yóuyǒngchí de shuǐ, jīntiān fàng diào ba?
Mr. Gatsby, fall is almost here. Shall I drain the pool today?
- Jay Gatsby 今天先别放。
Jīntiān xiān bié fàng.
Not today.
- Jay Gatsby 你知道吗，老兄？这个夏天，我一次也没用过这个游泳池。
Nǐ zhīdào ma, lǎoxiōng? Zhège xiàtiān, wǒ yí cì yě méi yòngguo zhège yóuyǒngchí.
You know, old sport, I haven't used this pool once all summer.
- Nick Carraway 我得去坐火车了。中午，我给你打电话。
Wǒ děi qù zuò huǒchē le. Zhōngwǔ, wǒ gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà.
I have to catch my train. I'll call you at noon.
- Nick Carraway 盖茨比！他们都是坏人！他们那么多人，都没有你一个人好！
Gàicíbǐ! Tāmen dōu shì huàirén! Tāmen nàme duō rén, dōu méiyǒu nǐ yí gè rén hǎo!
Gatsby! They're a rotten crowd! You're worth the whole bunch of them put together!
- Nick Carraway 爸爸让我别太快说别人不好。可是今天，我说出来了。
Bàba ràng wǒ bié tài kuài shuō biérén bù hǎo. Kěshì jīntiān, wǒ shuō chūlai le.
Dad told me not to be quick to call people bad. But today, I said it out loud.
- Narrator 盖茨比站在门前，穿着粉红色的西装。他笑了。
Gàicíbǐ zhàn zài mén qián, chuānzhe fěnhóngsè de xīzhuāng. Tā xiào le.
Gatsby stood at his door in his pink suit. He smiled.
- Jay Gatsby 再见，老兄。我想……黛西也会打电话来吧。
Zàijiàn, lǎoxiōng. Wǒ xiǎng… Dàixī yě huì dǎ diànhuà lái ba.
Goodbye, old sport. I suppose... Daisy will call too.
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What does Gatsby say happened while he waited all night?
“什么事都没有。”……“四点钟……然后关了灯。”
- Why does Nick tell Gatsby he has to go away?
“你得走。黄色的车，警察很快就会找到的。”
- How did Gatsby get the name “Gatsby”?
“是我自己起的。”
- What did Gatsby let Daisy believe when they met?
“我让她觉得，我家跟她家一样有钱。”
- What does Gatsby tell the gardener about the pool?
“今天先别放。”