SayMei

The Odyssey · chapter 3 of 29

The Lotus-Eaters

吃花的人

Odysseus sends three men to find out where the wind has carried them, and they don't come back.

The Lotus-Eaters illustration

Hear the chapter

Read what you hear

  1. Narrator 第十天,奥德修斯的船来到了吃花的人那儿。

    Dì shí tiān, Àodéxiūsī de chuán láidào le chī huā de rén nàr.

    On the tenth day, Odysseus's ships came to the land of the lotus-eaters.

  2. Odysseus 你们三个,去看看这儿住着什么人。

    Nǐmen sān gè, qù kànkan zhèr zhùzhe shénme rén.

    You three, go and see what kind of people live here.

  3. Odysseus 他们怎么还不回来?我去找他们。

    Tāmen zěnme hái bù huílai? Wǒ qù zhǎo tāmen.

    Why aren't they back yet? I'll go and find them.

  4. Odysseus 你们在这儿!你们在干什么?

    Nǐmen zài zhèr! Nǐmen zài gàn shénme?

    There you are! What are you doing?

  5. A Sailor 奥德修斯,这儿的人很好,给我们吃花。

    Àodéxiūsī, zhèr de rén hěn hǎo, gěi wǒmen chī huā.

    Odysseus, the people here are so kind. They gave us flowers to eat.

  6. Odysseus 你们吃了什么?

    Nǐmen chī le shénme?

    What did you eat?

  7. A Sailor 这花真甜。吃了它,我就不想回家了。

    Zhè huā zhēn tián. Chī le tā, wǒ jiù bù xiǎng huí jiā le.

    This flower is so sweet. Once I ate it, I didn't want to go home anymore.

  8. Odysseus 什么?你们忘了伊萨卡吗?

    Shénme? Nǐmen wàng le Yīsàkǎ ma?

    What? Have you forgotten Ithaca?

  9. A Sailor 伊萨卡?那是哪儿?

    Yīsàkǎ? Nà shì nǎr?

    Ithaca? Where's that?

  10. Odysseus 不行!你们跟我回去!

    Bù xíng! Nǐmen gēn wǒ huíqu!

    No! You're coming back with me!

  11. A Sailor 不!我不走!这花太甜了!

    Bù! Wǒ bù zǒu! Zhè huā tài tián le!

    No! I won't go! These flowers are so sweet!

  12. Odysseus 他们不走,就绑在船上!你们快上船!

    Tāmen bù zǒu, jiù bǎng zài chuán shang! Nǐmen kuài shàng chuán!

    If they won't come, tie them up on the ship! All of you, aboard, quickly!

  13. Narrator 又过了几天,他们来到一座岛。岛的旁边,是独眼巨人的地方。

    Yòu guò le jǐ tiān, tāmen láidào yí zuò dǎo. Dǎo de pángbiān, shì dúyǎn jùrén de dìfang.

    A few days later, they came to an island. Right beside it lay the land of the Cyclops.

  14. Narrator 独眼巨人很大,一个人一只眼睛。他们谁的话也不听。

    Dúyǎn jùrén hěn dà, yí gè rén yì zhī yǎnjing. Tāmen shéi de huà yě bù tīng.

    Each Cyclops was huge, with a single eye, and none of them listened to anyone.

  15. A Sailor 你们看,这个岛有很多羊!

    Nǐmen kàn, zhège dǎo yǒu hěn duō yáng!

    Look, this island is full of goats!

  16. The Crew 今天有肉吃了!

    Jīntiān yǒu ròu chī le!

    Meat today!

  17. Odysseus 一条船九只羊。我的船,十只!

    Yì tiáo chuán jiǔ zhī yáng. Wǒ de chuán, shí zhī!

    Nine goats a ship. My ship gets ten!

  18. A Sailor 你的船怎么多一只?

    Nǐ de chuán zěnme duō yì zhī?

    How come your ship gets one more?

  19. Odysseus 我是国王啊!

    Wǒ shì guówáng a!

    I'm the king!

  20. The Crew 国王真聪明!

    Guówáng zhēn cōngming!

    What a clever king!

  21. Odysseus 你们看那边,有烟。

    Nǐmen kàn nàbiān, yǒu yān.

    Look over there. Smoke.

  22. A Sailor 还有羊叫!有烟,就有人。

    Hái yǒu yáng jiào! Yǒu yān, jiù yǒu rén.

    And sheep calling! Where there's smoke, there are people.

  23. Odysseus 明天,我带十二个人过去。老人送的酒,也带着。

    Míngtiān, wǒ dài shí'èr gè rén guòqù. Lǎorén sòng de jiǔ, yě dàizhe.

    Tomorrow I'll take twelve men across. We'll bring the old man's wine too.

  24. A Sailor 带酒干什么?

    Dài jiǔ gàn shénme?

    What's the wine for?

  25. Odysseus 那边住的,可能是巨人。酒会有用的。

    Nàbiān zhù de, kěnéng shì jùrén. Jiǔ huì yǒuyòng de.

    Whoever lives over there may be a giant. The wine will be useful.

  26. Narrator 第二天下午,他们走上山,来到一个大山洞。

    Dì èr tiān xiàwǔ, tāmen zǒu shàng shān, láidào yí gè dà shāndòng.

    The next afternoon, they climbed the hill and came to a great cave.

  27. A Sailor 有人吗?

    Yǒu rén ma?

    Anyone here?

  28. Odysseus 没有人。主人不在家。

    Méiyǒu rén. Zhǔrén bú zài jiā.

    Nobody. The owner isn't home.

  29. A Sailor 你们看,这么多吃的!还有小羊!

    Nǐmen kàn, zhème duō chī de! Hái yǒu xiǎo yáng!

    Look at all this food! And lambs!

  30. Odysseus 这么大的山洞……主人一定是个巨人。我们在这儿等他。

    Zhème dà de shāndòng… zhǔrén yídìng shì gè jùrén. Wǒmen zài zhèr děng tā.

    A cave this big... its owner must be a giant. We'll wait here for him.

What changed in the story?

  1. What do the kind people give the three sailors?

    “给我们吃花”……“这花真甜”

  2. What happens to the sailor after he eats the flower?

    “吃了它,我就不想回家了”

  3. How many goats does Odysseus's own ship get?

    “我的船,十只”

  4. What tells Odysseus and his men that someone lives across the water?

    “有烟”……“还有羊叫”

  5. What does Odysseus decide to do in the empty cave?

    “我们在这儿等他”

All chapters in The Odyssey.