The Odyssey · chapter 18 of 29
The Raft
木筏
On Calypso's island, Odysseus has cried by the sea for seven years, until a quick visitor brings the goddess a message from Zeus.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 宙斯让赫尔墨斯去卡吕普索的岛。
Zhòusī ràng Hè'ěrmòsī qù Kǎlǚpǔsuǒ de dǎo.
Zeus sent Hermes to Calypso's island.
- Hermes 卡吕普索，你在织什么布？你的山洞真漂亮！
Kǎlǚpǔsuǒ, nǐ zài zhī shénme bù? Nǐ de shāndòng zhēn piàoliang!
Calypso, what are you weaving? What a lovely cave you have!
- Calypso 赫尔墨斯？你很少来。有什么事？
Hè'ěrmòsī? Nǐ hěn shǎo lái. Yǒu shénme shì?
Hermes? You hardly ever come. What is it?
Chapter 18 is part of SayMei Stories Unlimited ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Part 1 of The Odyssey (chapters 1–4) 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.
- Hermes 宙斯说，让奥德修斯回家。他在海边哭呢。
Zhòusī shuō, ràng Àodéxiūsī huí jiā. Tā zài hǎibiān kū ne.
Zeus says to let Odysseus go home. He's down on the shore, crying.
- Calypso 你们这些神！男神爱女人，可以。女神爱男人，就不行？
Nǐmen zhèxiē shén! Nánshén ài nǚrén, kěyǐ. Nǚshén ài nánrén, jiù bù xíng?
You gods! A god may love a woman. But a goddess may not love a man?
- Calypso 好吧。宙斯的话，我听。
Hǎo ba. Zhòusī de huà, wǒ tīng.
Fine. Zeus speaks, and I obey.
- Calypso 奥德修斯，别看海水了。你可以走了。去做一个木筏吧。
Àodéxiūsī, bié kàn hǎishuǐ le. Nǐ kěyǐ zǒu le. Qù zuò yí gè mùfá ba.
Odysseus, stop staring at the sea. You may go. Go and build a raft.
- Odysseus 木筏？女神，你在骗我吗？你先答应我，你不会害我。
Mùfá? Nǚshén, nǐ zài piàn wǒ ma? Nǐ xiān dāying wǒ, nǐ bú huì hài wǒ.
A raft? Goddess, are you tricking me? First promise me you won't harm me.
- Calypso 你这个人，真聪明，也真坏！好，我答应你。
Nǐ zhège rén, zhēn cōngming, yě zhēn huài! Hǎo, wǒ dāying nǐ.
Oh, you! So clever, and so wicked! All right, I promise.
- Narrator 那天晚上，他们一起吃饭。
Nà tiān wǎnshang, tāmen yìqǐ chī fàn.
That evening, they ate supper together.
- Calypso 你真的要走？留在这儿，你永远不会死。
Nǐ zhēn de yào zǒu? Liú zài zhèr, nǐ yǒngyuǎn bú huì sǐ.
You truly want to go? Stay here, and you will never die.
- Calypso 你的妻子，比我漂亮吗？
Nǐ de qīzi, bǐ wǒ piàoliang ma?
Is your wife more beautiful than me?
- Odysseus 女神，她是女人，你是女神。她没有你漂亮。
Nǚshén, tā shì nǚrén, nǐ shì nǚshén. Tā méiyǒu nǐ piàoliang.
Goddess, she is a woman and you are a goddess. She is not as beautiful as you.
- Odysseus 可是，我还是要回家。
Kěshì, wǒ háishi yào huí jiā.
But I still want to go home.
- Calypso 好。这是我的斧头。那边有二十棵大树，都给你。
Hǎo. Zhè shì wǒ de fǔtóu. Nàbiān yǒu èrshí kē dà shù, dōu gěi nǐ.
Very well. Here is my ax. Over there are twenty tall trees. They're all yours.
- Odysseus 一天，两天，三天，四天……我的木筏做好了！
Yì tiān, liǎng tiān, sān tiān, sì tiān… wǒ de mùfá zuò hǎo le!
One day, two days, three days, four days... my raft is done!
- Calypso 慢慢走吧，奥德修斯。我给你好风。
Mànmàn zǒu ba, Àodéxiūsī. Wǒ gěi nǐ hǎo fēng.
Go safely, Odysseus. I'll give you a good wind.
- Narrator 第五天，他上了木筏。他在海上走了十七天。
Dì wǔ tiān, tā shàng le mùfá. Tā zài hǎi shang zǒu le shíqī tiān.
On the fifth day, he boarded the raft. He sailed the sea for seventeen days.
- Odysseus 白天看太阳，晚上看星星。伊萨卡，我来了！
Báitiān kàn tàiyáng, wǎnshang kàn xīngxing. Yīsàkǎ, wǒ lái le!
By day I watch the sun, by night the stars. Ithaca, here I come!
- Odysseus 第十八天了……那边是什么？是山！
Dì shíbā tiān le… nàbiān shì shénme? Shì shān!
The eighteenth day... What's over there? Mountains!
- Narrator 这个时候，海神从很远的地方回来了。
Zhège shíhou, hǎishén cóng hěn yuǎn de dìfang huílai le.
Just then, the sea god was coming home from far away.
- Poseidon 那是什么？一个小木筏……奥德修斯！
Nà shì shénme? Yí gè xiǎo mùfá… Àodéxiūsī!
What's that? A little raft... Odysseus!
- Poseidon 我不在，那些神就让他走了？
Wǒ bú zài, nàxiē shén jiù ràng tā zǒu le?
I was away, and the gods let him go?
- Poseidon 好！你还没有到家呢！
Hǎo! Nǐ hái méiyǒu dào jiā ne!
Very well! You're not home yet!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What makes Calypso angry when Hermes brings Zeus's order?
“男神爱女人，可以。女神爱男人，就不行？”
- What does Odysseus ask Calypso to promise?
“你先答应我，你不会害我。”
- What does Odysseus say about his wife at supper?
“她是女人，你是女神。”
- How many days does Odysseus take to build the raft?
“一天，两天，三天，四天……我的木筏做好了！”
- What does Poseidon see on his way home?
“一个小木筏……奥德修斯！”