ELLEN perceived that the matter was very simple and easy from the ecclesiastical point of view, but that her spiritual counsellors raised difficulties simply because they were apprehensive of the way in which it might be looked at by the temporal authorities.
埃伦认为从教会的角度来看，这个问题非常简单易解，但是她的灵修顾问们却因为担心世俗当局的观点而提出了困难。

And, consequently, Ellen decided in her own mind that the way must be paved for society to look at the matter in the true light. —
因此，埃伦在心里决定必须为社会从真实的角度看待这个问题铺平道路。 —

She excited the jealousy of the old dignitary, and said the same thing to him as she had to her other suitor—that is, gave him to understand that the sole means of obtaining exclusive rights over her was to marry her. —
她激起了这位老高级教士的嫉妒心，并告诉他与她的其他追求者一样的话——即表示想要独占她的唯一方法就是与她结婚。 —

The elderly dignitary was, like the young foreign prince, for the first moment taken aback at this proposal of marriage from a wife whose husband was living. —
这位年长的高级教士对于这个已婚妻子的结婚提议感到震惊，就像对待年轻的外国王子的反应一样。 —

But Ellen’s unfaltering confidence in asserting that it was a matter as simple and natural as the marriage of an unmarried girl had its effect on him too. —
但是埃伦对于这件事坚定的信心，坚持认为这是一件和未婚女孩结婚一样简单自然的事情，也对他产生了影响。 —

Had the slightest traces of hesitation, shame, or reserve been perceptible in Ellen herself, her case would have been undoubtedly lost. —
如果埃伦本人表现出丝毫的犹豫、羞耻或保留，她的情况无疑会失败。 —

But far from it; with perfect directness and simple-hearted na? —
但事实并非如此；埃伦以完全直接和简单心肠的天真告诉她亲密的朋友们（包括全圣彼得堡）,亲王和高级教士都向她求婚，她爱两人并且担心伤害其中之一。 —

veté, she told her intimate friends (and that term included all Petersburg), that both the prince and the dignitary had made her proposals of marriage, and that she loved both, and was afraid of grieving either.
这个消息很快传遍了圣彼得堡，不是因为埃伦想要与她的丈夫离婚（如果传播这样的谣言，很多人都会反对这种非法行为），而是因为不幸而又有趣的埃伦正在犹豫要嫁给两位追求者中的哪一位。

The rumour was immediately all over Petersburg—not that Ellen wanted a divorce from her husband (had such a rumour been discussed very many persons would have set themselves against any such illegal proceeding)—but that the unhappy, interesting Ellen was in hesitation which of her two suitors to marry. —
问题不再是婚姻是否可能，而仅仅是她哪一位更合适，法院如何看待这个问题。 —

The question was no longer how far any marriage was possible, but simply which would be the more suitable match for her, and how the court would look at the question. —
这个问题不再是婚姻是否可能，而仅仅是她哪一位更合适，法院如何看待这个问题。 —

There were, indeed, certain strait-laced people who could not rise to the high level of the subject, and saw in the project a desecration of the sanctity of marriage; —
确实有一些不宽容的人无法达到这个高度，他们认为这个计划亵渎了婚姻的神圣； —

but such persons were few in number, and they held their tongues; —
但是这样的人很少，他们选择保持沉默； —

while the majority were interested in the question of Ellen’s happiness, and which would be the better match for her. —
而大多数人对艾伦的幸福感兴趣，他们关心哪个更适合她； —

As to whether it were right or wrong for a wife to marry when her husband was alive, that was not discussed, as the question was evidently not a subject of doubt for persons “wiser than you and me” (as was said), and to doubt the correctness of their decision would be risking the betrayal of one’s ignorance and absence of savoir faire.
至于妻子在丈夫还活着时结婚是否正确，这个问题没有被讨论，因为很显然这个问题对于比“你我聪明的人”（就像有人说的那样）来说是没有疑问的，怀疑他们决策的正确性意味着冒险暴露出自己的无知和不懂世故；

Marya Dmitryevna Ahrosimov, who had come that summer to Petersburg to see one of her sons, was the only person who ventured on the direct expression of a contrary opinion. —
来彼得堡看望其中一个儿子的玛丽亚·德米特里耶芙娜·阿罗辛诺夫是唯一一个敢于直接表达不同意见的人； —

Meeting Ellen at a ball, Marya Dmitryevna stopped her in the middle of the room, and in the midst of a general silence said to her, in her harsh voice:
在一个舞会上，玛丽亚·德米特里耶芙娜在房间中间拦住了艾伦，她用刺耳的声音对她说道：

“So you are going to pass on from one husband to another, I hear! —
“听说你将要从一个丈夫过渡到另一个丈夫了！” —

You think, I dare say, it’s a new fashion you are setting. But you are not the first, madam. —
你认为，我敢说，这是你要创造的新时尚。但是你并不是第一个，夫人。 —

That’s a very old idea. They do the same in all the …” And with these words, Marya Dmitryevna tucked up her broad sleeves with her usual menacing action, and looking severely round her, walked across the ballroom.
那是一个非常古老的想法。在所有地方都是这样……”玛丽亚·德米特里耶芙娜这么说着，像往常那样凶狠地把宽大的袖子卷了起来，严厉地环顾四周，走过舞厅。

Though people were afraid of Marya Dmitryevna, yet in Petersburg they looked on her as a sort of buffoon, and therefore of all her words they noticed only the last coarse one, and repeated it to one another in whispers, supposing that the whole point of her utterance lay in that.
尽管人们害怕玛丽亚·德米特里耶芙娜，但在圣彼得堡，他们把她视为一种小丑，因此他们只注意到她的最后一句粗俗话，并私下里互相传闻，认为她的话说到了点子上。

Prince Vassily had of late dropped into very frequently forgetting what he had said, and repeating the same phrase a hundred times; —
爱斯菲尼公爵最近经常会忘记自己说过的话，并且重复相同的词语一百遍; —

and every time he happened to see his daughter he used to say:
每次他碰到女儿的时候，他总是会说：

“Ellen, I have a word to say to you,” he would say, drawing her aside and pulling her arm downwards. —
“埃伦，我有话要对你说，”他会说，拉着她走到一边，把她的手臂往下拉。 —

“I have got wind of certain projects relative to … you know. —
“关于你……我听到了某些计划。” —

Well, my dear child, you know how my father’s heart rejoices to know you are … You have suffered so much. —
亲爱的孩子，你知道我父亲的心因知道你受了那么多苦而感到欢喜。 —

But, my dear child, consult only your heart. That’s all I tell you. —
但是，亲爱的孩子，只需问问你的内心。这就是我告诉你的全部。 —

” And concealing an emotion identical on each occasion, he pressed his cheek to his daughter’s cheek and left her.
说着他抑制住同样的情感，将脸颊贴在女儿的脸颊上，离开了她。

Bilibin, who had not lost his reputation as a wit, was a disinterested friend of Ellen’s; —
毕利宾并没有丧失他作为一个聪明人的声誉，他是埃伦的一位无私的朋友； —

one of those friends always to be seen in the train of brilliant women, men friends who can never pass into the rank of lovers. —
那些总能见到与出色女性为伍的人友，那些永远无法成为情人的男性朋友。 —

One day, in a “small and intimate circle,” Bilibin gave his friend Ellen his views on the subject.
有一天，在“一个小而亲密的圈子”中，毕利宾向他的朋友埃伦提供了他的见解。

“écoutez, Bilibin” (Ellen always called friends of the category to which Bilibin belonged by their surnames), and she touched his coat-sleeve with her white, beringed fingers. —
“听着，毕利宾”（埃伦总是用朋友毕利宾这种类别的姓来称呼他们），她用自己那白皙的戴着戒指的手指碰了碰他的袖子。 —

“Tell me, as you would a sister, what ought I to do? —
“告诉我，像对一个姐妹一样，我应该怎么做？ —

Which of the two?”
这两个人中的哪一个？”

Bilibin wrinkled up the skin over his eyebrows, and pondered with a smile on his lips.
毕利宾皱起了眉毛，微笑着思考着。

“You do not take me unawares, you know,” he said. —
“你知道，你并没有使我措手不及。”他说道。 —

“As a true friend, I have thought, and thought again of your affair. —
“作为一个真正的朋友，我思考过，再思考你的事情。 —

You see, if you marry the prince”—(the younger suitor) he crooked his finger—“you lose forever the chance of marrying the other, and then you displease the court. —
你看，如果你嫁给王子”（年轻的追求者）他弯起手指，“你就永远失去了嫁给另一个的机会，然后你会得罪法庭。 —

(There is a sort of relationship, you know. —
（你知道，那是一种某种关系。 —

) But if you marry the old count, you make the happiness of his last days. —
）但是如果你嫁给年老的伯爵，你会给他最后的日子带来幸福。 —

And then as widow of the great … the prince will not be making a mésalliance in marrying you …” and Bilibin let the wrinkles run out of his face.
“那么作为伟大……你这位王子娶你并不算是站在地位上的婚姻。”比利宾皱纹慢慢消失了。

“That’s a real friend!” said Ellen beaming, and once more touching Bilibin’s sleeve. —
“这才是真正的朋友！”埃伦笑容满面，再次碰了碰比利宾的袖子。 —

“But the fact is I love them both, and I don’t want to make them unhappy. —
“可事实上，我都爱他们，我不想让他们不开心。” —

I would give my life for the happiness of both,” she declared.
她宣称，“我愿意为两人的幸福而献出生命。”

Bilibin shrugged his shoulders to denote that for such a trouble even he could suggest no remedy.
比利宾耸耸肩表示，对于这样的麻烦他也无法给出建议。

“Une ma?tresse-femme! That is what’s called putting the question squarely. —
“一位女主人！这就是明确地提出的问题。” —

She would like to be married to all three at once,” thought Bilibin.
她希望一次嫁给这三个人，”比利宾心想。

“But do tell me what is your husband’s view of the question? —
“不过告诉我一下，你丈夫对这个问题有何看法吗？ —

” he said, the security of his reputation saving him from all fear of discrediting himself by so na? —
”他说，他的名声保证了他不会因提出如此天真的问题而担心自己的信誉问题。“他同意吗？” —

ve a question. “Does he consent?”
“哦，他对我非常宠爱！”埃伦说道，由于某种神秘的原因，她认为彼得也对她崇拜。

“Oh, he is so fond of me!” said Ellen, who, for some unknown reason, fancied that Pierre too adored her. —
“他会为我做任何事。” —

“Il fera tout pour moi.”
比利宾准备说个尖刻的话，皱着脸道。

Bilibin puckered up his face in preparation of the coming mot.
“甚至离婚？”他说。

“Même le divorce?” he said.
埃伦笑了起来。

Ellen laughed.
他会。”

Among the persons who ventured to question the legality of the proposed marriage was Ellen’s mother, Princess Kuragin. —
在质疑所提出的婚姻合法性的人中，有埃伦的母亲，库拉金公主。 —

She had constantly suffered pangs of envy of her daughter, and now when the ground for such envy was the one nearest to her own heart, she could not reconcile herself to the idea of it.
她一直以来都忍受着对自己女儿的嫉妒之苦，而现在当这种嫉妒的源头是她自己内心最近的时候，她无法接受这个想法。

She consulted a Russian priest to ascertain how far divorce and remarriage was possible for a woman in her husband’s lifetime. —
她咨询了一位俄罗斯牧师，以了解在丈夫还在世的情况下，女人能有多远的可能性离婚再婚。 —

The priest assured her that this was impossible; —
牧师向她保证这是不可能的。 —

and to her delight referred her to the text in the Gospel in which (as it seemed to the priest) remarriage during the lifetime of the husband was directly forbidden.
并且令她欣喜的是，牧师把她引向了福音书中的一段经文，其中明确禁止在丈夫还活着的情况下再婚。

Armed with these arguments, which seemed to her irrefutable, Princess Kuragin drove round to her daughter’s early one morning in order to find her alone.
拿着这些看似无懈可击的论据，库拉金公主一大早开车去找女儿，希望能找到一个人。

Ellen heard her mother’s protests to the end, and smiled with bland sarcasm.
埃伦听完母亲的抗议，面带冷嘲热讽的微笑。

“You see it is plainly said: ‘He who marryeth her that is divorced…’ ”
“你看，清楚地写着：‘娶这段离婚的…’”

“O mamma, don’t talk nonsense. You don’t understand. —
“噢妈妈，不要胡说八道。你不明白。 —

In my position I have duties…” Ellen began, passing out of Russian into French, for in the former language she always felt a lack of clearness about her case.
在我目前的位置上，我有义务…” 埃伦开始用法语说，因为用俄语她总觉得不够清晰。

“But, my dear…”
“可是，亲爱的…”

“O mamma, how is it you don’t understand that the Holy Father, who has the right of granting dispensations…”
“噢妈妈，你怎么就不明白，有权力给予特许的圣父…”

At that moment the lady companion, who lived in Ellen’s house, came in to announce that his highness was in the drawing-room, and wished to see her.
就在那一刻，住在埃伦家里的女伴进来告诉她的高贵的朋友在客厅，想见她。

“No, tell him I don’t want to see him, that I am furious with him for not keeping his word.”
“不，告诉他我不想见他，我对他不遵守诺言感到愤怒。”

“Countess, there is mercy for every sin,” said a young man with fair hair and a long face and long nose.
“伯爵夫人，每一种罪都有宽恕，”说着一名金发、长脸和长鼻子的年轻人。

The old princess rose respectfully and curtsied at his entrance. —
老公主恭敬地站起身，向他的进入行了个屈膝礼。 —

The young man took no notice of her. Princess Kuragin nodded to her daughter, and swam to the door.
年轻人没有注意到她。库拉金公主向她的女儿点了点头，向门口游去。

“Yes, she is right,” thought the old princess, all of whose convictions had been dissipated by the appearance of his highness on the scene. —
“是的，她说得对。” 老公主想道，他高贵的降临使她所有的信念都消散了。 —

“She is right; but how was it in our youth—gone now for ever—we knew nothing of this? —
“她说得对，可是我们年轻的时候——现在已经一去不复返了——我们对这个毫不知情吗？ —

And it is so simple,” thought Princess Kuragin, as she settled herself in her carriage.
“真是太简单了。” 库拉金公主想着，正好坐进了自己的马车。

At the beginning of August Ellen’s affairs were settled, and she wrote to her husband (who, as she supposed, was deeply attached to her) a letter, in which she made known to him her intention of marrying N. N. She informed him also of her conversion to the one true faith, and begged him to go through all the necessary formalities for obtaining a divorce, of which the bearer of the letter would give him further details. —
八月初，艾伦的事情都解决了，她给她的丈夫（她认为他非常爱她）写了信，告诉他她打算嫁给N. N. 她还告诉他自己已经信仰了唯一真实的信仰，请求他进行一切必要的手续以获取离婚，信的传递人会提供进一步的细节。 —

“On which I pray God to have you in His holy and powerful keeping. —
“因此我祈求上帝保佑你，让祂以祂的圣洁和大能护佑你。 —

Your friend, Ellen.”
你的朋友，艾伦。”

This letter was brought to Pierre’s house at the time when he was on the field of Borodino.
这封信是在皮埃尔正在伯罗东诺战场的时候送到他的家中的。