The Teapot

Biography (Plotline)

The Teapot by Hans Christian Andersen

1 proud

  • who: teapot
  • where: tea table
  • fell: proud of its porcelain; proud of its long spout; proud of its broad handle.

2 broken

  • who: teapot, mistress
  • where: ready-laid table
  • like: the spout broke off and the handle broke off.

3 given away

  • who: teapot, beggar
  • where: corner -> beggar's home

4 bulb was put into it

  • who: teapot, flower bulb
  • where: beggar's home
  • fell: I was so happy because of that. How happy it must have been then.

5 thrown away

  • who: teapot
  • where: beggar's home
  • fell: I have a memory that I cannot lose.
  • like: broken in two

Plot summary

A porcelain teapot rules the tea table. She is very proud of her handle and spout, but not quite so proud of her lid (which is cracked). She is very proud of holding the tea leaves and of being the one to pour forth her contents for thirsty humankind. One day, the teapot is dropped and the handle and spout are broken. She is given to a beggar woman who fills her with soil and plants a flowering bulb within her. The teapot then feels a happiness she has never known. At the last, the teapot is broken in two, the bulb removed to a bigger pot, and the teapot thrown away. She cherishes her memories.

As is

TODO translation checking

There was a proud teapot--proud of its porcelain, proud of its long spout, proud of its broad handle. It had something in front and something behind, the spout in front and the handle behind, and it talked about that. But it didn't talk about its lid; that was cracked and had been riveted. It had a flaw, and one is not fond of talking about one's flaws--the others are sure to do that. Cups, cream pitcher, and sugar bowl, the whole tea service, would be sure to remember more the frailty of the lid, and to talk about it, than about the good handle and the excellent spout. And the teapot was aware of this.

  • proud of 为…而感到骄傲
  • porcelain /ˈpɔrsələn/ n. 瓷；瓷器 adj. 瓷制的；精美的
  • spout /spaʊt/ n. （容器的）嘴；出水管；（喷出的）水柱 v. 喷出，喷射；喷水；
  • handle n. （门的）把手；柄；v. 处理；对付（某人或某事）；有办法应付；
  • talk about 谈论某事
  • lid n. 盖子；眼睑；限制 vt. 给…盖盖子
  • crack v. 破裂；砸开；
  • rivet /ˈrɪvɪt/ n. 铆钉 vt. 铆接；固定；（把目光、注意力等）集中于
  • flaw /flɔː/ n. 瑕疵，缺点；一阵狂风；短暂的风暴；裂缝，裂纹 v. 使生裂缝，使有裂纹；使无效；使有缺陷 vi. 生裂缝；变的有缺陷
  • fond of 喜欢
  • cream /kriːm/ n. 奶油，乳脂；精华；面霜；乳酪
  • pitcher /ˈpɪtʃər/ n. 投手；大水罐
  • cream pitcher 奶油罐
  • tea service 茶具
  • frailty /ˈfreɪlti/ n. 虚弱；弱点；意志薄弱
  • aware of 意识到，知道

有一个骄傲的茶壶——骄傲它的瓷器，骄傲它的长壶嘴，骄傲它的宽茶壶柄。它前面有个东西，后面有个东西，喷口在前面，把手在后面，它说的就是这个。但是它没有说它的盖子;门上有裂缝，已经用铆钉固定好了。它有一个缺点，一个人不喜欢谈论自己的缺点——别人肯定会这样做的。茶杯、奶油水罐、糖碗，所有的茶具，一定会记得盖子的弱点，并且谈论它，而不是它的好把柄和极好的壶嘴。茶壶意识到了这一点。

"I know them!" it said to itself. "I am also well aware of my flaw, and I acknowledge it. Therein lies my humility, my modesty. We all have flaws, but one also has talents. The cups were given a handle, the sugar bowl a lid. I, of course, was given both, and one thing in front that they will never receive: I was given a spout. That makes me the queen of the tea table. The sugar bowl and the the cream pitcher have been granted the privilege of being hand-maidens of palatability. But I am the dispenser, the mistress. I diffuse the blessing among thirsting humanity. In my interior the Chinese leaf is prepared in the boiling, tasteless water."

  • acknowledge /əkˈnɑːlɪdʒ/ vt. 承认；答谢；报偿；告知已收到
  • Therein /ˌðeərˈɪn/ adv. 在其中；在那里
  • lie vi. 躺；说谎；位于；展现
  • humility /hjuːˈmɪləti/ n. 谦卑，谦逊
  • modesty /ˈmɑːdəsti/ n. 谦逊；质朴；稳重
  • talent /ˈtælənt/ n. 才能；天才；天资 复数 talents
  • queen /kwiːn/ n. 女王，王后；（纸牌中的）皇后；（蜜蜂等的）蜂王 vt. 使…成为女王或王后 vi. 做女王
  • grant v. （合法地）授予，允许；（勉强）承认，同意
  • privilege /ˈprɪvəlɪdʒ/ n. 特权；优待 vt. 给予…特权；特免
  • hand-maiden n. 侍女；女仆（等于handmaid）
  • palatability /'pælətəbiliti/ n. 适口性；风味
  • dispenser /dɪˈspensər/ n. 药剂师；施与者；分配者；自动售货机
  • water dispenser 饮水机；开饮机；饮用机
  • tape dispenser 胶带座；胶纸座；胶带分割器
  • soap dispenser 肥皂分发器；给皂器
  • mistress /ˈmɪstrəs/ n. 情妇；女主人；主妇；女教师；女能人
  • diffuse /dɪˈfjuːs/ adj. 弥漫的；散开的 vt. 扩散；传播；漫射 vi. 传播；四散
  • blessing 祝福
  • thirsting 渴望
  • thirst n. 渴望；口渴；热望 vi. 渴望；口渴
  • humanity /hjuːˈmænəti/ n. 人类；人道；仁慈；人文学科
  • interior /ɪnˈtɪriər/ n. 内部，里面；内景；内陆，腹地；内政，内务；本质 adj. 内部的，里面的；
  • Chinese leaf 生菜叶，绍菜，大白菜，生菜 (这里应该指“茶叶”)
  • prepare /prɪˈpeə(r)/ vt. 准备；
  • boil v. 煮沸，（使）沸腾，达到沸点；用沸水煮或烫洗；对……施以烹刑；翻腾；发火 n. 沸点，沸腾；
  • tasteless /ˈteɪstləs/ adj. 无味的；无鉴赏力的

“我认识他们!”它自言自语道。“我也很清楚自己的缺点，我承认这一点。这是我的谦逊，我的谦逊。我们都有缺点，但也有天赋。杯子有把手，糖碗有盖子。当然，这两样我都得到了，但有一件事是他们永远不会得到的:我得到了一个喷水口。这使我成了茶几上的女王。糖罐和奶油罐被授予了“美味少女”的特权。但我是分配者，女主人。我把祝福传播给饥渴的人们。在我的内心，中国的叶子是在沸腾的，无味的水里准备的。

All this the teapot said in its intrepid youth. It stood on the ready-laid table. It was lifted by the most delicate hand. But the most delicate hand was clumsy: the teapot fell, the spout broke off, and the handle broke off. The lid is not worth mentioning--enough has been said about that. The teapot lay in a swoon on the floor, the boiling water running out of it. It had received a hard blow. And the hardest blow of all was that they laughed at it, and not at the clumsy hand.

  • intrepid /ɪnˈtrepɪd/ adj. 无畏的；勇敢的；勇猛的
  • youth /juːθ/ n. 青年；青春；年轻；青少年时期
  • laid v. 放；铺设；安排（lay的过去分词）
  • ready-laid 摆好的 ready-made 现成的
  • lift v. 举起；抬头（看）；提高（嗓子）音量；抬高（价格）；空运；被抬起；n. 电梯；上下山缆车；后跟垫；举起；（价格）上涨；
  • delicate /ˈdelɪkət, -kit/ adj. 微妙的；精美的，雅致的；柔和的；易碎的；纤弱的；清淡可口的 delicate balance 微妙的平衡
  • clumsy /ˈklʌmzi/ adj. 笨拙的
  • fell v. 掉下，跌落（fall 的过去式）
  • break off 折断；突然停止，暂停
  • worth adj. 值…的 n. 价值；财产
  • mentioning 谈到，论及
  • lay in a swoon 昏倒在地
  • swoon v. 着迷；（古）昏晕；狂喜 n. 昏晕；狂喜；假死状态
  • hard adj. 努力的；硬的；困难的；辛苦的；确实的；严厉的；猛烈的；冷酷无情的
  • blow v. （风）吹；吹奏；喘气；吹气；n. 吹；打击，猛击；挫折；
  • hard blow 沉重的打击
  • laugh at 嘲笑；因…而发笑

这一切都是茶壶在他年轻无畏的时候说的。它立在已经摆好的桌子上。最灵巧的手把它举起来了。但最纤巧的手却笨手笨脚:茶壶掉了下来，壶嘴断了，壶柄也断了。壶盖不值一提——这已经说得够多了。茶壶昏倒在地板上，开水从茶壶里流出来。它受到了沉重的打击。最沉重的打击是他们嘲笑它，而不是嘲笑那只笨拙的手。

"That memory I will never lose," said the teapot when it later related the course of its life to itself. "I was called an invalid and put over in a corner, and on the following day I was given away to a woman who came begging for drippings. I sank down into destitution, stood speechless, both inside and out. But as I stood there my better life began. You are one thing and turn into quite another. Dirt was put inside me. To a teapot this is the same as being buried, but a flower bulb was put in the dirt. Who put it there, who gave it I do not now. It was given a compensation for the Chinese leaves and the boiling water a compensation for the broken-off handle and spout. And the bulb lay in the dirt, the bulb lay inside me. It became my heart, my living heart. I had never had one like that before. There was life in me, there was vigor and vitality; the pulse beat, the bulb sprouted. It was bursting with thoughts and emotions. It bloomed. I saw it, I bore it, I forgot myself in its loveliness. How blessed it is to forget oneself in others! It did not thank me. It did not think of me: it was admired and praised. I was so happy because of that: how happy it must have been then. One day I heard someone say that it deserved a better pot. I was broken in two. It hurt terribly, but the flower was put in a better pot--and I was thrown out in the yard, to lie there like an old fragment. But I have a memory that I cannot lose."

  • lose /luːz/ vt. 浪费；使沉溺于；使迷路；遗失；错过 vi. 失败；受损失
  • related /rɪˈleɪtɪd/ v. 叙述（relate过去式） adj. 有关系的，有关联的；讲述的，叙述的
  • course n. 科目；课程；过程；进程；道路；路线，航向；一道菜 vt. 追赶；跑过 vi. 指引航线；快跑
  • invalid /ˈɪnvəlɪd；ɪnˈvælɪd/ adj. 无效的；有病的；残疾的 n. 病人；残疾者 vt. 使伤残；使退役
  • put over: Let's put it over there in the corner, where we had it last year.
  • give away 泄露，赠送，分发，分送
  • beg for 乞讨
  • dripping n. 滴下的液体；烤肉上滴的汁液 adj. 湿淋淋的 adv. 湿淋淋地 v. 滴下，滴水；含有，充满（drip 的现在分词）
  • sank 沉陷（sink的过去式）
  • destitution /ˌdestɪˈtuːʃn/ n. 穷困；缺乏
  • speechless /ˈspiːtʃləs/ adj. 说不出话的；哑的；非言语所能表达的
  • inside and out 从内到外地；彻底地
  • turn into v. 变成；进入
  • dirt n. 污垢，泥土；灰尘，尘土；下流话
  • buried v. 埋葬（bury /ˈberi/ 的过去式和过去分词）
  • bulb /bʌlb/ n. 电灯泡；鳞茎；球状物 vi. 生球茎；膨胀成球状。flower bulb 鳞茎花卉，球根花卉（花蕾）When spring comes, even the hardest flower bulb may flowlish.
  • compensation /ˌkɒmpenˈseɪʃn/ n. 补偿；报酬；赔偿金
  • broken off 中断；破掉（破裂后跌落）
  • living adj. 活的
  • vigor /'vɪgɚ/ n. [生物] 活力，精力
  • vitality /vaɪˈtæləti/ n. 活力，生气；生命力，生动性
  • pulse /pʌls/ n. [电子] 脉冲；脉搏 vt. 使跳动 vi. 跳动，脉跳
  • beat v. 拍打；有节奏地舒张与收缩 n. 拍子；敲击；有规律的一连串敲打；
  • sprouted v. 发芽；突然大量出现；（使）涌现出；长出（某物）；（某物）长出（sprout 的过去式及过去分词）
  • bursting adj. 充满的；渴望的 v. 爆炸；猛冲；涨满；充满感情；突然爆发（感情）；猛然打开；决堤；突然开始活跃（burst 的现在分词）
  • thoughts /'θɔts/ n. 思想；想法（thought的复数）；思维
  • emotions n. [心理] 情绪；[心理] 情感（emotion的复数形式）
  • bloomed v. 盛开（bloom的过去分词）
  • bore v. 忍受，承受；(bear的过去式 bore；过去分词 borne或 born；现在分词 bearing)
  • loveliness n. 可爱；漂亮；魅力；美好
  • blessed adj. 神圣的，尊敬的；受祝福的，受上帝保佑的；v. 祝福；祝圣；称颂上帝（bless 的过去式和过去分词）
  • admired v. 羡慕，赞美；钦佩（admire 的过去式和过去分词）
  • praised v. 称赞，表扬（praise的过去分词）
  • deserved v. 值得；应得；应受（deserve 的过去式和过去分词）
  • thrown v. (throw的过去分词) 投；抛；掷 (throw过去式)
  • lie /laɪ/ 躺；说谎；
  • fragment /'fræɡmənt/ n. 碎片；片段或不完整部分 vt. 使成碎片 vi. 破碎或裂开
  • lose /luːz/ vt. 浪费；使沉溺于；使迷路；遗失；错过 vi. 失败；受损失

“这种记忆我永远也不会忘记，”茶壶在后来讲述它的生命历程时这样说。我被称为病人，放在屋角里。第二天，有人把我交给一个讨饭的妇人。我陷入了贫困，站在那里说不出话来，里里外外。但就在我站在那里的时候，我的美好生活开始了。你是一个人，却变成另一个人。我的内心充满了肮脏。对茶壶来说，这和埋茶壶是一样的，只是在泥土里放了一个球茎。是谁放的，是谁给的，我现在不知道。它得到了中国树叶的补偿，沸水得到了断柄和壶嘴的补偿。灯泡躺在泥土里，灯泡躺在我的身体里。它变成了我的心，我活着的心。我以前从来没有过这样的车。我有生命，有生机和活力;脉搏跳动，灯泡发芽了。它充满了思想和感情。它盛开。我看见它，我忍受它，我陶醉在它的可爱中。在别人身上忘记自己是多么幸运啊!它没有感谢我。它没有想到我，反而受到了赞赏和赞扬。正因为如此，我才那么高兴。有一天，我听到有人说，它应该得到一个更好的盆。我把它扔到院子里去，像一块破布似的躺在那里。但我有一个记忆，我不能失去。

Translation by jean hersholt

There was a proud Teapot, proud of being made of porcelain, proud of its long spout and its broad handle. It had something in front of it and behind it; the spout was in front, and the handle behind, and that was what it talked about. But it didn't mention its lid, for it was cracked and it was riveted and full of defects, and we don't talk about our defects - other people do that. The cups, the cream pitcher, the sugar bowl - in fact, the whole tea service - thought much more about the defects in the lid and talked more about it than about the sound handle and the distinguished spout. The Teapot knew this.

"I know them," it told itself. "And I also know my imperfections, and I realize that in that very knowledge is my humility and my modesty. We all have many defects, but then we also have virtues. The cups have a handle, the sugar bowl has a lid, but of course I have both, and one thing more, one thing they can never have; I have a spout, and that makes me the queen of the tea table. The sugar bowl and the cream pitcher are permitted to be serving maids of delicacies, but I am the one who gives forth, the adviser. I spread blessings abroad among thirsty mankind. Inside of me the Chinese leaves give flavor to boiling, tasteless water."

This was the way the Teapot talked in its fresh young life. It stood on the table that was prepared for tea and it was lifted up by the most delicate hand. But that most delicate hand was very awkward. The Teapot was dropped; the spout broke off, and the handle broke off; the lid is not worth talking about; enough has been said about that. The Teapot lay in a faint on the floor, while the boiling water ran out of it. It was a great shock it got, but the worst thing of all was that the others laughed at it - and not at the awkward hand.

"I'll never be able to forget that!" said the Teapot, when later on it talked to itself about its past life. "They called me an invalid, and stood me in a corner, and the next day gave me to a woman who was begging for food. I fell into poverty, and was speechless both outside and inside, but as I stood there my better life began. One is one thing and then becomes quite another. They put earth in me, and for a Teapot that's the same as being buried, but in that earth they planted a flower bulb. Who put it there and gave it to me, I don't know; but it was planted there, a substitution for the Chinese leaves and the boiling water, the broken handle and spout. And the bulb lay in the earth, inside of me, and it became my heart, my living heart, a thing I never had before. There was life in me; there were power and might; my pulse beat. The bulb put out sprouts; thoughts and feeling sprang up and burst forth into flower. I saw it, I bore it, and I forgot myself in its beauty. It is a blessing to forget oneself in others!

"It didn't thank me, it didn't even think of me - everybody admired it and praised it. It made me very happy; how much more happy it must have made it!

"One day I heard them say it deserved a better pot. They broke me in two - that really hurt - and the flower was put into a better pot; then they threw me out into the yard, where I lie as an old potsherd. But I have my memory; that I can never lose!"