Alice's Adventures in Wonderland 不思議の国のアリス
不思議の国のアリスは、誰でも一度は子供の頃読んだことのある童話だ。
原作はイギリスのルイスキャロルで、この作者もともとは数学者だ。
小説家が書いた本でないせいか、ストーリーも不思議な展開で、言葉遊びの駄洒落が一杯出てくる。
最初の出だしの、ウサギが時計を見ながら「大変だ、遅れる遅れる」と言って穴に飛び込むシーンはとても印象的で有名だ。
他にも、帽子屋と三月ウサギのティーパーティで繰り返される駄洒落の会話も相当有名。
楽しい場面が盛りだくさんで、絵本で見ても楽しめる。
原作は童話にしては結構難しくて、それに長い。
日本では英検二級より少し上くらいのレベルで、高校生が読むのはちょっと大変だ。
簡約した英語教材も多数ある。
オクスフォードのブックワームシリーズStage2の700ワードシリーズが適当に編集して短くしてあるので読みやすい。
ほかに洋販のラダーシリーズLevel 2の 1300ワードも原作に忠実だが、やや長くて読むのが大変だ。
講談社のルビ訳シリーズもあり、こちらは原作そのままの英語に難しい単語にルビ約がついている。
ブックワームを最初に読み、次に、洋販のラダーシリーズその次に、講談社のルビ訳と順に勉強しながら読めば、高校生でも読みこなせる。
とはいえ、原著はかなり長いので相当大変だ。
不思議の国のアリスは、原著をそのまま翻訳した日本語版もあるので読んで判らない所は読み比べてみるのもいい。
Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her
sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or
twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading,
but it had no pictures or conversations in it, "and what
is the use of a book," thought Alice, "without pictures or
conversation?"
So she was considering in her own mind(as well as she
could, for the hot day made her feel very sleepy and
stupid), whether the pleasure of making a daisychain would
be worth the trouble of getting up and picking the
daisies, when suddenly a White Rabbit with pink eyes ran
close by her.
There was nothing so very remarkable in that; nor did
Alice think it so very much out of the way to hear the
Rabbit say to itself, "Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too
late!"(when she thought it over afterwards, it occurred to
her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the
time it all seemed quite natural); but when the Rabbit
actually took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket, and
looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her
feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had never
before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a
watch to take out of it, and burning with curiosity, she
ran across the field after it, and fortunately was just in
time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the
hedge.
In another moment down went Alice after it, never once
considering how in the world she was to get out again.
The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some
way, and then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice
had not a moment to think about stopping herself before
she found herself falling down a very deep well.
Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly,
for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about
her, and to wonder what was going to happen next. First,
she tried to look down and make out what she was coming
to, but it was too dark to see anything; then she looked
at the sides of the well, and noticed that they were
filled with cupboards and book-shelves: here and there she
saw maps and pictures hung upon pegs. She took down a jar
from one of the shelves as she passed; it was labelled
"ORANGE MARMALADE", but to her great disappointment it was
empty: she did not like to drop the jar for fear of
killing somebody, so managed to put it into one of the
cupboards as she fell past it.
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