Everybody knows that the great reversed triangle of land, with its base in the north and its apex in the south, which is called India, embraces fourteen hundred thousand square miles, upon which is spread unequally a population of one hundred and eighty millions of souls. The British Crown exercises a real and despotic dominion over the larger portion of this vast country, and has a governor–general stationed at Calcutta, governors at Madras, Bombay, and in Bengal, and a lieutenant–governor at Agra.
But British India, properly so called, only embraces seven hundred thousand square miles, and a population of from one hundred to one hundred and ten millions of inhabitants. A considerable portion of India is still free from British authority; and there are certain ferocious rajahs in the interior who are absolutely independent. The celebrated East India Company was all–powerful from 1756, when the English first gained a foothold on the spot where now stands the city of Madras, down to the time of the great Sepoy insurrection. It gradually annexed province after province, purchasing them of the native chiefs, whom it seldom paid, and appointed the governor–general and his subordinates, civil and military. But the East India Company has now passed away, leaving the British possessions in India directly under the control of the Crown. The aspect of the country, as well as the manners and distinctions of race, is daily changing.
Formerly one was obliged to travel in India by the old cumbrous methods of going on foot or on horseback, in palanquins or unwieldy coaches; now fast steamboats ply on the Indus and the Ganges, and a great railway, with branch lines joining the main line at many points on its route, traverses the peninsula from Bombay to Calcutta in three days. This railway does not run in a direct line across India. The distance between Bombay and Calcutta, as the bird flies, is only from one thousand to eleven hundred miles; but the deflections of the road increase this distance by more than a third.
The general route of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway is as follows: Leaving Bombay, it passes through Salcette, crossing to the continent opposite Tannah, goes over the chain of the Western Ghauts, runs thence north–east as far as Burhampoor, skirts the nearly independent territory of Bundelcund, ascends to Allahabad, turns thence eastwardly, meeting the Ganges at Benares, then departs from the river a little, and, descending south–eastward by Burdivan and the French town of Chandernagor, has its terminus at Calcutta.
The passengers of the Mongolia went ashore at half–past four p.m.; at exactly eight the train would start for Calcutta.
Mr. Fogg, after bidding good–bye to his whist partners, left the steamer, gave his servant several errands to do, urged it upon him to be at the station promptly at eight, and, with his regular step, which beat to the second, like an astronomical clock, directed his steps to the passport office. As for the wonders of Bombay its famous city hall, its splendid library, its forts and docks, its bazaars, mosques, synagogues, its Armenian churches, and the noble pagoda on Malabar Hill, with its two polygonal towers—he cared not a straw to see them. He would not deign to examine even the masterpieces of Elephanta, or the mysterious hypogea, concealed south–east from the docks, or those fine remains of Buddhist architecture, the Kanherian grottoes of the island of Salcette.
Having transacted his business at the passport office, Phileas Fogg repaired quietly to the railway station, where he ordered dinner. Among the dishes served up to him, the landlord especially recommended a certain giblet of "native rabbit," on which he prided himself.
Mr. Fogg accordingly tasted the dish, but, despite its spiced sauce, found it far from palatable. He rang for the landlord, and, on his appearance, said, fixing his clear eyes upon him, "Is this rabbit, sir?"
"Yes, my lord," the rogue boldly replied, "rabbit from the jungles."
"And this rabbit did not mew when he was killed?"
"Mew, my lord! What, a rabbit mew! I swear to you—"
"Be so good, landlord, as not to swear, but remember this: cats were formerly considered, in India, as sacred animals. That was a good time."
"For the cats, my lord?"
"Perhaps for the travellers as well!"
After which Mr. Fogg quietly continued his dinner. Fix had gone on shore shortly after Mr. Fogg, and his first destination was the headquarters of the Bombay police. He made himself known as a London detective, told his business at Bombay, and the position of affairs relative to the supposed robber, and nervously asked if a warrant had arrived from London. It had not reached the office; indeed, there had not yet been time for it to arrive. Fix was sorely disappointed, and tried to obtain an order of arrest from the director of the Bombay police. This the director refused, as the matter concerned the London office, which alone could legally deliver the warrant. Fix did not insist, and was fain to resign himself to await the arrival of the important document; but he was determined not to lose sight of the mysterious rogue as long as he stayed in Bombay. He did not doubt for a moment, any more than Passepartout, that Phileas Fogg would remain there, at least until it was time for the warrant to arrive.
Passepartout, however, had no sooner heard his master's orders on leaving the Mongolia than he saw at once that they were to leave Bombay as they had done Suez and Paris, and that the journey would be extended at least as far as Calcutta, and perhaps beyond that place. He began to ask himself if this bet that Mr. Fogg talked about was not really in good earnest, and whether his fate was not in truth forcing him, despite his love of repose, around the world in eighty days!
Having purchased the usual quota of shirts and shoes, he took a leisurely promenade about the streets, where crowds of people of many nationalities—Europeans, Persians with pointed caps, Banyas with round turbans, Sindes with square bonnets, Parsees with black mitres, and long–robed Armenians—were collected. It happened to be the day of a Parsee festival. These descendants of the sect of Zoroaster—the most thrifty, civilised, intelligent, and austere of the East Indians, among whom are counted the richest native merchants of Bombay—were celebrating a sort of religious carnival, with processions and shows, in the midst of which Indian dancing–girls, clothed in rose–coloured gauze, looped up with gold and silver, danced airily, but with perfect modesty, to the sound of viols and the clanging of tambourines. It is needless to say that Passepartout watched these curious ceremonies with staring eyes and gaping mouth, and that his countenance was that of the greenest booby imaginable.
Unhappily for his master, as well as himself, his curiosity drew him unconsciously farther off than he intended to go. At last, having seen the Parsee carnival wind away in the distance, he was turning his steps towards the station, when he happened to espy the splendid pagoda on Malabar Hill, and was seized with an irresistible desire to see its interior. He was quite ignorant that it is forbidden to Christians to enter certain Indian temples, and that even the faithful must not go in without first leaving their shoes outside the door. It may be said here that the wise policy of the British Government severely punishes a disregard of the practices of the native religions.
Passepartout, however, thinking no harm, went in like a simple tourist, and was soon lost in admiration of the splendid Brahmin ornamentation which everywhere met his eyes, when of a sudden he found himself sprawling on the sacred flagging. He looked up to behold three enraged priests, who forthwith fell upon him; tore off his shoes, and began to beat him with loud, savage exclamations. The agile Frenchman was soon upon his feet again, and lost no time in knocking down two of his long–gowned adversaries with his fists and a vigorous application of his toes; then, rushing out of the pagoda as fast as his legs could carry him, he soon escaped the third priest by mingling with the crowd in the streets.
At five minutes before eight, Passepartout, hatless, shoeless, and having in the squabble lost his package of shirts and shoes, rushed breathlessly into the station.
Fix, who had followed Mr. Fogg to the station, and saw that he was really going to leave Bombay, was there, upon the platform. He had resolved to follow the supposed robber to Calcutta, and farther, if necessary. Passepartout did not observe the detective, who stood in an obscure corner; but Fix heard him relate his adventures in a few words to Mr. Fogg.
"I hope that this will not happen again," said Phileas Fogg coldly, as he got into the train. Poor Passepartout, quite crestfallen, followed his master without a word. Fix was on the point of entering another carriage, when an idea struck him which induced him to alter his plan.
"No, I'll stay," muttered he. "An offence has been committed on Indian soil. I've got my man."
Just then the locomotive gave a sharp screech, and the train passed out into the darkness of the night.
背景介紹與作者介紹
這段文字出自儒勒·凡爾納的經典冒險小說《八十天環遊世界》，這位備受讚譽的法國作家以其富有想像力，並在科幻小說和冒險文學方面開創先河的作品而聞名。這部小說寫於1873年，捕捉了19世紀對探索、科技以及由於交通運輸的進步而導致的世界縮小的著迷。凡爾納生動的描述和扣人心弦的情節使這個故事成為所有年齡段讀者永恆的最愛。
故事的詳細闡釋和意義
這段摘錄描述了福克先生和他的僕人路路通穿越英屬印度的旅程，突出了文化多樣性、殖民背景以及這個時代的快速現代化，例如鐵路和汽船的引入。敘事不僅展示了物理旅程，還展示了文化的衝突與融合、殖民統治的複雜性以及旅行者在異國他鄉面臨的挑戰。
福克先生的角色體現了精確、決心和處變不驚，而路路通則提供了人性化的、往往是幽默的視角，對不熟悉的習俗和環境做出反應。故事還引入了費克斯偵探，他懷疑福克先生犯了罪，增加了懸念和陰謀。
給學生和年輕讀者的教訓和啟示
- **好奇心和開放的心態：**路路通對帕西節日和印度文化的著迷鼓勵讀者欣賞和尊重文化多樣性。它教導了好奇心的價值，並同時對當地習俗和傳統保持敏感。
- **毅力和時間管理：**福克先生的準時和穩步前進反映了紀律和精心規劃在實現目標方面的重要性。這可以激勵學生在學習和個人追求中有效地管理他們的時間。
- **適應性：**穿越不同國家和文化的旅程表明了適應新環境和情境的必要性，這是在當今全球化世界中至關重要的技能。
- **正義和道德：**涉及費克斯偵探的支線情節提出了關於正義、懷疑和真相的問題，鼓勵對公平性和假設的後果進行批判性思考。
在日常生活、學習和社交互動中的應用
- **在學習中：**學生可以效仿福克先生解決問題的方法，分解任務並保持專注，儘管有干擾或挫折。
- **在社交場合：**路路通的經歷提醒我們在遇到不同的文化或觀點時要尊重和觀察，培養同情心和社會和諧。
- **在個人成長中：**這個故事鼓勵以勇氣和謙遜擁抱新的體驗，從錯誤中學習，並像福克先生一樣堅守自己的價值觀。
從故事中培養積極的特質
- **紀律：**練習準時並設定明確的目標以建立可靠性。
- **好奇心：**以開放的心態探索新的科目和文化，但也要尋求理解和尊重界限。
- **勇氣：**勇敢地面對挑戰，就像路路通逃離祭司時所做的那樣，展現韌性。
- **正直：**像福克先生一樣，即使在受到懷疑或壓力下也要保持誠實和鎮定。
結論
《八十天環遊世界》不僅是一場激動人心的冒險，而且是豐富的生活教訓和文化欣賞的源泉。通過閱讀和反思這個故事，學生可以培養全球視野，提高個人紀律，並培養有助於他們在學業和社交上取得成功的品質。這個經典的故事邀請年輕讀者敢於夢想，廣泛探索，並明智地行動。
