The detective and Passepartout met often on deck after this interview, though Fix was reserved, and did not attempt to induce his companion to divulge any more facts concerning Mr. Fogg. He caught a glimpse of that mysterious gentleman once or twice; but Mr. Fogg usually confined himself to the cabin, where he kept Aouda company, or, according to his inveterate habit, took a hand at whist.
Passepartout began very seriously to conjecture what strange chance kept Fix still on the route that his master was pursuing. It was really worth considering why this certainly very amiable and complacent person, whom he had first met at Suez, had then encountered on board the Mongolia, who disembarked at Bombay, which he announced as his destination, and now turned up so unexpectedly on the Rangoon, was following Mr. Fogg's tracks step by step. What was Fix's object? Passepartout was ready to wager his Indian shoes—which he religiously preserved—that Fix would also leave Hong Kong at the same time with them, and probably on the same steamer.
Passepartout might have cudgelled his brain for a century without hitting upon the real object which the detective had in view. He never could have imagined that Phileas Fogg was being tracked as a robber around the globe. But, as it is in human nature to attempt the solution of every mystery, Passepartout suddenly discovered an explanation of Fix's movements, which was in truth far from unreasonable. Fix, he thought, could only be an agent of Mr. Fogg's friends at the Reform Club, sent to follow him up, and to ascertain that he really went round the world as had been agreed upon.
"It's clear!" repeated the worthy servant to himself, proud of his shrewdness. "He's a spy sent to keep us in view! That isn't quite the thing, either, to be spying Mr. Fogg, who is so honourable a man! Ah, gentlemen of the Reform, this shall cost you dear!"
Passepartout, enchanted with his discovery, resolved to say nothing to his master, lest he should be justly offended at this mistrust on the part of his adversaries. But he determined to chaff Fix, when he had the chance, with mysterious allusions, which, however, need not betray his real suspicions.
During the afternoon of Wednesday, 30th October, the Rangoon entered the Strait of Malacca, which separates the peninsula of that name from Sumatra. The mountainous and craggy islets intercepted the beauties of this noble island from the view of the travellers. The Rangoon weighed anchor at Singapore the next day at four a.m., to receive coal, having gained half a day on the prescribed time of her arrival. Phileas Fogg noted this gain in his journal, and then, accompanied by Aouda, who betrayed a desire for a walk on shore, disembarked.
Fix, who suspected Mr. Fogg's every movement, followed them cautiously, without being himself perceived; while Passepartout, laughing in his sleeve at Fix's manoeuvres, went about his usual errands.
The island of Singapore is not imposing in aspect, for there are no mountains; yet its appearance is not without attractions. It is a park checkered by pleasant highways and avenues. A handsome carriage, drawn by a sleek pair of New Holland horses, carried Phileas Fogg and Aouda into the midst of rows of palms with brilliant foliage, and of clove–trees, whereof the cloves form the heart of a half–open flower. Pepper plants replaced the prickly hedges of European fields; sago–bushes, large ferns with gorgeous branches, varied the aspect of this tropical clime; while nutmeg–trees in full foliage filled the air with a penetrating perfume. Agile and grinning bands of monkeys skipped about in the trees, nor were tigers wanting in the jungles.
After a drive of two hours through the country, Aouda and Mr. Fogg returned to the town, which is a vast collection of heavy–looking, irregular houses, surrounded by charming gardens rich in tropical fruits and plants; and at ten o'clock they re–embarked, closely followed by the detective, who had kept them constantly in sight.
Passepartout, who had been purchasing several dozen mangoes—a fruit as large as good–sized apples, of a dark–brown colour outside and a bright red within, and whose white pulp, melting in the mouth, affords gourmands a delicious sensation—was waiting for them on deck. He was only too glad to offer some mangoes to Aouda, who thanked him very gracefully for them.
At eleven o'clock the Rangoon rode out of Singapore harbour, and in a few hours the high mountains of Malacca, with their forests, inhabited by the most beautifully–furred tigers in the world, were lost to view. Singapore is distant some thirteen hundred miles from the island of Hong Kong, which is a little English colony near the Chinese coast. Phileas Fogg hoped to accomplish the journey in six days, so as to be in time for the steamer which would leave on the 6th of November for Yokohama, the principal Japanese port.
The Rangoon had a large quota of passengers, many of whom disembarked at Singapore, among them a number of Indians, Ceylonese, Chinamen, Malays, and Portuguese, mostly second–class travellers.
The weather, which had hitherto been fine, changed with the last quarter of the moon. The sea rolled heavily, and the wind at intervals rose almost to a storm, but happily blew from the south–west, and thus aided the steamer's progress. The captain as often as possible put up his sails, and under the double action of steam and sail the vessel made rapid progress along the coasts of Anam and Cochin China. Owing to the defective construction of the Rangoon, however, unusual precautions became necessary in unfavourable weather; but the loss of time which resulted from this cause, while it nearly drove Passepartout out of his senses, did not seem to affect his master in the least. Passepartout blamed the captain, the engineer, and the crew, and consigned all who were connected with the ship to the land where the pepper grows. Perhaps the thought of the gas, which was remorselessly burning at his expense in Saville Row, had something to do with his hot impatience.
"You are in a great hurry, then," said Fix to him one day, "to reach Hong Kong?"
"A very great hurry!"
"Mr. Fogg, I suppose, is anxious to catch the steamer for Yokohama?"
"Terribly anxious."
"You believe in this journey around the world, then?"
"Absolutely. Don't you, Mr. Fix?"
"I? I don't believe a word of it."
"You're a sly dog!" said Passepartout, winking at him.
This expression rather disturbed Fix, without his knowing why. Had the Frenchman guessed his real purpose? He knew not what to think. But how could Passepartout have discovered that he was a detective? Yet, in speaking as he did, the man evidently meant more than he expressed.
Passepartout went still further the next day; he could not hold his tongue.
"Mr. Fix," said he, in a bantering tone, "shall we be so unfortunate as to lose you when we get to Hong Kong?"
"Why," responded Fix, a little embarrassed, "I don't know; perhaps—"
"Ah, if you would only go on with us! An agent of the Peninsular Company, you know, can't stop on the way! You were only going to Bombay, and here you are in China. America is not far off, and from America to Europe is only a step."
Fix looked intently at his companion, whose countenance was as serene as possible, and laughed with him. But Passepartout persisted in chaffing him by asking him if he made much by his present occupation.
"Yes, and no," returned Fix; "there is good and bad luck in such things. But you must understand that I don't travel at my own expense."
"Oh, I am quite sure of that!" cried Passepartout, laughing heartily.
Fix, fairly puzzled, descended to his cabin and gave himself up to his reflections. He was evidently suspected; somehow or other the Frenchman had found out that he was a detective. But had he told his master? What part was he playing in all this: was he an accomplice or not? Was the game, then, up? Fix spent several hours turning these things over in his mind, sometimes thinking that all was lost, then persuading himself that Fogg was ignorant of his presence, and then undecided what course it was best to take.
Nevertheless, he preserved his coolness of mind, and at last resolved to deal plainly with Passepartout. If he did not find it practicable to arrest Fogg at Hong Kong, and if Fogg made preparations to leave that last foothold of English territory, he, Fix, would tell Passepartout all. Either the servant was the accomplice of his master, and in this case the master knew of his operations, and he should fail; or else the servant knew nothing about the robbery, and then his interest would be to abandon the robber.
Such was the situation between Fix and Passepartout. Meanwhile Phileas Fogg moved about above them in the most majestic and unconscious indifference. He was passing methodically in his orbit around the world, regardless of the lesser stars which gravitated around him. Yet there was near by what the astronomers would call a disturbing star, which might have produced an agitation in this gentleman's heart. But no! the charms of Aouda failed to act, to Passepartout's great surprise; and the disturbances, if they existed, would have been more difficult to calculate than those of Uranus which led to the discovery of Neptune.
It was every day an increasing wonder to Passepartout, who read in Aouda's eyes the depths of her gratitude to his master. Phileas Fogg, though brave and gallant, must be, he thought, quite heartless. As to the sentiment which this journey might have awakened in him, there was clearly no trace of such a thing; while poor Passepartout existed in perpetual reveries.
One day he was leaning on the railing of the engine–room, and was observing the engine, when a sudden pitch of the steamer threw the screw out of the water. The steam came hissing out of the valves; and this made Passepartout indignant.
"The valves are not sufficiently charged!" he exclaimed. "We are not going. Oh, these English! If this was an American craft, we should blow up, perhaps, but we should at all events go faster!"
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》，他是一位法國作家，以其在科幻和冒險文學方面的開創性作品而聞名。這部小說寫於1872年，捕捉了探索精神和19世紀的快速技術進步，特別是全球交通網絡的擴張，如輪船和鐵路。凡爾納富有想像力的故事講述邀請讀者踏上驚險的旅程，將細緻的細節與懸念和幽默融為一體。
故事的詳細闡釋
在這段摘錄中，我們目睹了一個複雜的陰謀和好奇心的網絡，菲利斯·福克，一位沉著而神秘的英國紳士，繼續他雄心勃勃的旅程，要在八十天內環遊世界。他忠誠的僕人，路路通，觀察到可疑的偵探費克斯，他暗中跟蹤福克，確信福克是罪犯。路路通對費克斯真實意圖的誤解增加了一層戲劇性的反諷，因為讀者比角色本身知道更多。
敘述也生動地描述了他們航行中遇到的異國情調和多樣化的景觀，例如新加坡的熱帶動植物以及海上旅行帶來的挑戰。沉穩、有條不紊的福克和焦慮、衝動的路路通之間的對比突出了人類對冒險和不確定性的不同反應。
給學生的教訓和見解
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好奇心和批判性思維：路路通試圖理解費克斯的動機，表明了質疑和分析情況而不是接受表面現象的重要性。學生可以通過觀察和反思他人的行為和意圖來培養批判性思維能力。
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毅力和沉著：菲利斯·福克即使面對延誤和障礙，也能保持冷靜和穩定的性格，這教導了在壓力下保持毅力和保持鎮定的價值。這種態度在學術挑戰、體育和個人目標中至關重要。
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文化意識和欣賞：對新加坡環境和人民的生動描述鼓勵讀者欣賞文化多樣性和世界不同地區的美麗。這培養了開放的心態和對全球文化的尊重，這是當今互聯世界的一項基本技能。
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信任和友誼：福克、路路通和奧達之間的關係闡釋了忠誠、信任和善良的主題。學生可以反思支持朋友和表示感激如何豐富人際關係並幫助克服困難。
在日常生活中應用這些教訓
- 在學習中，學生可以效仿福克的紀律，設定明確的目標，並冷靜地努力實現這些目標，即使進展似乎緩慢。
- 在社交互動中，他們可以練習同情心，避免對他人妄下判斷，就像路路通最初對費克斯的誤判一樣。
- 在探索和創造力中，鼓勵學生對世界充滿好奇，提出問題，並欣賞不同的觀點和文化。
- 為了培養積極的性格特徵，學生可能會嘗試在壓力大的情況下保持冷靜，對朋友忠誠，並對周圍的人表現出善良，就像角色在整個旅程中所展示的那樣。
培養積極的精神和行為
學生可以通過以下方式培養這個故事的冒險和尊重的精神：
- 廣泛閱讀以拓寬視野，了解不同的文化和歷史。
- 參與需要團隊合作和信任的團體活動，反映角色之間的合作。
- 在面對挫折時練習耐心和韌性，學習堅持往往會帶來成功。
- 反思自己的判斷，並努力在形成觀點之前理解他人的觀點。
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靈感的源泉。通過其人物和生動的背景，年輕讀者可以深入了解勇氣、好奇心和正直的重要性。通過應用這些教訓，學生不僅可以在學業上成長，而且可以成長為有思想、有同情心的個體，準備好應對現代世界的複雜性。
