Льюис Кэрролл - Алиса в Стране чудес / Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Алиса в Зазеркалье / Through the Looking-glass, and What Alice Found There

So she got up and walked about. She was afraid that the crown could fall off.

‘But if I am really a Queen…’ she began.

Everything happened so strangely that she didn’t even surprise when she saw the Red Queen and the White Queen, who were sitting close to her, one on each side. She wanted to ask them how they came there, but then she thought it would not be polite. However, she thought she should ask if the game was over. ‘Please, would you tell me… ’ she began, looking at the Red Queen.

‘Speak when somebody speaks to you!’ The Queen interrupted her.

‘But if everybody obeyed that rule,’ said Alice, ‘and if you only spoke when somebody spoke to you, and the other person always waited that you would begin, nobody would say anything!’

‘Don’t you understand, child… ’ cried the Red Queen, but then she stopped, thought a bit and suddenly changed the subject of the conversation.

‘What right have you to call yourself a Queen? You can’t be a Queen, till you’ve passed the examination. [269] till you’ve passed the examination – до тех пор, пока ты не прошла проверку And the sooner we begin it, the better. Always speak the truth… think before you speak… and write it down!’

There was then an uncomfortable silence for a minute or two. Finally the Red Queen said to the White Queen, ‘I invite you to Alice’s dinner-party this afternoon.’

The White Queen smiled and said ‘And I invite you.’

‘I didn’t know I have a party at all,’ said Alice; ‘but if it’s true, I think I should invite the guests.’

‘Now you can do it,’ the Red Queen said: ‘but I think you haven’t had many lessons in manners.’

‘Lessons don’t teach you manners,’ said Alice. ‘Lessons teach you to do sums [270] to do sums – решать примеры and so on.’

‘And do you know how to do Addition? [271] addition – сложение ’ the White Queen asked. ‘What’s one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one?’

‘I don’t know,’ said Alice. ‘ I lost count. [272] I lost count – Я сбилась со счета ’

‘She can’t do Addition,’ the Red Queen interrupted. ‘Can you do Subtraction? [273] subtraction – вычитание Take nine from eight. [274] Take nine from eight – отними девять от восьми ’

‘I can’t,’ Alice said: ‘but… ’

‘She can’t do Subtraction,’ said the White Queen.

‘Can you do Division? [275] division – деление Divide a loaf by a knife… what’s the answer?’

‘I think… ’ Alice began, but the Red Queen already answered. ‘Bread-and-butter, of course. Try another Subtraction sum. Take a bone from a dog: what remains?’

Alice thought a bit. ‘The bone wouldn’t remain, of course, if I took it… and the dog wouldn’t remain; it would run to bite me… and I wouldn’t remain!’

‘Then you think nothing would remain?’ said the Red Queen.

‘I think that’s the answer.’

‘Wrong, as usual,’ said the Red Queen: ‘the dog’s temper would remain.’

‘But I don’t understand…’

‘Look here!’ the Red Queen cried. ‘The dog would lose its temper, [276] to lose one’s temper – потерять самообладание wouldn’t it?’

‘Perhaps it would,’ Alice said.

‘Then if the dog went away, its temper would remain!’ the Queen cried.

‘And if it went away too?’ asked Alice. But she thought to herself all the time, ‘What nonsense we are talking!’

‘She can’t do sums at all!’ the Queens said together.

‘Can you do sums?’ Alice said and turned suddenly to the White Queen.

The Queen shut her eyes. ‘I can do Addition if you give me time…’

‘Of course, you know your ABC?’ said the Red Queen.

‘I do,’ said Alice.

‘So do I,’ the White Queen whispered: ‘we’ll learn it together, dear. And I’ll tell you a secret… I can read words of one letter! Isn’t that great? Don’t worry, you’ll learn it some day!’

Here the Red Queen began again. ‘Can you answer useful questions?’ she said. ‘How is bread made?’

‘I know that!’ Alice cried. ‘You take some flour [277] flour – flower – слова-омофоны: мука2 и цветок ( зд . игра слов) …’

‘Where can you take the flower?’ the White Queen asked. ‘In a garden, or in the hedges?’

‘You don’t understand,’ Alice explained: ‘it’s ground [278] ground – слово-омоним: земля и молотый ( зд . игра слов) … ’

‘How many acres of ground?’ said the White Queen.

‘Fan her head!’ the Red Queen interrupted. ‘She’ll be hot!’ So they fanned her with leaves, till she had to ask them to stop.

‘She’s all right again,’ said the Red Queen. ‘Do you know Languages? What’s the French for fiddle-de-dee?’

‘Fiddle-de-dee’s not English,’ Alice said.

‘I didn’t say it,’ said the Red Queen.

‘If you’ll tell me what language “fiddle-de-dee” is, I’ll tell you the French for it!’ Alice said.

‘Don’t let us quarrel,’ the White Queen said. ‘What is the cause of lightning?’

‘The cause of lightning…’ Alice said, ‘is the thunder… no, no!’ she corrected herself. ‘The other way.’

‘It’s too late to correct it,’ said the Red Queen.

‘Oh, we had such a thunderstom last Tuesday,’ the White Queen said, she was very nervous, ‘I mean last Tuesdays.’

Alice was puzzled.

‘In our country,’ she said, ‘we have only one day at a time.’

The Red Queen said, ‘Now here, we have days and nights two or three at a time, and sometimes in the winter we have five nights together… for warmth, you know.’

‘It’s like a riddle with no answer!’ Alice thought.

Here the White Queen began again. ‘It was such a thunderstorm, you can’t imagine! And part of the roof came off, and thunder got in… and it went rolling round the room… and knocking over the tables and things… I was so frightened, I couldn’t remember my own name!’

‘Your Majesty must excuse her,’ the Red Queen said to Alice, she took one of the White Queen’s hand in her own and gently stroked it: ‘she is good, but she always says foolish things.’

The White Queen looked at Alice in a shy way. Alice felt she should say something kind, but couldn’t think of anything at the moment.

‘It’s amazing how good she is! Pat her on the head, and see how pleased she’ll be!’ the Red Queen went on.

Suddenly the White Queen laid her head on Alice’s shoulder. ‘I am so sleepy,’ she said.

‘She’s tired, poor thing!’ said the Red Queen. ‘Give her your nightcap and sing her a lullaby.’

‘I haven’t got a nightcap with me,’ said Alice: ‘and I don’t know any lullabies.”

‘I must do it myself, then,’ said the Red Queen, and she began: