An Ounce of Cure

*An Ounce of Cure*，是美国作家Alan E. Nourse所作的一篇短篇小说，出版于1963年。

## 英文原文

An Ounce of Cure

The doctor's office was shiny and modern. Behind the desk the doctor
smiled down at James Wheatley through thick glasses. "Now, then! What
seems to be the trouble?"

Wheatley had been palpitating for five days straight at the prospect of coming here. "I know it's silly," he said. "But I've been having a pain in my toe."

"Indeed!" said the doctor. "Well, now! How long have you had this pain, my man?"

"About six months now, I'd say. Just now and then, you know. It's never really been bad. Until last week. You see--"

"I see," said the doctor. "Getting worse all the time, you say."

Wheatley wiggled the painful toe reflectively. "Well--you might say
that. You see, when I first--"

"How old did you say you were, Mr. Wheatley?"

"Fifty-five."

"Fifty-five!" The doctor leafed through the medical record on his
desk. "But this is incredible. You haven't had a checkup in almost ten years!"

"I guess I haven't," said Wheatley, apologetically. "I'd been feeling pretty well until--"

"Feeling well!" The doctor stared in horror. "But my dear fellow, no checkup since January 1963! We aren't in the Middle Ages, you know. This is 1972."

"Well, of course--"

"Of course you may be feeling well enough, but that doesn't mean everything is just the way it should be. And now, you see, you're having pains in your toes!"

"One toe," said Wheatley. "The little one on the right. It seemed to me--"

"One toe today, perhaps," said the doctor heavily. "But tomorrow--" He heaved a sigh. "How about your breathing lately? Been growing short of breath when you hurry upstairs?"

"Well--I have been bothered a little."

"I thought so! Heart pound when you run for the subway? Feel tired all day? Pains in your calves when you walk fast?"

"Uh--yes, occasionally, I--" Wheatley looked worried and rubbed his toe
on the chair leg.

"You know that fifty-five is a dangerous age," said the doctor gravely.

"Do you have a cough? Heartburn after dinner? Prop up on pillows at night? Just as I thought! And no checkup for ten years!" He sighed again.

"I suppose I should have seen to it," Wheatley admitted. "But you see, it's just that my toe--"

"My dear fellow! Your toe is part of you. It doesn't just exist down there all by itself. If your toe hurts, there must be a reason."

Wheatley looked more worried than ever. "There must? I thought--perhaps
you could just give me a little something--"

"To stop the pain?" The doctor looked shocked. "Well, of course I could do that, but that's not getting at the root of the trouble, is it? That's just treating symptoms. Medieval quackery. Medicine has advanced a long way since your last checkup, my friend. And even treatment has its dangers. Did you know that more people died last year of aspirin poisoning than of cyanide poisoning?"

Wheatley wiped his forehead. "I--dear me! I never realized--"

"We have to think about those things," said the doctor. "Now, the
problem here is to find out why you have the pain in your toe. It could be inflammatory. Maybe a tumor. Perhaps it could be, uh, functional ... or maybe vascular!"

"Perhaps you could take my blood pressure, or something," Wheatley offered.

"Well, of course I could. But that isn't really my field, you know. It wouldn't really mean anything, if I did it. But there's nothing to worry about. We have a fine Hypertensive man at the Diagnostic Clinic."

The doctor checked the appointment book on his desk. "Now, if we could
see you there next Monday morning at nine--"

\* \* \* \* \*

"Very interesting X rays," said the young doctor with the red hair.

"Very interesting. See this shadow in the duodenal cap? See the prolonged emptying time? And I've never seen such beautiful pylorospasm!"

"This is my toe?" asked Wheatley, edging toward the doctors. It seemed he had been waiting for a very long time.

"Toe! Oh, no," said the red-headed doctor. "No, that's the Orthopedic Radiologist's job. I'm a Gastro-Intestinal man, myself. Upper. Dr. Schultz here is Lower." The red-headed doctor turned back to his consultation with Dr. Schultz. Mr. Wheatley rubbed his toe and waited.

Presently another doctor came by. He looked very grave as he sat down beside Wheatley. "Tell me, Mr. Wheatley, have you had an orthodiagram recently?"

"No."

"An EKG?"

"No."

"Fluoroaortogram?"

"I--don't think so."

The doctor looked even graver, and walked away, muttering to himself. In
a few moments he came back with two more doctors. "--no question in my mind that it's cardiomegaly," he was saying, "but Haddonfield should know. He's the best Left Ventricle man in the city. Excellent paper in the AMA Journal last July: 'The Inadequacies of Modern Orthodiagramatic Techniques in Demonstrating Minimal Left Ventricular Hypertrophy.' A brilliant study, simply brilliant! Now this patient--" He glanced toward Wheatley, and his voice dropped to a mumble.

Presently two of the men nodded, and one walked over to Wheatley, cautiously, as though afraid he might suddenly vanish. "Now, there's nothing to be worried about, Mr. Wheatley," he said. "We're going to have you fixed up in just no time at all. Just a few more studies. Now, if you could see me in Valve Clinic tomorrow afternoon at three--"

Wheatley nodded. "Nothing serious, I hope?"

"Serious? Oh, no! Dear me, you mustn't worry. Everything is going to be all right," the doctor said.

"Well--I--that is, my toe is still bothering me some. It's not nearly as bad, but I wondered if maybe you--"

Dawn broke on the doctor's face. "Give you something for it? Well now, we aren't Therapeutic men, you understand. Always best to let the expert handle the problem in his own field." He paused, stroking his chin for a moment. "Tell you what we'll do. Dr. Epstein is one of the finest Therapeutic men in the city. He could take care of you in a jiffy. We'll see if we can't arrange an appointment with him after you've seen me tomorrow."

Mr. Wheatley was late to Mitral Valve Clinic the next day because he had gone to Aortic Valve Clinic by mistake, but finally he found the right waiting room. A few hours later he was being thumped, photographed, and
listened to. Substances were popped into his right arm, and withdrawn
from his left arm as he marveled at the brilliance of modern medical techniques. Before they were finished he had been seen by both the Mitral men and the Aortic men, as well as the Great Arteries man and the Peripheral Capillary Bed man.

The Therapeutic man happened to be in Atlantic City at a convention and the Rheumatologist was on vacation, so Wheatley was sent to Functional Clinic instead. "Always have to rule out these things," the doctors agreed. "Wouldn't do much good to give you medicine if your trouble isn't organic, now, would it?" The Psychoneuroticist studied his sex life, while the Psychosociologist examined his social milieu. Then they conferred for a long time.

Three days later he was waiting in the hallway downstairs again. Heads met in a huddle; words and phrases slipped out from time to time as the discussion grew heated.

"--no doubt in my mind that it's a--"

"But we can't ignore the endocrine implications, doctor--"

"You're perfectly right there, of course. Bittenbender at the University
might be able to answer the question. No better Pituitary
Osmoreceptorologist in the city--"

"--a Tubular Function man should look at those kidneys first. He's
fifty-five, you know."

"--has anyone studied his filtration fraction?"

"--might be a peripheral vascular spasticity factor--"

After a while James Wheatley rose from the bench and slipped out the
door, limping slightly as he went.

\* \* \* \* \*

The room was small and dusky, with heavy Turkish drapes obscuring the dark hallway beyond. A suggestion of incense hung in the air.

In due course a gaunt, swarthy man in mustache and turban appeared through the curtains and bowed solemnly. "You come with a problem?" he
asked, in a slight accent.

"As a matter of fact, yes," James Wheatley said hesitantly. "You see, I've been having a pain in my right little toe...."

轶事
--

该小说原版中有部分内容为斜体，被认为起强调作用：

* Para.9 ―*Fifty-five!*‖ The doctor shows his incredulity. He believes 55 as a critical age but the man hasn‘t had a checkup for almost 10 years.
* Para.13 …*you may be feeling well*… It implies that the doctor doesn‘t believe he is actually well.

* Para.24 …*I could do that*… The doctor was shocked that the patient was―ignorant‖ to the extent that he asked only for sth. to stop the pain. According to

the doctor, the root cause of the problem had to be found out first.

* Para.24 …*more*…*aspirin poisoning than of cyanide poisoning.* The two words are emphasized to distinguish them and to let the information sink in.
* Para. 26 *we have to think about*… The doctor implies that Wheatley hasn‘t thought much about his own health.
* Para. 37 *I don’t think so.* It is implied by the emphasis that Wheatley fails to understand the word Fluoroaortogram.
* Para.38 *Now this patient*--- The doctor suddenly realized his purpose of coming here.
* Para. 41 *you mustn’t worry*. The doctor thinks that Wheatley has the reasons to be worried but that his worry might make the situation worse. Therefore he mustn‘t worry.

## Vocabulary

* palpitate：to beat rapidly and/or in an irregular way especially because of fear or excitement 急速跳动，悸动（尤指因恐惧或兴奋）

例句：He felt suddenly faint, and his heart began to palpitate.

* wiggle：to move from side to side or up and down in short quick movements; to make sth move in this way （使）扭动，摆动，摇动，起伏

例句：Her bottom wiggled as she walked past. 她屁股一扭一扭地走了过去。

* reflectively：thinking deeply about things 沉思的；深思的

例句：I walked on in a reflective mood to the car, thinking about the poor honeymooners. 我若有所思地朝那辆汽车走去，心里想着那些可怜的度蜜月的人们。

* leaf through：to quickly turn over the pages of a book, etc. without reading them or looking at them carefully 匆匆翻阅；浏览

例句：Most patients derive enjoyment from leafing through old picture albums.

* heave：~ a sigh, etc. to make a sound slowly and often with effort （常指吃力地）缓慢发出（声音）

例句：We all heaved a sigh of relief. 我们都如释重负地舒了一口气。

* heartburn：a pain that feels like sth burning in your chest caused by indigestion （不消化引起的）胃灼热，烧心

例句：A short time after that, I stared having heartburn.

* prop：~ sth/sb (up) (against sth)to support an object by leaning it against sth, or putting sth under it etc.; to support a person in the same way 支撑

例句：She propped herself up on one elbow. 她单肘撑起身子。

* quackery：the methods or behaviour of sb who pretends to have medical knowledge 江湖医术；庸医行径

例句：To some people, herbal medicine is quackery.

* cyanide：a highly poisonous chemical 氰化物（剧毒化学品）
* vascular：of or containing **veins** *(= the tubes that carry liquids around the bodies of animals and plants)* 血管的；脉管的；维管的
* hypertensive：having abnormally high blood pressure (hypertension) 高血压的
* duodenal：relating to or contained in the **duodenum** 十二指肠的
* pylorospasm：幽门痉挛
* edge：to move or to move sth slowly and carefully in a particular direction （使）徐徐移动，渐渐移动

例句：She edged a little closer to me. 她慢慢地向我靠近了一些。

* orthopedic：relating to problems affecting people's joints and spines (关节和脊柱)矫形的
* gastrointestinal：of or related to the stomach and **intestines** 胃肠的
* orthodiagram：a tracing showing the outer contours and exact size of an organ (as the heart) made by illuminating the edge of the organ with parallel X-rays through a small movable aperture and marking the outer edge of the shadow cast upon a fluoroscopic screen 矫形x线片; 正影x线片; 正影描记图
* EKG：electrocardiogram 心电图
* mutter：to speak or say sth in a quiet voice that is difficult to hear, especially because you are annoyed about sth 嘀咕；嘟囔

例句：‘How dare she,’ he muttered under his breath. 他轻声嘀咕道：“她怎么敢。”

* cardiomegaly： abnormal enlargement of the heart 心脏扩大症
* ventricle：either of the two lower spaces in the heart that **pump** blood to the **lungs** or around the body 心室
* AMA：American Medical Association
* hypertrophy：an increase in the size of an organ or **tissue** because its cells grow in size （器官或组织的）肥大，过度生长
* valve：a structure in the heart or in a **vein** that lets blood flow in one direction only （心脏或血管的）瓣（膜）
* jiffy：a moment 一会儿；瞬间

例句：I'll be with you **in a jiffy** *(= very soon)* . 我一会儿就来。

* mitral valve：the valve between the left atrium and the left ventricle of the heart, consisting of two membranous flaps, that prevents regurgitation of blood into the atrium 二尖瓣 (Also called bicuspid valve)
* aortic valve：主动脉瓣
* peripheral：not as important as the main aim, part, etc. of sth 次要的；附带的

例句：Fund-raising is peripheral to their main activities. 对他们的主要活动而言，筹集资金是次要的。

* capillary：any of the smallest tubes in the body that carry blood 毛细血管
* rheumatology：the study of the diseases of joints and muscles, such as **rheumatism** and **arthritis** 风湿病学
* milieu： the social environment that you live or work in 社会环境；社会背景

例句：They stayed, safe and happy, within their own social milieu. 他们呆在自己所属的社交圈里，安稳又愉快。

* huddle：a small group of people, objects or buildings that are close together, especially when they are not in any particular order （尤指杂乱地）挤在一起的人（或物品、建筑）

例句：People stood around in huddles. 人们三五成群地到处聚集着。

* slip out：when sth **slips out** , you say it without really intending to 无意中说出（或泄露）

例句：I'm sorry I said that. It just slipped out. 抱歉，我说了这样的话，这不过是无意中说出口的。

* endocrine：connected with **glands** that put **hormones** and other products directly into the blood内分泌腺的；内分泌的
* pituitary：a small organ at the base of the brain that produces **hormones** that influence growth and sexual development 脑下垂体；垂体
* tubular：shaped like a tube 管状的
* spasticity：痉挛状态
* drape：a long thick curtain （厚长的）帘子，帷帘，帷幕

例句：She adjusted the drape of her skirt.

* obscure：to make it difficult to see, hear or understand sth 使模糊；使隐晦；使费解

例句：We mustn't let these minor details obscure the main issue. 我们不能让枝节问题掩盖主要问题。

* gaunt：very thin, usually because of illness, not having enough food, or worry （常因疾病、饥饿或忧虑而）瘦削憔悴的

例句：Looking gaunt and tired, he denied there was anything to worry about.

* swarthy：having dark skin 深肤色的；皮肤黝黑的

例句：He had a broad swarthy face.

* turban：a long piece of cloth wound tightly around the head, worn, for example, by Muslim or Sikh men（穆斯林或锡克教男教徒等用的）包头巾

## 参考资料

1. ↑ http://www.loyalbooks.com/book/An-Ounce-of-Cure-by-Alan-Edward-Nourse