A Gift for the Lover | 给爱人的礼物

English Original

Once upon a distant time, people expressed love by giving a part of their bodies to their lovers. Everyone possessed a leather bag into which their partner would place a token of affection during their union. Commonly exchanged were a fingernail, a strand of hair, an eyelash, or a bit of skin.

However, it was not unheard of for fingers, ears, or even entire limbs to be slipped into the bag in moments of profound love or passion. There were even tales of lovers who climbed into their beloved's leather bag and vanished, literally swept away by emotion.

The donated body parts sometimes rejuvenated miraculously, the sacrifice itself becoming a testament to their love. Of course, those who entered another's bag never returned. It was widely believed they were reborn, perhaps as a member of their lover's family.

In that era, phrases like "giving yourself to your lover" and "making sacrifices for love" were understood in the most literal sense.


中文翻译

在遥远的过去,人们通过献出自己身体的一部分来表达对爱人的爱意。每个人都拥有一个皮袋,爱人在结合时会将自己的信物放入其中。通常交换的是一片指甲、一缕头发、一根睫毛或一小片皮肤。

然而,在极致的爱或激情时刻,将手指、耳朵甚至整个肢体滑入袋中也并非奇闻。甚至还有传说,讲述爱人爬进对方的皮袋后便消失了,字面意义上被情感席卷而去。

这些被献出的身体部位有时会奇迹般地再生,其牺牲本身成为了他们爱情的证明。当然,进入对方皮袋的人再也没有回来。人们普遍认为他们获得了重生,或许成为了爱人家族的一员。

在那个时代,诸如“将自己献给爱人”和“为爱牺牲”这样的短语,其含义被理解得极为字面。

阅读记录
请先 登录 后记录阅读完成
为这篇文章评分
点击星星进行评分(1-5分)
相关文章
The Paper Dove | 纸上的白鸽

A girl clings to a paper holding her hopes. When it vanis...

dream emotional
The Bell | 钟声

A mysterious and beautiful bell sound draws people from a...

fiction intermediate
The Three Fishermen <3> | 三位渔夫 <3>

The story depicts the dramatic arrival of an aged, revere...

character-study dialogue
The Young King's Dream | 少年国王之梦

The Young King dreams of a magnificent pearl obtained at ...

dream english-reading
The Whale Sound | 鲸歌

The narrator is forcibly taken by police while haunted by...

emotional fiction
The Four in the Library | 图书馆里的四个家伙

A first-year student at St. Montague's reluctantly shares...

dialogue fiction
The Return of the Representative | 代表的归来

A district's angry citizens meet to plan brutal punishmen...

allegory fiction
The Husband Store | 丈夫商店

A satirical story about a "Husband Store" where each asce...

allegory fiction
The Pumpkin Carvers | 雕刻南瓜的人

An aging couple, Clark and the much younger Allison, shar...

age-gap domestic-life
The Happy Prince (Part 4) | 快乐王子(第四部分)

The Swallow, loyal to the end, helps the Prince give away...

allegory fiction
A Shameful Affair | 一桩可耻之事

A young, idle woman staying at a farm becomes piqued by t...

classic-literature fiction
Kirby's Coals of Fire | 柯比的火中炭

A theological student, George Scott, embarks on a canal-b...

character-study fiction
The Three Fishermen <2> | 三位渔夫 <2>

The narrator describes the central role of camp coffee in...

camping fiction
The Three Fishermen | 三位渔夫

A group of four friends camps at a remote, historic site ...

fiction literary
The Last Stop | 终点站

Mrs. Conroy, accustomed to napping on her friendly bus dr...

allegory fiction
The Blackberry Jam Story (Part 2) | 黑莓酱的故事(下)

Maggie and her estranged husband have an awkward yet reve...

dialogue emotional
Perfect Match | 绝配

An eccentric matron demands her bedroom walls match her a...

fiction humorous
The Black Cat | 黑猫

A man recounts his descent into alcoholism and violence, ...

edgar-allan-poe fiction
The Bait | 诱饵

Mr. Smith calls a doctor because a mouse ran into his sle...

anecdote beginner
The Volunteer | 志愿者

A group of climbers faces a fatal dilemma on Everest, whe...

dark-humor fiction