Orwell: Animal farm – 15


All through that summer the work of the farm went like clockwork. The animals were happy as they had never conceived it possible to be. Every mouthful of food was an acute positive pleasure, now that it was truly their own food, produced by themselves and for themselves, not doled out to them by a grudging master. With the worthless parasitical human beings gone, there was more for everyone to eat. There was more leisure too, inexperienced though the animals were. They met with many difficulties-for instance, later in the year, when they harvested the corn, they had to tread it out in the ancient style and blow away the chaff with their breath, since the farm possessed no threshing machine-but the pigs with their cleverness and Boxer with his tremendous muscles always pulled them through. Boxer was the admiration of everybody. He had been a hard worker even in Jones’s time, but now he seemed more like three horses than one; there were days when the entire work of the farm seemed to rest on his mighty shoulders. From morning to night he was pushing and pulling, always at the spot where the work was hardest. He had made an arrangement with one of the cockerels to call him in the mornings half an hour earlier than anyone else, and would put in some volunteer labour at whatever seemed to be most needed, before the regular day’s work began. His answer to every problem, every setback, was ‚I will work harder!’-which he had adopted as his personal motto.

But everyone worked according to his capacity The hens and ducks, for instance, saved five bushels of corn at the harvest by gathering up the stray grains. Nobody stole, nobody grumbled over his rations, the quarrelling and biting and jealousy which had been normal features of life in the old days had almost disappeared. Nobody shirked-or almost nobody. Mollie, it was true, was not good at getting up in the mornings, and had a way of leaving work early on the ground that there was a stone in her hoof. And the behaviour of the cat was somewhat peculiar. It was soon noticed that when there was work to be done the cat could never be found. She would vanish for hours on end, and then reappear at meal-times, or in the evening after work was over, as though nothing had happened. But she always made such excellent excuses, and purred so affectionately, that it was impossible not to believe in her good intentions. Old Benjamin, the donkey, seemed quite unchanged since the Rebellion. He did his work in the same slow obstinate way as he had done it in Jones’s time, never shirking and never volunteering for extra work either. About the Rebellion and its results he would express no opinion. When asked whether he was not happier now that Jones was gone, he would say only ‚Donkeys live a long time. None of you has ever seen a dead donkey,’ and the others had to be content with this cryptic answer.

 

All through that summer przez całe to lato
the work of the farm went like clockwork praca na farmie szła jak w zegarku
to conceive of sth/of doing sth wyobrażać (wyobrazić) sobie coś/, że coś się zrobi
possible możliwy
Every mouthful of food każdy kęs jedzenia
acute ostry, silny, przenikliwy
pleasure przyjemność
now that it was truly their own food teraz to było naprawdę ich własne jedzenie
produced by themselves and for themselves produkowane przez nich samych i dla nich
to dole out wydzielać
grudging niechętny; wymuszony
master pan
worthless bezwartościowy
parasite pasożyt
leisure wolny czas
inexperienced niedoświadczony
They met with many difficulties napotkali wiele problemów
for instance na przykład
they had to tread it out musieli je wymłócić
ancient starożytny,wiekowy
to blow away wywiewać
breath oddech
to possess posiadać
threshing machine młocarnia
tremendous olbrzymi, ogromny
muscle mięśnie
to pull trough wylizać się
admiration podziw
entire cały
mighty potężny
always at the spot where the work was hardest zawsze tam, gdzie praca była najcięższa
arrangement umowa, układ
cockerel kogucik
to call him in the mornings half an hour earlier than anyone else żeby go budził pół godziny wcześniej niż innych
to volunteer zgłaszać się na ochotnika
labour ciężka praca, siła robocza
before the regular day’s work began zanim rozpoczęła się normalna praca dzienna(codzienna)
answer odpowiedź
setback komplikacja, pogorszenie
to adopt przyjąć, przybierać
as personal motto jako osobiste motto
according to zgodnie z
capacity wydajność
for instance na przykład
bushel buszel (36,4 litra)
grains ziarno, zboże
stray zabłąkany
to grumble zrzędzić
rations przydział, racja
quarrelling kłócenie się
jealousy zazdrość, zawiść
feature cecha
to disappear znikać
to shirk wymigiwać się do
getting up in the mornings wstawanie porankiem
hoof kopyto
stone kamień
behaviour zachowanie, postępowanie
peculiar osobliwy
the cat could never be found nigdy nie można było znaleźć kota
to vanish znikać
to reappear pojawić się ponownie
at meal-times w porach posiłków
or in the evening after work was over albo wieczorem, kiedy praca się skończyła
excellent doskonały
excuse usprawiedliwienie, wytłumaczenie, wymówka, pretekst
to purr mruczeć
affectionately czule
impossible niemożliwe
not to believe in her good intentions nie wierzyć w jej dobre intencje
donkey osioł
seemed quite unchanged since the Rebellion wydawał się całkowicie nie zmienić od czasu rebelii
slow powolny
obstinate uparty, uporczywy
result skutek
to express wyrażać
opinion opinia, zdanie
happier szczęśliwszy
Donkeys live a long time osły żyją długo
None of you has ever seen a dead donkey nikt z was nigdy nie widział martwego osła
had to be content musieli się zadowolić
cryptic zagadkowy