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E-Books (english-e-reader), Breaking Loose (1)

Breaking Loose (1)

Where do we come from, where do we belong, where is home? Easy questions, but the answers are not always so simple. Family, culture, history - all these things connect in different and mysterious ways.

An Asian girl and an African man meet at a university dance in an African country. It is the girl's home town, and the man is a visitor from another country. Who is the foreigner here... and does it matter?

A band called Iblis was playing on the stage. The singer and guitarist was a young Asian with long hair, now singing another popular foreign song. Close to the stage danced a group of fashionable, brightly dressed girls. Their wild way of dancing seemed to say that they were the girlfriends of the four young men in the band.

Yasmin was at the far end of the dance floor with her girlfriends. She and two of the girls were standing, because there weren't enough chairs. Sometimes she looked round at the dancers and the band, hoping to see an empty chair that she could bring over. The band was loud, the room was hot and airless, and everyone was sweating. A well-dressed black man in a grey suit appeared out of the crowd of dancers. He came up to her and asked her to dance. She went.

Of all the girls here, why me? I don't want to dance. I can't dance, she thought. From the centre of the dance floor she looked back sadly at her friends, who were talking and laughing in the distance.

'I'm sorry,' he smiled. 'I took you away from your friends.'

'It's okay... only for a few minutes-' she began, and blushed, realizing that was not a polite answer. After all, I should be pleased, she thought. He's a professor.

It was a dance that did not need any closeness or touching - and she was grateful for that.

'Daniel Akoto. That's my name.'

'I know... I'm Yasmin Rajan.'

It's all so unnecessary, she thought. I'm not the type. Why didn't he dance with one of those girls near the stage?

She looked at him. He danced much better than she did.

She was shorter than him. Her long hair was brushed straight back from her face, and she wore a simple dress. This was the middle of her second year at the university.

'Good music,' he said.

'Yes, isn't it? I know the singer-'

'But too Western, don't you think?'

'I don't know...'

She felt uncomfortable with the conversation. There was the little worry too - why had he chosen her, and would he want to see her again? He was looking at her and still talking.

'... you're too westernized, you Asians. You like Western ways, European ways, even more than we Africans do.'

She didn't know what to reply, and felt very embarrassed.

He went on, shaking his head, 'Just listen to that song! Rolling Stones. What do you call Indian in that? Or am I missing something?'

Oh, why doesn't he stop? she thought. 'What do you mean, we're westernized?' she said angrily. 'Of course we have our own culture. We have centuries-old customs...'

She had stopped dancing and there were tears in her eyes. She felt under attack in the middle of the two hundred people dancing around her. She could feel their eyes burning into her, seeing her embarrassment.

She left Akoto in the middle of the dance floor and, with her back straight and her head high, returned to her friends.

The next day she waited for her punishment. A call to the university's head office, a black mark for her rudeness to a professor who was a visitor from another African country.

During lunch in the university restaurant with her friends, she saw him standing at the door, looking around the room. She took a deep breath and waited. His eyes found her and he hurried forward between the tables, laughing and calling out greetings to people as he passed. When he arrived at her table, he found an empty chair, sat down and looked at her.

'About last night...' he began. The other girls picked up their plates and left.

She laughed. 'You pushed them out,' she said. 'They'll hate you for that.' She wondered where she had found the confidence to speak like that to him. He was in a red shirt - expensive, she thought. He looked handsome - and harmless.

'But not for long, I hope,' he began. His smile grew wider as he looked at her. 'I've come to apologize. I asked you for a dance and then I bored you with all those ideas of mine.'

'It's okay. It's my fault too. You see...'

'I know, I know. An innocent Indian girl having to dance with a man! But tell me - don't you expect men to ask you to dance when you're in a dance hall with music playing?'

She smiled, a little embarrassed. 'Having girlfriends with you usually means that strangers don't come and ask...'

'Oh dear! I'm a foreigner, so I didn't know that! You came to have a good time with your friends but you couldn't, because of me. I'm really sorry. Look, let me show you how sorry I am. I'll take you for a drink. How about that?'

'But I don't drink... alcohol, I mean.'

'Don't worry. We'll find something for you.'

It was wrong of him to ask her, of course, but she found she had accepted his invitation without any worries.

When they met, as arranged, later that afternoon, he said, 'I'll take you to The Matumbi.' The Matumbi was a tea shop under a tree, half a mile from the university. It had a roof but no walls. She went in slowly, feeling a little shy. But Akoto was well known there, and the owner pulled up two chairs at a table for them.

'Are you hungry?' Akoto asked.

'No. I'll just have tea... perhaps a small cake...'

'Right! Two teas, one cake and one sikisti!' he called out. 'What's a sikisti?' she asked.

'It's a hot egg sandwich. It's called sikisti because it costs sixty cents!'

She laughed.

'It's true, believe me!'

Akoto was a professor of sociology, from Ghana.

'What are you studying?' he asked her, after their tea.

'Literature.'

'Do you read any African writers?'

'Yes. Soyinka... Achebe...'

'Things fall apart...' he said.

'The center cannot hold.' She finished the words for him.

He laughed. 'What about Ngugi? Palangyo? Omari?'

She shook her head. She hadn't heard of them.

'New, local writers. You should read Nuru Omari. Wait for Me, that's her first book. I could lend it to you if you want.'

'It's okay. I'll borrow it from the library.'

He looked very surprised. 'But it'll take a long time for the library to get it.'

'I'll wait... I don't have much time right now.'

'All right.' He was annoyed.

At last, when he saw that she was a little restless, he said, 'Well, now that I've apologized, I hope... Well, perhaps we can go.'

I am studying literature and I have no time to read the most recent books, she thought. She felt ashamed.

When she saw him again several days later, he did not appear to notice her.

He knows I'm not interested, she thought. So why did I go to the tea shop with him?... Because he's so different, so confident, so intelligent... He's a real gentleman! Ah, that's it! He said we Asians are westernized, but what about him? He's a perfect English gentleman himself! I'll tell him that!

'Dear Professor Akoto,' she wrote, 'I wanted to tell you something. You called us Asians westernized. Well, have you looked at yourself recently? Your language, your clothes - a suit even in hot weather - you are just like an English gentleman yourself! Yours sincerely, Yasmin Rajan. P.S. Could I borrow Omari's Wait for Me from you after all? Thanks.' She put the note under his office door.

The next day he came to find her at lunchtime again. 'You're quite right,' he said. 'Although I'm not sure I completely agree... But let's not argue. Let me show you my library. You can borrow any book you like.'

He took her to his house, and when he opened the door of his sitting room, her eyes opened wide in surprise. Three of the walls were covered with books. She had never before seen so many books which belonged to one person.

'You've read all these books?' she asked.

'Well... I wouldn't...'

'Lucky you. You must know so much!'

'Oh, not really.'

'Do you also write?'

'Yes. But none of my writing is published yet.'

He had ideas about African literature. 'Today's writers are going back to their beginnings, digging deep. And that's what I'm trying to do - dig. So you can understand why I worry about what's real and what isn't.'

They went to The Matumbi that evening. She had her first sikisti, and talked about her family.

'My father had a pawnshop, but pawnshops are no longer allowed, so now he has a shop which makes men's clothes. Tell me, do you think pawnshops are a bad thing?'

'Well, I think they're bad for poor people. They have to pay an awful lot to get their things back.'

'But where can poor people borrow money from? Not the banks! And you should see the kind of things they bring to the pawnshop. Old watches, broken bicycles, sometimes clothes. We have three old gramophones that we can't sell.'

'Is that right? Can I look at them? Perhaps I'll buy one. I like unfashionable old things.'

'Come in, Bwana. What can I get for you?'

'I came with Yasmin,' Akoto explained in his bad Swahili. 'For a gramophone...'

'Ah, yes! The professor! Sit, Bwana, sit.'

While Yasmin's father showed Akoto the gramophones, Yasmin was inside the house, talking to her mother.

'How can you bring him here like this?' said her mother angrily. 'What will the neighbours think? I'm so ashamed!'

'But Mummy, he is a professor!'

'I don't care if he's a professor's father!'

By the time Akoto had left the shop, with his gramophone, Yasmin's mother was wild with anger. 'You do not have friendships with men - not with men who we don't know.'

'The world is not ready for it,' said Yasmin's father quietly.

'You stay out of it!' his wife screamed. 'This is between Yasmin and me!'

Yasmin knew her father would discuss things sensibly, but her mother never stopped warning her, and punishing her, and expecting the worst, just because she was a girl. Yasmin's three brothers did not have this problem.

'What do you know of him? With an Asian man, even if he's very bad, you know what to expect. But with him?' Her mother went on shouting and screaming like this for hours.

By the end of the day Yasmin felt half dead with tiredness.

It was more than a week before she and Akoto met again.

'Where do you eat lunch these days?' he said, smiling. 'You're the perfect salesman. You sell me an old gramophone and disappear. Are you afraid I'll return it?'

She said something polite, and walked quickly away. Later she returned the books that she had borrowed from him, and refused an invitation to The Matumbi. She did not go to the end-of-year dance, but her friends told her what happened there. Professor Akoto sat alone at a table for a while, and drank quite a lot. He got into a fight with Mr Sharp of the Boys' School. Then he left.

India was not just the past, or the close circle of family, neighbours, and friends. India was a place, a culture, one of the great nations of the world. And during the holidays Yasmin discovered India. She read endlessly, and asked her father about it. Here in Africa she was an Asian, an Indian.

Breaking Loose (1) Losbrechen (1) Rompiendo moldes (1) ブレイキングルーズ（1） Quebrando a cabeça (1) Вырваться на свободу (1) Breaking Loose (1) Вирватися на волю (1)

Where do we come from, where do we belong, where is home? 私たちはどこから来たのか、どこに属しているのか、どこに住んでいるのか？ Easy questions, but the answers are not always so simple. 簡単な質問ですが、答えは必ずしもそれほど単純ではありません。 쉬운 질문이지만 답은 항상 그렇게 간단하지 않습니다. Family, culture, history - all these things connect in different and mysterious ways. 家族、文化、歴史-これらすべてのものは、異なる神秘的な方法でつながります。 가족, 문화, 역사 - 이 모든 것은 다양하고 신비로운 방식으로 연결됩니다.

An Asian girl and an African man meet at a university dance in an African country. |ázijská|||||||||||||| アジアの女の子とアフリカの男性がアフリカの国の大学のダンスで会います。 아시아계 소녀와 아프리카계 남성이 아프리카의 한 대학 댄스 파티에서 만납니다. It is the girl's home town, and the man is a visitor from another country. 少女の故郷であり、男性は他国からの訪問者です。 소녀의 고향이고 남자는 다른 나라에서 온 방문객입니다. Who is the foreigner here... and does it matter? |||cudzinec|||||to záleží ここの外国人は誰ですか...そしてそれは重要ですか？ 여기 있는 외국인은 누구이며, 그게 중요한가요? Kto je tu cudzinec... a na tom záleží?

A band called Iblis was playing on the stage. |||Iblis||||| イブリースというバンドがステージで演奏していました。 이블리스라는 밴드가 무대에서 연주하고 있었어요. Na pódiu hrala kapela menom Iblis. The singer and guitarist was a young Asian with long hair, now singing another popular foreign song. |||gitarista||||||||||||| 歌手兼ギタリストは髪の長い若いアジア人で、今では別の人気のある外国の歌を歌っています。 Spevák a gitarista bol mladý Ázijčan s dlhými vlasmi, ktorý teraz spieva ďalšiu populárnu zahraničnú pieseň. Close to the stage danced a group of fashionable, brightly dressed girls. ステージの近くで、ファッショナブルで明るい服を着た女の子のグループが踊りました。 무대 가까이에서 멋지고 밝은 옷을 입은 소녀들이 춤을 추었습니다. Lângă scenă dansa un grup de fete la modă, îmbrăcate strălucitor. Their wild way of dancing seemed to say that they were the girlfriends of the four young men in the band. |||||sa zdalo|||||||priateľky|||||||| 彼らのワイルドなダンスの仕方は、彼らがバンドの4人の若い男性のガールフレンドであると言っているようでした。 그들의 거친 춤사위는 밴드에 속한 네 명의 젊은 남성의 여자 친구라고 말하는 것 같았습니다.

Yasmin was at the far end of the dance floor with her girlfriends. Jasmina|||||||||||| ヤスミンは彼女のガールフレンドと一緒にダンスフロアの遠端にいました。 야스민은 여자 친구들과 함께 댄스 플로어 맨 끝에 있었습니다. She and two of the girls were standing, because there weren't enough chairs. 椅子が足りなかったので、彼女と2人の女の子が立っていました。 Ea și două dintre fete stăteau în picioare, pentru că nu erau suficiente scaune. Sometimes she looked round at the dancers and the band, hoping to see an empty chair that she could bring over. 時々彼女はダンサーとバンドを見回し、彼女が持って来ることができる空の椅子を見たいと思った。 The band was loud, the room was hot and airless, and everyone was sweating. |||||||||bezvzdušný||všetci|bol|potil バンドは騒々しく、部屋は暑くて空気がなく、みんな汗をかいていた。 A well-dressed black man in a grey suit appeared out of the crowd of dancers. |||||||||vydal|||||| 灰色のスーツを着た身なりのよい黒人男性がダンサーの群衆から現れました。 회색 정장을 잘 차려입은 한 흑인 남성이 댄서들 사이로 등장했습니다. He came up to her and asked her to dance. 彼は彼女のところに来て、彼女に踊るように頼んだ。 She went. 彼女は行きました。

Of all the girls here, why me? ここにいるすべての女の子の中で、なぜ私なのか？ I don't want to dance. 踊りたくない。 춤추기 싫어요. I can't dance, she thought. 춤을 출 수 없다고 생각했습니다. From the centre of the dance floor she looked back sadly at her friends, who were talking and laughing in the distance. 彼女はダンスフロアの中央から、遠くで話したり笑ったりしている友達を悲しげに振り返った。 댄스 플로어 중앙에서 그녀는 멀리서 이야기하고 웃고 있는 친구들을 슬프게 돌아보았습니다.

'I'm sorry,' he smiled. 'I took you away from your friends.'

'It's okay... only for a few minutes-' she began, and blushed, realizing that was not a polite answer. ||||||||||zčervenala|si uvedomila|||||| 「大丈夫です...ほんの数分です-」彼女は始めて顔を赤らめ、それが丁寧な答えではないことに気づきました。 '괜찮아요... 몇 분만요...'라고 말하며 그녀는 예의 없는 대답이라는 것을 깨닫고 얼굴을 붉혔습니다. After all, I should be pleased, she thought. 結局のところ、私は喜ぶべきだと彼女は思った。 결국, 그녀는 기뻐해야 한다고 생각했습니다. He's a professor. 彼は教授です。 그는 교수입니다.

It was a dance that did not need any closeness or touching - and she was grateful for that. |||||||||blízkosti||dotyku|||||| それは親密さや感動を必要としないダンスでした-そして彼女はそれに感謝しました。 친밀감이나 접촉이 필요 없는 춤이었고, 그녀는 그것에 감사했습니다.

'Daniel Akoto. Daniel|Akoto 'ダニエルアコト。 That's my name.' それは私の名前です。'

'I know... I'm Yasmin Rajan.' ||||Rajan 「わかっています...私はヤスミン・ラジャンです。」

It's all so unnecessary, she thought. |||zbytočné||pomyslela それはすべてとても不必要だと彼女は思った。 그녀는 이 모든 것이 불필요하다고 생각했습니다. I'm not the type. 私はタイプではありません。 저는 그런 타입이 아닙니다. Why didn't he dance with one of those girls near the stage? |||||||||||pódia なぜ彼はステージの近くでそれらの女の子の一人と踊らなかったのですか？

She looked at him. He danced much better than she did. 彼は彼女よりずっと上手に踊った。

She was shorter than him. Her long hair was brushed straight back from her face, and she wore a simple dress. ||||česané||||||||||| 彼女の長い髪は彼女の顔からまっすぐにブラシをかけられ、彼女はシンプルなドレスを着ていました。 긴 머리를 얼굴에서 뒤로 빗어 넘기고 심플한 원피스를 입었습니다. This was the middle of her second year at the university. 大学2年生の半ばでした。 대학 2학년 중반이었을 때였습니다.

'Good music,' he said.

'Yes, isn't it? 「はい、そうではありませんか？ I know the singer-' 私は歌手を知っています-」

'But too Western, don't you think?' 「でも西洋的すぎると思いませんか？」 '하지만 너무 서구적이지 않나요?'

'I don't know...'

She felt uncomfortable with the conversation. 彼女はその会話に不快感を覚えた。 그녀는 대화에 불편함을 느꼈습니다. There was the little worry too - why had he chosen her, and would he want to see her again? 少し心配もありました-なぜ彼は彼女を選んだのですか、そして彼は彼女にもう一度会いたいのですか？ 그가 왜 그녀를 선택했을까, 다시 만나고 싶어할까 하는 작은 걱정도 있었습니다. He was looking at her and still talking. 彼は彼女を見て、まだ話していました。

'... you're too westernized, you Asians. ||západniarizovaný||Ázijčania '...あなたはあまりにも西洋化されています、あなたはアジア人です。 You like Western ways, European ways, even more than we Africans do.' ||||európske||||||| あなたは私たちアフリカ人よりも西洋の方法、ヨーロッパの方法が好きです。 당신은 우리 아프리카인들보다 서양식, 유럽식 방식을 더 좋아합니다.

She didn't know what to reply, and felt very embarrassed. |||||||||nepríjemne 彼女は何に返事をするべきかわからず、とても恥ずかしい思いをしました。

He went on, shaking his head, 'Just listen to that song! 彼は頭を振って続けた、「その歌を聞いてください！ 그는 고개를 절레절레 흔들며 '그냥 그 노래나 들어봐요! Rolling Stones. Rolling| ローリングストーンズ。 롤링 스톤즈. What do you call Indian in that? その中であなたはインド人を何と呼びますか？ 인디언을 뭐라고 부르나요? Or am I missing something?' それとも私は何かが足りないのですか？」 아니면 내가 뭔가 놓치고 있는 건 아닐까?

Oh, why doesn't he stop? ああ、なぜ彼はやめないのですか？ 왜 멈추지 않죠? she thought. 'What do you mean, we're westernized?' |||||západníčeni 「どういう意味ですか、私たちは西洋化されていますか？」 '우리가 서구화되었다니 무슨 말이야?' she said angrily. 'Of course we have our own culture. 「もちろん、私たちには独自の文化があります。 We have centuries-old customs...' ||||zvyky 私たちは何世紀も前の習慣を持っています...」 우리에게는 수백 년 된 관습이 있습니다...'

She had stopped dancing and there were tears in her eyes. 彼女は踊りをやめ、目に涙が出ました。 She felt under attack in the middle of the two hundred people dancing around her. 彼女は周りで踊っている200人の人々の真ん中で攻撃を受けていると感じました。 그녀는 주변에서 춤을 추는 200명의 사람들 사이에서 공격당하고 있다고 느꼈습니다. She could feel their eyes burning into her, seeing her embarrassment. |||||páliť|||||hanbu 彼女は彼女の恥ずかしさを見て、彼らの目が彼女に燃えているのを感じることができました。 그녀는 자신의 부끄러움을 보는 그들의 눈빛이 그녀를 향해 타오르는 것을 느낄 수 있었습니다.

She left Akoto in the middle of the dance floor and, with her back straight and her head high, returned to her friends. 彼女はダンスフロアの真ん中にアコトを残し、背中をまっすぐにし、頭を高くして、友達に戻った。 그녀는 댄스 플로어 한가운데에 있는 아코토를 뒤로하고 허리를 곧게 펴고 고개를 높이 들고 친구들에게 돌아갔습니다.

The next day she waited for her punishment. |||||||trest 翌日、彼女は罰を待ちました。 다음날 그녀는 벌을 기다렸습니다. A call to the university's head office, a black mark for her rudeness to a professor who was a visitor from another African country. ||||||||||||neúctu||||||||||| Ein Anruf bei der Universitätsleitung, eine Rüge für ihre Unhöflichkeit gegenüber einem Professor, der aus einem anderen afrikanischen Land zu Besuch war. 大学の本部への電話、他のアフリカの国からの訪問者であった教授への彼女の無礼のブラックマーク。 다른 아프리카 국가에서 방문한 교수에게 무례한 태도를 보였다는 이유로 대학 본부에 전화가 걸려왔습니다.

During lunch in the university restaurant with her friends, she saw him standing at the door, looking around the room. 친구들과 대학 식당에서 점심을 먹던 그녀는 문 앞에 서서 방을 둘러보고 있는 그를 보았습니다. She took a deep breath and waited. 彼女は深呼吸して待った。 His eyes found her and he hurried forward between the tables, laughing and calling out greetings to people as he passed. ||||||||||||||||||||prechádzal 彼の目は彼女を見つけ、彼はテーブルの間を急いで進み、通りかかったときに笑いながら人々に挨拶をしました。 그는 그녀를 발견하고는 테이블 사이를 서둘러 지나가는 사람들에게 웃으며 인사를 건네며 앞으로 나아갔습니다. When he arrived at her table, he found an empty chair, sat down and looked at her. 그녀의 테이블에 도착했을 때, 그는 빈 의자를 발견하고 앉아서 그녀를 바라보았습니다.

'About last night...' he began. The other girls picked up their plates and left. 他の女の子は皿を手に取って去りました。

She laughed. 'You pushed them out,' she said. Du hast sie rausgeschmissen", sagte sie. 「あなたはそれらを押し出した」と彼女は言った。 'They'll hate you for that.' 「彼らはそれであなたを憎むでしょう。」 She wondered where she had found the confidence to speak like that to him. 彼女はどこで彼にそのように話す自信を見つけたのだろうと思った。 그녀는 어디서 그런 말을 할 수 있는 자신감을 얻었는지 궁금해했습니다. He was in a red shirt - expensive, she thought. |||||košeli||| 彼は赤いシャツを着ていた-高価だと彼女は思った。 He looked handsome - and harmless. ||||neškodný 彼はハンサムに見えた-そして無害だった。

'But not for long, I hope,' he began. 「しかし、長くはない、私は願っています」と彼は始めました。 "하지만 오래 가지 않기를 바랍니다."라고 그는 시작했습니다. His smile grew wider as he looked at her. |||širšia||||| 彼が彼女を見たとき、彼の笑顔はより広くなった。 'I've come to apologize. |||ospravedlniť 「お詫びするようになりました。 I asked you for a dance and then I bored you with all those ideas of mine.' 私はあなたにダンスを頼みました、そしてそれから私は私のそれらのすべての考えであなたを退屈させました。 '내가 춤을 추자고 했는데 내 아이디어로 지루하게 만들었잖아.

'It's okay. 'それは大丈夫。 It's my fault too. それも私のせいです。 제 잘못이기도 합니다. You see...' 分かりますか...'

'I know, I know. '分かってる。 An innocent Indian girl having to dance with a man! |nevinne|||||||| Ein unschuldiges indisches Mädchen, das mit einem Mann tanzen muss! 男と踊らなければならない無垢なインドの女の子！ 순진한 인도 소녀가 남자와 춤을 춰야 하는 상황! But tell me - don't you expect men to ask you to dance when you're in a dance hall with music playing?' Aber sag mal - erwartest du nicht, dass Männer dich zum Tanzen auffordern, wenn du in einem Tanzlokal bist und Musik läuft?' しかし、教えてください-あなたが音楽を演奏しているダンスホールにいるとき、男性があなたにダンスをするように頼むことを期待しませんか？」 하지만 음악이 흘러나오는 댄스홀에 가면 남자들이 춤을 추자고 하지 않을까요?

She smiled, a little embarrassed. ||||rozpačitá 彼女は微笑んで、少し恥ずかしかった。 그녀는 약간 부끄러워하며 웃었습니다. 'Having girlfriends with you usually means that strangers don't come and ask...' 「あなたとガールフレンドがいるということは、通常、見知らぬ人が来て尋ねないことを意味します...」 '여자친구가 있다는 것은 보통 낯선 사람이 와서 물어보지 않는다는 것을 의미합니다...'

'Oh dear! 'まあ！ I'm a foreigner, so I didn't know that! 私は外国人なので、知らなかった！ You came to have a good time with your friends but you couldn't, because of me. あなたは友達と楽しい時間を過ごすようになりましたが、私のせいでできませんでした。 I'm really sorry. Look, let me show you how sorry I am. ほら、ごめんなさい。 제가 얼마나 죄송한지 보여드리겠습니다. I'll take you for a drink. 私はあなたを飲み物に連れて行きます。 술 한잔 하러 갈게요. How about that?'

'But I don't drink... alcohol, I mean.' 「でも私は飲まない…お酒、つまり」 '하지만 전 술을 마시지 않아요, 제 말은...'

'Don't worry. We'll find something for you.' 私たちはあなたのために何かを見つけるでしょう。」

It was wrong of him to ask her, of course, but she found she had accepted his invitation without any worries. |||||||||||||||prijala|||||obávok Es war natürlich falsch von ihm, sie zu fragen, aber sie fand, dass sie seine Einladung ohne Bedenken angenommen hatte. もちろん、彼が彼女に尋ねるのは間違っていたが、彼女は心配することなく彼の招待を受け入れたことがわかった。 물론 그런 부탁을 한 것은 잘못한 일이지만, 그녀는 아무 걱정 없이 그의 초대를 수락했습니다.

When they met, as arranged, later that afternoon, he said, 'I'll take you to The Matumbi.' ||||dohodnuté|||||||||||Matumbi 彼らが会ったとき、アレンジされたように、その日の午後遅くに、彼は言った、「私はあなたをマトゥンビに連れて行きます」。 약속대로 그날 오후 늦게 만났을 때 그는 '마툼비로 데려다 주겠다'고 말했습니다. The Matumbi was a tea shop under a tree, half a mile from the university. ||||||||strome|||||| マトゥンビ族は、大学から800 m（0.5マイル）離れた木の下にある喫茶店でした。 마툼비는 대학에서 0.5마일 떨어진 나무 밑에 있는 찻집이었어요. It had a roof but no walls. 지붕은 있지만 벽은 없었습니다. She went in slowly, feeling a little shy. |||||||hanblivá 彼女は少し恥ずかしがり屋でゆっくりと入った。 But Akoto was well known there, and the owner pulled up two chairs at a table for them. Aber Akoto war dort gut bekannt, und der Besitzer zog zwei Stühle an einem Tisch für sie heran. しかし、あことはそこでよく知られていて、所有者は彼らのためにテーブルで2つの椅子を引き上げました。

'Are you hungry?' Akoto asked.

'No. I'll just have tea... perhaps a small cake...' 私はお茶を飲むだけです...多分小さなケーキ...」

'Right! Two teas, one cake and one sikisti!' ||||||sikisti お茶2杯、ケーキ1杯、シキスティ1杯！」 he called out. 彼は声をかけた。 'What's a sikisti?' 「sikistiとは何ですか？」 she asked. 彼女は尋ねた。

'It's a hot egg sandwich. 「それは熱い卵サンドイッチです。 It's called sikisti because it costs sixty cents!' 60セントかかるのでsikistiと呼ばれています！」

She laughed.

'It's true, believe me!'

Akoto was a professor of sociology, from Ghana. アコトはガーナ出身の社会学の教授でした。

'What are you studying?' '何を勉強しているの？' he asked her, after their tea. 彼はお茶を飲んだ後、彼女に尋ねた。

'Literature.' '文学。'

'Do you read any African writers?' 「アフリカの作家を読んでいますか？」

'Yes. Soyinka... Achebe...' Soyinka|Achebe ソインカ…アチェベ…」

'Things fall apart...' he said. Die Dinge fallen auseinander...', sagte er. 「物事はバラバラになります...」と彼は言いました。 "Lucrurile se destramă...", a spus el.

'The center cannot hold.' 「センターは保持できません。」 '센터를 유지할 수 없습니다. "Centrul nu poate rezista. She finished the words for him. 彼女は彼のために言葉を終えた。 그녀는 그를 위해 말을 마쳤습니다.

He laughed. 彼は笑いました。 'What about Ngugi? ||Ngugi 「グギはどうですか？ Palangyo? Palangyo パランギョ？ Omari?' Omari おまり？」

She shook her head. Ea a clătinat din cap. She hadn't heard of them. 彼女はそれらのことを聞いたことがありませんでした。

'New, local writers. '新しい地元の作家。 You should read Nuru Omari. |||Nuru| ぬるおまりをお読みください。 Wait for Me, that's her first book. 私を待ってください、それは彼女の最初の本です。 Жди меня, это ее первая книга. I could lend it to you if you want.' ||požičať|||||| よろしければお貸しします。」 Я могу одолжить его вам, если хотите.

'It's okay. I'll borrow it from the library.' |požičiam|||| 図書館から借ります。」 도서관에서 빌릴게요. Я возьму его в библиотеке.

He looked very surprised. 彼はとても驚いたように見えた。 Он выглядел очень удивленным. 'But it'll take a long time for the library to get it.' 「しかし、図書館がそれを入手するには長い時間がかかるでしょう。」 — Но библиотеке потребуется много времени, чтобы получить его.

'I'll wait... I don't have much time right now.' 「待ちます...今はあまり時間がありません。」 '기다릴게요... 지금은 시간이 별로 없어요.' — Я подожду… У меня сейчас мало времени.

'All right.' 'わかった。' He was annoyed. 彼はイライラした。 Era supărat.

At last, when he saw that she was a little restless, he said, 'Well, now that I've apologized, I hope... Well, perhaps we can go.' ||||||||||nepokojná|||||||||||||| とうとう、彼女が少し落ち着きがないのを見て、彼は言った。 마침내 그녀가 조금 불안해하는 것을 본 그는 '이제 사과를 했으니... 이제 가도 되겠네'라고 말했죠.

I am studying literature and I have no time to read the most recent books, she thought. |||||||||||||najnovšie||| 私は文学を勉強していて、最新の本を読む時間がない、と彼女は思った。 Študujem literatúru a nemám čas čítať najnovšie knihy, pomyslela si. She felt ashamed. ||hanbiť 彼女は恥ずかしい思いをした。 Cítila sa zahanbene.

When she saw him again several days later, he did not appear to notice her. |||||niekoľko||||||||| 彼女が数日後に再び彼に会ったとき、彼は彼女に気づいていないようでした。 며칠 후 다시 만났을 때 그는 그녀를 알아차리지 못하는 것 같았습니다. Keď ho znovu videla o niekoľko dní neskôr, zdalo sa, že si jej nevšíma.

He knows I'm not interested, she thought. 彼は私が興味がないことを知っている、と彼女は思った。 So why did I go to the tea shop with him?... それで、なぜ私は彼と一緒に喫茶店に行ったのですか？... 그래서 내가 왜 그와 함께 찻집에 갔을까요.... Atunci de ce m-am dus la ceainărie cu el?... Because he's so different, so confident, so intelligent... He's a real gentleman! |||iný||sebeistý|||||| 彼はとても異なっているので、とても自信があり、とても賢いです...彼は本当の紳士です！ Ah, that's it! ああ、それだけです！ He said we Asians are westernized, but what about him? 그는 아시아인이 서구화되었다고 말했지만, 그는 어떤가요? He's a perfect English gentleman himself! |||||sám 彼は完璧な英国紳士です！ 그는 완벽한 영국 신사입니다! Je sám dokonalým anglickým gentlemanom! I'll tell him that! 私は彼にそれを伝えます！ Poviem mu to!

'Dear Professor Akoto,' she wrote, 'I wanted to tell you something. 「親愛なるアコト教授」と彼女は書いた。 'Drahý profesor Akoto,' napísala, 'chcela som vám niečo povedať.' You called us Asians westernized. あなたは私たちを西洋化したアジア人と呼んだ。 Well, have you looked at yourself recently? ||||||nedávno さて、最近自分を見ましたか？ Your language, your clothes - a suit even in hot weather - you are just like an English gentleman yourself! あなたの言語、あなたの服-暑い日でもスーツ-あなたはまるでイギリスの紳士のようです！ 언어, 옷차림(더운 날씨에도 정장 차림)까지 영국 신사처럼 느껴집니다! Yours sincerely, Yasmin Rajan. よろしくお願いします、ヤスミン・ラジャン。 야스민 라잔을 진심으로 사랑합니다. P.S. Could I borrow Omari's Wait for Me from you after all? |||Omariho||||||| 結局、オマリの「私を待って」を借りてもらえますか？ 오마리의 '나를 기다려줘'를 빌려도 될까요? Thanks.' She put the note under his office door.

The next day he came to find her at lunchtime again. 翌日、彼は再び昼食時に彼女を見つけるようになりました。 'You're quite right,' he said. 「あなたはまったく正しい」と彼は言った。 'Although I'm not sure I completely agree... But let's not argue. ||||||||||hádať 「私が完全に同意するかどうかはわかりませんが...しかし、議論しないでください。 '완전히 동의하는지는 잘 모르겠지만... 하지만 논쟁은 하지 말자. Let me show you my library. 私の図書館をお見せしましょう。 제 라이브러리를 보여드리겠습니다. You can borrow any book you like.' 好きな本を借りることができます。」 '원하는 책을 빌릴 수 있습니다.

He took her to his house, and when he opened the door of his sitting room, her eyes opened wide in surprise. 彼は彼女を彼の家に連れて行きました、そして彼が彼の居間のドアを開けたとき、彼女の目は驚いて大きく開きました。 그는 그녀를 집으로 데려갔고, 그가 거실 문을 열자 그녀는 놀라서 눈을 크게 떴습니다. Three of the walls were covered with books. 壁の3つは本で覆われていました。 She had never before seen so many books which belonged to one person. |||||||||patrilo||| 彼女はこれまで一人の人が所有する本をこれほど多く見たことがありませんでした。 한 사람이 소유한 책이 이렇게 많은 것은 처음 보았습니다.

'You've read all these books?' 「あなたはこれらの本をすべて読んだのですか？」 '이 책들을 다 읽었다고요?' she asked.

'Well... I wouldn't...' 「まあ...私はしません...」 '글쎄... 나 같으면...'

'Lucky you. 'あなたはラッキーです。 '행운을 빕니다. You must know so much!' あなたはそんなに知っている必要があります！」 아는 게 너무 많으시네요!'

'Oh, not really.' 「ああ、そうではない。」

'Do you also write?' 「あなたも書きますか？」

'Yes. But none of my writing is published yet.' しかし、私の執筆はまだ公開されていません。」

He had ideas about African literature. 彼はアフリカ文学についての考えを持っていました。 'Today's writers are going back to their beginnings, digging deep. |||||||začiatkom||hlboko Die Schriftsteller von heute kehren zu ihren Anfängen zurück und graben tief. 「今日の作家は、深く掘り下げて、彼らの最初に戻っています。 '오늘날의 작가들은 초심으로 돌아가 깊이 파고들고 있습니다. "Dzisiejsi pisarze wracają do swoich początków, kopiąc głęboko. And that's what I'm trying to do - dig. Und das ist es, was ich zu tun versuche - graben. そして、それが私がやろうとしていることです-掘ります。 이것이 바로 제가 하고자 하는 일입니다. So you can understand why I worry about what's real and what isn't.' Sie können also verstehen, warum ich mir Gedanken darüber mache, was real ist und was nicht. だから、私が何が本当で何がそうでないかを心配する理由を理解することができます。 그러니 제가 왜 진짜와 가짜에 대해 걱정하는지 이해하실 수 있을 겁니다.

They went to The Matumbi that evening. 彼らはその夜マトゥンビに行きました。 She had her first sikisti, and talked about her family. 彼女は最初のsikistiを持っていて、彼女の家族について話しました。

'My father had a pawnshop, but pawnshops are no longer allowed, so now he has a shop which makes men's clothes. ||||záložňa||záložne|||||||||||||| 「父は質屋を持っていましたが、質屋はもう許可されていないので、今では紳士服を作る店があります。 Tell me, do you think pawnshops are a bad thing?' 教えてください、質屋は悪いことだと思いますか？」

'Well, I think they're bad for poor people. 「まあ、彼らは貧しい人々にとって悪いことだと思います。 They have to pay an awful lot to get their things back.' 彼らは自分たちの物を取り戻すためにひどいお金を払わなければなりません。

'But where can poor people borrow money from? 「しかし、貧しい人々はどこからお金を借りることができますか？ Not the banks! 銀行ではありません！ And you should see the kind of things they bring to the pawnshop. そして、あなたは彼らが質屋にもたらすようなものを見るはずです。 전당포에 어떤 물건을 가져오는지 보셔야 합니다. Old watches, broken bicycles, sometimes clothes. |||bicykle|| We have three old gramophones that we can't sell.' ||||gramofóny|||| 販売できない古い蓄音機が3台あります。」

'Is that right? 「そうですか？ Can I look at them? それらを見ることができますか？ Perhaps I'll buy one. たぶん私が買うでしょう。 I like unfashionable old things.' ||nemoderné|| ファッショナブルな古いものが好きです。」

So one afternoon Yasmin took him to her father's shop to show him the old gramophones. He entered the shop alone, while Yasmin went round to the back of the building, where the family lived. 그는 혼자 가게에 들어갔고, 야스민은 가족이 사는 건물 뒤편으로 돌아갔습니다. Her father came to meet Akoto. 彼女の父はアコトに会いに来た。

'Come in, Bwana. ||pán 「入って、ブワナ。 What can I get for you?' 私はあなたのために何を得ることができますか？」

'I came with Yasmin,' Akoto explained in his bad Swahili. |||||||||svahelčine 「私はヤスミンと一緒に来ました」とアコトは彼の悪いスワヒリ語で説明しました。 'For a gramophone...' 「蓄音機の場合...」

'Ah, yes! The professor! 教授！ Sit, Bwana, sit.'

While Yasmin's father showed Akoto the gramophones, Yasmin was inside the house, talking to her mother. |Jasmininho||||||||||||||

'How can you bring him here like this?' 「どうやって彼をこのようにここに連れてくることができますか？」 '어떻게 이런 식으로 데려올 수 있죠?' said her mother angrily. 彼女の母親は怒って言った。 'What will the neighbours think? 「隣人はどう思いますか？ I'm so ashamed!' ||hanbím 私はとても恥ずかしいです！'

'But Mummy, he is a professor!' 「でもミイラ、彼は教授です！」

'I don't care if he's a professor's father!' 「彼が教授の父親であるかどうかは気にしない！」

By the time Akoto had left the shop, with his gramophone, Yasmin's mother was wild with anger. アコトが蓄音機を持って店を出る頃には、ヤスミンの母親は怒り狂っていた。 'You do not have friendships with men - not with men who we don't know.' 「あなたは男性と友情を持っていません-私たちが知らない男性とは友情を持っていません。」 '당신은 남자와의 우정이 아니라 우리가 모르는 남자와의 우정입니다.'

'The world is not ready for it,' said Yasmin's father quietly. Die Welt ist noch nicht bereit dafür", sagte Yasmins Vater leise. 「世界はそれの準備ができていません」とヤスミンの父は静かに言いました。

'You stay out of it!' 「あなたはそれを避けます！」 his wife screamed. ||zakričala 'This is between Yasmin and me!' 「これはヤスミンと私の間です！」

Yasmin knew her father would discuss things sensibly, but her mother never stopped warning her, and punishing her, and expecting the worst, just because she was a girl. |||||||rozumne|||||||||trestala|||očakávala|||||||| Yasmin wusste, dass ihr Vater die Dinge vernünftig besprechen würde, aber ihre Mutter hörte nie auf, sie zu warnen, zu bestrafen und das Schlimmste zu erwarten, nur weil sie ein Mädchen war. ヤスミンは父親が物事を賢明に話し合うことを知っていたが、母親は彼女が女の子だったという理由だけで、彼女に警告し、彼女を罰し、最悪の事態を予期することを決してやめなかった。 야스민은 아버지가 현명하게 논의할 줄 알았지만, 어머니는 딸이라는 이유만으로 경고하고 벌을 주며 최악의 상황을 예상하는 것을 멈추지 않았습니다. Yasmin's three brothers did not have this problem. ヤスミンの3人の兄弟はこの問題を抱えていませんでした。 야스민의 세 형제에게는 이런 문제가 없었습니다.

'What do you know of him? 「あなたは彼について何を知っていますか？ '그에 대해 무엇을 알고 계십니까? With an Asian man, even if he's very bad, you know what to expect. Bei einem asiatischen Mann, selbst wenn er sehr schlecht ist, weiß man, was man zu erwarten hat. アジア人の男性の場合、たとえ彼が非常に悪いとしても、あなたは何を期待するかを知っています。 동양인 남자는 아주 못된 사람이라 할지라도 무엇을 기대해야 할지 알 수 있습니다. But with him?' しかし、彼と一緒に？」 하지만 그와 함께라면?' Her mother went on shouting and screaming like this for hours. ||||kričala||kričala|||| 彼女の母親は何時間もこのように叫び続けました。

By the end of the day Yasmin felt half dead with tiredness. |||||||||||únavou その日の終わりまでに、ヤスミンは疲れて半分死んでいると感じました。 하루가 끝날 무렵 야스민은 피곤에 지쳐 반쯤 죽은 기분이었습니다.

It was more than a week before she and Akoto met again. 彼女とアコトが再会するのは一週間以上前だった。

'Where do you eat lunch these days?' 「最近、どこでお弁当を食べますか？」 he said, smiling. 'You're the perfect salesman. |||predajca 「あなたは完璧なセールスマンです。 You sell me an old gramophone and disappear. |||||||zmizneš あなたは私に古い蓄音機を売って消えます。 Are you afraid I'll return it?' 返品するのが怖いですか？」 내가 반품할까 봐 걱정되나요?'

She said something polite, and walked quickly away. |||zdvorilé|||| 彼女は礼儀正しいことを言い、すぐに立ち去った。 Later she returned the books that she had borrowed from him, and refused an invitation to The Matumbi. その後、彼女は彼から借りた本を返却し、マトゥンビへの招待を拒否しました。 She did not go to the end-of-year dance, but her friends told her what happened there. 彼女は年末のダンスには行きませんでしたが、彼女の友達はそこで何が起こったのかを彼女に話しました。 Professor Akoto sat alone at a table for a while, and drank quite a lot. アコト教授はしばらくテーブルに一人で座って、かなりたくさん飲んだ。 He got into a fight with Mr Sharp of the Boys' School. 彼は男子校のシャープ氏と喧嘩した。 Then he left. それから彼は去った。

India was not just the past, or the close circle of family, neighbours, and friends. Indien war nicht nur die Vergangenheit oder der enge Kreis von Familie, Nachbarn und Freunden. インドは過去だけではなく、家族、隣人、友人の親密なサークルでもありませんでした。 인도는 단순히 과거나 가족, 이웃, 친구의 가까운 울타리가 아니었습니다. India was a place, a culture, one of the great nations of the world. インドは場所であり、文化であり、世界の偉大な国の1つでした。 인도는 하나의 장소이자 문화이며 세계의 위대한 국가 중 하나였습니다. And during the holidays Yasmin discovered India. |||||objavila| そして休暇中にヤスミンはインドを発見しました。 그리고 휴가 기간 동안 야스민은 인도를 발견했습니다. She read endlessly, and asked her father about it. ||neustále|||||| 彼女は延々と読んで、それについて父親に尋ねました。 그녀는 끝없이 책을 읽었고 아버지에게 그것에 대해 물었습니다. Here in Africa she was an Asian, an Indian. ここアフリカでは、彼女はアジア人、インド人でした。 아프리카에서 그녀는 아시아인이자 인도인이었습니다.