When Clyde Griffiths was still a child, his religious-minded parents took him and his brothers and sisters around the streets of various cities, where they prayed and sang in public. The family was always very poor, but the fundamentalist faith of the Griffiths was their hope and mainstay throughout the storms and troubles of life.

Young Clyde was never religious, however, and he always felt ashamed of the existence his parents were living. As soon as he was old enough to make decisions for himself, he decided to go his own way. At sixteen he got a job as a bellboy in a Kansas City hotel. There the salary and the tips he received astonished him. For the first time in his life he had money in his pocket, and he could dress well and enjoy himself. Then a tragedy overwhelmed the family. Clyde's sister ran away, supposedly to be married. Her elopement was a great blow to the parents, but Clyde himself did not brood over the matter. Life was too pleasant for him; more and more he enjoyed the luxuries which his job provided. He made friends with the other bellhops and joined them in parties that centered around liquor and women. Clyde soon became familiar with drink and brothels.

One day he discovered that his sister was back in town. The man with whom she had run away had deserted her, and she was penniless and pregnant. Knowing his sister needed money, Clyde gave his mother a few dollars for her. He promised to give her more; instead he bought an expensive coat for a girl in the hope that she would yield herself to him. One night he and his friends went on a party in a car that did not belong to them. Coming back from their outing, hey ran over a little girl. In their attempt to escape, they wrecked the car. Clyde fled to Chicago.

In Chicago he got work at the Union League Club, where he eventually met his wealthy uncle, Samuel Griffiths. The uncle, who owned a factory in Lycurgus, New York, took a fancy to Clyde and offered him work in the factory. Clyde went to Lycurgus. There his cousin, Gilbert, resented this cousin from the Middle West. The whole family, with the exception of his uncle, considered Clyde beneath them socially, and would not accept him into their circle. Clyde was given a job at the very bottom of the business, but his uncle soon made him a supervisor.

In the meantime Sondra Finchley, who disliked Gilbert, began to invite Clyde to parties she and her friends often gave. Her main purpose was to annoy Gilbert. Clyde's growing popularity forced the Griffiths to receive him socially, much to Gilbert's disgust.

In the course of his work at the factory Clyde met Roberta Alden, with whom he soon fell in love. Since it was forbidden for a supervisor to mix socially with an employee, they had to meet secretly. Clyde attempted to persuade Roberta to give herself to him, but the girl refused. At last, rather than lose him, she consented and became his mistress.

As the same time Clyde was becoming fascinated by Sondra. He came to love her and hoped to marry her, and thus acquire the wealth and social position for which he yearned. Gradually he began breaking dates with Roberta in order to be with Sondra every moment that she could spare him. Roberta began to be suspicious and eventually found out the truth.

By that time she was pregnant. Clyde went to drug stores for medicine that did not work. He attempted to find a doctor of questionable reputation. Roberta went to see one physician who refused to perform an operation. Clyde and Roberta were both becoming desperate, and Clyde saw his possible marriage to the girl as a dismal ending to all his hopes for a bright future. He told himself that he did not love Roberta, that it was Sondra whom he wished to marry. Roberta asked him to marry her for the sake of her child, saying she would go away afterward, if he wished, so that he could be free of her. Clyde would not agree to her proposal and grew more irritable and worried.

One day he read in the newspaper an item about the accidental drowning of a couple who had gone boating. Slowly a plan began to form in his mind. He told Roberta he would marry her and persuaded her to accompany him to an isolated lake resort. There, as though accidentally, he lunged toward her. She was hit by his camera and fell into the water. Clyde escaped, confident that her drowning would look like an accident, even though he had planned it all carefully.

But he had been clumsy. Letters that he and Roberta had written were found, and when her condition became known he was arrested. His uncle obtained an attorney for him. At his trial, the defense built up an elaborate case in his favor. But in spite of his lawyer's efforts, he was found guilty and sentenced to be electrocuted. His mother came to see him and urged him to save his soul. A clergyman finally succeeded in getting Clyde to write a statement—a declaration that he repented of his sins. It is doubtful whether he did. He died in the electric chair, a young man tempted by his desire for luxury and wealth. (来源：最老牌的英语学习网站 http://www.EnglishCN.com)

美 国 悲 剧

〔美〕西·德莱塞

在克莱德·格里菲思还是个孩子的时候，笃信宗教的双亲带着他和他的兄弟姐妹到各城市的大街上当众祈祷、演唱。格里菲思家总是很穷，但是，原教旨主义的信仰却一直是这一家人在生活的风风雨雨、坎坎坷坷中的希望和支柱。

小克莱德可从来不那么虔诚，他总是为他父母的生活方式感到羞耻。他刚刚到能给自己做主的年龄，就决定走自己的路。十六岁那年，他在堪萨斯城一家旅馆找了个服务员的差事。拿到的工钱和小费之多让他吃了一惊。他生平第一次口袋里有了钱，可以穿着入时，快快活活地过日子了。就在这时，一件不幸的事情使家里人悲痛不堪：克莱德的姐姐私奔了，据推测是和人结了婚。她的出走给双亲很大的打击，可克莱德却没把这件事放在心上。生活对他来说是太舒适了；工作里提供的种种奢侈、享乐，使他越来越感到快意。他和别的服务员交上了朋友，参加他们以酒色为主的聚会。不久，克莱德开始贪杯并经常出入妓院。

一天，他发现姐姐回到了堪萨斯。原来，带她私奔的那人抛弃了她。如今她身无分文，怀孕在身。克莱德知道他姐姐等钱用，便给了他妈妈几块钱转交给姐姐。他答应再给一些钱，可是却为一个姑娘买了件昂贵的大衣，希望这姑娘能委身于他。一天晚上，他和朋友们开着别人的车去作乐。回来时，他们撞倒了一个小女孩。他们企图逃避罪责，慌乱中撞毁了车子。于是，克莱德逃到了芝加哥。

在芝加哥，克莱德在联邦协会俱乐部找到了工作。在那里，他遇上了他富有的叔叔塞缪尔·格里菲思。他的这个叔叔在纽约州的利克格斯有一家工厂。他很喜欢克莱德，表示愿意让他在厂里工作。于是，克莱德来到了利克格斯。但表兄基尔伯特对这位来自中西部的表弟很不满。除了他叔叔以外，一家人都瞧不上克莱德， 不愿让他加入他们的社交圈子。 克莱德从工厂里最低一级做起，不久他叔叔让他当了监工。

在此期间,桑德拉·芬奇利因为讨厌基尔伯特便邀请克莱德参加她和她的朋友们经常举行的聚会。她主要是想气气基尔伯特。由于克莱德受人欢迎，交游日广，格里菲斯一家也就不得不在社交活动中和克莱德平起平坐，这使基尔伯特十分反感。

在工厂的工作中，克莱德结识了罗伯塔·奥尔登并很快爱上了她。由于厂里禁止监工和工人交际，他俩只能 秘密约会。克莱德想让罗伯塔委身于他，但姑娘拒绝了。最后，为了不失去他，罗后塔让步了，成了他的情妇。

与此同时，克莱德又被桑德拉所吸引。结果，他爱上了桑德拉并想和她结婚，这样一来他就可以得到梦寐以求的财富和社会地位。只要桑德拉有空和他在一起，他连一分钟也不错过。他渐渐越来越多地对罗伯塔失约了。罗伯塔起了疑心，最后弄清了事情的真相。

这时罗伯塔已经怀孕了。克莱德到药店找了药，但没能打掉。他想找个路数不正的医生；罗伯塔去看了一位外科大夫，然而医生拒绝给她做手术。克莱德和罗伯塔急得走投无路，克莱德认为，要是他不得不与这姑娘结婚，那么他想要青云直上的一切希望都将化为泡影。他提醒自己他并不爱罗伯塔，桑德拉才是他想娶的姑娘。罗伯塔恳求他看在孩子的份上与她结婚，她还保证：如果克莱德希望她在结婚后离开，她可以照办而绝不拖累他。克莱德不肯答应而且变得愈加脾气暴躁和忧心忡忡了。

一天，他在报纸上看到一条消息，说有一男一女在划船时不慎淹死了。慢慢地在他脑海里酝酿出了一个计谋。他告诉罗伯塔他将和她结婚并让她陪他来到僻静无人的湖边。在湖上，他好象是失了重心一样向罗伯塔扑了过去。他的照相机打着了罗伯塔，使她落入水中。克莱德逃跑了，他确信罗伯塔的溺水肯定象是一起意外事故，尽管这一切都是他一手精心策划的。

但他终究失算了。他和罗伯塔的来往信件被查了出来。当人们知道死者怀有身孕后，克莱德被逮捕了。他的叔叔为他请了律师。在审判的时候，辩护律师编造了一个极其复杂曲折的案情为他开脱。尽管如此，他被定为有罪并判处电刑。他妈妈赶来看他并劝他拯救自己的灵魂。一位教士终于让克莱德写了一个声明，表示他忏悔所犯的罪过。然而，他到底是否真正忏悔，却是可疑的。克莱德最后死于电椅之上，这就是一个由于贪图荣华富贵而走入歧途的青年人的下场。