The person I've chosen to talk about is the French writer Victor Hugo – many people have heard of him because his novel, Les Misérables, which he wrote in 1862, is famous around the world.

我选择谈论的人是法国作家维克多·雨果。许多人都听说过他，因为他于1862年创作的小说《悲惨世界》享誉全球。

It became a stage musical in the 1980s, and a film version was also released in 2012.1980

年代小说被改编成舞台音乐剧，2012年电影版也上映了。

So, some of us, I'm sure, have a pretty general idea of the plot, but we know much less about the author.

所以，我敢肯定，我们中的一些人对情节有一个大致的了解，但我们对作者的了解却少得多。

Today, I'm going to provide a little more insight into this talented man and I'm going to talk particularly about the home he had on the island of Guernsey in the British Channel Islands.

今天，我将给出更多关于这个才华横溢的人的见解，我要特别谈谈他在英属海峡群岛——根西岛的家。

But first, his early career … as I've said, he was a writer, he was at the height of his career in Paris and he was very highly regarded by his colleagues.

但首先，先看看他早期的职业生涯。正如我所说，他是一名作家，巴黎时期是他职业生涯的巅峰时期，他受到同事们的高度评价。

As far as literature was concerned, he was the leading figure of the Romantic movement.

就文学而言，他是浪漫主义运动的领军人物。

However, as well as being a literary genius, he also gave many speeches about issues like the level of poverty in his society.

然而，他既是一个文学天才，也发表过许多关于社会贫困程度等问题的演讲。

He felt very strongly about this and about other areas where change was needed, like education.

他对这一点以及其他需要变革的领域，如教育，表现出强烈的情感。

This kind of outspoken criticism was not well liked by the rulers of France and, eventually, the emperor – Napoleon III – told Victor Hugo to leave Paris and not return; in other words, he sent him into exile.

这种直言不讳的批评并不受法国统治者的欢迎，最终，当时的皇帝——拿破仑三世让维克多·雨果离开巴黎，不要再回来。换句话说，他把他放逐了。

So Victor Hugo was forced to reside in other parts of Europe.

因此，维克多·雨果被迫在欧洲其它地区定居。

Guernsey was actually his third place of exile and he landed there in 1855.

根西岛实际上是他的第三个流放地，他于1855年在那里登陆。

He produced a lot while on Guernsey – including Les Misérables – and to do this, he had to spend a great deal of time in the home that he had there.

他在根西岛期间创作了很多作品，包括《悲惨世界》。为了创作，他不得不在他在那里的家中度过大量时间。

This was a property that he bought using the money he'd made in France from the publication of a collection of his poetry.

这是他用在法国出版诗集赚来的钱买下的一处房产。

It was the only property he ever owned, and he was very proud of it.

这是他唯一拥有的财产，他为此感到非常自豪。

The property Victor Hugo bought on Guernsey was a large, five-storey house in the capital town of St Peter Port and he lived there for 15 years, returning to France in 1870 when Napoleon's Empire collapsed.

维克多·雨果在根西岛购买的房产是坐落在首都圣彼得港的一栋五层楼的大房子。他在那里住了15年，并于1870年拿破仑帝国崩溃时返回法国。

He decorated and furnished each level, or floor, of the house in unique and wonderful ways, and many people consider the inside of the house to be a ‘work of art'.

他以独特而美妙的方式装饰和布置房子的每一层，许多人认为房子的内部是一件“艺术品”。

Today it's a museum that attracts 200,000 visitors a year.

今天，它是一座每年吸引200,000名游客的博物馆。

He lived in the house with his family … and portraits of its members still hang in rooms on the ground floor, along with drawings that he did during his travels that he felt were important to him.

他和他的家人住在这所房子里。一楼的房间里仍然挂着家里人的肖像，还有他旅行期间画的画，这对他很重要。

In other ground-floor rooms, there are huge tapestries that he would have designed and loved.

在一楼的其它房间里有他可能会设计并喜欢的巨大挂毯。

The walls are covered in dark wood panelling that Victor Hugo created himself using wooden furniture that he bought in the market.

墙壁上的深色木镶板是维克多·雨果用他在市场上购买的木制家具自己制作的。

The items were relatively inexpensive, and he used them to create intricate carvings.

这些物品相对便宜，被用来制作复杂的雕刻品。

They gave an atmosphere on the lower level that was shadowy and rather solemn.

这些雕刻品让一楼有一种庄严、幽深的感觉。

On the next level of the house there are two impressive lounges, where he entertained his guests.

在房子二层有两个令人印象深刻的休息室，他在那里招待客人。

One lounge has entirely red furnishings, such as sofas and wall coverings, and the other blue.

一个休息室的墙布和家具比如沙发完全是红色的，另一个是蓝色的。

There's a strong Chinese influence in these areas in things like the wallpaper pattern and the lamps – which he would have made himself by copying original versions.

这些房间里的墙纸图案和灯具等方面受到了强烈的中国风影响。他会通过复制原始版本自己动手制作这些东西。

His library, where he left many of his favourite books, forms the hallway to the third floor and was a comfortable area where he could relax and enjoy his afternoons.

在他的图书馆里，他留下了许多他最喜欢的书。这是通往三楼的走廊。这是一个舒适的地方，他可以在那里放松，享受他的下午。

And then, at the very top of the house, there's a room called the Lookout – called that because it looks out over the harbour.

然后，在房子的最顶层，有一个叫做眺望的房间。之所以这么叫是因为从这里可以俯瞰海港。

In contrast to the rather dark lower levels, it's full of light and was like a glass office where he would write until lunchtime – often at his desk.

与基调昏暗的楼下相比，这里光线充足，就像一个玻璃办公室，他会在这里，通常是在他的办公桌前，写作到午餐时间。

So, Victor Hugo was a man of many talents, but he was also true to his values.

维克多·雨果是一个多才多艺的人，但他也忠于自己的价值观。

While living in his house on Guernsey, he entertained many other famous writers, but he also invited a large group of local children from the deprived areas of the island to dinner once a week.

住在他位于根西岛的家中时，他招待了许多著名作家。但他也每周邀请岛上贫困地区的许多儿童共进晚餐。

What's more, he served them their food, which was an extraordinary gesture for the time period.

更重要的是，他用当地饮食招待他们，这在那个时代是一个非凡的举动。

In 1927, the house was owned by his relatives, and they decided to donate it to the city of Paris.1927

年，这所房子归他的亲戚所有，他们决定将其捐赠给巴黎市。

It has since been restored using photographs from the period and, as I mentioned earlier, is now a museum that is open to the public.

此后，根据那个时期的照片房屋被进行了修复。正如我之前提到的，它现在是一个向公众开放的博物馆。