“盛宴结束了，故事还没有。”地面上，博吉斯、邦斯和比恩坐在帐篷边，把枪放在膝上，等着狐狸从洞里出来。天开始下雨，水顺着三个男人的脖子流进鞋里。“他现在撑不了多久了，”博吉斯说。“那畜生肯定饿坏了，”邦斯说。“说得对，”比恩说，“他随时都会冲出来。把枪拿好。”他们坐在洞口，等狐狸出来。而据我所知——他们还在等待。
The feast is over. Up above ground, Boggis, Bunce and Bean sit beside their tents with their guns on their laps. It begins to rain — water trickles down the necks of the three men and into their shoes. “He won’t stay down there much longer now,” says Boggis. “The brute must be famished,” says Bunce. “That’s right,” says Bean. “He’ll be making a dash for it any moment. Keep your guns handy.” They sit there by the hole, waiting for the fox to come out. And so far as I know, they are still waiting. Now read “Still Waiting” — the last chapter of the book.盛宴结束了。地面上，博吉斯、邦斯和比恩坐在帐篷边，把枪放在膝上。天开始下雨——水顺着三个男人的脖子流进鞋里。“他现在撑不了多久了，”博吉斯说。“那畜生肯定饿坏了，”邦斯说。“说得对，”比恩说，“他随时都会冲出来。把枪拿好。”他们坐在洞口，等狐狸出来。而据我所知，他们还在等待。现在来读《还在等待》——全书的最后一章。
Dahl ends the whole book with the three farmers still waiting by the hole — guns on their laps, rain dripping down their necks. After a book full of digging and outsmarting, the enemy is reduced to a frozen picture: three men who can only wait. He even steps into the story himself: “And so far as I know, they are still waiting.” The narrator’s voice turns the ending into a joke that never gets old — and gives the book its title. Dahl’s rule of endings: the cleverest trick is to leave the reader smiling.达尔用三个农夫还在洞口等待为全书收尾——枪放膝上，雨水顺着脖子流。一整本书的挖掘与智斗之后，敌人被定格成一幅静止的画面：三个只能等待的男人。他甚至亲自走进故事：“而据我所知，他们还在等待。”叙述者的声音把结尾变成一个永远不会过时的笑话——也给了这本书它的书名。达尔的结尾法则：最聪明的收尾，是让读者带着微笑合上书。
In Chapter 17, Mr Fox bricked up the hole in the wall and they headed home — each holding a jar of cider. He sang a little song as he ran, and Badger joined in. They rounded the final corner and burst in upon a large dining-room hollowed out of the earth, where twenty-nine animals sat around a huge table covered with chickens, ducks, geese, hams and bacon. Mrs Fox hugged Mr Fox, everyone hugged everyone else, and Badger raised his glass: “A toast — to Mr Fox!” Mr Fox stood up and promised: “We will make a little underground village — and every day we will eat like kings.” The cheering that followed went on for many minutes.第十七章里，狐狸爸爸封好墙上的洞，他们每人抱着一罐苹果酒回家。他边跑边唱一支小曲，獾先生也加入进来。他们转过最后一个弯，冲进地下挖出的大餐厅——二十九只动物围坐在铺满鸡、鸭、鹅、火腿和培根的大桌旁。狐狸太太拥抱狐狸爸爸，大家互相拥抱，獾先生举起酒杯：“敬狐狸爸爸一杯！”狐狸爸爸站起来许诺：“我们要建一座地下村庄——每天像国王一样吃饭。”随之而来的欢呼持续了好几分钟。
Up above, the three farmers sit beside their tents with their guns on their laps, waiting for Mr Fox to come out. It is beginning to rain. Will they catch him?地面上，三个农夫坐在帐篷边，把枪放在膝上，等狐狸爸爸从洞里出来。天开始下雨。他们会抓住他吗？
Pick one to remember your prediction — come back after reading to check!
点一个选项记住你的预测，读完全章后回来揭晓答案。
Two more questions after reading · 还有两个小问题：
1. Where did the three farmers sit?
三个农夫坐在哪里？
2. What did the rain do to the three men?
雨把三个男人怎么样了？
跟着原文读一遍。橙色单词先别查——根据上下文猜一猜。点击任意单词弹出词典卡片（中英释义 · 发音 · 例句）；点段落开头的 ▶ 听朗读（英式男声）。
Outside the fox’s hole, Boggis and Bunce and Bean sat beside their tents with their guns on their laps.
It was beginning to rain. Water was trickling down the necks of the three men and into their shoes.
“He won’t stay down there much longer now,” Boggis said.
“The brute must be famished,” Bunce said.
“That’s right,” Bean said. “He’ll be making a dash for it any moment.
“Keep your guns handy.”
They sat there by the hole, waiting for the fox to come out.
And so far as I know, they are still waiting.
这一章：盛宴结束，故事还没有。三个农夫坐在洞外的帐篷边，把枪放在膝上，在雨里等狐狸出来。他们一句接一句地猜测——「他撑不了多久了」「那畜生肯定饿坏了」「他随时都会冲出来」——可每一句肯定都落了空。狐狸爸爸待在地下，和动物们建起村庄；洞外，三个农夫还在等待。
描写分析仅限本章内容。这一章写「三个农夫在雨里等狐狸」：记叙文写「性格」，用语言（自信断言 vs 愠怒咒骂）写愚蠢与顽固、用动作（枪放膝上一动不动）写僵持与徒劳、用心理（“随时会冲出来”的期待）写落空——每一处描写，都在塑造三个失败者：自信的博吉斯、愠怒的邦斯、冷静的比恩。
“He won’t stay down there much longer now,” Boggis said.
Boggis speaks with total confidence: not “I think” or “maybe”, just “he won’t.” The certainty is the joke, because the reader knows something Boggis does not: the fox is not coming out at all. One short sentence shows the farmer’s whole character — proud, stubborn and wrong.
博吉斯说得斩钉截铁：不是“我想”或“也许”——而是“他不会”。这份笃定就是笑点，因为读者知道博吉斯不知道的事：狐狸根本不会出来。一个短句显出农夫的整个性格——骄傲、固执、错得离谱。
“The brute must be famished,” Bunce said.
Bunce calls Mr Fox “the brute” — one word of hatred. And he is wrong: the fox has just finished the greatest feast of his life. The word “famished” belongs to the farmers, not to the fox. His anger shows in a single insult, and his ignorance shows in a single guess.
邦斯把狐狸爸爸叫作“那畜生”——一个字的恨意。而且他错了：狐狸刚刚享用完一生中最盛大的一餐。“饿坏了”这个词属于农夫们，不属于狐狸。他的怒火藏在一个侮辱里，他的无知藏在一个猜测里。
Boggis and Bunce and Bean sat beside their tents with their guns on their laps. They sat there by the hole, waiting for the fox to come out.
Nobody moves. Sat, sat, waiting — the verbs are all stillness. Guns on laps, eyes on the hole: the men are fixed like statues, and the sentence never lets them leave. Their only action is inaction, and that is exactly what the ending needs.
没有人动。坐着、坐着、等着——动词全是静止。枪放膝上，眼睛盯着洞口：三个人像雕像一样定住，句子始终不让他们离开。他们唯一的动作就是不动，这正是结尾需要的。
“That’s right,” Bean said. “He’ll be making a dash for it any moment.”
“Any moment” is a mind full of expectation — the farmer’s whole inner world is one long wait for something that will never come. Dahl shows the psychology without explaining it: the men think in “any moment”, and the reader knows the moment never arrives.
“随时”是一个装满期待的脑子——农夫的整个内心世界就是一场漫长的等待，等一件永远不会来的事。达尔不用解释就写出了心理：男人们用“随时”思考，而读者知道那一刻永远不会到来。
It was beginning to rain. Water was trickling down the necks of the three men and into their shoes.
The rain is not just weather; it is a comment. Every drop says the same thing: nothing is happening, nothing will happen. Dahl chooses the smallest details of discomfort — down the necks, into the shoes — to paint a picture of waiting that has no end. The setting itself becomes the joke.
雨不只是天气，更是一句评论。每一滴都在说同一件事：什么都没发生，什么都不会发生。达尔挑出最细微的不适细节——顺着脖子，流进鞋里——画出一幅没有尽头的等待图景。场景本身变成了笑点。
示意图：全书的最后一幕就压在这对反义词上——地上是枪与雨，地下是村庄与盛宴。农夫们只会等待，动物们已经安居。对比越鲜明，那句“他们还在等待”就越好笑、越动人。
这一章是「等待 → 对话 → 定格」的收束结构：洞外雨夜定格三个农夫 → 三人对话把紧张推到顶点 → 一句 “still waiting” 让悬念永远延续。它接住全书的开场（三个农夫在洞口等），以同一个画面合拢圆圈——等待，就是这本书的最后一章。
Outside the fox’s hole, Boggis and Bunce and Bean sat beside their tents with their guns on their laps.
「在狐狸洞外，博吉斯、邦斯和比恩坐在帐篷边，把枪放在膝上。」
How it expands · 怎么展开：用「镜头定格」展开：开场就是一个静止的中景——洞、帐篷、枪、膝。三个人被画成一幅画，为全章定下“等待”的基调。
It was beginning to rain. Water was trickling down the necks of the three men and into their shoes.
「天开始下雨。水顺着三个男人的脖子流下来，流进他们的鞋里。」
How it expands · 怎么展开：用「环境加压」展开：雨不是灾难，只是难受——顺着脖子、流进鞋里。天意站在农夫们对面，等待变得更狼狈。
“He won’t stay down there much longer now,” Boggis said. “The brute must be famished,” Bunce said. “That’s right,” Bean said.
「『他现在撑不了多久了，』博吉斯说。『那畜生肯定饿坏了，』邦斯说。『说得对，』比恩说。」
How it expands · 怎么展开：用「对话链条」展开：一人一句，博吉斯猜测、邦斯附和、比恩确认——三句话拼成一个共同的笃定，而句句都与真相相反。
“He’ll be making a dash for it any moment. Keep your guns handy.”
「『他随时都会冲出来。把枪拿好。』」
How it expands · 怎么展开：用「短句收束」展开：一句预言接一条命令——“any moment”把紧张推到顶点，“Keep your guns handy”让三个人绷成满弓，等待一场永不发生的冲刺。
And so far as I know, they are still waiting.
「而据我所知，他们还在等待。」
How it expands · 怎么展开：用「作者发声」收尾：讲故事的人直接走进故事——“so far as I know”让结局像一句真实报道，“still waiting”接住开场的等待画面，也用书名合拢全书。悬念不解决，笑点不落幕。
这是「首尾呼应的开放式结尾」结构，复述时沿着画面走：洞外 → 雨 → 三人对话 → 命令 → 坐着等 → 作者收尾。先讲画面，再讲对话，最后讲那个永远不结束的等待。
小提示：与「思维导图」搭配用——把导图的枝条按 等待 → 对话 → 定格 排好，先看导图复述一遍，再合上导图凭记忆复述一遍。
把第十八章的信息装进这张「思维导图」，再沿着复述支架讲一遍——你也能当小老师！
把句子补充完整，就完成了第十八章的复述。
复述加分：用 First / Then / Next / Then / Next / Then / Then / Finally 把八句话串起来；讲到三个农夫说话，一人一句，用越来越不耐烦的口气——雨越大，等待越久，你的复述就越有味！
8 张图卡按情节顺序排好。看着图片，用英文把第十八章讲出来——点击图片可以放大，每张图点开都有一句「提示句」帮你起头。
提示：图卡可左右滑动查看全部 8 张；点「看看提示句」展开英文句子；点图片放大全屏。
1 · First 洞外守候→ 2 · Then 开始下雨→ 3 · Next 博吉斯断言→ 4 · Also 邦斯咒骂→ 5 · Then 比恩预言→ 6 · Next 把枪拿好→ 7 · Also 坐着等待→ 8 · Finally 还在等待小挑战：先看着图讲一遍，再合上图卡，只凭记忆讲一遍——能做到，第十八章就真正属于你了！
这一章，Dahl 不写「再挖一条隧道」，写「等一只不会出来的狐狸」：洞口、帐篷、膝上的枪、顺脖子流下的雨，还有三句越来越肯定的猜测。全书最安静的一章，秘密武器是这八招：
全书开头，三个农夫在洞口等狐狸；最后一章，同一幅画面原样端上来：枪还在膝上，人还在洞口。首尾相接，故事绕了一圈回到起点——唯一不同的是，读者已经知道狐狸赢了。等待，就是这本书的结局。
开头「洞外等待」，结尾「还在等待」——中文叫「首尾呼应」；一幅画面首尾相接，故事绕一圈回来，等待成了结局本身。
故事的结尾不回答「狐狸有没有被抓住」，只回答「据我所知，他们还在等」。达尔故意不解决悬念：狐狸的胜利不需要盖章，三个农夫的等待也不需要终止——让读者带着笑合上书，就是最好的句号。
不写「结果如何」，只写「据我所知还在等」——中文叫「留白」；话不说尽，余味更长。
这一章没有打斗、没有追逐，达尔让雨来当配角：顺着脖子、流进鞋里——雨不大，却一刻不停。环境不说话，但它每时每刻都在说：这里什么都没发生，这里什么都不会发生。
用雨写等待，不写「很无聊」，只写「水顺着脖子流进鞋」——中文叫「以景衬情」；景物不说话，情绪全在上面。
博吉斯断言、邦斯诅咒、比恩附和——三句话拼成一条对话链，一句比一句肯定，像接力一样把自信传下去。读者知道狐狸正在地下赴宴，于是每一句「肯定」都变成一次小小的反讽：越笃定，越好笑。
一人一句，接力断言——中文叫「语言描写」；话不旁白，性格和愚蠢都在台词里。
全章的动词几乎只有 sat 和 waiting：没有人追、没有人喊、没有人开枪。达尔用「零动作」写等待——三个人被钉在画面里，像三尊雕像。动作越少，僵持越久，结尾那句「还在等待」就越有分量。
不写「他们等着」，只写「他们坐着、枪放在膝上」——中文叫「以静写动」；一动不动，反而把等待写到了极致。
邦斯用 must 斩钉截铁地推测：狐狸肯定饿坏了。可读者刚看完盛宴——狐狸吃得像国王。台词与真相完全相反，这就是戏剧性反讽：农夫们越肯定，读者越乐。一个 must，把三个人的愚蠢说得明明白白。
「他肯定饿坏了」——读者知道他刚吃过盛宴——中文叫「反讽」；话与真相错位，笑点就出来了。
一章之内，达尔只给了两个画面：地上是枪和雨，地下是村庄和盛宴。农夫们守着洞口等一场永远不会来的冲刺，动物们在地下建起了家。这一对反义词不是装饰，是全书的总结——谁在等，谁在赢，一眼便知。
「地上枪与雨，地下家与宴」——中文叫「对比」；两个世界并排一站，结局不言自明。
全书的最后一句，达尔亲自走进故事：「据我所知」。一句像新闻播报的话，把童话的结尾说得像真事——「还在等待」既是故事的结局，也是书名 Fantastic Mr Fox 背后那句潜台词：了不起的狐狸赢了，三个农夫还在等。作者一开口，全书定格。
结尾作者亲自开口，「据我所知」一句点题——中文叫「卒章显志」；最后一句话落下，主旨水落石出。
中西对照小发现：英文 still, waiting 就是中文「首尾呼应」，an end that stays open 就是「开放式结尾/留白」，rain does the talking 就是「以景衬情」，three certain voices 就是「语言描写」，a frozen picture 就是「以静写动」，the brute must be famished 就是「反讽」，the feast vs the wait 就是「对比」，the narrator steps in 就是「卒章显志」。给小朋友讲的时候，中英文术语可以互相借用，哪边熟讲哪边。
三个难度层级：先找细节，再推原因，最后谈看法。点「提示」给一点帮助，点「答案」对照想法——每道题都有英文参考答案和中文释义。
1. Where did the three farmers sit? 三个农夫坐在哪里？
2. What was happening to the men’s shoes? 男人的鞋怎么了？
3. What did Bean say the fox would do any moment? 比恩说狐狸随时会做什么？
4. Why were the farmers so sure the fox would come out? 农夫们为什么这么肯定狐狸会出来？
5. Why is the rain important in this chapter? 为什么这场雨很重要？
6. Why does the narrator say “so far as I know”? 叙述者为什么说「据我所知」？
7. Do the farmers look clever or silly in this chapter? Why? 这一章里农夫们显得聪明还是愚蠢？为什么？
8. Why is “still waiting” a good ending for the whole book? 为什么「还在等待」是全书的好结尾？
9. What do the animals’ underground life and the farmers’ rainy wait tell us about winning? 动物们的地下生活与农夫们的雨中等待，告诉我们「赢」是什么？
Chapter 18 is about waiting that never ends. The farmers sit in the rain with guns on their laps; the fox stays underground, feasting like a king. Every word they say sounds certain, and every certainty is wrong. The last chapter is a joke about pride: the men who tried to catch a fantastic fox are left as three statues in the rain — still waiting.
第十八章写的是「永远不会结束的等待」。农夫们把枪放在膝上坐在雨里；狐狸待在地下，像国王一样赴宴。他们每句话都说得那么肯定，而每句肯定都错了。最后一章是一则关于骄傲的笑话：想要抓住一只了不起的狐狸的人，最终成了雨中的三尊雕像——还在等待。
每张词卡正面是原文句子——先根据上下文猜意思，再点击翻面验证。学完 12 个核心词，别忘了下面的「拓展好词」。
with their guns on their laps.
猜一猜：膝上 / 头上 / 脚下？
Boggis and Bunce and Bean sat beside their tents.
猜一猜：帐篷 / 汽车 / 房屋？
Water was trickling down the necks of the three men.
猜一猜：滴流 / 喷涌 / 冻结？
Water was trickling down the necks of the three men.
猜一猜：脖子 / 手臂 / 后背？
“The brute must be famished,” Bunce said.
猜一猜：饿极的 / 饱足的 / 开心的？
“The brute must be famished,” Bunce said.
猜一猜：畜生 / 绅士 / 朋友？
“He’ll be making a dash for it any moment.”
猜一猜：冲刺 / 散步 / 唱歌？
“Keep your guns handy.”
猜一猜：手边的 / 远处的 / 昂贵的？
And so far as I know, they are still waiting.
猜一猜：仍然 / 已经 / 从不？
waiting for the fox to come out ... they are waiting.
猜一猜：等待 / 逃跑 / 挖洞？
“He’ll be making a dash for it any moment.”
猜一猜：时刻 / 星期 / 房间？
“He won’t stay down there much longer now.”
猜一猜：更久 / 更远 / 更快？
| Word | Meaning 释义 | From the text 原文 |
|---|---|---|
| hole | n. 洞；洞穴 | “Outside the fox's hole” |
| guns | n. 枪（复数） | “with their guns on their laps” |
| shoes | n. 鞋（复数） | “into their shoes” |
| raining | v. 下雨 | “It was beginning to rain” |
| sat | v. 坐（sit 的过去式） | “They sat there by the hole” |
| come out | v. 出来 | “waiting for the fox to come out” |
| any moment | adv. 随时 | “He'll be making a dash for it any moment” |
| so far as I know | 据我所知 | “And so far as I know, they are still waiting” |
本章的 4 个语法点都藏在课文句子里：每个点按「规则 → 原文例句 → 即时练习」三步走，最后做综合小测检验。先看 be beginning to 表「渐渐开始」，再学 must 表推测、will be + v-ing 表「随时会发生」，最后看 Keep + 宾语 + 形容词的祈使句。
规则：be beginning to + 动词原形 表示「开始（渐渐）做某事」，强调事情刚刚开始、还在持续。It was beginning to rain（天开始下起雨来）——雨不是突然倾盆，而是一点一点下起来。was/were beginning to 是过去进行时，画面感最强。
P2It was beginning to rain. Water was trickling down the necks ...
be beginning to + 原形 = 「开始渐渐……」：天开始下雨。强调刚刚开始、还在继续。
1. get（天开始渐渐变暗。——beginning to + 动词原形。）
2. fall（树叶开始飘落。——beginning to + 原形 fall。）
规则：must + be/动词原形 表示「肯定……；一定……」，说话人对自己的推测非常有把握。“The brute must be famished,” Bunce said（那畜生肯定饿坏了）——邦斯说得斩钉截铁。必须注意的是：must 的推测再肯定，也可能是错的——这一章里，它错得正好。
P4“The brute must be famished,” Bunce said.
must + be/动词 = 「肯定……」：他肯定饿坏了。must 表有把握的推测，但也可能说错。
1. tired（比赛那么久，他肯定累了。——must be + 形容词。）
2. be（他们肯定饿了。——must + 动词原形 be。）
规则：will be + 现在分词 是将来进行时：表示「到那时正在进行」，也常用来预言「随时就会发生」。He’ll be making a dash for it any moment（他随时都会冲出来）——比 will make 更有「就要发生、一刻不停」的紧迫感。三个农夫屏住呼吸，等的就是这一下。
P5“He’ll be making a dash for it any moment.”
will be + v-ing = 将来进行时：表示「随时会发生/那时正在进行」。will be making a dash = 马上就要冲出来。
1. flying（明天这个时候她正在飞机上。——will be + v-ing。）
2. having（八点我们正在吃晚饭。——will be having dinner。）
规则：Keep + 名词 + 形容词 表示「让某物保持在某种状态」，是祈使句里最实用的一招：Keep your guns handy（把枪放在手边）、Keep the door closed（把门关好）。动词用原形开头，命令干脆，形容词补在后面说明「保持成什么样」。
P6Keep your guns handy.
Keep + 宾语 + 形容词 = 「让……保持……」：把枪放在手边。动词原形开头，命令干脆利落。
1. closed（把门关好。——keep + 宾语 + 过去分词/形容词。）
2. handy（把手机放在手边。——keep + 宾语 + 形容词 handy。）
语法小贴士：四个点合起来看：was beginning to 管「怎么把过程写慢」，must be 管「怎么把推测说满」，will be + v-ing 管「怎么让未来压到眼前」，Keep ... handy 管「怎么下最短的命令」。读这一章时留意：It was beginning to rain 是渐渐开始，must be famished 是笃定推测，will be making a dash 是随时会发生，Keep your guns handy 是一声命令——语法点全都活在等待里。
5 道选择题 + 1 个配对游戏。先做选择题，再做配对，看看你能得几分！
1Where did the three farmers sit?
2What did the rain do to the three men?
3What did Bunce call Mr Fox?
4What did Bean tell the men to keep handy?
5What is the last sentence of the book?
先点左边的角色，再点右边他说的话。
还有 3 对要配对。
这一页是你的自学地图：学习目标、学习步骤和全部答案都在这里，跟着走就能通关第十八章。