Seen and Not Seen

He would see faces in movies, on TV, in magazines, and in books
他能在电影中、电视里、杂志中，图书上，看见无数的人脸
He thought that some of these faces might be right for him
他觉得一些面孔可能才适合他的样子
And that through the years
经过长年累月的努力
By keeping an ideal facial structure fixed in his mind
通过在脑海中保持一个理想的面部结构
Or somewhere in the back of his mind
或是在头脑中的其他某处
That he might, by force of will
那样，意志的力量
Cause his face to approach those of his ideal
就会使他的面容接近那些他的理想型
The change would be very subtle
这一变化过程可能非常微妙
It might take ten years or so
可能会花上十年或更多
Gradually his face would change its shape
逐渐地，他的脸改变了原样
A more hooked nose
更坚挺的鹰钩的鼻
Wider, thinner lips
更宽更薄的嘴唇
Beady eyes
晶亮如珠的眼
A larger forehead
更宽广的前额
He imagined that this was an ability he shared with most other people
他以为，这是一种所有人共有的能力
They had also molded their faces according to some ideal
大家都根据某种理想型塑造了自己的脸
Maybe they imagined that their new face
或许，他们设想的自己的新面容
Would better suit their personality
会更适合他们的个人特质
Or maybe they imagined that their personality
亦或是他们自己想象中的人格
Would be forced to change to fit the new appearance
迫使他们改变来适应自己的新外表
This is why first impressions are often correct
这就是为什么，第一印象往往是正确的
Although some people might have made mistakes
尽管一些人可能会犯错误
They may have arrived at an appearance
但他们可能已经得到了一个表象
That bears no relationship to them
这表象可能和他们毫无关联
They may have picked an ideal appearance
他们可能已经为自己选择了理想的外形
Based on some childish whim, or momentary impulse
基于孩子气的心血来潮，或者一时的冲动
Some may have gotten halfway there
有些人可能已经成功了一半
And then changed their minds
就改变了主意
He wonders if he too might have made a similar mistake
他开始怀疑，自己是否也犯了相同的错误