1. 原文：
[ Chapter1 ]
we are introduced to the narrator, a pilot, and his ideas about grown-ups
Once when I was six years old I saw a magnificent picture in a book, called True Stories from Nature, about the primeval forest. It was a picture of a boa constrictor in the act of swallowing an animal. Here is a copy of the drawing.
In the book it said: "Boa constrictors swallow their prey whole, without chewing it. After that they are not able to move,and they sleep through the six months that they need for digestion." I pondered deeply, then, over the adventures of the jungle. And after some work with a colored pencil I succeeded in making my first drawing. My Drawing Number One. It looked like this:
I showed my masterpiece to the grownups, and asked them whether the drawing frightened them. But they answered:"Frighten?Why should any one be frightened by a hat?"
My drawing was not a picture of a hat. It was a picture of a boa constrictor digesting an elephant. But since the grownups were not able to understand it, I made another drawing: I drew the inside of the boa constrictor,so that the grownups could see it clearly . They always need to have things explained.My Drawing Number Two looked like this:
The grownups‘ response, this time, was to advise me to lay aside my drawings of boa constrictors, whether from the inside or the outside, and devote myself instead to geography,history,arithmetic and grammar.That is why, at the age of six, I gave up what might have been a magnificent career as a painter.I had been disheartened by the failure of my Drawing Number One and my Drawing Number Two. Grownups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.
So then I chose another profession, and learned to pilot airplanes. I have flown a little over all parts of the world; and it is true that geography has been very useful to me. At a glance I can distinguish China from Arizona. If one gets lost in the night, such knowledge is valuable. In the course of this life I have had a great many encounters with a great many people who have been concerned with matters of consequence.I have lived a great deal among grownups. I have seen them intimately, close at hand. And that hasn‘t much improved my opinion of them.
Whenever I met one of them who seemed to me at all clear sighted, I tried the experiment of showing him my Drawing Number One, which I have always kept. I would try to find out, so, if this was a person of true understanding. But, whoever it was, he, or she, would always say:"That is a hat." Then I would never talk to that person about boa constrictors,or primeval forests,or stars. I would bring myself down to his level. I would talk to him about bridge, and golf, and politics, and neckties.And the grownup would be greatly pleased to have met such a sensible man.
2. 疑难词汇
narrator：n. 叙述者；解说员。在文中可理解为作者
magnificent：adj. 壮丽的；华丽的；宏伟的
primeval forest: 原始森林
boa constrictor：大蟒蛇
prey： n. 猎物
ponder: v. 思考
adventure： n. 冒险
jungle： n. 丛林
masterpiece： n. 杰作
lay aside： 搁置，放在一边
devote oneself to sth/doing sth: 致力于......，专心做......
dishearten：vt. 使灰心，使沮丧，使气馁
tiresome：adj. 烦人的，无聊的；令人讨厌的
At a glance：看一眼
distinguish：v. 分辨
encounter：n. 遭遇，偶然碰见
intimately：adv. 熟悉地；亲切地；私下地
3. 内容概要
主要讲述作者对成年人的成见是如何形成的。作者六岁的时候看了一本关于原始丛林的书，里面有提到蟒蛇吞下一整只动物，然后花六个月时间来消化。于是，作者自己画了一幅蟒蛇生吞大象的画，但是大人们都以为是一只帽子。作者只好又重新画了第二幅画，把蛇肚子里的大象都画出来了以后大人们才能看懂，可看懂以后，大人们又说，建议你多花点时间学学地理，历史，算数和文法吧。
作者的绘画梦想受到了打击。于是转而学了开飞机，地理知识确实派上了很大的用场。在这期间作者去了很多地方，遇到了很多人，然而跟这些人的亲密相处并没有改变作者对成年人的成见。
作者每遇到一个人都会做一个实验，把他小时候画的那副画拿出来问人：这是什么？但答案永远毫无例外，这是一只帽子。如果是这个答案作者就会绝口不谈蟒蛇，丛林或星空，只会聊高尔夫，政治或者其他一些诸如此类的话题。
4. 碎碎念
这一章里给我印象最深的两部分，一是大人们看到孩子的画后，并没有夸赞他丰富的想象力或是独特的巧思，反而建议他去学习地理、历史、算数等等一些更有用的学科。成人世界的对学习的评判标准只有有用或无用。如果无用，就不要浪费时间，就要lay aside；如果有用，就要devote oneself to it。然而在孩子的心中只有有趣或无趣，一花一世界，一树一菩提，敏感细腻的童心甚至可以体验出阳光下一滴水的五光十色。
二是当作者每次听到对方回答是一只帽子的时候，他就让自己降低到对方的水平（ I would bring myself down to his level）。真心酸。其实作者一直在寻找真正能理解他，和他一样保有童真的人，可一次次的希望紧接着一次次的失望，内心的大门一次次关闭。口里聊着政治和领带，心里却想着星空和丛林。何时才能有一个人能够真正打开他的心呢？
看到这里，我不免想起了红楼梦里的贾宝玉，这个在另一个时空和国度的人竟然和安东尼有着惊人相似的精神内核：同样鄙视成人的利欲熏心，同样不愿与污浊的成人世界同流合污，同样有着无为无畏的童心。然而贾宝玉有林黛玉，安东尼会不会也遇到一个懂他的人?
