I did not knowwhy Strickland had suddenly offered to show them to me. I welcomed theopportunity. A man's work reveals him. In social intercourse he gives you thesurface that he wishes the world to accept, and you can only gain a trueknowledge of him by inferences from little actions, of which he is unconscious,and from fleeting expressions, which cross his face unknown to him. Sometimespeople carry to such perfection the mask they have assumed that in due coursethey actually become the person they seem. But in his book or his picture thereal man delivers himself defenceless. His pretentiousness will only expose hisvacuity. The lathe painted to look like iron is seen to be but a lathe. Noaffectation of peculiarity can conceal a commonplace mind. To the acuteobserver no one can produce the most casual work without disclosing theinnermost secrets of his soul.

As I walked upthe endless stairs of the house in which Strickland lived, I confess that I wasa little excited. It seemed to me that I was on the threshold of a surprisingadventure. I looked about the room with curiosity. It was even smaller and morebare than I remembered it. I wondered what those friends of mine would say whodemanded vast studios, and vowed they could not work unless all the conditionswere to their liking.

"You'dbetter stand there, " he said, pointing to a spot from which, presumably,he fancied I could see to best advantage what he had to show me.

"You don'twant me to talk, I suppose, " I said.

"No, blastyou; I want you to hold your tongue. "

我不知道为什么思特里克兰德突然主动提出来要让我看他的画，但是对这样一个机会我是非常欢迎的。作品最能泄露一个人的真实思想和感情。在交际应酬中，一个人只让你看到他希望别人接受他的一些表面现象，你只能借助他无意中作出的一些小动作，借助不知不觉中掠过他脸上的一些表情对他作出正确的了解。有些时候，人们把一副假面装得逼真，时间久了，他们真会变成他们装扮的这样一个人了。但是在他写的书、画的画里面，他却毫无防范地把自己显露出来。如果他作势唬人，那只能暴露出他的空虚。他那些涂了油漆冒充铁板的木条还会看出来只不过是木条。假充具有独特的个性无法掩盖平凡庸俗的性格。对于一个目光敏锐的观察者，即使一个人信笔一挥的作品也完全可以泄露他灵魂深处的隐秘。

我必须承认，当我走上思特里克兰德住处的无穷无尽的楼梯时，我感到有一些兴奋。我似乎马上就要步入一场奇异的冒险。我好奇地环顾了一下他的小屋子。这间屋子好象比我记忆中的更小、家具什物也更少了。我有些朋友总需要宽大的画室，坚持要条件必备才能作画，我倒想知道他们对这间画室作何感想。

“你最好站在这儿，”他指着一块地方说，他可能认为在他把画拿给我看的时候，这是一个最适合观赏的角度。

“我想你不愿意我说话吧，”我说。

“这还用问，他妈的。我要你闭住你的嘴巴。”