H. H. 福爾摩斯——美國史上最駭人的連環殺手？：英語精讀講義

What makes a serial killer the worst of his or her kind? 表達脈絡

是什麼讓一個連環殺手成為同類中最惡劣的？

Well, it's probably a few things,

嗯，可能由於幾個原因，

such as the body count, but for most people, 講解

例如殺人數，但對大多數人來說，

it would more likely be the nature of the killing. 文法

更有可能是殺人的手段。

The UK's Harold Shipman, aka Dr. Death,

英國的Harold Shipman，又名「死亡醫生」，

may have killed well over 200 people, 文法

可能殺害了200多人，

but you could say his modus operandi wasn't as depraved as some killers. 用詞

但你可以說他的作案手法沒有一些殺手那麼墮落。

Richard Ramirez, the American Satanist,

美國撒旦教徒Richard Ramirez，

got up close and personal to his victims and did all manner of horrific things to them. 講解

近距離接觸他的受害者，並對他們做盡了各種可怕的事情。

Albert Fish tortured, mutilated, killed, and ate children,

Albert Fish折磨、肢解、殺害並吃掉兒童，

and he was subsequently called a psychiatric phenomenon.

他隨後被稱為精神病學上的一個奇觀。

The list goes on, 表達脈絡

這樣的例子不勝枚舉，

and the total depravity of killers can chill your spine. 慣用語

殺手們那徹頭徹尾的墮落能讓你脊背發涼。

Today, we are going to feature one person who often receives the superlative of worst.

今天，我們將要介紹一個經常被冠以「最惡劣」之名的人。

In this episode of The Infographics Show,

在這一期的《The Infographics Show》中，

H. H. Holmes,

H. H. Holmes，

is he the worst serial killer in US history?

他是美國歷史上最惡劣的連環殺手嗎？

Where do we start?

我們從哪裡開始呢？

Well,

嗯，

what about the fairly recent revelations that the killer who was the focus of today's show may have been none other than Jack the Ripper? 片語搭配

最近有爆料稱今天節目的焦點殺手可能正是開膛手傑克，這事你怎麼看？

It's an outside chance, 片語搭配

這是一個極小的可能性，

and no indisputable evidence has been seen,

而且也沒有看到確鑿的證據，

but the great-great-grandson of Herman Webster Mudgett,

但是Herman Webster Mudgett的玄孫，

aka H. H. Holmes,

也就是H. H. Holmes，

aka the Devil in the White City,

又名「白城魔鬼」，

came forward in 2017 and said he had evidence that proved his deceased relative was London's infamous Ripper. 片語動詞

在2017年站出來說，他有證據證明他已故的親戚就是倫敦臭名昭著的開膛手。

The great-great-grandson,

這位玄孫，

Jeff Mudgett, believes Holmes was never actually executed,

Jeff Mudgett，相信Holmes其實從未被處決，

having found a way out of it after employing his well-known trickery.

而是施展了他著名的詭計逃脫了死刑。

He also claims that Holmes's diaries,

他還聲稱Holmes的日記，

which he is now the owner of, 文法

現在歸他所有，

described viciously mutilating and murdering prostitutes in London.

描述了在倫敦殘忍地肢解和謀殺妓女的過程。

Could the man said to be America's first serial killer be much worse than we thought? 文法

這個被稱為美國第一個連環殺手的男人，會比我們想像的還要糟糕得多嗎？

This is very likely not the case because in 2017,

這很可能不是真的，因為在2017年，

his body was exhumed and was found to be largely preserved

他的屍體被挖掘出來，發現保存得相當完好

due to the fact that Holmes got his wish and was buried in a coffin filled with concrete. 片語搭配

因為Holmes如願以償，被埋在一個填滿混凝土的棺材裡。

A DNA test was performed,

隨後進行了一項DNA測試，

and indeed, it revealed that the preserved body was that of H. H. Holmes. 文法

結果確實表明，這具保存完好的屍體就是H. H. Holmes的。

So,

那麼，

what about H. H. Holmes?

H. H. Holmes到底是怎麼回事呢？

Why is he said to be one of the worst,

為什麼他被稱作是最惡劣的殺手之一，

if not the worst, 片語搭配

就算不是最惡劣的，

in history?

在歷史上？

What exactly did he do to get that epithet?

他到底做了什麼才得到這個稱號？

First of all,

首先，

we don't know how many people he killed.

我們不知道他殺了多少人。

He confessed to 27 murders,

他承認了27起謀殺案，

but police have only ever been sure about nine of his murders.

但警方唯一能確定的只有他犯下的9起謀殺案。

Some people believe that he may have killed in the region of 200 people, 用詞

有些人認為他可能殺了大約200人，

but that is very questionable.

但這非常值得懷疑。

It isn't how many people he killed, however, 文法

然而，重要的不是他殺了多少人，

as we say, Dr. Shipman is never regarded as the worst killer,

正如我們所說，Shipman醫生從未被認為是最惡劣的殺手，

but the manner in which he supposedly killed people.

而是他被認為殺人的方式。

He was said to be a sadist,

據說他是一個施虐狂，

a fellow with a brutal propensity for watching people suffer and feel pain, 片語搭配

一個有著看著別人受苦和感到痛苦的殘忍癖好的人，

and he would do this when they were locked inside one of his torture rooms.

當他們被鎖在他的一間酷刑室裡時，他就會這樣做。

But let's start from the beginning. 表達脈絡

但讓我們從頭開始。

He was born in New Hampshire on May 16th, 1861,

他於1861年5月16日出生在新罕布夏州，

and his childhood has been written about extensively.

關於他的童年有大量的記載。

Did he torture animals,

他折磨動物了嗎，

as many serial killers have been said to do, 文法

就像許多連環殺手據說做的那樣，

or was his childhood fairly normal?

或者他的童年相當正常？

He is said to have admitted himself,

據說他自己承認過，

"I was born with the very devil in me.

"我生來體內就藏著真正的魔鬼。

The inclination to murder came to me as naturally 文法

謀殺的傾向對我來說是那麼自然，

as the inspiration to do right comes to the majority of persons."

就像做正確之事的靈感降臨在大多數人身上一樣。"

His early life fits the pattern of regular folks.

他早年的生活符合普通人的模式。

He graduated high school,

他高中畢業，

got married,

結了婚，

had a kid,

有了孩子，

went to university.

上了大學。

He then dropped out of one university and later went to another from which he graduated.

然後他從一所大學輟學，後來去了另一所大學並順利畢業。

If anything does point to his wicked ways, 文法

如果有任何事情能指出他邪惡的傾向，

it's that he studied human dissection

那就是他學習了人體解剖

and as a young man was said to be violent towards his wife.

而且據說年輕時對他的妻子有暴力傾向。

But then things got out of hand. 慣用語

但隨後事情就失控了。

He started to move from city to city 文法

他開始在城市之間穿梭，

and on at least two occasions was linked to the murders of young boys.

並且至少有兩次與年輕男孩的謀殺案有關。

One boy disappeared after allegedly being seen with Holmes,

一名男孩據稱在被看到與Holmes在一起後失蹤，

and another died after taking drugs from the pharmacy where Holmes worked.

另一名男孩在服用了Holmes工作的藥房裡的藥後死亡。

He certainly liked to keep moving,

他顯然喜歡不斷搬家，

which could be the reason why most accounts of his life state that before he finally arrived in Chicago, 文法

這可能就是為什麼大多數關於他生平的記錄都指出，在最終到達芝加哥之前，

he had become a big-time swindler. 用詞

他已經成為了一名大騙子。

Notably,

值得注意的是，

it's said his cons involved insurance,

據說他的騙局涉及保險，

with one biography saying Holmes was stealing and mutilating medical cadavers

一本傳記說Holmes偷竊並肢解醫用屍體，

and pretending they were victims of accidents to collect money.

並假裝他們是事故受害者來騙取錢財。

As for the dead children,

至於死去的孩子們，

police never linked them to Holmes.

警方從未將他們與Holmes聯繫起來。

It's only in retrospect that we might wonder if he had anything to do with them. 講解

只有在回想起來時，我們可能會懷疑他是否與他們有關。

In Chicago, though,

然而在芝加哥，

that's where the ghastly stuff really took place,

那才是真正發生可怕事情的地方，

when Holmes created his sick pièce de résistance that became known as his murder castle. 用詞

當時Holmes創造了他病態的「傑作」，後來被稱為他的「謀殺城堡」。

This was a three-story building on Chicago's 63rd and Wallace Streets.

這是位於芝加哥第63街和華萊士街的一座三層建築。

A huge place,

一個巨大的地方，

it took up an entire block. 片語動詞

它佔據了整個街區。

He called it the World's Fair Hotel,

他稱之為世界博覽會飯店，

built for the upcoming World's Columbian Exposition, 文化背景

是為即將到來的芝加哥世界哥倫布紀念博覽會建造的，

but it never really became a proper hotel.

但它從來沒有真正成為一家像樣的飯店。

Holmes had all manner of problems with suppliers

Holmes與供應商之間存在各種問題，

and was accused of possible insurance fraud when part of it burned down.

當其中一部分被燒毀時，他被指控可能存在保險詐欺行為。

It was always a shady project,

這始終是一個可疑的專案，

only because Holmes seemed to have a difficult relationship with anyone involved with it.

只因為Holmes似乎與任何參與其中的人關係都不好。

In 1937,

在1937年，

long after Holmes's arrest,

在Holmes被捕很久之後，

the Chicago Tribune described the place as queer, 用詞

《芝加哥論壇報》將這個地方形容為「古怪」，

stating it had chimneys stuck out where chimneys should never stick out,

指出它的煙囪從不該有煙囪的地方伸出來，

its stairways and ended nowhere in particular,

它的樓梯沒有明確的終點，

winding passages brought the uninitiated with a frightful jerk back to where they had started from.

蜿蜒的通道猛地一下把不知情的人可怕地帶回到起點。

They called it mysterious and crooked,

他們稱其神秘而扭曲，

as distorted as the killer's mind,

就像兇手的心智一樣扭曲，

with rooms with no doors and doors with no rooms. 表達脈絡

有無門的房間和無房間的門。

The stuff of nightmares. 慣用語

簡直是噩夢般的存在。

The thing with the house is that Holmes was the only person who knew how it actually worked. 片語搭配

這棟房子的特別之處在於Holmes是唯一知道它到底如何運作的人。

It was kind of a maze,

它就像一個迷宮，

a house of horrors that made no sense to other people.

一個對其他人來說毫無意義的恐怖之屋。

It was to this mad place that he invited mainly young women to stay. 文法

正是到了這個瘋狂的地方，他主要邀請年輕女性入住。

Some say it's hard to tell exactly what he did, though,

然而，有些人說很難說清他到底做了什麼，

or who he killed,

或者他殺了誰，

only because the man who was married to three people at the same time

只因為這個同時與三個人結婚的男人

liked to tell a lot of lies.

喜歡撒很多謊。

Benjamin Pitezel was a friend of Holmes and also an accomplice in some of his crimes.

Benjamin Pitezel是Holmes的朋友，也是他一些罪行中的同謀。

Pitezel had agreed with Holmes to do a scam,

Pitezel曾同意與Holmes做個騙局，

whereby Pitezel's death would be faked and they would share a $10,000 life insurance payment. 用詞

即偽造Pitezel的死亡，然後他們平分10000美元的人壽保險金。

However,

然而，

Holmes never got a cadaver,

Holmes根本沒去弄一具屍體，

which he would say was his friend's,

好讓他能謊稱是自己朋友的屍體，

rather he knocked his friend out with chloroform and then set him on fire. 片語動詞

而是用氯仿把他的朋友迷暈，然後放火燒了他。

Holmes later said he murdered three out of five of Pitezel's children. 文法

Holmes後來說他謀殺了Pitezel的五個孩子中的三個。

Two of their bodies were found buried in the hotel.

其中兩具屍體被發現埋在飯店裡。

Holmes is also said to have murdered his mistress,

據說Holmes還謀殺了他的情婦，

Julia Smith,

Julia Smith，

as well as her daughter, Pearl.

以及她的女兒Pearl。

No one knows exactly what happened to them,

沒人確切知道她們遭遇了什麼，

but they went missing while staying at the hotel.

但在住在這家飯店時她們失蹤了。

This was not the first young woman who'd fallen for Holmes, 片語動詞

這不是第一個愛上Holmes的年輕女子，

who would die when staying with him,

並在與他同住時死去，

with several young women said to be his victims.

據說有好幾位年輕女性成為了他的受害者。

One of the reasons why Holmes is so notorious

Holmes如此臭名昭著的原因之一

is because of the stories that surfaced about his home being a massive torture chamber.

是因為有故事流傳，說他的家是一個巨大的酷刑室。

Some skeptics, though, 表達脈絡

不過，一些懷疑論者

have said that this has been greatly exaggerated.

表示這被嚴重誇大了。

These supposed exaggerations tell us that some of the rooms would have instruments of torture hidden in the walls,

這些所謂的誇張說法告訴我們，有些房間的牆裡藏著刑具，

such as blow torches,

例如噴燈、

tools for tearing apart bodies,

用來撕裂人體的工具、

hidden poison, and corrosive acid.

隱藏的毒藥和腐蝕性酸。

It's said there was a hanging room,

據說有一間絞刑室、

a torture rack,

一個酷刑架，

and that there were gas chambers,

還有毒氣室、

a quicklime pit,

一個生石灰坑，

and also that the walls were iron-clad to prevent people from escaping.

牆壁是鐵製的以防止人們逃跑。

Once they died,

一旦他們死去，

there were chutes from which the bodies could easily be disposed. 文法

還有可以將屍體輕易處理掉的滑槽。

But at the time,

但在當時，

newspapers were well known for their exaggeration, 片語搭配

報紙因喜歡誇大其詞而聞名，

and later others said perhaps Holmes was not as bad as first thought. 文法

後來有人說，也許Holmes並不像最初想像的那麼壞。

In The Gem of the Prairie,

在《The Gem of the Prairie》一書中，

an informal history of the Chicago underworld by Herbert Asbury,

這是Herbert Asbury關於芝加哥黑社會的一部非正式歷史著作，

he writes that perhaps Holmes wasn't quite the sadistic torturer others had said he was.

他寫道，也許Holmes並不完全像別人所說的那樣是個施虐狂。

Maybe even his house of horrors was less of a trap made by a demented man than it was a badly built hotel. 文法

也許甚至他的恐怖之屋與其說是一個精神錯亂者製造的陷阱，不如說是一家建得很糟糕的飯店。

We can find many websites that write sensational stories about him, 表達脈絡

我們可以找到很多寫他聳人聽聞故事的網頁，

but more serious journalism is skeptical about his deeds.

但更嚴肅的新聞界對他的行為持懷疑態度。

Some people even doubt he said,

有些人甚至懷疑他是否說過，

"I was born with the very devil in me."

"我生來體內就藏著真正的魔鬼。"

In fact,

事實上，

it was later revealed that he was said to have a hanging room

後來有披露稱，據說他有一間絞刑室

only because police found a rope, 表達脈絡

僅僅是因為警方發現了一根繩子，

and that he chopped his victims up

說他把受害者剁碎

only because they found knives in a worn-out table.

僅僅是因為他們在一張破舊的桌子裡發現了刀具。

Mr. Holmes was no doubt a dastardly character, 語氣意圖

Holmes先生毫無疑問是一個卑鄙的角色，

a heartless swindler,

一個無情的騙子，

and a cruel murderer and thief.

一個殘忍的殺人犯和小偷。

But as for the rest of the story,

但至於故事的其餘部分，

maybe, 語氣意圖

也許，

just maybe,

僅僅是也許，

there has been some embellishments. 文法

存在一些潤飾和誇張。

So,

那麼，

do you know more about H. H. Holmes that we neglected to mention here? 用詞

你知道更多關於H. H. Holmes但我們在這裡忽略提及的事情嗎？

Can you think of a serial killer more heinous than he? 文法

你能想到一個比他更十惡不赦的連環殺手嗎？

Let us know in the comments.

請在留言中告訴我們。

Also,

另外，

be sure to check out our other video called The Most Infamous Serial Killer,

一定要去看看我們的另一支影片，名為《最臭名昭著的連環殺手，

Why He Was Never Found.

為什麼他從未被找到》。

Thanks for watching,

感謝收看，

and as always,

像往常一樣，

don't forget to like,

別忘了按讚、

share,

分享，

and subscribe.

並訂閱。

See you next time.

下次見。