姐,51。。。
轻松的小说阅读环境
Site Manager
傲慢与偏见英文版 - Chapter 41
繁体
恢复默认
返回目录【键盘操作】左右光标键:上下章节;回车键:目录;双击鼠标:停止/启动自动滚动;滚动时上下光标键调节滚动速度。
  THE first week of their return was soon gone. The second began. It was the last of the regiment's stay in Meryton, and all the young ladies in the neighbourhood were drooping apace. The dejection was almost universal. The elder Miss Bennets alone were still able to eat, drink, and sleep, and pursue the usual course of their employments. Very frequently were they reproached for this insensibility by Kitty and Lydia, whose own misery was extreme, and who could not comprehend such hard-heartedness in any of the family."Good Heaven! What is to become of us! What are we to do!" would they often exclaim in the bitterness of woe. "How can you be smiling so, Lizzy?"Their affectionate mother shared all their grief; she remembered what she had herself endured on a similar occasion, five and twenty years ago."I am sure," said she, "I cried for two days together when Colonel Millar's regiment went away. I thought I should have broke my heart.""I am sure I shall break mine," said Lydia."If one could but go to Brighton!" observed Mrs. Bennet."Oh, yes! -- if one could but go to Brighton! But papa is so disagreeable.""A little sea-bathing would set me up for ever.""And my aunt philips is sure it would do me a great deal of good," added Kitty.Such were the kind of lamentations resounding perpetually through Longbourn-house. Elizabeth tried to be diverted by them; but all sense of pleasure was lost in shame. She felt anew the justice of Mr. Darcy's objections; and never had she before been so much disposed to pardon his interference in the views of his friend.But the gloom of Lydia's prospect was shortly cleared away; for she received an invitation from Mrs. Forster, the wife of the Colonel of the regiment, to accompany her to Brighton. This invaluable friend was a very young woman, and very lately married. A resemblance in good humour and good spirits had recommended her and Lydia to each other, and out of their three months' acquaintance they had been intimate two.The rapture of Lydia on this occasion, her adoration of Mrs. Forster, the delight of Mrs. Bennet, and the mortification of Kitty, are scarcely to be described. Wholly inattentive to her sister's feelings, Lydia flew about the house in restless ecstacy, calling for everyone's congratulations, and laughing and talking with more violence than ever; whilst the luckless Kitty continued in the parlour repining at her fate in terms as unreasonable as her accent was peevish."I cannot see why Mrs. Forster should not ask me as well as Lydia," said she, "though I am not her particular friend. I have just as much right to be asked as she has, and more too, for I am two years older."In vain did Elizabeth attempt to reasonable, and Jane to make her resigned. As for Elizabeth herself, this invitation was so far from exciting in her the same feelings as in her mother and Lydia, that she considered it as the death-warrant of all possibility of common sense for the latter; and detestable as such a step must make her were it known, she could not help secretly advising her father not to let her go. She represented to him all the improprieties of Lydia's general behaviour, the little advantage she could derive from the friendship of such a woman as Mrs. Forster, and the probability of her being yet more imprudent with such a companion at Brighton, where the temptations must be greater than at home. He heard her attentively, and then said,"Lydia will never be easy till she has exposed herself in some public place or other, and we can never expect her to do it with so little expense or inconvenience to her family as under the present circumstances.""If you were aware," said Elizabeth, "of the very great disadvantage to us all, which must arise from the public notice of Lydia's unguarded and imprudent manner; nay, which has already arisen from it, I am sure you would judge differently in the affair.""Already arisen!" repeated Mr. Bennet. "What, has she frightened away some of your lovers? poor little Lizzy! But do not be cast down. Such squeamish youths as cannot bear to be connected with a little absurdity are not worth a regret. Come, let me see the list of the pitiful fellows who have been kept aloof by Lydia's folly.""Indeed you are mistaken. I have no such injuries to resent, It is not of peculiar, but of general evils, which I am now complaining. Our importance, our respectability in the world, must be affected by the wild volatility, the assurance and disdain of all restraint which mark Lydia's character. Excuse me -- for I must speak plainly. If you, my dear father, will not take the trouble of checking her exuberant spirits, and of teaching her that her present pursuits are not to be the business of her life, she will soon be beyond the reach of amendment. Her character will be fixed, and she will, at sixteen, be the most determined flirt that ever made herself and her family ridiculous. A flirt, too, in the worst and meanest degree of flirtation; without any attraction beyond youth and a tolerable person; and from the ignorance and emptiness of her mind, wholly unable to ward off any portion of that universal contempt which her rage for admiration will excite. In this danger Kitty is also comprehended. She will follow wherever Lydia leads. -- Vain, ignorant, idle, and absolutely uncontrolled! Oh! my dear father, can you suppose it possible that they will not be censured and despised wherever they are known, and that their sisters will not be often involved in the disgrace?"Mr. Bennet saw that her whole heart was in the subject; and affectionately taking her hand, said in reply,"Do not make yourself uneasy, my love. Wherever you and Jane are known, you must be respected and valued; and you will not appear to less advantage for having a couple of -- or I may say, three -- very silly sisters. We shall have no peace at Longbourn if Lydia does not go to Brighton. Let her go then. Colonel Forster is a sensible man, and will keep her out of any real mischief; and she is luckily too poor to be an object of prey to any body. At Brighton she will be of less importance, even as a common flirt, than she has been here. The officers will find women better worth their notice. Let us hope, therefore, that her being there may teach her her own insignificance. At any rate, she cannot grow many degrees worse without authorizing us to lock her up for the rest of her life."With this answer Elizabeth was forced to be content; but her own opinion continued the same, and she left him disappointed and sorry. It was not in her nature, however, to increase her vexations by dwelling on them. She was confident of having performed her duty, and to fret over unavoidable evils, or augment them by anxiety, was no part of her disposition.Had Lydia and her mother known the substance of her conference with her father, their indignation would hardly have found expression in their united volubility. In Lydia's imagination, a visit to Brighton comprised every possibility of earthly happiness. She saw, with the creative eye of fancy, the streets of that gay bathing place covered with officers. She saw herself the object of attention to tens and to scores of them at present unknown. She saw all the glories of the camp; its tents stretched forth in beauteous uniformity of lines, crowded with the young and the gay, and dazzling with scarlet; and to complete the view, she saw herself seated beneath a tent, tenderly flirting with at least six officers at once.Had she known that her sister sought to tear her from such prospects and such realities as these, what would have been her sensations? They could have been understood only by her mother, who might have felt nearly the same. Lydia's going to Brighton was all that consoled her for the melancholy conviction of her husband's never intending to go there himself.But they were entirely ignorant of what had passed; and their raptures continued, with little intermission, to the very day of Lydia's leaving home.Elizabeth was now to see Mr. Wickham for the last time. Having been frequently in company with him since her return, agitation was pretty well over; the agitations of former partiality entirely so. She had even learnt to detect, in the very gentleness which had first delighted her, an affectation and a sameness to disgust and weary. In his present behaviour to herself, moreover, she had a fresh source of displeasure, for the inclination he soon testified of renewing those attentions which had marked the early part of their acquaintance could only serve, after what had since passed, to provoke her. She lost all concern for him in finding herself thus selected as the object of such idle and frivolous gallantry; and while she steadily repressed it, could not but feel the reproof contained in his believing that, however long, and for whatever cause, his attentions had been withdrawn, her vanity would be gratified and her preference secured at any time by their renewal.On the very last day of the regiment's remaining in Meryton, he dined with others of the officers at Longbourn; and so little was Elizabeth disposed to part from him in good humour, that on his making some enquiry as to the manner in which her time had passed at Hunsford, she mentioned Colonel Fitzwilliam's and Mr. Darcy's having both spent three weeks at Rosings, and asked him if he were acquainted with the former.He looked surprised, displeased, alarmed; but with a moment's recollection and a returning smile, replied that he had formerly seen him often; and after observing that he was a very gentlemanlike man, asked her how she had liked him. Her answer was warmly in his favour. With an air of indifference he soon afterwards added, "How long did you say that he was at Rosings?""Nearly three weeks.""And you saw him frequently?""Yes, almost every day.""His manners are very different from his cousin's.""Yes, very different. But I think Mr. Darcy improves on acquaintance.""Indeed!" cried Wickham with a look which did not escape her. "And pray may I ask -- ?" but checking himself, he added in a gayer tone, "Is it in address that he improves? Has he deigned to add ought of civility to his ordinary style? for I dare not hope," he continued in a lower and more serious tone, "that he is improved in essentials.""Oh, no!" said Elizabeth. "In essentials, I believe, he is very much what he ever was."While she spoke, Wickham looked as if scarcely knowing whether to rejoice over her words, or to distrust their meaning. There was a something in her countenance which made him listen with an apprehensive and anxious attention, while she added,"When I said that he improved on acquaintance, I did not mean that either his mind or manners were in a state of improvement, but that from knowing him better, his disposition was better understood."Wickham's alarm now appeared in a heightened complexion and agitated look; for a few minutes he was silent; till, shaking off his embarrassment, he turned to her again, and said in the gentlest of accents,"You, who so well know my feelings towards Mr. Darcy, will readily comprehend how sincerely I must rejoice that he is wise enough to assume even the appearance of what is right. His pride, in that direction, may be of service, if not to himself, to many others, for it must deter him from such foul misconduct as I have suffered by. I only fear that the sort of cautiousness, to which you, I imagine, have been alluding, is merely adopted on his visits to his aunt, of whose good opinion and judgment he stands much in awe. His fear of her has always operated, I know, when they were together; and a good deal is to be imputed to his wish of forwarding the match with Miss De Bourgh, which I am certain he has very much at heart."Elizabeth could not repress a smile at this, but she answered only by a slight inclination of the head. She saw that he wanted to engage her on the old subject of his grievances, and she was in no humour to indulge him. The rest of the evening passed with the appearance, on his side, of usual cheerfulness, but with no farther attempt to distinguish Elizabeth; and they parted at last with mutual civility, and possibly a mutual desire of never meeting again.When the party broke up, Lydia returned with Mrs. Forster to Meryton, from whence they were to set out early the next morning. The separation between her and her family was rather noisy than pathetic. Kitty was the only one who shed tears; but she did weep from vexation and envy. Mrs. Bennet was diffuse in her good wishes for the felicity of her daughter, and impressive in her injunctions that she would not miss the opportunity of enjoying herself as much as possible; advice, which there was every reason to believe would be attended to; and in the clamorous happiness of Lydia herself in bidding farewell, the more gentle adieus of her sisters were uttered without being heard.
或许您还会喜欢:
看不见的城市
作者:佚名
章节:18 人气:2
摘要:第一章马可·波罗描述他旅途上经过的城市的时候,忽必烈汗不一定完全相信他的每一句话,但是鞑靼皇帝听取这个威尼斯青年的报告,的确比听别些使者或考察员的报告更专心而且更有兴趣。在帝王的生活中,征服别人的土地而使版图不断扩大,除了带来骄傲之外,跟着又会感觉寂寞而又松弛,因为觉悟到不久便会放弃认识和了解新领土的念头。 [点击阅读]
科学怪人
作者:佚名
章节:29 人气:2
摘要:你那时还觉得我的探险之旅会凶多吉少,但是现在看来开端良好、一帆风顺,你对此一定会深感宽慰吧。我是昨天抵达这里的,所做的第一件事就是要写信给你,让我亲爱的姐姐放心,而且请你对我的探险事业增加成功的信心。我现在位于距离伦敦千里之遥的北方,当我漫步在圣彼得堡的街头,微风带着一丝寒气迎面而来,不觉令我精神一振,一种快意不禁涌上心头。 [点击阅读]
空幻之屋
作者:佚名
章节:30 人气:2
摘要:星期五的早晨,六点十三分,露西.安格卡特尔睁开了她那蓝色的大眼睛,新的一天开始了。同往常一样,她立刻就完全清醒了,并且开始思考从她那活跃得令人难以置信的头脑中冒出来的问题。她感到迫切需要同别人商量,于是想到了自己年轻的表妹米奇.哈德卡斯尔,昨天晚上才来到空幻庄园的年轻人。安格卡特尔夫人迅速地溜下床,往她那依然优雅的肩头披上一件便服后,就来到了米奇的房间。 [点击阅读]
第八日的蝉
作者:佚名
章节:57 人气:2
摘要:握住门把。手心如握寒冰。那种冰冷,仿佛在宣告已无退路。希和子知道平日上午八点十分左右,这间屋子会有大约二十分钟没锁门。她知道只有婴儿被留在屋里,无人在家。就在刚才,希和子躲在自动贩卖机后面目送妻子与丈夫一同出门。希和子毫不犹豫,转动冰冷的门把。门一开,烤焦的面包皮皮、油、廉价粉底、柔软精、尼古丁、湿抹布……那些混杂在一起的味道扑面而来,稍微缓和了室外的寒意。 [点击阅读]
苹果树
作者:佚名
章节:12 人气:2
摘要:“那苹果树、那歌声和那金子。”墨雷译《攸里披底斯的〈希波勒特斯〉》在他们的银婚日,艾舍斯特和妻子坐着汽车,行驶在荒原的外边,要到托尔基去过夜,圆满地结束这个节日,因为那里是他们初次相遇的地方。这是斯苔拉·艾舍斯特的主意,在她的性格里是有点儿多情色彩的。 [点击阅读]
茨威格短篇小说集
作者:佚名
章节:26 人气:2
摘要:战争爆发前十年,我有一回在里维耶拉度假期,住在一所小公寓里。一天,饭桌上发生了一场激烈的辩论,渐渐转变成忿怒的争吵,几乎闹到结怨动武的地步,这真是万没料到的。世上的人大多数幻想能力十分迟钝,不论什么事情,若不直接牵涉到自己,若不象尖刺般狼狠地扎迸头脑里,他们决不会昂奋激动的,可是,一旦有点什么,哪怕十分微不足道,只要是明摆在眼前,直截了当地触动感觉,便立刻会使他们大动感情,往往超出应有的限度。 [点击阅读]
蝴蝶梦
作者:佚名
章节:39 人气:2
摘要:影片从梦中的女主人公---第一人称的'我'回忆往事开始。夜里,我又梦回曼陀丽。面对这堆被焚的中世纪建筑废墟,我又想起很多过去……那是从法国开始的。做为'陪伴'的我随范霍夫太太来到蒙特卡洛。一天,在海边我看到一个在陡崖边徘徊的男子。我以为他要投海,就叫出了声。他向我投来愤怒的一瞥。我知道我想错了,他可真是一个怪人。很巧,他竟同我们住在同一个饭店里。 [点击阅读]
质数的孤独
作者:佚名
章节:11 人气:2
摘要:爱丽丝·德拉·罗卡讨厌滑雪学校。她讨厌在圣诞假期也要一大早七点半就起床,她讨厌在吃早餐时父亲目不转睛地盯着她,同时一条腿在餐桌下面焦躁地抖个不停,仿佛在催促她说:“快吃!”她讨厌那条会扎她大腿的羊毛连裤袜,讨厌那双让她手指不能动弹的滑雪手套,讨厌那顶勒住她的面颊、同时又用铁带扣卡住她下巴的头盔,也讨厌那双特别挤脚、让她走起路来像只大猩猩的滑雪靴。“你到底喝不喝这杯奶?”父亲再一次逼问她。 [点击阅读]
迷恋
作者:佚名
章节:104 人气:2
摘要:“喂??…喂????”…嘟嘟…嘟嘟嘟…二零零三年,成南。…又来了…又来了,该死的骚扰电话,今天是十八岁的我的第十七个生日…是我喝海带汤的日子没错了,偏偏接到这狗屎味儿的无声电话…^=_=已经一个星期了,“喂…嘟,喂…嘟”(?誄每次都是一样)那边也不说话,就是偷听我的声音然后就断了…今天早晨我居然在生日餐桌上又被涮了一次…^-_-凭我出神入化的第六感, [点击阅读]
追忆似水年华
作者:佚名
章节:129 人气:2
摘要:《追忆逝水年华》是一部与传统小说不同的长篇小说。全书以叙述者“我”为主体,将其所见所闻所思所感融合一体,既有对社会生活,人情世态的真实描写,又是一份作者自我追求,自我认识的内心经历的记录。除叙事以外,还包含有大量的感想和议论。整部作品没有中心人物,没有完整的故事,没有波澜起伏,贯穿始终的情节线索。 [点击阅读]
邦斯舅舅
作者:佚名
章节:32 人气:2
摘要:一谈及巴尔扎克,人们首先会想到他的《高老头》、《欧叶妮·格朗台》、《幻灭》,而《邦斯舅舅》恐怕就要稍逊一筹了。然而,我们却读到了也许会令中国读者意外的评论。安德烈·纪德曾这样写道:“这也许是巴尔扎克众多杰作中我最喜欢的一部;不管怎么说,它是我阅读最勤的一部……我欣喜、迷醉……”他还写道:“不同凡响的《邦斯舅舅》,我先后读了三、四遍,现在我可以离开巴尔扎克了,因为再也没有比这本书更精彩的作品了。 [点击阅读]
阿加莎·克里斯蒂自传
作者:佚名
章节:11 人气:2
摘要:1我以为,人生最大的幸福莫过于有一个幸福的童年。我的童年幸福快乐。我有一个可爱的家庭和宅院,一位聪颖耐心的保姆;父母情意甚笃,是一对恩爱夫妻和称职的家长。回首往事,我感到家庭里充满了欢乐。这要归功于父亲,他为人随和。如今,人们不大看重随和的品性,注重的大多是某个男人是否机敏、勤奋,是否有益于社会,并且说话算数。至于父亲,公正地说,他是一位非常随和的人。这种随和给与他相处的人带来无尽的欢愉。 [点击阅读]
Copyright© 2006-2019. All Rights Reserved.