🔊 "How happy is he born and taught That serveth not another's will; Whose armor is his honest thought, And simple truth his only skill!

“生而受教者何其幸福,不侍他人之意志；其铠甲乃诚实思想,其唯一技艺即质朴真理！

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armor /ˈɑːrmər/

n. 盔甲；防护物➕

🔊 . . . . . . . This man is freed from servile bands Of hope to rise or fear to fall; Lord of himself though not of lands; And having nothing yet hath all."

……此人已挣脱奴隶的桎梏,既不希冀攀升,也不畏惧坠落；虽无寸土,却是自身的主宰；一无所有,却拥有一切。”

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servile /ˈsɜːrvaɪl/

adj. 奴性的；卑躬屈膝的➕

🔊 -SIR HENRY WOTTON.

--亨利·沃顿爵士

🔊 Dorothea's confidence in Caleb Garth's knowledge, which had begun on her hearing that he approved of her cottages, had grown fast during her stay at Freshitt, Sir James having induced her to take rides over the two estates in company with himself and Caleb, who quite returned her admiration, and told his wife that Mrs. Casaubon had a head for business most uncommon in a woman. It must be remembered that by "business" Caleb never meant money transactions, but the skilful application of labor. "Most uncommon!" repeated Caleb. "She said a thing I often used to think myself when I was a lad:-'Mr. Garth, I should like to feel, if I lived to be old, that I had improved a great piece of land and built a great many good cottages, because the work is of a healthy kind while it is being done, and after it is done, men are the better for it.' Those were the very words: she sees into things in that way." "But womanly, I hope," said Mrs. Garth, half suspecting that Mrs. Casaubon might not hold the true principle of subordination. "Oh, you can't think!" said Caleb, shaking his head. "You would like to hear her speak, Susan. She speaks in such plain words, and a voice like music. Bless me! it reminds me of bits in the 'Messiah'-'and straightway there appeared a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying;' it has a tone with it that satisfies your ear." Caleb was very fond of music, and when he could afford it went to hear an oratorio that came within his reach, returning from it with a profound reverence for this mighty structure of tones, which made him sit meditatively, looking on the floor and throwing much unutterable language into his outstretched hands. With this good understanding between them, it was natural that Dorothea asked Mr. Garth to undertake any business connected with the three farms and the numerous tenements attached to Lowick Manor; indeed, his expectation of getting work for two was being fast fulfilled. As he said, "Business breeds." And one form of business which was beginning to breed just then was the construction of railways. A projected line was to run through Lowick parish where the cattle had hitherto grazed in a peace unbroken by astonishment; and thus it happened that the infant struggles of the railway system entered into the affairs of Caleb Garth, and determined the course of this history with regard to two persons who were dear to him. The submarine railway may have its difficulties; but the bed of the sea is not divided among various landed proprietors with claims for damages not only measurable but sentimental.

多萝西娅对迦勒·加思学识的信任,始于她听说他赞同她建造农舍的计划,在弗雷希特逗留期间与日俱增--詹姆斯爵士曾让她与自己和迦勒一同骑马巡视两处庄园,迦勒对她的赞赏也报以真心,并对妻子说,卡苏朋夫人处理事务的头脑在女性中实属罕见。必须记住,迦勒所说的“事务”从不指金钱交易,而是指对劳力的巧妙运用。“极为罕见！”迦勒重复道,“她说了一句我年轻时常常想到的话:‘加思先生,我希望自己年老时能感到自己改良了一大片土地,建造了许多好农舍,因为这项工作在进行时有益健康,完成后人们也会因此受益。’这是她的原话--她看事情就是这般透彻。”“不过,希望她仍有女性气质,”加思太太半信半疑地说道,担心卡苏朋夫人可能没有掌握真正的服从原则。“哦,你想不到！”迦勒摇着头说,“你该听听她说话,苏珊。她用词平实,声音如音乐一般。天哪！这让我想起了《弥赛亚》里的几句--‘忽然有一大队天兵,同那天使赞美神说:’那语调让你的耳朵感到满足。”迦勒非常喜欢音乐,只要负担得起,他就会去听附近的清唱剧,回来时对这座宏伟的音符结构充满深深的敬畏,他会沉思着坐着,眼睛盯着地板,把许多难以言表的话语抛向伸出的双手。有了这样的默契,多萝西娅自然请加思先生打理与三个农场及洛威克庄园众多租户相关的所有事务；事实上,他指望得到两份工作的期望正在迅速实现。正如他所说,“生意会滋生生意。”当时正在滋生的一种生意就是铁路建设。一条规划中的线路将穿过洛威克教区,那里的牛群一直平静地吃草,从未被惊扰；于是铁路系统的初期挣扎便进入了迦勒·加思的事务,并决定了这段历史中与他亲近的两个人的命运。海底铁路或许有其困难,但海底不像陆地那样被众多地主分割,他们要求的赔偿不仅包括可测量的损失,还有情感上的损失。

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admiration /ˌædməˈreɪʃən/

n. 钦佩,赞赏➕

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uncommon /ʌnˈkɒmən/

adj. 不寻常的,非凡的➕

🔊 In the hundred to which Middlemarch belonged railways were as exciting a topic as the Reform Bill or the imminent horrors of Cholera, and those who held the most decided views on the subject were women and landholders. Women both old and young regarded travelling by steam as presumptuous and dangerous, and argued against it by saying that nothing should induce them to get into a railway carriage; while proprietors, differing from each other in their arguments as much as Mr. Solomon Featherstone differed from Lord Medlicote, were yet unanimous in the opinion that in selling land, whether to the Enemy of mankind or to a company obliged to purchase, these pernicious agencies must be made to pay a very high price to landowners for permission to injure mankind. But the slower wits, such as Mr. Solomon and Mrs. Waule, who both occupied land of their own, took a long time to arrive at this conclusion, their minds halting at the vivid conception of what it would be to cut the Big Pasture in two, and turn it into three-cornered bits, which would be "nohow;" while accommodation-bridges and high payments were remote and incredible. "The cows will all cast their calves, brother," said Mrs. Waule, in a tone of deep melancholy, "if the railway comes across the Near Close; and I shouldn't wonder at the mare too, if she was in foal. It's a poor tale if a widow's property is to be spaded away, and the law say nothing to it. What's to hinder 'em from cutting right and left if they begin? It's well known, I can't fight." "The best way would be to say nothing, and set somebody on to send 'em away with a flea in their ear, when they came spying and measuring," said Solomon. "Folks did that about Brassing, by what I can understand. It's all a pretence, if the truth was known, about their being forced to take one way. Let 'em go cutting in another parish. And I don't believe in any pay to make amends for bringing a lot of ruffians to trample your crops. Where's a company's pocket?" "Brother Peter, God forgive him, got money out of a company," said Mrs. Waule. "But that was for the manganese. That wasn't for railways to blow you to pieces right and left." "Well, there's this to be said, Jane," Mr. Solomon concluded, lowering his voice in a cautious manner-"the more spokes we put in their wheel, the more they'll pay us to let 'em go on, if they must come whether or not." This reasoning of Mr. Solomon's was perhaps less thorough than he imagined, his cunning bearing about the same relation to the course of railways as the cunning of a diplomatist bears to the general chill or catarrh of the solar system. But he set about acting on his views in a thoroughly diplomatic manner, by stimulating suspicion.

在米德尔马契所属的百户区,铁路与改革法案>>或迫在眉睫的<<<霍乱一样令人兴奋,而对此事持有最明确看法的是妇女和地主。无论老少,妇女们都认为蒸汽旅行是冒昧而危险的,争辩说无论如何都不会坐进火车车厢；而地主们尽管在论据上分歧很大--正如所罗门·费瑟斯通先生与梅德利科特勋爵之间的分歧--却一致认为,在出售土地时,无论是卖给人类之敌还是必须购买的公司,这些有害机构都必须为获准损害人类而向地主支付非常高的代价。但头脑较慢的人,比如所罗门先生和沃尔太太,他们各自拥有自己的土地,花了很长时间才得出这个结论,他们的思想停留在生动想象中:将大牧场一分为二,变成三角形小块,那将是“无法忍受的”；而通行桥梁和高额赔偿则遥远得难以置信。“如果铁路穿过近围场,母牛都会流产的,弟弟,”沃尔太太带着深沉的忧郁说道,“如果母马怀了驹,我看它也会流产。寡妇的财产就这样被铲走,法律却一声不吭,这真可悲。他们要是开始乱砍乱挖,谁能拦住他们？众所周知,我可打不了架。”“最好的办法是什么也不说,等他们来侦察测量时,派人给他们一个教训,让他们滚蛋,”所罗门说道,“据我所知,布拉辛那边的人就是这么干的。真相是,他们说被迫走那条路全是借口。让他们到别的教区去挖吧。我也不信有什么赔偿能弥补一群流氓践踏你的庄稼。公司的钱袋在哪里？”“彼得兄弟,愿上帝宽恕他,从一家公司弄到了钱,”沃尔太太说,“但那是为了锰矿。那不是为了让铁路把你左右炸成碎片。”“嗯,这么说吧,简,”所罗门先生总结道,谨慎地压低了声音,“我们在他们轮子里插的辐条越多,如果他们非要来不可,他们就会付更多的钱让我们放行。”所罗门先生的这番推理或许没有他想象得那么彻底,他的狡黠与铁路进程的关系,如同外交官的狡黠与太阳系普遍寒潮或感冒的关系。但他开始以一种完全外交的方式实施自己的观点,即激发怀疑。

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imminent /ˈɪmɪnənt/

adj. 即将发生的,迫近的➕

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Cholera /ˈkɒlərə/

n. 霍乱➕

🔊 His side of Lowick was the most remote from the village, and the houses of the laboring people were either lone cottages or were collected in a hamlet called Frick, where a water-mill and some stone-pits made a little centre of slow, heavy-shouldered industry. In the absence of any precise idea as to what railways were, public opinion in Frick was against them; for the human mind in that grassy corner had not the proverbial tendency to admire the unknown, holding rather that it was likely to be against the poor man, and that suspicion was the only wise attitude with regard to it. Even the rumor of Reform had not yet excited any millennial expectations in Frick, there being no definite promise in it, as of gratuitous grains to fatten Hiram Ford's pig, or of a publican at the "Weights and Scales" who would brew beer for nothing, or of an offer on the part of the three neighboring farmers to raise wages during winter. And without distinct good of this kind in its promises, Reform seemed on a footing with the bragging of pedlers, which was a hint for distrust to every knowing person. The men of Frick were not ill-fed, and were less given to fanaticism than to a strong muscular suspicion; less inclined to believe that they were peculiarly cared for by heaven, than to regard heaven itself as rather disposed to take them in-a disposition observable in the weather. Thus the mind of Frick was exactly of the sort for Mr. Solomon Featherstone to work upon, he having more plenteous ideas of the same order, with a suspicion of heaven and earth which was better fed and more entirely at leisure. Solomon was overseer of the roads at that time, and on his slow-paced cob often took his rounds by Frick to look at the workmen getting the stones there, pausing with a mysterious deliberation, which might have misled you into supposing that he had some other reason for staying than the mere want of impulse to move. After looking for a long while at any work that was going on, he would raise his eyes a little and look at the horizon; finally he would shake his bridle, touch his horse with the whip, and get it to move slowly onward. The hour-hand of a clock was quick by comparison with Mr. Solomon, who had an agreeable sense that he could afford to be slow. He was in the habit of pausing for a cautious, vaguely designing chat with every hedger or ditcher on his way, and was especially willing to listen even to news which he had heard before, feeling himself at an advantage over all narrators in partially disbelieving them. One day, however, he got into a dialogue with Hiram Ford, a wagoner, in which he himself contributed information.

他在洛威克的那一侧离村庄最远,劳动人民的房子要么是孤零零的农舍,要么聚集在一个叫弗里克的小村庄里,那里有一座水磨和一些采石场,构成了一个缓慢、笨重的工业中心。由于对铁路缺乏确切概念,弗里克的公众舆论反对铁路；因为在这片青青角落,人类头脑并没有那种赞美未知的普遍倾向,反而认为它很可能对穷人不利,怀疑才是唯一明智的态度。甚至关于改革的谣言也尚未在弗里克激起任何千年期望,因为其中没有明确承诺,比如免费谷物让海勒姆·福特的猪长肥,或者“权衡与度量”酒馆的老板会免费酿酒,或者附近三个农场主愿意在冬季提高工资。既然没有这种明确的好处,改革似乎就跟小贩的吹嘘一样--每个明白人都该怀疑。弗里克的男人们并非营养不良,他们不像狂热分子,而更倾向于强烈的肌肉怀疑；他们不太相信上天对自己特别眷顾,反而认为上天本身更倾向于算计他们--这种倾向在天气中可见一斑。因此,弗里克的心态正是所罗门·费瑟斯通先生可以加以利用的那一种,他自己拥有更多同类想法,对天地充满怀疑,而且养得更好,更悠闲。所罗门当时是道路监工,他骑着一匹慢腾腾的矮脚马,常常绕道弗里克去查看工人们在那里采石,他会神秘地停下来沉思良久,你会误以为他停留有其他原因,而不仅仅是懒得移动。他会长时间盯着任何正在进行的工作,然后微微抬起眼睛看看地平线；最后他会抖抖缰绳,用鞭子碰碰马,让它慢慢向前走。和所罗门先生相比,时钟的时针都算快,他自有一种舒服的感觉,觉得自己可以慢悠悠的。他习惯于在路上每遇到一个树篱工或挖沟工就停下来,谨慎而模糊地聊上几句,尤其愿意听那些他甚至已经听过的新闻,因为他觉得自己相对于所有叙述者有一个优势:他部分地不相信他们。然而有一天,他与车夫海勒姆·福特进行了一次对话,这次他自己提供了信息。

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tendency /ˈtendənsi/

n. 趋势；倾向➕

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suspicion /səˈspɪʃən/

n. 怀疑；嫌疑➕

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disposition /ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən/

n. 性情；倾向；处置➕

🔊 He wished to know whether Hiram had seen fellows with staves and instruments spying about: they called themselves railroad people, but there was no telling what they were or what they meant to do. The least they pretended was that they were going to cut Lowick Parish into sixes and sevens. "Why, there'll be no stirrin' from one pla-ace to another," said Hiram, thinking of his wagon and horses. "Not a bit," said Mr. Solomon. "And cutting up fine land such as this parish! Let 'em go into Tipton, say I. But there's no knowing what there is at the bottom of it. Traffic is what they put for'ard; but it's to do harm to the land and the poor man in the long-run." "Why, they're Lunnon chaps, I reckon," said Hiram, who had a dim notion of London as a centre of hostility to the country. "Ay, to be sure. And in some parts against Brassing, by what I've heard say, the folks fell on 'em when they were spying, and broke their peep-holes as they carry, and drove 'em away, so as they knew better than come again." "It war good foon, I'd be bound," said Hiram, whose fun was much restricted by circumstances. "Well, I wouldn't meddle with 'em myself," said Solomon. "But some say this country's seen its best days, and the sign is, as it's being overrun with these fellows trampling right and left, and wanting to cut it up into railways; and all for the big traffic to swallow up the little, so as there shan't be a team left on the land, nor a whip to crack." "I'll crack my whip about their ear'n, afore they bring it to that, though," said Hiram, while Mr. Solomon, shaking his bridle, moved onward. Nettle-seed needs no digging. The ruin of this countryside by railroads was discussed, not only at the "Weights and Scales," but in the hay-field, where the muster of working hands gave opportunities for talk such as were rarely had through the rural year. One morning, not long after that interview between Mr. Farebrother and Mary Garth, in which she confessed to him her feeling for Fred Vincy, it happened that her father had some business which took him to Yoddrell's farm in the direction of Frick: it was to measure and value an outlying piece of land belonging to Lowick Manor, which Caleb expected to dispose of advantageously for Dorothea (it must be confessed that his bias was towards getting the best possible terms from railroad companies). He put up his gig at Yoddrell's, and in walking with his assistant and measuring-chain to the scene of his work, he encountered the party of the company's agents, who were adjusting their spirit-level. After a little chat he left them, observing that by-and-by they would reach him again where he was going to measure.

他想知道海勒姆有没有看到拿着棍棒和仪器侦察的家伙:他们自称铁路人员,但谁也说不准他们是什么人,想干什么。他们至少声称要把洛威克教区切成七零八落。“哎呀,那以后连从一处到另一处都动不了啦,”海勒姆想到自己的马车和马匹说道。“一点也动不了,”所罗门先生说,“还要切碎这么好的土地,像咱们这个教区！我说,让他们去蒂普顿吧。但谁知道这背后有什么名堂。他们说是为了交通,但长远来看是要伤害土地和穷人。”“哼,我猜他们都是伦敦来的家伙,”海勒姆说,他对伦敦有一种模糊的概念,认为那里是敌视乡村的中心。“没错,当然。我听人说,有些地方比如布拉辛,老百姓在他们侦察时就扑上去,砸了他们的窥视镜,把他们赶跑,让他们再也不敢来。”“那一定很好玩,我敢说,”海勒姆说,他的乐趣因环境而大受限制。“嗯,我自己可不想招惹他们,”所罗门说,“但有人说这个国家的好日子到头了,迹象就是这些家伙到处乱踩,想把土地切成铁路线；都是为了大交通吞掉小交通,结果地上连一匹拉车的马都没有,鞭子也响不起来了。”“我就要在他们把事做成之前,把鞭子抽在他们耳朵上,”海勒姆说,而所罗门先生抖了抖缰绳,继续前行。荨麻籽不用挖坑。铁路对这片乡间的破坏不仅在“权衡与度量”酒馆里讨论,也在草场上讨论,那里聚集的干活人手提供了在整个农耕年里难得的机会进行交谈。就在费尔布拉泽先生与玛丽·加思那次谈话之后不久,玛丽向费尔布拉泽坦白了自己对弗雷德·文西的感情,一天早晨,她父亲有事要去约德雷尔的农场,方向朝着弗里克:他要测量和估价一块属于洛威克庄园的外围土地,迦勒希望为多萝西娅卖个好价钱（必须承认,他倾向于从铁路公司那里争取最有利的条件）。他把轻便马车停在约德雷尔家,然后带着助手和测量链步行前往工作地点,途中遇到了公司代理人的队伍,他们正在调整水准仪。聊了几句后,他离开了他们,说等会儿他们测量时会再次遇到他。

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hostility /hɑːˈstɪləti/

n. 敌意；敌对➕

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rural /ˈrʊrəl/

adj. 乡村的；农村的➕

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bias /ˈbaɪəs/

n. 偏见；偏向➕

🔊 It was one of those gray mornings after light rains, which become delicious about twelve o'clock, when the clouds part a little, and the scent of the earth is sweet along the lanes and by the hedgerows. The scent would have been sweeter to Fred Vincy, who was coming along the lanes on horseback, if his mind had not been worried by unsuccessful efforts to imagine what he was to do, with his father on one side expecting him straightway to enter the Church, with Mary on the other threatening to forsake him if he did enter it, and with the working-day world showing no eager need whatever of a young gentleman without capital and generally unskilled. It was the harder to Fred's disposition because his father, satisfied that he was no longer rebellious, was in good humor with him, and had sent him on this pleasant ride to see after some greyhounds. Even when he had fixed on what he should do, there would be the task of telling his father. But it must be admitted that the fixing, which had to come first, was the more difficult task:-what secular avocation on earth was there for a young man (whose friends could not get him an "appointment") which was at once gentlemanly, lucrative, and to be followed without special knowledge? Riding along the lanes by Frick in this mood, and slackening his pace while he reflected whether he should venture to go round by Lowick Parsonage to call on Mary, he could see over the hedges from one field to another. Suddenly a noise roused his attention, and on the far side of a field on his left hand he could see six or seven men in smock-frocks with hay-forks in their hands making an offensive approach towards the four railway agents who were facing them, while Caleb Garth and his assistant were hastening across the field to join the threatened group. Fred, delayed a few moments by having to find the gate, could not gallop up to the spot before the party in smock-frocks, whose work of turning the hay had not been too pressing after swallowing their mid-day beer, were driving the men in coats before them with their hay-forks; while Caleb Garth's assistant, a lad of seventeen, who had snatched up the spirit-level at Caleb's order, had been knocked down and seemed to be lying helpless. The coated men had the advantage as runners, and Fred covered their retreat by getting in front of the smock-frocks and charging them suddenly enough to throw their chase into confusion. "What do you confounded fools mean?" shouted Fred, pursuing the divided group in a zigzag, and cutting right and left with his whip. "I'll swear to every one of you before the magistrate. You've knocked the lad down and killed him, for what I know.

那是一个小雨过后灰蒙蒙的早晨,大约十二点时分变得宜人起来,云层略微散开,小路边和树篱旁泥土的芬芳沁人心脾。对弗雷德·文西来说,这芬芳本应更甜美--他正骑马沿着小路过来--如果他的心思没有被徒劳的努力所困扰:他想不出自己该怎么办,一边是父亲期望他立即进入教会,另一边是玛丽威胁说如果他进入教会就离开他,而现实世界似乎并不需要一个没有资本、普遍缺乏技能的年轻绅士。对弗雷德的性情来说,这更加困难,因为父亲见他不再叛逆,对他态度很好,还派他出来愉快地骑马看看几头灵缇。即使他决定了该做什么,还得告诉父亲。但必须承认,先确定做什么是更困难的任务:世上有什么世俗职业（朋友们无法为他弄到“任命”）既能体面、又能赚钱、又不需要专门知识呢？他带着这种心情沿着弗里克附近的小路骑行,放慢速度思考是否应该冒险绕道洛威克牧师住宅去拜访玛丽,他可以看到树篱那边的田地。突然一阵声音引起了他的注意,在他左边田地的那一边,他看到六七个穿着罩衫、手拿干草叉的人正向四个铁路代理人逼近,而迦勒·加思和他的助手正急忙穿过田地加入受威胁的人群。弗雷德因找门而耽误了几分钟,等他骑马赶到时,那群穿罩衫的人--他们翻晒干草的工作并不紧迫,因为刚喝了中午的啤酒--正用干草叉赶着那些穿外套的人；而迦勒·加思的助手,一个十七岁的小伙子,听从迦勒的命令抓起水准仪后被打倒在地,似乎无助地躺着。穿外套的人跑得快,弗雷德掩护他们撤退,冲到穿罩衫的人前面,突然向他们冲去,打乱了他们的追赶。“你们这些该死的蠢货想干什么？”弗雷德喊道, zigzag地追赶分散的人群,左右挥舞着鞭子。“我会在地方法官面前指认你们每一个人。你们把那小伙子打倒在地,我看他快死了。”

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rebellious /rɪˈbeljəs/

adj. 反抗的；叛逆的➕

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secular /ˈsekjələr/

adj. 世俗的；非宗教的➕

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lucrative /ˈluːkrətɪv/

adj. 有利可图的；赚钱的➕

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magistrate /ˈmædʒɪstreɪt/

n. 地方法官；治安官➕

🔊 You'll every one of you be hanged at the next assizes, if you don't mind," said Fred, who afterwards laughed heartily as he remembered his own phrases. The laborers had been driven through the gate-way into their hay-field, and Fred had checked his horse, when Hiram Ford, observing himself at a safe challenging distance, turned back and shouted a defiance which he did not know to be Homeric. "Yo're a coward, yo are. Yo git off your horse, young measter, and I'll have a round wi' ye, I wull. Yo daredn't come on wi'out your hoss an' whip. I'd soon knock the breath out on ye, I would." "Wait a minute, and I'll come back presently, and have a round with you all in turn, if you like," said Fred, who felt confidence in his power of boxing with his dearly beloved brethren. But just now he wanted to hasten back to Caleb and the prostrate youth. The lad's ankle was strained, and he was in much pain from it, but he was no further hurt, and Fred placed him on the horse that he might ride to Yoddrell's and be taken care of there. "Let them put the horse in the stable, and tell the surveyors they can come back for their traps," said Fred. "The ground is clear now." "No, no," said Caleb, "here's a breakage. They'll have to give up for to-day, and it will be as well. Here, take the things before you on the horse, Tom. They'll see you coming, and they'll turn back." "I'm glad I happened to be here at the right moment, Mr. Garth," said Fred, as Tom rode away. "No knowing what might have happened if the cavalry had not come up in time." "Ay, ay, it was lucky," said Caleb, speaking rather absently, and looking towards the spot where he had been at work at the moment of interruption. "But-deuce take it-this is what comes of men being fools-I'm hindered of my day's work. I can't get along without somebody to help me with the measuring-chain. However!" He was beginning to move towards the spot with a look of vexation, as if he had forgotten Fred's presence, but suddenly he turned round and said quickly, "What have you got to do to-day, young fellow?" "Nothing, Mr. Garth. I'll help you with pleasure-can I?" said Fred, with a sense that he should be courting Mary when he was helping her father. "Well, you mustn't mind stooping and getting hot." "I don't mind anything. Only I want to go first and have a round with that hulky fellow who turned to challenge me. It would be a good lesson for him. I shall not be five minutes." "Nonsense!" said Caleb, with his most peremptory intonation. "I shall go and speak to the men myself. It's all ignorance. Somebody has been telling them lies. The poor fools don't know any better." "I shall go with you, then," said Fred. "No, no; stay where you are. I don't want your young blood.

“你们每个人下次巡回法庭上都会被绞死,如果你们不小心的话。”弗雷德说,后来他想起自己说的这些话时哈哈大笑。工人们被赶过大门进入他们的草场,弗雷德勒住了马,这时海勒姆·福特见自己处于安全挑战距离,转过身来大喊着挑衅,他并不知道这是荷马式的。“你是个懦夫,你就是。你下马来,年轻的主人,我要跟你较量一圈,我一定。你不敢没马没鞭子过来。我马上就能打掉你的气,我一定。”“等一会儿,我马上回来,如果你们愿意,我可以和你们轮流较量一圈,”弗雷德说,他对自己的拳击能力很有信心,对手是他亲爱的弟兄们。但此刻他想赶紧回到迦勒和那个倒下的年轻人身边。那小伙子的脚踝扭伤了,非常疼,但没有其他伤,弗雷德把他扶上马,让他骑到约德雷尔家去接受照顾。“让他们把马牵进马厩,告诉测量员可以回来取他们的工具,”弗雷德说,“现在地面安全了。”“不,不,”迦勒说,“这儿有东西坏了。他们今天只能放弃,这样也好。来,汤姆,把东西放在你面前的马上带走。他们会看见你过来,会调头的。”“我很高兴恰好在关键时刻赶到这里,加思先生,”弗雷德在汤姆骑马离去时说,“不知如果骑兵没有及时赶到会发生什么事。”“啊,啊,真幸运,”迦勒说道,语气有些心不在焉,望着他被打断时工作的地方。“但--见鬼--这就是人变蠢的下场--我的工作被耽搁了。没有人帮我拉测量链我干不了。不过！”他面带不悦地朝那个地方走去,似乎忘了弗雷德的存在,但突然他转过身来迅速说道,“你今天有什么事要做吗,小伙子？”“没事,加思先生。我很乐意帮您--可以吗？”弗雷德说,感到自己在帮助玛丽父亲时就是在追求玛丽。“好吧,你可不能怕弯腰和出汗。”“我什么都不怕。不过我想先去跟那个转过身来挑战我的大块头较量一圈。这对他是个好教训。我不用五分钟。”“胡说！”迦勒带着他最专横的语调说,“我自己去跟那些人谈谈。全是无知。有人对他们撒谎。那些可怜的傻瓜不懂事。”“那我跟您一起去,”弗雷德说。“不,不；你待在这儿。我不需要你的热血。”

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defiance /dɪˈfaɪəns/

n. 反抗；挑战➕

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prostrate /ˈprɒstreɪt/

adj. 俯卧的；被征服的➕

🔊 I can take care of myself." Caleb was a powerful man and knew little of any fear except the fear of hurting others and the fear of having to speechify. But he felt it his duty at this moment to try and give a little harangue. There was a striking mixture in him-which came from his having always been a hard-working man himself-of rigorous notions about workmen and practical indulgence towards them. To do a good day's work and to do it well, he held to be part of their welfare, as it was the chief part of his own happiness; but he had a strong sense of fellowship with them. When he advanced towards the laborers they had not gone to work again, but were standing in that form of rural grouping which consists in each turning a shoulder towards the other, at a distance of two or three yards. They looked rather sulkily at Caleb, who walked quickly with one hand in his pocket and the other thrust between the buttons of his waistcoat, and had his every-day mild air when he paused among them. "Why, my lads, how's this?" he began, taking as usual to brief phrases, which seemed pregnant to himself, because he had many thoughts lying under them, like the abundant roots of a plant that just manages to peep above the water. "How came you to make such a mistake as this? Somebody has been telling you lies. You thought those men up there wanted to do mischief." "Aw!" was the answer, dropped at intervals by each according to his degree of unreadiness. "Nonsense! No such thing! They're looking out to see which way the railroad is to take. Now, my lads, you can't hinder the railroad: it will be made whether you like it or not. And if you go fighting against it, you'll get yourselves into trouble. The law gives those men leave to come here on the land. The owner has nothing to say against it, and if you meddle with them you'll have to do with the constable and Justice Blakesley, and with the handcuffs and Middlemarch jail. And you might be in for it now, if anybody informed against you." Caleb paused here, and perhaps the greatest orator could not have chosen either his pause or his images better for the occasion. "But come, you didn't mean any harm. Somebody told you the railroad was a bad thing. That was a lie. It may do a bit of harm here and there, to this and to that; and so does the sun in heaven. But the railway's a good thing." "Aw! good for the big folks to make money out on," said old Timothy Cooper, who had stayed behind turning his hay while the others had been gone on their spree;-"I'n seen lots o' things turn up sin' I war a young un-the war an' the peace, and the canells, an' the oald King George, an' the Regen', an' the new King George, an' the new un as has got a new ne-ame-an' it's been all aloike to the poor mon. What's the canells been t' him?

“我自己能照顾自己。”迦勒是个强壮的人,几乎不知道什么恐惧,除了害怕伤害别人和害怕必须演讲。但此刻他觉得有责任尝试做一个小小的演说。他身上有着显著的混合特质--因为他自己一直是个辛勤工作的人--对工人有严格的要求,同时也对他们有实际的宽容。他认为好好地干一天活并干好,是他们福祉的一部分,也是他自己幸福的主要部分；但他对他们有强烈的兄弟情谊。当他走向工人们时,他们还没有重新开始工作,而是以那种乡村聚集的形式站着:每个人相隔两三码,背对着对方。他们阴沉地看着迦勒,他走得很快,一只手插在口袋里,另一只手插在背心纽扣之间,当他停在他们中间时,仍然带着他日常温和的神情。“喂,伙计们,这是怎么回事？”他开口了,像往常一样使用简短的句子,这些话对他来说似乎意味深长,因为下面有很多想法,就像一株植物露出水面的许多根须。“你们怎么会犯这样的错误？有人对你们撒谎了。你们以为那些人是要来搞破坏的。”“啊！”这是回答,每个人根据自己反应快慢的不同间隔都发出了这个声音。“胡说！没这回事！他们在查看铁路要往哪里走。听着,伙计们,你们拦不住铁路:不管你们喜不喜欢,它都会修起来。如果你们跟它斗,只会给自己找麻烦。法律允许那些人到这里来。地主也没什么可说的,如果你们干涉他们,就得和警察、布莱克斯利法官、手铐和米德尔马契监狱打交道了。如果有人告发你们,你们现在就可能已经进去了。”迦勒说到这里停了下来,或许最伟大的演说家也不能为这个场合选择更好的停顿或比喻了。“不过,来,你们没想害人。有人告诉你们铁路是坏事。那是谎言。它可能在这里那里造成一点点伤害,对这件事那件事有影响；天上的太阳也一样。但铁路是好事。”“啊！方便大人物赚钱,”老蒂莫西·库珀说,他在别人去闹事时留下来翻干草,“我从小到大见过许多事情变来变去--战争与和平,运河,老国王乔治,摄政王,新国王乔治,还有那个新名字的新国王--对穷人来说都是一样。运河对他有什么用？”

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harangue /həˈræŋ/

n. 长篇且激烈的演讲或训斥➕

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rigorous /ˈrɪɡərəs/

adj. 严格的；严谨的➕

🔊 They'n brought him neyther me-at nor be-acon, nor wage to lay by, if he didn't save it wi' clemmin' his own inside. Times ha' got wusser for him sin' I war a young un. An' so it'll be wi' the railroads. They'll on'y leave the poor mon furder behind. But them are fools as meddle, and so I told the chaps here. This is the big folks's world, this is. But yo're for the big folks, Muster Garth, yo are." Timothy was a wiry old laborer, of a type lingering in those times-who had his savings in a stocking-foot, lived in a lone cottage, and was not to be wrought on by any oratory, having as little of the feudal spirit, and believing as little, as if he had not been totally unacquainted with the Age of Reason and the Rights of Man. Caleb was in a difficulty known to any person attempting in dark times and unassisted by miracle to reason with rustics who are in possession of an undeniable truth which they know through a hard process of feeling, and can let it fall like a giant's club on your neatly carved argument for a social benefit which they do not feel. Caleb had no cant at command, even if he could have chosen to use it; and he had been accustomed to meet all such difficulties in no other way than by doing his "business" faithfully. He answered- "If you don't think well of me, Tim, never mind; that's neither here nor there now. Things may be bad for the poor man-bad they are; but I want the lads here not to do what will make things worse for themselves. The cattle may have a heavy load, but it won't help 'em to throw it over into the roadside pit, when it's partly their own fodder." "We war on'y for a bit o' foon," said Hiram, who was beginning to see consequences. "That war all we war arter." "Well, promise me not to meddle again, and I'll see that nobody informs against you." "I'n ne'er meddled, an' I'n no call to promise," said Timothy. "No, but the rest. Come, I'm as hard at work as any of you to-day, and I can't spare much time. Say you'll be quiet without the constable." "Aw, we wooant meddle-they may do as they loike for oos"-were the forms in which Caleb got his pledges; and then he hastened back to Fred, who had followed him, and watched him in the gateway. They went to work, and Fred helped vigorously. His spirits had risen, and he heartily enjoyed a good slip in the moist earth under the hedgerow, which soiled his perfect summer trousers. Was it his successful onset which had elated him, or the satisfaction of helping Mary's father? Something more. The accidents of the morning had helped his frustrated imagination to shape an employment for himself which had several attractions. I am not sure that certain fibres in Mr. Garth's mind had not resumed their old vibration towards the very end which now revealed itself to Fred.

“运河既没带给他肉,也没带给他培根,也没带给他可存下的工钱,除非他饿着肚子自己攒。从我小时候起,日子对他就越来越糟。铁路也会一样。只会让穷人更落后。但那些干涉的人才是傻瓜,所以我告诉这些家伙。这是大人物的世界,就是这样。但你是为大人物说话的,加思先生,你是。”蒂莫西是个瘦削的老工人,属于那个时代残留的类型--他把积蓄藏在袜子里,住在孤零零的农舍里,任何演讲都无法打动他,他几乎没有封建精神,也不太相信什么,仿佛他完全不知道理性时代和人权宣言。迦勒陷入了困境--任何人在黑暗时代试图没有奇迹帮助和那些拥有无可否认的真理（他们通过痛苦的情感过程知道）的乡下人讲理时都会遇到,他们可以像巨人棒子一样砸向你精心雕琢的关于社会利益的论点,而这种利益他们感受不到。迦勒没有现成的套话,即使他能选择使用；他习惯用其他方式应对这些困难,那就是忠实地做自己的“事业”。他回答--“如果你对我不满意,蒂姆,没关系；现在这不是重点。情况可能对穷人不利--确实不利；但我希望这些伙计不要做让自己处境更糟的事。牲口可能驮着重担,但如果把部分饲料扔到路边沟里,对它们也没帮助。”“我们只是找点乐子,”海勒姆说,他开始看到后果了。“我们就是冲着这个去的。”“好吧,答应我别再干涉了,我保证没人告发你们。”“我从没干涉过,我也没有必要答应,”蒂莫西说。“不,别人要答应。来吧,我今天和你们一样辛辛苦苦干活,没时间可浪费。说你们会安安静静的,不需要警察。”“啊,我们不会干涉了--他们爱怎么着就怎么着吧”--迦勒就这样得到了承诺；然后他赶紧回到弗雷德身边,后者一直跟着他,在大门口看着。他们开始干活,弗雷德卖力地帮忙。他情绪高涨,在树篱下的湿泥里好好滑了一跤,弄脏了他完美的夏季裤子,但他非常享受。是成功的出击让他得意,还是帮助玛丽父亲的满足感？还有更多。早上的意外帮助他那受挫的想象力为自己塑造了一份有几个吸引力的职业。我不确定加思先生头脑中的某些纤维是否没有重新振动起来,朝向现在对弗雷德显现出来的那个目标。

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wiry /ˈwaɪəri/

adj. 瘦而结实的；铁丝般的➕

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feudal /ˈfjuːdl/

adj. 封建的➕

🔊 For the effective accident is but the touch of fire where there is oil and tow; and it always appeared to Fred that the railway brought the needed touch. But they went on in silence except when their business demanded speech. At last, when they had finished and were walking away, Mr. Garth said- "A young fellow needn't be a B. A. to do this sort of work, eh, Fred?" "I wish I had taken to it before I had thought of being a B. A.," said Fred. He paused a moment, and then added, more hesitatingly, "Do you think I am too old to learn your business, Mr. Garth?" "My business is of many sorts, my boy," said Mr. Garth, smiling. "A good deal of what I know can only come from experience: you can't learn it off as you learn things out of a book. But you are young enough to lay a foundation yet." Caleb pronounced the last sentence emphatically, but paused in some uncertainty. He had been under the impression lately that Fred had made up his mind to enter the Church. "You do think I could do some good at it, if I were to try?" said Fred, more eagerly. "That depends," said Caleb, turning his head on one side and lowering his voice, with the air of a man who felt himself to be saying something deeply religious. "You must be sure of two things: you must love your work, and not be always looking over the edge of it, wanting your play to begin. And the other is, you must not be ashamed of your work, and think it would be more honorable to you to be doing something else. You must have a pride in your own work and in learning to do it well, and not be always saying, There's this and there's that-if I had this or that to do, I might make something of it. No matter what a man is-I wouldn't give twopence for him"-here Caleb's mouth looked bitter, and he snapped his fingers-"whether he was the prime minister or the rick-thatcher, if he didn't do well what he undertook to do." "I can never feel that I should do that in being a clergyman," said Fred, meaning to take a step in argument. "Then let it alone, my boy," said Caleb, abruptly, "else you'll never be easy. Or, if you are easy, you'll be a poor stick." "That is very nearly what Mary thinks about it," said Fred, coloring. "I think you must know what I feel for Mary, Mr. Garth: I hope it does not displease you that I have always loved her better than any one else, and that I shall never love any one as I love her." The expression of Caleb's face was visibly softening while Fred spoke. But he swung his head with a solemn slowness, and said- "That makes things more serious, Fred, if you want to take Mary's happiness into your keeping." "I know that, Mr. Garth," said Fred, eagerly, "and I would do anything for her.

因为有效的意外只是触碰到了油和麻絮的火花；对弗雷德来说,铁路似乎提供了所需的触碰。但他们继续默默地干活,只有当工作需要时才说话。最后,当他们干完活往回走时,加思先生说--“年轻人不必非得是文学学士才能干这种活儿,对吧,弗雷德？”“我真希望自己在想拿文学学士之前就干这行了,”弗雷德说。他停顿了一下,然后更犹豫地补充道,“您觉得我现在学您的行业是不是太老了,加思先生？”“我的行业种类很多,孩子,”加思先生笑着说,“我知道的东西很大一部分只能来自经验:你不能像读书那样学来。但你还年轻,还能打基础。”迦勒强调地说出最后一句话,但有些犹豫地停顿了。他最近一直以为弗雷德已经决定进入教会。“您觉得如果我努力,我能在这方面干出点名堂来吗？”弗雷德热切地问。“那要看情况,”迦勒说,把头歪向一边,压低声音,带着一种觉得自己在说非常虔诚的事情的神情。“你必须确定两件事:你必须热爱你的工作,而不是总偷懒想着开始玩乐。另一件事是,你不能为你的工作感到羞耻,觉得做别的事情会更体面。你必须对自己的工作感到自豪,学会把它做好,而不是总说:有这个,有那个--如果我有这个或那个做,我可能就成功了。不管一个人是什么--我一个子儿都不会给他”--说到这里,迦勒的嘴露出了苦涩的表情,他啪地弹了一下手指--“不管他是首相还是草垛匠,如果他不能把他承担的事情做好。”“我永远不会觉得做牧师能做到那样,”弗雷德说,想进一步论证。“那就别干,孩子,”迦勒突然说道,“否则你永远不会安心。或者,如果你安心了,你也会是个没出息的家伙。”“这差不多就是玛丽的看法,”弗雷德红着脸说。“我想您一定知道我对玛丽的感情,加思先生:我希望您不会反感我一直爱她胜过任何人,而且我永远不会像爱她那样爱别人。”当弗雷德说话时,迦勒脸上的表情明显变柔和了。但他摇了摇头,庄重而缓慢地说道--“那事情就更严重了,弗雷德,如果你想把玛丽的幸福托付给你。”“我明白,加思先生,”弗雷德热切地说,“我愿意为她做任何事。”

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hesitatingly /ˈhezɪteɪtɪŋli/

adv. 犹豫地➕

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emphatically /ɪmˈfætɪkli/

adv. 强调地；坚决地➕

🔊 She says she will never have me if I go into the Church; and I shall be the most miserable devil in the world if I lose all hope of Mary. Really, if I could get some other profession, business-anything that I am at all fit for, I would work hard, I would deserve your good opinion. I should like to have to do with outdoor things. I know a good deal about land and cattle already. I used to believe, you know-though you will think me rather foolish for it-that I should have land of my own. I am sure knowledge of that sort would come easily to me, especially if I could be under you in any way." "Softly, my boy," said Caleb, having the image of "Susan" before his eyes. "What have you said to your father about all this?" "Nothing, yet; but I must tell him. I am only waiting to know what I can do instead of entering the Church. I am very sorry to disappoint him, but a man ought to be allowed to judge for himself when he is four-and-twenty. How could I know when I was fifteen, what it would be right for me to do now? My education was a mistake." "But hearken to this, Fred," said Caleb. "Are you sure Mary is fond of you, or would ever have you?" "I asked Mr. Farebrother to talk to her, because she had forbidden me-I didn't know what else to do," said Fred, apologetically. "And he says that I have every reason to hope, if I can put myself in an honorable position-I mean, out of the Church I dare say you think it unwarrantable in me, Mr. Garth, to be troubling you and obtruding my own wishes about Mary, before I have done anything at all for myself. Of course I have not the least claim-indeed, I have already a debt to you which will never be discharged, even when I have been, able to pay it in the shape of money." "Yes, my boy, you have a claim," said Caleb, with much feeling in his voice. "The young ones have always a claim on the old to help them forward. I was young myself once and had to do without much help; but help would have been welcome to me, if it had been only for the fellow-feeling's sake. But I must consider. Come to me to-morrow at the office, at nine o'clock. At the office, mind." Mr. Garth would take no important step without consulting Susan, but it must be confessed that before he reached home he had taken his resolution. With regard to a large number of matters about which other men are decided or obstinate, he was the most easily manageable man in the world. He never knew what meat he would choose, and if Susan had said that they ought to live in a four-roomed cottage, in order to save, he would have said, "Let us go," without inquiring into details.

“她说如果我进入教会,她绝不嫁给我；如果我失去玛丽的希望,我会变成世界上最痛苦的家伙。真的,如果我能找到其他职业、生意--任何我适合做的事,我都会努力干活,我会配得上您的好评。我喜欢户外的事情。我已经对土地和牲畜知道不少了。我以前相信--虽然您会认为我挺蠢的--我会拥有自己的土地。我相信这类知识我学起来很容易,尤其是如果我能以某种方式在您手下工作的话。”“慢点说,孩子,”迦勒说,眼前浮现出“苏珊”的形象。“关于这一切,你跟你父亲说了吗？”“还没有；但我必须告诉他。我只是在等知道我不进教会能做什么。我很抱歉让他失望,但一个人到了二十四岁应该被允许为自己做判断。我十五岁时怎么能知道现在该做什么呢？我受的教育是个错误。”“但听着,弗雷德,”迦勒说,“你确定玛丽喜欢你吗？或者她会嫁给你吗？”“我请费尔布拉泽先生和她谈了,因为她禁止我自己说--我不知道还能怎么办,”弗雷德歉疚地说。“他说我很有希望,如果我能让自己处于一个体面的位置--我是说,离开教会。我想您可能会觉得我冒昧,加思先生,在自己还没做出任何成就之前就来麻烦您,暴露我对玛丽的愿望。当然我没有任何资格--实际上,我已经欠您一笔永远也还不清的债,即使我能用钱来偿还。”“不,孩子,你有资格,”迦勒说,声音里充满了感情。“年轻人总有资格让年长者帮助他们进步。我自己也年轻过,那时没有太多帮助；但帮助对我来说是受欢迎的,哪怕只是为了同病相怜。但我必须考虑一下。明天九点钟到办公室来找我。记住,是办公室。”加思先生不咨询苏珊是不会作出重要决定的,但必须承认,在他到家之前,他已经拿定了主意。对于许多别人会果断或固执的事情,他是世界上最好对付的人。他不知道要选什么肉,如果苏珊说他们应该住四居室的农舍以节省开支,他会说“我们去吧”,而不问细节。

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hearken /ˈhɑːkən/

v. 倾听（古语）➕

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apologetically /əˌpɒləˈdʒetɪkli/

adv. 道歉地；带着歉意地➕

🔊 But where Caleb's feeling and judgment strongly pronounced, he was a ruler; and in spite of his mildness and timidity in reproving, every one about him knew that on the exceptional occasions when he chose, he was absolute. He never, indeed, chose to be absolute except on some one else's behalf. On ninety-nine points Mrs. Garth decided, but on the hundredth she was often aware that she would have to perform the singularly difficult task of carrying out her own principle, and to make herself subordinate. "It is come round as I thought, Susan," said Caleb, when they were seated alone in the evening. He had already narrated the adventure which had brought about Fred's sharing in his work, but had kept back the further result. "The children are fond of each other-I mean, Fred and Mary." Mrs. Garth laid her work on her knee, and fixed her penetrating eyes anxiously on her husband. "After we'd done our work, Fred poured it all out to me. He can't bear to be a clergyman, and Mary says she won't have him if he is one; and the lad would like to be under me and give his mind to business. And I've determined to take him and make a man of him." "Caleb!" said Mrs. Garth, in a deep contralto, expressive of resigned astonishment. "It's a fine thing to do," said Mr. Garth, settling himself firmly against the back of his chair, and grasping the elbows. "I shall have trouble with him, but I think I shall carry it through. The lad loves Mary, and a true love for a good woman is a great thing, Susan. It shapes many a rough fellow." "Has Mary spoken to you on the subject?" said Mrs Garth, secretly a little hurt that she had to be informed on it herself. "Not a word. I asked her about Fred once; I gave her a bit of a warning. But she assured me she would never marry an idle self-indulgent man-nothing since. But it seems Fred set on Mr. Farebrother to talk to her, because she had forbidden him to speak himself, and Mr. Farebrother has found out that she is fond of Fred, but says he must not be a clergyman. Fred's heart is fixed on Mary, that I can see: it gives me a good opinion of the lad-and we always liked him, Susan." "It is a pity for Mary, I think," said Mrs. Garth. "Why-a pity?" "Because, Caleb, she might have had a man who is worth twenty Fred Vincy's." "Ah?" said Caleb, with surprise. "I firmly believe that Mr. Farebrother is attached to her, and meant to make her an offer; but of course, now that Fred has used him as an envoy, there is an end to that better prospect." There was a severe precision in Mrs. Garth's utterance. She was vexed and disappointed, but she was bent on abstaining from useless words. Caleb was silent a few moments under a conflict of feelings. He looked at the floor and moved his head and hands in accompaniment to some inward argumentation.

但一旦迦勒的感情和判断强烈宣示,他就是个统治者；尽管他温和且不善于训斥,但身边的每个人都知道,在他选择的时候,在极少数情况下,他是绝对的。事实上,他只有在替别人做决定时才会选择绝对。在九十九个点上,加思太太做决策,但在第一百个点上,她常常意识到自己必须完成一项极其困难的任务:贯彻自己的原则,让自己服从。“果然如我所料,苏珊,”晚上他们单独坐着时迦勒说。他已经讲述了导致弗雷德参与他工作的冒险,但隐瞒了进一步的进展。“孩子们彼此相爱--我是说弗雷德和玛丽。”加思太太把手里的活计放在膝盖上,用锐利的目光焦急地注视着丈夫。“我们干完活后,弗雷德把一切都告诉了我。他受不了当牧师,玛丽说如果他当牧师就不嫁给他；这孩子愿意在我手下工作,专心从事这一行。我决定收下他,把他培养成人。”“迦勒！”加思太太用深沉的女低音说道,语气中带着无奈的惊讶。“这是一件好事,”加思先生说,稳稳地靠在椅背上,抓住扶手。“我会为他费些心,但我认为我能成功。这孩子爱玛丽,对一个好女人的真爱是了不起的,苏珊。它能塑造许多粗野的汉子。”“玛丽和你谈过这事吗？”加思太太问道,心底有点受伤,因为她自己还得被通知这件事。“一个字也没提。我曾经问过她关于弗雷德的事；我给过她一点警告。但她向我保证,她绝不会嫁给一个懒惰放纵的男人--之后就再没提过。但看来弗雷德让费尔布拉泽先生去和她谈,因为她禁止他自己说,而费尔布拉泽先生发现她喜欢弗雷德,但说他不能做牧师。弗雷德的心在玛丽身上,我看得出来--这让我对他有了好印象--而且我们一直都喜欢他,苏珊。”“我觉得这对玛丽来说是个遗憾,”加思太太说。“怎么--遗憾？”“因为,迦勒,她本来可以得到一个比十个弗雷德·文西都强的人。”“啊？”迦勒惊讶地说。“我坚信费尔布拉泽先生爱慕她,打算向她求婚；但现在弗雷德利用他当信使,那个更好的前景自然就到此为止了。”加思太太的措辞精确而严厉。她既恼怒又失望,但她决心不说无用的话。迦勒沉默了几分钟,内心矛盾重重。他看着地板,脑袋和手随着内心的某种辩驳而摆动。

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pronounced /prəˈnaʊnst/

adj. 明显的,显著的➕

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mildness /ˈmaɪldnəs/

n. 温和,温柔➕

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timidity /tɪˈmɪdəti/

n. 胆怯,羞怯➕

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reproving /rɪˈpruːvɪŋ/

n. 责备,谴责➕

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exceptional /ɪkˈsepʃənl/

adj. 例外的,特别的➕

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subordinate /səˈbɔːrdɪnət/

adj. 从属的,次要的➕

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narrated /nəˈreɪtɪd/

v. 叙述,讲述➕

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clergyman /ˈklɜːrdʒimən/

n. 牧师,教士➕

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contralto /kənˈtræltoʊ/

n. 女低音（音域）➕

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expressive /ɪkˈspresɪv/

adj. 表现的,富有表情的➕

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resigned /rɪˈzaɪnd/

adj. 顺从的,听天由命的➕

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astonishment /əˈstɒnɪʃmənt/

n. 惊讶,惊愕➕

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self-indulgent /ˌself ɪnˈdʌldʒənt/

adj. 自我放纵的➕

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envoy /ˈenvɔɪ/

n. 使者,特使➕

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prospect /ˈprɒspekt/

n. 前景,可能性➕

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severe /sɪˈvɪər/

adj. 严厉的,严重的➕

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precision /prɪˈsɪʒn/

n. 精确,准确➕

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utterance /ˈʌtərəns/

n. 话语,言辞➕

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vexed /vekst/

adj. 烦恼的,恼怒的➕

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abstaining /əbˈsteɪnɪŋ/

v. 避免,克制（abstain的现在分词）➕

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inward /ˈɪnwəd/

adj. 内心的,内部的➕

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argumentation /ˌɑːrɡjumenˈteɪʃn/

n. 争论,辩论➕

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penetrating /ˈpenɪtreɪtɪŋ/

adj. 敏锐的,穿透的➕

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accompaniment /əˈkʌmpənimənt/

n. 伴随物,伴奏➕

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anxiously /ˈæŋkʃəsli/

adv. 焦虑地,担心地➕

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singularly /ˈsɪŋɡjələrli/

adv. 特别地,异常地➕

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forbidden /fərˈbɪdn/

v. 禁止（forbid的过去分词）➕

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idle /ˈaɪdl/

adj. 懒惰的,空闲的➕

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assured /əˈʃʊrd/

v. 保证,向……保证（assure的过去式）➕

🔊 At last he said- "That would have made me very proud and happy, Susan, and I should have been glad for your sake. I've always felt that your belongings have never been on a level with you. But you took me, though I was a plain man." "I took the best and cleverest man I had ever known," said Mrs. Garth, convinced that she would never have loved any one who came short of that mark. "Well, perhaps others thought you might have done better. But it would have been worse for me. And that is what touches me close about Fred. The lad is good at bottom, and clever enough to do, if he's put in the right way; and he loves and honors my daughter beyond anything, and she has given him a sort of promise according to what he turns out. I say, that young man's soul is in my hand; and I'll do the best I can for him, so help me God! It's my duty, Susan." Mrs. Garth was not given to tears, but there was a large one rolling down her face before her husband had finished. It came from the pressure of various feelings, in which there was much affection and some vexation. She wiped it away quickly, saying- "Few men besides you would think it a duty to add to their anxieties in that way, Caleb." "That signifies nothing-what other men would think. I've got a clear feeling inside me, and that I shall follow; and I hope your heart will go with me, Susan, in making everything as light as can be to Mary, poor child." Caleb, leaning back in his chair, looked with anxious appeal towards his wife. She rose and kissed him, saying, "God bless you, Caleb! Our children have a good father." But she went out and had a hearty cry to make up for the suppression of her words. She felt sure that her husband's conduct would be misunderstood, and about Fred she was rational and unhopeful. Which would turn out to have the more foresight in it-her rationality or Caleb's ardent generosity? When Fred went to the office the next morning, there was a test to be gone through which he was not prepared for. "Now Fred," said Caleb, "you will have some desk-work. I have always done a good deal of writing myself, but I can't do without help, and as I want you to understand the accounts and get the values into your head, I mean to do without another clerk. So you must buckle to. How are you at writing and arithmetic?" Fred felt an awkward movement of the heart; he had not thought of desk-work; but he was in a resolute mood, and not going to shrink. "I'm not afraid of arithmetic, Mr. Garth: it always came easily to me. I think you know my writing." "Let us see," said Caleb, taking up a pen, examining it carefully and handing it, well dipped, to Fred with a sheet of ruled paper.

最后他说--“那会让我非常骄傲和幸福,苏珊,我也会为你高兴。我一直觉得你的家人配不上你。但你嫁给了我,尽管我只是个普通人。”“我嫁给了我所认识的最好最聪明的人,”加思太太说,她深信自己绝不会爱上任何达不到这个标准的人。“嗯,也许别人觉得你能嫁得更好。但那对我更糟。这让我对弗雷德感同身受。这孩子本质上不错,也够聪明,如果能走对路就能干出一番事业；他爱我的女儿胜过一切,而她也根据他的表现给了他某种承诺。我说,这个年轻人的灵魂在我手中；我会尽我所能帮助他,愿上帝帮助我！这是我的责任,苏珊。”加思太太不轻易落泪,但在丈夫说完之前,一颗大大的泪珠顺着她的脸庞滚落。这是由各种情感的压力所致,其中有深深的爱意,也有几分恼怒。她迅速擦掉眼泪,说道--“除了你,很少有人会认为以这种方式增加自己的烦恼是责任,迦勒。”“这无关紧要--别人怎么想。我心里有明确的感觉,我会遵循它；我希望你的心也支持我,苏珊,尽可能让可怜的孩子玛丽轻松些。”迦勒靠在椅背上,带着焦虑的恳求望着妻子。她站起来吻了他,说:“上帝保佑你,迦勒！我们的孩子有个好父亲。”但她走出去,痛快地哭了一场,以弥补她压抑住的话语。她确信丈夫的行为会被误解,至于弗雷德,她是理性的,不抱希望。哪一个更有远见--她的理性还是迦勒热烈的慷慨？第二天早上弗雷德去办公室时,他要经历一个他没有准备好的考验。“现在,弗雷德,”迦勒说,“你要做一些案头工作。我自己一直做很多书写工作,但我不能没有帮手,既然我想让你了解账目,把价值记在脑子里,我打算不用其他职员了。所以你必须努力干。你的书写和算术怎么样？”弗雷德感到心里一阵别扭；他没有想到案头工作；但他决心坚定,不会退缩。“我不怕算术,加思先生:我向来觉得它容易。我想您知道我的书写。”“让我看看,”迦勒说着拿起一支笔,仔细检查了一下,沾满墨水递给弗雷德,还有一张划线纸。

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convinced /kənˈvɪnst/

adj. 确信的,信服的➕

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vexation /vekˈseɪʃn/

n. 烦恼,苦恼➕

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affection /əˈfekʃn/

n. 喜爱,感情➕

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signifies /ˈsɪɡnɪfaɪz/

v. 意味着,表示（signify的第三人称单数）➕

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suppression /səˈpreʃn/

n. 压抑,克制➕

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misunderstood /ˌmɪsʌndərˈstʊd/

v. 误解（misunderstand的过去分词）➕

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rational /ˈræʃnəl/

adj. 理性的,合理的➕

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unhopeful /ʌnˈhəʊpfl/

adj. 不抱希望的,悲观的➕

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foresight /ˈfɔːrsaɪt/

n. 远见,先见之明➕

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rationality /ˌræʃəˈnæləti/

n. 理性,合理性➕

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ardent /ˈɑːrdnt/

adj. 热烈的,热情的➕

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generosity /ˌdʒenəˈrɒsəti/

n. 慷慨,大方➕

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desk-work /ˈdesk wɜːrk/

n. 案头工作,文书工作➕

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accounts /əˈkaʊnts/

n. 账目,账户（复数）➕

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clerk /klɑːrk/

n. 职员,办事员➕

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buckle /ˈbʌkl/

v. 扣住,奋力于（buckle to 表示开始努力工作）➕

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arithmetic /əˈrɪθmətɪk/

n. 算术➕

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awkward /ˈɔːkwərd/

adj. 尴尬的,笨拙的➕

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resolute /ˈrezəluːt/

adj. 坚决的,果断的➕

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shrink /ʃrɪŋk/

v. 退缩,畏缩➕

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anxious /ˈæŋkʃəs/

adj. 焦虑的,渴望的➕

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appeal /əˈpiːl/

n. 恳求,呼吁➕

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pressure /ˈpreʃər/

n. 压力➕

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conduct /ˈkɒndʌkt/

n. 行为,举止➕

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mark /mɑːrk/

n. 标准,目标,标志➕

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anxieties /æŋˈzaɪətiz/

n. 焦虑,担心（复数）➕

🔊 "Copy me a line or two of that valuation, with the figures at the end." At that time the opinion existed that it was beneath a gentleman to write legibly, or with a hand in the least suitable to a clerk. Fred wrote the lines demanded in a hand as gentlemanly as that of any viscount or bishop of the day: the vowels were all alike and the consonants only distinguishable as turning up or down, the strokes had a blotted solidity and the letters disdained to keep the line-in short, it was a manuscript of that venerable kind easy to interpret when you know beforehand what the writer means. As Caleb looked on, his visage showed a growing depression, but when Fred handed him the paper he gave something like a snarl, and rapped the paper passionately with the back of his hand. Bad work like this dispelled all Caleb's mildness. "The deuce!" he exclaimed, snarlingly. "To think that this is a country where a man's education may cost hundreds and hundreds, and it turns you out this!" Then in a more pathetic tone, pushing up his spectacles and looking at the unfortunate scribe, "The Lord have mercy on us, Fred, I can't put up with this!" "What can I do, Mr. Garth?" said Fred, whose spirits had sunk very low, not only at the estimate of his handwriting, but at the vision of himself as liable to be ranked with office clerks. "Do? Why, you must learn to form your letters and keep the line. What's the use of writing at all if nobody can understand it?" asked Caleb, energetically, quite preoccupied with the bad quality of the work. "Is there so little business in the world that you must be sending puzzles over the country? But that's the way people are brought up. I should lose no end of time with the letters some people send me, if Susan did not make them out for me. It's disgusting." Here Caleb tossed the paper from him. Any stranger peeping into the office at that moment might have wondered what was the drama between the indignant man of business, and the fine-looking young fellow whose blond complexion was getting rather patchy as he bit his lip with mortification. Fred was struggling with many thoughts. Mr. Garth had been so kind and encouraging at the beginning of their interview, that gratitude and hopefulness had been at a high pitch, and the downfall was proportionate. He had not thought of desk-work-in fact, like the majority of young gentlemen, he wanted an occupation which should be free from disagreeables. I cannot tell what might have been the consequences if he had not distinctly promised himself that he would go to Lowick to see Mary and tell her that he was engaged to work under her father. He did not like to disappoint himself there. "I am very sorry," were all the words that he could muster. But Mr. Garth was already relenting.

“把那段估价的文字抄一两行,末尾的数字也抄上。”当时有一种看法,认为绅士写字不必清晰,或者手迹不必像职员那样。弗雷德用当时子爵或主教那样绅士的手迹写下了要求的几行:所有元音都一样,辅音只能靠向上或向下的笔画来区分,笔划有污渍般的实心,字母不屑于保持直线--总之,这是一份古老的手稿,如果你事先知道作者的意思,就容易辨认。迦勒看着,脸色越来越阴沉,但当弗雷德把纸递给他时,他像狮子一样哼了一声,用手背激动地拍了拍纸。这种糟糕的作业驱散了迦勒所有的温和。“见鬼！”他怒吼道,“想想吧,在这个国家,一个人的教育可能要花上几百几百的钱,结果把你教成这样！”然后用更悲凉的语调,推了推眼镜,看着这个不幸的抄写员,“上帝怜悯我们吧,弗雷德,我可受不了这个！”“我能怎么办呢,加思先生？”弗雷德说,他的情绪非常低落,不仅因为书写的评价,还因为看到自己有可能被归入办公室职员的行列。“怎么办？你必须学会写好字母,保持直线。如果没人看得懂,写字有什么用？”迦勒精力充沛地问,完全被糟糕的书写质量占据了注意力。“难道世界上事情这么少,你非要往全国各地送谜语？但人们就这样被带大的。如果苏珊不帮我辨认,我会浪费无数时间在别人寄给我的信上。真恶心。”迦勒把纸扔到一边。这时如果有陌生人窥视办公室,可能会好奇这个愤怒的生意人和这个相貌英俊的年轻人之间发生了什么戏剧--后者金发肤色因屈辱咬着嘴唇而变得斑斑点点。弗雷德内心激烈地挣扎着。加思先生在他们谈话开始时是如此和蔼可亲、鼓舞人心,以至于感激和希望达到了高潮,而跌落也相应而来。他没有想过案头工作--事实上,和大多数年轻绅士一样,他想要一份没有不愉快之处的职业。如果他不是明确承诺自己要去洛威克见玛丽,告诉她他答应在她父亲手下工作,我不知道后果会怎样。他不想让自己在那方面失望。“非常抱歉,”他只能说出这几个字。但加思先生已经心软了。

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valuation /ˌvæljuˈeɪʃn/

n. 估价,评估➕

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legibly /ˈledʒəbli/

adv. 清晰地,易读地➕

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distinguishable /dɪˈstɪŋɡwɪʃəbl/

adj. 可区分的,可辨别的➕

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blotted /ˈblɒtɪd/

adj. 弄脏的,有污迹的➕

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solidity /səˈlɪdəti/

n. 坚固,坚实➕

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disdained /dɪsˈdeɪnd/

v. 鄙视,不屑➕

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manuscript /ˈmænjuskrɪpt/

n. 手稿,原稿➕

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venerable /ˈvenərəbl/

adj. 令人尊敬的,古老的➕

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interpret /ɪnˈtɜːrprɪt/

v. 解释,解读➕

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visage /ˈvɪzɪdʒ/

n. 面容,脸➕

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depression /dɪˈpreʃn/

n. 沮丧,抑郁；经济萧条➕

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snarl /snɑːrl/

n. 咆哮,怒吼➕

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rapped /ræpt/

v. 敲击,轻拍➕

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passionately /ˈpæʃənətli/

adv. 热情地,激昂地➕

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dispelled /dɪˈspeld/

v. 驱散,消除➕

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exclaimed /ɪkˈskleɪmd/

v. 呼喊,惊叫➕

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pathetic /pəˈθetɪk/

adj. 可怜的,可悲的➕

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scribe /skraɪb/

n. 抄写员,书记➕

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estimate /ˈestɪmət/

n. 估计,估价➕

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liable /ˈlaɪəbl/

adj. 有责任的,易于…的➕

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energetically /ˌenərˈdʒetɪkli/

adv. 精力充沛地,有力地➕

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preoccupied /priˈɒkjuːpaɪd/

adj. 全神贯注的,心事重重的➕

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disgusting /dɪsˈɡʌstɪŋ/

adj. 令人厌恶的➕

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tossed /tɒst/

v. 扔,抛➕

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peeping /ˈpiːpɪŋ/

v. 窥视,偷看➕

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indignant /ɪnˈdɪɡnənt/

adj. 愤怒的,义愤的➕

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complexion /kəmˈplekʃn/

n. 肤色,面色➕

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patchy /ˈpætʃi/

adj. 斑驳的,不完整的➕

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mortification /ˌmɔːrtɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/

n. 屈辱,窘迫➕

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gratitude /ˈɡrætɪtjuːd/

n. 感激,感谢➕

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hopefulness /ˈhəʊpflnəs/

n. 希望,乐观➕

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downfall /ˈdaʊnfɔːl/

n. 垮台,衰落➕

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proportionate /prəˈpɔːrʃənət/

adj. 成比例的,相称的➕

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consequences /ˈkɒnsɪkwənsɪz/

n. 后果,结果➕

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distinctly /dɪˈstɪŋktli/

adv. 清楚地,显然地➕

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engaged /ɪnˈɡeɪdʒd/

adj. 从事于；订婚的➕

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muster /ˈmʌstər/

v. 召集,鼓起➕

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relenting /rɪˈlentɪŋ/

v. 变温和,心软➕

🔊 "We must make the best of it, Fred," he began, with a return to his usual quiet tone. "Every man can learn to write. I taught myself. Go at it with a will, and sit up at night if the day-time isn't enough. We'll be patient, my boy. Callum shall go on with the books for a bit, while you are learning. But now I must be off," said Caleb, rising. "You must let your father know our agreement. You'll save me Callum's salary, you know, when you can write; and I can afford to give you eighty pounds for the first year, and more after." When Fred made the necessary disclosure to his parents, the relative effect on the two was a surprise which entered very deeply into his memory. He went straight from Mr. Garth's office to the warehouse, rightly feeling that the most respectful way in which he could behave to his father was to make the painful communication as gravely and formally as possible. Moreover, the decision would be more certainly understood to be final, if the interview took place in his father's gravest hours, which were always those spent in his private room at the warehouse. Fred entered on the subject directly, and declared briefly what he had done and was resolved to do, expressing at the end his regret that he should be the cause of disappointment to his father, and taking the blame on his own deficiencies. The regret was genuine, and inspired Fred with strong, simple words. Mr. Vincy listened in profound surprise without uttering even an exclamation, a silence which in his impatient temperament was a sign of unusual emotion. He had not been in good spirits about trade that morning, and the slight bitterness in his lips grew intense as he listened. When Fred had ended, there was a pause of nearly a minute, during which Mr. Vincy replaced a book in his desk and turned the key emphatically. Then he looked at his son steadily, and said- "So you've made up your mind at last, sir?" "Yes, father." "Very well; stick to it. I've no more to say. You've thrown away your education, and gone down a step in life, when I had given you the means of rising, that's all." "I am very sorry that we differ, father. I think I can be quite as much of a gentleman at the work I have undertaken, as if I had been a curate. But I am grateful to you for wishing to do the best for me." "Very well; I have no more to say. I wash my hands of you. I only hope, when you have a son of your own he will make a better return for the pains you spend on him." This was very cutting to Fred. His father was using that unfair advantage possessed by us all when we are in a pathetic situation and see our own past as if it were simply part of the pathos. In reality, Mr. Vincy's wishes about his son had had a great deal of pride, inconsiderateness, and egoistic folly in them.

“我们得尽量做得最好,弗雷德,”他重新用平常平静的语气说道,“每个人都能学会写字。我就是自学的。认真去做,如果白天不够,就晚上熬夜。我们要有耐心,我的孩子。凯勒姆继续管账一段时间,等你学习。但现在我得走了,”迦勒站起来说,“你必须让你父亲知道我们的协议。等你能写字了,你就能省下凯勒姆的薪水；第一年我可以给你八十英镑,以后更多。”当弗雷德向父母作必要的坦白时,对两人的相对影响让他非常惊讶,深深印在他的记忆里。他直接从加思先生的办公室去了仓库,正确认为对父亲最尊重的方式就是尽可能严肃而正式地传达这个痛苦的消息。此外,如果会面发生在父亲最严肃的时刻--那些在仓库私人房间里度过的时刻--这个决定将更容易被理解为最终决定。弗雷德直接切入主题,简短地说明了他做了什么以及决心做什么,最后表示很抱歉让父亲失望,并将责任归于自己的不足。这种遗憾是真诚的,促使弗雷德用了强烈而简单的语言。文西先生深感惊讶地听着,甚至没有发出一声惊叹,这种沉默在他急躁的性格中是异常激动的表现。那天早上他对生意情绪不佳,当他听着时,嘴唇上轻微的苦涩变得强烈起来。弗雷德说完后,停顿了将近一分钟,这期间文西先生把一本书放回书桌,用力锁上。然后他凝视着儿子,说道--“那么你终于下定决心了,先生？”“是的,父亲。”“很好；坚持下去。我没什么可说的了。你浪费了你的教育,在生活上降了一级,而我已经给了你上升的手段,仅此而已。”“我很抱歉我们意见不合,父亲。我认为在我从事的工作上,我可以和做助理牧师一样体面。但我感谢您希望为我好。”“很好；我没什么可说的了。我不再管你。我只希望你有了自己的儿子时,他能对你为他付出的心血作出更好的回报。”这对弗雷德非常刺耳。他的父亲正在利用我们所有人处于可怜处境时都拥有的不公平优势,把自己的过去看作仅仅是那种可怜的一部分。事实上,文西先生对儿子的愿望中包含了大量的骄傲、不体贴和自私的愚蠢。

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disclosure /dɪsˈkləʊʒər/

n. 披露,公开➕

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warehouse /ˈweəhaʊs/

n. 仓库,货栈➕

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gravely /ˈɡreɪvli/

adv. 严肃地,严重地➕

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formally /ˈfɔːrməli/

adv. 正式地➕

🔊

moreover /mɔːrˈəʊvər/

adv. 此外,而且➕

🔊

gravest /ɡreɪvɪst/

adj. 最严重的,最严肃的➕

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declared /dɪˈkleəd/

v. 宣布,声明➕

🔊

resolved /rɪˈzɒlvd/

v. 决心,解决➕

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regret /rɪˈɡret/

n. 遗憾,后悔➕

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disappointment /ˌdɪsəˈpɔɪntmənt/

n. 失望➕

🔊

deficiencies /dɪˈfɪʃnsiz/

n. 缺陷,不足➕

🔊

genuine /ˈdʒenjuɪn/

adj. 真正的,真诚的➕

🔊

inspired /ɪnˈspaɪəd/

v. 激励,鼓舞➕

🔊

profound /prəˈfaʊnd/

adj. 深刻的,深远的➕

🔊

uttering /ˈʌtərɪŋ/

v. 发出（声音）,说➕

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exclamation /ˌekskləˈmeɪʃn/

n. 感叹,惊呼➕

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impatient /ɪmˈpeɪʃnt/

adj. 不耐烦的,急躁的➕

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temperament /ˈtemprəmənt/

n. 气质,性情➕

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bitterness /ˈbɪtərnəs/

n. 苦味,痛苦,怨恨➕

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intense /ɪnˈtens/

adj. 强烈的,紧张的➕

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replaced /rɪˈpleɪst/

v. 取代,放回原处➕

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steadily /ˈstedəli/

adv. 稳定地,持续地➕

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differ /ˈdɪfər/

v. 不同,意见分歧➕

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undertaken /ˌʌndərˈteɪkən/

v. 承担,从事➕

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curate /ˈkjʊərət/

n. 助理牧师➕

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cutting /ˈkʌtɪŋ/

adj. 尖刻的,伤人的➕

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possessed /pəˈzest/

v. 拥有；被附身➕

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pathos /ˈpeɪθɒs/

n. 怜悯,哀婉➕

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inconsiderateness /ˌɪnkənˈsɪdərətnəs/

n. 不顾及他人,轻率➕

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egoistic /ˌiːɡəʊˈɪstɪk/

adj. 自私的,利己的➕

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folly /ˈfɒli/

n. 愚蠢,荒唐➕

🔊 But still the disappointed father held a strong lever; and Fred felt as if he were being banished with a malediction. "I hope you will not object to my remaining at home, sir?" he said, after rising to go; "I shall have a sufficient salary to pay for my board, as of course I should wish to do." "Board be hanged!" said Mr. Vincy, recovering himself in his disgust at the notion that Fred's keep would be missed at his table. "Of course your mother will want you to stay. But I shall keep no horse for you, you understand; and you will pay your own tailor. You will do with a suit or two less, I fancy, when you have to pay for 'em." Fred lingered; there was still something to be said. At last it came. "I hope you will shake hands with me, father, and forgive me the vexation I have caused you." Mr. Vincy from his chair threw a quick glance upward at his son, who had advanced near to him, and then gave his hand, saying hurriedly, "Yes, yes, let us say no more." Fred went through much more narrative and explanation with his mother, but she was inconsolable, having before her eyes what perhaps her husband had never thought of, the certainty that Fred would marry Mary Garth, that her life would henceforth be spoiled by a perpetual infusion of Garths and their ways, and that her darling boy, with his beautiful face and stylish air "beyond anybody else's son in Middlemarch," would be sure to get like that family in plainness of appearance and carelessness about his clothes. To her it seemed that there was a Garth conspiracy to get possession of the desirable Fred, but she dared not enlarge on this opinion, because a slight hint of it had made him "fly out" at her as he had never done before. Her temper was too sweet for her to show any anger, but she felt that her happiness had received a bruise, and for several days merely to look at Fred made her cry a little as if he were the subject of some baleful prophecy. Perhaps she was the slower to recover her usual cheerfulness because Fred had warned her that she must not reopen the sore question with his father, who had accepted his decision and forgiven him. If her husband had been vehement against Fred, she would have been urged into defence of her darling. It was the end of the fourth day when Mr. Vincy said to her- "Come, Lucy, my dear, don't be so down-hearted. You always have spoiled the boy, and you must go on spoiling him." "Nothing ever did cut me so before, Vincy," said the wife, her fair throat and chin beginning to tremble again, "only his illness." "Pooh, pooh, never mind! We must expect to have trouble with our children.

但失望的父亲仍然握着一根强有力的杠杆；弗雷德感觉自己像被诅咒着驱逐。“我希望您不反对我继续住在家里,先生？”他站起来要走时说,“我会有足够的薪水来支付我的食宿费,我当然希望能这样。”“食宿费,见鬼！”文西先生说,他被弗雷德的伙食会从餐桌上失去这个念头恶心到了,恢复了常态。“当然你母亲会希望你留下。但我不会给你养马了,你明白；你自己付裁缝费。我猜,当你要自己付钱时,你会少做一两套衣服。”弗雷德犹豫着；还有话要说。最后他开口了。“我希望您跟我握手,父亲,原谅我给您带来的烦恼。”文西先生从椅子上迅速抬头看了一眼走近他的儿子,然后伸出手匆匆说道,“好了,好了,我们别提了。”弗雷德又跟母亲说了很多,做了很多解释,但她伤心不已,因为她眼前有也许她丈夫从未想到的事情:弗雷德肯定会娶玛丽·加思,她的生活从此将被加思一家及其方式持续侵入而破坏,而她可爱的孩子,拥有“比米德尔马契任何人的儿子”都漂亮的脸蛋和时髦气质,肯定会变成那家人那样外貌朴素、不修边幅。在她看来,似乎有个加思家的阴谋要占有这个理想的弗雷德,但她不敢多说这个意见,因为略微暗示就让他对她“发火”了,这是他从未有过的。她的脾气太好,不会表现出愤怒,但她觉得自己的幸福受到了伤害,有几天仅仅看到弗雷德就让她哭一点,仿佛他是某种不祥预言的受害者。也许她恢复平时欢快心情较慢,因为弗雷德警告她不要和他父亲重提这个痛处,父亲已经接受了他的决定并原谅了他。如果丈夫激烈反对弗雷德,她反而会迫不得已为她的宝贝辩护。第四天结束时,文西先生对她说--“好了,露西,亲爱的,别这么垂头丧气。你总是惯着这孩子,你得继续惯下去。”“以前从来没有这样打击过我,文西,”妻子说,她白皙的喉咙和下巴又开始颤抖,“只有他生病那次。”“呸,呸,别在意！我们预料到孩子会给我们带来麻烦。”

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lever /ˈliːvər/

n. 杠杆；手段➕

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banished /ˈbænɪʃt/

v. 驱逐,流放➕

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malediction /ˌmælɪˈdɪkʃn/

n. 诅咒,咒骂➕

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sufficient /səˈfɪʃnt/

adj. 足够的,充分的➕

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board /bɔːrd/

n. 膳食；木板；董事会➕

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disgust /dɪsˈɡʌst/

n. 厌恶,反感➕

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notion /ˈnəʊʃn/

n. 概念,观念➕

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lingered /ˈlɪŋɡərd/

v. 逗留,徘徊➕

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hurriedly /ˈhʌrɪdli/

adv. 匆忙地➕

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narrative /ˈnærətɪv/

n. 叙述,故事➕

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inconsolable /ˌɪnkənˈsəʊləbl/

adj. 无法安慰的,悲痛欲绝的➕

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certainty /ˈsɜːtnti/

n. 确定性,肯定➕

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henceforth /ˌhensˈfɔːrθ/

adv. 从今以后➕

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perpetual /pərˈpetʃuəl/

adj. 永久的,不断的➕

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infusion /ɪnˈfjuːʒn/

n. 注入,灌输➕

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stylish /ˈstaɪlɪʃ/

adj. 时髦的,有风格的➕

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plainness /ˈpleɪnnəs/

n. 朴素,平凡➕

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conspiracy /kənˈspɪrəsi/

n. 阴谋,共谋➕

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desirable /dɪˈzaɪərəbl/

adj. 合意的,值得拥有的➕

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enlarge /ɪnˈlɑːrdʒ/

v. 扩大,放大➕

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bruise /bruːz/

n. 瘀伤,挫伤➕

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baleful /ˈbeɪlfl/

adj. 有害的,恶意的➕

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prophecy /ˈprɒfəsi/

n. 预言➕

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cheerfulness /ˈtʃɪərflnəs/

n. 快乐,愉悦➕

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reopen /ˌriːˈəʊpən/

v. 重新开放,重新开始➕

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vehement /ˈviːəmənt/

adj. 激烈的,强烈的➕

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urged /ɜːrdʒd/

v. 催促,竭力主张➕

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down-hearted /ˌdaʊn ˈhɑːrtɪd/

adj. 沮丧的,灰心的➕

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tremble /ˈtrembl/

v. 颤抖,发抖➕

🔊 Don't make it worse by letting me see you out of spirits." "Well, I won't," said Mrs. Vincy, roused by this appeal and adjusting herself with a little shake as of a bird which lays down its ruffled plumage. "It won't do to begin making a fuss about one," said Mr. Vincy, wishing to combine a little grumbling with domestic cheerfulness. "There's Rosamond as well as Fred." "Yes, poor thing. I'm sure I felt for her being disappointed of her baby; but she got over it nicely." "Baby, pooh! I can see Lydgate is making a mess of his practice, and getting into debt too, by what I hear. I shall have Rosamond coming to me with a pretty tale one of these days. But they'll get no money from me, I know. Let his family help him. I never did like that marriage. But it's no use talking. Ring the bell for lemons, and don't look dull any more, Lucy. I'll drive you and Louisa to Riverston to-morrow."

“别让我看到你无精打采而让事情更糟。”“好吧,我不会了,”文西太太被这番话激起,像抖落羽毛的鸟一样微微调整了一下自己。“不能因为一个就开始大惊小怪,”文西先生说,想把一丝抱怨与家庭欢乐结合起来。“除了弗雷德还有罗莎蒙德呢。”“是的,可怜的孩子。我肯定,我为她失去孩子感到难过；但她很好地挺过来了。”“孩子,呸！我听说利德盖特把他的诊所搞得一团糟,还欠了债。总有一天罗莎蒙德会带着一个漂亮的故事来找我。但他们从我这里拿不到钱,我知道。让他的家族帮助他吧。我从来就不喜欢那桩婚事。但说这些没用。摇铃叫柠檬,别再闷闷不乐了,露西。明天我带你和路易莎去里弗斯顿。”

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roused /raʊzd/

v. 唤醒,激起➕

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adjusting /əˈdʒʌstɪŋ/

v. 调整,适应➕

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ruffled /ˈrʌfld/

adj. 有褶皱的,凌乱的➕

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plumage /ˈpluːmɪdʒ/

n. 羽毛,羽衣➕

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fuss /fʌs/

n. 大惊小怪,忙乱➕

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grumbling /ˈɡrʌmblɪŋ/

n. 抱怨,牢骚➕

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dull /dʌl/

adj. 沉闷的,乏味的➕

Book 6. The Widow And The Wife – Chapter three (第三章)

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