Mr and Mrs Hilary brought with them an orphan12 niece, a daughter of Mr Glowry’s youngest sister, who had made a runaway13 love-match with an Irish officer. The lady’s fortune disappeared in the first year: love, by a natural consequence, disappeared in the second: the Irishman himself, by a still more natural consequence, disappeared in the third. Mr Glowry had allowed his sister an annuity14, and she had lived in retirement15 with her only daughter, whom, at her death, which had recently happened, she commended to the care of Mrs Hilary.
Miss Marionetta Celestina O’Carroll was a very blooming and accomplished16 young lady. Being a compound of the Allegro17 Vivace of the O’Carrolls, and of the Andante Doloroso of the Glowries, she exhibited in her own character all the diversities of an April sky. Her hair was light-brown; her eyes hazel, and sparkling with a mild but fluctuating light; her features regular; her lips full, and of equal size; and her person surpassingly graceful18. She was a proficient19 in music. Her conversation was sprightly20, but always on subjects light in their nature and limited in their interest: for moral sympathies, in any general sense, had no place in her mind. She had some coquetry, and more caprice, liking21 and disliking almost in the same moment; pursuing an object with earnestness while it seemed unattainable, and rejecting it when in her power as not worth the trouble of possession.
Whether she was touched with a penchant22 for her cousin Scythrop, or was merely curious to see what effect the tender passion would have on so outré a person, she had not been three days in the Abbey before she threw out all the lures23 of her beauty and accomplishments24 to make a prize of his heart. Scythrop proved an easy conquest. The image of Miss Emily Girouette was already sufficiently25 dimmed by the power of philosophy and the exercise of reason: for to these influences, or to any influence but the true one, are usually ascribed the mental cures performed by the great physician Time. Scythrop’s romantic dreams had indeed given him many pure anticipated cognitions of combinations of beauty and intelligence, which, he had some misgivings26, were not exactly realised in his cousin Marionetta; but, in spite of these misgivings, he soon became distractedly in love; which, when the young lady clearly perceived, she altered her tactics, and assumed as much coldness and reserve as she had before shown ardent27 and ingenuous28 attachment29. Scythrop was confounded at the sudden change; but, instead of falling at her feet and requesting an explanation, he retreated to his tower, muffled30 himself in his nightcap, seated himself in the president’s chair of his imaginary secret tribunal, summoned Marionetta with all terrible formalities, frightened her out of her wits, disclosed himself, and clasped the beautiful penitent31 to his bosom32.
While he was acting33 this reverie — in the moment in which the awful president of the secret tribunal was throwing back his cowl and his mantle34, and discovering himself to the lovely culprit as her adoring and magnanimous lover, the door of the study opened, and the real Marionetta appeared.
The motives35 which had led her to the tower were a little penitence36, a little concern, a little affection, and a little fear as to what the sudden secession of Scythrop, occasioned by her sudden change of manner, might portend37. She had tapped several times unheard, and of course unanswered; and at length, timidly and cautiously opening the door, she discovered him standing38 up before a black velvet39 chair, which was mounted on an old oak table, in the act of throwing open his striped calico dressing-gown, and flinging away his nightcap — which is what the French call an imposing40 attitude.
Each stood a few moments fixed41 in their respective places — the lady in astonishment42, and the gentleman in confusion. Marionetta was the first to break silence. ‘For heaven’s sake,’ said she, ‘my dear Scythrop, what is the matter?’
‘For heaven’s sake, indeed!’ said Scythrop, springing from the table; ‘for your sake, Marionetta, and you are my heaven — distraction43 is the matter. I adore you, Marionetta, and your cruelty drives me mad.’ He threw himself at her knees, devoured her hand with kisses, and breathed a thousand vows44 in the most passionate45 language of romance.
Marionetta listened a long time in silence, till her lover had exhausted46 his eloquence47 and paused for a reply. She then said, with a very arch look, ‘I prithee deliver thyself like a man of this world.’ The levity48 of this quotation49, and of the manner in which it was delivered, jarred so discordantly50 on the high-wrought enthusiasm of the romantic inamorato, that he sprang upon his feet, and beat his forehead with his clenched51 fist. The young lady was terrified; and, deeming it expedient52 to soothe53 him, took one of his hands in hers, placed the other hand on his shoulder, looked up in his face with a winning seriousness, and said, in the tenderest possible tone, ‘What would you have, Scythrop?’
Scythrop was in heaven again. ‘What would I have? What but you, Marionetta? You, for the companion of my studies, the partner of my thoughts, the auxiliary54 of my great designs for the emancipation55 of mankind.’
‘I am afraid I should be but a poor auxiliary, Scythrop. What would you have me do?’
‘Do as Rosalia does with Carlos, divine Marionetta. Let us each open a vein56 in the other’s arm, mix our blood in a bowl, and drink it as a sacrament of love. Then we shall see visions of transcendental illumination, and soar on the wings of ideas into the space of pure intelligence.’
Marionetta could not reply; she had not so strong a stomach as Rosalia, and turned sick at the proposition. She disengaged herself suddenly from Scythrop, sprang through the door of the tower, and fled with precipitation along the corridors. Scythrop pursued her, crying, ‘Stop, stop, Marionetta — my life, my love!’ and was gaining rapidly on her flight, when, at an ill-omened corner, where two corridors ended in an angle, at the head of a staircase, he came into sudden and violent contact with Mr Toobad, and they both plunged57 together to the foot of the stairs, like two billiard-balls into one pocket. This gave the young lady time to escape, and enclose herself in her chamber58; while Mr Toobad, rising slowly, and rubbing his knees and shoulders, said, ‘You see, my dear Scythrop, in this little incident, one of the innumerable proofs of the temporary supremacy59 of the devil; for what but a systematic60 design and concurrent61 contrivance of evil could have made the angles of time and place coincide in our unfortunate persons at the head of this accursed staircase?’
‘Nothing else, certainly,’ said Scythrop: ‘you are perfectly62 in the right, Mr Toobad. Evil, and mischief63, and misery64, and confusion, and vanity, and vexation of spirit, and death, and disease, and assassination65, and war, and poverty, and pestilence66, and famine, and avarice67, and selfishness, and rancour, and jealousy68, and spleen, and malevolence69, and the disappointments of philanthropy, and the faithlessness of friendship, and the crosses of love — all prove the accuracy of your views, and the truth of your system; and it is not impossible that the infernal interruption of this fall downstairs may throw a colour of evil on the whole of my future existence.’
‘My dear boy,’ said Mr Toobad, ‘you have a fine eye for consequences.’
So saying, he embraced Scythrop, who retired70, with a disconsolate71 step, to dress for dinner; while Mr Toobad stalked across the hall, repeating, ‘Woe to the inhabiters of the earth, and of the sea, for the devil is come among you, having great wrath72.’
点击收听单词发音
1 lawsuit | |
n.诉讼,控诉 | |
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2 tragic | |
adj.悲剧的,悲剧性的,悲惨的 | |
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3 lamenting | |
adj.悲伤的,悲哀的v.(为…)哀悼,痛哭,悲伤( lament的现在分词 ) | |
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4 degenerate | |
v.退步,堕落;adj.退步的,堕落的;n.堕落者 | |
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5 interspersing | |
v.散布,散置( intersperse的现在分词 );点缀 | |
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6 divers | |
adj.不同的;种种的 | |
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7 honourable | |
adj.可敬的;荣誉的,光荣的 | |
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8 devoured | |
吞没( devour的过去式和过去分词 ); 耗尽; 津津有味地看; 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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9 misanthropical | |
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10 nil | |
n.无,全无,零 | |
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11 syllable | |
n.音节;vt.分音节 | |
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12 orphan | |
n.孤儿;adj.无父母的 | |
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13 runaway | |
n.逃走的人,逃亡,亡命者;adj.逃亡的,逃走的 | |
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14 annuity | |
n.年金;养老金 | |
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15 retirement | |
n.退休,退职 | |
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16 accomplished | |
adj.有才艺的;有造诣的;达到了的 | |
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17 allegro | |
adj. 快速而活泼的;n.快板;adv.活泼地 | |
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18 graceful | |
adj.优美的,优雅的;得体的 | |
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19 proficient | |
adj.熟练的,精通的;n.能手,专家 | |
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20 sprightly | |
adj.愉快的,活泼的 | |
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21 liking | |
n.爱好;嗜好;喜欢 | |
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22 penchant | |
n.爱好,嗜好;(强烈的)倾向 | |
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23 lures | |
吸引力,魅力(lure的复数形式) | |
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24 accomplishments | |
n.造诣;完成( accomplishment的名词复数 );技能;成绩;成就 | |
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25 sufficiently | |
adv.足够地,充分地 | |
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26 misgivings | |
n.疑虑,担忧,害怕;疑虑,担心,恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 );疑惧 | |
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27 ardent | |
adj.热情的,热烈的,强烈的,烈性的 | |
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28 ingenuous | |
adj.纯朴的,单纯的;天真的;坦率的 | |
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29 attachment | |
n.附属物,附件;依恋;依附 | |
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30 muffled | |
adj.(声音)被隔的;听不太清的;(衣服)裹严的;蒙住的v.压抑,捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 );用厚厚的衣帽包着(自己) | |
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31 penitent | |
adj.后悔的;n.后悔者;忏悔者 | |
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32 bosom | |
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的 | |
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33 acting | |
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的 | |
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34 mantle | |
n.斗篷,覆罩之物,罩子;v.罩住,覆盖,脸红 | |
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35 motives | |
n.动机,目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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36 penitence | |
n.忏悔,赎罪;悔过 | |
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37 portend | |
v.预兆,预示;给…以警告 | |
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38 standing | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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39 velvet | |
n.丝绒,天鹅绒;adj.丝绒制的,柔软的 | |
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40 imposing | |
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的 | |
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41 fixed | |
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的 | |
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42 astonishment | |
n.惊奇,惊异 | |
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43 distraction | |
n.精神涣散,精神不集中,消遣,娱乐 | |
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44 vows | |
誓言( vow的名词复数 ); 郑重宣布,许愿 | |
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45 passionate | |
adj.热情的,热烈的,激昂的,易动情的,易怒的,性情暴躁的 | |
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46 exhausted | |
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的 | |
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47 eloquence | |
n.雄辩;口才,修辞 | |
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48 levity | |
n.轻率,轻浮,不稳定,多变 | |
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49 quotation | |
n.引文,引语,语录;报价,牌价,行情 | |
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50 discordantly | |
adv.不一致地,不和谐地 | |
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51 clenched | |
v.紧握,抓紧,咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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52 expedient | |
adj.有用的,有利的;n.紧急的办法,权宜之计 | |
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53 soothe | |
v.安慰;使平静;使减轻;缓和;奉承 | |
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54 auxiliary | |
adj.辅助的,备用的 | |
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55 emancipation | |
n.(从束缚、支配下)解放 | |
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56 vein | |
n.血管,静脉;叶脉,纹理;情绪;vt.使成脉络 | |
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57 plunged | |
v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降 | |
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58 chamber | |
n.房间,寝室;会议厅;议院;会所 | |
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59 supremacy | |
n.至上;至高权力 | |
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60 systematic | |
adj.有系统的,有计划的,有方法的 | |
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61 concurrent | |
adj.同时发生的,一致的 | |
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62 perfectly | |
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地 | |
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63 mischief | |
n.损害,伤害,危害;恶作剧,捣蛋,胡闹 | |
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64 misery | |
n.痛苦,苦恼,苦难;悲惨的境遇,贫苦 | |
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65 assassination | |
n.暗杀;暗杀事件 | |
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66 pestilence | |
n.瘟疫 | |
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67 avarice | |
n.贪婪;贪心 | |
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68 jealousy | |
n.妒忌,嫉妒,猜忌 | |
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69 malevolence | |
n.恶意,狠毒 | |
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70 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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71 disconsolate | |
adj.忧郁的,不快的 | |
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72 wrath | |
n.愤怒,愤慨,暴怒 | |
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