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Chapter 1
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Francesca Bassington sat in the drawing-room of her house in Blue Street, W., regaling herself and her estimable brother Henry with China tea and small cress sandwiches. The meal was of that elegant proportion which, while ministering sympathetically to the desires of the moment, is happily reminiscent of a satisfactory luncheon2 and blessedly expectant of an elaborate dinner to come.

In her younger days Francesca had been known as the beautiful Miss Greech; at forty, although much of the original beauty remained, she was just dear Francesca Bassington. No one would have dreamed of calling her sweet, but a good many people who scarcely knew her were punctilious3 about putting in the “dear.”

Her enemies, in their honester moments, would have admitted that she was svelte4 and knew how to dress, but they would have agreed with her friends in asserting that she had no soul. When one’s friends and enemies agree on any particular point they are usually wrong. Francesca herself, if pressed in an unguarded moment to describe her soul, would probably have described her drawing-room. Not that she would have considered that the one had stamped the impress of its character on the other, so that close scrutiny5 might reveal its outstanding features, and even suggest its hidden places, but because she might have dimly recognised that her drawing-room was her soul.

Francesca was one of those women towards whom Fate appears to have the best intentions and never to carry them into practice. With the advantages put at her disposal she might have been expected to command a more than average share of feminine happiness. So many of the things that make for fretfulness, disappointment and discouragement in a woman’s life were removed from her path that she might well have been considered the fortunate Miss Greech, or later, lucky Francesca Bassington. And she was not of the perverse6 band of those who make a rock-garden of their souls by dragging into them all the stoney griefs and unclaimed troubles they can find lying around them. Francesca loved the smooth ways and pleasant places of life; she liked not merely to look on the bright side of things but to live there and stay there. And the fact that things had, at one time and another, gone badly with her and cheated her of some of her early illusions made her cling the closer to such good fortune as remained to her now that she seemed to have reached a calmer period of her life. To undiscriminating friends she appeared in the guise7 of a rather selfish woman, but it was merely the selfishness of one who had seen the happy and unhappy sides of life and wished to enjoy to the utmost what was left to her of the former. The vicissitudes8 of fortune had not soured her, but they had perhaps narrowed her in the sense of making her concentrate much of her sympathies on things that immediately pleased and amused her, or that recalled and perpetuated9 the pleasing and successful incidents of other days. And it was her drawing-room in particular that enshrined the memorials or tokens of past and present happiness.

Into that comfortable quaint-shaped room of angles and bays and alcoves10 had sailed, as into a harbour, those precious personal possessions and trophies11 that had survived the buffetings and storms of a not very tranquil12 married life. Wherever her eyes might turn she saw the embodied13 results of her successes, economies, good luck, good management or good taste. The battle had more than once gone against her, but she had somehow always contrived14 to save her baggage train, and her complacent15 gaze could roam over object after object that represented the spoils of victory or the salvage16 of honourable17 defeat. The delicious bronze Fremiet on the mantelpiece had been the outcome of a Grand Prix sweepstake of many years ago; a group of Dresden figures of some considerable value had been bequeathed to her by a discreet18 admirer, who had added death to his other kindnesses; another group had been a self-bestowed present, purchased in blessed and unfading memory of a wonderful nine-days’ bridge winnings at a country-house party. There were old Persian and Bokharan rugs and Worcester tea-services of glowing colour, and little treasures of antique silver that each enshrined a history or a memory in addition to its own intrinsic value. It amused her at times to think of the bygone craftsmen19 and artificers who had hammered and wrought20 and woven in far distant countries and ages, to produce the wonderful and beautiful things that had come, one way and another, into her possession. Workers in the studios of medieval Italian towns and of later Paris, in the bazaars21 of Baghdad and of Central Asia, in old-time English workshops and German factories, in all manner of queer hidden corners where craft secrets were jealously guarded, nameless unremembered men and men whose names were world-renowned and deathless.

And above all her other treasures, dominating in her estimation every other object that the room contained, was the great Van der Meulen that had come from her father’s home as part of her wedding dowry. It fitted exactly into the central wall panel above the narrow buhl cabinet, and filled exactly its right space in the composition and balance of the room. From wherever you sat it seemed to confront you as the dominating feature of its surroundings. There was a pleasing serenity22 about the great pompous23 battle scene with its solemn courtly warriors24 bestriding their heavily prancing25 steeds, grey or skewbald or dun, all gravely in earnest, and yet somehow conveying the impression that their campaigns were but vast serious picnics arranged in the grand manner. Francesca could not imagine the drawing-room without the crowning complement26 of the stately well-hung picture, just as she could not imagine herself in any other setting than this house in Blue Street with its crowded Pantheon of cherished household gods.

And herein sprouted27 one of the thorns that obtruded28 through the rose-leaf damask of what might otherwise have been Francesca’s peace of mind. One’s happiness always lies in the future rather than in the past. With due deference29 to an esteemed30 lyrical authority one may safely say that a sorrow’s crown of sorrow is anticipating unhappier things. The house in Blue Street had been left to her by her old friend Sophie Chetrof, but only until such time as her niece Emmeline Chetrof should marry, when it was to pass to her as a wedding present. Emmeline was now seventeen and passably good-looking, and four or five years were all that could be safely allotted31 to the span of her continued spinsterhood. Beyond that period lay chaos32, the wrenching33 asunder34 of Francesca from the sheltering habitation that had grown to be her soul. It is true that in imagination she had built herself a bridge across the chasm35, a bridge of a single span. The bridge in question was her schoolboy son Comus, now being educated somewhere in the southern counties, or rather one should say the bridge consisted of the possibility of his eventual36 marriage with Emmeline, in which case Francesca saw herself still reigning37, a trifle squeezed and incommoded perhaps, but still reigning in the house in Blue Street. The Van der Meulen would still catch its requisite38 afternoon light in its place of honour, the Fremiet and the Dresden and Old Worcester would continue undisturbed in their accustomed niches39. Emmeline could have the Japanese snuggery, where Francesca sometimes drank her after-dinner coffee, as a separate drawing-room, where she could put her own things. The details of the bridge structure had all been carefully thought out. Only — it was an unfortunate circumstance that Comus should have been the span on which everything balanced.

Francesca’s husband had insisted on giving the boy that strange Pagan name, and had not lived long enough to judge as to the appropriateness, or otherwise, of its significance. In seventeen years and some odd months Francesca had had ample opportunity for forming an opinion concerning her son’s characteristics. The spirit of mirthfulness which one associates with the name certainly ran riot in the boy, but it was a twisted wayward sort of mirth of which Francesca herself could seldom see the humorous side. In her brother Henry, who sat eating small cress sandwiches as solemnly as though they had been ordained40 in some immemorial Book of Observances, fate had been undisguisedly kind to her. He might so easily have married some pretty helpless little woman, and lived at Notting Hill Gate, and been the father of a long string of pale, clever useless children, who would have had birthdays and the sort of illnesses that one is expected to send grapes to, and who would have painted fatuous41 objects in a South Kensington manner as Christmas offerings to an aunt whose cubic space for lumber42 was limited. Instead of committing these unbrotherly actions, which are so frequent in family life that they might almost be called brotherly, Henry had married a woman who had both money and a sense of repose43, and their one child had the brilliant virtue44 of never saying anything which even its parents could consider worth repeating. Then he had gone into Parliament, possibly with the idea of making his home life seem less dull; at any rate it redeemed45 his career from insignificance46, for no man whose death can produce the item “another by-election” on the news posters can be wholly a nonentity47. Henry, in short, who might have been an embarrassment48 and a handicap, had chosen rather to be a friend and counsellor, at times even an emergency bank balance; Francesca on her part, with the partiality which a clever and lazily-inclined woman often feels for a reliable fool, not only sought his counsel but frequently followed it. When convenient, moreover, she repaid his loans.

Against this good service on the part of Fate in providing her with Henry for a brother, Francesca could well set the plaguy malice49 of the destiny that had given her Comus for a son. The boy was one of those untameable young lords of misrule that frolic and chafe50 themselves through nursery and preparatory and public-school days with the utmost allowance of storm and dust and dislocation and the least possible amount of collar-work, and come somehow with a laugh through a series of catastrophes51 that has reduced everyone else concerned to tears or Cassandra-like forebodings. Sometimes they sober down in after-life and become uninteresting, forgetting that they were ever lords of anything; sometimes Fate plays royally into their hands, and they do great things in a spacious52 manner, and are thanked by Parliaments and the Press and acclaimed53 by gala-day crowds. But in most cases their tragedy begins when they leave school and turn themselves loose in a world that has grown too civilised and too crowded and too empty to have any place for them. And they are very many.

Henry Greech had made an end of biting small sandwiches, and settled down like a dust-storm refreshed, to discuss one of the fashionably prevalent topics of the moment, the prevention of destitution54.

“It is a question that is only being nibbled55 at, smelt56 at, one might say, at the present moment,” he observed, “but it is one that will have to engage our serious attention and consideration before long. The first thing that we shall have to do is to get out of the dilettante57 and academic way of approaching it. We must collect and assimilate hard facts. It is a subject that ought to appeal to all thinking minds, and yet, you know, I find it surprisingly difficult to interest people in it.”

Francesca made some monosyllabic response, a sort of sympathetic grunt58 which was meant to indicate that she was, to a certain extent, listening and appreciating. In reality she was reflecting that Henry possibly found it difficult to interest people in any topic that he enlarged on. His talents lay so thoroughly59 in the direction of being uninteresting, that even as an eye-witness of the massacre60 of St. Bartholomew he would probably have infused a flavour of boredom61 into his descriptions of the event.

“I was speaking down in Leicestershire the other day on this subject,” continued Henry, “and I pointed62 out at some length a thing that few people ever stop to consider —”

Francesca went over immediately but decorously to the majority that will not stop to consider.

“Did you come across any of the Barnets when you were down there?” she interrupted; “Eliza Barnet is rather taken up with all those subjects.”

In the propagandist movements of Sociology, as in other arenas63 of life and struggle, the fiercest competition and rivalry64 is frequently to be found between closely allied65 types and species. Eliza Barnet shared many of Henry Greech’s political and social views, but she also shared his fondness for pointing things out at some length; there had been occasions when she had extensively occupied the strictly66 limited span allotted to the platform oratory67 of a group of speakers of whom Henry Greech had been an impatient unit. He might see eye to eye with her on the leading questions of the day, but he persistently68 wore mental blinkers as far as her estimable qualities were concerned, and the mention of her name was a skilful69 lure70 drawn71 across the trail of his discourse72; if Francesca had to listen to his eloquence73 on any subject she much preferred that it should be a disparagement74 of Eliza Barnet rather than the prevention of destitution.

“I’ve no doubt she means well,” said Henry, “but it would be a good thing if she could be induced to keep her own personality a little more in the background, and not to imagine that she is the necessary mouthpiece of all the progressive thought in the countryside. I fancy Canon Besomley must have had her in his mind when he said that some people came into the world to shake empires and others to move amendments75.”

Francesca laughed with genuine amusement.

“I suppose she is really wonderfully well up in all the subjects she talks about,” was her provocative76 comment.

Henry grew possibly conscious of the fact that he was being drawn out on the subject of Eliza Barnet, and he presently turned on to a more personal topic.

“From the general air of tranquillity77 about the house I presume Comus has gone back to Thaleby,” he observed.

“Yes,” said Francesca, “he went back yesterday. Of course, I’m very fond of him, but I bear the separation well. When he’s here it’s rather like having a live volcano in the house, a volcano that in its quietest moments asks incessant78 questions and uses strong scent1.”

“It is only a temporary respite,” said Henry; “in a year or two he will be leaving school, and then what?”

Francesca closed her eyes with the air of one who seeks to shut out a distressing79 vision. She was not fond of looking intimately at the future in the presence of another person, especially when the future was draped in doubtfully auspicious81 colours.

“And then what?” persisted Henry.

“Then I suppose he will be upon my hands.”

“Exactly.”

“Don’t sit there looking judicial82. I’m quite ready to listen to suggestions if you’ve any to make.”

“In the case of any ordinary boy,” said Henry, “I might make lots of suggestions as to the finding of suitable employment. From what we know of Comus it would be rather a waste of time for either of us to look for jobs which he wouldn’t look at when we’d got them for him.”

“He must do something,” said Francesca.

“I know he must; but he never will. At least, he’ll never stick to anything. The most hopeful thing to do with him will be to marry him to an heiress. That would solve the financial side of his problem. If he had unlimited83 money at his disposal, he might go into the wilds somewhere and shoot big game. I never know what the big game have done to deserve it, but they do help to deflect84 the destructive energies of some of our social misfits.”

Henry, who never killed anything larger or fiercer than a trout85, was scornfully superior on the subject of big game shooting.

Francesca brightened at the matrimonial suggestion. “I don’t know about an heiress,” she said reflectively. “There’s Emmeline Chetrof of course. One could hardly call her an heiress, but she’s got a comfortable little income of her own and I suppose something more will come to her from her grandmother. Then, of course, you know this house goes to her when she marries.”

“That would be very convenient,” said Henry, probably following a line of thought that his sister had trodden many hundreds of times before him. “Do she and Comus hit it off at all well together?”

“Oh, well enough in boy and girl fashion,” said Francesca. “I must arrange for them to see more of each other in future. By the way, that little brother of hers that she dotes on, Lancelot, goes to Thaleby this term. I’ll write and tell Comus to be specially80 kind to him; that will be a sure way to Emmeline’s heart. Comus has been made a prefect, you know. Heaven knows why.”

“It can only be for prominence86 in games,” sniffed87 Henry; “I think we may safely leave work and conduct out of the question.”

Comus was not a favourite with his uncle.

Francesca had turned to her writing cabinet and was hastily scribbling88 a letter to her son in which the delicate health, timid disposition89 and other inevitable90 attributes of the new boy were brought to his notice, and commanded to his care. When she had sealed and stamped the envelope Henry uttered a belated caution.

“Perhaps on the whole it would be wiser to say nothing about the boy to Comus. He doesn’t always respond to directions you know.”

Francesca did know, and already was more than half of her brother’s opinion; but the woman who can sacrifice a clean unspoiled penny stamp is probably yet unborn.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 scent WThzs     
n.气味,香味,香水,线索,嗅觉;v.嗅,发觉
参考例句:
  • The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
  • The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。
2 luncheon V8az4     
n.午宴,午餐,便宴
参考例句:
  • We have luncheon at twelve o'clock.我们十二点钟用午餐。
  • I have a luncheon engagement.我午饭有约。
3 punctilious gSYxl     
adj.谨慎的,谨小慎微的
参考例句:
  • He was a punctilious young man.他是个非常拘礼的年轻人。
  • Billy is punctilious in the performance of his duties.毕利执行任务总是一丝不苟的。
4 svelte GrFwA     
adj.(女人)体态苗条的
参考例句:
  • The countess was tall,svelte and very pale.伯爵夫人身材修长,苗条优雅,面色十分苍白。
  • Her figure is svelte.她身材苗条。
5 scrutiny ZDgz6     
n.详细检查,仔细观察
参考例句:
  • His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好,但是经不起仔细检查。
  • Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。
6 perverse 53mzI     
adj.刚愎的;坚持错误的,行为反常的
参考例句:
  • It would be perverse to stop this healthy trend.阻止这种健康发展的趋势是没有道理的。
  • She gets a perverse satisfaction from making other people embarrassed.她有一种不正常的心态,以使别人难堪来取乐。
7 guise JeizL     
n.外表,伪装的姿态
参考例句:
  • They got into the school in the guise of inspectors.他们假装成视察员进了学校。
  • The thief came into the house under the guise of a repairman.那小偷扮成个修理匠进了屋子。
8 vicissitudes KeFzyd     
n.变迁,世事变化;变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 );盛衰兴废
参考例句:
  • He experienced several great social vicissitudes in his life. 他一生中经历了几次大的社会变迁。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • A man used to vicissitudes is not easily dejected. 饱经沧桑,不易沮丧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 perpetuated ca69e54073d3979488ad0a669192bc07     
vt.使永存(perpetuate的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • This system perpetuated itself for several centuries. 这一制度维持了几个世纪。
  • I never before saw smile caught like that, and perpetuated. 我从来没有看见过谁的笑容陷入这样的窘况,而且持续不变。 来自辞典例句
10 alcoves 632df89563b4b011276dc21bbd4e73dd     
n.凹室( alcove的名词复数 );(花园)凉亭;僻静处;壁龛
参考例句:
  • In the alcoves on either side of the fire were bookshelves. 火炉两边的凹室里是书架。 来自辞典例句
  • Tiny streams echo in enormous overhanging alcoves. 小溪流的回声在巨大而突出的凹壁中回荡。 来自互联网
11 trophies e5e690ffd5b76ced5606f229288652f6     
n.(为竞赛获胜者颁发的)奖品( trophy的名词复数 );奖杯;(尤指狩猎或战争中获得的)纪念品;(用于比赛或赛跑名称)奖
参考例句:
  • His football trophies were prominently displayed in the kitchen. 他的足球奖杯陈列在厨房里显眼的位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The hunter kept the lion's skin and head as trophies. 这猎人保存狮子的皮和头作为纪念品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
12 tranquil UJGz0     
adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的
参考例句:
  • The boy disturbed the tranquil surface of the pond with a stick. 那男孩用棍子打破了平静的池面。
  • The tranquil beauty of the village scenery is unique. 这乡村景色的宁静是绝无仅有的。
13 embodied 12aaccf12ed540b26a8c02d23d463865     
v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 );象征;包括;包含
参考例句:
  • a politician who embodied the hopes of black youth 代表黑人青年希望的政治家
  • The heroic deeds of him embodied the glorious tradition of the troops. 他的英雄事迹体现了军队的光荣传统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
14 contrived ivBzmO     
adj.不自然的,做作的;虚构的
参考例句:
  • There was nothing contrived or calculated about what he said.他说的话里没有任何蓄意捏造的成分。
  • The plot seems contrived.情节看起来不真实。
15 complacent JbzyW     
adj.自满的;自鸣得意的
参考例句:
  • We must not become complacent the moment we have some success.我们决不能一见成绩就自满起来。
  • She was complacent about her achievements.她对自己的成绩沾沾自喜。
16 salvage ECHzB     
v.救助,营救,援救;n.救助,营救
参考例句:
  • All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed.抢救失事船只的一切努力都失败了。
  • The salvage was piled upon the pier.抢救出的财产被堆放在码头上。
17 honourable honourable     
adj.可敬的;荣誉的,光荣的
参考例句:
  • I don't think I am worthy of such an honourable title.这样的光荣称号,我可担当不起。
  • I hope to find an honourable way of settling difficulties.我希望设法找到一个体面的办法以摆脱困境。
18 discreet xZezn     
adj.(言行)谨慎的;慎重的;有判断力的
参考例句:
  • He is very discreet in giving his opinions.发表意见他十分慎重。
  • It wasn't discreet of you to ring me up at the office.你打电话到我办公室真是太鲁莽了。
19 craftsmen craftsmen     
n. 技工
参考例句:
  • rugs handmade by local craftsmen 由当地工艺师手工制作的小地毯
  • The craftsmen have ensured faithful reproduction of the original painting. 工匠保证要复制一幅最接近原作的画。
20 wrought EoZyr     
v.引起;以…原料制作;运转;adj.制造的
参考例句:
  • Events in Paris wrought a change in British opinion towards France and Germany.巴黎发生的事件改变了英国对法国和德国的看法。
  • It's a walking stick with a gold head wrought in the form of a flower.那是一个金质花形包头的拐杖。
21 bazaars 791ec87c3cd82d5ee8110863a9e7f10d     
(东方国家的)市场( bazaar的名词复数 ); 义卖; 义卖市场; (出售花哨商品等的)小商品市场
参考例句:
  • When the sky chooses, glory can rain into the Chandrapore bazaars. 如果天公有意,昌德拉卜的集市也会大放光彩。
  • He visited the shops and bazaars. 他视察起各色铺子和市场来。
22 serenity fEzzz     
n.宁静,沉着,晴朗
参考例句:
  • Her face,though sad,still evoked a feeling of serenity.她的脸色虽然悲伤,但仍使人感觉安详。
  • She escaped to the comparative serenity of the kitchen.她逃到相对安静的厨房里。
23 pompous 416zv     
adj.傲慢的,自大的;夸大的;豪华的
参考例句:
  • He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities.他有点自大,自视甚高。
  • He is a good man underneath his pompous appearance. 他的外表虽傲慢,其实是个好人。
24 warriors 3116036b00d464eee673b3a18dfe1155     
武士,勇士,战士( warrior的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
  • The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。
25 prancing 9906a4f0d8b1d61913c1d44e88e901b8     
v.(马)腾跃( prance的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • The lead singer was prancing around with the microphone. 首席歌手手执麦克风,神气地走来走去。
  • The King lifted Gretel on to his prancing horse and they rode to his palace. 国王把格雷特尔扶上腾跃着的马,他们骑马向天宫走去。 来自辞典例句
26 complement ZbTyZ     
n.补足物,船上的定员;补语;vt.补充,补足
参考例句:
  • The two suggestions complement each other.这两条建议相互补充。
  • They oppose each other also complement each other.它们相辅相成。
27 sprouted 6e3d9efcbfe061af8882b5b12fd52864     
v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 );抽芽;出现;(使)涌现出
参考例句:
  • We can't use these potatoes; they've all sprouted. 这些土豆儿不能吃了,都出芽了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The rice seeds have sprouted. 稻种已经出芽了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
28 obtruded 3b39e9567a6652c61d62f8ef66704510     
v.强行向前,强行,强迫( obtrude的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Music from the next room obtruded upon his thoughts. 隔壁的音乐声打扰了他的思绪。
  • Not a leaf stirred; not a sound obtruded upon great Nature's meditation. 树叶儿一动也不动,没有任何声音打扰大自然的酣眠。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
29 deference mmKzz     
n.尊重,顺从;敬意
参考例句:
  • Do you treat your parents and teachers with deference?你对父母师长尊敬吗?
  • The major defect of their work was deference to authority.他们的主要缺陷是趋从权威。
30 esteemed ftyzcF     
adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 );敬重;认为;以为
参考例句:
  • The art of conversation is highly esteemed in France. 在法国十分尊重谈话技巧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He esteemed that he understood what I had said. 他认为已经听懂我说的意思了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
31 allotted 5653ecda52c7b978bd6890054bd1f75f     
分配,拨给,摊派( allot的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • I completed the test within the time allotted . 我在限定的时间内完成了试验。
  • Each passenger slept on the berth allotted to him. 每个旅客都睡在分配给他的铺位上。
32 chaos 7bZyz     
n.混乱,无秩序
参考例句:
  • After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后,城市一片混乱。
  • The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。
33 wrenching 30892474a599ed7ca0cbef49ded6c26b     
n.修截苗根,苗木铲根(铲根时苗木不起土或部分起土)v.(猛力地)扭( wrench的现在分词 );扭伤;使感到痛苦;使悲痛
参考例句:
  • China has been through a wrenching series of changes and experiments. 中国经历了一系列艰苦的变革和试验。 来自辞典例句
  • A cold gust swept across her exposed breast, wrenching her back to reality. 一股寒气打击她的敞开的胸膛,把她从梦幻的境地中带了回来。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
34 asunder GVkzU     
adj.分离的,化为碎片
参考例句:
  • The curtains had been drawn asunder.窗帘被拉向两边。
  • Your conscience,conviction,integrity,and loyalties were torn asunder.你的良心、信念、正直和忠诚都被扯得粉碎了。
35 chasm or2zL     
n.深坑,断层,裂口,大分岐,利害冲突
参考例句:
  • There's a chasm between rich and poor in that society.那社会中存在着贫富差距。
  • A huge chasm gaped before them.他们面前有个巨大的裂痕。
36 eventual AnLx8     
adj.最后的,结局的,最终的
参考例句:
  • Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
  • Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。
37 reigning nkLzRp     
adj.统治的,起支配作用的
参考例句:
  • The sky was dark, stars were twinkling high above, night was reigning, and everything was sunk in silken silence. 天很黑,星很繁,夜阑人静。
  • Led by Huang Chao, they brought down the reigning house after 300 years' rule. 在黄巢的带领下,他们推翻了统治了三百年的王朝。
38 requisite 2W0xu     
adj.需要的,必不可少的;n.必需品
参考例句:
  • He hasn't got the requisite qualifications for the job.他不具备这工作所需的资格。
  • Food and air are requisite for life.食物和空气是生命的必需品。
39 niches 8500e82896dd104177b4cfd5842b1a09     
壁龛( niche的名词复数 ); 合适的位置[工作等]; (产品的)商机; 生态位(一个生物所占据的生境的最小单位)
参考例句:
  • Some larvae extend the galleries to form niches. 许多幼虫将坑道延伸扩大成壁龛。
  • In his view differences in adaptation are insufficient to create niches commensurate in number and kind. 按照他的观点,适应的差异不足以在数量上和种类上形成同量的小生境。
40 ordained 629f6c8a1f6bf34be2caf3a3959a61f1     
v.任命(某人)为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 );授予(某人)圣职;(上帝、法律等)命令;判定
参考例句:
  • He was ordained in 1984. 他在一九八四年被任命为牧师。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He was ordained priest. 他被任命为牧师。 来自辞典例句
41 fatuous 4l0xZ     
adj.愚昧的;昏庸的
参考例句:
  • He seems to get pride in fatuous remarks.说起这番蠢话来他似乎还挺得意。
  • After his boring speech for over an hour,fatuous speaker waited for applause from the audience.经过超过一小时的烦闷的演讲,那个愚昧的演讲者还等着观众的掌声。
42 lumber a8Jz6     
n.木材,木料;v.以破旧东西堆满;伐木;笨重移动
参考例句:
  • The truck was sent to carry lumber.卡车被派出去运木材。
  • They slapped together a cabin out of old lumber.他们利用旧木料草草地盖起了一间小屋。
43 repose KVGxQ     
v.(使)休息;n.安息
参考例句:
  • Don't disturb her repose.不要打扰她休息。
  • Her mouth seemed always to be smiling,even in repose.她的嘴角似乎总是挂着微笑,即使在睡眠时也是这样。
44 virtue BpqyH     
n.德行,美德;贞操;优点;功效,效力
参考例句:
  • He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
  • You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。
45 redeemed redeemed     
adj. 可赎回的,可救赎的 动词redeem的过去式和过去分词形式
参考例句:
  • She has redeemed her pawned jewellery. 她赎回了当掉的珠宝。
  • He redeemed his watch from the pawnbroker's. 他从当铺赎回手表。
46 insignificance B6nx2     
n.不重要;无价值;无意义
参考例句:
  • Her insignificance in the presence of so much magnificence faintly affected her. "她想象着他所描绘的一切,心里不禁有些刺痛。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
  • It was above the common mass, above idleness, above want, above insignificance. 这里没有平凡,没有懒散,没有贫困,也没有低微。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
47 nonentity 2HZxr     
n.无足轻重的人
参考例句:
  • She was written off then as a political nonentity.她当时被认定是成不了气候的政坛小人物。
  • How could such a nonentity become chairman of the company? 这样的庸才怎么能当公司的董事长?
48 embarrassment fj9z8     
n.尴尬;使人为难的人(事物);障碍;窘迫
参考例句:
  • She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
  • Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。
49 malice P8LzW     
n.恶意,怨恨,蓄意;[律]预谋
参考例句:
  • I detected a suggestion of malice in his remarks.我觉察出他说的话略带恶意。
  • There was a strong current of malice in many of his portraits.他的许多肖像画中都透着一股强烈的怨恨。
50 chafe yrIzD     
v.擦伤;冲洗;惹怒
参考例句:
  • The foaming waves chafe against the rocky shore.汹涌的波涛猛烈地冲击着礁岸。
  • A stiff collar may chafe your neck.硬的衣领会擦伤你的脖子。
51 catastrophes 9d10f3014dc151d21be6612c0d467fd0     
n.灾祸( catastrophe的名词复数 );灾难;不幸事件;困难
参考例句:
  • Two of history's worst natural catastrophes occurred in 1970. 1970年发生了历史上最严重两次自然灾害。 来自辞典例句
  • The Swiss deposits contain evidence of such catastrophes. 瑞士的遗址里还有这种灾难的证据。 来自辞典例句
52 spacious YwQwW     
adj.广阔的,宽敞的
参考例句:
  • Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞,足够建一座游泳池。
  • The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。
53 acclaimed 90ebf966469bbbcc8cacff5bee4678fe     
adj.受人欢迎的
参考例句:
  • They acclaimed him as the best writer of the year. 他们称赞他为当年的最佳作者。
  • Confuscius is acclaimed as a great thinker. 孔子被赞誉为伟大的思想家。
54 destitution cf0b90abc1a56e3ce705eb0684c21332     
n.穷困,缺乏,贫穷
参考例句:
  • The people lived in destitution. 民生凋敝。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • His drinking led him to a life of destitution. 酗酒导致他生活贫穷。 来自辞典例句
55 nibbled e053ad3f854d401d3fe8e7fa82dc3325     
v.啃,一点一点地咬(吃)( nibble的过去式和过去分词 );啃出(洞),一点一点咬出(洞);慢慢减少;小口咬
参考例句:
  • She nibbled daintily at her cake. 她优雅地一点一点地吃着自己的蛋糕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Several companies have nibbled at our offer. 若干公司表示对我们的出价有兴趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》
56 smelt tiuzKF     
v.熔解,熔炼;n.银白鱼,胡瓜鱼
参考例句:
  • Tin is a comparatively easy metal to smelt.锡是比较容易熔化的金属。
  • Darby was looking for a way to improve iron when he hit upon the idea of smelting it with coke instead of charcoal.达比一直在寻找改善铁质的方法,他猛然想到可以不用木炭熔炼,而改用焦炭。
57 dilettante Tugxx     
n.半瓶醋,业余爱好者
参考例句:
  • He is a master of that area even if he is a dilettante.虽然他只是个业余爱好者,但却是一流的高手。
  • I'm too serious to be a dilettante and too much a dabbler to be a professional.作为一个业余艺术爱好者我过于严肃认真了,而为一个专业人员我又太业余了。
58 grunt eeazI     
v.嘟哝;作呼噜声;n.呼噜声,嘟哝
参考例句:
  • He lifted the heavy suitcase with a grunt.他咕噜着把沉重的提箱拎了起来。
  • I ask him what he think,but he just grunt.我问他在想什麽,他只哼了一声。
59 thoroughly sgmz0J     
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地
参考例句:
  • The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
  • The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。
60 massacre i71zk     
n.残杀,大屠杀;v.残杀,集体屠杀
参考例句:
  • There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中,这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
  • If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀,大屠杀就有可能再次发生!
61 boredom ynByy     
n.厌烦,厌倦,乏味,无聊
参考例句:
  • Unemployment can drive you mad with boredom.失业会让你无聊得发疯。
  • A walkman can relieve the boredom of running.跑步时带着随身听就不那么乏味了。
62 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
63 arenas 199b9126e4f57770e1c427caf458ae03     
表演场地( arena的名词复数 ); 竞技场; 活动或斗争的场所或场面; 圆形运动场
参考例句:
  • Demolition derbies are large-scale automobile rodeos that take place in big arenas. 撞车比赛指的是在很大的竞技场上举行的大型汽车驾驶技术表演。
  • Are there areas of privacy in the most public of arenas? 在绝大部分公开的场合中存在需要保护隐私的领域吗?
64 rivalry tXExd     
n.竞争,竞赛,对抗
参考例句:
  • The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
  • He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。
65 allied iLtys     
adj.协约国的;同盟国的
参考例句:
  • Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
  • Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。
66 strictly GtNwe     
adv.严厉地,严格地;严密地
参考例句:
  • His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
  • The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。
67 oratory HJ7xv     
n.演讲术;词藻华丽的言辞
参考例句:
  • I admire the oratory of some politicians.我佩服某些政治家的辩才。
  • He dazzled the crowd with his oratory.他的雄辩口才使听众赞叹不已。
68 persistently MlzztP     
ad.坚持地;固执地
参考例句:
  • He persistently asserted his right to a share in the heritage. 他始终声称他有分享那笔遗产的权利。
  • She persistently asserted her opinions. 她果断地说出了自己的意见。
69 skilful 8i2zDY     
(=skillful)adj.灵巧的,熟练的
参考例句:
  • The more you practise,the more skilful you'll become.练习的次数越多,熟练的程度越高。
  • He's not very skilful with his chopsticks.他用筷子不大熟练。
70 lure l8Gz2     
n.吸引人的东西,诱惑物;vt.引诱,吸引
参考例句:
  • Life in big cities is a lure for many country boys.大城市的生活吸引着许多乡下小伙子。
  • He couldn't resist the lure of money.他不能抵制金钱的诱惑。
71 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
72 discourse 2lGz0     
n.论文,演说;谈话;话语;vi.讲述,著述
参考例句:
  • We'll discourse on the subject tonight.我们今晚要谈论这个问题。
  • He fell into discourse with the customers who were drinking at the counter.他和站在柜台旁的酒客谈了起来。
73 eloquence 6mVyM     
n.雄辩;口才,修辞
参考例句:
  • I am afraid my eloquence did not avail against the facts.恐怕我的雄辩也无补于事实了。
  • The people were charmed by his eloquence.人们被他的口才迷住了。
74 disparagement dafe893b656fbd57b9a512d2744fd14a     
n.轻视,轻蔑
参考例句:
  • He was humble and meek, filled with self-disparagement and abasement. 他谦卑、恭顺,满怀自我贬斥与压抑。 来自互联网
  • Faint praise is disparagement. 敷衍勉强的恭维等于轻蔑。 来自互联网
75 amendments 39576081718792f25ceae20f3bb99b43     
(法律、文件的)改动( amendment的名词复数 ); 修正案; 修改; (美国宪法的)修正案
参考例句:
  • The committee does not adequately consult others when drafting amendments. 委员会在起草修正案时没有充分征求他人的意见。
  • Please propose amendments and addenda to the first draft of the document. 请对这个文件的初稿提出修改和补充意见。
76 provocative e0Jzj     
adj.挑衅的,煽动的,刺激的,挑逗的
参考例句:
  • She wore a very provocative dress.她穿了一件非常性感的裙子。
  • His provocative words only fueled the argument further.他的挑衅性讲话只能使争论进一步激化。
77 tranquillity 93810b1103b798d7e55e2b944bcb2f2b     
n. 平静, 安静
参考例句:
  • The phenomenon was so striking and disturbing that his philosophical tranquillity vanished. 这个令人惶惑不安的现象,扰乱了他的旷达宁静的心境。
  • My value for domestic tranquillity should much exceed theirs. 我应该远比他们重视家庭的平静生活。
78 incessant WcizU     
adj.不停的,连续的
参考例句:
  • We have had incessant snowfall since yesterday afternoon.从昨天下午开始就持续不断地下雪。
  • She is tired of his incessant demands for affection.她厌倦了他对感情的不断索取。
79 distressing cuTz30     
a.使人痛苦的
参考例句:
  • All who saw the distressing scene revolted against it. 所有看到这种悲惨景象的人都对此感到难过。
  • It is distressing to see food being wasted like this. 这样浪费粮食令人痛心。
80 specially Hviwq     
adv.特定地;特殊地;明确地
参考例句:
  • They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
  • The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。
81 auspicious vu8zs     
adj.吉利的;幸运的,吉兆的
参考例句:
  • The publication of my first book was an auspicious beginning of my career.我的第一本书的出版是我事业吉祥的开始。
  • With favorable weather conditions it was an auspicious moment to set sail.风和日丽,正是扬帆出海的黄道吉日。
82 judicial c3fxD     
adj.司法的,法庭的,审判的,明断的,公正的
参考例句:
  • He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
  • Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。
83 unlimited MKbzB     
adj.无限的,不受控制的,无条件的
参考例句:
  • They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
  • There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。
84 deflect RxvxG     
v.(使)偏斜,(使)偏离,(使)转向
参考例句:
  • Never let a little problem deflect you.决不要因一点小问题就半途而废。
  • They decided to deflect from the original plan.他们决定改变原计划。
85 trout PKDzs     
n.鳟鱼;鲑鱼(属)
参考例句:
  • Thousands of young salmon and trout have been killed by the pollution.成千上万的鲑鱼和鳟鱼的鱼苗因污染而死亡。
  • We hooked a trout and had it for breakfast.我们钓了一条鳟鱼,早饭时吃了。
86 prominence a0Mzw     
n.突出;显著;杰出;重要
参考例句:
  • He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
  • This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。
87 sniffed ccb6bd83c4e9592715e6230a90f76b72     
v.以鼻吸气,嗅,闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 );抽鼻子(尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气);抱怨,不以为然地说
参考例句:
  • When Jenney had stopped crying she sniffed and dried her eyes. 珍妮停止了哭泣,吸了吸鼻子,擦干了眼泪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The dog sniffed suspiciously at the stranger. 狗疑惑地嗅着那个陌生人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
88 scribbling 82fe3d42f37de6f101db3de98fc9e23d     
n.乱涂[写]胡[乱]写的文章[作品]v.潦草的书写( scribble的现在分词 );乱画;草草地写;匆匆记下
参考例句:
  • Once the money got into the book, all that remained were some scribbling. 折子上的钱只是几个字! 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
  • McMug loves scribbling. Mama then sent him to the Kindergarten. 麦唛很喜欢写字,妈妈看在眼里,就替他报读了幼稚园。 来自互联网
89 disposition GljzO     
n.性情,性格;意向,倾向;排列,部署
参考例句:
  • He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
  • He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。
90 inevitable 5xcyq     
adj.不可避免的,必然发生的
参考例句:
  • Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
  • The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。


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