Bodily strength from being the distinction of heroes is now sunk into such unmerited contempt that men, as well as women, seem to think it unnecessary: the latter, as it takes from their feminine graces, and from that lovely weakness the source of their undue1 power; and the former, because it appears inimical to the character of a gentleman.
That they have both by departing from one extreme run into another, may easily be proved; but first it may be proper to observe, that a vulgar error has obtained a degree of credit, which has given force to a false conclusion, in which an effect has been mistaken for a cause.
People of genius have, very frequently, impaired2 their constitutions by study or careless inattention to their health, and the violence of their passions bearing a proportion to the vigour3 of their intellects, the sword’s destroying the scabbard has become almost proverbial, and superficial observers have inferred from thence, that men of genius have commonly weak, or, to use a more fashionable phrase, delicate constitutions. Yet the contrary, I believe, will appear to be the fact; for, on diligent4 inquiry5, I find that strength of mind has, in most cases, been accompanied by superior strength of body — natural soundness of constitution — not that robust6 tone of nerves and vigour of muscles, which arise from bodily labour, when the mind is quiescent7, or only directs the hands.
Dr. Priestley has remarked, in the preface to his biographical chart, that the majority of great men have lived beyond forty-five. And, considering the thoughtless manner in which they have lavished8 their strength, when investigating a favourite science they have wasted the lamp of life, forgetful of the midnight hour; or, when, lost in poetic9 dreams, fancy has peopled the scene, and the soul has been disturbed, till it shook the constitution, by the passions that meditation10 had raised; whose objects, the baseless fabric11 of a vision, faded before the exhausted12 eye, they must have had iron frames. Shakspeare never grasped the airy dagger13 with a nerveless hand, nor did Milton tremble when he led Satan far from the confines of his dreary14 prison. — These were not the ravings of imbecility, the sickly effusions of distempered brains; but the exuberance15 of fancy, that ‘in a fine phrenzy’ wandering, was not continually reminded of its material shackles16.
I am aware that this argument would carry me further than it may be supposed I wish to go; but I follow truth, and, still adhering to my first position, I will allow that bodily strength seems to give man a natural superiority over woman; and this is the only solid basis on which the superiority of the sex can be built. But I still insist, that not only the virtue17, but the knowledge of the two sexes should be the same in nature, if not in degree, and that women, considered not only as moral, but rational creatures, ought to endeavour to acquire human virtues18 (or perfections) by the same means as men, instead of being educated like a fanciful kind of half being — one of Rousseau’s wild chimeras19.12
12 ‘Researches into abstract and speculative20 truths, the principles and axioms of sciences, in short, every thing which tends to generalize our ideas, is not the proper province of women; their studies should be relative to points of practice; it belongs to them to apply those principles which men have discovered; and it is their part to make observations, which direct men to the establishment of general principles. All the ideas of women, which have not the immediate21 tendency to points of duty, should be directed to the study of men, and to the attainment23 of those agreeable accomplishments24 which have taste for their object; for as to works of genius, they are beyond their capacity; neither have they sufficient precision or power of attention to succeed in sciences which require accuracy: and as to physical knowledge, it belongs to those only who are most active, most inquisitive25; who comprehend the greatest variety of objects: in short, it belongs to those who have the strongest powers, and who exercise them most, to judge of the relations between sensible beings and the laws of nature. A woman who is naturally weak, and does not carry her ideas to any great extent, knows how to judge and make a proper estimate of those movements which she sets to work, in order to aid her weakness; and these movements are the passions of men. The mechanism26 she employs is much more powerful than ours; for all her levers move the human heart. She must have the skill to incline us to do every thing which her sex will not enable her to do herself, and which is necessary or agreeable to her; therefore she ought to study the mind of man thoroughly27, not the mind of man in general, abstractedly, but the dispositions28 of those men to whom she is subject, either by the laws of her country or by the force of opinion. She should learn to penetrate29 into their real sentiments from their conversation, their actions, their looks, and gestures. She should also have the art, by her own conversation, actions, looks, and gestures, to communicate those sentiments which are agreeable to them, without seeming to intend it. Men will argue more philosophically31 about the human heart; but women will read the heart of man better than they. It belongs to women, if I may be allowed the expression, to form an experimental morality, and to reduce the study of man to a system. Women have most wit, men have most genius; women observe, men reason: from the concurrence32 of both we derive33 the clearest light and the most perfect knowledge, which the human mind is, of itself, capable of attaining34. In one word, from hence we acquire the most intimate acquaintance, both with ourselves and others, of which our nature is capable; and it is thus that art has a constant tendency to perfect those endowments which nature has bestowed36 — The world is the book of women.’— Rousseau’s Emilius.
I hope my readers still remember the comparison, which I have brought forward, between women and officers.
But, if strength of body be, with some shew of reason, the boast of men, why are women so infatuated as to be proud of a defect? Rousseau has furnished them with a plausible37 excuse, which could only have occurred to a man, whose imagination had been allowed to run wild, and refine on the impressions made by exquisite38 senses; — that they might, forsooth, have a pretext39 for yielding to a natural appetite without violating a romantic species of modesty40, which gratifies the pride and libertinism41 of man.
Women, deluded42 by these sentiments, sometimes boast of their weakness, cunningly obtaining power by playing on the weakness of men; and they may well glory in their illicit43 sway, for, like Turkish bashaws, they have more real power than their masters: but virtue is sacrificed to temporary gratifications, and the respectability of life to the triumph of an hour.
Women, as well as despots, have now, perhaps, more power than they would have if the world, divided and subdivided44 into kingdoms and families, were governed by laws deduced from the exercise of reason; but in obtaining it, to carry on the comparison, their character is degraded, and licentiousness45 spread through the whole aggregate47 of society. The many become pedestal to the few. I, therefore, will venture to assert, that till women are more rationally educated, the progress of human virtue and improvement in knowledge must receive continual checks. And if it be granted that woman was not created merely to gratify the appetite of man, or to be the upper servant, who provides his meals and takes care of his linen48, it must follow, that the first care of those mothers or fathers, who really attend to the education of females, should be, if not to strengthen the body, at least, not to destroy the constitution by mistaken notions of beauty and female excellence49; nor should girls ever be allowed to imbibe50 the pernicious notion that a defect can, by any chemical process of reasoning, become an excellence. In this respect, I am happy to find, that the author of one of the most instructive books, that our country has produced for children, coincides with me in opinion; I shall quote his pertinent51 remarks to give the force of his respectable authority to reason.13
13 ‘A respectable old man gives the following sensible account of the method he pursued when educating his daughter. “I endeavoured to give both to her mind and body a degree of vigour, which is seldom found in the female sex. As soon as she was sufficiently52 advanced in strength to be capable of the lighter53 labours of husbandry and gardening, I employed her as my constant companion. Selene, for that was her name, soon acquired a dexterity54 in all these rustic55 employments, which I considered with equal pleasure and admiration56. If women are in general feeble both in body and mind, it arises less from nature than from education. We encourage a vicious indolence and inactivity, which we falsely call delicacy57; instead of hardening their minds by the severer principles of reason and philosophy, we breed them to useless arts, which terminate in vanity and sensuality. In most of the countries which I had visited, they are taught nothing of an higher nature than a few modulations of the voice, or useless postures58 of the body; their time is consumed in sloth59 or trifles, and trifles become the only pursuits capable of interesting them. We seem to forget, that it is upon the qualities of the female sex that our own domestic comforts and the education of our children must depend. And what are the comforts or the education which a race of beings, corrupted60 from their infancy61, and unacquainted with all the duties of life are fitted to bestow35? To touch a musical instrument with useless skill, to exhibit their natural or affected62 graces to the eyes of indolent and debauched young men, to dissipate their husband’s patrimony63 in riotous64 and unnecessary expences, these are the only arts cultivated by women in most of the polished nations I had seen. And the consequences are uniformly such as may be expected to proceed from such polluted sources, private misery65 and public servitude.
‘”But Selene’s education was regulated by different views, and conducted upon severer principles; if that can be called severity which opens the mind to a sense of moral and religious duties, and most effectually arms it against the inevitable66 evils of life.”’ Mr. Day’s Sandford and Merton, Vol. III.
But should it be proved that woman is naturally weaker than man, whence does it follow that it is natural for her to labour to become still weaker than nature intended her to be? Arguments of this cast are an insult to common sense, and savour of passion. The divine right of husbands, like the divine right of kings, may, it is to be hoped, in this enlightened age, be contested without danger, and, though conviction may not silence many boisterous67 disputants, yet, when any, prevailing68 prejudice is attacked, the wise will consider, and leave the narrow-minded to rail with thoughtless vehemence69 at innovation.
The mother, who wishes to give true dignity of character to her daughter, must, regardless of the sneers70 of ignorance, proceed on a plan diametrically opposite to that which Rousseau has recommended with all the deluding71 charms of eloquence72 and philosophical30 sophistry73: for his eloquence renders absurdities74 plausible, and his dogmatic conclusions puzzle, without convincing, those who have not ability to refute them.
Throughout the whole animal kingdom every young creature requires almost continual exercise, and the infancy of children, conformable to this intimation, should be passed in harmless gambols75, that exercise the feet and hands, without requiring very minute direction from the head, or the constant attention of a nurse. In fact, the care necessary for self-preservation is the first natural exercise of the understanding, as little inventions to amuse the present moment unfold the imagination. But these wise designs of nature are counteracted76 by mistaken fondness or blind zeal77. The child is not left a moment to its own direction, particularly a girl, and thus rendered dependent — dependence78 is called natural.
To preserve personal beauty, woman’s glory! the limbs and faculties79 are cramped80 with worse than Chinese bands, and the sedentary life which they are condemned81 to live, whilst boys frolic in the open air, weakens the muscles and relaxes the nerves. — As for Rousseau’s remarks, which have since been echoed by several writers, that they have naturally, that is from their birth, independent of education, a fondness for dolls, dressing82, and talking — they are so puerile83 as not to merit a serious refutation. That a girl, condemned to sit for hours together listening to the idle chat of weak nurses, or to attend at her mother’s toilet, will endeavour to join the conversation, is, indeed, very natural; and that she will imitate her mother or aunts, and amuse herself by adorning84 her lifeless doll, as they do in dressing her, poor innocent babe! is undoubtedly86 a most natural consequence. For men of the greatest abilities have seldom had sufficient strength to rise above the surrounding atmosphere; and, if the page of genius have always been blurred87 by the prejudices of the age, some allowance should be made for a sex, who, like kings, always see things through a false medium.
Pursuing these reflections, the fondness for dress, conspicuous88 in women, may be easily accounted for, without supposing it the result of a desire to please the sex on which they are dependent. The absurdity89, in short, of supposing that a girl is naturally a coquette, and that a desire connected with the impulse of nature to propagate the species, should appear even before an improper90 education has, by heating the imagination, called it forth91 prematurely92, is so unphilosophical, that such a sagacious observer as Rousseau would not have adopted it, if he had not been accustomed to make reason give way to his desire of singularity, and truth to a favourite paradox93.
Yet thus to give a sex to mind was not very consistent with the principles of a man who argued so warmly, and so well, for the immortality94 of the soul. — But what a weak barrier is truth when it stands in the way of an hypothesis! Rousseau respected — almost adored virtue — and yet he allowed himself to love with sensual fondness. His imagination constantly prepared inflammable fewel for his inflammable senses; but, in order to reconcile his respect for self-denial, fortitude96, and those heroic virtues, which a mind like his could not coolly admire, he labours to invert97 the law of nature, and broaches98 a doctrine99 pregnant with mischief100 and derogatory to the character of supreme101 wisdom.
His ridiculous stories, which tend to prove that girls are naturally attentive102 to their persons, without laying any stress on daily example, are below contempt. — And that a little miss should have such a correct taste as to neglect the pleasing amusement of making O’s, merely because she perceived that it was an ungraceful attitude, should be selected with the anecdotes103 of the learned pig.14
14 ‘I once knew a young person who learned to write before she learned to read, and began to write with her needle before she could use a pen. At first, indeed, she took it into her head to make no other letter than the O: this letter she was constantly making of all sizes, and always the wrong way. Unluckily, one day, as she was intent on this employment, she happened to see herself in the looking-glass; when, taking a dislike to the constrained104 attitude in which she sat while writing, she threw away her pen, like another Pallas, and determined105 against making the O any more. Her brother was also equally adverse106 to writing: it was the confinement107, however, and not the constrained attitude, that most disgusted him.’— Rousseau’s Emilius.
I have, probably, had an opportunity of observing more girls in their infancy than J. J. Rousseau — I can recollect108 my own feelings, and I have looked steadily109 around me; yet, so far from coinciding with him in opinion respecting the first dawn of the female character, I will venture to affirm, that a girl, whose spirits have not been damped by inactivity, or innocence110 tainted111 by false shame, will always be a romp112, and the doll will never excite attention unless confinement allows her no alternative. Girls and boys, in short, would play harmlessly together, if the distinction of sex was not inculcated long before nature makes any difference. — I will go further, and affirm, as an indisputable fact, that most of the women, in the circle of my observation, who have acted like rational creatures, or shewn any vigour of intellect, have accidentally been allowed to run wild — as some of the elegant formers of the fair sex would insinuate113.
The baneful114 consequences which flow from inattention to health during infancy, and youth, extend further than is supposed — dependence of body naturally produces dependence of mind; and how can she be a good wife or mother, the greater part of whose time is employed to guard against or endure sickness? Nor can it be expected that a woman will resolutely115 endeavour to strengthen her constitution and abstain116 from enervating117 indulgencies, if artificial notions of beauty, and false descriptions of sensibility, have been early entangled118 with her motives119 of action. Most men are sometimes obliged to bear with bodily inconveniencies, and to endure, occasionally, the inclemency120 of the elements; but genteel women are, literally121 speaking, slaves to their bodies, and glory in their subjection.
I once knew a weak woman of fashion, who was more than commonly proud of her delicacy and sensibility. She thought a distinguishing taste and puny122 appetite the height of all human perfection, and acted accordingly. — I have seen this weak sophisticated being neglect all the duties of life, yet recline with self-complacency on a sofa, and boast of her want of appetite as a proof of delicacy that extended to, or, perhaps, arose from, her exquisite sensibility: for it is difficult to render intelligible123 such ridiculous jargon124. — Yet, at the moment, I have seen her insult a worthy125 old gentlewoman, whom unexpected misfortunes had made dependent on her ostentatious bounty126, and who, in better days, had claims on her gratitude127. Is it possible that a human creature could have become such a weak and depraved being, if, like the Sybarites, dissolved in luxury every thing like virtue had not been worn away, or never impressed by precept128, a poor substitute, it is true, for cultivation129 of mind, though it serves as a fence against vice130?
Such a woman is not a more irrational131 monster than some of the Roman emperors, who were depraved by lawless power. Yet, since kings have been more under the restraint of law, and the curb132, however weak, of honour, the records of history are not filled with such unnatural133 instances of folly134 and cruelty, nor does the despotism that kills virtue and genius in the bud, hover135 over Europe with that destructive blast which desolates137 Turkey, and renders the men, as well as the soil, unfruitful.
Women are every where in this deplorable state; for, in order to preserve their innocence, as ignorance is courteously138 termed, truth is hidden from them, and they are made to assume an artificial character before their faculties have acquired any strength. Taught from their infancy that beauty is woman’s sceptre, the mind shapes itself to the body, and, roaming round its gilt139 cage, only seeks to adorn85 its prison. Men have various employments and pursuits which engage their attention, and give a character to the opening mind; but women, confined to one, and having their thoughts constantly directed to the most insignificant140 part of themselves, seldom extend their views beyond the triumph of the hour. But were their understanding once emancipated141 from the slavery to which the pride and sensuality of man and their short-sighted desire, like that of dominion142 in tyrants143, of present sway, has subjected them, we should probably read of their weaknesses with surprise. I must be allowed to pursue the argument a little farther.
Perhaps, if the existence of an evil being were allowed, who, in the allegorical language of scripture144, went about seeking whom he should devour145, he could not more effectually degrade the human character than by giving a man absolute power.
This argument branches into various ramifications146. — Birth, riches, and every extrinsic147 advantage that exalt148 a man above his fellows, without any mental exertion149, sink him in reality below them. In proportion to his weakness, he is played upon by designing men, till the bloated monster has lost all traces of humanity. And that tribes of men, like flocks of sheep, should quietly follow such a leader, is a solecism that only a desire of present enjoyment150 and narrowness of understanding can solve. Educated in slavish dependence, and enervated151 by luxury and sloth, where shall we find men who will stand forth to assert the rights of man; — or claim the privilege of moral beings, who should have but one road to excellence? Slavery to monarchs152 and ministers, which the world will be long in freeing itself from, and whose deadly grasp stops the progress of the human mind, is not yet abolished.
Let not men then in the pride of power, use the same arguments that tyrannic kings and venal153 ministers have used, and fallaciously assert that woman ought to be subjected because she has always been so. — But, when man, governed by reasonable laws, enjoys his natural freedom, let him despise woman, if she do not share it with him; and, till that glorious period arrives, in descanting on the folly of the sex, let him not overlook his own.
Women, it is true, obtaining power by unjust means, by practising or fostering vice, evidently lose the rank which reason would assign them, and they become either abject154 slaves or capricious tyrants. They lose all simplicity155, all dignity of mind, in acquiring power, and act as men are observed to act when they have been exalted156 by the same means.
It is time to effect a revolution in female manners — time to restore to them their lost dignity — and make them, as a part of the human species, labour by reforming themselves to reform the world. It is time to separate unchangeable morals from local manners. — If men be demi-gods — why let us serve them! And if the dignity of the female soul be as disputable as that of animals — if their reason does not afford sufficient light to direct their conduct whilst unerring instinct is denied — they are surely of all creatures the most miserable157! and, bent158 beneath the iron hand of destiny, must submit to be a fair defect in creation. But to justify159 the ways of Providence160 respecting them, by pointing out some irrefragable reason for thus making such a large portion of mankind accountable and not accountable, would puzzle the subtilest casuist.
The only solid foundation for morality appears to be the character of the supreme Being; the harmony of which arises from a balance of attributes; — and, to speak with reverence161, one attribute seems to imply the necessity of another. He must be just, because he is wise, he must be good, because be is omnipotent162. For to exalt one attribute at the expence of another equally noble and necessary, bears the stamp of the warped163 reason of man — the homage164 of passion. Man, accustomed to bow down to power in his savage165 state, can seldom divest166 himself of this barbarous prejudice, even when civilization determines how much superior mental is to bodily strength; and his reason is clouded by these crude opinions, even when he thinks of the Deity167. — His omnipotence168 is made to swallow up, or preside over his other attributes, and those mortals are supposed to limit his power irreverently, who think that it must be regulated by his wisdom.
I disclaim169 that specious170 humility171 which, after investigating nature, stops at the author. — The High and Lofty One, who inhabiteth eternity172, doubtless possesses many attributes of which we can form no conception; but reason tells me that they cannot clash with those I adore — and I am compelled to listen to her voice.
It seems natural for man to search for excellence, and either to trace it in the object that he worships, or blindly to invest it with perfection, as a garment. But what good effect can the latter mode of worship have on the moral conduct of a rational being? He bends to power; he adores a dark cloud, which may open a bright prospect173 to him, or burst in angry, lawless fury, on his devoted174 head he knows not why. And, supposing that the Deity acts from the vague impulse of an undirected will, man must also follow his own, or act according to rules, deduced from principles which he disclaims175 as irreverent. Into this dilemma176 have both enthusiasts177 and cooler thinkers fallen, when they laboured to free men from the wholesome178 restraints which a just conception of the character of God imposes.
It is not impious thus to scan the attributes of the Almighty179: in fact, who can avoid it that exercises his faculties? For to love God as the fountain of wisdom, goodness, and power, appears to be the only worship useful to a being who wishes to acquire either virtue or knowledge. A blind unsettled affection may, like human passions, occupy the mind and warm the heart, whilst, to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly180 with our God, is forgotten. I shall pursue this subject still further, when I consider religion in a light opposite to that recommended by Dr. Gregory, who treats it as a matter of sentiment or taste.
To return from this apparent digression. It were to be wished that women would cherish an affection for their husbands, founded on the same principle that devotion ought to rest upon. No other firm base is there under heaven — for let them beware of the fallacious light of sentiment; too often used as a softer phrase for sensuality. It follows then, I think, that from their infancy women should either be shut up like eastern princes, or educated in such a manner as to be able to think and act for themselves.
Why do men halt between two opinions, and expect impossibilities? Why do they expect virtue from a slave, from a being whom the constitution of civil society has rendered weak, if not vicious?
Still I know that it will require a considerable length of time to eradicate181 the firmly rooted prejudices which sensualists have planted; it will also require some time to convince women that they act contrary to their real interest on an enlarged scale, when they cherish or affect weakness under the name of delicacy, and to convince the world that the poisoned source of female vices182 and follies183, if it be necessary, in compliance184 with custom, to use synonymous terms in a lax sense, has been the sensual homage paid to beauty:— to beauty of features; for it has been shrewdly observed by a German writer, that a pretty woman, as an object of desire, is generally allowed to be so by men of all descriptions; whilst a fine woman, who inspires more sublime185 emotions by displaying intellectual beauty, may be overlooked or observed with indifference186, by those men who find their happiness in the gratification of their appetites. I foresee an obvious retort — whilst man remains187 such an imperfect being as he appears hitherto to have been, he will, more or less, be the slave of his appetites; and those women obtaining most power who gratify a predominant one, the sex is degraded by a physical, if not by a moral necessity.
This objection has, I grant, some force; but while such a sublime precept exists, as, ‘be pure as your heavenly Father is pure;’ it would seem that the virtues of man are not limited by the Being who alone could limit them; and that be may press forward without considering whether he steps out of his sphere by indulging such a noble ambition. To the wild billows it has been said, ‘thus far shalt thou go, and no further; and here shall thy proud waves be stayed.’ Vainly then do they beat and foam188, restrained by the power that confines the struggling planets in their orbits, matter yields to the great governing Spirit. — But an immortal95 soul, not restrained by mechanical laws and struggling to free itself from the shackles of matter, contributes to, instead of disturbing, the order of creation, when, co-operating with the Father of spirits, it tries to govern itself by the invariable rule that, in a degree, before which our imagination faints, regulates the universe.
Besides, if women be educated for dependence; that is, to act according to the will of another fallible being, and submit, right or wrong, to power, where are we to stop? Are they to be considered as viceregents allowed to reign189 over a small domain190, and answerable for their conduct to a higher tribunal, liable to error?
It will not be difficult to prove that such delegates will act like men subjected by fear, and make their children and servants endure their tyrannical oppression. As they submit without reason, they will, having no fixed191 rules to square their conduct by, be kind, or cruel, just as the whim192 of the moment directs; and we ought not to wonder if sometimes, galled193 by their heavy yoke194, they take a malignant195 pleasure in resting it on weaker shoulders.
But, supposing a woman, trained up to obedience196, be married to a sensible man, who directs her judgment197 without making her feel the servility of her subjection, to act with as much propriety198 by this reflected light as can be expected when reason is taken at second hand, yet she cannot ensure the life of her protector; he may die and leave her with a large family.
A double duty devolves on her; to educate them in the character of both father and mother; to form their principles and secure their property. But, alas199! she has never thought, much less acted for herself. She has only learned to please15 men, to depend gracefully200 on them; yet, encumbered201 with children, how is she to obtain another protector — a husband to supply the place of reason? A rational man, for we are not treading on romantic ground, though he may think her a pleasing docile202 creature, will not choose to marry a family for love, when the world contains many more pretty creatures. What is then to become of her? She either falls an easy prey203 to some mean fortune-hunter, who defrauds204 her children of their paternal205 inheritance, and renders her miserable; or becomes the victim of discontent and blind indulgence. Unable to educate her sons, or impress them with respect; for it is not a play on words to assert, that people are never respected, though filling an important station, who are not respectable; she pines under the anguish206 of unavailing impotent regret. The serpent’s tooth enters into her very soul, and the vices of licentious46 youth bring her with sorrow, if not with poverty also, to the grave.
15 ‘In the union of the sexes, both pursue one common object, but not in the same manner. From their diversity in this particular, arises the first determinate difference between the moral relations of each. The one should be active and strong, the other passive and weak: it is necessary the one should have both the power and the will, and that the other should make little resistance.
‘This principle being established, it follows that woman is expressly formed to please the man: if the obligation be reciprocal also, and the man ought to please in his turn, it is not so immediately necessary: his great merit is in his power, and he pleases merely because he is strong. This, I must confess, is not one of the refined maxims207 of love; it is, however, one of the laws of nature, prior to love itself.
‘If woman be formed to please and be subjected to man, it is her place, doubtless, to render herself agreeable to him, instead of challenging his passion, The violence of his desires depends on her charms; it is by means of these she should urge him to the exertion of those powers which nature hath given him. The most successful method of exciting them, is, to render such exertion necessary by resistance; as, in that case, self-love is added to desire, and the one triumphs in the victory which the other obliged to acquire. Hence arise the various modes of attack and defence between the sexes; the boldness of one sex and the timidity of the other; and, in a word, that bashfulness and modesty with which nature hath armed the weak, in order to subdue208 the strong.’— Rousseau’s Emilius.
I shall make no other comment on this ingenious passage, than just to observe, that it is the philosophy of lasciviousness209.
This is not an overcharged picture; on the contrary, it is a very possible case, and something similar must have fallen under every attentive eye.
I have, however, taken it for granted, that she was well-disposed, though experience shews, that the blind may as easily be led into a ditch as along the beaten road. But supposing, no very improbable conjecture210, that a being only taught to please must still find her happiness in pleasing; — what an example of folly, not to say vice, will she be to her innocent daughters! The mother will be lost in the coquette, and, instead of making friends of her daughters, view them with eyes askance, for they are rivals — rivals more cruel than any other, because they invite a comparison, and drive her from the throne of beauty, who has never thought of a seat on the bench of reason.
It does not require a lively pencil, or the discriminating211 outline of a caricature, to sketch212 the domestic miseries213 and petty vices which such a mistress of a family diffuses214. Still she only acts as a woman ought to act, brought up according to Rousseau’s system. She can never be reproached for being masculine, or turning out of her sphere; nay215, she may observe another of his grand rules, and, cautiously preserving her reputation free from spot, be reckoned a good kind of woman. Yet in what respect can she be termed good? She abstains216, it is true, without any great struggle, from committing gross crimes; but how does she fulfil her duties? Duties! — in truth she has enough to think of to adorn her body and nurse a weak constitution.
With respect to religion, she never presumed to judge for herself; but conformed, as a dependent creature should, to the ceremonies of the church which she was brought up in, piously217 believing that wiser heads than her own have settled that business:— and not to doubt is her point of perfection. She therefore pays her tythe of mint and cummin — and thanks her God that she is not as other women are. These are the blessed effects of a good education! These the virtues of man’s help-mate!16
16 ‘O how lovely,’ exclaims Rousseau, speaking of Sophia, ‘is her ignorance! Happy is he who is destined218 to instruct her! She will never pretend to be the tutor of her husband, but will be content to be his pupil. Far from attempting to subject him to her taste, she will accommodate herself to his. She will be more estimable to him, than if she was learned: he will have a pleasure in instructing her.’— Rousseau’s Emilius.
I shall content myself with simply asking, how friendship can subsist219, when love expires, between the master and his pupil?
I must relieve myself by drawing a different picture.
Let fancy now present a woman with a tolerable understanding, for I do not wish to leave the line of mediocrity, whose constitution, strengthened by exercise, has allowed her body to acquire its full vigour; her mind, at the same time, gradually expanding itself to comprehend the moral duties of life, and in what human virtue and dignity consist.
Formed thus by the discharge of the relative duties of her station, she marries from affection, without losing sight of prudence220, and looking beyond matrimonial felicity, she secures her husband’s respect before it is necessary to exert mean arts to please him and feed a dying flame, which nature doomed221 to expire when the object became familiar, when friendship and forbearance take place of a more ardent222 affection. — This is the natural death of love, and domestic peace is not destroyed by struggles to prevent its extinction223. I also suppose the husband to be virtuous224; or she is still more in want of independent principles.
Fate, however, breaks this tie. — She is left a widow, perhaps, without a sufficient provision; but she is not desolate136! The pang225 of nature is felt; but after time has softened226 sorrow into melancholy227 resignation, her heart turns to her children with redoubled fondness, and anxious to provide for them, affection gives a sacred heroic cast to her maternal228 duties. She thinks that not only the eye sees her virtuous efforts from whom all her comfort now must flow, and whose approbation229 is life; but her imagination, a little abstracted and exalted by grief, dwells on the fond hope that the eyes which her trembling hand closed, may still see how she subdues230 every wayward passion to fulfil the double duty of being the father as well as the mother of her children. Raised to heroism231 by misfortunes, she represses the first faint dawning of a natural inclination232, before it ripens233 into love, and in the bloom of life forgets her sex — forgets the pleasure of an awakening234 passion, which might again have been inspired and returned. She no longer thinks of pleasing, and conscious dignity prevents her from priding herself on account of the praise which her conduct demands. Her children have her love, and her brightest hopes are beyond the grave, where her imagination often strays.
I think I see her surrounded by her children, reaping the reward of her care. The intelligent eye meets hers, whilst health and innocence smile on their chubby235 cheeks, and as they grow up the cares of life are lessened236 by their grateful attention. She lives to see the virtues which she endeavoured to plant on principles, fixed into habits, to see her children attain22 a strength of character sufficient to enable them to endure adversity without forgetting their mother’s example.
The task of life thus fulfilled, she calmly waits for the sleep of death, and rising from the grave, may say — Behold237, thou gavest me a talent — and here are five talents.
I wish to sum up what I have said in a few words, for I here throw down my gauntlet, and deny the existence of sexual virtues, not excepting modesty. For man and woman, truth, if I understand the meaning of the word, must be the same; yet the fanciful female character, so prettily238 drawn239 by poets and novelists, demanding the sacrifice of truth and sincerity240, virtue becomes a relative idea, having no other foundation than utility, and of that utility men pretend arbitrarily to judge, shaping it to their own convenience.
Women, I allow, may have different duties to fulfil; but they are human duties, and the principles that should regulate the discharge of them, I sturdily maintain, must be the same.
To become respectable, the exercise of their understanding is necessary, there is no other foundation for independence of character; I mean explicitly241 to say that they must only bow to the authority of reason, instead of being the modest slaves of opinion.
In the superior ranks of life how seldom do we meet with a man of superior abilities, or even common acquirements? The reason appears to me clear, the state they are born in was an unnatural one. The human character has ever been formed by the employments the individual, or class, pursues; and if the faculties are not sharpened by necessity, they must remain obtuse242. The argument may fairly be extended to women; for, seldom occupied by serious business, the pursuit of pleasure gives that insignificancy243 to their character which renders the society of the great so insipid244. The same want of firmness, produced by a similar cause, forces them both to fly from themselves to noisy pleasures, and artificial passions, till vanity takes place of every social affection, and the characteristics of humanity can scarcely be discerned. Such are the blessings245 of civil governments, as they are at present organized, that wealth and female softness equally tend to debase mankind, and are produced by the same cause; but allowing women to be rational creatures, they should be incited246 to acquire virtues which they may call their own, for how can a rational being be ennobled by any thing that is not obtained by its own exertions247?
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1
undue
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| adj.过分的；不适当的；未到期的 | |
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2
impaired
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| adj.受损的；出毛病的；有（身体或智力）缺陷的v.损害，削弱( impair的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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vigour
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| （=vigor）n.智力，体力，精力 | |
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diligent
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| adj.勤勉的，勤奋的 | |
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5
inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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6
robust
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| adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的 | |
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quiescent
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| adj.静止的，不活动的，寂静的 | |
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lavished
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| v.过分给予，滥施( lavish的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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poetic
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| adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的 | |
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meditation
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| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
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fabric
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| n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织 | |
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12
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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14
dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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exuberance
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| n.丰富；繁荣 | |
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16
shackles
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| 手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊 | |
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17
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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18
virtues
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| 美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处 | |
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19
chimeras
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| n.（由几种动物的各部分构成的）假想的怪兽( chimera的名词复数 )；不可能实现的想法；幻想；妄想 | |
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speculative
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| adj.思索性的，暝想性的，推理的 | |
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21
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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22
attain
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| vt.达到，获得，完成 | |
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attainment
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| n.达到，到达；［常pl.］成就，造诣 | |
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accomplishments
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| n.造诣；完成( accomplishment的名词复数 )；技能；成绩；成就 | |
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inquisitive
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| adj.求知欲强的，好奇的，好寻根究底的 | |
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mechanism
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| n.机械装置；机构，结构 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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dispositions
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| 安排( disposition的名词复数 )； 倾向； （财产、金钱的）处置； 气质 | |
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penetrate
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| v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解 | |
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philosophical
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| adj.哲学家的，哲学上的，达观的 | |
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philosophically
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| adv.哲学上；富有哲理性地；贤明地；冷静地 | |
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concurrence
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| n.同意；并发 | |
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33
derive
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| v.取得；导出；引申；来自；源自；出自 | |
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attaining
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的现在分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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35
bestow
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| v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费 | |
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bestowed
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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37
plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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38
exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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39
pretext
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| n.借口，托词 | |
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40
modesty
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| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
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41
libertinism
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| n.放荡，玩乐，（对宗教事物的）自由思想 | |
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42
deluded
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| v.欺骗，哄骗( delude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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43
illicit
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| adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的 | |
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44
subdivided
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| 再分，细分( subdivide的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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45
licentiousness
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| n.放肆，无法无天 | |
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46
licentious
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| adj.放纵的，淫乱的 | |
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47
aggregate
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| adj.总计的，集合的；n.总数；v.合计；集合 | |
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48
linen
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| n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的 | |
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49
excellence
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| n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德 | |
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50
imbibe
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| v.喝，饮；吸入，吸收 | |
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51
pertinent
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| adj.恰当的；贴切的；中肯的；有关的；相干的 | |
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52
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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53
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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54
dexterity
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| n.(手的)灵巧，灵活 | |
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55
rustic
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| adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬 | |
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56
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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57
delicacy
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| n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴 | |
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58
postures
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| 姿势( posture的名词复数 )； 看法； 态度； 立场 | |
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59
sloth
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| n.[动]树懒；懒惰，懒散 | |
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60
corrupted
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| （使）败坏( corrupt的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）腐化； 引起（计算机文件等的）错误； 破坏 | |
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61
infancy
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| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
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62
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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63
patrimony
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| n.世袭财产，继承物 | |
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64
riotous
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| adj.骚乱的；狂欢的 | |
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65
misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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66
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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67
boisterous
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| adj.喧闹的，欢闹的 | |
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68
prevailing
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| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
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69
vehemence
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| n.热切；激烈；愤怒 | |
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70
sneers
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| 讥笑的表情（言语）( sneer的名词复数 ) | |
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71
deluding
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| v.欺骗，哄骗( delude的现在分词 ) | |
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72
eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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73
sophistry
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| n.诡辩 | |
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74
absurdities
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| n.极端无理性( absurdity的名词复数 )；荒谬；谬论；荒谬的行为 | |
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75
gambols
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| v.蹦跳，跳跃，嬉戏( gambol的第三人称单数 ) | |
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76
counteracted
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| 对抗，抵消( counteract的过去式 ) | |
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77
zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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78
dependence
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| n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属 | |
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faculties
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| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
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80
cramped
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| a.狭窄的 | |
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81
condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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82
dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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83
puerile
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| adj.幼稚的，儿童的 | |
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84
adorning
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| 修饰，装饰物 | |
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85
adorn
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| vt.使美化，装饰 | |
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86
undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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87
blurred
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| v.（使）变模糊( blur的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）难以区分；模模糊糊；迷离 | |
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88
conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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absurdity
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| n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论 | |
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90
improper
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| adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的 | |
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91
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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prematurely
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| adv.过早地，贸然地 | |
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93
paradox
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| n.似乎矛盾却正确的说法；自相矛盾的人(物) | |
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immortality
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| n.不死，不朽 | |
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immortal
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| adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的 | |
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fortitude
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| n.坚忍不拔；刚毅 | |
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invert
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| vt.使反转，使颠倒，使转化 | |
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98
broaches
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| v.谈起( broach的第三人称单数 )；打开并开始用；用凿子扩大（或修光）；（在桶上）钻孔取液体 | |
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doctrine
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| n.教义；主义；学说 | |
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mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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101
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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102
attentive
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| adj.注意的，专心的；关心(别人)的，殷勤的 | |
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anecdotes
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| n.掌故，趣闻，轶事( anecdote的名词复数 ) | |
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constrained
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| adj.束缚的,节制的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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adverse
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| adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的 | |
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107
confinement
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| n.幽禁，拘留，监禁；分娩；限制，局限 | |
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108
recollect
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| v.回忆，想起，记起，忆起，记得 | |
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109
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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110
innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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111
tainted
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| adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏 | |
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112
romp
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| n.欢闹；v.嬉闹玩笑 | |
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113
insinuate
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| vt.含沙射影地说，暗示 | |
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114
baneful
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| adj.有害的 | |
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115
resolutely
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| adj.坚决地，果断地 | |
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116
abstain
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| v.自制，戒绝，弃权，避免 | |
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117
enervating
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| v.使衰弱，使失去活力( enervate的现在分词 ) | |
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118
entangled
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| adj.卷入的；陷入的；被缠住的；缠在一起的v.使某人（某物/自己）缠绕，纠缠于（某物中），使某人（自己）陷入（困难或复杂的环境中）( entangle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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119
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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120
inclemency
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| n.险恶，严酷 | |
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121
literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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122
puny
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| adj.微不足道的，弱小的 | |
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123
intelligible
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| adj.可理解的，明白易懂的，清楚的 | |
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124
jargon
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| n.术语，行话 | |
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125
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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126
bounty
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| n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与 | |
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127
gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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128
precept
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| n.戒律；格言 | |
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129
cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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130
vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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131
irrational
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| adj.无理性的，失去理性的 | |
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132
curb
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| n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制 | |
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133
unnatural
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| adj.不自然的；反常的 | |
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134
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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135
hover
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| vi.翱翔，盘旋；徘徊；彷徨，犹豫 | |
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136
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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137
desolates
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| 毁坏( desolate的第三人称单数 )； 极大地破坏； 使沮丧； 使痛苦 | |
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138
courteously
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| adv.有礼貌地，亲切地 | |
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139
gilt
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| adj.镀金的；n.金边证券 | |
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140
insignificant
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| adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的 | |
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141
emancipated
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| adj.被解放的，不受约束的v.解放某人（尤指摆脱政治、法律或社会的束缚）( emancipate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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142
dominion
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| n.统治，管辖，支配权；领土，版图 | |
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143
tyrants
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| 专制统治者( tyrant的名词复数 )； 暴君似的人； （古希腊的）僭主； 严酷的事物 | |
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144
scripture
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| n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段 | |
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145
devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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146
ramifications
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| n.结果，后果( ramification的名词复数 ) | |
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147
extrinsic
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| adj.外部的；不紧要的 | |
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148
exalt
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| v.赞扬，歌颂，晋升，提升 | |
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149
exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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150
enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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151
enervated
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|
| adj.衰弱的，无力的v.使衰弱，使失去活力( enervate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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152
monarchs
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| 君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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153
venal
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| adj.唯利是图的，贪脏枉法的 | |
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154
abject
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| adj.极可怜的，卑屈的 | |
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155
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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156
exalted
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| adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的 | |
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157
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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158
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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159
justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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160
providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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161
reverence
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| n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬 | |
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162
omnipotent
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| adj.全能的，万能的 | |
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163
warped
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| adj.反常的；乖戾的；（变）弯曲的；变形的v.弄弯，变歪( warp的过去式和过去分词 )；使（行为等）不合情理，使乖戾， | |
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164
homage
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| n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬 | |
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165
savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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166
divest
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| v.脱去，剥除 | |
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167
deity
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| n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
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168
omnipotence
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| n.全能，万能，无限威力 | |
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169
disclaim
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| v.放弃权利，拒绝承认 | |
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170
specious
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| adj.似是而非的；adv.似是而非地 | |
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171
humility
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| n.谦逊，谦恭 | |
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172
eternity
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| n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷 | |
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173
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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174
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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175
disclaims
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| v.否认( disclaim的第三人称单数 ) | |
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176
dilemma
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| n.困境，进退两难的局面 | |
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177
enthusiasts
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| n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 ) | |
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178
wholesome
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| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
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179
almighty
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| adj.全能的，万能的；很大的，很强的 | |
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180
humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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181
eradicate
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| v.根除，消灭，杜绝 | |
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182
vices
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| 缺陷( vice的名词复数 )； 恶习； 不道德行为； 台钳 | |
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183
follies
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| 罪恶，时事讽刺剧； 愚蠢，蠢笨，愚蠢的行为、思想或做法( folly的名词复数 ) | |
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184
compliance
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| n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从 | |
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185
sublime
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| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
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186
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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187
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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188
foam
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| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
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189
reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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190
domain
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| n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围 | |
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191
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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192
whim
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| n.一时的兴致，突然的念头；奇想，幻想 | |
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193
galled
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| v.使…擦痛( gall的过去式和过去分词 )；擦伤；烦扰；侮辱 | |
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194
yoke
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| n.轭；支配；v.给...上轭，连接，使成配偶 | |
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195
malignant
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|
| adj.恶性的，致命的；恶意的，恶毒的 | |
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196
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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197
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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198
propriety
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| n.正当行为；正当；适当 | |
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199
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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200
gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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201
encumbered
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| v.妨碍，阻碍，拖累( encumber的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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202
docile
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| adj.驯服的，易控制的，容易教的 | |
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203
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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204
defrauds
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| v.诈取，骗取( defraud的第三人称单数 ) | |
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205
paternal
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| adj.父亲的，像父亲的，父系的，父方的 | |
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206
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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207
maxims
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| n.格言，座右铭( maxim的名词复数 ) | |
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208
subdue
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| vt.制服，使顺从，征服；抑制，克制 | |
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209
lasciviousness
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210
conjecture
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| n./v.推测，猜测 | |
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211
discriminating
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| a.有辨别能力的 | |
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212
sketch
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| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
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213
miseries
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| n.痛苦( misery的名词复数 )；痛苦的事；穷困；常发牢骚的人 | |
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214
diffuses
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| （使光）模糊，漫射，漫散( diffuse的第三人称单数 )； （使）扩散； （使）弥漫； （使）传播 | |
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215
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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216
abstains
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| 戒（尤指酒），戒除( abstain的第三人称单数 )； 弃权（不投票） | |
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217
piously
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| adv.虔诚地 | |
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218
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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219
subsist
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| vi.生存，存在，供养 | |
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220
prudence
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| n.谨慎，精明，节俭 | |
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221
doomed
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| 命定的 | |
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222
ardent
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的 | |
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223
extinction
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| n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种 | |
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224
virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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225
pang
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| n.剧痛，悲痛，苦闷 | |
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226
softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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227
melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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228
maternal
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| adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的 | |
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229
approbation
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| n.称赞；认可 | |
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230
subdues
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| 征服( subdue的第三人称单数 )； 克制； 制服 | |
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231
heroism
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| n.大无畏精神，英勇 | |
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232
inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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233
ripens
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| v.成熟，使熟( ripen的第三人称单数 ) | |
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234
awakening
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| n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的 | |
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235
chubby
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| adj.丰满的，圆胖的 | |
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236
lessened
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| 减少的，减弱的 | |
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237
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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238
prettily
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| adv.优美地；可爱地 | |
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239
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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240
sincerity
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| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
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241
explicitly
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| ad.明确地，显然地 | |
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242
obtuse
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| adj.钝的；愚钝的 | |
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243
insignificancy
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| 不重要的事物； 无关紧要的人； 低微 | |
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244
insipid
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| adj.无味的，枯燥乏味的，单调的 | |
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245
blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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246
incited
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| 刺激，激励，煽动( incite的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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247
exertions
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| n.努力( exertion的名词复数 )；费力；（能力、权力等的）运用；行使 | |
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