When, therefore, your intimacy is courted by those whose intimacy is an honour, and that, too, with an art, which conceals15 its purpose, you often find that you have, and are a devoted17 friend, really before you have felt sufficient gratitude18 for the opera-box which has been so often lent, the carriage which has been ever at hand, the brother who has received such civilities, or the father who has been requested to accept some of the unattainable tokay which he has charmed you by admiring at your own table.
The manoeuvres and tactics of society are infinitely19 more numerous and infinitely finer than those of strategy. Woe20 betide the rash knight21 who dashes into the thick of the polished melée without some slight experience of his barb22 and his lance! Let him look to his arms! He will do well not to appear before his helm be plumed23 with some reputation, however slight. He may be very rich, or even very poor. We have seen that answer with a Belisarius-like air; and more than one hero without an obolus has stumbled upon a fortune merely from his contempt of riches. If to fight, or write, or dress be above you, why, then, you can ride, or dance, or even skate; but do not think, as many young gentlemen are apt to believe, that talking will serve your purpose. That is the quicksand of your young beginners. All can talk in a public assembly; that is to say, all can give us exhortations24 which do not move, and arguments which do not convince; but to converse25 in a private assembly is a different affair, and rare are the characters who can be endured if they exceed a whisper to their neighbours. But though mild and silent, be ever ready with the rapier of repartee26, and be ever armed with the breastplate of good temper. You will infallibly gather laurels27 if you add to these the spear of sarcasm28 and the shield of nonchalance29.
The high style of conversation where eloquence30 and philosophy emulate31 each other, where principles are profoundly expounded32 and felicitously33 illustrated34, all this has ceased. It ceased in this country with Johnson and Burke, and it requires a Johnson and a Burke for its maintenance. There is no mediocrity in such discourse35, no intermediate character between the sage36 and the bore. The second style, where men, not things, are the staple37, but where wit, and refinement38, and sensibility invest even personal details with intellectual interest, does flourish at present, as it always must in a highly civilised society. S. is, or rather was, a fine specimen39 of this school, and M. and L. are his worthy40 rivals. This style is indeed, for the moment, very interesting. Then comes your conversation man, who, we confess, is our aversion. His talk is a thing apart, got up before he enters the company from whose conduct it should grow out. He sits in the middle of a large table, and, with a brazen41 voice, bawls42 out his anecdotes43 about Sir Thomas or Sir Humphry, Lord Blank, or my Lady Blue. He is incessant45, yet not interesting; ever varying, yet always monotonous46. Even if we were amused, we are no more grateful for the entertainment than we are to the lamp over the table for the light which it universally sheds, and to yield which it was obtained on purpose. We are more gratified by the slight conversation of one who is often silent, but who speaks from his momentary48 feelings, than by all this hullaballoo. Yet this machine is generally a favourite piece of furniture with the hostess. You may catch her eye as he recounts some adventure of the morning, which proves that he not only belongs to every club, but goes to them, light up with approbation49; and then, when the ladies withdraw, and the female senate deliver their criticism upon the late actors, she will observe, with a gratified smile, to her confidante, that the dinner went off well, and that Mr. Bellow50 was very strong today.
All this is horrid51, and the whole affair is a delusion52. A variety of people are brought together, who all come as late as possible, and retire as soon, merely to show they have other engagements. A dinner is prepared for them, which is hurried over, in order that a certain number of dishes should be, not tasted, but seen: and provided that there is no moment that an absolute silence reigns53; provided that, besides the bustling54 of the servants, the clattering55 of the plates and knives, a stray anecdote44 is told, which, if good, has been heard before, and which, if new, is generally flat; provided a certain number of certain names of people of consideration are introduced, by which some stranger, for whom the party is often secretly given, may learn the scale of civilisation56 of which he this moment forms a part; provided the senators do not steal out too soon to the House, and their wives to another party, the hostess is congratulated on the success of her entertainment.
And this glare, and heat, and noise, these congeries of individuals without sympathy and dishes without flavour; this is society! What an effect without a cause! A man must be green indeed to stand this for two seasons. One cannot help thinking that one consequence of the increased intelligence of the present day will be a great change in the habits of our intercourse57.
To our tale; we linger. Few who did not know too much of Sir Lucius Grafton could refrain from yielding him their regard when he chose to challenge it, and with the Dacres he was soon an acknowledged favourite. As a new M.P., and hitherto doubtful supporter of the Catholic cause, it was grateful to Mr. Dacre’s feelings to find in him an ally, and flattering to Mr. Dacre’s judgment58 when that ally ventured to consult him on his friendly operations. With Miss Dacre he was a mild, amiable59 man, who knew the world; thoroughly60 good, but void of cant61, and owner of a virtue62 not less to be depended on because his passions had once been strong, and he had once indulged them. His experience of life made him value domestic felicity; because he knew that there was no other source of happiness which was at once so pure and so permanent. But he was not one of those men who consider marriage as an extinguisher of all those feelings and accomplishments63 which throw a lustre64 on existence; and he did not consider himself bound, because he had plighted65 his faith to a beautiful woman, immediately to terminate the very conduct which had induced her to join him in the sacred and eternal pledge. His gaiety still sparkled, his wit still flashed; still he hastened to be foremost among the courteous66; and still his high and ready gallantry indicated that he was not prepared to yield the fitting ornament67 of his still blooming youth. A thousand unobtrusive and delicate attentions which the innocent now received from him without a thought, save of Lady Aphrodite’s good fortune; a thousand gay and sentimental68 axioms, which proved not only how agreeable he was, but how enchanting69 he must have been; a thousand little deeds which struggled to shun70 the light, and which palpably demonstrated that the gaiety of his wit, the splendour of his accomplishments, and the tenderness of his soul were only equalled by his unbounded generosity71 and unparalleled good temper; all these combined had made Sir Lucius Grafton, to many, always a delightful72, often a dangerous, and sometimes a fatal, companion. He was one of those whose candour is deadly. It was when he least endeavoured to conceal16 his character that its hideousness73 least appeared. He confessed sometimes so much, that you yielded that pity which, ere the shrived culprit could receive, by some fatal alchemy was changed into passion. His smile was a lure74, his speech was a spell; but it was when he was silent, and almost gloomy, when you caught his serious eye, charged, as it were, with emotion, gazing on yours, that if you had a guardian75 sylph you should have invoked76 its aid; and we pray, if ever you meet the man of whom we write, your invocation may not be forgotten, or be, what is more likely, too late.
The Dacres, this season, were the subject of general conversation. She was the distinguished beauty, and the dandies all agreed that his dinner was worthy of his daughter. Lady Fitz-pompey was not behind the welcoming crowd. She was too politic77 a leader not to feel anxious to enlist78 under her colours a recruit who was so calculated to maintain the reputation of her forces. Fitz-pompey House must not lose its character for assembling the most distinguished, the most agreeable, and the most refined, and May Dacre was a divinity who would summon many a crowd to her niche79 in this Pantheon of fashion.
If any difficulty were for a moment anticipated in bringing about this arrangement, a fortunate circumstance seemed sufficient to remove it. Lord St. Maurice and Arundel Dacre had been acquainted at Vienna, and, though the intimacy was slight, it was sweet. St. Maurice had received many favours from the attaché, and, as he was a man of family and reputation, had been happy to greet him on his arrival in London. Before the Dacres made their appearance in town for the season Arundel had been initiated80 in the mysteries of Fitz-pompey House, and therefore a desire from that mansion81 to cultivate the good graces of his Yorkshire relation seemed not only not forced, but natural. So, the families met, and, to the surprise of each other, became even intimate, for May Dacre and Lady Caroline soon evinced a mutual82 regard for each other. Female friendships are of rapid growth, and in the present instance, when there was nothing on either side which was not lovable, it was quite miraculous83, and the friendship, particularly on the part of Lady Caroline, shot up in one night, like a blooming aloe.
Perhaps there is nothing more lovely than the love of two beautiful women, who are not envious84 of each other’s charms. How delightfully85 they impart to each other the pattern of a cap, or flounce, or frill! how charmingly they entrust86 some slight, slender secret about tinting87 a flower or netting a purse! Now one leans over the other, and guides her inexperienced hand, as it moves in the mysteries of some novel work, and then the other looks up with an eye beaming with devotion; and then again the first leans down a little lower, and gently presses her aromatic88 lips upon her friend’s polished forehead.
These are sights which we quiet men, who, like ‘little Jack89 Horner,’ know where to take up a safe position, occasionally enjoy, but which your noisy fellows, who think that women never want to be alone — a sad mistake — and consequently must be always breaking or stringing a guitar, or cutting a pencil, or splitting a crowquill, or overturning the gold ink, or scribbling90 over a pattern, or doing any other of the thousand acts of mischief91, are debarred from.
Not that these bright flowers often bloomed alone; a blossom not less brilliant generally shared with them the same parterre. Mrs. Dallington completed the bouquet92, and Arundel Dacre was the butterfly, who, she was glad to perceive, was seldom absent when her presence added beauty to the beautiful. Indeed, she had good reason to feel confidence in her attractions. Independently of her charms, which assuredly were great, her fortune, which was even greater, possessed93, she was well aware, no slight allurement94 to one who ever trembled when he thought of his dependence95, and often glowed when he mused47 over his ambition. His slight but increasing notice was duly estimated by one who was perfectly96 acquainted with his peculiar97 temper, and daily perceived how disregardful he was of all others, except her and his cousin. But a cousin! She felt confidence in the theory of Sir Lucius Grafton.
And the young Duke; have we forgotten him? Sooth to say, he was seldom with our heroine or heroines. He had called on Mr. Dacre, and had greeted him with marked cordiality, and he had sometimes met him and his daughter in society. But although invited, he had hitherto avoided being their visitor; and the comparatively secluded98 life which he now led prevented him from seeing them often at other houses. Mr. Dacre, who was unaware99 of what had passed between him and his daughter, thought his conduct inexplicable100; but his former guardian remembered that it was not the first time that his behaviour had been unusual, and it was never the disposition101 of Mr. Dacre to promote explanations.
Our hero felt annoyed at his own weakness. It would have been infinitely more worthy of so celebrated102, so unrivalled a personage as the Duke of St. James not to have given the woman who had rejected him this evidence of her power. According to etiquette103, he should have called there daily and have dined there weekly, and yet never have given the former object of his adoration104 the slightest idea that he cared a breath for her presence. According to etiquette, he should never have addressed her but in a vein105 of persiflage106, and with a smile which indicated his perfect heartease and her bad taste. According to etiquette, he should have flirted107 with every woman in her company, rode with her in the Park, walked with her in the Gardens, chatted with her at the opera, and drunk wine with her at a water party; and finally, to prove how sincere he was in his former estimation of her judgment, have consulted her on the presents which he should make to some intimate friend of hers, whom he announces as his future bride. This is the way to manage a woman; and the result may be conceived. She stares, she starts, she sighs, she weeps; feels highly offended at her friend daring to accept him; writes a letter of rejection108 herself to the affianced damsel, which she makes him sign, and then presents him with the hand which she always meant to be his.
But this was above our hero. The truth is, whenever he thought of May Dacre his spirit sank. She had cowed him; and her arrival in London had made him as dissatisfied with his present mode of life as he had been with his former career. They had met again, and under circumstances apparently, to him, the most unfavourable. Although he was hopeless, yet he dreaded109 to think what she might hear of him. Her contempt was bitter; her dislike would even be worse. Yet it seemed impossible to retrieve110. He was plunged111 deeper than he imagined. Embarrassed, entangled112, involved, he flew to Lady Afy, half in pique113 and half in misery114. Passion had ceased to throw a glittering veil around this idol115; but she was kind, and pure, and gentle, and devoted. It was consoling to be loved to one who was so wretched. It seemed to him that life must ever be a blank without the woman who, a few months ago, he had left an encumbrance116. The recollection of past happiness was balm to one who was so forlorn. He shuddered117 at the thought of losing his only precious possession, and he was never more attached to his mistress than when the soul of friendship rose from the body of expired love.
点击收听单词发音
1 prosecuted | |
a.被起诉的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
2 distinguished | |
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
3 repel | |
v.击退,抵制,拒绝,排斥 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
4 intimacy | |
n.熟悉,亲密,密切关系,亲昵的言行 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
5 apparently | |
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
6 callous | |
adj.无情的,冷淡的,硬结的,起老茧的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
7 impudence | |
n.厚颜无耻;冒失;无礼 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
8 irresolution | |
n.不决断,优柔寡断,犹豫不定 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
9 delicacy | |
n.精致,细微,微妙,精良;美味,佳肴 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
10 odds | |
n.让步,机率,可能性,比率;胜败优劣之别 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
11 parvenus | |
n.暴富者( parvenu的名词复数 );暴发户;新贵;傲慢自负的人 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
12 advancement | |
n.前进,促进,提升 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
13 perseverance | |
n.坚持不懈,不屈不挠 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
14 pelf | |
n.金钱;财物(轻蔑语) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
15 conceals | |
v.隐藏,隐瞒,遮住( conceal的第三人称单数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
16 conceal | |
v.隐藏,隐瞒,隐蔽 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
17 devoted | |
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
18 gratitude | |
adj.感激,感谢 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
19 infinitely | |
adv.无限地,无穷地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
20 woe | |
n.悲哀,苦痛,不幸,困难;int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
21 knight | |
n.骑士,武士;爵士 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
22 barb | |
n.(鱼钩等的)倒钩,倒刺 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
23 plumed | |
饰有羽毛的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
24 exhortations | |
n.敦促( exhortation的名词复数 );极力推荐;(正式的)演讲;(宗教仪式中的)劝诫 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
25 converse | |
vi.谈话,谈天,闲聊;adv.相反的,相反 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
26 repartee | |
n.机敏的应答 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
27 laurels | |
n.桂冠,荣誉 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
28 sarcasm | |
n.讥讽,讽刺,嘲弄,反话 (adj.sarcastic) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
29 nonchalance | |
n.冷淡,漠不关心 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
30 eloquence | |
n.雄辩;口才,修辞 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
31 emulate | |
v.努力赶上或超越,与…竞争;效仿 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
32 expounded | |
论述,详细讲解( expound的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
33 felicitously | |
adv.恰当地,适切地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
34 illustrated | |
adj. 有插图的,列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
35 discourse | |
n.论文,演说;谈话;话语;vi.讲述,著述 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
36 sage | |
n.圣人,哲人;adj.贤明的,明智的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
37 staple | |
n.主要产物,常用品,主要要素,原料,订书钉,钩环;adj.主要的,重要的;vt.分类 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
38 refinement | |
n.文雅;高尚;精美;精制;精炼 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
39 specimen | |
n.样本,标本 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
40 worthy | |
adj.(of)值得的,配得上的;有价值的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
41 brazen | |
adj.厚脸皮的,无耻的,坚硬的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
42 bawls | |
v.大叫,大喊( bawl的第三人称单数 );放声大哭;大声叫出;叫卖(货物) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
43 anecdotes | |
n.掌故,趣闻,轶事( anecdote的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
44 anecdote | |
n.轶事,趣闻,短故事 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
45 incessant | |
adj.不停的,连续的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
46 monotonous | |
adj.单调的,一成不变的,使人厌倦的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
47 mused | |
v.沉思,冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 );沉思自语说(某事) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
48 momentary | |
adj.片刻的,瞬息的;短暂的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
49 approbation | |
n.称赞;认可 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
50 bellow | |
v.吼叫,怒吼;大声发出,大声喝道 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
51 horrid | |
adj.可怕的;令人惊恐的;恐怖的;极讨厌的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
52 delusion | |
n.谬见,欺骗,幻觉,迷惑 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
53 reigns | |
n.君主的统治( reign的名词复数 );君主统治时期;任期;当政期 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
54 bustling | |
adj.喧闹的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
55 clattering | |
发出咔哒声(clatter的现在分词形式) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
56 civilisation | |
n.文明,文化,开化,教化 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
57 intercourse | |
n.性交;交流,交往,交际 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
58 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
59 amiable | |
adj.和蔼可亲的,友善的,亲切的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
60 thoroughly | |
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
61 cant | |
n.斜穿,黑话,猛扔 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
62 virtue | |
n.德行,美德;贞操;优点;功效,效力 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
63 accomplishments | |
n.造诣;完成( accomplishment的名词复数 );技能;成绩;成就 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
64 lustre | |
n.光亮,光泽;荣誉 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
65 plighted | |
vt.保证,约定(plight的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
66 courteous | |
adj.彬彬有礼的,客气的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
67 ornament | |
v.装饰,美化;n.装饰,装饰物 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
68 sentimental | |
adj.多愁善感的,感伤的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
69 enchanting | |
a.讨人喜欢的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
70 shun | |
vt.避开,回避,避免 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
71 generosity | |
n.大度,慷慨,慷慨的行为 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
72 delightful | |
adj.令人高兴的,使人快乐的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
73 hideousness | |
参考例句: |
|
|
74 lure | |
n.吸引人的东西,诱惑物;vt.引诱,吸引 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
75 guardian | |
n.监护人;守卫者,保护者 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
76 invoked | |
v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 );行使(权利等);祈求救助;恳求 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
77 politic | |
adj.有智虑的;精明的;v.从政 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
78 enlist | |
vt.谋取(支持等),赢得;征募;vi.入伍 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
79 niche | |
n.壁龛;合适的职务(环境、位置等) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
80 initiated | |
n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始,创始,启蒙,介绍加入 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
81 mansion | |
n.大厦,大楼;宅第 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
82 mutual | |
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
83 miraculous | |
adj.像奇迹一样的,不可思议的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
84 envious | |
adj.嫉妒的,羡慕的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
85 delightfully | |
大喜,欣然 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
86 entrust | |
v.信赖,信托,交托 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
87 tinting | |
着色,染色(的阶段或过程) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
88 aromatic | |
adj.芳香的,有香味的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
89 jack | |
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
90 scribbling | |
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: |
|
|
91 mischief | |
n.损害,伤害,危害;恶作剧,捣蛋,胡闹 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
92 bouquet | |
n.花束,酒香 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
93 possessed | |
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
94 allurement | |
n.诱惑物 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
95 dependence | |
n.依靠,依赖;信任,信赖;隶属 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
96 perfectly | |
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
97 peculiar | |
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
98 secluded | |
adj.与世隔绝的;隐退的;偏僻的v.使隔开,使隐退( seclude的过去式和过去分词) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
99 unaware | |
a.不知道的,未意识到的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
100 inexplicable | |
adj.无法解释的,难理解的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
101 disposition | |
n.性情,性格;意向,倾向;排列,部署 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
102 celebrated | |
adj.有名的,声誉卓著的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
103 etiquette | |
n.礼仪,礼节;规矩 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
104 adoration | |
n.爱慕,崇拜 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
105 vein | |
n.血管,静脉;叶脉,纹理;情绪;vt.使成脉络 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
106 persiflage | |
n.戏弄;挖苦 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
107 flirted | |
v.调情,打情骂俏( flirt的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
108 rejection | |
n.拒绝,被拒,抛弃,被弃 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
109 dreaded | |
adj.令人畏惧的;害怕的v.害怕,恐惧,担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
110 retrieve | |
vt.重新得到,收回;挽回,补救;检索 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
111 plunged | |
v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
112 entangled | |
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 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
113 pique | |
v.伤害…的自尊心,使生气 n.不满,生气 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
114 misery | |
n.痛苦,苦恼,苦难;悲惨的境遇,贫苦 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
115 idol | |
n.偶像,红人,宠儿 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
116 encumbrance | |
n.妨碍物,累赘 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
117 shuddered | |
v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 );发抖;(机器、车辆等)突然震动;颤动 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
欢迎访问英文小说网 |