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CHAPTER IX
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The power of London to obliterate1 personal affairs depended upon unlimited2 freedom to be still. The worst suffering in the days of uncertainty3 had been the thought of movements that would make time move..... Now that the stillness had returned, life was going on, dancing, flowing, looping out in all directions able to bear its periods of torment4 in the strength of its certainty of recovery, so long as time stayed still. Life ceased when time moved on. Out in the world life was ceasing all the time. All the time people were helplessly doing things that made time move; growing up, old people growing onwards, with death suddenly in sight, rushing here and there with words that had lost their meaning, dodging5 and crouching6 no matter how ridiculously, to avoid facing it. Young men died in advance; it was visible in their faces, when they took degrees and sat down to tasks that made time begin to move; never again free from its movement, always listening and looking for the stillness they had lost... But why is the world which produces them so fresh and real and free, and then seizes and makes them dead old leaves whirled along by time, so different to people alone in themselves when time is not moving? People in themselves want nothing but reality. Why can’t reality exist in the world?
All the things that happen produce friction7 because they distract people from the reality they are unconsciously looking for. That is why there are everywhere torrents8 of speech. If she had not read all those old words in the train and had been silent. Silence is reality. Life ought to be lived on a basis of silence, where truth blossoms. Why isn’t such an urgent thing known? Life would become like the individual; alive .... it would show, inside and out, and people would leave off talking so much. Life does show, seen from far off, pouring down into stillness. But the contemplation of it, not caring for pain or suffering except as part of a picture, which no one who is in the picture can see, seems mean. Old women sitting in corners, suddenly making irrelevant9 remarks and chuckling10, see; they make a stillness of reality, a mind picture that does not care, out of the rush of life. Perhaps they do not fear death. Perhaps people who don’t take part don’t fear death ...... the outsider sees most of the game; but that means a cynical11 man who does not care for anything; body and mind without soul. Lying dead at last, with reality left unnoticed on his dressing-table, along the window sill, along the edge of things outside the window....

But one day in the future time would move, by itself, not through anything one did, and there would be no more life.... She looked up hurriedly towards the changing voice. He was no longer reading with a face that showed his thoughts wandering far away.

“The thought of death is, throughout life,
entirely12 absent from the mind of the healthy man.” His brilliant thought filled eyes shone towards her at the end of the sentence.

“There is indeed a vulgarity in perfect health,” he exclaimed.

“Yes,” she said hurriedly, carrying off the statement for examination, as peacefully he went on reading. What did vulgarity mean, or perfect health? Nobody knew. Dante ennobled the vulgar tongue.... People went on forever writing books using the same words with different meanings. Her eyes returned to the relaxed unconscious form. He thought too much of books. Yet it did not appal13 him to think of giving up his free intellectual life and taking to work. ‘I shall still be an interested amateur.’ ... He would go on reading, all his life, sitting as he was sitting now, grave and beautiful; with a mind outspread in a mental experience so wide that he was indifferent to the usual ideas of freedom and advantage. Yet he did not seem to be aware how much the sitting like this, linked to the world by its deep echo in the book, was a realisation of life as he saw it. It did not occur to him that this serenity14, in which were accumulated all the hours they had passed together, was realisation, the life of the world in miniature, making a space where everything in human experience could emerge like a reflection in deep water, with its proportions held true and right by the tranquil15 opposition16 of their separate minds. She summoned onlookers17, who instantly recognised themselves in this picture of leisure. It was in every life that was not astray in ceaseless movement.
It was the place where everything was atoned18. He fitted placed thus, happy, without problems or envies, in possession of himself and his memories in the room where he had voiced them, into the centre of English life where all turned to good, in the last fastness of the private English mind where condemnation19 could not live. He reinforced it with a consciousness that was not in the English, making it show as an idea, revealing in plain terms their failure to act it out...... Thus would his leisure always be. But it was no part of her life. In this tranquillity20 there was no security .... we will always sit like this; we must, she said within herself impatiently towards his unconsciousness. Why did he not perceive the life there was, the mode of life, in this sitting tranquilly21 together? Was he thinking of nothing but his reading? She listened for a moment half carried into the quality of the text. There was reality there, Spinoza, by himself, sounding as if the words were being traced out now, for the first time. One day in a moment of blankness, she would read it and agree and disagree and carry away some idea and lose and recover it and go on, losing and recovering, agreeing and disagreeing....

When he went away her life would be swept clear of intelligently selected books and the sting of conflict with them .... that would not matter; perhaps; books would come, somehow, in the unexpected way they always did. But it was impossible to face the ending of these settled tranquil elderly evenings of peaceful unity22, the quiet dark-bearded form, sitting near, happily engrossed23......

“Well, what do you think of this?”

“I haven’t been attending. But I will read it .... some time.”

“Ah, it is a pity. But tell me your thoughts at least.”

“Oh, I was thinking of my sisters.”

“Ah. You must tell me,” and again with unrelaxed interest he was listening to story after story, finding strange significances, matter for envy and deep chuckles24 of appreciative25 laughter.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 obliterate 35QzF     
v.擦去,涂抹,去掉...痕迹,消失,除去
参考例句:
  • Whole villages were obliterated by fire.整座整座的村庄都被大火所吞噬。
  • There was time enough to obliterate memories of how things once were for him.时间足以抹去他对过去经历的记忆。
2 unlimited MKbzB     
adj.无限的,不受控制的,无条件的
参考例句:
  • They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
  • There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。
3 uncertainty NlFwK     
n.易变,靠不住,不确知,不确定的事物
参考例句:
  • Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
  • After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后,压力开始产生影响了。
4 torment gJXzd     
n.折磨;令人痛苦的东西(人);vt.折磨;纠缠
参考例句:
  • He has never suffered the torment of rejection.他从未经受过遭人拒绝的痛苦。
  • Now nothing aggravates me more than when people torment each other.没有什么东西比人们的互相折磨更使我愤怒。
5 dodging dodging     
n.避开,闪过,音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 );回避
参考例句:
  • He ran across the road, dodging the traffic. 他躲开来往的车辆跑过马路。
  • I crossed the highway, dodging the traffic. 我避开车流穿过了公路。 来自辞典例句
6 crouching crouching     
v.屈膝,蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • a hulking figure crouching in the darkness 黑暗中蹲伏着的一个庞大身影
  • A young man was crouching by the table, busily searching for something. 一个年轻人正蹲在桌边翻看什么。 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译
7 friction JQMzr     
n.摩擦,摩擦力
参考例句:
  • When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后,他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
  • Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体,并使其停止。
8 torrents 0212faa02662ca7703af165c0976cdfd     
n.倾注;奔流( torrent的名词复数 );急流;爆发;连续不断
参考例句:
  • The torrents scoured out a channel down the hill side. 急流沿着山腰冲刷出一条水沟。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Sudden rainstorms would bring the mountain torrents rushing down. 突然的暴雨会使山洪暴发。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
9 irrelevant ZkGy6     
adj.不恰当的,无关系的,不相干的
参考例句:
  • That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
  • A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上,一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。
10 chuckling e8dcb29f754603afc12d2f97771139ab     
轻声地笑( chuckle的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • I could hear him chuckling to himself as he read his book. 他看书时,我能听见他的轻声发笑。
  • He couldn't help chuckling aloud. 他忍不住的笑了出来。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
11 cynical Dnbz9     
adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的,不信世道向善的
参考例句:
  • The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大,他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
  • He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。
12 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
13 appal kMIyP     
vt.使胆寒,使惊骇
参考例句:
  • I was appalled at the news.我被这消息吓坏了。
  • This "Hamlet" will appal some for being so resolutely unclassical.新版《哈姆雷特 》如此违背经典,确实惊世骇俗。
14 serenity fEzzz     
n.宁静,沉着,晴朗
参考例句:
  • Her face,though sad,still evoked a feeling of serenity.她的脸色虽然悲伤,但仍使人感觉安详。
  • She escaped to the comparative serenity of the kitchen.她逃到相对安静的厨房里。
15 tranquil UJGz0     
adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的
参考例句:
  • The boy disturbed the tranquil surface of the pond with a stick. 那男孩用棍子打破了平静的池面。
  • The tranquil beauty of the village scenery is unique. 这乡村景色的宁静是绝无仅有的。
16 opposition eIUxU     
n.反对,敌对
参考例句:
  • The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
  • The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。
17 onlookers 9475a32ff7f3c5da0694cff2738f9381     
n.旁观者,观看者( onlooker的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • A crowd of onlookers gathered at the scene of the crash. 在撞车地点聚集了一大群围观者。
  • The onlookers stood at a respectful distance. 旁观者站在一定的距离之外,以示尊敬。
18 atoned 25563c9b777431278872a64e99ce1e52     
v.补偿,赎(罪)( atone的过去式和过去分词 );补偿,弥补,赎回
参考例句:
  • He atoned for his sin with life. 他以生命赎罪。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • She had atoned for everything by the sacrifice she had made of her life. 她用牺牲生命来抵偿了一切。 来自辞典例句
19 condemnation 2pSzp     
n.谴责; 定罪
参考例句:
  • There was widespread condemnation of the invasion. 那次侵略遭到了人们普遍的谴责。
  • The jury's condemnation was a shock to the suspect. 陪审团宣告有罪使嫌疑犯大为震惊。
20 tranquillity 93810b1103b798d7e55e2b944bcb2f2b     
n. 平静, 安静
参考例句:
  • The phenomenon was so striking and disturbing that his philosophical tranquillity vanished. 这个令人惶惑不安的现象,扰乱了他的旷达宁静的心境。
  • My value for domestic tranquillity should much exceed theirs. 我应该远比他们重视家庭的平静生活。
21 tranquilly d9b4cfee69489dde2ee29b9be8b5fb9c     
adv. 宁静地
参考例句:
  • He took up his brush and went tranquilly to work. 他拿起刷子,一声不响地干了起来。
  • The evening was closing down tranquilly. 暮色正在静悄悄地笼罩下来。
22 unity 4kQwT     
n.团结,联合,统一;和睦,协调
参考例句:
  • When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结,并非一团和气。
  • We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前,我们必须加强团结。
23 engrossed 3t0zmb     
adj.全神贯注的
参考例句:
  • The student is engrossed in his book.这名学生正在专心致志地看书。
  • No one had ever been quite so engrossed in an evening paper.没人会对一份晚报如此全神贯注。
24 chuckles dbb3c2dbccec4daa8f44238e4cffd25c     
轻声地笑( chuckle的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Father always chuckles when he reads the funny papers. 父亲在读幽默报纸时总是低声发笑。
  • [Chuckles] You thought he was being poisoned by hemlock? 你觉得他中的会是芹叶钩吻毒吗?
25 appreciative 9vDzr     
adj.有鉴赏力的,有眼力的;感激的
参考例句:
  • She was deeply appreciative of your help.她对你的帮助深表感激。
  • We are very appreciative of their support in this respect.我们十分感谢他们在这方面的支持。


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