They had intended to be married immediately on their arrival in Monte Carlo, but, as is always the case with Russians, it had turned out that the ceremony could only take place on the production of countless7 official papers that had to be sent for to Russia. In the meantime, they had settled in a large hotel close to the Casino—the only hotel open all the year round—and happy in each other’s society, they revelled8 in the glories of the golden springtime that fashionable Riviera visitors had so foolishly abandoned.
Monte Carlo produced a very curious impression on Irene. In Rome she had seen, side by side with palaces, splendid carriages, and dazzling luxury, the most heart-rending poverty and beggary—a contrast to be met with in all large cities. Here, on the contrary, there was nothing of the kind. It seemed[283] as if every inhabitant of this sunlit fairyland lived and existed merely for his own pleasure. The very waiters at the Café de Paris hummed and danced to the sound of the Hungarian orchestra as they served visitors with refreshments9. The Arab pedlars, selling Eastern shawls, wandered through the gardens in their white burnous and their smart red boots, apparently10 more intent upon boasting of the beauty of their wares11 than upon selling them. The only busy people in the whole place seemed to be the croupiers, and when, at given hours, groups of them came out of the Casino to be replaced by new relays, they reminded one of workmen leaving a factory after an exhausting day’s work.
The remaining inhabitants did nothing from morning till night but walk about in elegant summer clothes, feed pigeons, drink tea to the accompaniment of music, play with their absurd little dogs, or gamble in the Casino.
Irene was much interested in this, to her, novel type of public, and was particularly astonished at the sight of so many middle-aged,[284] even old, women, with dyed hair, made-up faces, girlish dresses and hats, tripping gracefully12 along, and smiling coquettishly at their funny little old-men admirers. The latter, even if somewhat shaky on their legs, also wore light, fashionable clothes, and flowers in their buttonholes. At first they made Irene laugh, but soon, with the inconsistency of nearly all weak characters, she began to wonder whether it was not much wiser to cling to one’s youth than to be old at thirty, as was her own case. The conviction that this was indeed so came upon her suddenly, and she immediately rushed off to Nice, and ordered a whole mountain of elegant dresses, hats, false curls, etc. Having previously13 considered it a sin to spend an extra penny on clothes, Irene now went from shop to shop, never even attempting to bargain, and throwing money about with almost feverish14 prodigality15 in her desire to possess herself without delay of all that was most elegant and luxurious16 in the way of frocks and frills.
Gzhatski observed her in amazed silence,[285] and smilingly watched the transformation17 of yesterday’s nun18, with her flat hair and her eternal black dress, into a coloured fashion-plate. Being, in his heart, far more pleased than otherwise that his future wife should be well dressed and elegant, he did not protest. What disquieted19 him much more, indeed, was a passion that Irene suddenly developed for gambling20. Gzhatski, having himself once advised her to cultivate some passion, if only artificially, just that it might attach her more firmly to earth, very ruefully contemplated21 the development of this passion now that it had shown itself without any effort on Irene’s part! Sergei Grigorievitch, indeed, was one of those men who, in the woman they have chosen, admit only one possible passion: that of love for themselves!
It was anything but easy to dissuade22 Irene from gambling. She revelled in the sensations of those feverish minutes passed at the tables, falling into the depths of despair at the loss of fifty francs, and soaring into an absolute frenzy23 of delight at the gain of forty! On leaving the gambling rooms,[286] Irene took deep breaths of the fresh sea air, her eyes shone, and it seemed to her that the sea and the hills and the flowers had never been so beautiful before. It was this that displeased24 Gzhatski. He might have reconciled himself to the idea of her gambling had she regretted her losses, but he could not forgive her that feverish delight, that moral ecstacy and satisfaction that she gleaned25 from this new craze.
Sometimes he succeeded in luring26 her away from the temptations of the tables by arranging excursions in the neighbourhood. Like most Slavs, indeed like most sons of a young race, Gzhatski could not grow old, and at forty, he often laughed and played pranks27 like a schoolboy. He had the capacity, indeed, of infecting everyone around him with his gaiety, even cab-drivers, boatmen, and waiters! To each and all of them he knew how to say the right word, or make the right joke, at the right moment. He was descended28 indeed from a noble old race of landowners, who had always been ready to till their own soil, side by side with their peasants, seeing[287] in the latter, not machines, but interesting and deserving human beings.
To Irene, such simple relations with the lower classes seemed strangely new and original. In the usual Petrograd fashion, she had hardly ever exchanged a word with her servants, and barely knew them by sight. At hotels at which she had stayed for two months she had nearly always, on leaving, been obliged, before giving a tip, to ask the manager which waiter had served her all the time, she herself being quite unable to distinguish him from the others.
In every way, indeed, Gzhatski proved a most interesting travelling companion. Men always bring gaiety and animation29 into the lives of lonely women, even when they are neither lovers nor husbands, but simply distant relations. This is so, because women who have no social activities to distract their thoughts are inclined to look upon life as something tragic30 and fatal, against which it is useless to struggle. Men, on the other hand, who, if only indirectly31, make our laws and govern our countries, do not attach much[288] importance to life, often indeed regarding it from the humorous standpoint. It is popularly supposed that men are more conservative than women, and that they care more about traditions and old customs. Actually, however, the laws and customs they passionately32 defend are invariably useful at the moment, and when the need for them passes, men are the first to abandon them. Women, on the contrary, cling desperately33 to traditions, especially inconvenient34 and troublesome ones, and if ever they decide to defy even some unimportant social law, they do it tragically35, as though flinging themselves into an abyss.
“There! I have cut off my hair, and I smoke,” thinks a newly-converted Nihilist. “The thing is done—there is no turning back. Whatever I may do now, nothing can win me back my old position, and the respect of my fellows. And so—vogue le galère!”
How many perfectly36 modest women having once let their hairdressers persuade them to dye their hair auburn, immediately assume the[289] manners and conversational37 style of “cocottes!”
The southern spring, the music, the excitement of gambling, the constant society of a charming man, all this did not fail to make its due impression on Irene, with the result that she fell, day by day, more and more deeply in love with Gzhatski. In her past dreams of love she had always seen herself hotly disputing with her lover, proclaiming her views and theories like a prophetess, and bringing him round unreservedly to her opinions on all matters. To her own astonishment38, however, she now no longer cared in the least about any of her old theories and ideas, and was ready to give them all up without a sigh, to please Gzhatski. She had long ago left off being particular about what he said to her, her attention being entirely39 riveted40 on the way he said it, on his every movement, smile, or change of expression. Alone in her room in the evening she sat up late, and could not sleep at night, for thinking of his elegant figure, the gleam of his even white teeth, the picturesque41 manner in which he smoked his[290] cigarette, etc. The blood rushed to her head, her heart beat loudly, she breathed quickly. Père Etienne had been right in suspecting that an ardent42 temperament43 lay concealed44 under her cold exterior45. It is probable, indeed, that Irene was one of the many “chaste sensualists” who abound46 in society. It is strange that these unconsciously voluptuous47 natures, suffering as they do very extremely through the virtuous48 life imposed on them by circumstances, always attribute their sufferings to some lofty ethical49 reason, such as loss of faith in God, disappointment in their friends, misunderstood ideals, etc., and would in every case be deeply offended should anyone dare to suggest to them a very simple and prosaic50 cure for their “noble sorrow.” They usually guard their virtue51 very jealously, vaguely52 feeling that if once passion gains the upper hand over them, they will be her slaves for life.
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1
reigning
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| adj.统治的，起支配作用的 | |
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passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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precursor
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| n.先驱者；前辈；前任；预兆；先兆 | |
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unbearably
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| adv.不能忍受地，无法容忍地；慌 | |
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shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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villas
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| 别墅，公馆( villa的名词复数 )； （城郊）住宅 | |
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7
countless
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| adj.无数的，多得不计其数的 | |
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revelled
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| v.作乐( revel的过去式和过去分词 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉 | |
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refreshments
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| n.点心,便餐;(会议后的)简单茶点招 待 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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wares
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| n. 货物, 商品 | |
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gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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feverish
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| adj.发烧的，狂热的，兴奋的 | |
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prodigality
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| n.浪费，挥霍 | |
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luxurious
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| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 | |
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transformation
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| n.变化；改造；转变 | |
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nun
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| n.修女，尼姑 | |
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disquieted
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| v.使不安，使忧虑，使烦恼( disquiet的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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gambling
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| n.赌博；投机 | |
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contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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dissuade
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| v.劝阻，阻止 | |
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frenzy
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| n.疯狂，狂热，极度的激动 | |
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displeased
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| a.不快的 | |
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gleaned
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| v.一点点地收集（资料、事实）( glean的过去式和过去分词 )；（收割后）拾穗 | |
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luring
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| 吸引，引诱（lure的现在分词形式） | |
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pranks
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| n.玩笑，恶作剧( prank的名词复数 ) | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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animation
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| n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作 | |
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tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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indirectly
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| adv.间接地，不直接了当地 | |
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32
passionately
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| ad.热烈地，激烈地 | |
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33
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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34
inconvenient
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| adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的 | |
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tragically
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| adv. 悲剧地，悲惨地 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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conversational
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| adj.对话的，会话的 | |
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38
astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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40
riveted
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| 铆接( rivet的过去式和过去分词 )； 把…固定住； 吸引； 引起某人的注意 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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42
ardent
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的 | |
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43
temperament
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| n.气质，性格，性情 | |
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44
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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45
exterior
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| adj.外部的，外在的；表面的 | |
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46
abound
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| vi.大量存在；(in，with)充满，富于 | |
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47
voluptuous
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| adj.肉欲的，骄奢淫逸的 | |
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48
virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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49
ethical
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| adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的 | |
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50
prosaic
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| adj.单调的，无趣的 | |
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51
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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52
vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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