Part 1 Chapter 10

A Large Heart and a Small FortuneBut passion most dissembles, yet betrays, Even by its darkness; asthe blackest sky Foretells¹ the heaviest tempest.

　　Don Juan, I. 73M. de Renal, who was visiting every room in the house, reappeared inthe children's room with the servants who brought back the palliasses refilled. The sudden entry of this man was the last straw to Julien.

　　Paler, more sombre than usual, he advanced towards him. M. de Renalstood still and looked at his servants.

　　'Sir,' Julien began, 'do you suppose that with any other tutor your children would have made the same progress that they have made with me?

　　If your answer is no,' he went on without giving M. de Renal time tospeak, 'how dare you presume to reproach me with neglecting them?'

　　M. de Renal, who had barely recovered from his alarm, concludedfrom the strange tone which he saw this young peasant adopt that hehad in his pocket some more attractive offer and was going to leave him.

　　Julien's anger increasing as he spoke²:

　　'I can live without you, Sir,' he concluded.

　　'I am extremely sorry to see you so agitated,' replied M. de Renal,stammering a little. The servants were a few feet away, and were occupied in making the beds.

　　'That is not enough for me, Sir,' Julien went on, beside himself withrage; 'think of the abominable³ things you said to me, and in the presenceof ladies, too!'

　　M. de Renal was only too well aware of what Julien was asking, andconflicting passions did battle in his heart. It so happened that Julien,now really mad with rage, exclaimed: 'I know where to go, Sir, when Ileave your house.'

　　 On hearing these words, M. de Renal had a vision of Julien establishedin M. Valenod's household.

　　'Very well, Sir,' he said at length with a sigh, and the air of a man calling in a surgeon to perform the most painful operation, 'I agree to yourrequest. From the day after tomorrow, which is the first of the month, Ishall give you fifty francs monthly.'

　　Julien wanted to laugh and remained speechless: his anger had completely vanished.

　　'I did not despise the animal enough,' he said to himself. 'This, nodoubt, is the most ample apology so base a nature is capable of making.'

　　The children, who had listened to this scene open-mouthed, ran to thegarden to tell their mother that M. Julien was in a great rage, but that hewas to have fifty francs a month.

　　Julien went after them from force of habit, without so much as a glanceat M. de Renal, whom he left in a state of intense annoyance⁴.

　　'That's a hundred and sixty-eight francs,' the Mayor said to himself,'that M. Valenod has cost me. I must really say a few firm words to himabout his contract to supply the foundlings.'

　　A moment later, Julien again stood before him.

　　'I have a matter of conscience to discuss with M. Chelan. I have thehonour to inform you that I shall be absent for some hours.'

　　'Ah, my dear Julien,' said M. de Renal, laughing in the most insinceremanner, 'the whole day, if you wish, the whole of tomorrow, my worthyfriend. Take the gardener's horse to go to Verrieres.'

　　'There,' M. de Renal said to himself, 'he's going with an answer toValenod; he's given me no promise, but we must let the young hotheadcool down.'

　　Julien made a speedy escape and climbed up among the big woodsthrough which one can go from Vergy to Verrieres. He was in no hurryto reach M. Chelan's. So far from desiring to involve himself in a freshdisplay of hypocrisy⁵, he needed time to see clearly into his own heart,and to give audience to the swarm⁶ of conflicting feelings that disturbedit.

　　'I have won a battle,' he said to himself as soon as he found himself inthe shelter of the woods and out of sight of anyone, 'I have really won abattle!'

　　 The last word painted his whole position for him in glowing colours,and restored some degree of tranquillity⁷ to his heart.

　　'Here I am with a salary of fifty francs a month; M. de Renal must be ina fine fright. But of what?'

　　His meditation⁸ as to what could have frightened the prosperous andpowerful man against whom, an hour earlier, he had been seething⁹ withrage completely restored Julien's serenity¹⁰. He was almost conscious, for amoment, of the exquisite¹¹ beauty of the woods through which he waswalking. Enormous fragments of bare rock had in times past fallen intothe heart of the forest from the side of the mountain. Tall beeches¹² rose almost as high as these rocks whose shadow provided a delicious coolnesswithin a few yards of places where the heat of the sun's rays would havemade it impossible to stop.

　　Julien paused for a breathing-space in the shadow of these great rocks,then went on climbing. Presently, by following a narrow path, barely visible and used only by goatherds, he found himself standing¹³ upon an immense rock, where he could be certain of his complete isolation¹⁴ from hisfellow-men. This natural position made him smile, it suggested to himthe position to which he was burning to attain¹⁵ in the moral sphere. Thepure air of these lofty mountains breathed serenity and even joy into hissoul. The Mayor of Verrieres might still, in his eyes, be typical of all therich and insolent¹⁶ denizens¹⁷ of the earth, but Julien felt that the hatredwhich had convulsed him that afternoon contained, notwithstanding itsviolence, no element of personal ill-feeling. Should he cease to see M. deRenal, within a week he would have forgotten him, the man himself, hishouse, his dogs, his children and all that was his. 'I have forced him, I donot know how, to make the greatest of sacrifices. What, more than fiftycrowns a year? A moment earlier I had just escaped from the greatestdanger. That makes two victories in one day; the second contains nomerit, I must try to discover the reason. But we can leave such arduousresearch for tomorrow.'

　　Julien, erect¹⁸ upon his mighty¹⁹ rock, gazed at the sky, kindled²⁰ to flameby an August sun. The grasshoppers²¹ were chirping²² in the patch of meadow beneath the rock; when they ceased everything around him was silence. Twenty leagues of country lay at his feet. From time to time ahawk, risen from the bare cliffs above his head, caught his eye as itwheeled silently in its vast circles. Julien's eye followed mechanically thebird of prey²³. Its calm, powerful motion impressed him, he envied suchstrength, he envied such isolation.

　　 It was the destiny of Napoleon, was it one day to be his own?

1 foretells   

v.预言，预示( foretell的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• It is a kind of oracle that often foretells things most important. 它是一种内生性神谕，常常能预言最重要的事情。 来自互联网
• What the Old Testament foretells the New Testament fulfils, in part. 旧约圣经的预言在新约圣经中部分实现了。 来自互联网

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 abominable   

adj.可厌的，令人憎恶的

参考例句：

• Their cruel treatment of prisoners was abominable.他们虐待犯人的做法令人厌恶。
• The sanitary conditions in this restaurant are abominable.这家饭馆的卫生状况糟透了。

4 annoyance   

n.恼怒，生气，烦恼

参考例句：

• Why do you always take your annoyance out on me?为什么你不高兴时总是对我出气？
• I felt annoyance at being teased.我恼恨别人取笑我。

5 hypocrisy   

n.伪善，虚伪

参考例句：

• He railed against hypocrisy and greed.他痛斥伪善和贪婪的行为。
• He accused newspapers of hypocrisy in their treatment of the story.他指责了报纸在报道该新闻时的虚伪。

6 swarm   

n.(昆虫)等一大群；vi.成群飞舞；蜂拥而入

参考例句：

• There is a swarm of bees in the tree.这树上有一窝蜜蜂。
• A swarm of ants are moving busily.一群蚂蚁正在忙碌地搬家。

7 tranquillity   

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。

8 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

9 seething   

沸腾的，火热的

参考例句：

• The stadium was a seething cauldron of emotion. 体育场内群情沸腾。
• The meeting hall was seething at once. 会场上顿时沸腾起来了。

10 serenity   

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。

11 exquisite   

adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的

参考例句：

• I was admiring the exquisite workmanship in the mosaic.我当时正在欣赏镶嵌画的精致做工。
• I still remember the exquisite pleasure I experienced in Bali.我依然记得在巴厘岛所经历的那种剧烈的快感。

12 beeches   

n.山毛榉( beech的名词复数 )；山毛榉木材

参考例句：

• The beeches, oaks and chestnuts all belong to the same family. 山毛榉树、橡树和栗子树属于同科树种。 来自互联网
• There are many beeches in this wood. 这片树林里有许多山毛榉。 来自互联网

13 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

14 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

15 attain   

vt.达到，获得，完成

参考例句：

• I used the scientific method to attain this end. 我用科学的方法来达到这一目的。
• His painstaking to attain his goal in life is praiseworthy. 他为实现人生目标所下的苦功是值得称赞的。

16 insolent   

adj.傲慢的，无理的

参考例句：

• His insolent manner really got my blood up.他那傲慢的态度把我的肺都气炸了。
• It was insolent of them to demand special treatment.他们要求给予特殊待遇，脸皮真厚。

17 denizens   

n.居民，住户( denizen的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• polar bears, denizens of the frozen north 北极熊，在冰天雪地的北方生活的动物
• At length these denizens of the swamps disappeared in their turn. 到了后来，连这些沼泽国的居民们也不见了。 来自辞典例句

18 erect   

n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的

参考例句：

• She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头，把背挺得笔直。
• Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。

19 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

20 kindled   

（使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光

参考例句：

• We watched as the fire slowly kindled. 我们看着火慢慢地燃烧起来。
• The teacher's praise kindled a spark of hope inside her. 老师的赞扬激起了她内心的希望。

21 grasshoppers   

n.蚱蜢( grasshopper的名词复数 )；蝗虫；蚂蚱；（孩子）矮小的

参考例句：

• Grasshoppers die in fall. 蚱蜢在秋天死去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There are usually a lot of grasshoppers in the rice fields. 稻田里通常有许多蚱蜢。 来自辞典例句

22 chirping   

鸟叫，虫鸣( chirp的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The birds,chirping relentlessly,woke us up at daybreak. 破晓时鸟儿不断吱吱地叫，把我们吵醒了。
• The birds are chirping merrily. 鸟儿在欢快地鸣叫着。

23 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。