Sharp Words Are Spoken, and a Crisis Ensues
When Yeobright was not with Eustacia he was sitting slavishly over his books; when he was not reading he was meeting her. These meetings were carried on with the greatest secrecy2.
One afternoon his mother came home from a morning visit to Thomasin. He could see from a disturbance3 in the lines of her face that something had happened.
"I have been told an incomprehensible thing," she said mournfully. "The captain has let out at the Woman that you and Eustacia Vye are engaged to be married."
"We are," said Yeobright. "But it may not be yet for a very long time."
"I should hardly think it WOULD be yet for a very long time! You will take her to Paris, I suppose?" She spoke1 with weary hopelessness.
"I am not going back to Paris."
"What will you do with a wife, then?"
"Keep a school in Budmouth, as I have told you."
"That's incredible! The place is overrun with schoolmasters. You have no special qualifications. What possible chance is there for such as you?"
"There is no chance of getting rich. But with my system of education, which is as new as it is true, I shall do a great deal of good to my fellow-creatures."
"Dreams, dreams! If there had been any system left to be invented they would have found it out at the universities long before this time."
"Never, Mother. They cannot find it out, because their teachers don't come in contact with the class which demands such a system--that is, those who have had no preliminary training. My plan is one for instilling5 high knowledge into empty minds without first cramming6 them with what has to be uncrammed again before true study begins."
"I might have believed you if you had kept yourself free from entanglements7; but this woman--if she had been a good girl it would have been bad enough; but being----"
"She is a good girl."
"So you think. A Corfu bandmaster's daughter! What has her life been? Her surname even is not her true one."
"She is Captain Vye's granddaughter, and her father merely took her mother's name. And she is a lady by instinct."
"They call him 'captain,' but anybody is captain."
"He was in the Royal Navy!"
"No doubt he has been to sea in some tub or other. Why doesn't he look after her? No lady would rove about the heath at all hours of the day and night as she does. But that's not all of it. There was something queer between her and Thomasin's husband at one time--I am as sure of it as that I stand here."
"Eustacia has told me. He did pay her a little attention a year ago; but there's no harm in that. I like her all the better."
"Clym," said his mother with firmness, "I have no proofs against her, unfortunately. But if she makes you a good wife, there has never been a bad one."
"Believe me, you are almost exasperating," said Yeobright vehemently8. "And this very day I had intended to arrange a meeting between you. But you give me no peace; you try to thwart9 my wishes in everything."
"I hate the thought of any son of mine marrying badly! I wish I had never lived to see this; it is too much for me--it is more than I dreamt!" She turned to the window. Her breath was coming quickly, and her lips were pale, parted, and trembling.
"Mother," said Clym, "whatever you do, you will always be dear to me--that you know. But one thing I have a right to say, which is, that at my age I am old enough to know what is best for me."
Mrs. Yeobright remained for some time silent and shaken, as if she could say no more. Then she replied, "Best? Is it best for you to injure your prospects10 for such a voluptuous11, idle woman as that? Don't you see that by the very fact of your choosing her you prove that you do not know what is best for you? You give up your whole thought--you set your whole soul--to please a woman."
"I do. And that woman is you."
"How can you treat me so flippantly!" said his mother, turning again to him with a tearful look. "You are unnatural12, Clym, and I did not expect it."
"Very likely," said he cheerlessly. "You did not know the measure you were going to mete13 me, and therefore did not know the measure that would be returned to you again."
"You answer me; you think only of her. You stick to her in all things."
"That proves her to be worthy14. I have never yet supported what is bad. And I do not care only for her. I care for you and for myself, and for anything that is good. When a woman once dislikes another she is merciless!"
"O Clym! please don't go setting down as my fault what is your obstinate15 wrongheadedness. If you wished to connect yourself with an unworthy person why did you come home here to do it? Why didn't you do it in Paris?--it is more the fashion there. You have come only to distress16 me, a lonely woman, and shorten my days! I wish that you would bestow17 your presence where you bestow your love!"
Clym said huskily, "You are my mother. I will say no more--beyond this, that I beg your pardon for having thought this my home. I will no longer inflict18 myself upon you; I'll go." And he went out with tears in his eyes.
It was a sunny afternoon at the beginning of summer, and the moist hollows of the heath had passed from their brown to their green stage. Yeobright walked to the edge of the basin which extended down from Mistover and Rainbarrow.
By this time he was calm, and he looked over the landscape. In the minor19 valleys, between the hillocks which diversified20 the contour of the vale, the fresh young ferns were luxuriantly growing up, ultimately to reach a height of five or six feet. He descended21 a little way, flung himself down in a spot where a path emerged from one of the small hollows, and waited. Hither it was that he had promised Eustacia to bring his mother this afternoon, that they might meet and be friends. His attempt had utterly23 failed.
He was in a nest of vivid green. The ferny vegetation round him, though so abundant, was quite uniform--it was a grove24 of machine-made foliage25, a world of green triangles with saw-edges, and not a single flower. The air was warm with a vaporous warmth, and the stillness was unbroken. Lizards26, grasshoppers27, and ants were the only living things to be beheld28. The scene seemed to belong to the ancient world of the carboniferous period, when the forms of plants were few, and of the fern kind; when there was neither bud nor blossom, nothing but a monotonous29 extent of leafage, amid which no bird sang.
When he had reclined for some considerable time, gloomily pondering, he discerned above the ferns a drawn30 bonnet31 of white silk approaching from the left, and Yeobright knew directly that it covered the head of her he loved. His heart awoke from its apathy32 to a warm excitement, and, jumping to his feet, he said aloud, "I knew she was sure to come."
She vanished in a hollow for a few moments, and then her whole form unfolded itself from the brake.
"Only you here?" she exclaimed, with a disappointed air, whose hollowness was proved by her rising redness and her half-guilty low laugh. "Where is Mrs. Yeobright?"
"She has not come," he replied in a subdued33 tone.
"I wish I had known that you would be here alone," she said seriously, "and that we were going to have such an idle, pleasant time as this. Pleasure not known beforehand is half wasted; to anticipate it is to double it. I have not thought once today of having you all to myself this afternoon, and the actual moment of a thing is so soon gone."
"It is indeed."
"Poor Clym!" she continued, looking tenderly into his face. "You are sad. Something has happened at your home. Never mind what is--let us only look at what seems."
"But, darling, what shall we do?" said he.
"Still go on as we do now--just live on from meeting to meeting, never minding about another day. You, I know, are always thinking of that--I can see you are. But you must not--will you, dear Clym?"
"You are just like all women. They are ever content to build their lives on any incidental position that offers itself; whilst men would fain make a globe to suit them. Listen to this, Eustacia. There is a subject I have determined34 to put off no longer. Your sentiment on the wisdom of Carpe diem does not impress me today. Our present mode of life must shortly be brought to an end."
"It is your mother!"
"It is. I love you none the less in telling you; it is only right you should know."
"I have feared my bliss," she said, with the merest motion of her lips. "It has been too intense and consuming."
"There is hope yet. There are forty years of work in me yet, and why should you despair? I am only at an awkward turning. I wish people wouldn't be so ready to think that there is no progress without uniformity."
"Ah--your mind runs off to the philosophical35 side of it. Well, these sad and hopeless obstacles are welcome in one sense, for they enable us to look with indifference36 upon the cruel satires37 that Fate loves to indulge in. I have heard of people, who, upon coming suddenly into happiness, have died from anxiety lest they should not live to enjoy it. I felt myself in that whimsical state of uneasiness lately; but I shall be spared it now. Let us walk on."
Clym took the hand which was already bared for him--it was a favourite way with them to walk bare hand in bare hand--and led her through the ferns. They formed a very comely38 picture of love at full flush, as they walked along the valley that late afternoon, the sun sloping down on their right, and throwing their thin spectral39 shadows, tall as poplar trees, far out across the furze and fern. Eustacia went with her head thrown back fancifully, a certain glad and voluptuous air of triumph pervading40 her eyes at having won by her own unaided self a man who was her perfect complement41 in attainment42, appearance, and age. On the young man's part, the paleness of face which he had brought with him from Paris, and the incipient43 marks of time and thought, were less perceptible than when he returned, the healthful and energetic sturdiness which was his by nature having partially44 recovered its original proportions. They wandered onward45 till they reached the nether46 margin47 of the heath, where it became marshy48 and merged22 in moorland.
"I must part from you here, Clym," said Eustacia.
They stood still and prepared to bid each other farewell. Everything before them was on a perfect level. The sun, resting on the horizon line, streamed across the ground from between copper-coloured and lilac clouds, stretched out in flats beneath a sky of pale soft green. All dark objects on the earth that lay towards the sun were overspread by a purple haze49, against which groups of wailing50 gnats51 shone out, rising upwards52 and dancing about like sparks of fire.
"O! this leaving you is too hard to bear!" exclaimed Eustacia in a sudden whisper of anguish53. "Your mother will influence you too much; I shall not be judged fairly, it will get afloat that I am not a good girl, and the witch story will be added to make me blacker!"
"They cannot. Nobody dares to speak disrespectfully of you or of me."
"Oh how I wish I was sure of never losing you--that you could not be able to desert me anyhow!"
Clym stood silent a moment. His feelings were high, the moment was passionate54, and he cut the knot.
"You shall be sure of me, darling," he said, folding her in his arms. "We will be married at once."
"O Clym!"
"Do you agree to it?"
"If--if we can."
"We certainly can, both being of full age. And I have not followed my occupation all these years without having accumulated money; and if you will agree to live in a tiny cottage somewhere on the heath, until I take a house in Budmouth for the school, we can do it at a very little expense."
"How long shall we have to live in the tiny cottage, Clym?"
"About six months. At the end of that time I shall have finished my reading--yes, we will do it, and this heart-aching will be over. We shall, of course, live in absolute seclusion55, and our married life will only begin to outward view when we take the house in Budmouth, where I have already addressed a letter on the matter. Would your grandfather allow you?"
"I think he would--on the understanding that it should not last longer than six months."
"I will guarantee that, if no misfortune happens."
"If no misfortune happens," she repeated slowly.
"Which is not likely. Dearest, fix the exact day."
And then they consulted on the question, and the day was chosen. It was to be a fortnight from that time.
This was the end of their talk, and Eustacia left him. Clym watched her as she retired56 towards the sun. The luminous57 rays wrapped her up with her increasing distance, and the rustle58 of her dress over the sprouting59 sedge and grass died away. As he watched, the dead flat of the scenery overpowered him, though he was fully4 alive to the beauty of that untarnished early summer green which was worn for the nonce by the poorest blade. There was something in its oppressive horizontality which too much reminded him of the arena60 of life; it gave him a sense of bare equality with, and no superiority to, a single living thing under the sun.
Eustacia was now no longer the goddess but the woman to him, a being to fight for, support, help, be maligned61 for. Now that he had reached a cooler moment he would have preferred a less hasty marriage; but the card was laid, and he determined to abide62 by the game. Whether Eustacia was to add one other to the list of those who love too hotly to love long and well, the forthcoming event was certainly a ready way of proving.
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spoke
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| 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 | |
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secrecy
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| n.秘密，保密，隐蔽 | |
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disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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instilling
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| v.逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输( instil的现在分词 )；逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输( instill的现在分词 ) | |
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cramming
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| n.塞满，填鸭式的用功v.塞入( cram的现在分词 )；填塞；塞满；（为考试而）死记硬背功课 | |
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entanglements
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| n.瓜葛( entanglement的名词复数 )；牵连；纠缠；缠住 | |
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vehemently
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| adv. 热烈地 | |
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thwart
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| v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的) | |
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prospects
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| n.希望，前途(恒为复数) | |
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voluptuous
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| adj.肉欲的，骄奢淫逸的 | |
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unnatural
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| adj.不自然的；反常的 | |
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mete
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| v.分配；给予 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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obstinate
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| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 | |
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distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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bestow
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| v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费 | |
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inflict
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| vt.(on)把…强加给，使遭受，使承担 | |
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minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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diversified
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| adj.多样化的，多种经营的v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的过去式和过去分词 )；进入新的商业领域 | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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merged
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| （使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中 | |
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utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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grove
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| n.林子，小树林，园林 | |
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foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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lizards
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| n.蜥蜴( lizard的名词复数 ) | |
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grasshoppers
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| n.蚱蜢( grasshopper的名词复数 )；蝗虫；蚂蚱；（孩子）矮小的 | |
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beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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monotonous
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| adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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bonnet
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| n.无边女帽；童帽 | |
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apathy
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| n.漠不关心，无动于衷；冷淡 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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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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indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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satires
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| 讽刺，讥讽( satire的名词复数 )； 讽刺作品 | |
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comely
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| adj.漂亮的，合宜的 | |
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spectral
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| adj.幽灵的，鬼魂的 | |
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pervading
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| v.遍及，弥漫( pervade的现在分词 ) | |
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complement
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| n.补足物，船上的定员；补语；vt.补充，补足 | |
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attainment
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| n.达到，到达；［常pl.］成就，造诣 | |
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incipient
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| adj.起初的，发端的，初期的 | |
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partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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nether
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| adj.下部的，下面的；n.阴间；下层社会 | |
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margin
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| n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘 | |
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marshy
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| adj.沼泽的 | |
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haze
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| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
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50
wailing
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| v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱 | |
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51
gnats
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| n.叮人小虫( gnat的名词复数 ) | |
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52
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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53
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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54
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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55
seclusion
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| n.隐遁，隔离 | |
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56
retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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luminous
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| adj.发光的，发亮的；光明的；明白易懂的；有启发的 | |
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58
rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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sprouting
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| v.发芽( sprout的现在分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出 | |
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arena
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| n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台 | |
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61
maligned
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| vt.污蔑，诽谤（malign的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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62
abide
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| vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受 | |
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