CHAPTER 5—Parnassus

 Many years ago, a gentleman with whom I was driving in a distant quarter of Paris took me to a house on the rue¹ Montparnasse, where we remained an hour or more, he chatting with its owner, and I listening to their conversation, and wondering at the confusion of books in the big room.  As we drove away, my companion turned to me and said, “Don’t forget this afternoon.  You have seen one of the greatest writers our century has produced, although the world does not yet realize it.  You will learn to love his works when you are older, and it will be a satisfaction to remember that you saw and spoke² with him in the flesh! “

 

When I returned later to Paris the little house had changed hands, and a marble tablet stating that Sainte-Beuve had lived and died there adorned³ its façade.  My student footsteps took me many times through that quiet street, but never without a vision of the poet-critic flashing back, as I glanced up at the window where he had stood and talked with us; as my friend predicted, Sainte-Beuve’s writings had become a precious part of my small library, the memory of his genial⁴ face adding a vivid interest to their perusal⁵.

 

I made a little Pilgrimage recently to the quiet old garden where, after many years’ delay, a bust⁶ of this writer has been unveiled, with the same companion, now very old, who thirty years ago presented me to the original.

 

There is, perhaps, in all Paris no more exquisite⁷ corner than the Garden of the Luxembourg.  At every season it is beautiful.  The winter sunlight seems to linger on its stately Italian terraces after it has ceased to shine elsewhere.  The first lilacs bloom here in the spring, and when midsummer has turned all the rest of Paris into a blazing, white wilderness⁸, these gardens remain cool and tranquil⁹ in the heart of turbulent “Bohemia,” a bit of fragrant¹⁰ nature filled with the song of birds and the voices of children.  Surely it was a gracious inspiration that selected this shady park as the “Poets’ Corner” of great, new Paris.  Henri Murger, Leconte de Lisle, Théodore de Banville, Paul Verlaine, are here, and now Sainte-Beuve has come back to his favorite haunt.  Like François Coppée and Victor Hugo, he loved these historic allées, and knew the stone in them as he knew the “Latin Quater,” for his life was passed between the bookstalls of the quays¹¹ and the outlying street where he lived.

 

As we sat resting in the shade, my companion, who had been one of Sainte-Beuve’s pupils, fell to talking of his master, his memory refreshed by the familiar surroundings.  “Can anything be sadder,” he said, “than finding a face one has loved turned into stone, or names that were the watchwords of one’s youth serving as signs at street corners—la rue Flaubert or Théodore de Banville?  How far away they make the past seem!  Poor Sainte-Beuve, that bust yonder is but a poor reward for a life of toil¹², a modest tribute to his encyclopædic brain!  His works, however, are his best monument; he would be the last to repine or cavil¹³.

 

“The literary world of my day had two poles, between which it vibrated.  The little house in the rue Montparnasse was one, the rock of Guernsey the other.  We spoke with awe¹⁴ of ‘Father Hugo’ and mentioned ‘Uncle Beuve’ with tenderness.  The Goncourt brothers accepted Sainte-Beuve’s judgment¹⁵ on their work as the verdict of a ‘Supreme Court.’  Not a poet or author of that day but climbed with a beating heart the narrow staircase that led to the great writer’s library.  Paul Verlaine regarded as his literary diploma a letter from this ‘Balzac de la critique.’ ”

 

“At the entrance of the quaint¹⁶ Passage du Commerce, under the arch that leads into the rue Saint-André-des-Arts, stands a hotel, where for years Sainte-Beuve came daily to work (away from the importunate¹⁷ who besieged¹⁸ his dwelling) in a room hired under the assumed name of Delorme.  It was there that we sent him a basket of fruit one morning addressed to Mr. Delorme, né Sainte-Beuve.  It was there that most of his enormous labor¹⁹ was accomplished²⁰.

 

“A curious corner of old Paris that Cour du Commerce!  Just opposite his window was the apartment where Danton lived.  If one chose to seek for them it would not be hard to discover on the pavement of this same passage the marks made by a young doctor in decapitating sheep with his newly invented machine.  The doctor’s name was Guillotin.

 

“The great critic loved these old quarters filled with history.  He was fond of explaining that Montparnasse had been a hill where the students of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries came to amuse themselves.  In 1761 the slope was levelled and the boulevard laid out, but the name was predestined, he would declare, for the habitation of the ‘Parnassiens.’

 

“His enemies pretended that you had but to mention Michelet, Balzac, and Victor Hugo to see Sainte-Beuve in three degrees of rage.  He had, it is true, distinct expressions on hearing those authors discussed.  The phrase then much used in speaking of an original personality, ‘He is like a character out of Balzac,’ always threw my master into a temper.  I cannot remember, however, having seen him in one of those famous rages which made Barbey d’Aurévilly say that ‘Sainte-Beuve was a clever man with the temper of a turkey!’  The former was much nearer the truth when he called the author of Les Lundis a French Wordsworth, or compared him to a lay bénédictin.  He had a way of reading a newly acquired volume as he walked through the streets that was typical of his life.  My master was always studying and always advancing.

 

“He never entirely²¹ recovered from his mortification²² at being hissed²³ by the students on the occasion of his first lecture at the Collège de France.  Returning home he loaded two pistols, one for the first student who should again insult him, and the other to blow out his own brains.  It was no idle threat.  The man Guizot had nicknamed ‘Werther’ was capable of executing his plan, for this causeless unpopularity was anguish²⁴ to him.  After his death, I found those two pistols loaded in his bedroom, but justice had been done another way.  All opposition²⁵ had vanished.  Every student in the ‘Quarter’ followed the modest funeral of their Senator, who had become the champion of literary liberty in an epoch²⁶ when poetry was held in chains.

 

“The Empire which made him Senator gained, however, but an indocile recruit.  On his one visit to Compiègne in 1863, the Emperor, wishing to be particularly gracious, said to him, ‘I always read the Moniteur on Monday, when your article appears.’  Unfortunately for this compliment, it was the Constitutionnel that had been publishing the Nouveaux Lundis for more than four years.  In spite of the united efforts of his friends, Sainte-Beuve could not be brought to the point of complimenting Napoleon III. on his Life of Cæsar.

 

The author of Les Consolations²⁷ remained through life the proudest and most independent of men, a bourgeois²⁸, enemy of all tyranny, asking protection of no one.  And what a worker!  Reading, sifting²⁹, studying, analyzing³⁰ his subject before composing one of his famous Lundis, a literary portrait which he aimed at making complete and final.  One of these articles cost him as much labor as other authors give to the composition of a volume.

 

“By way of amusement on Sunday evenings, when work was temporarily laid aside, he loved the theatre, delighting in every kind of play, from the broad farces³¹ of the Palais Royal to the tragedies of Racine, and entertaining comedians³² in order, as he said, ‘to keep young’!  One evening Théophile Gautier brought a pretty actress to dinner.  Sainte-Beuve, who was past-master in the difficult art of conversation, and on whom a fair woman acted as an inspiration, surpassed himself on this occasion, surprising even the Goncourts with his knowledge of the Eighteenth century and the women of that time, Mme. de Boufflers, Mlle. de Lespinasse, la Maréchale de Luxembourg.  The hours flew by unheeded by all of his guests but one.  The débutante was overheard confiding³³, later in the evening, to a friend at the Gymnase, where she performed in the last act, ‘Ouf!  I’m glad to get here.  I‘ve been dining with a stupid old Senator.  They told me he would be amusing, but I’ve been bored to death.’  Which reminded me of my one visit to England, when I heard a young nobleman declare that he had been to ‘such a dull dinner to meet a duffer called “Renan!” ’

 

“Sainte-Beuve’s Larmes de Racine was given at the Théâtre Français during its author’s last illness.  His disappointment at not seeing the performance was so keen that M. Thierry, then administrateur of La Comédie, took Mlle. Favart to the rue Montparnasse, that she might recite his verses to the dying writer.  When the actress, then in the zenith of her fame and beauty, came to the lines—

 

Jean Racine, le grand poête,

Le poête aimant et pieux,

Après que sa lyre muette

Se fut voilèe à tous les yeux,

Renonçant à la gloire humaine,

S’il sentait en son âme pleine

Le flot contenu murmurer³⁴,

Ne savait que fondre en prière,

Pencher l’urne dans la poussière

Aux pieds du Seigneur, et pleurer!

 

the tears of Sainte-Beuve accompanied those of Racine!”

 

There were tears also in the eyes my companion turned toward me as he concluded.  The sun had set while he had been speaking.  The marble of the statues gleamed white against the shadows of the sombre old garden.  The guardians³⁵ were closing the gates and warning the lingering visitors as we strolled toward the entrance.

 

It seemed as if we had been for an hour in the presence of the portly critic; and the circle of brilliant men and witty³⁶ women who surrounded him—Flaubert, Tourguéneff, Théophile Gautier, Renan, George Sand—were realities at that moment, not abstractions with great names.  It was like returning from another age, to step out again into the glare and bustle³⁷ of the Boulevard St. Michel.

1 rue   

n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔

参考例句：

• You'll rue having failed in the examination.你会悔恨考试失败。
• You're going to rue this the longest day that you live.你要终身悔恨不尽呢。

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 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

4 genial   

adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的

参考例句：

• Orlando is a genial man.奥兰多是一位和蔼可亲的人。
• He was a warm-hearted friend and genial host.他是个热心的朋友，也是友善待客的主人。

5 perusal   

n.细读，熟读；目测

参考例句：

• Peter Cooke undertook to send each of us a sample contract for perusal.彼得·库克答应给我们每人寄送一份合同样本供阅读。
• A perusal of the letters which we have published has satisfied him of the reality of our claim.读了我们的公开信后，他终于相信我们的要求的确是真的。

6 bust   

vt.打破；vi.爆裂；n.半身像；胸部

参考例句：

• I dropped my camera on the pavement and bust it. 我把照相机掉在人行道上摔坏了。
• She has worked up a lump of clay into a bust.她把一块黏土精心制作成一个半身像。

7 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。

8 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

9 tranquil   

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。

10 fragrant   

adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的

参考例句：

• The Fragrant Hills are exceptionally beautiful in late autumn.深秋的香山格外美丽。
• The air was fragrant with lavender.空气中弥漫薰衣草香。

11 quays   

码头( quay的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She drove across the Tournelle bridge and across the busy quays to the Latin quarter. 她驾车开过图尔内勒桥，穿过繁忙的码头开到拉丁区。
• When blasting is close to such installations as quays, the charge can be reduced. 在靠近如码头这类设施爆破时，装药量可以降低。

12 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

13 cavil   

v.挑毛病，吹毛求疵

参考例句：

• A carper will cavil at anything.爱挑剔的人对什么都挑剔。
• Even he could find nothing to cavil about.连他都挑不出什么毛病来。

14 awe   

n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧

参考例句：

• The sight filled us with awe.这景色使我们大为惊叹。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

15 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

16 quaint   

adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的

参考例句：

• There were many small lanes in the quaint village.在这古香古色的村庄里，有很多小巷。
• They still keep some quaint old customs.他们仍然保留着一些稀奇古怪的旧风俗。

17 importunate   

adj.强求的；纠缠不休的

参考例句：

• I would not have our gratitude become indiscreet or importunate.我不愿意让我们的感激变成失礼或勉强。
• The importunate memory was kept before her by its ironic contrast to her present situation.萦绕在心头的这个回忆对当前的情景来说，是个具有讽刺性的对照。

18 besieged   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Paris was besieged for four months and forced to surrender. 巴黎被围困了四个月后被迫投降。
• The community besieged the newspaper with letters about its recent editorial. 公众纷纷来信对报社新近发表的社论提出诘问，弄得报社应接不暇。

19 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

20 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

21 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。

22 mortification   

n.耻辱，屈辱

参考例句：

• To my mortification, my manuscript was rejected. 使我感到失面子的是：我的稿件被退了回来。
• The chairman tried to disguise his mortification. 主席试图掩饰自己的窘迫。

23 hissed   

发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对

参考例句：

• Have you ever been hissed at in the middle of a speech? 你在演讲中有没有被嘘过？
• The iron hissed as it pressed the wet cloth. 熨斗压在湿布上时发出了嘶嘶声。

24 anguish   

n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼

参考例句：

• She cried out for anguish at parting.分手时，她由于痛苦而失声大哭。
• The unspeakable anguish wrung his heart.难言的痛苦折磨着他的心。

25 opposition   

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。

26 epoch   

n.(新)时代；历元

参考例句：

• The epoch of revolution creates great figures.革命时代造就伟大的人物。
• We're at the end of the historical epoch,and at the dawn of another.我们正处在一个历史时代的末期，另一个历史时代的开端。

27 consolations   

n.安慰，慰问( consolation的名词复数 )；起安慰作用的人（或事物）

参考例句：

• Recent history had washed away the easy consolations and the old formulas. 现代的历史已经把轻松的安慰和陈旧的公式一扫而光。 来自辞典例句
• When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul. 诗94:19我心里多忧多疑、安慰我、使我欢乐。 来自互联网

28 bourgeois   

adj./n.追求物质享受的(人)；中产阶级分子

参考例句：

• He's accusing them of having a bourgeois and limited vision.他指责他们像中产阶级一样目光狭隘。
• The French Revolution was inspired by the bourgeois.法国革命受到中产阶级的鼓励。

29 sifting   

n.筛，过滤v.筛( sift的现在分词 )；筛滤；细查；详审

参考例句：

• He lay on the beach, sifting the sand through his fingers. 他躺在沙滩上用手筛砂子玩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I was sifting the cinders when she came in. 她进来时，我正在筛煤渣。 来自辞典例句

30 analyzing   

v.分析；分析( analyze的现在分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析n.分析

参考例句：

• Analyzing the date of some socialist countries presents even greater problem s. 分析某些社会主义国家的统计数据，暴露出的问题甚至更大。 来自辞典例句
• He undoubtedly was not far off the mark in analyzing its predictions. 当然，他对其预测所作的分析倒也八九不离十。 来自辞典例句

31 farces   

n.笑剧( farce的名词复数 )；闹剧；笑剧剧目；作假的可笑场面

参考例句：

• Its repertoire includes historical plays, comedies, tragedies and farces. 京剧的曲目包括历史剧、喜剧、悲剧和笑剧。 来自互联网
• He likes to watch farces at weekends to relax himself. 他喜欢在周末看滑稽剧来放松自己。 来自互联网

32 comedians   

n.喜剧演员，丑角( comedian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The voice was rich, lordly, Harvardish, like all the boring radio comedians'imitations. 声音浑厚、威严，俨然是哈佛出身的气派，就跟无线电里所有的滑稽演员叫人已经听腻的模仿完全一样。 来自辞典例句
• He distracted them by joking and imitating movie and radio comedians. 他用开玩笑的方法或者模仿电影及广播中的滑稽演员来对付他们。 来自辞典例句

33 confiding   

adj.相信人的，易于相信的v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的现在分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等）

参考例句：

• The girl is of a confiding nature. 这女孩具有轻信别人的性格。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Celia, though confiding her opinion only to Andrew, disagreed. 西莉亚却不这么看，尽管她只向安德鲁吐露过。 来自辞典例句

34 murmurer   

低语

参考例句：

• She murmured her agreement. 她低声表示同意。
• As she denounced the government's policy, the crowd murmured their approval. 当她抨击政府的政策时，听众叽叽咕咕地表示赞同。 来自《简明英汉词典》

35 guardians   

监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者

参考例句：

• Farmers should be guardians of the countryside. 农民应是乡村的保卫者。
• The police are guardians of law and order. 警察是法律和秩序的护卫者。

36 witty   

adj.机智的，风趣的

参考例句：

• Her witty remarks added a little salt to the conversation.她的妙语使谈话增添了一些风趣。
• He scored a bull's-eye in their argument with that witty retort.在他们的辩论中他那一句机智的反驳击中了要害。

37 bustle   

v.喧扰地忙乱，匆忙，奔忙；n.忙碌；喧闹

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• There is a lot of hustle and bustle in the railway station.火车站里非常拥挤。