Part 1 Chapter 13

    He had been to Amsterdam, Mr Bankes was saying as he strolled acrossthe lawn with Lily Briscoe. He had seen the Rembrandts. He had been toMadrid. Unfortunately, it was Good Friday and the Prado was shut. Hehad been to Rome. Had Miss Briscoe never been to Rome? Oh, sheshould—It would be a wonderful experience for her—the Sistine Chapel;Michael Angelo; and Padua, with its Giottos. His wife had been in badhealth for many years, so that their sight-seeing had been on a modestscale.

　　She had been to Brussels; she had been to Paris but only for a flyingvisit to see an aunt who was ill. She had been to Dresden; there weremasses of pictures she had not seen; however, Lily Briscoe reflected, perhapsit was better not to see pictures: they only made one hopelessly discontentedwith one's own work. Mr Bankes thought one could carry thatpoint of view too far. We can't all be Titians and we can't all be Darwins,he said; at the same time he doubted whether you could have your Darwinand your Titian if it weren't for humble¹ people like ourselves. Lilywould have liked to pay him a compliment; you're not humble, MrBankes, she would have liked to have said. But he did not want compliments(most men do, she thought), and she was a little ashamed of herimpulse and said nothing while he remarked that perhaps what he wassaying did not apply to pictures. Anyhow, said Lily, tossing off her littleinsincerity, she would always go on painting, because it interested her.

　　Yes, said Mr Bankes, he was sure she would, and, as they reached theend of the lawn he was asking her whether she had difficulty in findingsubjects in London when they turned and saw the Ramsays. So that ismarriage, Lily thought, a man and a woman looking at a girl throwing aball. That is what Mrs Ramsay tried to tell me the other night, shethought. For she was wearing a green shawl, and they were standingclose together watching Prue and Jasper throwing catches. And suddenlythe meaning which, for no reason at all, as perhaps they are steppingout of the Tube or ringing a doorbell, descends³ on people, makingthem symbolical⁴, making them representative, came upon them, andmade them in the dusk standing², looking, the symbols of marriage, husbandand wife. Then, after an instant, the symbolical outline which transcendedthe real figures sank down again, and they became, as they metthem, Mr and Mrs Ramsay watching the children throwing catches. Butstill for a moment, though Mrs Ramsay greeted them with her usualsmile (oh, she's thinking we're going to get married, Lily thought) andsaid, "I have triumphed tonight," meaning that for once Mr Bankes hadagreed to dine with them and not run off to his own lodging⁵ where hisman cooked vegetables properly; still, for one moment, there was a senseof things having been blown apart, of space, of irresponsibility as the ballsoared high, and they followed it and lost it and saw the one star and thedraped branches. In the failing light they all looked sharp-edged and etherealand divided by great distances. Then, darting⁶ backwards⁷ over thevast space (for it seemed as if solidity had vanished altogether), Prue ranfull tilt⁸ into them and caught the ball brilliantly high up in her left hand,and her mother said, "Haven't they come back yet?" whereupon the spellwas broken. Mr Ramsay felt free now to laugh out loud at the thoughtthat Hume had stuck in a bog⁹ and an old woman rescued him on conditionhe said the Lord's Prayer, and chuckling¹⁰ to himself he strolled off tohis study. Mrs Ramsay, bringing Prue back into throwing catches again,from which she had escaped, asked,"Did Nancy go with them?"

1 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

2 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。

3 descends   

v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 )；下去；下降；下斜

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite. 这个节日起源于宗教仪式。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The path descends steeply to the village. 小路陡直而下直到村子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 symbolical   

a.象征性的

参考例句：

• The power of the monarchy in Britain today is more symbolical than real. 今日英国君主的权力多为象徵性的，无甚实际意义。
• The Lord introduces the first symbolical language in Revelation. 主说明了启示录中第一个象徵的语言。

5 lodging   

n.寄宿，住所；(大学生的)校外宿舍

参考例句：

• The bill is inclusive of the food and lodging. 账单包括吃、住费用。
• Where can you find lodging for the night? 你今晚在哪里借宿?

6 darting   

v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔

参考例句：

• Swallows were darting through the clouds. 燕子穿云急飞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Swallows were darting through the air. 燕子在空中掠过。 来自辞典例句

7 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

8 tilt   

v.(使)倾侧；(使)倾斜；n.倾侧；倾斜

参考例句：

• She wore her hat at a tilt over her left eye.她歪戴着帽子遮住左眼。
• The table is at a slight tilt.这张桌子没放平，有点儿歪.

9 bog   

n.沼泽；室...陷入泥淖

参考例句：

• We were able to pass him a rope before the bog sucked him under.我们终于得以在沼泽把他吞没前把绳子扔给他。
• The path goes across an area of bog.这条小路穿过一片沼泽。

10 chuckling   

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