We passed a few sad hours until eleven o’clock, when the trial was to commence. My father and the rest of the family being obliged to attend as witnesses, I accompanied them to the court. During the whole of this wretched mockery of justice I suffered living torture. It was to be decided2 whether the result of my curiosity and lawless devices would cause the death of two of my fellow beings: one a smiling babe full of innocence3 and joy, the other far more dreadfully murdered, with every aggravation4 of infamy5 that could make the murder memorable6 in horror. Justine also was a girl of merit and possessed7 qualities which promised to render her life happy; now all was to be obliterated8 in an ignominious9 grave, and I the cause! A thousand times rather would I have confessed myself guilty of the crime ascribed to Justine, but I was absent when it was committed, and such a declaration would have been considered as the ravings of a madman and would not have exculpated11 her who suffered through me.
The appearance of Justine was calm. She was dressed in mourning, and her countenance12, always engaging, was rendered, by the solemnity of her feelings, exquisitely13 beautiful. Yet she appeared confident in innocence and did not tremble, although gazed on and execrated14 by thousands, for all the kindness which her beauty might otherwise have excited was obliterated in the minds of the spectators by the imagination of the enormity she was supposed to have committed. She was tranquil15, yet her tranquillity16 was evidently constrained17; and as her confusion had before been adduced as a proof of her guilt10, she worked up her mind to an appearance of courage. When she entered the court she threw her eyes round it and quickly discovered where we were seated. A tear seemed to dim her eye when she saw us, but she quickly recovered herself, and a look of sorrowful affection seemed to attest18 her utter guiltlessness.
The trial began, and after the advocate against her had stated the charge, several witnesses were called. Several strange facts combined against her, which might have staggered anyone who had not such proof of her innocence as I had. She had been out the whole of the night on which the murder had been committed and towards morning had been perceived by a market-woman not far from the spot where the body of the murdered child had been afterwards found. The woman asked her what she did there, but she looked very strangely and only returned a confused and unintelligible19 answer. She returned to the house about eight o’clock, and when one inquired where she had passed the night, she replied that she had been looking for the child and demanded earnestly if anything had been heard concerning him. When shown the body, she fell into violent hysterics and kept her bed for several days. The picture was then produced which the servant had found in her pocket; and when Elizabeth, in a faltering20 voice, proved that it was the same which, an hour before the child had been missed, she had placed round his neck, a murmur21 of horror and indignation filled the court.
Justine was called on for her defence. As the trial had proceeded, her countenance had altered. Surprise, horror, and misery22 were strongly expressed. Sometimes she struggled with her tears, but when she was desired to plead, she collected her powers and spoke23 in an audible although variable voice.
“God knows,” she said, “how entirely24 I am innocent. But I do not pretend that my protestations should acquit25 me; I rest my innocence on a plain and simple explanation of the facts which have been adduced against me, and I hope the character I have always borne will incline my judges to a favourable26 interpretation27 where any circumstance appears doubtful or suspicious.”
She then related that, by the permission of Elizabeth, she had passed the evening of the night on which the murder had been committed at the house of an aunt at Chene, a village situated28 at about a league from Geneva. On her return, at about nine o’clock, she met a man who asked her if she had seen anything of the child who was lost. She was alarmed by this account and passed several hours in looking for him, when the gates of Geneva were shut, and she was forced to remain several hours of the night in a barn belonging to a cottage, being unwilling29 to call up the inhabitants, to whom she was well known. Most of the night she spent here watching; towards morning she believed that she slept for a few minutes; some steps disturbed her, and she awoke. It was dawn, and she quitted her asylum30, that she might again endeavour to find my brother. If she had gone near the spot where his body lay, it was without her knowledge. That she had been bewildered when questioned by the market-woman was not surprising, since she had passed a sleepless31 night and the fate of poor William was yet uncertain. Concerning the picture she could give no account.
“I know,” continued the unhappy victim, “how heavily and fatally this one circumstance weighs against me, but I have no power of explaining it; and when I have expressed my utter ignorance, I am only left to conjecture32 concerning the probabilities by which it might have been placed in my pocket. But here also I am checked. I believe that I have no enemy on earth, and none surely would have been so wicked as to destroy me wantonly. Did the murderer place it there? I know of no opportunity afforded him for so doing; or, if I had, why should he have stolen the jewel, to part with it again so soon?
“I commit my cause to the justice of my judges, yet I see no room for hope. I beg permission to have a few witnesses examined concerning my character, and if their testimony33 shall not overweigh my supposed guilt, I must be condemned35, although I would pledge my salvation36 on my innocence.”
Several witnesses were called who had known her for many years, and they spoke well of her; but fear and hatred37 of the crime of which they supposed her guilty rendered them timorous38 and unwilling to come forward. Elizabeth saw even this last resource, her excellent dispositions39 and irreproachable40 conduct, about to fail the accused, when, although violently agitated41, she desired permission to address the court.
“I am,” said she, “the cousin of the unhappy child who was murdered, or rather his sister, for I was educated by and have lived with his parents ever since and even long before his birth. It may therefore be judged indecent in me to come forward on this occasion, but when I see a fellow creature about to perish through the cowardice42 of her pretended friends, I wish to be allowed to speak, that I may say what I know of her character. I am well acquainted with the accused. I have lived in the same house with her, at one time for five and at another for nearly two years. During all that period she appeared to me the most amiable43 and benevolent44 of human creatures. She nursed Madame Frankenstein, my aunt, in her last illness, with the greatest affection and care and afterwards attended her own mother during a tedious illness, in a manner that excited the admiration45 of all who knew her, after which she again lived in my uncle’s house, where she was beloved by all the family. She was warmly attached to the child who is now dead and acted towards him like a most affectionate mother. For my own part, I do not hesitate to say that, notwithstanding all the evidence produced against her, I believe and rely on her perfect innocence. She had no temptation for such an action; as to the bauble46 on which the chief proof rests, if she had earnestly desired it, I should have willingly given it to her, so much do I esteem47 and value her.”
A murmur of approbation48 followed Elizabeth’s simple and powerful appeal, but it was excited by her generous interference, and not in favour of poor Justine, on whom the public indignation was turned with renewed violence, charging her with the blackest ingratitude49. She herself wept as Elizabeth spoke, but she did not answer. My own agitation51 and anguish52 was extreme during the whole trial. I believed in her innocence; I knew it. Could the demon53 who had (I did not for a minute doubt) murdered my brother also in his hellish sport have betrayed the innocent to death and ignominy? I could not sustain the horror of my situation, and when I perceived that the popular voice and the countenances54 of the judges had already condemned my unhappy victim, I rushed out of the court in agony. The tortures of the accused did not equal mine; she was sustained by innocence, but the fangs55 of remorse56 tore my bosom57 and would not forgo58 their hold.
I passed a night of unmingled wretchedness. In the morning I went to the court; my lips and throat were parched59. I dared not ask the fatal question, but I was known, and the officer guessed the cause of my visit. The ballots60 had been thrown; they were all black, and Justine was condemned.
I cannot pretend to describe what I then felt. I had before experienced sensations of horror, and I have endeavoured to bestow61 upon them adequate expressions, but words cannot convey an idea of the heart-sickening despair that I then endured. The person to whom I addressed myself added that Justine had already confessed her guilt. “That evidence,” he observed, “was hardly required in so glaring a case, but I am glad of it, and, indeed, none of our judges like to condemn34 a criminal upon circumstantial evidence, be it ever so decisive.”
This was strange and unexpected intelligence; what could it mean? Had my eyes deceived me? And was I really as mad as the whole world would believe me to be if I disclosed the object of my suspicions? I hastened to return home, and Elizabeth eagerly demanded the result.
“My cousin,” replied I, “it is decided as you may have expected; all judges had rather that ten innocent should suffer than that one guilty should escape. But she has confessed.”
This was a dire62 blow to poor Elizabeth, who had relied with firmness upon Justine’s innocence. “Alas!” said she. “How shall I ever again believe in human goodness? Justine, whom I loved and esteemed63 as my sister, how could she put on those smiles of innocence only to betray? Her mild eyes seemed incapable64 of any severity or guile65, and yet she has committed a murder.”
Soon after we heard that the poor victim had expressed a desire to see my cousin. My father wished her not to go but said that he left it to her own judgment66 and feelings to decide. “Yes,” said Elizabeth, “I will go, although she is guilty; and you, Victor, shall accompany me; I cannot go alone.” The idea of this visit was torture to me, yet I could not refuse. We entered the gloomy prison chamber67 and beheld68 Justine sitting on some straw at the farther end; her hands were manacled, and her head rested on her knees. She rose on seeing us enter, and when we were left alone with her, she threw herself at the feet of Elizabeth, weeping bitterly. My cousin wept also.
“Oh, Justine!” said she. “Why did you rob me of my last consolation69? I relied on your innocence, and although I was then very wretched, I was not so miserable70 as I am now.”
“And do you also believe that I am so very, very wicked? Do you also join with my enemies to crush me, to condemn me as a murderer?” Her voice was suffocated71 with sobs72.
“Rise, my poor girl,” said Elizabeth; “why do you kneel, if you are innocent? I am not one of your enemies, I believed you guiltless, notwithstanding every evidence, until I heard that you had yourself declared your guilt. That report, you say, is false; and be assured, dear Justine, that nothing can shake my confidence in you for a moment, but your own confession73.”
“I did confess, but I confessed a lie. I confessed, that I might obtain absolution; but now that falsehood lies heavier at my heart than all my other sins. The God of heaven forgive me! Ever since I was condemned, my confessor has besieged74 me; he threatened and menaced, until I almost began to think that I was the monster that he said I was. He threatened excommunication and hell fire in my last moments if I continued obdurate75. Dear lady, I had none to support me; all looked on me as a wretch1 doomed76 to ignominy and perdition. What could I do? In an evil hour I subscribed77 to a lie; and now only am I truly miserable.”
She paused, weeping, and then continued, “I thought with horror, my sweet lady, that you should believe your Justine, whom your blessed aunt had so highly honoured, and whom you loved, was a creature capable of a crime which none but the devil himself could have perpetrated. Dear William! dearest blessed child! I soon shall see you again in heaven, where we shall all be happy; and that consoles me, going as I am to suffer ignominy and death.”
“Oh, Justine! Forgive me for having for one moment distrusted you. Why did you confess? But do not mourn, dear girl. Do not fear. I will proclaim, I will prove your innocence. I will melt the stony78 hearts of your enemies by my tears and prayers. You shall not die! You, my playfellow, my companion, my sister, perish on the scaffold! No! No! I never could survive so horrible a misfortune.”
Justine shook her head mournfully. “I do not fear to die,” she said; “that pang79 is past. God raises my weakness and gives me courage to endure the worst. I leave a sad and bitter world; and if you remember me and think of me as of one unjustly condemned, I am resigned to the fate awaiting me. Learn from me, dear lady, to submit in patience to the will of heaven!”
During this conversation I had retired80 to a corner of the prison room, where I could conceal81 the horrid82 anguish that possessed me. Despair! Who dared talk of that? The poor victim, who on the morrow was to pass the awful boundary between life and death, felt not, as I did, such deep and bitter agony. I gnashed my teeth and ground them together, uttering a groan83 that came from my inmost soul. Justine started. When she saw who it was, she approached me and said, “Dear sir, you are very kind to visit me; you, I hope, do not believe that I am guilty?”
I could not answer. “No, Justine,” said Elizabeth; “he is more convinced of your innocence than I was, for even when he heard that you had confessed, he did not credit it.”
“I truly thank him. In these last moments I feel the sincerest gratitude50 towards those who think of me with kindness. How sweet is the affection of others to such a wretch as I am! It removes more than half my misfortune, and I feel as if I could die in peace now that my innocence is acknowledged by you, dear lady, and your cousin.”
Thus the poor sufferer tried to comfort others and herself. She indeed gained the resignation she desired. But I, the true murderer, felt the never-dying worm alive in my bosom, which allowed of no hope or consolation. Elizabeth also wept and was unhappy, but hers also was the misery of innocence, which, like a cloud that passes over the fair moon, for a while hides but cannot tarnish84 its brightness. Anguish and despair had penetrated85 into the core of my heart; I bore a hell within me which nothing could extinguish. We stayed several hours with Justine, and it was with great difficulty that Elizabeth could tear herself away. “I wish,” cried she, “that I were to die with you; I cannot live in this world of misery.”
Justine assumed an air of cheerfulness, while she with difficulty repressed her bitter tears. She embraced Elizabeth and said in a voice of half-suppressed emotion, “Farewell, sweet lady, dearest Elizabeth, my beloved and only friend; may heaven, in its bounty86, bless and preserve you; may this be the last misfortune that you will ever suffer! Live, and be happy, and make others so.”
And on the morrow Justine died. Elizabeth’s heart-rending eloquence87 failed to move the judges from their settled conviction in the criminality of the saintly sufferer. My passionate88 and indignant appeals were lost upon them. And when I received their cold answers and heard the harsh, unfeeling reasoning of these men, my purposed avowal89 died away on my lips. Thus I might proclaim myself a madman, but not revoke90 the sentence passed upon my wretched victim. She perished on the scaffold as a murderess!
From the tortures of my own heart, I turned to contemplate91 the deep and voiceless grief of my Elizabeth. This also was my doing! And my father’s woe92, and the desolation of that late so smiling home all was the work of my thrice-accursed hands! Ye weep, unhappy ones, but these are not your last tears! Again shall you raise the funeral wail93, and the sound of your lamentations shall again and again be heard! Frankenstein, your son, your kinsman94, your early, much-loved friend; he who would spend each vital drop of blood for your sakes, who has no thought nor sense of joy except as it is mirrored also in your dear countenances, who would fill the air with blessings95 and spend his life in serving you — he bids you weep, to shed countless96 tears; happy beyond his hopes, if thus inexorable fate be satisfied, and if the destruction pause before the peace of the grave have succeeded to your sad torments97!
Thus spoke my prophetic soul, as, torn by remorse, horror, and despair, I beheld those I loved spend vain sorrow upon the graves of William and Justine, the first hapless victims to my unhallowed arts.
1 wretch | |
n.可怜的人,不幸的人;卑鄙的人 | |
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2 decided | |
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的 | |
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3 innocence | |
n.无罪;天真;无害 | |
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4 aggravation | |
n.烦恼,恼火 | |
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5 infamy | |
n.声名狼藉,出丑,恶行 | |
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6 memorable | |
adj.值得回忆的,难忘的,特别的,显著的 | |
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7 possessed | |
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的 | |
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8 obliterated | |
v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 );涂去;擦掉;彻底破坏或毁灭 | |
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9 ignominious | |
adj.可鄙的,不光彩的,耻辱的 | |
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10 guilt | |
n.犯罪;内疚;过失,罪责 | |
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11 exculpated | |
v.开脱,使无罪( exculpate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12 countenance | |
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同 | |
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13 exquisitely | |
adv.精致地;强烈地;剧烈地;异常地 | |
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14 execrated | |
v.憎恶( execrate的过去式和过去分词 );厌恶;诅咒;咒骂 | |
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15 tranquil | |
adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的 | |
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16 tranquillity | |
n. 平静, 安静 | |
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17 constrained | |
adj.束缚的,节制的 | |
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18 attest | |
vt.证明,证实;表明 | |
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19 unintelligible | |
adj.无法了解的,难解的,莫明其妙的 | |
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20 faltering | |
犹豫的,支吾的,蹒跚的 | |
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21 murmur | |
n.低语,低声的怨言;v.低语,低声而言 | |
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22 misery | |
n.痛苦,苦恼,苦难;悲惨的境遇,贫苦 | |
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23 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 | |
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24 entirely | |
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地 | |
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25 acquit | |
vt.宣判无罪;(oneself)使(自己)表现出 | |
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26 favourable | |
adj.赞成的,称赞的,有利的,良好的,顺利的 | |
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27 interpretation | |
n.解释,说明,描述;艺术处理 | |
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28 situated | |
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的 | |
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29 unwilling | |
adj.不情愿的 | |
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30 asylum | |
n.避难所,庇护所,避难 | |
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31 sleepless | |
adj.不睡眠的,睡不著的,不休息的 | |
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32 conjecture | |
n./v.推测,猜测 | |
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33 testimony | |
n.证词;见证,证明 | |
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34 condemn | |
vt.谴责,指责;宣判(罪犯),判刑 | |
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35 condemned | |
adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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36 salvation | |
n.(尤指基督)救世,超度,拯救,解困 | |
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37 hatred | |
n.憎恶,憎恨,仇恨 | |
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38 timorous | |
adj.胆怯的,胆小的 | |
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39 dispositions | |
安排( disposition的名词复数 ); 倾向; (财产、金钱的)处置; 气质 | |
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40 irreproachable | |
adj.不可指责的,无过失的 | |
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41 agitated | |
adj.被鼓动的,不安的 | |
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42 cowardice | |
n.胆小,怯懦 | |
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43 amiable | |
adj.和蔼可亲的,友善的,亲切的 | |
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44 benevolent | |
adj.仁慈的,乐善好施的 | |
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45 admiration | |
n.钦佩,赞美,羡慕 | |
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46 bauble | |
n.美观而无价值的饰物 | |
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47 esteem | |
n.尊敬,尊重;vt.尊重,敬重;把…看作 | |
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48 approbation | |
n.称赞;认可 | |
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49 ingratitude | |
n.忘恩负义 | |
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50 gratitude | |
adj.感激,感谢 | |
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51 agitation | |
n.搅动;搅拌;鼓动,煽动 | |
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52 anguish | |
n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦,烦恼 | |
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53 demon | |
n.魔鬼,恶魔 | |
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54 countenances | |
n.面容( countenance的名词复数 );表情;镇静;道义支持 | |
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55 fangs | |
n.(尤指狗和狼的)长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 );(蛇的)毒牙;罐座 | |
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56 remorse | |
n.痛恨,悔恨,自责 | |
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57 bosom | |
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的 | |
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58 forgo | |
v.放弃,抛弃 | |
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59 parched | |
adj.焦干的;极渴的;v.(使)焦干 | |
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60 ballots | |
n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 );选举;选票;投票总数v.(使)投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 ) | |
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61 bestow | |
v.把…赠与,把…授予;花费 | |
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62 dire | |
adj.可怕的,悲惨的,阴惨的,极端的 | |
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63 esteemed | |
adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 );敬重;认为;以为 | |
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64 incapable | |
adj.无能力的,不能做某事的 | |
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65 guile | |
n.诈术 | |
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66 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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67 chamber | |
n.房间,寝室;会议厅;议院;会所 | |
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68 beheld | |
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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69 consolation | |
n.安慰,慰问 | |
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70 miserable | |
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的 | |
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71 suffocated | |
(使某人)窒息而死( suffocate的过去式和过去分词 ); (将某人)闷死; 让人感觉闷热; 憋气 | |
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72 sobs | |
啜泣(声),呜咽(声)( sob的名词复数 ) | |
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73 confession | |
n.自白,供认,承认 | |
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74 besieged | |
包围,围困,围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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75 obdurate | |
adj.固执的,顽固的 | |
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76 doomed | |
命定的 | |
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77 subscribed | |
v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 );签署,题词;订阅;同意 | |
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78 stony | |
adj.石头的,多石头的,冷酷的,无情的 | |
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79 pang | |
n.剧痛,悲痛,苦闷 | |
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80 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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81 conceal | |
v.隐藏,隐瞒,隐蔽 | |
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82 horrid | |
adj.可怕的;令人惊恐的;恐怖的;极讨厌的 | |
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83 groan | |
vi./n.呻吟,抱怨;(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
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84 tarnish | |
n.晦暗,污点;vt.使失去光泽;玷污 | |
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85 penetrated | |
adj. 击穿的,鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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86 bounty | |
n.慷慨的赠予物,奖金;慷慨,大方;施与 | |
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87 eloquence | |
n.雄辩;口才,修辞 | |
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88 passionate | |
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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89 avowal | |
n.公开宣称,坦白承认 | |
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90 revoke | |
v.废除,取消,撤回 | |
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91 contemplate | |
vt.盘算,计议;周密考虑;注视,凝视 | |
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92 woe | |
n.悲哀,苦痛,不幸,困难;int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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93 wail | |
vt./vi.大声哀号,恸哭;呼啸,尖啸 | |
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94 kinsman | |
n.男亲属 | |
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95 blessings | |
n.(上帝的)祝福( blessing的名词复数 );好事;福分;因祸得福 | |
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96 countless | |
adj.无数的,多得不计其数的 | |
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97 torments | |
(肉体或精神上的)折磨,痛苦( torment的名词复数 ); 造成痛苦的事物[人] | |
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