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WHY DIDN’T HE MARRY THE GIRL?

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 What is wrong with marriage, anyhow?  I find myself pondering this question so often, when reading high-class literature.  I put it to myself again the other evening, during a performance of Faust.  Why could not Faust have married the girl?  I would not have married her myself for any consideration whatsoever1; but that is not the argument.  Faust, apparently2, could not see anything amiss with her.  Both of them were mad about each other.  Yet the idea of a quiet, unostentatious marriage with a week’s honeymoon3, say, in Vienna, followed by a neat little cottage orné, not too far from Nürnberg, so that their friends could have come out to them, never seems to have occurred to either of them.
 
There could have been a garden.  Marguerite might have kept chickens and a cow.  That sort of girl, brought up to hard work and by no means too well educated, is all the better for having something to do.  Later, with the gradual arrival of the family, a good, all-round woman might have been hired in to assist.  Faust, of course, would have had his study and got to work again; that would have kept him out of further mischief4.  The idea that a brainy man, his age, was going to be happy with nothing to do all day but fool round a petticoat was ridiculous from the beginning.  Valentine—a good fellow, Valentine, with nice ideas—would have spent his Saturdays to Monday with them.  Over a pipe and a glass of wine, he and Faust would have discussed the local politics.
 
He would have danced the children on his knee, have told them tales about the war—taught the eldest5 boy to shoot.  Faust, with a practical man like Valentine to help him, would probably have invented a new gun.  Valentine would have got it taken up.
 
Things might have come of it.  Sybil, in course of time, would have married and settled down—perhaps have taken a little house near to them.  He and Marguerite would have joked—when Mrs. Sybil was not around—about his early infatuation.  The old mother would have

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1 whatsoever Beqz8i     
adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么
参考例句：
  • There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
  • All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样，你就怎样对人。
2 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地；表面上，似乎
参考例句：
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
3 honeymoon ucnxc     
n.蜜月（假期）；vi.度蜜月
参考例句：
  • While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
  • The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。
4 mischief jDgxH     
n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹
参考例句：
  • Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
  • He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。
5 eldest bqkx6     
adj.最年长的，最年老的
参考例句：
  • The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
  • The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。
6 toddled abf9fa74807bbedbdec71330dd38c149     
v.（幼儿等）东倒西歪地走( toddle的过去式和过去分词 )；蹒跚行走；溜达；散步
参考例句：
  • It's late — it's time you toddled off to bed. 不早了—你该去睡觉了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Her two-year-old son toddled into the room. 她的两岁的儿子摇摇摆摆地走进屋里。 来自辞典例句
7 gratitude p6wyS     
adj.感激，感谢
参考例句：
  • I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
  • She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。
8 annoyance Bw4zE     
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。
9 constraint rYnzo     
n.(on)约束，限制；限制(或约束)性的事物
参考例句：
  • The boy felt constraint in her presence.那男孩在她面前感到局促不安。
  • The lack of capital is major constraint on activities in the informal sector.资本短缺也是影响非正规部门生产经营的一个重要制约因素。
10 homely Ecdxo     
adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的
参考例句：
  • We had a homely meal of bread and cheese.我们吃了一顿面包加乳酪的家常便餐。
  • Come and have a homely meal with us,will you?来和我们一起吃顿家常便饭，好吗？
11 awed a0ab9008d911a954b6ce264ddc63f5c8     
adj.充满敬畏的，表示敬畏的v.使敬畏，使惊惧( awe的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
  • The audience was awed into silence by her stunning performance. 观众席上鸦雀无声，人们对他出色的表演感到惊叹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I was awed by the huge gorilla. 那只大猩猩使我惊惧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
12 prattle LPbx7     
n.闲谈；v.（小孩般）天真无邪地说话；发出连续而无意义的声音
参考例句：
  • Amy's happy prattle became intolerable.艾美兴高采烈地叽叽喳喳说个不停，汤姆感到无法忍受。
  • Flowing water and green grass witness your lover's endless prattle.流水缠绕，小草依依，都是你诉不尽的情话。
13 magistrate e8vzN     
n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官
参考例句：
  • The magistrate committed him to prison for a month.法官判处他一个月监禁。
  • John was fined 1000 dollars by the magistrate.约翰被地方法官罚款1000美元。
14 standing 2hCzgo     
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。
15 promenade z0Wzy     
n./v.散步
参考例句：
  • People came out in smarter clothes to promenade along the front.人们穿上更加时髦漂亮的衣服，沿着海滨散步。
  • We took a promenade along the canal after Sunday dinner.星期天晚饭后我们沿着运河散步。
16 poetical 7c9cba40bd406e674afef9ffe64babcd     
adj.似诗人的；诗一般的；韵文的；富有诗意的
参考例句：
  • This is a poetical picture of the landscape. 这是一幅富有诗意的风景画。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • John is making a periphrastic study in a worn-out poetical fashion. 约翰正在对陈腐的诗风做迂回冗长的研究。 来自辞典例句
17 prosecution uBWyL     
n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营
参考例句：
  • The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
  • He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。
18 innocence ZbizC     
n.无罪；天真；无害
参考例句：
  • There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
  • The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。
19 virtue BpqyH     
n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力
参考例句：
  • He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
  • You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。
20 virtuous upCyI     
adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的
参考例句：
  • She was such a virtuous woman that everybody respected her.她是个有道德的女性，人人都尊敬她。
  • My uncle is always proud of having a virtuous wife.叔叔一直为娶到一位贤德的妻子而骄傲。
21 civilisation civilisation     
n.文明，文化，开化，教化
参考例句：
  • Energy and ideas are the twin bases of our civilisation.能源和思想是我们文明的两大基石。
  • This opera is one of the cultural totems of Western civilisation.这部歌剧是西方文明的文化标志物之一。
22 salvation nC2zC     
n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困
参考例句：
  • Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革。
  • Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。
23 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过
参考例句：
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
24 injustice O45yL     
n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利
参考例句：
  • They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
  • All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。
25 chivalry wXAz6     
n.骑士气概，侠义；（男人）对女人彬彬有礼，献殷勤
参考例句：
  • The Middle Ages were also the great age of chivalry.中世纪也是骑士制度盛行的时代。
  • He looked up at them with great chivalry.他非常有礼貌地抬头瞧她们。
26 guilt 9e6xr     
n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责
参考例句：
  • She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
  • Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。
27 orphan QJExg     
n.孤儿；adj.无父母的
参考例句：
  • He brought up the orphan and passed onto him his knowledge of medicine.他把一个孤儿养大，并且把自己的医术传给了他。
  • The orphan had been reared in a convent by some good sisters.这个孤儿在一所修道院里被几个好心的修女带大。
28 worthy vftwB     
adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的
参考例句：
  • I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
  • There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。
29 chivalrous 0Xsz7     
adj.武士精神的；对女人彬彬有礼的
参考例句：
  • Men are so little chivalrous now.现在的男人几乎没有什么骑士风度了。
  • Toward women he was nobly restrained and chivalrous.对于妇女，他表现得高尚拘谨，尊敬三分。
30 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前；向外，往外
参考例句：
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

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