He learned what he had asked some three or four days later, after Morris Townsend, with his cousin, had called in Washington Square. Mrs. Penniman did not tell her brother, on the drive home, that she had intimated to this agreeable young man, whose name she did not know, that, with her niece, she should be very glad to see him; but she was greatly pleased, and even a little flattered, when, late on a Sunday afternoon, the two gentlemen made their appearance.

His coming with Arthur Townsend made it more natural and easy; the latter young man was on the point of becoming connected with the family, and Mrs. Penniman had remarked to Catherine that, as he was going to marry Marian, it would be polite in him to call.

These events came to pass late in the autumn, and Catherine and her aunt had been sitting together in the closing dusk, by the firelight, in the high back parlour.

Arthur Townsend fell to Catherine's portion, while his companion placed himself on the sofa, beside Mrs. Penniman.

Catherine had hitherto not been a harsh critic; she was easy to please--she liked to talk with young men.

But Marian's betrothed¹, this evening, made her feel vaguely² fastidious; he sat looking at the fire and rubbing his knees with his hands.

As for Catherine, she scarcely even pretended to keep up the conversation; her attention had fixed³ itself on the other side of the room; she was listening to what went on between the other Mr. Townsend and her aunt.

Every now and then he looked over at Catherine herself and smiled, as if to show that what he said was for her benefit too.

Catherine would have liked to change her place, to go and sit near them, where she might see and hear him better.

But she was afraid of seeming bold--of looking eager; and, besides, it would not have been polite to Marian's little suitor.

She wondered why the other gentleman had picked out her aunt--how he came to have so much to say to Mrs. Penniman, to whom, usually, young men were not especially devoted⁴.

She was not at all jealous of Aunt Lavinia, but she was a little envious⁵, and above all she wondered; for Morris Townsend was an object on which she found that her imagination could exercise itself indefinitely.

点击收听单词发音  

1 betrothed
n. 已订婚者 动词betroth的过去式和过去分词
参考例句：
She is betrothed to John. 她同约翰订了婚。 His daughter was betrothed to a teacher. 他的女儿同一个教师订了婚。

2 vaguely
adv.含糊地，暖昧地
参考例句：
He had talked vaguely of going to work abroad.他含糊其词地说了到国外工作的事。 He looked vaguely before him with unseeing eyes.他迷迷糊糊的望着前面，对一切都视而不见。

3 fixed
adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的
参考例句：
Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？ Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

4 devoted
adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的
参考例句：
He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。 We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

5 envious
adj.嫉妒的，羡慕的
参考例句：
I don't think I'm envious of your success.我想我并不嫉妒你的成功。 She is envious of Jane's good looks and covetous of her car.她既忌妒简的美貌又垂涎她的汽车。

6 bestowed
赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
It was a title bestowed upon him by the king. 那是国王赐给他的头衔。 He considered himself unworthy of the honour they had bestowed on him. 他认为自己不配得到大家赋予他的荣誉。

7 aspiring
adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求
参考例句：
Aspiring musicians need hours of practice every day. 想当音乐家就要每天练许多小时。 He came from an aspiring working-class background. 他出身于有抱负的工人阶级家庭。 来自辞典例句

8 kinsman
n.男亲属
参考例句：
Tracing back our genealogies,I found he was a kinsman of mine.转弯抹角算起来他算是我的一个亲戚。 A near friend is better than a far dwelling kinsman.近友胜过远亲。

9 affected
adj.不自然的，假装的
参考例句：
She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。 His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

10 awfully
adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地
参考例句：
Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。 I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。

11 sociable
adj.好交际的，友好的，合群的
参考例句：
Roger is a very sociable person.罗杰是个非常好交际的人。 Some children have more sociable personalities than others.有些孩子比其他孩子更善于交际。

12 humility
n.谦逊，谦恭
参考例句：
Humility often gains more than pride.谦逊往往比骄傲收益更多。 His voice was still soft and filled with specious humility.他的声音还是那么温和，甚至有点谦卑。

13 insinuating
adj.曲意巴结的，暗示的v.暗示( insinuate的现在分词 )；巧妙或迂回地潜入；（使）缓慢进入；慢慢伸入
参考例句：
Are you insinuating that I' m telling a lie ? 你这是意味着我是在说谎吗？ 来自辞典例句 He is extremely insinuating, but it's a vulgar nature. 他好奉承拍马，那是种庸俗的品格。 来自辞典例句

14 kindly
adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地
参考例句：
Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。 A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

15 incapable
adj.无能力的，不能做某事的
参考例句：
He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。 Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

16 artifice
n.妙计，高明的手段；狡诈，诡计
参考例句：
The use of mirrors in a room is an artifice to make the room look larger.利用镜子装饰房间是使房间显得大一点的巧妙办法。 He displayed a great deal of artifice in decorating his new house.他在布置新房子中表现出富有的技巧。

17 murmur
n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言
参考例句：
They paid the extra taxes without a murmur.他们毫无怨言地交了附加税。 There was a low murmur of conversation in the hall.大厅里有窃窃私语声。

18 breach
n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破
参考例句：
We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。 He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

19 modesty
n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素
参考例句：
Industry and modesty are the chief factors of his success.勤奋和谦虚是他成功的主要因素。 As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后，谦虚使人进步。

20 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。

21 apparition
n.幽灵，神奇的现象
参考例句：
He saw the apparition of his dead wife.他看见了他亡妻的幽灵。 But the terror of this new apparition brought me to a stand.这新出现的幽灵吓得我站在那里一动也不敢动。