Clive got through his bar exams successfully, but just before he was called he had a slight touch of influ-enza with fever. Maurice came to see him as he was recovering, caught it, and went to bed himself. Thus they saw little of one another for several weeks, and when they did meet Clive was still white and nervy. He came down to the Halls', preferring their house to Pippa's, and hoping that the good food and quiet would set him up. He ate little, and when he spoke¹ his theme was the futility² of all things.

"I'm a barrister because I may enter public life," he said in reply to a question of Ada's. "But why should I enter public life? Who wants me?"

"Your mother says the county does."

"If the county wants anyone it wants a Radical³. But I've talked to more people than my mother, and they're weary of us leisured classes coasting round in motor-cars and asking for something to do. All this solemn to and fro between great houses —it's a game without gaiety. You don't find it played outside England. (Maurice, I'm going to Greece.) No one wants us, or anything except a comfortable home."

"But to give a comfortable home's what public life is," shrilled⁴ Kitty.

"Is, or ought to be?"

"Well, it's all the same."

"Is and ought to be are not the same," said her mother, proud of grasping the distinction. "You ought to be not interrupting Mr Durham, whereas you—"

"—is," supplied Ada, and the family laugh made Clive jump.

"We are and we ought to be," concluded Mrs Hall. "Very dif-ferent."

"Not always," contradicted Clive.

"Not always, remember that, Kitty," she echoed, vaguely⁵ ad-monitory: on other occasions he had not minded her. Kitty cried back to her first assertion. Ada was saying anything, Maurice nothing. He was eating away placidly⁶, too used to such table talk to see that it worried his friend. Between the courses he told an

点击收听单词发音  

1 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。

2 futility
n.无用
参考例句：
She could see the utter futility of trying to protest. 她明白抗议是完全无用的。 The sheer futility of it all exasperates her. 它毫无用处，这让她很生气。

3 radical
n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的
参考例句：
The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。 She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

4 shrilled
（声音）尖锐的，刺耳的，高频率的( shrill的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Behind him, the telephone shrilled. 在他身后，电话铃刺耳地响了起来。 The phone shrilled, making her jump. 电话铃声刺耳地响起，惊得她跳了起来。

5 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。

6 placidly
adv.平稳地，平静地
参考例句：
Hurstwood stood placidly by, while the car rolled back into the yard. 当车子开回场地时，赫斯渥沉着地站在一边。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹 The water chestnut floated placidly there, where it would grow. 那棵菱角就又安安稳稳浮在水面上生长去了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

7 anecdote
n.轶事，趣闻，短故事
参考例句：
He departed from the text to tell an anecdote.他偏离课文讲起了一则轶事。 It had never been more than a family anecdote.那不过是个家庭趣谈罢了。

8 sobbed
哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说
参考例句：
She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。 She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。

9 influenza
n.流行性感冒，流感
参考例句：
They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施 Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

10 prescriptions
药( prescription的名词复数 )； 处方； 开处方； 计划
参考例句：
The hospital of traditional Chinese medicine installed a computer to fill prescriptions. 中医医院装上了电子计算机来抓药。 Her main job was filling the doctor's prescriptions. 她的主要工作就是给大夫开的药方配药。

11 piqued
v.伤害…的自尊心( pique的过去式和过去分词 )；激起（好奇心）
参考例句：
Their curiosity piqued, they stopped writing. 他们的好奇心被挑起，停下了手中的笔。 来自辞典例句 This phenomenon piqued Dr Morris' interest. 这一现象激起了莫里斯医生的兴趣。 来自辞典例句

12 appalling
adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的
参考例句：
The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions.恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。 Nothing can extenuate such appalling behaviour.这种骇人听闻的行径罪无可恕。

13 filthy
adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的
参考例句：
The whole river has been fouled up with filthy waste from factories.整条河都被工厂的污秽废物污染了。 You really should throw out that filthy old sofa and get a new one.你真的应该扔掉那张肮脏的旧沙发，然后再去买张新的。

14 blurred
v.（使）变模糊( blur的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）难以区分；模模糊糊；迷离
参考例句：
She suffered from dizziness and blurred vision. 她饱受头晕目眩之苦。 Their lazy, blurred voices fell pleasantly on his ears. 他们那种慢吞吞、含糊不清的声音在他听起来却很悦耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 bosom
n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的
参考例句：
She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。 A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。

16 scarlet
n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的
参考例句：
The scarlet leaves of the maples contrast well with the dark green of the pines.深红的枫叶和暗绿的松树形成了明显的对比。 The glowing clouds are growing slowly pale,scarlet,bright red,and then light red.天空的霞光渐渐地淡下去了，深红的颜色变成了绯红，绯红又变为浅红。

17 irritably
ad.易生气地
参考例句：
He lost his temper and snapped irritably at the children. 他发火了，暴躁地斥责孩子们。 On this account the silence was irritably broken by a reproof. 为了这件事，他妻子大声斥责，令人恼火地打破了宁静。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

18 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。

19 grievance
n.怨愤，气恼，委屈
参考例句：
He will not easily forget his grievance.他不会轻易忘掉他的委屈。 He had been nursing a grievance against his boss for months.几个月来他对老板一直心怀不满。

20 avowed
adj.公开声明的，承认的v.公开声明，承认( avow的过去式和过去分词)
参考例句：
An aide avowed that the President had known nothing of the deals. 一位助理声明，总统对这些交易一无所知。 The party's avowed aim was to struggle against capitalist exploitation. 该党公开宣称的宗旨是与资本主义剥削斗争。 来自《简明英汉词典》