Now that Clive Durham was safe from intimacy¹, he looked forward to helping² his friend, who must have had a pretty rough time since they parted in the smoking-room. Their correspondence had ceased several months ago. Mau-rice's last had been written after Birmingham, and announced he should not kill himself. Clive had never supposed he would, and was glad the melodrama³ was over. When they talked down the telephone he heard a man whom he might respect at the other end of it—a fellow who sounded willing to let bygones be bygones and passion acquaintanceship. There was no affectation of ease; poor Maurice sounded shy, a bit huffy even, exactly the condition Clive deemed natural, and felt he could ameliorate.

He was anxious to do what he could. Though the quality of the past escaped him he remembered its proportions, and ac-knowledged that Maurice had once lifted him out of aestheti-cism into the sun and wind of love. But for Maurice he would never have developed into being worthy⁴ of Anne. His friend had helped him through three barren years, and he would be ungrateful indeed if he did not help his friend. Clive did not like gratitude⁵. He would rather have helped out of pure friend-liness. But he had to use the only tool he had, and if all went well, if Maurice kept unemotional, if he remained at the end of a telephone, if he was sound as regarded Anne, if he was not bitter, or too serious or too rough—then they might be friends

again, though by a different route and in a different manner. Maurice had admirable qualities—he knew this, and the time might be returning when he would feel it also.

Such thoughts as the above occurred to Clive rarely and fee-bly. The centre of his life was Anne. Would Anne get on with his mother? Would Anne like Penge, she who had been brought up in Sussex, near the sea? Would she regret the lack of religious opportunities there? And the presence of politics? Besotted with love, he gave her his body and soul, he poured out at her feet all that an earlier passion had taught him, and could only re-member with an effort for whom that passion had been.

In the first glow of his engagement, when she was the whole world to him, the Acropolis included, he thought of confessing to her about Maurice. She had confessed a

点击收听单词发音  

1 intimacy
n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行
参考例句：
His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切，这有点言过其实。 I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。

2 helping
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的
参考例句：
The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。 By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

3 melodrama
n.音乐剧；情节剧
参考例句：
We really don't need all this ridiculous melodrama!别跟我们来这套荒唐的情节剧表演！ White Haired Woman was a melodrama,but in certain spots it was deliberately funny.《白毛女》是一出悲剧性的歌剧，但也有不少插科打诨。

4 worthy
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。

5 gratitude
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。

6 peccadillo
n.轻罪，小过失
参考例句：
For this peccadillo he was demoted and sent back to pound the beat.由于这次过失,他被降了级,又被打发去干徒步巡警了。 A fine of ￡5000 is swinging for such a peccadillo.这样的一个小过失，罚款5000英镑太多了吧。

7 loyalty
n.忠诚，忠心
参考例句：
She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。 His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

8 withheld
withhold过去式及过去分词
参考例句：
I withheld payment until they had fulfilled the contract. 他们履行合同后，我才付款。 来自《简明英汉词典》 There was no school play because the principal withheld his consent. 由于校长没同意，学校里没有举行比赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 immortal
adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的
参考例句：
The wild cocoa tree is effectively immortal.野生可可树实际上是不会死的。 The heroes of the people are immortal!人民英雄永垂不朽！

10 secrecy
n.秘密，保密，隐蔽
参考例句：
All the researchers on the project are sworn to secrecy.该项目的所有研究人员都按要求起誓保守秘密。 Complete secrecy surrounded the meeting.会议在绝对机密的环境中进行。

11 immaturity
n.不成熟；未充分成长；未成熟；粗糙
参考例句：
It traces the development of a young man from immaturity to maturity. 它描写一位青年从不成熟到成熟的发展过程。 来自辞典例句 Immaturity is the inability to use one's understanding without guidance from another. 不成熟就是不经他人的指引就无法运用自身的理解力。 来自互联网

12 graceful
adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的
参考例句：
His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了! The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。

13 sentimental
adj.多愁善感的，感伤的
参考例句：
She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny.她是多愁善感的人，她相信姻缘命中注定。 We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie.我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。

14 itched
v.发痒( itch的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Seeing the children playing ping-pong, he itched to have a go. 他看到孩子们打乒乓，不觉技痒。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 He could hardly sIt'still and itched to have a go. 他再也坐不住了，心里跃跃欲试。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

15 temperate
adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的
参考例句：
Asia extends across the frigid,temperate and tropical zones.亚洲地跨寒、温、热三带。 Great Britain has a temperate climate.英国气候温和。

16 refinement
n.文雅；高尚；精美；精制；精炼
参考例句：
Sally is a woman of great refinement and beauty. 莎莉是个温文尔雅又很漂亮的女士。 Good manners and correct speech are marks of refinement.彬彬有礼和谈吐得体是文雅的标志。