【經(jīng)典名著閱讀】《傲慢與偏見(jiàn)》第十六章
作者:Jane Austen
2011-05-29 10:00
As no objection was made to the young people's engagement with their aunt, and all Mr. Collins's scruples of leaving Mr. and Mrs. Bennet for a single evening during his visit were most steadily resisted, the coach conveyed him and his five cousins at a suitable hour to Meryton; and the girls had the pleasure of hearing, as they entered the drawing-room, that Mr. Wickham had accepted their uncle's invitation, and was then in the house.
年輕的小姐們跟她們姨媽的約會(huì),并沒(méi)有遭受到反對(duì)。柯林斯只覺(jué)得來(lái)此作客,反而把班納特夫婦整晚丟在家里,未免有些過(guò)意不去,可是他們叫他千萬(wàn)不要放在心上。于是他和他的五個(gè)表妹便乘著馬車(chē),準(zhǔn)時(shí)到了麥里屯。小姐們一走進(jìn)客廳,就聽(tīng)說(shuō)韋翰先生接受了她們姨爹的邀請(qǐng),而且已經(jīng)駕到,覺(jué)得很是高興。
When this information was given, and they had all taken their seats, Mr. Collins was at leisure to look around him and admire, and he was so much struck with the size and furniture of the apartment, that he declared he might almost have supposed himself in the small summer breakfast parlour at Rosings; a comparison that did not at first convey much gratification; but when Mrs. Philips understood from him what Rosings was, and who was its proprietor, when she had listened to the description of only one of Lady Catherine's drawing-rooms, and found that the chimney-piece alone had cost eight hundred pounds, she felt all the force of the compliment, and would hardly have resented a comparison with the housekeeper's room.
大家聽(tīng)到這個(gè)消息之后,便都坐了下來(lái)??铝炙瓜壬崎e自在地朝四下望望,瞻仰瞻仰一切;屋子的尺寸和里面的家具使他十分驚羨,他說(shuō)他好象進(jìn)了咖苔琳夫人在羅新斯的那間消夏的小飯廳。這個(gè)比喻開(kāi)頭并不怎么叫主人家滿意,可是接下來(lái)腓力普太太弄明白了羅新斯是一個(gè)什么地方,它的主人是誰(shuí),又聽(tīng)他說(shuō)起咖苔琳夫人的一個(gè)會(huì)客間的情形,光是一只壁爐架就要值八百英鎊,她這才體會(huì)到他那個(gè)譬喻實(shí)在太恭維她了,即使把她家里比作羅新斯管家奶奶的房間,她也不反對(duì)了。
In describing to her all the grandeur of Lady Catherine and her mansion, with occasional digressions in praise of his own humble abode and the improvements it was receiving, he was happily employed until the gentlemen joined them; and he found in Mrs. Philips a very attentive listener, whose opinion of his consequence increased with what she heard, and who was resolving to retail it all among her neighbours as soon as she could. To the girls, who could not listen to their cousin, and who had nothing to do but to wish for an instrument, and examine their own indifferent imitations of china on the mantlepiece, the interval of waiting appeared very long. It was over at last, however. The gentlemen did approach; and when Mr. Wickham walked into the room, Elizabeth felt that she had neither been seeing him before, nor thinking of him since, with the smallest degree of unreasonable admiration. The officers of the --- shire were in general a very creditable, gentlemanlike set, and the best of them were of the present party; but Mr. Wickham was as far beyond them all in person, countenance, air, and walk, as they were superior to the broad-faced stuffy uncle Philips, breathing port wine, who followed them into the room.
柯林斯在講述咖苔琳夫人和她公館的富麗堂皇時(shí),偶然還要穿插上幾句話,來(lái)夸耀他自己的寒舍,說(shuō)他的住宅正在裝璜改善中等,他就這樣自得其樂(lè)地一直扯到男客們進(jìn)來(lái)為止。他發(fā)覺(jué)腓力普太太很留心聽(tīng)他的話,她愈聽(tīng)就愈把他看得了不起,而且決定一有空就把他的話傳播出去。至于小姐們,實(shí)在覺(jué)得等得太久了,因?yàn)樗齻儾桓吲d聽(tīng)她們表兄的閑扯,又沒(méi)事可做,想彈彈琴又不成,只有照著壁爐架上那些瓷器的樣子,漫不經(jīng)心地畫(huà)些小玩藝兒消遺消遺。等待的時(shí)間終于過(guò)去了,男客們來(lái)了。韋翰先生一走進(jìn)來(lái),伊麗莎白就覺(jué)得,無(wú)論是上次看見(jiàn)他的時(shí)候也好,從上次見(jiàn)面以來(lái)想起他的時(shí)候也好,她都沒(méi)有錯(cuò)愛(ài)了他。某某郡的軍官們都是一批名譽(yù)很好的紳士氣派的人物,參加這次宴會(huì)的尤其是他們之中的精華。韋翰先生無(wú)論在人品上,相貌上,風(fēng)度上,地位上,都遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過(guò)他們,正如他們遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過(guò)那位姨爹一樣──瞧那位肥頭大耳,大腹便便的姨爹,他正帶著滿口葡萄酒味,跟著他們走進(jìn)屋來(lái)。
Mr. Wickham was the happy man towards whom almost every female eye was turned, and Elizabeth was the happy woman by whom he finally seated himself; and the agreeable manner in which he immediately fell into conversation, though it was only on its being a wet night, and on the probability of a rainy season, made her feel that the commonest, dullest, most threadbare topic might be rendered interesting by the skill of the speaker.
韋翰先生是當(dāng)天最得意的男子,差不多每個(gè)女人的眼睛都朝著他看;伊麗莎白是當(dāng)天最得意的女子,韋翰終于在她的身旁坐了下來(lái)。他馬上就跟她攀談,雖然談的只是些當(dāng)天晚上下雨和雨季可能就要到來(lái)之類(lèi)的話,可是他那么和顏悅色,使她不禁感覺(jué)到即使最平凡、最無(wú)聊、最陳舊的話,只要說(shuō)話的人有技巧,還是一樣可以說(shuō)得動(dòng)聽(tīng)。
With such rivals for the notice of the fair, as Mr. Wickham and the officers, Mr. Collins seemed likely to sink into insignificance; to the young ladies he certainly was nothing; but he had still at intervals a kind listener in Mrs. Philips, and was, by her watchfulness, most abundantly supplied with coffee and muffin.
說(shuō)起要博得女性的青眼,柯林斯先生遇到象韋翰先生和軍官們這樣的勁敵,真變得無(wú)足輕重了。他在小姐們眼睛里實(shí)在算不上什么,幸虧好心的腓力普太太有時(shí)候還聽(tīng)聽(tīng)他談主,她又十分細(xì)心,盡量把咖啡和松餅敬給他吃。