I had not been long in Hertfordshire, before I saw, in common with others, that Bingley preferred your eldest sister to any other young woman in the country. But it was not till the evening of the dance at Netherfield that I had any apprehension of his feeling a serious attachment. I had often seen him in love before. At that ball, while I had the honour of dancing with you, I was first made acquainted, by Sir William Lucas's accidental information, that Bingley's attentions to your sister had given rise to a general expectation of their marriage. He spoke of it as a certain event, of which the time alone could be undecided.
我到哈福德郡不久，就和別人一樣，看出了彬格萊先生在當(dāng)?shù)厮械纳倥衅粗辛肆罱恪５且恢钡鹊皆谀崛侦郴▓@開(kāi)跳舞會(huì)的那個(gè)晚上，我才顧慮到他當(dāng)真對(duì) 令姐有了愛(ài)戀之意。說(shuō)到他的戀愛(ài)方面，我以前也看得很多。在那次跳舞會(huì)上，當(dāng)我很榮幸地跟你跳舞時(shí)，我才聽(tīng)到威廉·盧卡斯偶然說(shuō)起彬格萊先生對(duì)令姐的殷勤 已經(jīng)弄得滿(mǎn)城風(fēng)雨，大家都以為他們就要談到嫁娶問(wèn)題。聽(tīng)他說(shuō)起來(lái)，好象事情已經(jīng)千穩(wěn)萬(wàn)妥，只是遲早問(wèn)題罷了。
From that moment I observed my friend's behaviour attentively; and I could then perceive that his partiality for Miss Bennet was beyond what I had ever witnessed in him. Your sister I also watched. Her look and manners were open, cheerful, and engaging as ever, but without any symptom of peculiar regard, and I remained convinced from the evening's scrutiny, that though she received his attentions with pleasure, she did not invite them by any participation of sentiment.
從那時(shí)起，我就密切注意著我朋友的行為，于是 我看出了他對(duì)班納特小姐的鐘情，果然和他往常的戀愛(ài)情形大不相同。我也注意著令姐。她的神色和風(fēng)度依舊象平常那樣落落大方，和藹可親，并沒(méi)有鐘情于任何人 的跡象。根據(jù)我那一晚上仔細(xì)觀察的情形看來(lái)，我確實(shí)認(rèn)為她雖然樂(lè)意接受他的殷勤，可是她并沒(méi)有用深情密意來(lái)報(bào)答他。
If you have not been mistaken here, I must have been in an error. Your superior knowledge of your sister must make the latter probable. If it be so, if I have been misled by such error, to inflict pain on her, your resentment has not been unreasonable. But I shall not scruple to assert that the serenity of your sister's countenance and air was such as might have given the most acute observer a conviction that, however amiable her temper, her heart was not likely to be easily touched. That I was desirous of believing her indifferent is certain, but I will venture to say that my investigations and decisions are not usually influenced by my hopes or fears. I did not believe her to be indifferent because I wished it;
要是這件事你沒(méi)有弄錯(cuò)，那么錯(cuò)處一定在 我；你對(duì)于令姐既有透辟的了解，那么當(dāng)然可能是我錯(cuò)了。倘若事實(shí)果真如此，倘若果真是我弄錯(cuò)了，造成令姐的痛苦，那當(dāng)然難怪你氣憤。可是我可以毫不猶豫地 說(shuō)，令姐當(dāng)初的風(fēng)度極其灑脫，即使觀察力最敏銳的人，也難免以為她盡管性情柔和，可是她的心不容易打動(dòng)。我當(dāng)初確實(shí)希望她無(wú)動(dòng)于中，可是我敢說(shuō)，我雖然主觀上有我的希望，有我的顧慮，可是我的觀察和我的推斷并不會(huì)受到主觀上的影響。我認(rèn)為，令姐決不會(huì)因?yàn)槲蚁Ｍ裏o(wú)動(dòng)于中，她就當(dāng)真無(wú)動(dòng)于中；
評(píng)論
打印
