第 20 节
作者:这就是结局      更新:2021-04-30 15:46      字数:9322
  anybody; however old and vile; sooner than not marry at all?
  Because marriage is their only means of escape from these
  decrepit fiends who hide their selfish ambitions; their jealous
  hatreds of the young rivals who have supplanted them; under the
  mask of maternal duty and family affection。 Such things are
  abominable: the voice of nature proclaims for the daughter a
  father's care and for the son a mother's。 The law for father and
  son and mother and daughter is not the law of love: it is the
  law of revolution; of emancipation; of final supersession of the
  old and worn…out by the young and capable。 I tell you; the first
  duty of manhood and womanhood is a Declaration of Independence:
  the man who pleads his father's authority is no man: the woman
  who pleads her mother's authority is unfit to bear citizens to a
  free people。
  ANN。 'watching him with quiet curiosity' I suppose you will go in
  seriously for politics some day; Jack。
  TANNER。 'heavily let down' Eh? What? Wh? 'Collecting his
  scattered wits' What has that got to do with what I have been
  saying?
  ANN。 You talk so well。
  TANNER。 Talk! Talk! It means nothing to you but talk。 Well; go
  back to your mother; and help her to poison Rhoda's imagination
  as she has poisoned yours。 It is the tame elephants who enjoy
  capturing the wild ones。
  ANN。 I am getting on。 Yesterday I was a boa constrictor: to…day I
  am an elephant。
  TANNER。 Yes。 So pack your trunk and begone; I have no more to say
  to you。
  ANN。 You are so utterly unreasonable and impracticable。 What can
  I do?
  TANNER。 Do! Break your chains。 Go your way according to your own
  conscience and not according to your mother's。 Get your mind
  clean and vigorous; and learn to enjoy a fast ride in a motor car
  instead of seeing nothing in it but an excuse for a detestable
  intrigue。 Come with me to Marseilles and across to Algiers and to
  Biskra; at sixty miles an hour。 Come right down to the Cape if
  you like。 That will be a Declaration of Independence with a
  vengeance。 You can write a book about it afterwards。 That will
  finish your mother and make a woman of you。
  ANN。 'thoughtfully' I don't think there would be any harm in
  that; Jack。 You are my guardian: you stand in my father's place;
  by his own wish。 Nobody could say a word against our travelling
  together。 It would be delightful: thank you a thousand times;
  Jack。 I'll come。
  TANNER。 'aghast' You'll come!!!
  ANN。 Of course。
  TANNER。 But 'he stops; utterly appalled; then resumes feebly'
  No: look here; Ann: if there's no harm in it there's no point in
  doing it。
  ANN。 How absurd you are! You don't want to compromise me; do you?
  TANNER。 Yes: that's the whole sense of my proposal。
  ANN。 You are talking the greatest nonsense; and you know it。 You
  would never do anything to hurt me。
  TANNER。 Well; if you don't want to be compromised; don't come。
  ANN。 'with simple earnestness' Yes; I will come; Jack; since you
  wish it。 You are my guardian; and think we ought to see more of
  one another and come to know one another better。 'Gratefully'
  It's very thoughtful and very kind of you; Jack; to offer me this
  lovely holiday; especially after what I said about Rhoda。 You
  really are goodmuch better than you think。 When do we start?
  TANNER。 But
  The conversation is interrupted by the arrival of Mrs Whitefield
  from the house。 She is accompanied by the American gentleman; and
  followed by Ramsden and Octavius。
  Hector Malone is an Eastern American; but he is not at all
  ashamed of his nationality。 This makes English people of fashion
  think well of him; as of a young fellow who is manly enough to
  confess to an obvious disadvantage without any attempt to conceal
  or extenuate it。 They feel that he ought not to be made to suffer
  for what is clearly not his fault; and make a point of being
  specially kind to him。 His chivalrous manners to women; and his
  elevated moral sentiments; being both gratuitous and unusual;
  strike them as being a little unfortunate; and though they find
  his vein of easy humor rather amusing when it has ceased to
  puzzle them (as it does at first); they have had to make him
  understand that he really must not tell anecdotes unless they
  are strictly personal and scandalous; and also that oratory is an
  accomplishment which belongs to a cruder stage of civilization
  than that in which his migration has landed him。 On these points
  Hector is not quite convinced: he still thinks that the British
  are apt to make merits of their stupidities; and to represent
  their various incapacities as points of good breeding。 English
  life seems to him to suffer from a lack of edifying rhetoric
  (which he calls moral tone); English behavior to show a want of
  respect for womanhood; English pronunciation to fail very
  vulgarly in tackling such words as world; girl; bird; etc。;
  English society to be plain spoken to an extent which stretches
  occasionally to intolerable coarseness; and English intercourse
  to need enlivening by games and stories and other pastimes; so he
  does not feel called upon to acquire these defects after taking
  great paths to cultivate himself in a first rate manner before
  venturing across the Atlantic。 To this culture he finds English
  people either totally indifferent as they very commonly are to
  all culture; or else politely evasive; the truth being that
  Hector's culture is nothing but a state of saturation with our
  literary exports of thirty years ago; reimported by him to be
  unpacked at a moment's notice and hurled at the head of English
  literature; science and art; at every conversational opportunity。
  The dismay set up by these sallies encourages him in his belief
  that he is helping to educate England。 When he finds people
  chattering harmlessly about Anatole France and Nietzsche; he
  devastates them with Matthew Arnold; the Autocrat of the
  Breakfast Table; and even Macaulay; and as he is devoutly
  religious at bottom; he first leads the unwary; by humorous
  irreverences; to wave popular theology out of account in
  discussing moral questions with him; and then scatters them in
  confusion by demanding whether the carrying out of his ideals of
  conduct was not the manifest object of God Almighty in creating
  honest men and pure women。 The engaging freshness of his
  personality and the dumbfoundering staleness of his culture make
  it extremely difficult to decide whether he is worth knowing; for
  whilst his company is undeniably pleasant and enlivening; there
  is intellectually nothing new to be got out of him; especially as
  he despises politics; and is careful not to talk commercial shop;
  in which department he is probably much in advance of his English
  capitalist friends。 He gets on best with romantic Christians of
  the amoristic sect: hence the friendship which has sprung up
  between him and Octavius。
  In appearance Hector is a neatly built young man of twenty…four;
  with a short; smartly trimmed black beard; clear; well shaped
  eyes; and an ingratiating vivacity of expression。 He is; from the
  fashionable point of view; faultlessly dressed。 As he comes along
  the drive from the house with Mrs Whitefield he is sedulously
  making himself agreeable and entertaining; and thereby placing on
  her slender wit a burden it is unable to bear。 An Englishman
  would let her alone; accepting boredom and indifference of their
  common lot; and the poor lady wants to be either let alone or let
  prattle about the things that interest her。
  Ramsden strolls over to inspect the motor car。 Octavius joins
  Hector。
  ANN。 'pouncing on her mother joyously' Oh; mamma; what do you
  think! Jack is going to take me to Nice in his motor car。 Isn't
  it lovely? I am the happiest person in London。
  TANNER。 'desperately' Mrs Whitefield objects。 I am sure she
  objects。 Doesn't she; Ramsden?
  RAMSDEN。 I should think it very likely indeed。
  ANN。 You don't object; do you; mother?
  MRS WHITEFIELD。 I object! Why should I? I think it will do you
  good; Ann。 'Trotting over to Tanner' I meant to ask you to take
  Rhoda out for a run occasionally: she is too much in the house;
  but it will do when you come back。
  TANNER。 Abyss beneath abyss of perfidy!
  ANN。 'hastily; to distract attention from this outburst' Oh; I
  forgot: you have not met Mr Malone。 Mr Tanner; my guardian: Mr
  Hector Malone。
  HECTOR。 Pleased to meet you; Mr Tanner。 I should like to suggest
  an extension of the travelling party to Nice; if I may。
  ANN。 Oh; we're all coming。 That's understood; isn't it?
  HECTOR。 I also am the modest possessor of a motor car。 If Miss
  Robinson will allow me the privilege of taking her; my car is at
  her service。
  OCTAVIUS。 Violet!
  General constraint。
  ANN。 'subduedly' Come; mother: we must leave them to talk over
  the arrangements。 I must see to my travelling kit。
  Mrs Whitefield looks bewildered; but Ann draws her discreetly
  away; and they disappear round the corner towards the house。
  HECTOR。 I think I may go so far as to say that I can depend on
  Miss Robinson's consent。
  Continued embarrassment。
  OCTAVIUS。 I'm afraid we must leave Violet behind; There are
  circumstances which make it impossible for her to come on such an
  expedition。
  HECTOR。 'amused and not at all convinced' Too American; e