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狄更斯双语小说:《董贝父子》第47章Part4

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'It is enough,' said Edith, after a pause, 'to know what it is; why, matters little. Dear Florence, it is better - it is necessary - it must be - that our association should be less frequent. The confidence there has been between us must be broken off.'
'When?' cried Florence. 'Oh, Mama, when?'
'Now,' said Edith.
'For all time to come?' asked Florence.
'I do not say that,' answered Edith. 'I do not know that. Nor will I say that companionship between us is, at the best, an ill-assorted and unholy union, of which I might have known no good could come. My way here has been through paths that you will never tread, and my way henceforth may lie - God knows - I do not see it - '
Her voice died away into silence; and she sat, looking at Florence, and almost shrinking from her, with the same strange dread and wild avoidance that Florence had noticed once before. The same dark pride and rage succeeded, sweeping over her form and features like an angry chord across the strings of a wild harp. But no softness or humility ensued on that. She did not lay her head down now, and weep, and say that she had no hope but in Florence. She held it up as if she were a beautiful Medusa, looking on him, face to face, to strike him dead. Yes, and she would have done it, if she had had the charm.
'Mama,' said Florence, anxiously, 'there is a change in you, in more than what you say to me, which alarms me. Let me stay with you a little.'
'No,' said Edith, 'no, dearest. I am best left alone now, and I do best to keep apart from you, of all else. Ask me no questions, but believe that what I am when I seem fickle or capricious to you, I am not of my own will, or for myself. Believe, though we are stranger to each other than we have been, that I am unchanged to you within. Forgive me for having ever darkened your dark home - I am a shadow on it, I know well - and let us never speak of this again.'
'Mama,' sobbed Florence, 'we are not to part?'
'We do this that we may not part,' said Edith. 'Ask no more. Go, Florence! My love and my remorse go with you!'
She embraced her, and dismissed her; and as Florence passed out of her room, Edith looked on the retiring figure, as if her good angel went out in that form, and left her to the haughty and indignant passions that now claimed her for their own, and set their seal upon her brow.
From that hour, Florence and she were, as they had been, no more. For days together, they would seldom meet, except at table, and when Mr Dombey was present. Then Edith, imperious, inflexible, and silent, never looked at her. Whenever Mr Carker was of the party, as he often was, during the progress of Mr Dombey's recovery, and afterwards, Edith held herself more removed from her, and was more distant towards her, than at other times. Yet she and Florence never encountered, when there was no one by, but she would embrace her as affectionately as of old, though not with the same relenting of her proud aspect; and often, when she had been out late, she would steal up to Florence's room, as she had been used to do, in the dark, and whisper 'Good-night,' on her pillow. When unconscious, in her slumber, of such visits, Florence would sometimes awake, as from a dream of those words, softly spoken, and would seem to feel the touch of lips upon her face. But less and less often as the months went on.

狄更斯双语小说:《董贝父子》第47章Part4

“知道事实是怎么样的,这就够了,”伊迪丝停了一下,说道,”至于为什么这样做,这无关紧要。亲爱的弗洛伦斯,我们应当少来往一些,这样比较好--这是必要的--,必须是这样。我们相互间一直保持着的亲密无间的友谊必须断绝。”
“什么时候?”弗洛伦斯喊道,”啊妈妈,什么时候?”
“现在,”伊迪丝说道。
“今后永远这样吗?”弗洛伦斯问道。
“我没有说这一点,”伊迪丝回答道,”我不知道这一点。我也不说,我们的伴侣关系充其量只是不适宜、不正当的。不过我可以知道,这种伴侣关系不会有好处。我到这里所走过的道路是经过许多你将永远也不会走的小路的。我今后的道路--天知道通往哪里--我看不见它。”
她的消逝了,然后沉寂了;她坐在那里,看着弗洛伦斯,几乎要从弗洛伦斯身边退缩;在她眼光中流露出某种奇怪的恐惧与竭力回避的神色,弗洛伦斯以前有一次也曾注意到这同样的神色。接着她的全身和脸上顿时显露出与那一次同样阴郁的高傲与愤怒的激情,就像一架疯狂的竖琴的弦上忽然激烈地弹奏出愤怒的声调一样。可是随之而来的不是温柔或谦恭。她这一次没有低下头,没有哭,也没有说,她没有别的希望,她的一切希望都寄托在弗洛伦斯身上了。她高昂着头,仿佛她是美丽的美杜莎一样,面对面地看着人,以便杀死他。是的,如果她掌握了这种魔力的话,她真会这样做的。
“妈妈,”弗洛伦斯忧虑地说道,”除了您对我所说的之外,您还发生了一种使我吃惊的变化。让我在您身边多待一会儿吧。”
“不,”伊迪丝说道,”不,最亲爱的。我现在最好是单独一个人,我最好避开你。别向我提任何问题,只请你相信:当我似乎对你三心二意,反复无常的时候,我不是出于本意,也不是为了我自己。请相信,虽然我们彼此比过去疏远,但我在内心里对你并没有改变。请原谅我把你的暗淡的家庭变得更加暗淡了--我很清楚,我是投射在你家的一个阴影。让我们永远别再谈论这一点吧。”
“妈妈,”弗洛伦斯哭泣道,”我们将不会分离吧?”
“我们这样做就正是为了使我们可以不分离,”伊迪丝说道,”别再问什么。走吧,弗洛伦斯!我的爱和悔恨伴随着你!”
她拥抱了她,然后放开让她走;当弗洛伦斯走出房间的时候,伊迪丝目送着这离开的人儿,仿佛她的善良的守护神已化为一个形象离开了她,把她留下,听凭高傲与愤怒的情绪支配;现在这两种激情占据了她,在她的前额上表露出来。
从这时候起,弗洛伦斯和她不再像以前一样经常待在一起。她们在好多天中很少见面,只有在用餐和董贝先生在场的时候除外。在这种场合,伊迪丝威严,坚定,沉默,一眼也不看她。当有卡克先生参加时(在董贝先生恢复健康期间及以后,这是时常有的情形),伊迪丝就比平时更避开她,对她更疏远冷淡。可是当她单独和弗洛伦斯相遇、旁边没有其他人的时候,她就像过去一样情深意切地拥抱她,虽然她那高傲的神色已不像过去一样变得那么温柔了。当她夜间从外面回来晚了的时候,她时常像过去一样,悄悄地摸着黑暗走进去。