牛津書蟲系列 傲慢與偏見 5 Mr Collins proposes twice

5 Mr Collins proposes twice

5 柯林斯先生兩次求婚

At Longbourn the next day，soon after breakfast，Mr Collins asked Mrs Bennet for permission to speak pri- vately to Elizabeth Mrs Bennet was delighted，and hurried the other girls out of the room，so that Elizabeth and Mr Collins were left alone together.Elizabeth did not want to stay，and got up to leave，but after a moment's thought，sat down again quietly，determined to listen and reply politely.

第二天在浪搏恩，吃過早飯后不久，柯林斯先生請(qǐng)求班納特太太允許他和伊麗莎白單獨(dú)談?wù)?。班納特太太滿心歡喜，趕緊把其他幾位姑娘轟出門去，這樣伊麗莎白和柯林斯先生就可以單獨(dú)在一起了。伊麗莎白不想呆在這兒，起身要走，但稍加思索之后，又靜靜地坐了下來，下決心聽下去并作出有禮貌的回答。

‘My dear Miss Elizabeth，said Mr Collins seriously，‘this little unwillingness to hear me，this modesty of yours，can only add to your other charms.You can hardly doubt the purpose of my speech.Almost as soon as I entered the house，I chose you as the companion of my future life.But before I am carried away by my feelings，I think I should state my reasons for marrying.

“我親愛的伊麗莎白小姐，”柯林斯先生很嚴(yán)肅地說，“你稍許的推卻、你的怕羞害臊更增添了你的天生麗質(zhì)。你對(duì)我說話的用意不會(huì)有什么疑問。我差不多一進(jìn)門，就把你選做我的終生伴侶。不過，在我被感情沖昏頭腦之前，我想我應(yīng)當(dāng)先陳述一下結(jié)婚的理由。”

Elizabeth was trying so hard not to laugh at the idea of Mr Collins being carried away by his feelings that she was unable to reply.

聽到柯林斯先生所謂的被感情沖昏頭腦，伊麗莎白使勁地憋住才沒有笑出聲來，以至于未能答出話來。

‘First，’he continued，‘it is right for a priest to marry，as an example to other people Secondly，I'm sure marriage will add greatly to my happiness，and thirdly，which perhaps I should have mentioned earlier，my generous patron has advised me to marry.“Find an active，useful sort of person，”she told me，“a woman who can make a small income go a long way.Bring her to Hunsford as your wife，and I’ll visit her.”So I decided to choose a wife from among my Bennet cousins，to lessen the loss to the family when the sad event of your father's death takes place.I flatter myself that you will appreciate my motives.And now，nothing remains but to convince you of the violence of my affection.I am quite indifferent to the fact that you bring little money with you into our marringe，and promise you that I shall make no ungenerous reference to this after we are married.’

“首先，”他繼續(xù)道，“牧師應(yīng)當(dāng)結(jié)婚，以便給他人樹立良好榜樣。其二，我相信婚姻會(huì)大大促進(jìn)我的個(gè)人幸福。其三，這一條也許應(yīng)當(dāng)早點(diǎn)提，就是我的慷慨的保護(hù)人建議我結(jié)婚。‘找一個(gè)活潑有用的女人，’她告訴我，‘一個(gè)能勤儉持家、細(xì)水長流的女人。把她娶到漢斯福，然后我去拜訪她。’于是，我決定從班納特家表妹中選一個(gè)做妻子，以便減輕一下令尊不幸過世后家庭所蒙受的損失。我自以為你能贊賞我的動(dòng)機(jī)?，F(xiàn)在，我沒別的可說了，剩下的就是讓你相信我感情的沖動(dòng)了。我們結(jié)婚你沒有什么嫁妝財(cái)物，我一點(diǎn)都不嫌棄，并向你保證，結(jié)婚后決不會(huì)小氣地向你提起此事。”

It was absolutely necessary to interrupt him now.

現(xiàn)在非打斷他的話不可了。

‘Sir，you forget I have given no answer.Accept my thanks for the compliment you are paying me，but it is impossible for me to accept your proposal.’

“先生，你忘了我還沒有回答你。你對(duì)我的恭維，我表示感謝，但是，接受你的求婚是不可能的。”

‘Of course I understand，’said Mr Collins，‘that young ladies often do not accept a proposal of marriage the first time. I am therefore not at all discouraged，and sincerely hope we shall be married soon.’

“我當(dāng)然理解，”柯林斯先生說，“年輕的小姐遇到求婚時(shí)第一次通常不接受。因此，我一點(diǎn)都不氣餒，并真切地希望我們不久就會(huì)結(jié)婚。”

‘Sir，’cried Elizabeth，‘your hope is rather extraordinary after what I've said!I am perfectly serious.You could not make me happy，and I'm convinced I'm the last woman in the world who would make you happy.And I'm sure that if Lady Catherine knew me，she would find me poorly qualified for the situation.’

“先生，”伊麗莎白嚷道，“我拒絕你以后你的希望真是太不同尋常了!我的話是完全嚴(yán)肅的。你不會(huì)使我幸福，在這個(gè)世界上，我也是最不可能給你幸福的人。而且我相信，如果凱瑟琳夫人認(rèn)識(shí)我，她會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)我做你妻子不合格。”

‘If I knew Lady Catherine thought so—’began Mr Collins，looking very worried.‘But I cannot imagine she would disapprove of you.And when I have the honour of seeing her again，I shall certainly tell her how modest，economical and practical you are.’

“我要是知道凱瑟琳夫人這么想——”柯林斯先生又開口道，看起來有點(diǎn)擔(dān)憂。“可是難以想象她會(huì)不滿意你。我下次有幸再見到她時(shí)，一定會(huì)告訴她你多么謙虛，多么勤儉，多么實(shí)際。”

‘Indeed，Mr Collins，all praise of me will be unnecessary. Pay me the compliment of believing what I say.I hope you will be very happy and very rich，but I cannot accept your proposal.’She got up and was going to leave the room，but Mr Collins was speaking to her again.

“柯林斯先生，說實(shí)話，對(duì)我的一切稱贊都是沒必要的。相信我說的話才是對(duì)我的恭維。我希望你十分幸福，十分富有，但是我不能接受你的求婚。”她起身正要離開房間，可是柯林斯先生又對(duì)她說話了。

‘I am far from accusing you of cruelty in refusing me，as I know it is the custom with elegant ladies in society to refuse a gentleman the first time.I hope to receive a more favourable answer next time I speak to you of marriage.’

“你殘酷地拒絕了我，我一點(diǎn)也不責(zé)怪你，因?yàn)槲抑郎鐣?huì)上高雅的小姐總是習(xí)慣于第一次拒絕先生的求婚。我希望下次同你談起婚姻大事時(shí)能給我一個(gè)肯定的答覆。”

‘Really，Mr Collins，’cried Elizabeth with some warmth，‘you do puzzle me!I do not know how to express my refusal so that it convinces you!’

“柯林斯先生，”伊麗莎白有些激動(dòng)地嚷道，“你真使我迷惑不解!我不知道如何表示拒絕你才能相信!”

‘You must allow me to flatter myself，dear cousin，that you do not intend to refuse me for long.My situation in life，my connections with the de Bourgh family，and my relationship to your own，all make my proposal a very suitable one.And you should remember that in spite of your many admirable qualities，it is not certain that you will receive any other offer of marriage，as you have very little money of your own.’

“親愛的表妹，我的理解是你不會(huì)長時(shí)間拒絕我的，你應(yīng)當(dāng)容許我這樣想。我的地位，我與德·包爾家的關(guān)系以及我與你們家的關(guān)系都使得我的求婚十分合適。并且你要記住，雖然你有很多品質(zhì)令人欽佩，但你能不能得到別人的求愛，還不敢肯定，因?yàn)槟阕约阂回毴缦础?rdquo;

‘Sir，thank you again for the honour you have done me，but to accept your proposal is absolutely impossible.Can I speak plainer than that?Don't think of me as an elegant female，but as a thinking creature speaking the truth from her heart!’

“先生，再次感謝你對(duì)我的垂青，但是接受你的求婚是絕對(duì)不可能的。我還能說得比這更清楚嗎?不要把我看成高雅的女性，把我看成一個(gè)能從心底說真話的會(huì)思考的人吧!”

‘You are charming!he cried，‘and I'm sure that when both your excellent parents agree，you will accept my proposal!’

“你真有魅力!”他叫道，“我相信，當(dāng)你尊敬的父母都同意后，你也會(huì)接受我的求婚的!”

Elizabeth did not reply，but left the room silently，deter- mined to ask her father，if necessary，to make her refusal clear to the self-deceiving Mr Collins.

伊麗莎白沒有回答，而是默默地離開了房間，決心去請(qǐng)父親(如果有必要的話)把她的意思向這個(gè)自欺欺人的柯林斯先生說清楚。

Mrs Bennet had been waiting eagerly for the end of the in- terview，and when she saw Elizabeth leave the room，she hur- ried in to offer her congratulations to Mr Collins.He received them with pleasure，adding that he was sure his cousin's re- fusal was a natural result of her modesty and delicacy of char- acter.

班納特太太一直在熱切地期待著會(huì)面的結(jié)束，她看到伊麗莎白出來以后，趕忙進(jìn)屋向柯林斯先生表示祝賀。他十分高興地接受了祝賀，并補(bǔ)充說，他肯定表妹的拒絕是謙虛和矜持的自然結(jié)果。

‘Refusal?’repeated Mrs Bennet，shocked.‘Lizzy refused you?Do not worry，Mr Collins.I shall speak to her at once. She's a very obstinate，foolish girl，but I’ll make her accept you.

“拒絕?”班納特太太重復(fù)道，大吃一驚。“麗萃拒絕了你?柯林斯先生，別擔(dān)心，我馬上跟她說。她很固執(zhí)，很愚蠢，可是我一定讓她接受。”

‘Pardon me，madam，’cried Mr Collins，‘but if she's really obstinate and foolish，I do not think she would be a suitable wife for a man in my situation.’

“對(duì)不起，夫人，”柯林斯先生叫道，“如果她真是又固執(zhí)又愚蠢，那我想她做我這樣的人的妻子也不合適。”

‘Sir，you quite misunderstand me，’said Mrs Bennet， alarmed.‘She's only obstinate in a matter like this.In every- thing else she is very agreeable.I’ll see Mr Bennet and we’ll arrange it with her，I'm sure.’

“先生，你過于誤解了我，”班納特太太說道，感到驚慌失措。“只在這種事情上她才固執(zhí)，別的事她都很隨和。我去找班納特先生，我們倆把這件事包了，我有把握。”

She did not give him time to reply，but hurried to the library，where she knew she would find her husband.

她沒有等他回答，而是急匆匆奔向書房，她知道在那兒肯定會(huì)找到丈夫。

‘Oh，Mr Bennet，we need you urgently!We're all in such confusion!You must come and make Lizzy marry Mr Collins!’

“噢，班納特先生，我們十萬火急，需要你幫忙!都亂套了!你必須過來讓麗萃嫁給柯林斯先生!”

Mr Bennet raised his eyes from his book as she entered，and stared at her with calm unconcern、‘I do not have the pleasure of understanding you，’he said.‘What are you talking about?’

她進(jìn)來后，班納特先生從書上抬起眼皮，漠不關(guān)心地望著她。“對(duì)不起，我沒聽懂你的話。”他說。“你在說什么?”

‘Lizzy declares she won't have him，and if you don't hurry， he’ll change his mind and not have her.’

“麗萃表示她不要柯林斯先生，如果你不快點(diǎn)，他也就改變主意，不要她了。”

‘So what should I do?It seems a hopeless business.’

“那我應(yīng)當(dāng)怎么辦呢?看來這事沒指望了。”

‘Speak to her about yourself.Tell her you insist on her marrying him.’

“你親自跟她談?wù)?。告訴她你非要她嫁給他不可。”

‘Call her in here.She shall hear my opinion.’

“叫她過來。她會(huì)聽從我的意見的。”

Mrs Bennet gladly rang the bell，and the servant brought Elizabeth into the library.

班納特太太高興地拉響了鈴，仆人把伊麗莎白帶到了書房。

‘Come here，child，said her father as she appeared.‘I've sent for you on a very important matter.I understand that Mr Collins has made you an offer of marriage，and you have re- fused?’When Elizabeth nodded，he continued，Very well. Now，your mother insists on your accepting.Isn't that right， Mrs Bennet?’

“過來，孩子，”父親一見她便說。“我叫你過來有件要緊的事情。我聽說柯林斯先生向你求婚，你拒絕了?”伊麗莎白點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭，父親接著說：“很好?，F(xiàn)在，你媽媽非讓你接受不可。是吧，班納特太太?”

‘Yes，or I’ll never see her again.’

“是的，否則，我后半輩子不再見她。”

‘You now have an unhappy choice to make，Elizabeth.From this day on，you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr Collins，and I will never see you again if you do.’

“伊麗莎白，現(xiàn)在你面臨著一個(gè)不愉快的抉擇。從今天開始，你不和母親成為陌路人，就要和父親成為陌路人了。你要是不嫁給柯林斯先生，你媽媽就不會(huì)再見你;你要是嫁給他，我就不會(huì)再見你。”

Elizabeth could not help smiling，but Mrs Bennet，who had been sure her husband supported her，was very disappointed.

伊麗莎白禁不住笑了，班納特太太本來十拿九穩(wěn)丈夫會(huì)支持她，可是現(xiàn)在感到很失望。

‘What do you mean，Mr Bennet?You promised me you would insist on her marrying him.’

“你這是什么意思，班納特先生?你答應(yīng)過我你會(huì)迫使伊麗莎白嫁給他的。”

‘My dear，’replied her husband，‘I have two small requests to make.First，that you will accept that I know what Ipromised or did not promise，and secondly，that you will all leave me in peace as soon as possible.’

“親愛的，”丈夫回答道，“我有兩個(gè)小小的請(qǐng)求。首先，我答應(yīng)過什么，沒答應(yīng)過什么，我心里清楚，這一點(diǎn)請(qǐng)你接受。第二，你們都趕快離開，讓我清靜一會(huì)兒。”

That afternoon，Charlotte Lucas came to visit Elizabeth，and found the family still in great confusion.The younger girls were quite excited by the news of Mr Collins’proposal，and Mrs Bennet was most annoyed with Elizabeth.

那天下午，夏洛特·盧卡斯來看伊麗莎白，發(fā)現(xiàn)全家還是亂哄哄的。幾個(gè)小女兒都為柯林斯先生求婚的消息感到激動(dòng)不已，而班納特太太為伊麗莎白窩了一肚子火。

‘Oh dear Miss Lucas，’cried Mrs Bennet，can't you per- suade Elizabeth to accept Mr Collins?Nobody else wants to help me!Oh，how ill I feel!And look at Lizzy now!She's so unconcerned!But I tell you，Miss Lizzy，if you go on refusing every offer of marriage like this，you’ll never get a husband at all!And I won't be able to provide for you when your father is dead，I warn you now.I told you in the library that I wouldn't speak to you again，and I won't.I have no pleasure in talking to an undutiful child like you.Not that I have much pleasure in talking to anybody，with my headaches.Nobody knows how I suffer!But of course those who do not complain are never pitied.’

“噢，親愛的盧卡斯小姐，”班納特太太叫道，“你能不能說服伊麗莎白接受柯林斯先生?沒有一個(gè)人愿意幫助我!噢，我真難過!你瞧那麗萃!像沒事人似的!不過我告訴你，麗萃小姐，如果你繼續(xù)拒絕這樣的求婚，你根本就找不到丈夫!你父親死后我也不能養(yǎng)活你，我警告你。我在書房告訴過你，我再也不會(huì)理你，我說到做到。跟你這樣的不孝之女說話，我感到難受。我不是說跟別人說話就高興，我的頭疼。沒人知道我受多大罪!當(dāng)然，不抱怨就永遠(yuǎn)得不到憐憫。”

Her daughters listened in silence，aware that any attempt to calm her would only increase her annoyance.Elizabeth，howev- er，was determined not to marry Mr Collins，and in the end Mrs Bennet was obliged to accept that fact.When Mr Collins realized that Elizabeth had meant what she said，his manner to- wards her became coldly and stiffly polite.His long speeches and flattering compliments were transferred for the rest of the day to kind Charlotte Lucas，who took on herself the trouble of listening to him，for which all the Bennets were very grateful.

幾個(gè)女兒一言不發(fā)地聽著，都知道，安慰她等于火上澆油?？墒?，伊麗莎白下定了決心不和柯林斯先生結(jié)婚;最后，班納特太太不得不接受這樣的事實(shí)?？铝炙瓜壬J(rèn)識(shí)到伊麗莎白說話算數(shù)后，他對(duì)她的態(tài)度就變得冷若冰霜、敬而遠(yuǎn)之了。他的長篇大論和吹捧恭維之辭在這天剩下的時(shí)間里都轉(zhuǎn)移到了好心的夏洛特·盧卡斯身上。盧卡斯小姐不厭其煩地聽他啰嗦，班納特全家對(duì)此都很感激。

The next day a letter was delivered to Jane from Netherfield Elizabeth saw her sister's expression change as she read it，and when they were alone，she asked about it.

第二天，從尼日斐給簡送來了一封信。伊麗莎白看到姐姐讀著信臉色變了，別人都走了以后，她問姐姐是怎么回事。

‘It's from Caroline Bingley，’said Jane，‘and it has sur- prised me very much.The whole party have left Netherfield， and are on their way back to London，probably for the winter. They may not return to Netherfield at all.She says the only thing she sincerely regrets is leaving me behind in Hertford- shire，and promises!to write very frequently.’

“是卡羅琳·彬格萊的來信，”簡說，“我感到很奇怪。那些人全部離開了尼日斐，正在返回倫敦的路上，可能去過冬。他們可能不會(huì)再來尼日斐了。她說她唯一感到真切遺憾的是把我丟到了哈福德郡，并答應(yīng)經(jīng)常給我寫信。”

Elizabeth did not trust Miss Bingley's apparent affection for Jane.‘I really don't think their departure matters very much，she said.‘Mr Bingley won't be kept in London by his sisters.I'm sure he’ll be back at Netherfield soon.’

伊麗莎白不相信彬格萊小姐對(duì)簡的明顯偏愛。“其實(shí)我覺得他們離開沒有什么大不了的，”她說。“彬格萊先生不會(huì)被他的妹妹困在倫敦的。我相信他不久就會(huì)回到尼日斐。”

‘But perhaps he prefers to stay in London，where many of his friends are.But I haven't told you everything yet.Let me read you the part which particularly hurts me—’

“但是，也許他更愿意留在倫敦，他的很多朋友都在那兒。我還沒有給你講完呢。我給你讀一下最令我傷心的那一段——”

Mr Darcy is impatient to see his sister，and we confess we are also eager to see her again Nobody is more beautiful，el- egant or accomplished than Georgiana Darcy.Louisa and I have great affection for her，and hope one day to call her sis- ter.My brother admires her very much.He will have frequent opportunities of seeing her，and although I am his sister I must say I think he is most capable of winning any woman's heart.

達(dá)西先生迫不及待地要見他的妹妹，我們承認(rèn)我們也渴望再次見到她。沒有人比喬治安娜·達(dá)西更漂亮、優(yōu)雅、多才多藝了。露易莎和我對(duì)她很有感情，希望有一天能以姐妹相稱。我哥哥十分愛慕她，他們有頻繁的見面機(jī)會(huì)，我雖然是他的妹妹，可是，我得承認(rèn)，我哥哥最能博得所有女人的歡心。

‘What do you think of this，dear Lizzy?Isn't it clear enough? Caroline doesn't wish or expect me to become her sister-in- law;she's convinced of her brother's indifference towards me， and，perhaps because she suspects my feelings for him，she (most kindly!)warns me that he's very likely to marry some- one else!’

“你覺得這是什么意思，親愛的麗萃?這還不夠清楚嗎?卡羅琳不愿意或者不期望我做她的嫂子;她深信她哥哥對(duì)我沒有一點(diǎn)感情，而且;也許因?yàn)閼岩晌覑凵狭怂绺?，?十分善意地)警告我說他很有可能跟別人結(jié)婚!”

‘I have a totally different opinion.Miss Bingley sees her brother is in love with you，while she wants him to marry Miss Darcy.We aren't rich enough or grand enough for them，and she is eager to have a family connection with the Darcys，so that it may be easier for her to marry Mr Darcy.So she follows her brother to London，hoping to keep him there，and tries to persuade you he doesn't care about you.But of course he's in love with you!’

“我的看法和你完全不同。彬格萊小姐看到她哥哥愛上了你，而她卻希望哥哥娶達(dá)西小姐。對(duì)他們來說，我們不夠有錢有勢，所以她熱衷于和達(dá)西家攀親，這樣她要嫁給達(dá)西先生就容易些。因此，她跟哥哥一塊去了倫敦，希望把他留在那兒，并且企圖讓你相信，她哥哥根本不把你當(dāng)回事?？墒?，他當(dāng)然是愛上了你!”

‘I really can't agree with you about Caroline.I think she's incapable of deceiving anyone.But Lizzy，my dear sister，even if she's wrong about her brother，and he does care for me，could I be happy in accepting a man whose sisters and friends all wish him to marry someone else?’

“關(guān)于卡羅琳的想法，我真的不能同意你的分析。我覺得她不會(huì)欺騙任何人?？墒牵愝?，我親愛的妹妹，即便她對(duì)她哥哥的看法是錯(cuò)的，即便她哥哥確實(shí)把我當(dāng)回事，那么，如果妹妹和朋友都希望他娶別人，那我接受他的愛會(huì)感到心安理得嗎?”

‘You must decide for yourself，and if you consider it more important to do what his sisters want，than to gain the happi- ness of being his wife，I certainly advise you to refuse him.’

“這就看你了。如果你認(rèn)為與做他妻子的幸福比起來，照他妹妹的意思辦更重要的話，我當(dāng)然建議你還是拒絕他。”

‘How can you say that?’said Jane，smiling a little.‘You know I wouldn't hesitate，although I'd be sad if they disapproved of me.But，oh dear，if he doesn't come back to Netherfield，I’ll never have to make the decision!’

“你怎么能這樣說?”簡笑了笑，說道。“你知道我是不會(huì)猶豫的，盡管她們要是不贊成的話我會(huì)感到難過?？墒牵彀?，如果他不回尼日斐，我就永遠(yuǎn)不用作決定了!”

But Elizabeth was sure Mr Bingley could not be kept away from Jane by his sisters，and soon persuaded Jane to take a more hopeful view of the situation.

可是，伊麗莎白堅(jiān)信彬格萊先生不會(huì)因?yàn)槊妹枚c簡分手的，一會(huì)兒就說服了簡對(duì)形勢的估計(jì)要樂觀些。

That day the Bennets，with Mr Collins，went to dinner with the Lucas family at Lucas Lodge.Again it was Charlotte who spent most of the evening listening to Mr Collins.Elizabeth was very relieved，and thanked her friend gratefully for the trouble she was taking.But Charlotte's kindness had a particu- lar aim，which Elizabeth was unaware of.Her plan was to en- courage Mr Collins to transfer his attentions to herself.In fact， she was managing so well that，when she said goodnight to him after dinner，she would have felt sure of success if he had been staying in Hertfordshire for another week.But she did not fully appreciate the fire and independence of his character，which caused him to get up very early the next morning and escape from Longbourn House，in a great hurry to reach Lucas Lodge and throw himself at her feet.She did not keep him waiting for an answer，and the happy couple found themselves engaged as quickly as Mr Collins’long speeches would allow.

那天，班納特一家，加上柯林斯先生，到盧卡斯府上與盧卡斯一家聚餐。這次又是夏洛特花了大半個(gè)晚上聽柯林斯先生敘說。伊麗莎白感到十分輕松，對(duì)朋友這種代人受過的做法千恩萬謝。但是夏洛特的和藹可親是別有用心的，這一點(diǎn)伊麗莎白一無所知。她的計(jì)劃就是鼓勵(lì)柯林斯先生將注意力轉(zhuǎn)移到自己身上。實(shí)際上，她將局面控制得很好，晚飯后向柯林斯先生道別時(shí)，她感到，如果他在哈福德郡再呆上那么一個(gè)星期，她就有百分之百的成功把握。但是她沒有完全領(lǐng)會(huì)到柯林斯先生性格中的熱烈和獨(dú)立性。這種性格促使他第二天早上起了個(gè)大早，從浪搏恩宅院逃了出去，急匆匆趕到盧卡斯府上，拜倒在盧卡斯小姐腳下。她沒有讓柯林斯先生等待答覆，他的長篇大論一結(jié)束，這一對(duì)幸福的伴侶就訂下了終身。

Charlotte's parents were delighted to agree to the marriage， and Lady Lucas began to work out，with more interest than she had ever felt before，how many more years Mr Bennet was likely to live.Charlotte herself was quite satisfied.Mr Collins， certainly，was neither sensible nor agreeable，but still he would be a husband.She did not think highly of men or of marriage， but she had always intended to marry.Although marriage might not always bring happiness，it was the only honourable way in which a well-educated woman with little income could provide a home for herself. Now twenty-seven， and lacking beauty， she felt she was lucky to have found a husband.

夏洛特的父母很樂意地許下了這樁婚事，而盧卡斯夫人開始以極大的興趣盤算著班納特先生還可能活多少個(gè)年頭。夏洛特本人也很滿意。當(dāng)然，柯林斯先生既無理智，又不隨和，但做個(gè)丈夫還是可以的。她從來沒有把男人或婚姻看得那么重要，但她一直打算結(jié)婚。雖然結(jié)婚并非總能帶來幸福，但一個(gè)沒有多少收入、受過良好教育的女人要想給自己安個(gè)家，這也算是唯一體面的方法。她現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)27歲了，又相貌平平，她感到，找到了丈夫是件幸運(yùn)的事。

She knew，however，that Elizabeth，whose friendship she greatly valued， would be astonished and possibly disapproving. So she decided to go to Longbourn House to tell her friend the news herself. Elizabeth was indeed shocked at first， and could not help crying out in surprise， but when Charlotte explained her reasons for accepting Mr Collins， Elizabeth tried hard to understand.When the rest of the Bennet family heard the news，they were also astonished.Mrs Bennet was quite horrified， and could not stop complaining bitterly about Charlotte's wickedness， Mr Collins'stupidity and Elizabeth's obstinacy. Mr Bennet was much calmer， only saying he was pleased to discover that Charlotte， whom he used to consider quite sensible， was as foolish as his wife， and more foolish than his daugh-ter!

不過，她知道，伊麗莎白(她十分珍視與伊麗莎白的友誼)會(huì)感到震驚，而且還可能反對(duì)。于是她決定親自到浪搏恩府上向朋友通報(bào)這一消息。伊麗莎白開始確實(shí)嚇了一跳，并且禁不住驚訝得叫了起來，可是當(dāng)夏洛特解釋了接受柯林斯先生求婚的理由之后，她便努力去理解她。班納特家其他人聽到這個(gè)消息后也都感到驚訝不已。班納特太太很反感，禁不住罵夏洛特陰險(xiǎn)，罵柯林斯先生愚蠢，罵伊麗莎白固執(zhí)。班納特先生要平靜得多，只是說他很高興地發(fā)現(xiàn)夏洛特像他妻子一樣愚蠢，比他女兒更加愚蠢，而以前還以為她相當(dāng)有理智呢。

That day was Mr Collins’last at Longbourn，and he left with many speeches of thanks， as well as a promise to return very soon.Mr Bennet warned him to be careful not to offend his patron， by being absent from his duties too often，but Mr Collins，although extremely grateful for this sign of Mr Bennet's cousinly affection for him， was naturally eager to return to Hertfordshire， to see his future wife.

那一天是柯林斯先生在浪搏恩呆的最后一天，他離開時(shí)說了很多表示感謝的話，并許諾不久還會(huì)再來。班納特先生提醒他要小心謹(jǐn)慎，不要缺勤太多，得罪了保護(hù)人;但是，柯林斯先生雖然對(duì)班納特先生表現(xiàn)出的叔侄情誼極為感激，他自然還是急于回到哈福德郡，去看他未來的妻子。

Only two weeks later he did，in fact，come back to stay at Longbourn， but spent most of his time at Lucas Lodge， making arrangements for the wedding.Mrs Bennet still felt very offended by him， but she was now becoming anxious about something even more important—Mr Bingley's continued absence. Day after day had passed with no news since the arrival of Car- oline Bingley’ s letter. Elizabeth was now rather worried， and Jane feared the worst.Finally a second letter arrived from Caroline Bingley， and when Jane read it， she realized that all hope was over. The Bingley family were staying in London for the whole winter，and Georgiana Darcy was a frequent member of their circle. Miss Bingley boasted joyfully of this friendship， and looked forward to her brother's probable marriage to Miss Darcy.

實(shí)際上，只過了兩星期，他的確又來到了浪搏恩，但大部分時(shí)間都花在盧.卡斯府，為婚禮作些安排。班納特太太仍舊對(duì)他感到不快，但現(xiàn)在開始對(duì)一件更為重要的事情感到焦慮——就是彬格萊先生遲遲不歸。自從卡羅琳·彬格萊來信之后，日復(fù)一日，再也沒有消息。伊麗莎白現(xiàn)在相當(dāng)擔(dān)憂，簡最為害怕。終于，卡羅琳·彬格萊來了第二封信，簡讀完后，認(rèn)識(shí)到一切希望都化為泡影。彬格萊全家要在倫敦度過整個(gè)冬天，喬治安娜·達(dá)西又是那個(gè)圈子的?？?。彬格萊小姐興高采烈地吹噓這種友誼，并期待著她哥哥與達(dá)西小姐能夠成婚。

Although she was deeply upset， Jane bravely tried to control her feelings.‘Do not worry，Lizzy，I shall be able to forget him in a while. I have nothing to complain of， as he made no promises to me. I just thought he cared for me， but I was wrong. Luckily， no one is hurt except myself.’

簡雖然感到深深的不安，但她勇敢地努力控制住自己的感情。“麗萃，別擔(dān)心，我很快就會(huì)把他忘掉的。我沒什么可抱怨的，他也沒有向我作過許諾。我只是認(rèn)為他對(duì)我有意，可是我錯(cuò)了。還好，除了我自己，這還沒有傷害到別人。”

‘My dear Jane!’ said Elizabeth.‘You are too good.You al- ways think the best of everybody.Now I think the worst of most people， and do not see much real value or common sense around me. Mr Bingley， for example. He may not be intending to hurt you， but misery can be caused by someone being just weak and indecisive.I'm convinced his sisters and his friend， Mr Darcy， are trying to influence him against you.Another ex- ample is Charlotte.I can't understand how she could agree to marry such a self-important， proud， silly man!’

“我親愛的簡!”伊麗莎白說。“你太善良了。你總是把大家往好里想。現(xiàn)在，我認(rèn)為大多數(shù)人都是壞的，在我的周圍也看不到多少真正有價(jià)值或者明白事理的人。例如彬格萊先生。他可能不是故意傷害你，但一個(gè)人僅僅因?yàn)檐浫鯚o能或優(yōu)柔寡斷就完全可能招致痛苦。我確信他的妹妹和朋友達(dá)西先生都在企圖影響他，和你作對(duì)。另外一個(gè)例子是夏洛特。我不明白她為什么會(huì)同意嫁給這樣一個(gè)自高自大、愚蠢無比的男人!”

‘Dear Lizzy，’said Jane，‘we must respect Charlotte's deci- sion.She may well be happy with Mr Collins.And as for Mr Bingley，we shouldn't expect a sociable young man to be so careful of his behaviour.Women often imagine admiration means more than it really does.’

“親愛的麗萃，”簡說，“我們必須尊重夏洛特的決定。她和柯林斯先生可能會(huì)很幸福。至于彬格萊先生，我們不能期望這樣善于社交的年輕人那么注意自己的行為。女人經(jīng)常把愛慕想象得超出了其本身的含義。”

‘And men want that to happen.’

“而男人也想要女人那樣想。”

‘I prefer to believe that I was mistaken in thinking he cared for me， and that his sisters love him and approve of his wish to marry Miss Darcy.I don't want to think badly of him or his sisters.That would be worse than anything.’

“我倒愿意相信是我誤解了他對(duì)我的意思，而且他妹妹是愛他的，并且贊成他同達(dá)西小姐結(jié)婚的愿望。我不想把他或他的妹妹想得太壞。那樣做是最糟糕的事情。”

Elizabeth had to accept Jane's wishes， and from then on，Mr Bingley's name was seldom mentioned between them.

伊麗莎白不得不接受簡的愿望，從那以后，彬格萊的名字在她們之間很少被提及。