《傲慢与偏见》 第7章(2)

I am astonished, my dear, said Mrs. Bennet, that you should be so ready to think your own children silly. If I wished to think slightingly of any body's children, it should not be of my own, however.

班纳特太太对她丈夫说：“我真奇怪，亲爱的，你总喜欢说你自己的孩子蠢。要是我呀，什么人的孩子我都可以看不起，可是我决不会看不起自己的孩子。”

If my children are silly I must hope to be always sensible of it.

“要是我自己的孩子果真蠢，我决不愿意没有自知之明。”

Yes -- but as it happens, they are all of them very clever.

“你说得不错，可是事实上，她们却一个个都很聪明。”

This is the only point, I flatter myself, on which we do not agree. I had hoped that our sentiments coincided in every particular, but I must so far differ from you as to think our two youngest daughters uncommonly¹ foolish.

“我们两个人总算只有在这一点上看法不同。我本来希望你我在任何方面的意见都能融洽一致，可是说起我们的两个小女儿，的确非常蠢；关于这一点，到目前为止，我不得不跟你抱着两样的见解。”

My dear Mr. Bennet, you must not expect such girls to have the sense of their father and mother. -- When they get to our age, I dare say they will not think about officers any more than we do. I remember the time when I liked a red coat myself very well -- and indeed, so I do still at my heart; and if a smart young colonel, with five or six thousand a year, should want one of my girls, I shall not say nay² to him; and I thought Colonel Forster looked very becoming the other night at Sir William's in his regimentals.

“我的好老爷，你可不能指望这些女孩都跟她们爹妈一样的见识呀。等她们到了我们这么大年纪，她们也许就会跟我们一样，不会再想到什么军官们了。我刻从前有个时期，我也很喜爱‘红制服’───当然，到现在我心里头还喜爱‘红制服’呢；要是有位漂亮的年轻上校，每年有五六千磅的收入，随便向我的哪一个女儿求婚，我决不会拒绝他的；有天晚上在威廉爵士家里，看见弗斯脱上校全副军装，真是一表人材！”

Mama, cried Lydia, my aunt says that Colonel Forster and Captain Carter do not go so often to Miss Watson's as they did when they first came; she sees them now very often standing³ in Clarke's library.

“妈妈，”丽迪雅嚷道，“姨妈说，弗斯脱上校跟卡特尔上尉上琴小姐家里去的次数，不象初来的时候那么勤了；她近来常常看到他们站在‘克拉克借书处’等人。”

Mrs. Bennet was prevented replying by the entrance of the footman with a note for Miss Bennet; it came from Netherfield, and the servant waited for an answer. Mrs. Bennet's eyes sparkled with pleasure, and she was eagerly calling out, while her daughter read, Well, Jane, who is it from? what is it about? what does he say? Well, Jane, make haste and tell us; make haste, my love.

班纳特太太正要答话，不料一个小厮走了进来，拿来一封信给班纳特小姐。这是尼是斐花园送来的一封信，小厮等着取回信。班纳特太太高兴得眼睛也闪亮起来。吉英读信的时候，她心急地叫道：“嘿，吉英，谁来的信？信上说些什么？是怎么说的？喂，吉英，赶快看完说给听吧；快点儿呀，宝宝！”

It is from Miss Bingley, said Jane, and then read it aloud.

“是彬格莱小姐写来的，”吉英说，一面把信读出来：

My dear Friend, IF you are not so compassionate⁴ as to dine today with Louisa and me, we shall be in danger of hating each other for the rest of our lives, for a whole day's tête-a-tête between two women can never end without a quarrel. Come as soon as you can on the receipt of this. My brother and the gentlemen are to dine with the officers. Yours ever, CAROLINE BINGLEY.

我亲爱的的朋友，──要是你不肯发发慈悲，今天光临舍下跟露薏莎和我一同吃饭，我和她两个人就要结下终生的怨仇了。两个女人成天在一块儿谈心，到头来没有不吵架的。接信后希即尽快前来。我的哥和他的几位朋友们都要上军官们那儿去吃饭。──你的永远的朋友珈罗琳·彬格莱

With the officers! cried Lydia. I wonder my aunt did not tell us of that.

“上军官们那儿去吃饭！”丽迪雅嚷道，“这件事怎么姨妈没告诉我们呢。”

Dining out, said Mrs. Bennet, that is very unlucky.

“上别人家去吃饭，”班纳特太太说：“这真是晦气。”

1 uncommonly   

adv. 稀罕(极，非常)

参考例句：

• an uncommonly gifted child 一个天赋异禀的儿童
• My little Mary was feeling uncommonly empty. 我肚子当时正饿得厉害。

2 nay   

adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者

参考例句：

• He was grateful for and proud of his son's remarkable,nay,unique performance.他为儿子出色的，不，应该是独一无二的表演心怀感激和骄傲。
• Long essays,nay,whole books have been written on this.许多长篇大论的文章，不，应该说是整部整部的书都是关于这件事的。

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 compassionate   

adj.有同情心的，表示同情的

参考例句：

• She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。
• The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯。