目 录 上一节 下一节 
谈着谈着一小时很快就过去了，贝茜把帽子等还给我。我由她陪着出了门房上府宅去。差不多九年之前我也是由她这么陪着，从我此刻登上的小径走下来的。一月的某个灰暗阴冷、雾气弥漫的早晨，我带着绝望和痛苦的心情--一种被放逐和几乎是被抛弃的感觉，离开了这个仇视我的家，去寻找罗沃德阴冷的避风港，那个遥远而陌生的地方。此刻我面前又出现了同一个仇视我的家，我的前途未卜，我的心还隐隐作痛。我仍然觉得自己是世间的一个飘泊者，但已更加自信自强，少了一份无可奈何的压抑感。冤屈所撕裂的伤口现在已经愈合，愤怒的火焰已经熄灭。 "You shall go into the breakfast-room first," said Bessie, as shepreceded me through the hall; "the young ladies will be there."" 你先去餐室，"贝茜领我穿过府宅时说，"小姐们会在那儿的。" In another moment I was within that apartment. There was everyarticle of furniture looking just as it did on the morning I wasfirst introduced to Mr. Brocklehurst: the very rug he had stoodupon still covered the hearth. Glancing at the bookcases, I thoughtI could distinguish the two volumes of Bewick's British Birdsoccupying their old place on the third shelf, and Gulliver's Travelsand the Arabian Nights ranged just above. The inanimate objectswere not changed; but the living things had altered pastrecognition. 眨眼之间我便进了那个套间。每件家具看上去同我初次介绍给布罗克赫斯特先生的那个早上一模一样。他站过的那块地毯依然盖着壁炉的地面。往书架上一看，我还能认出比尤伊克的两卷本《英国鸟类史》，放在第三个书架上的老地方，以及这部书正上方的《格列佛游记》和《天方夜谭》。无生命的东西依旧，有生命的东西已面目全非。 Two young ladies appeared before me; one very tall, almost as tallas Miss Ingram--very thin too, with a sallow face and severe mien.There was something ascetic in her look, which was augmented by theextreme plainness of a straight-skirted, black, stuff dress, astarched linen collar, hair combed away from the temples, and thenun-like ornament of a string of ebony beads and a crucifix. This Ifelt sure was Eliza, though I could trace little resemblance to herformer self in that elongated and colourless visage. 我面前站着两位年青小姐，一位个子很高，与英格拉姆小姐相仿--同样很瘦，面色灰黄，表情严肃。神态中有着某种禁欲主义的色彩。极度朴实的穿著和打扮，增强了这种色彩。她穿着黑色紧身呢裙，配着上过浆的亚麻领子，头发从两鬓往后梳，戴着修女似的饰物，一串乌木念珠和一个十字架。我觉得这人肯定是伊丽莎，尽管从她那张拉长了的没有血色的脸上，已经很难找到与她昔日模样相似的地方了。 The other was as certainly Georgiana: but not the Georgiana Iremembered--the slim and fairy-like girl of eleven. This was afull-blown, very plump damsel, fair as waxwork, with handsome andregular features, languishing blue eyes, and ringleted yellow hair.The hue of her dress was black too; but its fashion was so differentfrom her sister's--so much more flowing and becoming--it looked asstylish as the other's looked puritanical. 另外一位肯定是乔治亚娜，不过已不是我记忆中身材苗条，仙女一般的十一岁姑娘乔治亚娜了。这是一位已经完全长成、十分丰满的年轻姑娘，有着白得像蜡制品的肤色，端正漂亮的五官，含情脉脉的蓝眼睛，黄色的卷发。她的衣服一样是黑色的，但式样与她姐姐的大不相同--显得飘逸合身得多--看上去很时髦，犹如另一位看上去像位清教徒。 
姐妹两人各自都保留了母亲的一个特征--只有一个。瘦削苍白的姐姐有着她母亲的烟晶宝石色眸子，而生气勃勃的妹妹却承继了母亲颏骨和下巴的轮廓--也许要柔和一点，但使她的面容透出一种难以描摹的冷峻，要不然这会是一个十分妖艳美丽的脸蛋。 Both ladies, as I advanced, rose to welcome me, and both addressedme by the name of "Miss Eyre." Eliza's greeting was delivered in ashort, abrupt voice, without a smile; and then she sat down again,fixed her eyes on the fire, and seemed to forget me. Georgianaadded to her "How d'ye do?" several commonplaces about my journey,the weather, and so on, uttered in rather a drawling tone: andaccompanied by sundry side-glances that measured me from head tofoot--now traversing the folds of my drab merino pelisse, and nowlingering on the plain trimming of my cottage bonnet. Young ladieshave a remarkable way of letting you know that they think you a"quiz" without actually saying the words. A certainsuperciliousness of look, coolness of manner, nonchalance of tone,express fully their sentiments on the point, without committing themby any positive rudeness in word or deed. 我一走近她们，两位小姐都立起来迎接我，都用名字"爱小姐"称呼我。伊丽莎招呼我时，嗓音短暂而唐突，没有笑容。随后她便又坐下，加了几句关于旅途和天气之类的寒喧，说话时慢声慢气，还不时侧眼看我，从头打量到脚--目光一会儿落在黄褐色美利奴毛皮外衣的褶缝上，一会停留在我乡间小帽的普通饰物上。年轻小姐们自有一套高明的办法，让你知道她认为你"可笑"而不必说出那两个字来。某种高傲的神态，冷淡与举止和漠然的声调，就充分表达了她们的情感，而不必借助十足粗鲁的言行。 A sneer, however, whether covert or open, had now no longer thatpower over me it once possessed: as I sat between my cousins, I wassurprised to find how easy I felt under the total neglect of the oneand the semi-sarcastic attentions of the other--Eliza did notmortify, nor Georgiana ruffle me. The fact was, I had other thingsto think about; within the last few months feelings had been stirredin me so much more potent than any they could raise--pains andpleasures so much more acute and exquisite had been excited than anyit was in their power to inflict or bestow--that their airs gave meno concern either for good or bad. 然而无论是明嘲还是暗讽，对我已失去了一度有过的影响力。我坐在两位表姐妹中间，惊讶地发现自己对一位的完全怠慢，另一位半带嘲弄的殷勤处之泰然--伊丽莎伤不了我的感情，乔治亚娜也没有使我生气。事实上我有别的事情要想。最近几个月里，我内心被唤起的感情，比她们所能煽起的要强烈得多-一所激起的痛苦和欢乐要比她们所能加予和馈赠的要尖锐和激烈得多--她们的神态好歹与我无关。 "How is Mrs. Reed?" I asked soon, looking calmly at Georgiana, whothought fit to bridle at the direct address, as if it were anunexpected liberty." 里德太太怎么样了？"我立刻问道，镇静地瞧着乔治亚娜，而她认为我这样直呼其名是应当嗤之以鼻的，仿佛这是种出乎意料的冒昧行为。 I did not need to be guided to the well-known room, to which I hadso often been summoned for chastisement or reprimand in former days.I hastened before Bessie; I softly opened the door: a shaded lightstood on the table, for it was now getting dark. There was thegreat four-post bed with amber hangings as of old; there the toilet-table, the armchair, and the footstool, at which I had a hundredtimes been sentenced to kneel, to ask pardon for offences by meuncommitted. 我不必由人领往那个熟识的房间，因为以前我总是被叫到那里挨骂和受罚。我赶在贝茜之前轻轻推开了门。桌子上点着一盏有罩的灯，天色已渐渐暗下来。像往昔一样，还是那张琥珀色帐幔罩着四根大床柱的床，还是那张梳妆台，那把安乐椅，那条脚凳。在这条脚凳上，我成百次地被罚跪，请求宽恕我并不存在的过错。 
我清楚地记得里德太太的面容，所以急切要寻找那熟悉的形象。令人高兴的是，时光消蚀了复仇的念头，驱散了泛起的愤怒与厌恶之情。过去我带着苦涩与憎恨离开了这个女人，现在又回到了她身边，仅仅是出于对她极度痛苦的同情，出于不念旧恶、握手言和的强烈愿望。 The well-known face was there: stern, relentless as ever--there wasthat peculiar eye which nothing could melt, and the somewhat raised,imperious, despotic eyebrow. How often had it lowered on me menaceand hate! and how the recollection of childhood's terrors andsorrows revived as I traced its harsh line now! And yet I stoopeddown and kissed her: she looked at me. 那里是一张熟悉的面孔，依旧那样严厉和无情--难以打动的眼睛和微微扬起的专横独断的眉毛，曾有多少次俯视我，射来恫吓和仇视的目光！此刻重睹那冷酷的线条，我童年时恐怖与悲伤的记忆又统统复活了！然而我还是弯下身子，吻了吻她。她朝我看看。 "Is this Jane Eyre?" she said." 是简.爱吗？"她说。 "Yes, Aunt Reed. How are you, dear aunt?"" 是的，里德舅妈。你好吗，舅妈？" I had once vowed that I would never call her aunt again: I thoughtit no sin to forget and break that vow now. My fingers had fastenedon her hand which lay outside the sheet: had she pressed minekindly, I should at that moment have experienced true pleasure. Butunimpressionable natures are not so soon softened, nor are naturalantipathies so readily eradicated. Mrs. Reed took her hand away,and, turning her face rather from me, she remarked that the nightwas warm. Again she regarded me so icily, I felt at once that heropinion of me--her feeling towards me--was unchanged andunchangeable. I knew by her stony eye--opaque to tenderness, indissoluble to tears--that she was resolved to consider me bad tothe last; because to believe me good would give her no generouspleasure: only a sense of mortification. 我曾发誓永远不再叫她舅妈。我想此刻忘却和违背自己的誓言并不是罪过。我紧握住她搁在被头外面的手。要是她和气地握一握我的手，此刻我会由衷地感到愉快，但是顽固的本性不是立刻就能感化的，天生的反感也并非轻易就能消除。里德太太抽出了手，转过脸去，说了声夜晚很暖和。她再次冷冰冰地凝视着我，我立刻感觉到她对我的看法--对我所怀的情感--没有改变，也是不可改变的。从她那温情透不过、眼泪冶不了，犹如石头一般的眼睛里，我知道她决心到死都认定我很坏了，因为相信我是好人并不能给她带来愉快，而只会是一种屈辱感。 
我先是感到痛苦，随后感到恼火，最后便感到决心要制服她--不管她的本性和意志如何顽强，我要压倒她。像儿时一样，我的眼泪涌了上来，但我把它制住了。我将一把椅子挪到床头边，坐了下来，俯身向着枕头。 "You sent for me," I said, "and I am here; and it is my intention tostay till I see how you get on."" 你派人叫我来，"我说，"现在我来了，我想呆在这儿看看你的身体情况如何。" "Oh, of course! You have seen my daughters?"" 呵，当然：你看见我女儿了吗？" "Yes."" 看到了。"
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