双语小说连载:纯真年代 The Age of Innocence(5)

"I wonder if she wears a round hat or a bonnet in the afternoon," Janey speculated. "At the Opera I know she had on dark blue velvet, perfectly plain and flat-- like a night-gown."
“不知下午她戴的是圆檐帽还是软帽，”詹尼猜测说。“我知道她在着歌剧时穿的是深蓝色天鹅绒，普普通通的，就像睡衣一样。”

"Janey!" said her mother; and Miss Archer blushed and tried to look audacious.
“詹尼！”她母亲说；阿切尔小姐脸一红，同时想装出无所顾忌的样子。

"It was, at any rate, in better taste not to go to the ball," Mrs. Archer continued.
“不管怎么说，她没有去舞会，总算是知趣的了，”阿切尔太太接着说。

A spirit of perversity moved her son to rejoin: "I don't think it was a question of taste with her. May said she meant to go, and then decided that the dress in question wasn't smart enough."
一种乖僻的情绪，使做儿子的接腔道：“我认为这不是她知趣不知趣的问题。梅说她本来是打算去的，只是后来又觉得你们刚刚说到的那身衣服不够漂亮而已。”

Mrs. Archer smiled at this confirmation of her inference. "Poor Ellen," she simply remarked; adding compassionately: "We must always bear in mind what an eccentric bringing-up Medora Manson gave her. What can you expect of a girl who was allowed to wear black satin at her coming-out ball?"
阿切尔太太见儿子用这样的方式证实她的推断，仅仅报之一笑。“可怜的埃伦，”她只这么说了一句，接着又同情地补充道：“我们什么时候都不能忘记，梅多拉·曼森对她进行了什么稀奇古怪的培养教育。在进入社交界的舞会上，居然让她穿黑缎子衣服，你又能指望她会怎样呢？”

"Ah--don't I remember her in it!" said Mr. Jackson; adding: "Poor girl!" in the tone of one who, while enjoying the memory, had fully understood at the time what the sight portended.
“哎呀——她穿的那身衣服我还记得呢！”杰克逊先生说。他接着又补一句：“可怜的姑娘！”那口气既表明他记着那件事，又表明他当时就充分意识到那光景预兆着什么。

"It's odd," Janey remarked, "that she should have kept such an ugly name as Ellen. I should have changed it to Elaine." She glanced about the table to see the effect of this.
“真奇怪，”詹尼说，“她竞一直沿用埃伦这么个难听的名字。假若是我早就改成伊莱恩了。”她环顾一眼餐桌，看这句话产生了什么效果。

Her brother laughed. "Why Elaine?"
她哥哥失声笑了起来。“为什么要叫伊莱恩？”

"I don't know; it sounds more--more Polish," said Janey, blushing.
“不知道，听起来更——更有波兰味，”詹尼涨红了脸说。

"It sounds more conspicuous; and that can hardly be what she wishes," said Mrs. Archer distantly.
“这名字听起来太引人注意，她恐怕不会乐意，”阿切尔太太漠然地说。

"Why not?" broke in her son, growing suddenly argumentative. "Why shouldn't she be conspicuous if she chooses? Why should she slink about as if it were she who had disgraced herself? She's `poor Ellen' certainly, because she had the bad luck to make a wretched marriage; but I don't see that that's a reason for hiding her head as if she were the culprit."
“为什么不？”儿子插言道，他突然变得很爱争论。“如果她愿意，为什么就不能引人注意？她为什么就该躲躲闪闪，仿佛自己给自己丢了脸似的？她当然是‘可怜的埃伦’，因为她不幸结下了倒霉的婚姻。但我不认为她因此就得像罪犯一样躲起来。”

"That, I suppose," said Mr. Jackson, speculatively, "is the line the Mingotts mean to take.
“我想，”杰克逊先生沉思地说，“这正是明戈特家的人打算采取的立场。”

The young man reddened. "I didn't have to wait for their cue, if that's what you mean, sir. Madame Olenska has had an unhappy life: that doesn't make her an outcast."
年轻人脸红了。“我可没有必要等他们家的暗示——如果你是这个意思的话，先生。奥兰斯卡夫人经历了一段不幸的生活，这不等于她无家可归。”

"There are rumours," began Mr. Jackson, glancing at Janey.
“外面有些谣传，”杰克逊先生开口说，瞥了詹尼一眼。