《傲慢与偏见》第13集|Mister Darcy's Letter

Fresh from Elizabeth's emphaticrejection of his marriage proposal, Darcy presents her with a long letter in anattempt to explain his behaviour towards Jane and Wickham.

在被伊丽莎白断然拒绝求婚之后，达西递给伊丽莎白一封长信，试图解释他对待简和威克姆的行为的原因。

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(READING – CHAPTER 35)

"Be not alarmed, madam, on receivingthis letter, by the apprehension of its containing any repetition of thosesentiments or renewal of those offers which were last night so disgusting toyou.

Two offenses of a very different nature, andby no means of equal magnitude, you last night laid to my charge. The firstmentioned was, that, regardless of the sentiments of either, I had detached Mr.Bingley from your sister, and the other, that I had, in defiance of variousclaims, in defiance of honour and humanity, ruined the immediate prosperity andblasted the prospects of Mr. Wickham.

If, in the explanation of them, which is dueto myself, I am under the necessity of relating feelings which may be offensiveto yours, I can only say that I am sorry. The necessity must be obeyed, andfurther apology would be absurd.

"I had not been long in Hertfordshire,before I saw, in common with others, that Bingley preferred your elder sisterto any other young woman in the country. But it was not till the evening of thedance at Netherfield that I had any apprehension of his feeling a seriousattachment. I had often seen him in love before. At that ball, while I had thehonour of dancing with you, I was first made acquainted, by Sir William Lucas'saccidental information, that Bingley's attentions to your sister had given riseto a general expectation of their marriage. He spoke of it as a certain event,of which the time alone could be undecided. From that moment I observed myfriend's behaviour attentively; and I could then perceive that his partialityfor Miss Bennet was beyond what I had ever witnessed in him. Your sister I alsowatched. Her look and manners were open, cheerful, and engaging as ever, butwithout any symptom of peculiar regard, and I remained convinced from theevening's scrutiny, that though she received his attentions with pleasure, shedid not invite them by any participation of sentiment. If you have not been mistaken here, I must have been in error. Your superior knowledge ofyour sister must make the latter probable. If it be so, if I have been misledby such error to inflict pain on her, your resentment has not beenunreasonable. But I shall not scruple to assert, that the serenity of yoursister's countenance and air was such as might have given the most acuteobserver a conviction that, however amiable her temper, her heart was notlikely to be easily touched. That I was desirous of believing her indifferentis certain—but I will venture to say that my investigation and decisions arenot usually influenced by my hopes or fears. I did not believe her to beindifferent because I wished it; I believed it on impartial conviction, astruly as I wished it in reason. My objections to the marriage were not merelythose which I last night acknowledged to have the utmost force of passion toput aside, in my own case; the want of connection could not be so great an evilto my friend as to me. But there were other causes of repugnance; causes which,though still existing, and existing to an equal degree in both instances, I hadmyself endeavoured to forget, because they were not immediately before me.These causes must be stated, though briefly. The situation of your mother'sfamily, though objectionable, was nothing in comparison to that total want ofpropriety so frequently, so almost uniformly betrayed by herself, by your threeyoung er sisters, and occasionally even by your father. Pardon me. It pains meto offend you. But amidst your concern for the defects of your nearestrelations, and your displeasure at this representation of them, let it give youconsolation to consider that, to have conducted yourselves so as to avoid anyshare of the like censure, is praise no less generally bestowed on you and yourelder sister, than it is honourable to the sense and disposition of both. Iwill only say farther that from what passed that evening, my opinion of allparties was confirmed, and every inducement heightened which could have led mebefore, to preserve my friend from what I esteemed a most unhappy connection.He left Netherfield for London, on the day following, as you, I am certain,remember, with the design of soon returning.

"The part which I acted is now to be explained.His sisters' uneasiness had been equally excited with my own; our coincidenceof feeling was soon discovered, and, alike sensible that no time was to be lostin detaching their brother, we shortly resolved on joining him directly inLondon. We accordingly went—and there I readily engaged in the office ofpointing out to my friend the certain evils of such a choice. I described, andenforced them earnestly. But, however this remonstrance might have staggered ordelayed his determination, I do not suppose that it would ultimately haveprevented the marriage, had it not been seconded by the assurance that Ihesitated not in giving, of your sister's indifference. He had before believedher to return his affection with sincere, if not with equal regard. But Bingleyhas great natural modesty, with a stronger dependence on my judgement than onhis own. To convince him, therefore, that he had deceived himself, was no verydifficult point. To persuade him against returning into Hertfordshire, whenthat conviction had been given, was scarcely the work of a moment. I cannotblame myself for having done thus much. There is but one part of my conduct inthe whole affair on which I do not reflect with satisfaction; it is that Icondescended to adopt the measures of art so far as to conceal from him yoursister's being in town. I knew it myself, as it was known to Miss Bingley; buther brother is even yet ignorant of it. That they might have met without illconsequence is perhaps probable; but his regard did not appear to me enoughextinguished for him to see her without some danger. Perhaps this concealment,this disguise was beneath me; it is done, however, and it was done for thebest. On this subject I have nothing more to say, no other apology to offer.

"With respect to that other, moreweighty accusation, of having injured Mr. Wickham, I can only refute it bylaying before you the whole of his connection with my family. Of what hehas particularly accused me I am ignorant; but of thetruth of what I shall relate, I can summon more than one witness of undoubtedveracity.

"Mr. Wickham is the son of a veryrespectable man, who had for many years the management of all the Pemberleyestates, and whose good conduct in the discharge of his trust naturallyinclined my father to be of service to him; and on George Wickham, who was hisgodson, his kindness was therefore liberally bestowed. My father supported himat school, and afterwards at Cambridge

(Let’s skip on a little in the text here)

"My excellent father died about fiveyears ago; and his attachment to Mr. Wickham was to the last so steady, that inhis will he particularly recommended it to me, to promote his advancement inthe best manner that his profession might allow—and if he took orders, desiredthat a valuable family living might be his as soon as it became vacant. Therewas also a legacy of one thousand pounds. His own father did not long survivemine, and within half a year from these events, Mr. Wickham wrote to inform methat, having finally resolved against taking orders, he hoped I should notthink it unreasonable for him to expect some more immediate pecuniaryadvantage, in lieu of the preferment, by which he could not be benefited. Hehad some intention, he added, of studying law, and I must be aware that theinterest of one thousand pounds would be a very insufficient support therein. Irather wished, than believed him to be sincere; but, at any rate, was perfectlyready to accede to his proposal. I knew that Mr. Wickham ought not to be aclergyman; the business was therefore soon settled—he resigned all claim toassistance in the church, were it possible that he could ever be in a situationto receive it, and accepted in return three thousand pounds. All connectionbetween us seemed now dissolved. In town I believe he chiefly lived, but hisstudying the law was a mere pretence, and being now free from all restraint,his life was a life of idleness and dissipation. For about three years I heardlittle of him; but on the decease of the incumbent of the living which had beendesigned for him, he applied to me again by letter for the presentation. Hiscircumstances, he assured me, and I had no difficulty in believing it, wereexceedingly bad. He had found the law a most unprofitable study, and was nowabsolutely resolved on being ordained, if I would present him to the living inquestion—of which he trusted there could be little doubt, as he was wellassured that I had no other person to provide for, and I could not haveforgotten my revered father's intentions. You will hardly blame me for refusingto comply with this entreaty, or for resisting every repetition to it. Hisresentment was in proportion to the distress of his circumstances—and he wasdoubtless as violent in his abuse of me to others as in his reproaches tomyself. After this period every appearance of acquaintance was dropped. How helived I know not. But last summer he was again most painfully obtruded on mynotice.

"I must now mention a circumstance whichI would wish to forget myself, and which no obligation less than the presentshould induce me to unfold to any human being. Having said thus much, I feel nodoubt of your secrecy. My sister, who is more than ten years my junior, wasleft to the guardianship of my mother's nephew, Colonel Fitzwilliam, andmyself. About a year ago, she was taken from school, and an establishmentformed for her in London; and last summer she went with the lady who presidedover it, to Ramsgate; and thither also went Mr. Wickham, undoubtedly by design;for there proved to have been a prior acquaintance between him and Mrs. Younge,in whose character we were most unhappily deceived; and by her connivance andaid, he so far recommended himself to Georgiana, whose affectionate heartretained a strong impression of his kindness to her as a child, that she waspersuaded to believe herself in love, and to consent to an elopement. She wasthen but fifteen, which must be her excuse; I joined them unexpectedly a day ortwo before the intended elopement, and then Georgiana, unable to support theidea of grieving and offending a brother whom she almost looked up to as afather, acknowledged the whole to me.

You may imagine what I felt and how I acted.Regard for my sister's credit and feelings prevented any public exposure; but Iwrote to Mr. Wickham, who left the place immediately, and Mrs. Younge was ofcourse removed from her charge. Mr. Wickham's chief object was unquestionablymy sister's fortune, which is thirty thousand pounds; but I cannot helpsupposing that the hope of revenging himself on me was a strong inducement. Hisrevenge would have been complete indeed.

"This, madam, is a faithful narrative ofevery event in which we have been concerned together; and if you do notabsolutely reject it as false, you will, I hope, acquit me henceforth ofcruelty towards Mr. Wickham. I know not in what manner, under what form offalsehood he had imposed on you; but his success is not perhaps to be wonderedat. Ignorant as you previously were of everything concerning either, detectioncould not be in your power, and suspicion certainly not in your inclination.

"You may possibly wonder why all thiswas not told you last night; but I was not then master enough of myself to knowwhat could or ought to be revealed. For the truth of everything here related, Ican appeal more particularly to the testimony of Colonel Fitzwilliam, who, fromour near relationship and constant intimacy, and, still more, as one of theexecutors of my father's will, has been unavoidably acquainted with everyparticular of these transactions. If your abhorrence of me should make my assertionsvalueless, you cannot be prevented by the same cause from confiding in mycousin; and that there may be the possibility of consulting him, I shallendeavour to find some opportunity of putting this letter in your hands in thecourse of the morning. I will only add, God bless you.

(END READING)