Little Women - Chapter 38

In France the young girls have a dull time of it till they are married, when 'Vive la liberte!' becomes their motto. In America, as everyone knows, girls early sign the declaration of independence, and enjoy their freedom with republican zest ¹, but the young matrons usually abdicate ² with the first heir to the throne and go into a seclusion ³ almost as close as a French nunnery, though by no means as quiet. Whether they like it or not, they are virtually put upon the shelf as soon as the wedding excitement is over, and most of them might exclaim, as did a very pretty woman the other day, "I'm as handsome as ever, but no one takes any notice of me because I'm married.", ,Not being a belle ⁴ or even a fashionable lady, Meg did not experience this affliction till her babies were a year old, for in her little world primitive ⁵ customs prevailed, and she found herself more admired and beloved than ever., ,As she was a womanly little woman, the maternal ⁶ instinct was very strong, and she was entirely ⁷ absorbed in her children, to the utter exclusion ⁸ of everything and everybody else. Day and night she brooded over them with tireless devotion and anxiety, leaving John to the tender mercies of the help, for an Irish lady now presided over the kitchen department. Being a domestic man, John decidedly missed the wifely attentions he had been accustomed to receive, but as he adored his babies, he cheerfully relinquished ¹⁰ his comfort for a time, supposing with masculine ignorance that peace would soon be restored. But three months passed, and there was no return of repose ¹¹. Meg looked worn and nervous, the babies absorbed every minute of her time, the house was neglected, and Kitty, the cook, who took life 'aisy', kept him on short commons. When he went out in the morning he was bewildered by small commissions for the captive mamma, if he came gaily ¹² in at night, eager to embrace his family, he was quenched ¹³ by a " Hush ¹⁴! They are just asleep after worrying all day." If he proposed a little amusement at home, "No, it would disturb the babies." If he hinted at a lecture or a concert, he was answered with a reproachful look, and a decided ⁹ - "Leave my children for pleasure, never!" His sleep was broken by infant wails ¹⁶ and visions of a phantom ¹⁷ figure pacing noiselessly to and fro in the watches of the night. His meals were interrupted by the frequent flight of the presiding genius, who deserted ¹⁸ him, half-helped, if a muffled ¹⁹ chirp ²⁰ sounded from the nest above. And when he read his paper of an evening, Demi's colic got into the shipping ²¹ list and Daisy's fall affected ²² the price of stocks, for Mrs. Brooke was only interested in domestic news., , ,John would have preferred his own fireside if it had not been so lonely, but as it was he gratefully took the next best thing and enjoyed his neighbor's society., ,Meg rather approved of the new arrangement at first, and found it a relief to know that John was having a good time instead of dozing ³¹ in the parlor, or tramping about the house and waking the children. But by-and-by, when the teething worry was over and the idols ³³ went to sleep at proper hours, leaving Mamma time to rest, she began to miss John, and find her workbasket dull company, when he was not sitting opposite in his old dressing ³⁴ gown, comfortably scorching ³⁵ his slippers ³⁶ on the fender. She would not ask him to stay at home, but felt injured because he did not know that she wanted him without being told, entirely forgetting the many evenings he had waited for her in vain. She was nervous and worn out with watching and worry, and in that unreasonable ³⁷ frame of mind which the best of mothers occasionally experience when domestic cares oppress them. Want of exercise robs them of cheerfulness, and too much devotion to that idol ³² of American women, the teapot, makes them feel as if they were all nerve and no muscle., ,He wrote his novel about his trip to Asia with zest.他兴趣浓厚的写了一本关于他亚洲之行的小说 。,The reason I wnat to abdicate is to try something different.我辞职是因为我想尝试些不一样的东西
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