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7 Darcy proposes marriage7 |
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Elizabeth was sitting by herself the next morning， writing to Jane， |
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while Mrs Collins and Maria were shopping in the village. |
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She heard the doorbell ring， and knew that meant a visitor had arrived， |
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but she was greatly surprised when Mr Darcy，and Mr Darcy only， was shown into the room. |
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He seemed astonished too，on finding her alone. |
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‘I apologize for disturbing you，Miss Bennet. “ |
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I understood that all the ladies were at home.’ |
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‘Please don't apologize，Mr Darcy. “ |
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I hope Lady Catherine and her daughter are well?’ |
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‘Very well，thank you.’He said no more.“ |
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As he seemed in danger of sinking into total silence， |
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Elizabeth had to think of something to say. |
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She remarked， ‘How very suddenly you all left Netherfield last November， Mr Darcy! |
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I hope Mr Bingley and his sisters were well，when you left London?’ |
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‘Perfectly， thank you.’That was all the answer he gave.“ |
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‘I think I have heard that “ |
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Mr Bingley has not much idea of ever returning to Netherfield again?’ |
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‘It is probable that he will spend very little of his time there in future. “ |
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He has many friends elsewhere.’ |
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Elizabeth did not want to talk any longer about Mr Bingley， |
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and，determined to leave the conversation to Mr Darcy， |
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she remained silent. |
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He understood， and soon began to speak again. |
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Mr Collins appears very fortunate in his choice of a wife.’“ |
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‘Yes， indeed. “ |
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She is one of the few sensible women who would have accepted him， |
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although I'm not sure I consider her marrying Mr Collins as the wisest thing she ever did. |
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She seems perfectly happy， however， |
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and financially speaking，it's a good marriage.’ |
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‘It must be very agreeable to her to be such a short distance from her own family and friends.’“ |
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‘A short distance，you say? “ |
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It is nearly eighty kilometres!’ |
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‘And what is that?Little more than half a day's journey， on a good road. “ |
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Yes，I call it a very short distance.’ |
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‘I would never have said Mrs Collins lived near her family，’cried Elizabeth.“ |
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‘That shows how much you are attached to Hertfordshire. “ |
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Anywhere outside the Longbourn area would，I suppose， seem far away to you. |
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As he spoke，he smiled a little. |
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Perhaps he supposed she was thing of Jane and Netherfield， thought Elizabeth， and she blushed. |
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‘ Whether the distance seems long or short depends on many circumstances. “ |
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If the family’s income is large enough to pay for frequent journeys， |
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then distance is not a problem. |
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But Mr and Mrs Collins will not be able to afford to travel very often，despite their comfortable income. |
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I'm certain my friend does not consider Hunsford near her family.’ |
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Mr Darcy moved his chair a little towards her， and said， |
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‘You cannot have a right to such a very strong local attachment. “ |
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You haven't spent your whole life at Longbourn, I am sure. |
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Elizabeth looked surprised. |
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Experiencing a change of feeling， |
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the gentleman moved his chair away again， |
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took a newspaper from the table， |
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and，glancing at it，said in a colder voice， |
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‘Are you pleased with Kent?’ “ |
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They discussed Kent calmly and politely for a few minutes， |
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and were then interrupted by Charlotte and Maria， |
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who had returned from the village. |
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Mr Darcy sat a little while longer， |
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without saying much to anybody，and then went away. |
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‘What can be the meaning of this!’said Charlotte， as soon as he had gone. “ |
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‘My dear Lizzy， he must be in love with you，“ |
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or he would never have visited us in this familiar way.’ |
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But when Elizabeth described his silence， |
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that did not seem likely， even to hopeful Charlotte， |
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and they could only suppose that he had nothing better to do. |
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In fact， from now on， both Mr Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam called regularly at the Rectory. |
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It was obvious that Colonel Fitzwilliam came because he enjoyed talking to the ladies， |
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and Elizabeth was reminded by her own satisfaction in being with him， |
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as well as by his evident admiration of her，of her former favourite，Wickham. |
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But it was more difficult to understand why Mr Darcy came. |
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He did not often speak， and seldom appeared interested in the conversation . |
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Even Charlotte， who observed Mr Darcy closely， |
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was not sure whether he admired Elizabeth or not， |
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and began to hope that perhaps her friend might marry Colonel Fitzwilliam instead. |
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When she took her daily walk along the path bordering the park， |
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Elizabeth met Mr Darcy unexpectedly more than once. |
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This was the more surprising， |
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because she was careful to inform him that it was her favourite walk， |
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So that he could avoid meeting her. |
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It was also strange that， although he could just have greeted her and walked on， |
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he always thought it necessary to turn back and walk with her. |
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She could not quite understand him. |
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But one day， as she was walking， she met Colonel Fitzwilliam， not Mr Darcy， |
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and greeted him with a smile. |
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They walked back to the Rectory together. |
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‘Are you leaving Kent this Sunday?’she asked.“ |
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‘Yes，if Darcy doesn't put it off again.’“ |
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‘He is fortunate to be able to arrange things as he likes.’“ |
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‘Well，we all want to do that，’replied Colonel Fitzwilliam.“ |
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‘But he is used to doing what he likes， “ |
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because he is rich， and many others are poor. |
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I，for example—I'm a younger son，you know， and won't inherit my father's fortune， |
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so I shall never be rich or independent， like Darcy.’ |
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‘Now seriously， you cannot call yourself poor. “ |
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When have you ever suffered because of lack of money?’ |
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‘Well，perhaps I haven't really suffered much yet. “ |
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But there are difficulties. |
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A younger son doesn't have a free choice when marrying. |
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He cannot afford to marry a girl with no fortune.’ |
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Elizabeth blushed， thinking that he might mean her， |
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and began to talk of something else. |
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She asked him about Darcy's sister， |
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and mentioned that the Bingley sisters liked her very much. |
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‘Bingley—yes，I know them.Their brother is very pleasant“ |
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a great friend of Darcy’s，’answered Colonel Fitzwilliam. |
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‘Oh， yes， Mr Darcy is extremely kind to Mr Bingley， and takes very good care of him，’said Elizabeth drily.“ |
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‘Yes， I believe Darcy does take care of Bingley. “ |
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I'm thinking of a recent situation， |
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which Darcy was telling me about on the journey here. |
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He was congratulating himself on having saved a friend from a most foolish marriage. |
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Of course， I'm not sure the friend was Bingley， |
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as Darcy didn't mention the name. |
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‘Did Mr Darcy give you his reasons for interfering?’“ |
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‘I understood that there were some very strong objections to the lady.’“ |
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Elizabeth could not speak for a moment. |
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When she was able to control her anger， she changed the conversation. |
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As soon as they reached the Rectory， she said goodbye to Colonel Fitzwilliam， |
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and went straight upstairs to her room. |
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At last she could think without interruption about what he had told her. |
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Bingley，must have been the friend to whom Darcy was referring. |
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She had always assumed that Darcy was involved in the plan to separate Jane and Bingley， |
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but it now appeared that he， not Miss Bingley， |
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was the main cause of all that Jane had suffered， and still continued to suffer. |
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The‘very strong objections to the lady’probably “ |
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consisted of having one uncle who was a country lawyer， |
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and another who was in business in London. |
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There could be no possible objections to Jane herself， |
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as she was intelligent， beautiful and charming. |
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Nor could anyone object to Mr Bennet as a father-in-law. |
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When Elizabeth thought of her mother， |
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she felt a little less confident. |
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She was still convinced，however， |
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that Mr Darcy was interested in highborn connections |
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rather than character or common sense. |
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It was this， the worst kind of pride， |
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which had destroyed for a while every hope of happiness for the most affectionate， generons heart in the world. |
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Thinking about all this made Elizabeth so upset and unhappy that she soon had a headache. |
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It grew so much worse in the evening， |
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and she was so unwilling to see Mr Darcy， |
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that she decided not to go to Rosings that evening with Mr and Mrs Collins. |
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Instead，she stayed in the Rectory sitting-room， |
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rereading Jane's recent letters from London. |
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She was saddened to discover that， although Jane never complained， or referred to the past， |
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in almost every line there was a lack of cheerfulness， |
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which Elizabeth had not noticed the first time， |
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and which now made her rather anxious. |
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She was relieved to think that Darcy would be leaving Rosings in two days’time， |
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and she herself would be with Jane in less than two weeks. |
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Colonel Fitzwilliam would also be leaving with Darcy， |
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but he had made it clear that he had no intention of proposing to her， |
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so she did not intend to be unhappy about him. |
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Just then，she heard the doorbell， |
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and wondered if it might be Colonel Fitzwilliam， |
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come to enquire about her health. |
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But to her astonishment she saw Mr Darcy walk into the room. |
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In a hrried manner he began to ask how she was feeling. |
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She answered him with cold politeness. |
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He sat down for a few moments， and then， getting up， |
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walked about the room. |
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Elizabeth was surprised， but said nothing. |
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After a silence of several minutes， he came towards her， |
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with none of his usual calmness， and said， |
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‘In vain have I struggled.It is no good. “ |
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I cannot conquer my feelings. |
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You must allow me to tell you how warmly I admire and love you.’ |
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Elizabeth stared，blushed，doubted，and was silent. |
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He considered this sufficient encouragement， |
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and confessed all that he felt， |
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and had felt for a long time， for her. |
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He expressed himself well， but it was not only of love that he spoke. |
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He also talked of his pride， and his sense of her social inferiority， |
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which had made him struggle against his feelings for so long. |
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In spite of her dislike for him， |
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Elizabeth appreciated what a compliment such a man's affection was， |
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and was at first sorry for the pain he was about to receive. |
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But soon， as she heard his references to her inferior position， |
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she lost all pity，and became very angry. |
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She waited patiently，however，until he had finished. |
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He ended by describing the strength of his love for her， |
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which，in spite of all his attempts， |
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he had been unable to conquer with arguments of reason and common sense， |
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and finally he asked for her hand in marriage. |
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She could see that he had no doubt of a favourable answer， |
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which only made her angrier. |
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‘I believe society considers it correct，in cases like this，’she replied，‘to express grateful thanks. |
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So if I could feel grateful， |
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I would now thank you. |
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But I cannot— |
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I have never wanted your good opinion of me， |
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and I cannot accept it. |
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I'm sorry to hurt anyone， but it has not been done deliberately， |
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and I hope the pain will not last long. |
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The pride which， you tell me，has long prevented the expression of your affection， |
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can have little difficulty in conquering your feelings after this explanation.’ |
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Mr Darcy， whose eyes were fixed on her face， |
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was both angry and surprised by her words. |
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His face went pale， and he was clearly struggling to control himself. |
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There was a dreadful pause， |
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and then he spoke in a voice of forced calmness. |
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‘And this is all the reply I am to have the honour of expecting! “ |
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I might，perhaps，wish to be informed why，with so little attempt at politeness，I am rejected.’ |
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‘I might as well ask why，with so evident a wish to offend and insult me， “ |
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you chose to tell me that you loved me against your reason and even against your character. |
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But even if my own feelings towards you had been favourable， |
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do you think anything could tempt me to accept the man |
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who has destroyed， perhaps for ever， the happiness of a most dear sister?’ |
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As she said this， Mr Darcy changed colour， |
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but he listened without trying to interrupt her as she continued. |
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‘I have every reason in the world to think badly of you. |
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Can you deny that you were the cause of Jane's separation from Mr Bingley，and of her unhappiness? “ |
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Can you deny it?’ |
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‘I have no wish to deny that I did everything I could to separate them， “ |
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and that I am delighted with my success. |
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Towards my friend I have been kinder than to myself.’ |
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Elizabeth treated this last remark with disdain， |
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but its meaning did not escape her. |
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‘But it is not only because of Jane that I dislike you. “ |
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My opinion of you was decided long ago. |
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I heard all about your character from Mr Wickham. |
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Now， what can you have to say on this matter? How can you defend yourself?’ |
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‘You take an eager interest in that gentleman，’“ |
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said Darcy， less calmly than before . |
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The colour was rising in his face. |
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‘Who can help feeling an interest in him，when we hear of the unfortunate life he has had!’“ |
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‘Unfortunate!’repeated Darcy contemptuously. “ |
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‘Yes，unfortunate indeed.’ “ |
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‘And it was your fault，’cried Elizabeth with energy. “ |
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‘You took away his chance of a comfortable income and a good position， “ |
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which you knew had been intended for him. |
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You have left him poor， |
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and dependent， and disappointed. |
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You have done all this! |
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And you can still treat the mention of his name with contempt.’ |
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‘And this，’ cried Darcy， “ |
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as he walked with quick steps across the room， |
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‘is your opinion of me!Thank you for explaining it so fully. “ |
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But perhaps you might not have considered these offences of mine， |
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if your pride had not been hurt by my honest confession of my reasons for not proposing to you earlier. |
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Perhaps I should have hidden my struggles， |
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and flattered you by pretending I had every reason to love you. |
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But I hate disguise of any sort. |
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Nor am I ashamed of my feelings of pride， |
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which are very natural. |
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Could you expect me to delight in the inferiority of your family compared to mine?’ |
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Elizabeth felt herself growing more angry every moment. |
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‘Mr Darcy， you could not have made me the offer of your hand in any possible way “ |
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that would have tempted me to accept it. |
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The moment I first met you， |
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I noticed your pride， your sense of superiority， |
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and your selfish disdain for the feelings of others. |
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Later events strengthened my dislike for you. |
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You are the last man in the world whom I could ever be persuaded to marry.’ |
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‘You have said quite enough， madam. “ |
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I perfectly understand your feelings. |
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Forgive me for having taken up so much of your time， |
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and accept my best wishes for your health and happiness.’ |
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With these words he hurried out of the room， and the house. |
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Elizabeth felt so weak that she sat down and cried for half an hour. |
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She was so astonished to have received a proposal from Mr Darcy! |
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His affection for her must indeed have been strong， |
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to conquer all the objections he had to her family and position， |
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objections which had made him prevent his friend marrying her sister. |
| [17:35.71] |
But his terrible pride， his shameless confession of what he had done to separate Jane and Bingley， |
| [17:42.73] |
and his cruelty towards Wickham |
| [17:45.24] |
soon removed any pity she might have felt for him. |
