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Файл:The Legacy and Other Stories (Завещание и другие рассказы). Учебное пособие для студентов бакалавров, изучающих английский язык (второй год обучения),
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? He read on. “B.M. came unexpectedly after dinner.
Luckily,I wasalone.”That was onlya yearago.“Luckily” —why
luckily?—“Iwasalone.”Wherehadhebeenthatnight?Hechecked
thedate in his engagement book.It hadbeen thenight of theMan
sionHousedinner.AndB.M.andAngelahadspenttheeveningalone!
Hetriedtorecallthatevening.Wasshewaitingupforhimwhenhe
cameback? Had theroom looked justas usual?Werethere glasses
onthetable?Werethechairsdrawnclosetogether?Hecouldremember
nothing — nothing whatever, nothing except his own speech
attheMansionHousedinner.Itbecamemoreandmoreinexplicable
to him — the whole situation; his wife receiving an unknown man
alone. Perhaps the next volume would explain. Hastily he reached
for the last of the diaries — the one she had left unnished when
shedied.There,ontheveryrstpage,wasthatcursedfellowagain.
“DinedalonewithB.M…Hebecameveryagitated.Hesaiditwastime
weunderstoodeachother…Itriedtomakehimlisten.Buthewould
not.HethreatenedthatifIdidnot…”therestofthepagewasscored
over.Shehadwritten“Egypt.Egypt.Egypt,”overthewholepage.He
couldnotmakeoutasingleword;buttherecouldbeonlyoneinter
pretation:thescoundrelhadaskedhertobecomehismistress.Alone
inhisroom!The blood rushedtoGilbert Clandon’sface. Heturned
thepagesrapidly.Whathadbeenheranswer?Initialshadceased. It
wassimply“he”now.“He came again.ItoldhimIcould notcome
toanydecision…Iimploredhimtoleaveme.”Hehadforcedhimself
uponherinthisveryhouse.Butwhyhadn’tshetoldhim?Howcould
shehavehesitatedfor aninstant?Then:“Iwrotehimaletter.”Then
pageswereleftblank.Thentherewasthis:“Noanswertomyletter.”
Thenmoreblankpages; and thenthis:“Hehas donewhathethrea
tened.”Afterthat—whatcameafterthat?Heturnedpageafterpage.
Allwereblank.Butthere,ontheverydaybeforeherdeath,wasthis
entry:“HaveIthecouragetodoittoo?”Thatwastheend.
GilbertClandonletthebookslidetotheoor.Hecouldseeher
infrontofhim.ShewasstandingonthekerbinPiccadilly.Hereyes
stared;herstswereclenched.Herecamethecar…
11
Hecouldnotbearit.Hemustknowthetruth.Hestrodetothetele
phone.
“MissMiller!”Therewassilence.Thenheheardsomeonemoving
intheroom.
“SissyMillerspeaking”—hervoiceatlastansweredhim.
“Who,”hethundered,“isB.M.?”
Hecouldhearthecheapclocktickingonhermantelpiece;thena
longdrawnsigh.Thenatlastshesaid:
“Hewasmybrother.”
He WAS her brother; her brother who had killed himself. “Is
there,”heheardSissyMillerasking,“anythingthatIcanexplain?”
“Nothing!”hecried.“Nothing!”
Hehadreceivedhislegacy.Shehadtold him thetruth.Shehad
steppedoffthekerbtorejoinherlover.Shehadsteppedoffthekerb
toescapefromhim.
(A Haunted House and Other Short Stories,
AHarvestBookHarcourt,Inc.,NewYork,1972)
T a sk s a n d e xe r c i s e s
1.Selfcenterednessisconcernforyourowninterestsandwelfare.
How hard is it, in your opinion, to deal with selfcentered people?
Wouldyoureckonthisqualityasabadtraitofcharacter?
2. Sometimesit happens so that husband and wife start feeling
lonelyevenwhentheykeeplivingunderthesameroof.Canyouac
countforthisphenomenon?Whoistoblameinsuchsituations?
3.Everyoneisn’tthesame.Whatisyourideaofahappymarriage?
4.Whatisyourattitudetounfaithfulness?
12
Virginia Woolf (1882–1941), English author,feminist, essayist,
publisher,andcriticwroteA Room of One’s Own(1929).Regardless
st
ofthe polemic,or because of it, even into the21
Century Woolf’s
prodigiousoutputofdiaries,letters,criticalreviews,essays,shortsto
ries, and novels continue to be the source of muchscholarly study.
AdelineVirginiaStephenwasborninLondon,Englandon25January
1882,daughterofSir LeslieStephen(18321904),literarycriticand
rst editor of the Dictionary of National Biography. His rst wife,
daughterofWilliamMakepeaceThackeray,HarrietMarion(b.1840)
diedin1875.Virginia’smotherwashissecondwife.Manysuccess
fulVictorianauthorsofthetimewereregularvisitorstoherbustling
homein Hyde Parkincluding HenryJamesand GeorgeEliot.Their
worksandmanyothers’includingCharlesDickens’sandThackeray’s
werepartofherhomeeducation.Herfatherhadamassivelibraryso
sheandhersisterwerenotwithoutmaterialalthoughVirginiawould
soon reject the values and morals of their generation. Virginia had
vividandfondmemoriesofthesetimeswhichoftenhadaninuence
onherwritingincludingvisitstoanearbylighthouse.Howeverthey
endedwhenhermotherdied;shewasjustthirteenyearsoldandsuf
feredtherstmajorbreakdownofmanythatwouldplagueheroffand
ontherestofherlife.ThedeathofStella,hersister,whohadbecome
likeamother toVirginiaand thedeathof herfathercaused another
periodofprofounddepression.Thenshemovedtoanotherneighbor
hoodinLondon,Bloomsbury.Virginiawasfeelingbetterandby1905
waswritinginearnestarticlesandessays,andbecameabookreviewer
fortheTimes Literary Supplement.ShealsotaughtteachingEnglish
andHistoryatMorleyCollegeinLondon.
1. Mrs. Clandon left Sissy Miller her own pearl ring as some
thingtorememberher by.2.Angelahad beenseriouslyillfor quite
13
awhilebeforeherdeath.3.Thefactthathiswifehadlefteverything
inimpeccableorderdidn’tarouseGilbertClandon’ssuspicion.4.Her
charityworkwastheonlythingtheyhadnotsharedwhenAngelawas
alive.5.Angela had been killed in a car crash. 6. Sissy Miller was
thepictureofreliability.7.MissMillertookadvantage ofthesitua
tionandaskedheremployerforsomenancialassistance.8.Theidea
thatSissyMillerwasattracted towards himmadeGilbertfeelgood.
9.Angelaand Gilbert’smarriage wasnevercloudlessfrom thevery
start.10. Mr.Clandon nevergot over thefact that theywere child
less.11.Angelalookeduponhernewcharityworkasatediousduty.
12.Gilberttookanimmediate likingtoB.M.from her diary.13.If
onlyAngela had reectedon thewhole situationin cold blood, she
mighthavethoughtofsomeotherwayout.
1.CanGilbertbecharacterizedasaselfcenteredperson?Prove
yourviewpointwiththe examplesfromthetext.2.WhatwasAnge
lalike?Wassheasfullofherselfandselfabsorbedasherhusband?
3.Whatwas Gilbert’s attitude tothose sociallyinferiorto him,Sis
sy Miller and her brother,for instance. 4.Angela was sympathetic
andwithallherheartwishedtomakeadifference.Characterizeher
husbandinthis respect.Shouldn’the have hadthe sameaspirations
being,byhisownadmission,“aprominentpolitician”.5.Canwetrace
theriseofAngela’sloveforB.M.andtheirrelationship?Howreliable
istheevidencethereadershave?6.HowdidMr.Clandonfeelabout
havingchildren?Comparehisfeelingwith his wife’s.7. Half laug
hing,GilbertrecallsthatAngela“hadtakenhernewworkseriously”.
Doesit meanthat he nds women, ingeneral, andhis wife,in par
ticular,utterlyincapableofworking?8.Atthebeginningofthestory
Mrs. Clandonappears as a domestic woman whose role “to realize
herresponsibilityasGilbert’swife”formsthecenterofheruniverse.
Eventually,shewindsuphaving“aheatedargumentaboutsocialism”,
performinghercharityworkdutiesandtiredofbeingidle.Comment
onAngela’scharacterdevelopment.
14
… little volumes, bound in green leather, stood behind him
onherwritingtable.
a)Ten b)Thirteen c)Fifteen
“No,no,no,”hecouldhearhersay,“AfterI’m…—perhaps.”
a)divorced b)dead c)free
Butshehadsteppedstraightoffthekerb,thedriverofthecar
hadsaidat….
a)theinquest b)theinquiry c)theinterrogation
Angelahadbeenmuchmoretoherthan….
a)anemployee b)asecretary c)anemployer
Shehadbeenthegreatest…tohiminhiscareer.
a)nuisance b)help c)danger
Itmighthavebeenbettertohavelefther…,oreventhetype
writer.
a)asumofmoney b)atokenofhisaffection c)abagofclothes
Howhewouldhavelikedtoshare…withhiswife!
a)thatnews b)thatstory c)thatjoke
Oneof thedelightsof travellingwithAngela’dbeenthat she
wassoeagerto….
a)chat b)learn c)walk
“HowIwish,”oneentryread,“thatGilberthad…!”
a)ason b)moremoney c)amoreimportantpost
“Iamquitecertainnowthathewillbe…!”
a)King b)President c)PrimeMinister
He remembered how he … the clothes she wore on those
occasions.
a)loved b)hated c)disliked
WhenIthinkofit,Icanhardlybeartogoonlivinginsuch….
a)luxury b)poverty c)conditions
”He
skippedon.…Hereadon.”
15
1. предвидеть, предчувствовать чтолибо; 2. ступить с тро
туаранамостовую;3.знаквнимания;4.обожатьчтолибо,иметь
страсть к чемулибо; 5. наследство; 6. принимать чтолибо как
должное;7.даватьпоказания,показыватьнадознании;8.прикла
дыватькглазамплаток,вытираяслёзы;9.сделатьнадсобойуси
лие;10.бытьвтрауре;11.совершатьпоездкупоизбирательному
округу;12.убедитькоголибо;13.недалёкий,узколобый;14.не
долюбливатьтакойтиплюдей;15.называтькоголибовлицо.
a)money orproperty that youreceive fromsomeone afterthey
die;b)unwillingtoacceptorunderstandnewordifferentideas,opin
ions,orcustoms;c)whenyoulikesomeoneorsomething;d)tothink
orknowthatsomethingisgoingtohappeninthefuture;e)tomake
someonefeelcertainthatsomethingistrue;f)alegalprocesstond
outthe cause ofsomeone’sdeath;g) avery strongliking for some
thing;h)totouchsomethinglightlyseveraltimes,usuallywithsome
thingsuchasacloth;i)somethingthatrepresentsafeeling,fact,event
etc;j)anattempttodosomething,especiallywhenthisinvolvesalot
ofhardworkordetermination;k)greatsadnessbecausesomeonehas
died;l)anareaofacountrythatelectsarepresentativetoaparliament.
1.His attitude isnarrowminded andinsensitive. 2. Theinquest
heardthatshe diedfrommultiple injuries. 3.Thedisaster could not
have been foreseen. 4. Baker had to convince jurors that his client
hadbeen nowhere near the scene of themurder.5. She dabbedher
16
eyeswithahandkerchief.6.I’vebeentryingtoconvinceJeantocome
withme.7.Theymadenoefforttoincludeusinthenegotiations.8.It
wasthecustomtovisitthoseinmourningandsitquietlywiththem.
9.HerepresentstheEssexconstituencyofEppingForest.10.Shere
ceivedasmalllegacyfrom heraunt.11.JimandKeithhada liking
andrespectforeachother.12.Iknowyoudon’tlikeher,butplease
makeanefforttobepolite.13.Nooneforesawwhathewasplanning.
14.Pleaseacceptthisgiftasasmalltokenofourappreciation.15.She
hadapassionforgardening.
1.Унее страстьк жемчужнымброшкам.2.Неможетбыть,
чтобы она предвидела это преступление. 3. Она решилась бро
ситьсяподколесаавтомобиля.Какона,должнобыть,быласним
несчастна,бедняжка!4.Ярасцениваюэтотподароккакзнактвое
говнимания.5.Япрекраснознаю,чтотынедолюбливаешьтаких
людей.Но,пожалуйста,постарайсянегрубитьему.6.Несмотря
на то, что онабыла в трауре,ей пришлось сопровождатьбрата
впоездкепоизбирательномуокругу.7.«Неужелиунегонетни
какогодараксочувствию?—воскликнулаона,вытираяслезы,—
Ведьемувсеголишьнадодатьпоказаниянадознании».8.Он—
такойнедалекийчеловек.11.Ихтруднобылоубедитьобращаться
кнемупоимени.
in(4words),un
(1 word), dis (1 word) less (1 word)
formal, careful, explicable, believable, congruous, appearance,
expected, useful, signicant, certainty, agreeable, avoidable, expe
rienced.
17
1.GilbertClandon,takingupthepearlbroochthatlay…alitter
ofringsandbrooches…alittletableinhiswife’sdrawingroom,read
theinscription:“…SissyMiller,…mylove.”2.Yetshehadbeen…
perfecthealthwhensheleft…thehousethatmorning,sixweeksago;
whenshestepped…thekerb…Piccadillyandthecarhadkilledher.
3.He could guesswhat hiswife hadmeant … her.4.Shewas put
ting…hergloves.5.Oh,herewastheexplanationitreferred…her
work… theEast End. 6.He couldnot make … a singleword; but
there could be only one interpretation: thescoundrel had asked her
tobecomehismistress.7.Shehadwritten“Egypt.Egypt.Egypt,”…
thewholepage.8.Thethoughtadded…hisgrowingdislikeofB.M.
9.Heturnedthepages,picking…every reference …B.M.10.He
skipped….11.Heturned page…page.12. Hestrode…the tele
phone.13.Shehadsteppedoffthekerbtoescape…him.14.Oddly
enoughhehadnevermuchregretted…himself.15.Heremembered
howhehated…theclothesshewore…thoseoccasions.
a)бросать;b)возобновляться;c)вставать,подниматься;d)до
пускатьчтолибо,какуюлибомысль;e)иметьзначение,значить;
f)ложиться,лежать;g)опираться;h)предвидеть;i)происходить,
иметьместо(зд.«прийтивголову,мелькнуть»омысли);j)уда
рять, поражать коголибо; k) упоминать чтолибо, ссылаться
начтолибо;l)шагатьбольшимишагами
18
refer
occurred
foreseen
lie
шагать
большими
шагами
striking
опираться
cast
meant
admitting
risen
recurred
19
1) Every ring, every necklace, every little Chinese box — she
had…passionforlittleboxes—had…nameonit.2)Thishehad
given her; this was the enamel dolphin with the ruby eyesshe had
pounced upon one day in … back street in Venice. 3) Ever since
theyweremarried, she hadkept… diary.4) Hehadnever seen her
aloneinhislife,nor,ofcourse,in…tears.5)Shehadbeen…friend.
6) ForAngela had her share of the duties that fall to the lot of …
prominentpolitician’swife.7)…ratherincongruousgiftitseemed.It
mighthavebeenbettertohavelefther…sumofmoney,oreven…
typewriter.8)Andshereplied,asshetookitalmostasifshetoohad
prepared…speech,thatitwouldalwaysbe…treasuredpossession.
9)The diarywas full ofreferences like this:“Saw Mrs. Jones.She
hasten children. Husbandlost his arm in …accident. Did mybest
tond…jobforLily.”10)WhenIthinkofit,Icanhardlybeartogo
onlivinginsuch…luxury.
1.Commentonthetitleoftheshortstory.Doyouthinkitreveals
theeventsthatoccurfurtherinthestory?
2.Arrangethestoryeventsinorderofappearance.Explainwhat
makesthenarratorpresenttheminreverseorderratherthaninorder
ofappearance.Whatdoesthisshiftoftimetechniquecontributeto?
3. Make character sketches of Angela, Gilbert, Sissy Miller’s
brother. Concentrateon their peculiarfeatures.Tohelpyou todoit,
focusonthevocabularybitssuggestedabove.
4.Expertsclaimthatnowadayswomenarecheating as muchas
men.Makeanattempttoaccountforthewidespread problem offe
maleindelity.
5.Whatelsemaymakespousesnallygoforendingtheirmarriage?
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