« She was one of those
physically vulgar, clever old bodies who had goth er own way all her life by
buttering the weaknesses of her men-folk. »
« In his heart was
enshrined the pure girl he had wedded and worshipped. »
« For in the pure
loftiness of the rector’s heart still bloomed the pure white snow-flower of his
young bride. »
« The two girls wore
their coats with fur collars turned up, and little chic hats pulled down over
their ears. Tall, slender, fresh-faced, naïve, yet confident, too confident, in
their school-girlish arrogance, they were so terribly English. They seemed so
free, and were as a matter of fact so tangled and tied up, inside
themselves. »
« But she never
travelled with him, and wet or fine, bicycled to the station, while he went on foot. »
« The two girls were
both determined that what they wanted was a really jolly social life. »
« This certainly is a
hard nut to crack. »
« She literally lived on
chocolates. »
« It is very much easier
to shatter prison bars than to open undiscovered doors to life. »
« I expect he’s abroad
where the sun shines. »
« She met his dark eyes
for a second, their level search, their insolence, their complete indifference
to people like Bob and Leo, and something took fire in her breast. She thought
‘He is stronger than I am ! He doesn’t care !’ »
« He was apparently a
man something over thirty, and a beau in his way. »
« His appearance was
curiously elegant, and quite expensive in its gipsy style. He was handsome,
too, pressing in his chin with the old, gipsy conceit, and now apparently not
heeding the strangers any more, as he led his good roan horse off the road,
preparing to back his cart. »
« She smiled in a way
that was more wolfish than cajoling, and the force of her will was felt, heavy
as iron beneath the velvet of her words. »
« It was a peculiar
look, in the eyes that belonged to the tribe of the humble : the pride of
the pariah, the half-sneering challenge of the outcast, who sneered at
law-abiding men, and went his own way. »
« And as he loped slowly
past her, on his flexible hips, it seemed to her still that he was stronger
than she was. Of all the men she had ever seen, this was the only one who was
stronger than she was, in her own kind of strength, her own kind of
understanding. »
« That was her constant
refrain to herself : Why is nothing important ? Whether she was in
church, or at a party of young people, or dancing in the hotel in the city, the
same little bubble of a question rose repeatedly on her consciousness :
Why is nothing important ?
There were plenty of young
men to make love to her : even devotedly. But with impatience she had to
shake them off. Why were they so unimportant ? – so
irritating ! »
« This made her lonely,
in spite of all the courting. Perhaps the courting only made her
lonelier. »
« Have you heard of
Simon Fawcett ? »
« Such a smart young
officer, awfully good class, so calm and amazing with a motor-car, and quite a
champion swimmer, it was intriguing to see him quietly, calmly washing dishes,
smoking his pipe, doing his job so alert and skilful. »
« His anger was of the
soft, snowy sort, which comfortably muffles the soul. »
« A husband was never
more than a semi-casual thing ! »
« Be braver in your
body, or your luck will go. »
« And only then she realized
that he had a name. »
The Virgin and the Gipsy – D.H.
Lawrence
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire