Pride and Prejudice; Sense and Sensibility

Chapter 14 The Self-Righteous Collins
Mr. Bennet said hardly a word during the meal.Now, he thought, when the servants had left, he could speak to this visitor.He could foresee that the honored visitor would smile if he began by talking of Lady Catherine, and he began the subject by saying how fortunate Mr. Collins was to have such a benefactor, and that Catherine It is rare that Madame de Bourgh was so obedient to him, and so attentive to his comfort in all aspects of life.Mr. Bennett certainly could not have chosen the subject better.Mr. Collins did speak eloquently of the lady's praise.

Once the subject started, his original seriousness became even more serious, and with a conceited look on his face, he said that he had never seen any person in his life who was as important as Lady Catherine. Virtue, so friendly.He said he had been honored to have spoken twice in her presence, and had been favored by his wife, and he was full of praise for his two sermons.Madame had invited him to dine twice at Rosings, and last Saturday evening to her house to play a forty-card game of four-handed card, which began to flourish in the second half of the eighteenth century. .As far as he knew, many people thought Lady Catherine was proud, but he only thought it was kind.When she usually talks to him, she always treats him as a person of status.She had no objection to his company with the neighbors, or his occasional absence from the parish for a week or two, to visit friends and relatives.Thanks to her sympathy, she once personally advised him to get married as soon as possible, as long as he can choose his partner carefully.She also paid a visit to his house once, and was very appreciative of all the improvements he had made in the house, and she herself gave him instructions to add some shelves to the upstairs closet.

Mrs. Bennet said: "I believe all this is done very well and politely, and I think she must be a pleasant woman. It's a pity that ordinary ladies can't compare with her. Does she live near you?" ,gentlemen?"

"The garden where the humble house is located and Rosings Garden where my wife lives are only separated by an alley."

"You say she's a widow, sir? Does she have any family?"

"She has only one daughter—the heir of Rosings, who will inherit a very large fortune in the future."

"Why," exclaimed Mrs. Bennet, shaking her head, "then she is luckier than many girls. What kind of lady is she? Pretty?"

"She is a very lovely girl. Lady Catherine herself said that for real beauty Miss de Bourgh surpasses the fairest woman in the world; She was born noble. She could have many talents, but it is a pity that she has been in poor health and did not study, otherwise she must be proficient in everything. Her female teacher told me this. The teacher is still with their mother and daughter. Live together. She is indeed very sweet, and often comes to the humble house in her little buggy, regardless of her name."

"Has she ever met the emperor? Among the ladies who have been in the palace, I don't seem to have heard her name."

"Because she is too feeble to go to the capital, as I said one day to Lady Catherine, this is indeed the loss of one of the brightest jewels in the English court; and my lady is quite pleased with my statement. You It is conceivable that, on every occasion, I will please the ladies with a few clever compliments. I have said many times to Lady Catherine that her fair lady is a born duchess, and will No matter which duke you marry, no matter how high the uncle's status is, instead of increasing the dignity of the lady, it will make the lady win him glory. She was really happy to hear these words, and I always feel that I should be here Pay special attention to it.”

Mr. Bennett said: "You are quite right. Since you have this talent, you can praise people very skillfully, which will also be good for yourself. May I ask you, your kind of charming Did you just think of your flattery, or did you think about it a long time ago?"

"Mostly I think of it from temporary situations. However, sometimes I will joke with myself, think of some good little compliments in advance, and use them when I have the opportunity, and when I say them, I always remember them." It’s about pretending it’s coming naturally.”

Mr. Bennet was quite right in his guess.His cousin was as wild as he had imagined it to be, and he listened with great amusement, but tried to maintain his composure, and needed no share in his delight, save an occasional glance in Elizabeth's direction.

By tea time, the crime was finally over.Mr. Bennet cheerfully led his visitor into the drawing-room, and when the tea was over he cheerfully invited him to read something to his ladies and ladies.Mr. Collins immediately agreed.They took a book, but as soon as they saw it—for it was immediately recognizable that it had been borrowed from a circulation library—he drew back in surprise, and hastily declared that he never read novels. At the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century, due to the influence of feudal consciousness, there was an evil trend against novels in Britain, especially the feudal aristocrats, who openly regarded novels as a boring or even harmful pastime and cast them aside.Collins' self-proclaimed "never read novels" further showed his pompousness and pompous elegance. , begging their forgiveness.Katie stared at him, and Lydia cried out.So they brought a few other books, and he thought it over and chose Fordyce's Sermons. James Fordyce (1720-1796): Women's Sermons Collection", most of the content is to instill feudal ethics and morals to young women. .

As soon as he opened the book, Lydia stared open-mouthed; and when he had read three pages with such monotonous solemnity, Lydia interrupted him hastily: "Mother, do you know that Uncle Philip wants Fire Richard? If he does fire him, Colonel Forster will be willing to employ him. That's what my uncle told me himself on Saturday. I'm going to Meryton to-morrow to find out more and ask them, When will Mr Denny be back from town?"

Lydia was stopped by her two older sisters.Mr. Collins was very angry, and putting down his book, said: "I often see young ladies who are not interested in serious books, but what is written in these books is entirely for their own good. To tell the truth, this surprises me, because it is most important to them. Of course, there is nothing more beneficial than the teachings of the sages. But I am not willing to force my young cousin."

So he turned and asked Mr. Bennet to play backgammon with him, and Mr. Bennet promised him that it would be wise to let the girls play their own little game. Art bar.

Mrs. Bennet and her five daughters apologized very politely to him, asking him to forgive Lydia for interrupting his reading, and saying that if he read it again, she promised it would never happen again. The same thing.Mr. Collins begged them not to mind, saying that he did not blame his cousin at all, and would never think her offended him and held a grudge for it.Having explained this, he sat down with Mr. Bennet at another table to play backgammon.

(End of this chapter)