Pride and Prejudice; Sense and Sensibility

Chapter 67 Sense and Sensibility

Legacy sorrows and joys
The Dashwood family has settled in Sussex for generations.They live in Norland Manor, which is surrounded by family properties.The grandparents of this family have lived here for generations and lived a decent life, which is quite praised by the neighbors around.It turned out that the owner of the manor was a bachelor. This old gentleman lived to a very old age, and his sister kept him company and housekeeper for him, but unfortunately her sister died ten years earlier than him.A lot has changed in the family since my sister died.In order to make up for his sister's vacancy, he brought his nephew Henry Dashwood's family to Norland Manor.Henry Dashwood was the rightful heir to the estate, and the old gentleman intended to pass it on to him.Nephews, nieces and daughter-in-laws, plus their children as companions, made the life of the old owner very comfortable.

He also became more and more attached to their family.

Henry Dashwood and his wife took great care of him and made him happy, not only out of interest, but also because of their kindness, so he enjoyed all the family happiness that an old man should enjoy; Innocence and innocence add to his joy of life.

Mr. Henry Dashwood has a son by a previous wife and three daughters by his present wife.The son is a down-to-earth young man. His biological mother left him a large inheritance, which enabled him to live well since he was a child, and he can inherit half of his biological mother's inheritance when he grows up.He married a wife soon after he came of age, and this marriage added to his fortune.So for him, whether to inherit the family property of Nolan Manor is not as important as it is for his three younger sisters.The property of the sisters would be pitifully meager if it were not for the benefit of the father's inheritance of the family business.Their mother has nothing, and their father has only seven thousand pounds in his own hand, which can be bequeathed to them; because according to the law, the other half of his ex-wife's estate is also given to her son, and he only has the right to enjoy the inheritance during his lifetime. rights, but shall not be freely disposed of, such as sold or passed on to others. .If he dies, this half of the inheritance can only be inherited by his son.

Then the old farmer died, and his will was published: like all wills, it was both a joy and a disappointment.It wasn't that he was unjust and unkind in not passing on the inheritance to his nephew;Originally, Mr. Dashwood wanted to get the inheritance for his wife and daughters, not for himself and his son; but the will stipulated that the property must be completely passed on to his son and his four-year-old grandson. He has no right to use the property of the farm, or sell the precious forest trees on the production area to support his dearest and most needy wife and daughters.All the inheritance is sealed up for that child.This child came to Nolan Manor occasionally with his parents. Although he is lovable, he is no different from other two or three-year-old children. Yes, but in the end he won the favor of his great-grandfather and the old proprietor, who immediately compared all the filial piety his niece, daughter-in-law and three grandnieces had given him for many years.However, the old farmer was not ungrateful, and he still left a thousand pounds to each of his three grandnieces to show his love for them.

Mr. Dashwood was at first particularly disappointed, but he was of a cheerful and optimistic disposition, and he was full of hopes of many years of life; Things will improve soon.However, this long-overdue good luck passed into his hands only one year later, and he left the world, leaving to his widow and daughters, including what his uncle left to them. That's only ten thousand pounds.

At that time, the family saw that he was critically ill, so they sent someone to call his son.Mr. Dashwood barely supported his sick body, exhausted his last bit of strength, and urgently asked his son to take care of his stepmother and three younger sisters.

Mr. John Dashwood was not as distressed as the rest of the family, but he was deeply moved by his father's last words, and he promised to do what he could to make them as comfortable as possible.His father felt relieved about the future of his wife and daughter with such assurance.For a while, Mr. John Dashwood had time to carefully consider how much to help them within the scope of his own ability.

He's not a bad guy, as long as you don't think aloofness and self-interest are the bad things.Generally speaking, he is still very respected, because he is still very decent in his dealings with people.Had he married a kinder wife, he might have been more respected, and he might even have been kinder himself.It is a pity that he married too young, and loved his wife very much; and Mrs. John Dashwood was very like his husband, only narrower and more selfish.

When he made his promise to his father, he had in mind a gift of a thousand pounds each to his three sisters, to supplement their income.And at that time he really felt that he could afford it.Even if the half of his mother's property and present income were not counted, he could still earn four thousand pounds a year at present. Thinking of this, his heart warmed, and he felt that he could be generous. "Yes, I'm going to give them three thousand pounds, and it's a decent thing to do: it's enough to keep them safe. Three thousand pounds! I can come up with such a large sum without difficulty. .” He thought about this for several days, all day long, without any regrets.

His wife, Mrs. John Dashwood, arrived with her children and servants shortly after his father's funeral.She didn't say hello to her mother-in-law beforehand.She has the right to come, and no one can say no, because once her father-in-law dies, this place belongs to her husband.However, her behavior seemed extremely presumptuous and rude.To a woman in Mrs. Henry Dashwood's position it would be very unpleasant, as is human nature.Moreover, her sense of right and wrong was so strong, and her decency so impractical, that the very thought of such an insolent offense, whoever committed it or to whomever it was committed, struck her with deep emotion. Deeply disgusted.Although Mrs. John Dashwood had never been very popular with her husband's family, from now on she had the opportunity to let them know, and if necessary, if she was required to do anything, she could completely ignore others' pain of.

Mrs. Henry Dashwood Unless otherwise specified, "Mrs. Dashwood" in the following contents of this book refers to "Mrs. Henry Dashwood".Such abhorrence and deep contempt for such insolence made her wish to leave the house as soon as her daughter-in-law arrived, and never to return.However, the eldest daughter who couldn't stand her persuaded her again and again, asking her to think about whether it was appropriate to leave. On the other hand, because of her deep love for her three daughters, and for their sake, she finally decided to stay and did not follow her. Their brother fell out.

The eldest daughter Eleanor played a great role in persuading her mother.Although she is only 19 years old, she is very knowledgeable and level-headed, so she can be her mother's adviser and advise her mother.and Mrs. Dashwood's impetuous temper, and her usual imprudence, were often dissuaded by Eleanor, to the benefit of the whole family.Eleanor was good-natured, sweet-natured, and strong-hearted, but she knew how to restrain herself—a trait her mother had to learn, and one of her sisters was determined to refuse to learn.

Marianne is no worse than her sister in all aspects of talent.She is intelligent and sensible, and she is absorbed in whatever she does, and she has no restraint when she is sad or happy.She's generous, kind, and people-pleasing, and everything is fine, just not discreet.She bears an uncanny resemblance to her mother.

Elinor was very worried to see her sister being too sentimental, but Mrs. Dashwood thought this kind of character was very valuable.Now both of them are deeply saddened, and under mutual influence they contribute to each other's grief.The initial bereavement was overwhelming for them, and their grief was instant, immediate, and endless.They are blindly immersed in sadness, thinking about where they are sad, and the more they think about it, the sadder they become, and they make up their minds that this is the end of their life, and no one will help them.Eleanor was also very sad, but she was able to work hard and cheer herself up.She can discuss things with her brother.When the sister-in-law comes, she can treat each other with courtesy and take good care of her.She can try her best to persuade her mother to cheer up like her, and let her be patient and tolerant.

The youngest sister, Margaret, was a cheerful and kind-hearted little girl.But though she was influenced by Marianne's romantic sentiments, she was not so intelligent.She's thirteen, but it's not yet clear whether she has any hope of reaching the level of her older sisters as an adult.

(End of this chapter)