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Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, CHAPTER X

CHAPTER X

Hitherto I have recorded in detail the events of my insignificant existence: to the first ten years of my life I have given almost as many chapters. But this is not to be a regular autobiography. I am only bound to invoke Memory where I know her responses will possess some degree of interest; therefore I now pass a space of eight years almost in silence: a few lines only are necessary to keep up the links of connection. When the typhus fever had fulfilled its mission of devastation at Lowood, it gradually disappeared from thence; but not till its virulence and the number of its victims had drawn public attention on the school. Inquiry was made into the origin of the scourge, and by degrees various facts came out which excited public indignation in a high degree. The unhealthy nature of the site; the quantity and quality of the children's food; the brackish, fetid water used in its preparation; the pupils' wretched clothing and accommodations—all these things were discovered, and the discovery produced a result mortifying to Mr. Brocklehurst, but beneficial to the institution. Several wealthy and benevolent individuals in the county subscribed largely for the erection of a more convenient building in a better situation; new regulations were made; improvements in diet and clothing introduced; the funds of the school were intrusted to the management of a committee. Mr. Brocklehurst, who, from his wealth and family connections, could not be overlooked, still retained the post of treasurer; but he was aided in the discharge of his duties by gentlemen of rather more enlarged and sympathising minds: his office of inspector, too, was shared by those who knew how to combine reason with strictness, comfort with economy, compassion with uprightness. The school, thus improved, became in time a truly useful and noble institution. I remained an inmate of its walls, after its regeneration, for eight years: six as pupil, and two as teacher; and in both capacities I bear my testimony to its value and importance. During these eight years my life was uniform: but not unhappy, because it was not inactive.

I had the means of an excellent education placed within my reach; a fondness for some of my studies, and a desire to excel in all, together with a great delight in pleasing my teachers, especially such as I loved, urged me on: I availed myself fully of the advantages offered me. In time I rose to be the first girl of the first class; then I was invested with the office of teacher; which I discharged with zeal for two years: but at the end of that time I altered. Miss Temple, through all changes, had thus far continued superintendent of the seminary: to her instruction I owed the best part of my acquirements; her friendship and society had been my continual solace; she had stood me in the stead of mother, governess, and, latterly, companion. At this period she married, removed with her husband (a clergyman, an excellent man, almost worthy of such a wife) to a distant county, and consequently was lost to me. From the day she left I was no longer the same: with her was gone every settled feeling, every association that had made Lowood in some degree a home to me. I had imbibed from her something of her nature and much of her habits: more harmonious thoughts: what seemed better regulated feelings had become the inmates of my mind. I had given in allegiance to duty and order; I was quiet; I believed I was content: to the eyes of others, usually even to my own, I appeared a disciplined and subdued character. But destiny, in the shape of the Rev.

Mr. Nasmyth, came between me and Miss Temple: I saw her in her travelling dress step into a post-chaise, shortly after the marriage ceremony; I watched the chaise mount the hill and disappear beyond its brow; and then retired to my own room, and there spent in solitude the greatest part of the half-holiday granted in honour of the occasion. I walked about the chamber most of the time.

I imagined myself only to be regretting my loss, and thinking how to repair it; but when my reflections were concluded, and I looked up and found that the afternoon was gone, and evening far advanced, another discovery dawned on me, namely, that in the interval I had undergone a transforming process; that my mind had put off all it had borrowed of Miss Temple—or rather that she had taken with her the serene atmosphere I had been breathing in her vicinity—and that now I was left in my natural element, and beginning to feel the stirring of old emotions. It did not seem as if a prop were withdrawn, but rather as if a motive were gone: it was not the power to be tranquil which had failed me, but the reason for tranquillity was no more. My world had for some years been in Lowood: my experience had been of its rules and systems; now I remembered that the real world was wide, and that a varied field of hopes and fears, of sensations and excitements, awaited those who had courage to go forth into its expanse, to seek real knowledge of life amidst its perils. I went to my window, opened it, and looked out.

There were the two wings of the building; there was the garden; there were the skirts of Lowood; there was the hilly horizon. My eye passed all other objects to rest on those most remote, the blue peaks; it was those I longed to surmount; all within their boundary of rock and heath seemed prison-ground, exile limits. I traced the white road winding round the base of one mountain, and vanishing in a gorge between two; how I longed to follow it farther! I recalled the time when I had travelled that very road in a coach; I remembered descending that hill at twilight; an age seemed to have elapsed since the day which brought me first to Lowood, and I had never quitted it since. My vacations had all been spent at school: Mrs. Reed had never sent for me to Gateshead; neither she nor any of her family had ever been to visit me. I had had no communication by letter or message with the outer world: school-rules, school-duties, school-habits and notions, and voices, and faces, and phrases, and costumes, and preferences, and antipathies—such was what I knew of existence. And now I felt that it was not enough; I tired of the routine of eight years in one afternoon. I desired liberty; for liberty I gasped; for liberty I uttered a prayer; it seemed scattered on the wind then faintly blowing. I abandoned it and framed a humbler supplication; for change, stimulus: that petition, too, seemed swept off into vague space: “Then,” I cried, half desperate, “grant me at least a new servitude!” Here a bell, ringing the hour of supper, called me downstairs. I was not free to resume the interrupted chain of my reflections till bedtime: even then a teacher who occupied the same room with me kept me from the subject to which I longed to recur, by a prolonged effusion of small talk. How I wished sleep would silence her. It seemed as if, could I but go back to the idea which had last entered my mind as I stood at the window, some inventive suggestion would rise for my relief. Miss Gryce snored at last; she was a heavy Welshwoman, and till now her habitual nasal strains had never been regarded by me in any other light than as a nuisance; to-night I hailed the first deep notes with satisfaction; I was debarrassed of interruption; my half-effaced thought instantly revived. “A new servitude!

There is something in that,” I soliloquised (mentally, be it understood; I did not talk aloud), “I know there is, because it does not sound too sweet; it is not like such words as Liberty, Excitement, Enjoyment: delightful sounds truly; but no more than sounds for me; and so hollow and fleeting that it is mere waste of time to listen to them. But Servitude! That must be matter of fact. Any one may serve: I have served here eight years; now all I want is to serve elsewhere. Can I not get so much of my own will? Is not the thing feasible? Yes—yes—the end is not so difficult; if I had only a brain active enough to ferret out the means of attaining it.” I sat up in bed by way of arousing this said brain: it was a chilly night; I covered my shoulders with a shawl, and then I proceeded to think again with all my might. “What do I want?

A new place, in a new house, amongst new faces, under new circumstances: I want this because it is of no use wanting anything better. How do people do to get a new place? They apply to friends, I suppose: I have no friends. There are many others who have no friends, who must look about for themselves and be their own helpers; and what is their resource?” I could not tell: nothing answered me; I then ordered my brain to find a response, and quickly.

It worked and worked faster: I felt the pulses throb in my head and temples; but for nearly an hour it worked in chaos; and no result came of its efforts. Feverish with vain labour, I got up and took a turn in the room; undrew the curtain, noted a star or two, shivered with cold, and again crept to bed. A kind fairy, in my absence, had surely dropped the required suggestion on my pillow; for as I lay down, it came quietly and naturally to my mind.—“Those who want situations advertise; you must advertise in the ---shire Herald .” “How?

I know nothing about advertising.” Replies rose smooth and prompt now:—

“You must enclose the advertisement and the money to pay for it under a cover directed to the editor of the Herald ; you must put it, the first opportunity you have, into the post at Lowton; answers must be addressed to J.E., at the post-office there; you can go and inquire in about a week after you send your letter, if any are come, and act accordingly.” This scheme I went over twice, thrice; it was then digested in my mind; I had it in a clear practical form: I felt satisfied, and fell asleep. With earliest day, I was up: I had my advertisement written, enclosed, and directed before the bell rang to rouse the school; it ran thus:— “A young lady accustomed to tuition” (had I not been a teacher two years? “is desirous of meeting with a situation in a private family where the children are under fourteen (I thought that as I was barely eighteen, it would not do to undertake the guidance of pupils nearer my own age). She is qualified to teach the usual branches of a good English education, together with French, Drawing, and Music” (in those days, reader, this now narrow catalogue of accomplishments, would have been held tolerably comprehensive). “Address, J.E., Post-office, Lowton, ---shire.” This document remained locked in my drawer all day: after tea, I asked leave of the new superintendent to go to Lowton, in order to perform some small commissions for myself and one or two of my fellow-teachers; permission was readily granted; I went.

It was a walk of two miles, and the evening was wet, but the days were still long; I visited a shop or two, slipped the letter into the post-office, and came back through heavy rain, with streaming garments, but with a relieved heart. The succeeding week seemed long: it came to an end at last, however, like all sublunary things, and once more, towards the close of a pleasant autumn day, I found myself afoot on the road to Lowton. A picturesque track it was, by the way; lying along the side of the beck and through the sweetest curves of the dale: but that day I thought more of the letters, that might or might not be awaiting me at the little burgh whither I was bound, than of the charms of lea and water. My ostensible errand on this occasion was to get measured for a pair of shoes; so I discharged that business first, and when it was done, I stepped across the clean and quiet little street from the shoemaker's to the post-office: it was kept by an old dame, who wore horn spectacles on her nose, and black mittens on her hands. “Are there any letters for J.E.

?” I asked. She peered at me over her spectacles, and then she opened a drawer and fumbled among its contents for a long time, so long that my hopes began to falter. At last, having held a document before her glasses for nearly five minutes, she presented it across the counter, accompanying the act by another inquisitive and mistrustful glance—it was for J.E. “Is there only one?” I demanded.

“There are no more,” said she; and I put it in my pocket and turned my face homeward: I could not open it then; rules obliged me to be back by eight, and it was already half-past seven. Various duties awaited me on my arrival.

I had to sit with the girls during their hour of study; then it was my turn to read prayers; to see them to bed: afterwards I supped with the other teachers. Even when we finally retired for the night, the inevitable Miss Gryce was still my companion: we had only a short end of candle in our candlestick, and I dreaded lest she should talk till it was all burnt out; fortunately, however, the heavy supper she had eaten produced a soporific effect: she was already snoring before I had finished undressing. There still remained an inch of candle: I now took out my letter; the seal was an initial F.; I broke it; the contents were brief. “If J.E., who advertised in the ---shire Herald of last Thursday, possesses the acquirements mentioned, and if she is in a position to give satisfactory references as to character and competency, a situation can be offered her where there is but one pupil, a little girl, under ten years of age; and where the salary is thirty pounds per annum. J.E.

is requested to send references, name, address, and all particulars to the direction:— “Mrs.

Fairfax, Thornfield, near Millcote, ---shire.” I examined the document long: the writing was old-fashioned and rather uncertain, like that of an elderly lady. This circumstance was satisfactory: a private fear had haunted me, that in thus acting for myself, and by my own guidance, I ran the risk of getting into some scrape; and, above all things, I wished the result of my endeavours to be respectable, proper, en règle . I now felt that an elderly lady was no bad ingredient in the business I had on hand. Mrs. Fairfax! I saw her in a black gown and widow's cap; frigid, perhaps, but not uncivil: a model of elderly English respectability. Thornfield! that, doubtless, was the name of her house: a neat orderly spot, I was sure; though I failed in my efforts to conceive a correct plan of the premises. Millcote, ---shire; I brushed up my recollections of the map of England, yes, I saw it; both the shire and the town. ---shire was seventy miles nearer London than the remote county where I now resided: that was a recommendation to me. I longed to go where there was life and movement: Millcote was a large manufacturing town on the banks of the A-; a busy place enough, doubtless: so much the better; it would be a complete change at least. Not that my fancy was much captivated by the idea of long chimneys and clouds of smoke—“but,” I argued, “Thornfield will, probably, be a good way from the town.” Here the socket of the candle dropped, and the wick went out. Next day new steps were to be taken; my plans could no longer be confined to my own breast; I must impart them in order to achieve their success. Having sought and obtained an audience of the superintendent during the noontide recreation, I told her I had a prospect of getting a new situation where the salary would be double what I now received (for at Lowood I only got £15 per annum); and requested she would break the matter for me to Mr. Brocklehurst, or some of the committee, and ascertain whether they would permit me to mention them as references. She obligingly consented to act as mediatrix in the matter. The next day she laid the affair before Mr. Brocklehurst, who said that Mrs. Reed must be written to, as she was my natural guardian. A note was accordingly addressed to that lady, who returned for answer, that “I might do as I pleased: she had long relinquished all interference in my affairs.” This note went the round of the committee, and at last, after what appeared to me most tedious delay, formal leave was given me to better my condition if I could; and an assurance added, that as I had always conducted myself well, both as teacher and pupil, at Lowood, a testimonial of character and capacity, signed by the inspectors of that institution, should forthwith be furnished me. This testimonial I accordingly received in about a month, forwarded a copy of it to Mrs. Fairfax, and got that lady's reply, stating that she was satisfied, and fixing that day fortnight as the period for my assuming the post of governess in her house. I now busied myself in preparations: the fortnight passed rapidly. I had not a very large wardrobe, though it was adequate to my wants; and the last day sufficed to pack my trunk,—the same I had brought with me eight years ago from Gateshead. The box was corded, the card nailed on.

In half-an-hour the carrier was to call for it to take it to Lowton, whither I myself was to repair at an early hour the next morning to meet the coach. I had brushed my black stuff travelling-dress, prepared my bonnet, gloves, and muff; sought in all my drawers to see that no article was left behind; and now having nothing more to do, I sat down and tried to rest. I could not; though I had been on foot all day, I could not now repose an instant; I was too much excited. A phase of my life was closing to-night, a new one opening to-morrow: impossible to slumber in the interval; I must watch feverishly while the change was being accomplished. “Miss,” said a servant who met me in the lobby, where I was wandering like a troubled spirit, “a person below wishes to see you.” “The carrier, no doubt,” I thought, and ran downstairs without inquiry. I was passing the back-parlour or teachers' sitting-room, the door of which was half open, to go to the kitchen, when some one ran out— “It's her, I am sure!—I could have told her anywhere!” cried the individual who stopped my progress and took my hand. I looked: I saw a woman attired like a well-dressed servant, matronly, yet still young; very good-looking, with black hair and eyes, and lively complexion. “Well, who is it?” she asked, in a voice and with a smile I half recognised; “you've not quite forgotten me, I think, Miss Jane?” In another second I was embracing and kissing her rapturously: “Bessie!

Bessie!

Bessie!” that was all I said; whereat she half laughed, half cried, and we both went into the parlour. By the fire stood a little fellow of three years old, in plaid frock and trousers. “That is my little boy,” said Bessie directly.

“Then you are married, Bessie?”

“Yes; nearly five years since to Robert Leaven, the coachman; and I've a little girl besides Bobby there, that I've christened Jane.” “And you don't live at Gateshead?”

“I live at the lodge: the old porter has left.” “Well, and how do they all get on?

Tell me everything about them, Bessie: but sit down first; and, Bobby, come and sit on my knee, will you?” but Bobby preferred sidling over to his mother. “You're not grown so very tall, Miss Jane, nor so very stout,” continued Mrs. Leaven. “I dare say they've not kept you too well at school: Miss Reed is the head and shoulders taller than you are; and Miss Georgiana would make two of you in breadth.” “Georgiana is handsome, I suppose, Bessie?”

“Very.

She went up to London last winter with her mama, and there everybody admired her, and a young lord fell in love with her: but his relations were against the match; and—what do you think?—he and Miss Georgiana made it up to run away; but they were found out and stopped. It was Miss Reed that found them out: I believe she was envious; and now she and her sister lead a cat and dog life together; they are always quarrelling—” “Well, and what of John Reed?”

“Oh, he is not doing so well as his mama could wish. He went to college, and he got—plucked, I think they call it: and then his uncles wanted him to be a barrister, and study the law: but he is such a dissipated young man, they will never make much of him, I think.” “What does he look like?”

“He is very tall: some people call him a fine-looking young man; but he has such thick lips.” “And Mrs. Reed?”

“Missis looks stout and well enough in the face, but I think she's not quite easy in her mind: Mr. John's conduct does not please her—he spends a deal of money.” “Did she send you here, Bessie?”

“No, indeed: but I have long wanted to see you, and when I heard that there had been a letter from you, and that you were going to another part of the country, I thought I'd just set off, and get a look at you before you were quite out of my reach.” “I am afraid you are disappointed in me, Bessie.” I said this laughing: I perceived that Bessie's glance, though it expressed regard, did in no shape denote admiration. “No, Miss Jane, not exactly: you are genteel enough; you look like a lady, and it is as much as ever I expected of you: you were no beauty as a child.” I smiled at Bessie's frank answer: I felt that it was correct, but I confess I was not quite indifferent to its import: at eighteen most people wish to please, and the conviction that they have not an exterior likely to second that desire brings anything but gratification. “I dare say you are clever, though,” continued Bessie, by way of solace. “What can you do? Can you play on the piano?” “A little.”

There was one in the room; Bessie went and opened it, and then asked me to sit down and give her a tune: I played a waltz or two, and she was charmed. “The Miss Reeds could not play as well!” said she exultingly. “I always said you would surpass them in learning: and can you draw?” “That is one of my paintings over the chimney-piece.” It was a landscape in water colours, of which I had made a present to the superintendent, in acknowledgment of her obliging mediation with the committee on my behalf, and which she had framed and glazed. “Well, that is beautiful, Miss Jane!

It is as fine a picture as any Miss Reed's drawing-master could paint, let alone the young ladies themselves, who could not come near it: and have you learnt French?” “Yes, Bessie, I can both read it and speak it.” “And you can work on muslin and canvas?”

“I can.”

“Oh, you are quite a lady, Miss Jane!

I knew you would be: you will get on whether your relations notice you or not. There was something I wanted to ask you. Have you ever heard anything from your father's kinsfolk, the Eyres?” “Never in my life.”

“Well, you know Missis always said they were poor and quite despicable: and they may be poor; but I believe they are as much gentry as the Reeds are; for one day, nearly seven years ago, a Mr. Eyre came to Gateshead and wanted to see you; Missis said you were at school fifty miles off; he seemed so much disappointed, for he could not stay: he was going on a voyage to a foreign country, and the ship was to sail from London in a day or two. He looked quite a gentleman, and I believe he was your father's brother.” “What foreign country was he going to, Bessie?” “An island thousands of miles off, where they make wine—the butler did tell me—” “Madeira?” I suggested.

“Yes, that is it—that is the very word.”

“So he went?”

“Yes; he did not stay many minutes in the house: Missis was very high with him; she called him afterwards a ‘sneaking tradesman. ' My Robert believes he was a wine-merchant.” “Very likely,” I returned; “or perhaps clerk or agent to a wine-merchant.”

Bessie and I conversed about old times an hour longer, and then she was obliged to leave me: I saw her again for a few minutes the next morning at Lowton, while I was waiting for the coach. We parted finally at the door of the Brocklehurst Arms there: each went her separate way; she set off for the brow of Lowood Fell to meet the conveyance which was to take her back to Gateshead, I mounted the vehicle which was to bear me to new duties and a new life in the unknown environs of Millcote.

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CHAPTER X KAPITEL X CAPÍTULO X ГЛАВА X

Hitherto I have recorded in detail the events of my insignificant existence: to the first ten years of my life I have given almost as many chapters. до настоящего времени|||||||||||||||||||||||||| Jusqu'à présent, j'ai enregistré en détail les événements de mon existence insignifiante: aux dix premières années de ma vie, j'ai donné presque autant de chapitres. But this is not to be a regular autobiography. ||||||||life story Mais ce n'est pas une autobiographie régulière. I am only bound to invoke Memory where I know her responses will possess some degree of interest; therefore I now pass a space of eight years almost in silence: a few lines only are necessary to keep up the links of connection. |||||call upon||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Je ne suis obligé d'invoquer la Mémoire que là où je sais que ses réponses présenteront un certain intérêt; donc je passe maintenant un espace de huit ans presque en silence: quelques lignes seulement sont nécessaires pour maintenir les liens de connexion. When the typhus fever had fulfilled its mission of devastation at Lowood, it gradually disappeared from thence; but not till its virulence and the number of its victims had drawn public attention on the school. ||typhus fever|||||||||the school|||||from that place|||||severity||||||||||||| Lorsque la fièvre typhique eut rempli sa mission de dévastation à Lowood, elle en disparut peu à peu; mais pas jusqu'à ce que sa virulence et le nombre de ses victimes aient attiré l'attention du public sur l'école. Inquiry was made into the origin of the scourge, and by degrees various facts came out which excited public indignation in a high degree. ||||||||plague|||||||||||anger|||| Une enquête a été faite sur l'origine du fléau, et peu à peu divers faits en sont sortis qui ont excité l'indignation publique à un haut degré. The unhealthy nature of the site; the quantity and quality of the children’s food; the brackish, fetid water used in its preparation; the pupils' wretched clothing and accommodations—all these things were discovered, and the discovery produced a result mortifying to Mr. Brocklehurst, but beneficial to the institution. |||||||||||||||солоноватая|зловонная||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||logements|||||||||||||||||||| Nezdravý charakter místa, množství a kvalita dětské stravy, slaná, páchnoucí voda používaná k její přípravě, mizerné oblečení a ubytování žáků - to vše bylo odhaleno a výsledek tohoto zjištění byl pro pana Brocklehursta ponižující, ale pro ústav prospěšný. L'insalubrité du site, la quantité et la qualité de la nourriture des enfants, l'eau saumâtre et fétide utilisée pour sa préparation, les vêtements et les logements misérables des élèves - toutes ces choses furent découvertes, et la découverte produisit un résultat mortifiant pour M. Brocklehurst, mais bénéfique pour l'institution. Several wealthy and benevolent individuals in the county subscribed largely for the erection of a more convenient building in a better situation; new regulations were made; improvements in diet and clothing introduced; the funds of the school were intrusted to the management of a committee. ||||||||||||construction||||||||||||||||||||||||||entrusted|||||| Několik bohatých a dobročinných jednotlivců v kraji přispělo velkou částkou na stavbu vhodnější budovy v lepší poloze, byly přijaty nové předpisy, zavedena zlepšení ve stravování a oblečení a finanční prostředky školy byly svěřeny do správy výboru. Plusieurs personnes riches et bienveillantes du comté se sont largement abonnées à la construction d'un bâtiment plus commode dans une meilleure situation; de nouveaux règlements ont été adoptés; amélioration de l'alimentation et des vêtements introduite; les fonds de l'école étaient confiés à la direction d'un comité. Mr. Brocklehurst, who, from his wealth and family connections, could not be overlooked, still retained the post of treasurer; but he was aided in the discharge of his duties by gentlemen of rather more enlarged and sympathising minds: his office of inspector, too, was shared by those who knew how to combine reason with strictness, comfort with economy, compassion with uprightness. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||empathetic||||||||||||||||||rigor||||empathy||integrity M. Brocklehurst, qui, de par sa richesse et ses liens familiaux, ne pouvait être négligé, conservait toujours le poste de trésorier; mais il était aidé dans l'accomplissement de ses devoirs par des messieurs aux esprits un peu plus élargis et sympathiques: sa fonction d'inspecteur était aussi partagée par ceux qui savaient combiner raison avec rigueur, confort avec économie, compassion avec droiture. The school, thus improved, became in time a truly useful and noble institution. I remained an inmate of its walls, after its regeneration, for eight years: six as pupil, and two as teacher; and in both capacities I bear my testimony to its value and importance. |||resident||||||restoration||||||||||||||||||||||| Je suis resté détenu de ses murs, après sa régénération, pendant huit ans: six comme élève, et deux comme instituteur; et dans les deux cas, je témoigne de sa valeur et de son importance. During these eight years my life was uniform: but not unhappy, because it was not inactive.

I had the means of an excellent education placed within my reach; a fondness for some of my studies, and a desire to excel in all, together with a great delight in pleasing my teachers, especially such as I loved, urged me on: I availed myself fully of the advantages offered me. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||воспользовался||||||| J'avais les moyens d'une excellente éducation à ma portée; un penchant pour certaines de mes études et un désir d'exceller en tous, ainsi qu'un grand plaisir de plaire à mes professeurs, surtout ceux que j'aimais, m'ont poussé à continuer: je me servais pleinement des avantages qui m'offraient. In time I rose to be the first girl of the first class; then I was invested with the office of teacher; which I discharged with zeal for two years: but at the end of that time I altered. ||||||||||||||||||||||||performed|||||||||||||| Avec le temps, je suis devenue la première fille de la première classe; puis j'ai été investi de la fonction d'enseignant; que j'ai déchargé avec zèle pendant deux ans: mais à la fin de ce temps j'ai changé. Miss Temple, through all changes, had thus far continued superintendent of the seminary: to her instruction I owed the best part of my acquirements; her friendship and society had been my continual solace; she had stood me in the stead of mother, governess, and, latterly, companion. ||||||||||||educational institution|||||||||||knowledge and skills|||||||||comfort and support|||||||place of|||teacher||| Miss Temple, à travers tous les changements, avait jusqu'à présent continué surintendante du séminaire: à son instruction, je devais la meilleure partie de mes connaissances; son amitié et la société avaient été mon réconfort continu; elle m'avait remplacé la mère, la gouvernante et, dernièrement, la compagne. At this period she married, removed with her husband (a clergyman, an excellent man, almost worthy of such a wife) to a distant county, and consequently was lost to me. A cette époque, elle se maria, quitta avec son mari (un ecclésiastique, un excellent homme, presque digne d'une telle épouse) dans un comté lointain, et par conséquent fut perdue pour moi. From the day she left I was no longer the same: with her was gone every settled feeling, every association that had made Lowood in some degree a home to me. Depuis le jour de son départ, je n'étais plus la même: avec elle était partie tous les sentiments établis, toutes les associations qui avaient fait de Lowood, à un certain degré, une maison pour moi. I had imbibed from her something of her nature and much of her habits: more harmonious thoughts: what seemed better regulated feelings had become the inmates of my mind. |||||||||||||||||||||||||residents||| J'avais absorbé d'elle quelque chose de sa nature et d'une grande partie de ses habitudes: des pensées plus harmonieuses: ce qui me paraissait mieux régulé était devenu les occupants de mon esprit. I had given in allegiance to duty and order; I was quiet; I believed I was content: to the eyes of others, usually even to my own, I appeared a disciplined and subdued character. ||||преданность||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| J'avais fait allégeance au devoir et à l'ordre ; j'étais tranquille ; je croyais être satisfait : aux yeux des autres, et généralement même aux miens, j'apparaissais comme un personnage discipliné et maîtrisé. But destiny, in the shape of the Rev. Mais le destin, sous la forme du Rév.

Mr. Nasmyth, came between me and Miss Temple: I saw her in her travelling dress step into a post-chaise, shortly after the marriage ceremony; I watched the chaise mount the hill and disappear beyond its brow; and then retired to my own room, and there spent in solitude the greatest part of the half-holiday granted in honour of the occasion. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||summit||||||||||||being alone||||||||||||| M. Nasmyth, est venu entre moi et Mlle Temple: je l'ai vue dans sa robe de voyage entrer dans une chaise de poste, peu de temps après la cérémonie de mariage; J'ai regardé la chaise monter la colline et disparaître au-delà de son front; puis se retira dans ma propre chambre, et y passa dans la solitude la plus grande partie des demi-vacances accordées en l'honneur de l'occasion. I walked about the chamber most of the time. Je me promenais dans la chambre la plupart du temps.

I imagined myself only to be regretting my loss, and thinking how to repair it; but when my reflections were concluded, and I looked up and found that the afternoon was gone, and evening far advanced, another discovery dawned on me, namely, that in the interval I had undergone a transforming process; that my mind had put off all it had borrowed of Miss Temple—or rather that she had taken with her the serene atmosphere I had been breathing in her vicinity—and that now I was left in my natural element, and beginning to feel the stirring of old emotions. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||претерпел процесс||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Je ne m'imaginais que regretter ma perte et penser à la réparer; mais lorsque mes réflexions furent terminées, que je levai les yeux et que je trouvai que l'après-midi était parti et que le soir était bien avancé, une autre découverte m'est apparue, à savoir que, dans l'intervalle, j'avais subi un processus de transformation; que mon esprit avait remis tout ce qu'il avait emprunté à Miss Temple - ou plutôt qu'elle avait emporté avec elle l'atmosphère sereine que j'avais respirée dans son voisinage - et que maintenant j'étais laissé dans mon élément naturel, et commençais à ressentir l'agitation d'émotions anciennes. It did not seem as if a prop were withdrawn, but rather as if a motive were gone: it was not the power to be tranquil which had failed me, but the reason for tranquillity was no more. |||||||reason||||||||reason|||||||||||||||||||calmness||| Il ne semblait pas qu'un accessoire fût retiré, mais plutôt qu'un motif avait disparu: ce n'était pas le pouvoir d'être tranquille qui m'avait manqué, mais la raison de la tranquillité n'était plus. My world had for some years been in Lowood: my experience had been of its rules and systems; now I remembered that the real world was wide, and that a varied field of hopes and fears, of sensations and excitements, awaited those who had courage to go forth into its expanse, to seek real knowledge of life amidst its perils. |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||thrills|||||||||||vastness||||||||| Mon monde était depuis quelques années à Lowood: mon expérience avait été de ses règles et systèmes; maintenant je me souvenais que le monde réel était vaste, et qu'un champ varié d'espoirs et de peurs, de sensations et d'excitations, attendait ceux qui avaient le courage d'aller dans son étendue, pour chercher la vraie connaissance de la vie au milieu de ses périls. I went to my window, opened it, and looked out.

There were the two wings of the building; there was the garden; there were the skirts of Lowood; there was the hilly horizon. |||||||||||||||||||||uneven terrain| Il y avait les deux ailes du bâtiment; il y avait le jardin; il y avait les jupes de Lowood; il y avait l'horizon vallonné. My eye passed all other objects to rest on those most remote, the blue peaks; it was those I longed to surmount; all within their boundary of rock and heath seemed prison-ground, exile limits. ||||||||||||||mountains|||||||||||||||||||| Mon œil passa tous les autres objets pour se poser sur les plus éloignés, les pics bleus; c'étaient ceux que j'avais envie de surmonter; tous dans leur limite de roche et de bruyère semblaient être des prisons, des limites d'exil. I traced the white road winding round the base of one mountain, and vanishing in a gorge between two; how I longed to follow it farther! J'ai tracé la route blanche qui serpente au pied d'une montagne et disparaît dans une gorge entre deux; comme j'avais envie de le suivre plus loin! I recalled the time when I had travelled that very road in a coach; I remembered descending that hill at twilight; an age seemed to have elapsed since the day which brought me first to Lowood, and I had never quitted it since. ||||||||||||||||||||dusk|||||||||||||||||||||| My vacations had all been spent at school: Mrs. Reed had never sent for me to Gateshead; neither she nor any of her family had ever been to visit me. J'avais passé toutes mes vacances à l'école : Mme Reed ne m'avait jamais fait venir à Gateshead ; ni elle ni aucun membre de sa famille n'était jamais venu me rendre visite. I had had no communication by letter or message with the outer world: school-rules, school-duties, school-habits and notions, and voices, and faces, and phrases, and costumes, and preferences, and antipathies—such was what I knew of existence. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||dislikes||||||| Je n'avais eu aucune communication par lettre ou message avec le monde extérieur: règles de l'école, devoirs de l'école, habitudes et notions scolaires, voix, visages, phrases, costumes, préférences et antipathies - voilà ce que je connaissait l'existence. And now I felt that it was not enough; I tired of the routine of eight years in one afternoon. Et maintenant je sentais que ce n'était pas assez; J'en ai assez de la routine de huit ans en un après-midi. I desired liberty; for liberty I gasped; for liberty I uttered a prayer; it seemed scattered on the wind then faintly blowing. Je désirais la liberté; pour la liberté j'ai haleté; pour la liberté j'ai prononcé une prière; il semblait éparpillé sur le vent puis soufflant faiblement. I abandoned it and framed a humbler supplication; for change, stimulus: that petition, too, seemed swept off into vague space: “Then,” I cried, half desperate, “grant me at least a new servitude!” |||||||request||||||||||||||||||||||||condition of service Je l'ai abandonné et j'ai rédigé une plus humble supplication; pour le changement, le stimulus: cette pétition aussi semblait emportée dans un vague espace: «Alors, m'écriai-je à moitié désespéré, accordez-moi au moins une nouvelle servitude! Here a bell, ringing the hour of supper, called me downstairs. |||announcing||||dinner time||| I was not free to resume the interrupted chain of my reflections till bedtime: even then a teacher who occupied the same room with me kept me from the subject to which I longed to recur, by a prolonged effusion of small talk. |||||||||||||nighttime||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Je n'étais pas libre de reprendre la chaîne interrompue de mes réflexions jusqu'à l'heure du coucher: même alors, un professeur qui occupait la même chambre avec moi m'éloignait du sujet auquel j'avais envie de revenir, par un effusion prolongée de bavardages. How I wished sleep would silence her. Comme j'aurais aimé que le sommeil la fasse taire. It seemed as if, could I but go back to the idea which had last entered my mind as I stood at the window, some inventive suggestion would rise for my relief. Il me semblait que si, pourrais-je ne pas revenir à l'idée qui m'est venue pour la dernière fois alors que je me tenais à la fenêtre, une suggestion inventive allait me soulager. Miss Gryce snored at last; she was a heavy Welshwoman, and till now her habitual nasal strains had never been regarded by me in any other light than as a nuisance; to-night I hailed the first deep notes with satisfaction; I was debarrassed of interruption; my half-effaced thought instantly revived. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||неприятность||||||||||||||||||полуразмытая||| ||made noise|||||||||||||nasal sounds||||||||||||||||||||||||||||free from||||||||returned Miss Gryce ronfla enfin; elle était une lourde galloise, et jusqu'à présent ses tensions nasales habituelles n'avaient jamais été considérées par moi autrement que comme une nuisance; ce soir, je saluai les premières notes profondes avec satisfaction; J'étais débarrassé de l'interruption; ma pensée à demi effacée reprit instantanément. “A new servitude!

There is something in that,” I soliloquised (mentally, be it understood; I did not talk aloud), “I know there is, because it does not sound too sweet; it is not like such words as Liberty, Excitement, Enjoyment: delightful sounds truly; but no more than sounds for me; and so hollow and fleeting that it is mere waste of time to listen to them. ||||||thought to myself|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||temporary and insubstantial||||||||||| Il y a quelque chose là-dedans », ai-je soliloché (mentalement, soit-il compris; je n'ai pas parlé à haute voix),« je sais qu'il y en a, parce que ça n'a pas l'air trop doux; ce n'est pas comme des mots tels que Liberté, Excitation, Jouissance: des sons vraiment délicieux; mais pas plus que des sons pour moi; et si creux et éphémère que ce n'est qu'une perte de temps pour les écouter. But Servitude! |Рабство That must be matter of fact. Cela doit être une question de fait. Any one may serve: I have served here eight years; now all I want is to serve elsewhere. Tout le monde peut servir : J'ai servi ici pendant huit ans ; maintenant, tout ce que je veux, c'est servir ailleurs. Can I not get so much of my own will? Est-ce que je ne peux pas obtenir autant de ma propre volonté? Is not the thing feasible? Yes—yes—the end is not so difficult; if I had only a brain active enough to ferret out the means of attaining it.” |||||||||||||||||discover|||||reaching| Oui - oui - la fin n'est pas si difficile; si j'avais seulement un cerveau assez actif pour dénicher les moyens de l'atteindre. I sat up in bed by way of arousing this said brain: it was a chilly night; I covered my shoulders with a shawl, and then I proceeded to think again with all my might. |sat||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Je m'assis dans mon lit pour éveiller ce dit cerveau: c'était une nuit fraîche; J'ai couvert mes épaules avec un châle, puis j'ai recommencé à réfléchir de toutes mes forces. “What do I want?

A new place, in a new house, amongst new faces, under new circumstances: I want this because it is of no use wanting anything better. Un nouveau lieu, dans une nouvelle maison, parmi de nouveaux visages, dans de nouvelles circonstances: je le veux parce qu'il ne sert à rien de vouloir quelque chose de mieux. How do people do to get a new place? They apply to friends, I suppose: I have no friends. Ils s'appliquent aux amis, je suppose: je n'ai pas d'amis. There are many others who have no friends, who must look about for themselves and be their own helpers; and what is their resource?” |||||||||||||||||||||||means of support Il y en a beaucoup d'autres qui n'ont pas d'amis, qui doivent chercher par eux-mêmes et être leurs propres aides; et quelle est leur ressource? » I could not tell: nothing answered me; I then ordered my brain to find a response, and quickly.

It worked and worked faster: I felt the pulses throb in my head and temples; but for nearly an hour it worked in chaos; and no result came of its efforts. ||||||||throbbing sensations||inside||||sides of head|||||||||||||||| Cela fonctionnait et fonctionnait plus vite: je sentais les pulsations battre dans ma tête et mes tempes; mais pendant près d'une heure, il fonctionna dans le chaos; et aucun résultat n'est venu de ses efforts. Feverish with vain labour, I got up and took a turn in the room; undrew the curtain, noted a star or two, shivered with cold, and again crept to bed. ||||||||||||||drew back||||||||||||||| Fébrile d'un vain travail, je me levai et me retournai dans la chambre; défit le rideau, remarqua une étoile ou deux, frissonna de froid, et se recoucha de nouveau. A kind fairy, in my absence, had surely dropped the required suggestion on my pillow; for as I lay down, it came quietly and naturally to my mind.—“Those who want situations advertise; you must advertise in the ---shire Herald .” ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||place ads||||||| Une bonne fée, en mon absence, avait sûrement laissé tomber la suggestion voulue sur mon oreiller; car pendant que je m'allongeais, cela m'est venu doucement et naturellement à l'esprit. - «Ceux qui veulent des situations font de la publicité; vous devez faire de la publicité dans le --- shire Herald. " “How?

I know nothing about advertising.” Je ne connais rien à la publicité. » Replies rose smooth and prompt now:— Les réponses se sont levées sans heurts et rapides maintenant: -

“You must enclose the advertisement and the money to pay for it under a cover directed to the editor of the Herald ; you must put it, the first opportunity you have, into the post at Lowton; answers must be addressed to J.E., at the post-office there; you can go and inquire in about a week after you send your letter, if any are come, and act accordingly.” «Vous devez joindre la publicité et l'argent pour le payer sous une couverture adressée à l'éditeur du Herald; vous devez le mettre, la première occasion que vous avez, au poste de Lowton; les réponses doivent être adressées à JE, à la poste là-bas; vous pouvez aller vous renseigner environ une semaine après l'envoi de votre lettre, le cas échéant, et agir en conséquence. This scheme I went over twice, thrice; it was then digested in my mind; I had it in a clear practical form: I felt satisfied, and fell asleep. Ce schéma, je l'ai revu deux fois, trois fois; il a ensuite été digéré dans mon esprit; Je l'ai eu sous une forme pratique claire: je me suis senti satisfait et je me suis endormi. With earliest day, I was up: I had my advertisement written, enclosed, and directed before the bell rang to rouse the school; it ran thus:— Le jour le plus tôt, j'étais debout: j'avais ma publicité écrite, jointe et dirigée avant que la cloche ne sonne pour réveiller l'école; il a couru ainsi: - “A young lady accustomed to tuition” (had I not been a teacher two years? “is desirous of meeting with a situation in a private family where the children are under fourteen (I thought that as I was barely eighteen, it would not do to undertake the guidance of pupils nearer my own age). She is qualified to teach the usual branches of a good English education, together with French, Drawing, and Music” (in those days, reader, this now narrow catalogue of accomplishments, would have been held tolerably comprehensive). Elle est qualifiée pour enseigner les branches habituelles d'une bonne éducation anglaise, ainsi que le français, le dessin et la musique »(à cette époque, le lecteur, ce catalogue désormais restreint de réalisations, aurait été considéré comme assez complet). “Address, J.E., Post-office, Lowton, ---shire.” This document remained locked in my drawer all day: after tea, I asked leave of the new superintendent to go to Lowton, in order to perform some small commissions for myself and one or two of my fellow-teachers; permission was readily granted; I went. Ce document est resté enfermé dans mon tiroir toute la journée: après le thé, j'ai demandé la permission au nouveau surintendant d'aller à Lowton, afin d'effectuer quelques petites commandes pour moi et un ou deux de mes camarades; la permission était facilement accordée; Je suis allé.

It was a walk of two miles, and the evening was wet, but the days were still long; I visited a shop or two, slipped the letter into the post-office, and came back through heavy rain, with streaming garments, but with a relieved heart. |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||clothes||||| C'était une marche de deux milles, et la soirée était humide, mais les journées étaient encore longues; J'ai visité un magasin ou deux, j'ai glissé la lettre dans le bureau de poste et je suis revenu sous une pluie battante, les vêtements ruisselants, mais le cœur soulagé. The succeeding week seemed long: it came to an end at last, however, like all sublunary things, and once more, towards the close of a pleasant autumn day, I found myself afoot on the road to Lowton. |||||||||||||||earthly||||||||||||||||on foot||||| La semaine qui suivit me parut longue: elle finit enfin, comme toutes les choses sublunaires, et une fois de plus, vers la fin d'une agréable journée d'automne, je me retrouvai sur la route de Lowton. A picturesque track it was, by the way; lying along the side of the beck and through the sweetest curves of the dale: but that day I thought more of the letters, that might or might not be awaiting me at the little burgh whither I was bound, than of the charms of lea and water. ||||||||||||||поток|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||луг|| ||||||||||||||||||most delightful||||||||||||||||||||waiting for|||||village|||||||||||| C'était une piste pittoresque, d'ailleurs; couché le long du bord du pont et à travers les courbes les plus douces du vallon: mais ce jour-là, je pensais plus aux lettres, qui m'attendaient ou non au petit bourg où j'étais lié, qu'aux charmes de Lea et eau. My ostensible errand on this occasion was to get measured for a pair of shoes; so I discharged that business first, and when it was done, I stepped across the clean and quiet little street from the shoemaker’s to the post-office: it was kept by an old dame, who wore horn spectacles on her nose, and black mittens on her hands. |явная|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| |apparent||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||the shoemaker's shop|||||||||||||||eyeglasses||||||gloves||| Ma course ostensible à cette occasion était de me mesurer pour une paire de chaussures; alors je me suis acquitté de cette affaire en premier, et quand cela a été fait, j'ai traversé la petite rue propre et calme du cordonnier à la poste: elle était tenue par une vieille dame, qui portait des lunettes en corne sur le nez et des mitaines noires. sur ses mains. “Are there any letters for J.E.

?” I asked. She peered at me over her spectacles, and then she opened a drawer and fumbled among its contents for a long time, so long that my hopes began to falter. ||||||||||||||searched clumsily||||||||||||||| At last, having held a document before her glasses for nearly five minutes, she presented it across the counter, accompanying the act by another inquisitive and mistrustful glance—it was for J.E. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||suspicious|||||| Enfin, ayant tenu un document devant ses lunettes pendant près de cinq minutes, elle le présenta de l'autre côté du comptoir, accompagnant l'acte d'un autre regard curieux et méfiant - c'était pour JE “Is there only one?” I demanded.

“There are no more,” said she; and I put it in my pocket and turned my face homeward: I could not open it then; rules obliged me to be back by eight, and it was already half-past seven. "Il n'y en a plus", dit-elle ; je la mis dans ma poche et me tournai vers la maison : Je ne pouvais pas l'ouvrir à ce moment-là ; le règlement m'obligeait à être de retour à huit heures, et il était déjà sept heures et demie. Various duties awaited me on my arrival.

I had to sit with the girls during their hour of study; then it was my turn to read prayers; to see them to bed: afterwards I supped with the other teachers. |||||||||||||||||||||||||||ate dinner|||| Even when we finally retired for the night, the inevitable Miss Gryce was still my companion: we had only a short end of candle in our candlestick, and I dreaded lest she should talk till it was all burnt out; fortunately, however, the heavy supper she had eaten produced a soporific effect: she was already snoring before I had finished undressing. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||candle holder||||||||||||||||||||||||sleep-inducing||||||||||getting undressed Même lorsque nous nous sommes enfin retirés pour la nuit, l'inévitable Miss Gryce était toujours ma compagne : nous n'avions qu'un petit bout de bougie dans notre chandelier, et je redoutais qu'elle ne parle jusqu'à ce qu'elle soit entièrement consumée ; heureusement, cependant, le lourd souper qu'elle avait pris avait un effet soporifique : elle ronflait déjà avant que je n'aie fini de me déshabiller. There still remained an inch of candle: I now took out my letter; the seal was an initial F.; I broke it; the contents were brief. “If J.E., who advertised in the ---shire Herald of last Thursday, possesses the acquirements mentioned, and if she is in a position to give satisfactory references as to character and competency, a situation can be offered her where there is but one pupil, a little girl, under ten years of age; and where the salary is thirty pounds per annum. |||||||shire|||||has|||||||||||||||||||capability||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| «Si JE, qui a annoncé dans le --- shire Herald de jeudi dernier, possède les acquis mentionnés, et si elle est en mesure de donner des références satisfaisantes quant au caractère et à la compétence, une situation peut lui être offerte là où il n'y en a qu'une élève, une petite fille de moins de dix ans; et où le salaire est de trente livres par an. J.E.

is requested to send references, name, address, and all particulars to the direction:— est|||||||||||| “Mrs.

Fairfax, Thornfield, near Millcote, ---shire.” I examined the document long: the writing was old-fashioned and rather uncertain, like that of an elderly lady. This circumstance was satisfactory: a private fear had haunted me, that in thus acting for myself, and by my own guidance, I ran the risk of getting into some scrape; and, above all things, I wished the result of my endeavours to be respectable, proper, en règle . ||||||||troubled||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||in order Cette circonstance était satisfaisante: une peur privée m'avait hanté, qu'en agissant ainsi pour moi-même, et par ma propre conduite, je risquais de me mettre à quelque éraflure; et, par-dessus tout, je souhaitais que le résultat de mes efforts soit respectable, convenable, en règle. I now felt that an elderly lady was no bad ingredient in the business I had on hand. Je sentais maintenant qu'une dame âgée n'était pas un mauvais ingrédient dans mon entreprise. Mrs. Fairfax! I saw her in a black gown and widow’s cap; frigid, perhaps, but not uncivil: a model of elderly English respectability. ||||||||widow's headwear||cold|||||||||| Je l'ai vue dans une robe noire et un bonnet de veuve; glacial, peut-être, mais pas impoli: un modèle de respectabilité anglaise des personnes âgées. Thornfield! that, doubtless, was the name of her house: a neat orderly spot, I was sure; though I failed in my efforts to conceive a correct plan of the premises. |without a doubt||||||||||||||||||||||||||| c'était sans doute le nom de sa maison: un endroit bien rangé, j'en étais sûr; même si j'ai échoué dans mes efforts pour concevoir un plan correct des locaux. Millcote, ---shire; I brushed up my recollections of the map of England, yes, I saw it; both the shire and the town. Millcote, --- comté; J'ai brossé mes souvenirs de la carte de l'Angleterre, oui, je l'ai vue; le comté et la ville. ---shire was seventy miles nearer London than the remote county where I now resided: that was a recommendation to me. |||||||||||||lived at|||||| --- Shire était soixante-dix milles plus près de Londres que le comté reculé où je résidais maintenant: c'était une recommandation pour moi. I longed to go where there was life and movement: Millcote was a large manufacturing town on the banks of the A-; a busy place enough, doubtless: so much the better; it would be a complete change at least. J'avais envie d'aller là où il y avait de la vie et du mouvement: Millcote était une grande ville industrielle sur les bords de l'A-; un endroit assez animé, sans doute: tant mieux; ce serait au moins un changement complet. Not that my fancy was much captivated by the idea of long chimneys and clouds of smoke—“but,” I argued, “Thornfield will, probably, be a good way from the town.” ||||||engaged or interested||||||||||||||||||||||| Non pas que mon imagination ait été très captivée par l'idée de longues cheminées et de nuages de fumée - «mais,» dis-je, «Thornfield sera probablement un bon moyen de sortir de la ville. Here the socket of the candle dropped, and the wick went out. Ici, la douille de la bougie est tombée et la mèche s'est éteinte. Next day new steps were to be taken; my plans could no longer be confined to my own breast; I must impart them in order to achieve their success. Le lendemain, de nouvelles mesures devaient être prises; mes projets ne pouvaient plus se limiter à ma propre poitrine; Je dois les transmettre pour réussir. Having sought and obtained an audience of the superintendent during the noontide recreation, I told her I had a prospect of getting a new situation where the salary would be double what I now received (for at Lowood I only got £15 per annum); and requested she would break the matter for me to Mr. Brocklehurst, or some of the committee, and ascertain whether they would permit me to mention them as references. Ayant recherché et obtenu une audience du surintendant pendant la récréation de midi, je lui ai dit que j'avais une perspective d'obtenir une nouvelle situation où le salaire serait le double de ce que je recevais maintenant (car à Lowood je ne touchais que 15 £ par an); et elle lui a demandé de transmettre la question pour moi à M. Brocklehurst, ou à certains membres du comité, et de vérifier s'ils me permettraient de les mentionner comme références. She obligingly consented to act as mediatrix in the matter. |willingly|||||||| Elle a obligatoirement consenti à agir comme médiatrice en la matière. The next day she laid the affair before Mr. Brocklehurst, who said that Mrs. Reed must be written to, as she was my natural guardian. A note was accordingly addressed to that lady, who returned for answer, that “I might do as I pleased: she had long relinquished all interference in my affairs.”  This note went the round of the committee, and at last, after what appeared to me most tedious delay, formal leave was given me to better my condition if I could; and an assurance added, that as I had always conducted myself well, both as teacher and pupil, at Lowood, a testimonial of character and capacity, signed by the inspectors of that institution, should forthwith be furnished me. |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||officials of Lowood|||||||| Une note fut donc adressée à cette dame, qui revint pour répondre, disant: «Je pourrais faire ce que je voulais: elle avait depuis longtemps renoncé à toute ingérence dans mes affaires. Cette note fit le tour du comité, et enfin, après ce qui me parut le plus fastidieux retard, une permission formelle me fut donnée pour améliorer ma condition si je le pouvais; et une assurance a ajouté que, comme je m'étais toujours bien conduit, à la fois comme professeur et comme élève, à Lowood, un témoignage de caractère et de capacité, signé par les inspecteurs de cette institution, devrait être immédiatement fourni. This testimonial I accordingly received in about a month, forwarded a copy of it to Mrs. Fairfax, and got that lady’s reply, stating that she was satisfied, and fixing that day fortnight as the period for my assuming the post of governess in her house. |||||||||sent on|||||||||||the woman’s|||||||||||||||||||||||| J'ai donc reçu ce témoignage dans environ un mois, j'en ai transmis une copie à Mme Fairfax, et j'ai reçu la réponse de cette dame, déclarant qu'elle était satisfaite, et fixant ce jour-là quinze jours comme période pour mon assumer le poste de gouvernante dans sa maison. . I now busied myself in preparations: the fortnight passed rapidly. I had not a very large wardrobe, though it was adequate to my wants; and the last day sufficed to pack my trunk,—the same I had brought with me eight years ago from Gateshead. ||||||||||||||||||was enough|||||||||||||||| Je n'avais pas une très grande garde-robe, même si elle convenait à mes besoins; et le dernier jour a suffi pour emballer ma malle, celle que j'avais apportée il y a huit ans de Gateshead. The box was corded, the card nailed on. La boîte était cordée, la carte clouée.

In half-an-hour the carrier was to call for it to take it to Lowton, whither I myself was to repair at an early hour the next morning to meet the coach. Dans une demi-heure, le transporteur devait l'appeler pour le conduire à Lowton, où je devais moi-même réparer de bonne heure le lendemain matin pour rencontrer l'entraîneur. I had brushed my black stuff travelling-dress, prepared my bonnet, gloves, and muff; sought in all my drawers to see that no article was left behind; and now having nothing more to do, I sat down and tried to rest. J'avais brossé ma robe de voyage en étoffe noire, préparé mon bonnet, mes gants et mon manchon ; j'avais fouillé dans tous mes tiroirs pour m'assurer qu'aucun article n'était oublié ; et maintenant que je n'avais plus rien à faire, je me suis assise et j'ai essayé de me reposer. I could not; though I had been on foot all day, I could not now repose an instant; I was too much excited. Je ne pouvais pas; bien que j'aie été à pied toute la journée, je ne pouvais plus me reposer un instant; J'étais trop excité. A phase of my life was closing to-night, a new one opening to-morrow: impossible to slumber in the interval; I must watch feverishly while the change was being accomplished. |||||||||||||||||sleep||||||||||||| Une phase de ma vie se fermait ce soir, une nouvelle s'ouvrait demain: impossible de dormir dans l'intervalle; Je dois regarder fébrilement pendant que le changement s'accomplissait. “Miss,” said a servant who met me in the lobby, where I was wandering like a troubled spirit, “a person below wishes to see you.” “The carrier, no doubt,” I thought, and ran downstairs without inquiry. I was passing the back-parlour or teachers' sitting-room, the door of which was half open, to go to the kitchen, when some one ran out— |||||sitting room||||||||||||||||||||| Je passais devant le petit salon ou le salon des professeurs, dont la porte était entrouverte, pour aller à la cuisine, quand quelqu'un en sortit ... “It’s her, I am sure!—I could have told her anywhere!” cried the individual who stopped my progress and took my hand. «C'est elle, j'en suis sûr! - j'aurais pu lui dire n'importe où! cria l'individu qui arrêta ma progression et me prit la main. I looked: I saw a woman attired like a well-dressed servant, matronly, yet still young; very good-looking, with black hair and eyes, and lively complexion. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||skin tone “Well, who is it?” she asked, in a voice and with a smile I half recognised; “you’ve not quite forgotten me, I think, Miss Jane?” In another second I was embracing and kissing her rapturously: “Bessie! |||||||||with great joy|

Bessie!

Bessie!” that was all I said; whereat she half laughed, half cried, and we both went into the parlour. By the fire stood a little fellow of three years old, in plaid frock and trousers. ||||||||||||в клетку||| “That is my little boy,” said Bessie directly.

“Then you are married, Bessie?”

“Yes; nearly five years since to Robert Leaven, the coachman; and I’ve a little girl besides Bobby there, that I’ve christened Jane.” "Oui; près de cinq ans depuis à Robert Leaven, le cocher; et j'ai une petite fille en plus de Bobby là-bas, que j'ai baptisée Jane. “And you don’t live at Gateshead?”

“I live at the lodge: the old porter has left.” «J'habite la loge: le vieux portier est parti. “Well, and how do they all get on? «Eh bien, et comment vont-ils tous?

Tell me everything about them, Bessie: but sit down first; and, Bobby, come and sit on my knee, will you?” but Bobby preferred sidling over to his mother. Dis||||||||||||||||||||||||||| “You’re not grown so very tall, Miss Jane, nor so very stout,” continued Mrs. Leaven. «Vous n'êtes pas devenue si grande, Mlle Jane, ni si grosse,» continua Mme Leaven. “I dare say they’ve not kept you too well at school: Miss Reed is the head and shoulders taller than you are; and Miss Georgiana would make two of you in breadth.” «J'ose dire qu'ils ne vous ont pas trop bien gardés à l'école: Miss Reed a la tête et les épaules plus grandes que vous; et Miss Georgiana ferait de vous deux en largeur. “Georgiana is handsome, I suppose, Bessie?”

“Very.

She went up to London last winter with her mama, and there everybody admired her, and a young lord fell in love with her: but his relations were against the match; and—what do you think?—he and Miss Georgiana made it up to run away; but they were found out and stopped. |||||||||mother||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Elle est allée à Londres l'hiver dernier avec sa maman, et là tout le monde l'a admirée, et un jeune seigneur est tombé amoureux d'elle: mais ses parents étaient contre le match; et - qu'en pensez-vous? - lui et Miss Georgiana ont réussi à s'enfuir; mais ils ont été découverts et arrêtés. It was Miss Reed that found them out: I believe she was envious; and now she and her sister lead a cat and dog life together; they are always quarrelling—” C'est Mlle Reed qui les a découverts: je crois qu'elle était envieuse; et maintenant, elle et sa sœur mènent une vie de chat et de chien ensemble; ils se disputent toujours… » “Well, and what of John Reed?”

“Oh, he is not doing so well as his mama could wish. He went to college, and he got—plucked, I think they call it: and then his uncles wanted him to be a barrister, and study the law: but he is such a dissipated young man, they will never make much of him, I think.” |||||||отчислен|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ||||||||||||||||relatives||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Il est allé à l'université, et il a été - plumé, je pense qu'ils l'appellent: et ensuite ses oncles voulaient qu'il soit avocat et qu'il étudie le droit: mais c'est un jeune homme si dissipé, ils ne feront jamais grand chose de lui, Je pense." “What does he look like?”

“He is very tall: some people call him a fine-looking young man; but he has such thick lips.” “And Mrs. Reed?”

“Missis looks stout and well enough in the face, but I think she’s not quite easy in her mind: Mr. John’s conduct does not please her—he spends a deal of money.” "Missis a l'air robuste et bien dans sa peau, mais je pense qu'elle n'est pas tout à fait sereine : La conduite de M. John ne lui plaît pas - il dépense beaucoup d'argent." “Did she send you here, Bessie?” "C'est elle qui t'a envoyée ici, Bessie ?"

“No, indeed: but I have long wanted to see you, and when I heard that there had been a letter from you, and that you were going to another part of the country, I thought I’d just set off, and get a look at you before you were quite out of my reach.” «Non, en effet: mais j'ai longtemps voulu te voir, et quand j'ai appris qu'il y avait eu une lettre de toi, et que tu allais dans une autre partie du pays, j'ai pensé que je venais de partir, et un regard sur vous avant que vous ne soyez tout à fait hors de ma portée. “I am afraid you are disappointed in me, Bessie.”  I said this laughing: I perceived that Bessie’s glance, though it expressed regard, did in no shape denote admiration. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||indicate| «J'ai peur que vous soyez déçu de moi, Bessie. J'ai dit cela en riant: j'ai perçu que le regard de Bessie, s'il exprimait de la considération, ne dénotait en aucune manière l'admiration. “No, Miss Jane, not exactly: you are genteel enough; you look like a lady, and it is as much as ever I expected of you: you were no beauty as a child.” «Non, Miss Jane, pas exactement: vous êtes assez distinguée; tu ressembles à une dame, et c'est tout ce que j'attendais de toi: tu n'étais pas belle comme un enfant. I smiled at Bessie’s frank answer: I felt that it was correct, but I confess I was not quite indifferent to its import: at eighteen most people wish to please, and the conviction that they have not an exterior likely to second that desire brings anything but gratification. |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||удовлетворение ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||support|support||||||satisfaction J'ai souri à la réponse franche de Bessie: je sentais que c'était correct, mais j'avoue que je n'étais pas tout à fait indifférent à sa portée: à dix-huit ans la plupart des gens veulent plaire, et la conviction qu'ils n'ont pas un extérieur susceptible de seconder ce désir apporte quelque chose mais gratification. “I dare say you are clever, though,” continued Bessie, by way of solace. “What can you do? Can you play on the piano?” “A little.”

There was one in the room; Bessie went and opened it, and then asked me to sit down and give her a tune: I played a waltz or two, and she was charmed. “The Miss Reeds could not play as well!” said she exultingly. ||||||||||with great joy “I always said you would surpass them in learning: and can you draw?” |||||превзойдё||||||| “That is one of my paintings over the chimney-piece.”  It was a landscape in water colours, of which I had made a present to the superintendent, in acknowledgment of her obliging mediation with the committee on my behalf, and which she had framed and glazed. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||intervention||||||||||||| «C'est une de mes peintures sur la cheminée.» C'était un paysage aux aquarelles, dont j'avais fait un cadeau au commissaire, en reconnaissance de sa médiation obligeante avec le comité en mon nom, et qu'elle avait encadré et vitrifié. “Well, that is beautiful, Miss Jane!

It is as fine a picture as any Miss Reed’s drawing-master could paint, let alone the young ladies themselves, who could not come near it: and have you learnt French?” C'est un tableau aussi beau que n'importe quel dessinateur de Miss Reed, sans parler des jeunes femmes elles-mêmes, qui ne peuvent pas s'en approcher : et avez-vous appris le français ?" “Yes, Bessie, I can both read it and speak it.” “And you can work on muslin and canvas?”

“I can.”

“Oh, you are quite a lady, Miss Jane!

I knew you would be: you will get on whether your relations notice you or not. Je savais que vous le seriez: vous vous demanderez si vos relations vous remarquent ou non. There was something I wanted to ask you. Have you ever heard anything from your father’s kinsfolk, the Eyres?” “Never in my life.”

“Well, you know Missis always said they were poor and quite despicable: and they may be poor; but I believe they are as much gentry as the Reeds are; for one day, nearly seven years ago, a Mr. Eyre came to Gateshead and wanted to see you; Missis said you were at school fifty miles off; he seemed so much disappointed, for he could not stay: he was going on a voyage to a foreign country, and the ship was to sail from London in a day or two. "En effet, un jour, il y a près de sept ans, un certain M. Eyre est venu à Gateshead et a voulu vous voir ; Missis a dit que vous étiez à l'école à cinquante miles de là ; il a semblé très déçu, car il ne pouvait pas rester : il partait en voyage pour un pays étranger, et le navire devait quitter Londres dans un jour ou deux. He looked quite a gentleman, and I believe he was your father’s brother.” “What foreign country was he going to, Bessie?” “An island thousands of miles off, where they make wine—the butler did tell me—” "Une île à des milliers de kilomètres, où l'on fait du vin - le majordome m'a dit..." “Madeira?” I suggested.

“Yes, that is it—that is the very word.”

“So he went?”

“Yes; he did not stay many minutes in the house: Missis was very high with him; she called him afterwards a ‘sneaking tradesman. ||||||||||||||||||||||merchant "Oui; il ne resta pas plusieurs minutes dans la maison: Missis était très haut avec lui; elle l'a appelé par la suite «commerçant furtif». '  My Robert believes he was a wine-merchant.” «Mon Robert croit qu'il était marchand de vin. “Very likely,” I returned; “or perhaps clerk or agent to a wine-merchant.”

Bessie and I conversed about old times an hour longer, and then she was obliged to leave me: I saw her again for a few minutes the next morning at Lowton, while I was waiting for the coach. Bessie et moi avons conversé du bon vieux temps pendant une heure encore, puis elle a été obligée de me quitter : Je l'ai revue quelques minutes le lendemain matin à Lowton, alors que j'attendais la diligence. We parted finally at the door of the Brocklehurst Arms there: each went her separate way; she set off for the brow of Lowood Fell to meet the conveyance which was to take her back to Gateshead, I mounted the vehicle which was to bear me to new duties and a new life in the unknown environs of Millcote. ||||||||Arms de Brockle|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||surrounding area|| Nous nous séparâmes enfin à la porte des Brocklehurst Arms: chacun partit de son côté; elle partit pour le front de Lowood Fell pour rencontrer le véhicule qui devait la ramener à Gateshead, je montai sur le véhicule qui devait me porter à de nouveaux devoirs et une nouvelle vie dans les environs inconnus de Millcote.