thought of a crime revives my spirits, of violence and murder, either

or both, I am really incapable of carrying out the design. The



countess is an admirablemonster who would crave for pardon, and not

every man is an Othello.'



" 'She is like every woman who is beyond our reach,' Rastignac

interrupted.



" 'I am mad,' I cried; 'I can feel the madness raging at times in my

brain. My ideas are like shadows; they flit before me, and I cannot



grasp them. Death would be preferable to this life, and I have

carefully considered the best way of putting an end to the struggle. I



am not thinking of the living Foedora in the Faubourg Saint Honore,

but of my Foedora here,' and I tapped my forehead. 'What to you say to



opium?'

" 'Pshaw! horrid agonies,' said Rastignac.



" 'Or charcoal fumes?'

" 'A low dodge.'



" 'Or the Seine?'

" 'The drag-nets, and the Morgue too, are filthy.'



" 'A pistol-shot?'

" 'And if you miscalculate, you disfigure yourself for life. Listen to



me,' he went on, 'like all young men, I have pondered over suicide.

Which of us hasn't killed himself two or three times before he is



thirty? I find there is no better course than to use existence as a

means of pleasure. Go in for thorough dissipation, and your passion or



you will perish in it. Intemperance, my dear fellow, commands all

forms of death. Does she not wield the thunderbolt of apoplexy?



Apoplexy is a pistol-shot that does not miscalculate. Orgies are

lavish in all physical pleasures; is not that the small change for



opium? And the riot that makes us drink to excess bears a challenge to

mortal combat with wine. That butt of Malmsey of the Duke of



Clarence's must have had a pleasanter flavor than Seine mud. When we

sink gloriously under the table, is not that a periodical death by



drowning on a small scale? If we are picked up by the police and

stretched out on those chilly benches of theirs at the police-station,



do we not enjoy all the pleasures of the Morgue? For though we are not

blue and green, muddy and swollen corpses, on the other hand we have



the consciousness of the climax.

" 'Ah,' he went on, 'this protracted suicide has nothing in common



with the bankrupt grocer's demise. Tradespeople have brought the river

into disrepute; they fling themselves in to soften their creditors'



hearts. In your place I should endeavor to die gracefully; and if you

wish to invent a novel way of doing it, by struggling with life after



this manner, I will be your second. I am disappointed and sick of

everything. The Alsacienne, whom it was proposed that I should marry,



had six toes on her left foot; I cannot possibly live with a woman who

has six toes! It would get about to a certainty, and then I should be



ridiculous. Her income was only eighteen thousand francs; her fortune

diminished in quantity as her toes increased. The devil take it; if we



begin an outrageous sort of life, we may come on some bit of luck,

perhaps!'



"Rastignac's eloquence carried me away. The attractions of the plan

shone too temptingly, hopes were kindled, the poetical aspects of the



matter appealed to a poet.

" 'How about money?' I said.



" 'Haven't you four hundred and fifty francs?'

" 'Yes, but debts to my landlady and the tailor----'



" 'You would pay your tailor? You will never be anything whatever, not

so much as a minister.'



" 'But what can one do with twenty louis?'

" 'Go to the gaming-table.'



"I shuddered.

" 'You are going to launch out into what I call systematic



dissipation,' said he, noticing my scruples, 'and yet you are afraid

of a green table-cloth.'



" 'Listen to me,' I answered. 'I promised my father never to set foot

in a gaming-house. Not only is that a sacred promise, but I still feel



an unconquerable disgustwhenever I pass a gambling-hell; take the

• generous [´dʒenərəs] a.慷慨的；丰盛的 (初中英语单词)


• enthusiasm [in´θju:ziæzəm] n.热心；狂热；爱好 (初中英语单词)


• passion [´pæʃən] n.激情；激怒；恋爱 (初中英语单词)


• ascend [ə´send] v.登；上升；追溯 (初中英语单词)


• hatred [´heitrid] n.憎恨，敌意 (初中英语单词)


• violence [´vaiələns] n.猛烈；暴力(行) (初中英语单词)


• impulse [´impʌls] n.推动(力)；冲动；刺激 (初中英语单词)


• achieve [ə´tʃi:v] vt.完成；达到；获得 (初中英语单词)


• unable [ʌn´eibəl] a.不能的；无能为力的 (初中英语单词)


• endure [in´djuə] vt.忍耐，忍受；坚持 (初中英语单词)


• reward [ri´wɔ:d] n.&v.报答；报酬；奖赏 (初中英语单词)


• selfish [´selfiʃ] a.自私的，利己的 (初中英语单词)


• virtue [´və:tʃu:] n.美德；贞操；长处 (初中英语单词)


• moreover [mɔ:´rəuvə] ad.再者，此外，而且 (初中英语单词)


• appreciate [ə´pri:ʃieit] v.评价；珍惜；感激 (初中英语单词)


• extent [ik´stent] n.长度；程度；范围 (初中英语单词)


• delicate [´delikət] a.精美的；微妙的 (初中英语单词)


• convert [kən´və:t, ´kɔnvə:t] v.转变 n.改变信仰者 (初中英语单词)


• romance [rəu´mæns] n.中世纪骑士小说 (初中英语单词)


• minister [´ministə] n.部长；大臣 v.伺候 (初中英语单词)


• whatever [wɔt´evə] pron.&a.无论什么 (初中英语单词)


• lonely [´ləunli] a.孤独的；无人烟的 (初中英语单词)


• despite [di´spait] prep.尽管 (初中英语单词)


• despair [di´speə] vi.&n.绝望 (初中英语单词)


• brilliant [´briliənt] a.灿烂的；杰出的 (初中英语单词)


• dreadful [´dredful] a.可怕的；讨厌的 (初中英语单词)


• physical [´fizikəl] a.物质的；有形的 (初中英语单词)


• suffering [´sʌfəriŋ] n.痛苦；灾害 (初中英语单词)


• mental [´mentl] a.精神的；心理的 (初中英语单词)


• prophet [´prɔfit] n.预言家；先知；提倡者 (初中英语单词)


• miserable [´mizərəbəl] a.悲惨的；可怜的 (初中英语单词)


• despise [di´spaiz] vt.轻视，藐视 (初中英语单词)


• monster [´mɔnstə] n.怪物 a.大得异常的 (初中英语单词)


• pardon [´pɑ:dən] n.&vt.原谅；饶恕；赦免 (初中英语单词)


• forehead [´fɔrid] n.额，前部 (初中英语单词)


• existence [ig´zistəns] n.存在；生存；生活 (初中英语单词)


• perish [´periʃ] v.灭亡；消灭；(使)死去 (初中英语单词)


• excess [´ekses] n.超过 a.过分的 (初中英语单词)


• challenge [´tʃælindʒ] n.&vt.向….挑战；怀疑 (初中英语单词)


• flavor [´fleivə] n.滋味 vt.给….调味 (初中英语单词)


• chilly [´tʃili] a.凉飕飕的 (初中英语单词)


• soften [´sɔfən] v.使(变)软(柔和) (初中英语单词)


• invent [in´vent] vt.发明；捏造 (初中英语单词)


• income [´inkʌm] n.收入，所得 (初中英语单词)


• tailor [´teilə] n.裁缝 vt.裁制(衣服) (初中英语单词)


• sacred [´seikrid] a.神圣的；庄严的 (初中英语单词)


• disgust [dis´gʌst] n.厌恶 vt.令(人)作呕 (初中英语单词)


• whenever [wen´evə] conj.&ad.无论何时 (初中英语单词)


• reproduce [,ri:prə´dju:s] v.繁殖；复制；翻版 (高中英语单词)


• chronicle [´krɔnikl] n.历史 vt.记述 (高中英语单词)


• inspiration [,inspi´reiʃən] n.鼓舞；灵感；启发 (高中英语单词)


• torment [´tɔ:ment] vt.(使)痛苦，折磨 (高中英语单词)


• cheerfully [´tʃiəfuli] ad.高兴地，愉快地 (高中英语单词)


• disagreeable [,disə´gri:əbl] a.令人不悦的 (高中英语单词)


• restrain [ri´strein] vt.抑制；管束；限制 (高中英语单词)


• classic [´klæsik] a.第一流的 n.杰作 (高中英语单词)


• longing [´lɔŋiŋ] n.&a.渴望(的) (高中英语单词)


• theirs [ðeəz] pron.他们的 (高中英语单词)


• manuscript [´mænjuskript] a.手抄的 n.手稿 (高中英语单词)


• admirable [´ædmərəbəl] a.极佳的，值得赞美的 (高中英语单词)


• madness [´mædnis] n.疯狂；狂热 (高中英语单词)


• horrid [´hɔrid] a.令人讨厌的；极糟的 (高中英语单词)


• charcoal [´tʃɑ:kəul] n.木炭；炭笔 (高中英语单词)


• thorough [´θʌrə] a.彻底的；详尽的 (高中英语单词)


• combat [´kɔmbæt] v.&n.斗争；战斗；争斗 (高中英语单词)


• consciousness [´kɔnʃəsnis] n.意识；觉悟；知觉 (高中英语单词)


• suicide [´su:isaid, ´sju:-] n.&a.自杀(者)(的) (高中英语单词)


• certainty [´sə:tənti] n.确实(性)；确信 (高中英语单词)


• landlady [´lænd,leidi] n.女房东；女店主 (高中英语单词)


• launch [lɔ:ntʃ] vt.发动 n.发射；汽艇 (高中英语单词)


• recollect [rekə´lekt] v.重新集合；恢复 (英语四级单词)


• counterfeit [´kauntəfit] a.伪造的 v.&n.伪造 (英语四级单词)


• communion [kə´mju:niən] n.共享；交流；圣餐 (英语四级单词)


• garret [´gærit] n.阁楼，顶楼 (英语四级单词)


• remorse [ri´mɔ:s] n.懊悔；自责；同情 (英语四级单词)


• incapable [in´keipəbəl] a.无能力的；不能的 (英语四级单词)


• thunderbolt [´θʌndəbəult] n.雷电，霹雳 (英语四级单词)


• periodical [,piəri´ɔdikəl] a.定期的 n.期刊 (英语四级单词)


• swollen [´swəulən] swell的过去分词 (英语四级单词)


• bankrupt [´bæŋkrʌpt] n.破产者 a.破产了的 (英语四级单词)


• gracefully [´greisfuli] ad.优美地，斯文地 (英语四级单词)


• eloquence [´eləkwəns] n.雄辩；口才 (英语四级单词)


• temptingly [´temptiŋli] ad.迷人地；诱惑地 (英语四级单词)


• battlefield [´bætlfi:ld] n.战场 (英语六级单词)


• weeping [´wi:piŋ] a.&n.哭泣(的) (英语六级单词)


• affront [ə´frʌnt] vt.&n.(当众)侮辱 (英语六级单词)


• lavishly [´læviʃli] ad.大方地；慷慨地 (英语六级单词)


• amends [ə´mendz] n.赔偿；赔罪 (英语六级单词)


• insolence [´insələns] n.傲慢；无礼 (英语六级单词)


• bewilderment [bi´wildəmənt] n.为难；狼狈；迷惑 (英语六级单词)


• disfigure [dis´figə] vt.损毁(外貌)；使丑陋 (英语六级单词)


• gloriously [´glɔ:riəsli] ad.光荣地，辉煌地 (英语六级单词)


• outrageous [aut´reidʒəs] a.横蛮的；残暴的 (英语六级单词)


• poetical [pəu´etikəl] a.理想化了的 (英语六级单词)