Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 4 - Jane Austen.mp3

[00:00.144]The gentlemen pronounced him to be a fine figure
[00:02.756]of a man, the ladies declared he was much handsomer
[00:05.446]than Mr. Bingley, and he was looked at with
[00:07.693]great admiration for about half the evening,
[00:10.227]till his manners gave a disgust
[00:12.134]which turned the tide of his popularity;
[00:14.302]for he was discovered to be proud,
[00:16.548]to be above his company, and above being pleased;
[00:20.075]and not all his large estate in Derbyshire could then
[00:22.609]save him from having a most forbidding,
[00:24.437]disagreeable countenance,
[00:26.214]and being unworthy to be compared with his friend.
[00:29.061]Mr. Bingley had soon made himself acquainted with
[00:31.595]all the principal people in the room:
[00:33.293]he was lively and unreserved, danced every dance,
[00:36.480]was angry that the ball closed so early,
[00:39.144]and talked of giving one himself at Netherfield.
[00:42.018]Such amiable qualities must speak for themselves.
[00:45.100]What a contrast between him and his friend!
[00:47.634]Mr. Darcy danced only once with Mrs. Hurst
[00:50.403]and once with Miss Bingley,
[00:52.049]declined being introduced to any other lady,
[00:54.713]and spent the rest of the evening in walking about the room,
[00:57.378]speaking occasionally to one of his own party.
[01:00.669]His character was decided.
[01:02.811]He was the proudest, most disagreeable
[01:05.162]man in the world, and every body hoped that
[01:07.409]he would never come there again.
[01:09.290]Amongst the most violent against him was Mrs. Bennet,
[01:12.085]whose dislike of his general behaviour was
[01:13.966]sharpened into particular resentment,
[01:15.794]by his having slighted one of her daughters.
[01:19.321]Elizabeth Bennet had been obliged,
[01:21.332]by the scarcity of gentlemen,
[01:22.978]to sit down for two dances;
[01:24.806]and during part of that time,
[01:26.531]Mr. Darcy had been standing near enough for her
[01:28.777]to overhear a conversation between him and Mr. Bingley,
[01:31.180]who came from the dance for a few minutes
[01:33.192]to press his friend to join it.
[01:35.621]锟斤拷Come, Darcy,锟斤拷 said he, 锟斤拷I must have you dance.
[01:39.278]I hate to see you standing about
[01:40.924]by yourself in this stupid manner.
[01:42.857]You had much better dance.锟斤拷
[01:45.051]锟斤拷I certainly shall not.
[01:47.063]You know how I detest it,
[01:48.839]unless I am particularly acquainted with my partner.
[01:51.843]At such an assembly as this, it would be insupportable.
[01:53.724]Your sisters are engaged,
[01:57.512]and there is not another woman in the room
[01:59.628]whom it would not be a punishment to me to stand up with.锟斤拷
[02:03.389]锟斤拷I would not be so fastidious as you are,锟斤拷
[02:06.237]cried Bingley, 锟斤拷for a kingdom!
[02:09.136]Upon my honour, I never met with so many pleasant girls
[02:12.375]in my life as I have this evening;
[02:14.152]and there are several of them, you see, uncommonly pretty.锟斤拷
[02:17.966]锟斤拷You are dancing with the only handsome girl in the room,锟斤拷
[02:21.388]said Mr. Darcy, looking at the eldest Miss Bennet.
[02:25.175]锟斤拷Oh, she is the most beautiful creature I ever beheld!
[02:29.668]But there is one of her sisters sitting down
[02:31.680]just behind you, who is very pretty,
[02:33.561]and I dare say very agreeable.
[02:35.624]Do let me ask my partner to introduce you.锟斤拷
[02:38.498]锟斤拷Which do you mean?锟斤拷 and turning round,
[02:41.267]he looked for a moment at Elizabeth,
[02:42.886]till, catching her eye, he withdrew his own,
[02:45.473]and coldly said, 锟斤拷She is tolerable;
[02:48.764]but not handsome enough to tempt me;
[02:51.481]and I am in no humour at present to
[02:53.780]give consequence to young ladies
[02:54.903]who are slighted by other men.
[02:56.731]You had better return to your partner
[02:58.586]and enjoy her smiles,
[03:00.441]for you are wasting your time with me.锟斤拷
[03:03.157]Mr. Bingley followed his advice. Mr. Darcy walked off;
[03:06.710]and Elizabeth remained with no very
[03:08.669]cordial feelings towards him.
[03:10.733]She told the story, however,
[03:12.013]with great spirit among her friends;
[03:13.815]for she had a lively, playful disposition,
[03:16.140]which delighted in any thing ridiculous.
[03:19.223]The evening altogether passed off pleasantly
[03:21.522]to the whole family.
[03:22.880]Mrs. Bennet had seen her eldest daughter
[03:24.656]much admired by the Netherfield party.
[03:26.903]Mr. Bingley had danced with her twice,
[03:28.940]and she had been distinguished by his sisters.
[03:31.396]Jane was as much gratified by this
[03:33.564]as her mother could be, though in a quieter way.
[03:36.437]Elizabeth felt Jane锟斤拷s pleasure.
[03:38.919]Mary had heard herself mentioned to Miss Bingley
[03:41.009]as the most accomplished girl in the neighbourhood;
[03:43.308]and Catherine and Lydia had been fortunate enough
[03:45.450]to be never without partners,
[03:47.200]which was all that they had yet learnt
[03:48.767]to care for at a ball.
[03:50.491]They returned, therefore, in good spirits to Longbourn,
[03:53.208]the village where they lived,
[03:54.697]and of which they were the principal inhabitants.
[03:57.335]They found Mr. Bennet still up.
[03:59.399]With a book, he was regardless of time;
[04:01.593]and on the present occasion he had a good deal
[04:03.422]of curiosity as to the event of an evening
[04:05.590]which had raised such splendid expectations.
[04:09.091]He had rather hoped that all his wife锟斤拷s views
[04:10.788]on the stranger would be disappointed;
[04:12.330]but he soon found that he had a very
[04:14.106]different story to hear.
[04:15.621]锟斤拷Oh, my dear Mr. Bennet,锟斤拷
[04:17.633]as she entered the room,
[04:18.939]锟斤拷we have had a most delightful evening,
[04:21.055]a most excellent ball.
[04:22.779]I wish you had been there.
[04:24.529]Jane was so admired, nothing could be like it.
[04:26.253]Every body said how well she looked;
[04:29.858]and Mr. Bingley thought her quite beautiful,
[04:32.705]and danced with her twice.
[04:35.030]Only think of that, my dear:
[04:36.754]he actually danced with her twice;
[04:39.419]and she was the only creature in the room
[04:41.117]that he asked a second time.
[04:42.710]First of all, he asked Miss Lucas.
[04:44.957]I was so vexed to see him stand up with her;
[04:48.300]but, however, he did not admire her at all;
[04:50.442]indeed, nobody can, you know;
[04:52.506]and he seemed quite struck with Jane
[04:54.387]as she was going down the dance.
[04:55.980]So he enquired who she was, and got introduced,
[04:57.652]and asked her for the two next.
[05:00.473]Then, the two third he danced with Miss King,
[05:03.373]and the two fourth with Maria Lucas,
[05:05.202]and the two fifth with Jane again,
[05:07.239]and the two sixth with Lizzy, and the Boulanger e锟斤拷锟斤拷
[05:11.079]锟斤拷If he had had any compassion for me,锟斤拷
[05:13.639]cried her husband, impatiently,
[05:15.337]锟斤拷he would not have danced half so much!
[05:17.401]For God锟斤拷s sake, say no more of his partners.
[05:20.065]Oh that he had sprained his ankle in the first dance!锟斤拷
[05:23.357]锟斤拷Oh, my dear,锟斤拷 continued Mrs. Bennet,
[05:25.655]锟斤拷I am quite delighted with him.
[05:26.726]He is so excessively handsome!
[05:29.025]and his sisters are charming women.
[05:31.037]I never in my life saw any thing more elegant
[05:33.048]than their dresses. I dare say the lace upon
[05:35.399]Mrs. Hurst锟斤拷s gown锟斤拷锟斤拷
[05:37.515]Here she was interrupted again.
[05:39.161]Mr. Bennet protested against any description of finery.
[05:42.478]She was therefore obliged to seek another
[05:44.150]branch of the subject, and related,
[05:46.266]with much bitterness of spirit and some exaggeration,
[05:49.322]the shocking rudeness of Mr. Darcy.
[05:52.091]锟斤拷But I can assure you,锟斤拷 she added,
[05:54.939]锟斤拷that Lizzy does not lose much by not suiting his fancy;
[05:58.779]for he is a most disagreeable, horrid man,
[06:01.940]not at all worth pleasing.
[06:03.768]So high and so conceited, that there was no enduring him!
[06:08.157]He walked here, and he walked there,
[06:10.691]fancying himself so very great!
[06:13.329]Not handsome enough to dance with!
[06:15.811]I wish you had been there, my dear,
[06:17.639]to have given him one of your set-downs.
[06:19.651]I quite detest the man.锟斤拷
[06:23.621]End of Chapter 3