Chapter 1

We were in class when the headmaster came in,followed by a “new fellow,” not wearing the school uniform, and a school servant carrying a large desk. Those who had been asleep woke up, and everyone rose in surprise.

“Mr. Roger, here is a pupil whom I recommend to your care. If his work and conduct are satisfactory , he will go into one of the upper classes, as becomes his age.”

The “new fellow,” standing in the corner behind the door so that he could hardly be seen, was a country lad of about fifteen, and taller than any of us. Although he was not large around the shoulders, his short school jacket must have been tight about the armholes , and showed, at the opening of the cuffs, red wrists accustomed to being bare .

We began repeating the lesson. He listened with all his ears, as attentively as if at a sermon; and when at two o'clock the bell rang, the master was obliged to tell him to fall into line with the rest of us.

When we came back to work, we were in the habit of throwing our caps on the ground so as to have our hands more free. But, whether he had not noticed the trick, or did not dare to attempt it, the“new fellow” was still holding his cap on his knees even after prayers were over.

“Rise,” said the master.

He stood up; his cap fell. The whole class began to laugh.He stooped to pick it up. A neighbor knocked it down again with his elbow ; the country boy picked it up once more.

“Get rid of your cap,” said the master.

There was a burst of laughter from the boys, which so thoroughly upset the poor lad that he did not know whether to keep his cap in his hand, leave it on the ground, or put it on his head. He sat down again and placed it on his knee.

“Rise,” repeated the master, “and tell me your name.”

The new boy articulated in a stammering voice an unintelligible name.

“Again!”

The same mixture of syllables was heard, drowned by a quiet laughter of the class.

“Louder!” cried the master. “Louder!”

At last, the master succeeded in catching the name,“Charles Bovary,” after having had it dictated to him, spelled out, and reread, before ordering the poor boy to go and sit down on the punishment platform at the foot of the master's desk. The boy got up to go to the platform, but before going, he hesitated .

“What are you looking for?” asked the master.

“My cap,” timidly said the “new fellow,” casting troubled looks round him as the class burst into laughter.

“Five hundred lines for all the class!” shouted the master,in a furious voice. Then, in a gentler tone, he said, “Come, you'll find your cap again; it hasn't been stolen.”

In the evening, at preparation, he pulled out his pens from his desk, arranged his small belongings, and carefully ruled his paper. We saw him working conscientiously , looking up every word in the dictionary, taking the greatest pains. Thanks, no doubt, to the willingness he showed, he had not to go down to the class below. But, though he passed the class, he had little talent. It was the priest of his village who had taught him his first Latin; his parents, from motives of economy , had sent him to school as late as possible.

His father, Mr. Charles Denis Bartholome Bovary, retired major, left the military in 1812, and had taken advantage of his charm and good looks to get hold of a wife worth sixty thousand francs. Once married, he lived for two or three years on his wife's fortune, dining well, rising late, smoking long pipes,and not coming in at night till after the theatre was closed.The father-in-law died, leaving little fortune; Mr. Bovary was indignant at this, went into business, lost some money, then retired to the country, where he thought he would make a fortune.

But, as he knew nothing about farming, and as he rode his horses instead of working them in the fields, drank his liquor instead of selling it, and ate the finest poultry in his farmyard,he was not long in finding out that he would do better to give up all business.

For two hundred francs a year he managed to live on the border of the provinces of Caux and Picardy, in a kind of place that was half farm, half private house. And here, soured , eaten up with regrets, cursing his luck, jealous of everyone, he shut himself up at the age of forty-five, sick of men, he said, and determined to live at peace.

His wife had adored him once; she had served him endlessly, which only made him dislike her all the more. Lively and affectionate when they were first married, as she grew older she had become ill-tempered and irritable. She had suffered so much without complaint at first, until she had seen him going after all the village girls. Then her pride revolted . After that, she was silent, burying her anger that she maintained till her death.She was constantly going about looking after business matters.She called on the lawyers, remembered when bills fell due, and at home ironed, sewed, washed, looked after the workmen, paid the accounts, while he, troubling himself about nothing, only roused himself to say disagreeable things to her.

When she had a child, she spoiled the lad as if he were a prince . His mother stuffed him with jam; his father let him run about barefoot . As opposed to the maternal ideas of his wife, he had a certain idea of childhood on which he sought to make his son, wishing him to be brought up hardily , to give him a strong constitution . He sent him to bed without any fire,taught him to drink liquor and laugh at religious processions .But, peaceable by nature, the lad answered only poorly to his notions . His mother always kept him near her, entertaining him endlessly with stories and songs. She taught him to read, but to all this, Mr. Bovary, caring little for education, said it was not worthwhile to teach him, as they would never have the money to send him to a public school, to buy him a practice, or start him in business. Madame Bovary bit her lip, and the child played about the village.

When he was twelve years old, his mother had her own way;he began lessons. The priest took him in hand; but the lessons were so short and irregular that they could not be of much use.They were given at spare moments, standing up, hurriedly.Sometimes, seeing the boy running through the fields, he would call him over for a short lesson. Frequently, the rain interrupted them or an acquaintance passed by. All the same, the priest was always pleased with the boy, and even said the “young man” had a very good memory.

Charles could not go on like this. Madame Bovary took strong steps. Ashamed, or rather tired out, Mr. Bovary gave in without a struggle, and they waited one year longer to send him to school. Six months more passed, and the year after, Charles was finally sent to school in Rouen; his father took him towards the end of October.

He was a youth of even temperament , who played in playtime, worked in school hours, was attentive in class, slept well in the dormitory, and ate well in the dining hall. Every Thursday evening he wrote a long letter to his mother, then he went over his history notebooks. When he went for walks he talked to the servant, who, like himself, came from the country.Through hard work, he kept always about the middle of the class; once even he got a certificate in natural history. But at the end of his third year his parents withdrew him from the school to make him study medicine.

His mother chose a room for him on the fourth floor of a dyer 's she knew. She made arrangements for his board, got him furniture — a table and two chairs — sent home for an old bed,and bought a stove with a supply of wood that was to warm the poor child. Then, at the end of a week she departed, and he was left to himself.

The school work stunned him, lectures on the human body,lectures on various diseases, lectures on physiology , lectures on pharmacy , and lectures on botany and clinical medicine. He understood nothing of it all; it was all very well to listen, though he did not follow. Still he worked; he had notebooks, he attended all the courses, never missed a single lecture. He did his little daily tasks faithfully.

To spare him expense, his mother sent him every week,by the carrier, a piece of meat baked in the oven, with which he lunched when he came back from the hospital, while he sat kicking his feet against the wall. After this, he had to run off to lectures, then to the operation room, then to the hospital, and return home at the other end of town. In the evening, after the poor dinner with his landlord , he went back to his room and set to work again in his wet clothes, which smoked as he sat in front of the hot stove.

On fine summer evenings, he opened his window and leaned out. The river, flowing between the bridges and railings, made of this quarter of Rouen a little Venice beneath him. Opposite, beyond the roofs, spread the pure heaven with the red sun setting. How pleasant it must be at home! How fresh under the trees! And he expanded his nostrils to breathe in the sweet smells of the country which did not reach him.

He grew thin, his figure became taller, and his face took a saddened look that made it nearly interesting. Naturally,through indifference , he abandoned all the resolutions he had made. Once, he missed a lecture; the next day, all the lectures;and, enjoying his idleness , little by little, he gave up work altogether. He got into the habit of going to the pubs. To shut himself up every evening in the dirty pubs seemed to him fine proof of his freedom, which raised him in his own esteem . He was beginning to see life and the sweetness of stolen pleasures; and when he entered, he put his hand on the door handle with a joy almost sensual. Then, many things hidden within him came out; he learned songs, how to make drinks, and, finally, how to make love.

Thanks to these preparatory labours, he failed completely in his examination for an ordinary degree. He was expected home the same night to celebrate his success. He started on foot, stopped at the beginning of the village, sent for his mother, and told her all.She excused him, threw the blame of his failure on the injustice of the examiners, encouraged him a little, and took it upon herself to set matters straight. It was only five years later that old Mr.Bovary knew the truth; it was old news by then, and he accepted it. Moreover , he could not believe that a man born to him could be a fool.

So Charles set to work again and crammed for his examination, ceaselessly learning all the old questions by heart.He passed pretty well. What a happy day for his mother! They gave a grand dinner.

Where should he go to practice? To Tostes, where there was only one old doctor. For a long time Madame Bovary had been on the lookout for his death, and the old fellow had barely been packed off when Charles was installed , opposite his place,as his successor .

But it was not everything to have brought up a son, to have had him taught medicine, and discovered Tostes, where he could practice it; he must have a wife. She found him one, a forty-five year-old widow with an income of twelve hundred francs a year.Though she was ugly and sickly thin, Madame Dubuc had no lack of men wishing to marry her, given her grand fortune. To attain her ends, Madame Bovary carefully ousted all the other men.

Charles had seen in marriage the advent of an easier life,thinking he would be free to do as he liked with himself and his money. But his wife was master; he had to say this and not say that in company, dress as she liked, harass at her bidding those patients who did not pay. She opened his letters, watched his comings and goings, and listened at the door when female patients came to see him.

She constantly complained of her nerves , her chest, and her liver . The noise of footsteps made her ill; when people left her, solitude became hateful to her; if they came back, it was doubtless to see her die. When Charles returned in the evening,she stretched forth two thin arms from beneath the sheets, put them round his neck, and began to talk to him of her troubles.

satisfactory /ˌsætɪsˈfæktərɪ/ adj. 令人满意的

lad / læd / n . 男孩，少年，伙计

armhole /ˈɑ:mhəʊl/ n. 袖孔

wrist /rɪst/ n. 手腕

accustom /əˈkʌstəm/ vt. 使习惯于

bare /beə/ adj. 赤裸的

oblige /əˈblaɪdʒ/ vt. 迫使，使必须做

stoo p /stu:p/ vt. 弯腰

elbow /ˈelbəʊ/ n. 肘

articulate /ɑ:ˈtɪkjʊlət/ vt. 说话

unintelligible /ʌnɪnˈtelɪdʒɪbəl/ adj. 难以理解的，令人费解的

syllable /ˈsɪləbəl/ n. 音节

dictate /dɪkˈteɪt/ vt. 口述，口授

hesitate /ˈhezɪteɪt/ vi. 犹豫

timidl y /ˈtɪmɪdlɪ/ adv. 羞怯地

conscientiously /ˌkɒnʃɪˈenʃəslɪ/ adv. 认真地

priest /pri:st/ n. 牧师，神父

economy /ɪˈkɒnəmɪ/ n. 节约

military /ˈmɪlɪtərɪ/ n. 军队

indignant /ɪnˈdɪɡnənt/ adj. 愤怒的

liquor /ˈlɪkə/ n. 酒

poultry /ˈpəʊltrɪ/ n. 家禽

sour /saʊə/ vt. 使易生气，使厌烦，使失去兴趣

curse /kɜ:s/ vt. 诅咒

jealous /ˈdʒeləs/ adj. 嫉妒的

adore /əˈdɔ:/ vt. 喜爱，爱慕

affectionate /əˈfekʃənət/ adj. 充满深情的，温柔亲切的

complaint /kəmˈpleɪnt/ n. 抱怨

revolt /rɪˈvəʊlt/ vi. 反抗

rouse /raʊz/ vt. 唤醒，激起

prince /prɪns/ n. 王子

stuf /stʌf/ vt. 塞满

barefoot /ˈbeəfʊt/ adv. 赤着脚地

hardily /ˈhɑ:dɪlɪ/ adv. 勇敢地

constitution /ˌkɒnstɪˈtju:ʃən/ n. 体格

procession /prəˈseʃən/ n. 行列，队伍

notion /ˈnəʊʃən/ n. 想法，打算

entertain /ˌentəˈteɪn/ vt. 使……快乐，使……愉快

acquaintance /əˈkweɪntəns/ n. 熟人

temperament / ˈtemprəmənt/ n. 性情

withdraw /wɪðˈdrɔ:/ vt. （使）撤回，撤离

dyer /ˈdaɪə/ n. 染房，染工

stun /stʌn/ vt. 使晕倒，使震惊

physiology /ˌfɪzɪˈɒlədʒɪ/ n. 生理学

pharmacy /ˈfɑ:məsɪ/ n. 药剂学

l andlord /ˈlændlɔ:d/ n. 房东，地主

expand /ɪksˈpænd/ vt. 扩张

indifference /ɪnˈdɪfrəns/ n. 冷漠，不关心

resolution /ˌrezəˈlu:ʃən/ n. 决心

idleness /ˈaɪdəlnɪs/ n. 懒惰

proof /pru:f/ n. 证明

esteem /ɪˈsti:m/ n. 尊敬，尊重

moreover /mɔ:ˈrəʊvə/ adv. 而且，此外

ceaselessly /ˈsi:slɪslɪ/ adv. 不停地，不断地

lookout /ˈlʊkaʊt/ n. 留神观察，留心守候

barely /ˈbeəlɪ/ adv. 几乎不，简直没有

i nstall /ɪnˈstɔ:l/ vt. 安置

successor /səkˈsesə/ n. 继承者，接任者

widow /ˈwɪdəʊ/ n. 寡妇

attain /əˈteɪn/ vt. 达到

harass /ˈhærəs/ vt. 不断打扰，使苦恼

bidding /ˈbɪdɪŋ/ n. 吩咐

nerve /nɜ:v/ n. 神经

liver /ˈlɪvə/ n. 肝脏

stretch /stretʃ/ vt. 伸出，伸长 Aq2e3Kg55NuaBMdaCo4liVVVaQ60UBqpi1Rzc6j+iSxvYWxctNSdnNuxgwoRxrmB