7 Darcy proposes marriage 
　  
　　Elizabeth was sitting by herself the next morning， writ－ ing to Jane， while Mrs Collins and Maria were shopping in the village．She heard the doorbell ring， and knew that meant a visitor had arrived， but she was greatly surprised when Mr Darcy，and Mr Darcy only， was shown into the room． 
　　He seemed astonished too，on finding her alone．‘I apologize for disturbing you，Miss Bennet．I understood that all the ladies were at home．’ 
　　‘Please don't apologize，Mr Darcy．I hope Lady Catherine and her daughter are well？’ 
　　‘Very well，thank you．’He said no more． 
　　As he seemed in danger of sinking into total silence， Elizabeth had to think of something to say．She remarked， ‘How very suddenly you all left Netherfield last November， Mr Darcy！I hope Mr Bingley and his sisters were well，when you left London？’ 
　　‘Perfectly， thank you．’That was all the answer he gave． 
　　‘I think I have heard that Mr Bingley has not much idea of ever returning to Netherfield again？’ 
　　‘It is probable that he will spend very little of his time there in future．He has many friends elsewhere．’ 
　　Elizabeth did not want to talk any longer about Mr Bingley， and，determined to leave the conversation to Mr Darcy， she remained silent． He understood， and soon began to speak again． 
　　Mr Collins appears very fortunate in his choice of a wife．’ 
　　‘Yes， indeed． She is one of the few sensible women who would have accepted him，although I'm not sure I consider her marrying Mr Collins as the wisest thing she ever did．She seems perfectly happy， however， and financially speaking，it's a good marriage．’ 
　　‘It must be very agreeable to her to be such a short distance from her own family and friends．’ 
　　‘A short distance，you say？It is nearly eighty kilometres！’ 
　　‘And what is that？Little more than half a day's journey， on a good road．Yes，I call it a very short distance．’ 
　　‘I would never have said Mrs Collins lived near her family，’cried Elizabeth． 
　　‘That shows how much you are attached to Hertfordshire． Anywhere outside the Longbourn area would，I suppose， seem far away to you． As he spoke，he smiled a little． 
　　Perhaps he supposed she was thing of Jane and Nether－ field， thought Elizabeth， and she blushed．‘ Whether the dis－ tance seems long or short depends on many circumstances．If the family’ s income is large enough to pay for frequent jour－ neys，then distance is not a problem．But Mr and Mrs Collins will not be able to afford to travel very often，despite their comfortable income．I'm certain my friend does not consider Hunsford near her family．’ 
　　Mr Darcy moved his chair a little towards her， and said， ‘You cannot have a right to such a very strong local attach－ment．You haven't spent your whole life at Longbourn， I am sure． 
　　Elizabeth looked surprised．Experiencing a change of feeling， the gentleman moved his chair away again， took a newspaper from the table，and，glancing at it，said in a colder voice，‘Are you pleased with Kent？’They discussed Kent calmly and po－ litely for a few minutes， and were then interrupted by Char－ lotte and Maria， who had returned from the village． Mr Darcy sat a little while longer，without saying much to anybody，and then went away． 
　　‘What can be the meaning of this！’said Charlotte， as soon as he had gone．‘My dear Lizzy， he must be in love with you， or he would never have visited us in this familiar way．’ 
　　But when Elizabeth described his silence， that did not seem likely， even to hopeful Charlotte， and they could only suppose that he had nothing better to do．In fact， from now on， both Mr Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam called regularly at the Rectory． It was obvious that Colonel Fitzwilliam came because he en－ joyed talking to the ladies， and Elizabeth was reminded by her own satisfaction in being with him， as well as by his evident admiration of her，of her former favourite，Wickham．But it was more difficult to understand why Mr Darcy came． He did not often speak， and seldom appeared interested in the conversa－ tion Even Charlotte， who observed Mr Darcy closely， was not sure whether he admired Elizabeth or not， and began to hope that perhaps her friend might marry Colonel Fitzwilliam in－ stead． 
　　When she took her daily walk along the path bordering the park， Elizabeth met Mr Darcy unexpectedly more than once． This was the more surprising， because she was careful to in－ form him that it was her favourite walk， So that he could avoid meeting her．It was also strange that， although he could just have greeted her and walked on， he always thought it necessary to turn back and walk with her．She could not quite understand him． 
　　But one day， as she was walking， she met Colonel Fitzwilliam， not Mr Darcy， and greeted him with a smile． They walked back to the Rectory together． 
　　‘Are you leaving Kent this Sunday？’she asked． 
　　‘Yes，if Darcy doesn't put it off again．’ 
　　‘He is fortunate to be able to arrange things as he likes．’ 
　　‘Well，we all want to do that，’replied Colonel Fitzwilliam． 
　　‘But he is used to doing what he likes， because he is rich， and many others are poor．I，for example—I'm a younger son，you know， and won't inherit my father's fortune， so I shall never be rich or independent， like Darcy．’ 
　　‘Now seriously， you cannot call yourself poor．When have you ever suffered because of lack of money？’ 
　　‘Well，perhaps I haven't really suffered much yet．But there are difficulties．A younger son doesn't have a free choice when marrying．He cannot afford to marry a girl with no fortune．’ 
　　Elizabeth blushed， thinking that he might mean her， and be－ gan to talk of something else． She asked him about Darcy's sis－ ter，and mentioned that the Bingley sisters liked her very much． 
　　‘Bingley—yes，I know them．Their brother is very pleasant—a great friend of Darcy’ s，’answered Colonel Fitzwilliam． 
　　‘Oh， yes， Mr Darcy is extremely kind to Mr Bingley， and takes very good care of him，’said Elizabeth drily． 
　　‘Yes， I believe Darcy does take care of Bingley．I'm think－ ing of a recent situation， which Darcy was telling me about on the journey here．He was congratulating himself on having saved a friend from a most foolish marriage． Of course， I'm not sure the friend was Bingley，as Darcy didn't mention the name． 
　　‘Did Mr Darcy give you his reasons for interfering？’ 
　　‘I understood that there were some very strong objections to the lady．’ 
　　Elizabeth could not speak for a moment．When she was able to control her anger， she changed the conversation．As soon as they reached the Rectory， she said goodbye to Colonel Fitzwilliam，and went straight upstairs to her room．At last she could think without interruption about what he had told her． Bingley，nust have been the friend to whom Darcy was refer－ ring．She had always assumed that Darcy was involved in the plan to separate Jane and Bingley， but it now appeared that he， not Miss Bingley， was the main cause of all that Jane had suffered， and still continued to suffer．The‘very strong objec－ tions to the lady’probably consisted of having one uncle who was a country lawyer， and another who was in business in Lon－ don．There could be no possible objections to Jane herself， as she was intelligent， beautiful and charming． Nor could anyone object to Mr Bennet as a father－in－law．When Elizabeth thought of her mother， she felt a little less confident． She was still convinced，however， that Mr Darcy was interested in high－ born connections rather than character or common sense． It was this， the worst kind of pride， which had destroyed for a while every hope of happiness for the most affectionate， gener－ ons heart in the world． 
　　Thinking about all this made Elizabeth so upset and unhap－ py that she soon had a headache．It grew so much worse in the evening， and she was so unwilling to see Mr Darcy， that she decided not to go to Rosings that evening with Mr and Mrs Collins． Instead，she stayed in the Rectory sitting－room， reread－ ing Jane's recent letters from London．She was saddened to discover that， although Jane never complained， or referred to the past，in almost every line there was a lack of cheerfulness， which Elizabeth had not noticed the first time， and which now made her rather anxious．She was relieved to think that Darcy would be leaving Rosings in two days’ time， and she herself would be with Jane in less than two weeks．Colonel Fitzwilliam would also be leaving with Darcy， but he had made it clear that he had no intention of proposing to her， so she did not intend to be unhappy about him． 
　　Just then，she heard the doorbell，and wondered if it might be Colonel Fitzwilliam， come to enquire about her health． But to her astonishment she saw Mr Darcy walk into the room． In a hrried manner he began to ask how she was feeling．She answered him with cold politeness．He sat down for a few mo－ ments， and then， getting up， walked about the room． Elizabeth was surprised， but said nothing． After a silence of several min－ utes， he came towards her， with none of his usual calmness， and said，‘In vain have I struggled．It is no good．I cannot conquer my feelings． You must allow me to tell you how warmly I admire and love you．’ 
　　Elizabeth stared， blushed， doubted， and was silent． He con－ sidered this sufficient encouragement， and confessed all that he felt， and had felt for a long time， for her． He expressed himself well， but it was not only of love that he spoke． He also talked of his pride， and his sense of her social inferiority， which had made him struggle against his feelings for so long． 
　　In spite of her dislike for him，Elizabeth appreciated what a compliment such a man's affection was， and was at first sorry for the pain he was about to receive．But soon， as she heard his references to her inferior position，she lost all pity，and became very angry．She waited patiently，however，until he had finished．He ended by describing the strength of his love for her， whicn，in spite of all his attempts， he had been unable to con－ quer with arguments of reason and common sense， and finally he asked for her hand in marriage．She could see that he had no doubt of a favourable answer， which only made her angrier． 
　　‘I believe society considers it correct，in cases like this，’she replied，‘to express grateful thanks．So if I could feel grateful， I would now thank you．But I cannot—I have never wanted your good opinion of me， and I cannot accept it．I'm sorry to hurt anyone， but it has not been done deliberately， and I hope the pain will not last long．The pride which， you tell me，has long prevented the expression of your affection， can have little difficulty in conquering your feelings after this explanation．’ 
　　Mr Darcy， whose eyes were fixed on her face， was both an－ gry and surprised by her words．His face went pale， and he was clearly struggling to control himself． There was a dreadful pause， and then he spoke in a voice of forced calmness． 
　　‘And this is all the reply I am to have the honour of expect－ ing！I might，perhaps，wish to be informed why，with so little attempt at politeness，I am rejected．’ 
　　‘I might as well ask why，with so evident a wish to offend and insult me， you chose to tell me that you loved me against your reason and even against your character．But even if my own feelings towards you had been favourable， do you think anything could tempt me to accept the man who has destroyed， perhaps for ever， the happiness of a most dear sister？’ 
　　As she said this， Mr Darcy changed colour， but he listened without trying to interrupt her as she continued．  
　　‘I have every reason in the world to think badly of you．Can you deny that you were the cause of Jane's separation from Mr Bingley，and of her unhappiness？Can you deny it？’ 
　　‘I have no wish to deny that I did everything I could to separate them， and that I am delighted with my success． Towards my friend I have been kinder than to myself．’ 
　　Elizabeth treated this last remark with disdain， but its meaning did not escape her．‘But it is not only because of Jane that I dislike you． My opinion of you was decided long ago．I heard all about your character from Mr Wickham． Now， what can you have to say on this matter？ How can you defend yourself？’ 
　　‘You take an eager interest in that gentleman，’said Darcy， less calmly than before The colour was rising in his face． 
　　‘Who can help feeling an interest in him，when we hear of the unfortunate life he has had！’ 
　　‘Unfortunate！’repeated Darcy contemptuously．‘Yes，unfortunate indeed．’ 
　　‘And it was your fault，’cried Elizabeth with energy．‘You took away his chance of a comfortable income and a good position， which you knew had been intended for him．You have left him poor， and dependent， and disappointed．You have done all this！And you can still treat the mention of his name with contempt．’ 
　　‘And this，’ cried Darcy， as he walked with quick steps across the room，‘is your opinion of me！Thank you for explaining it so fully．But perhaps you might not have considered these offences of mine，if your pride had not been hurt by my honest confession of my reasons for not proposing to you earlier．Perhaps I should have hidden my struggles，and flat－ tered you by pretending I had every reason to love you．But I hate disguise of any sort．Nor am I ashamed of my feelings of pride，which are very natural．Could you expect me to delight in the inferiority of your family compared to mine？’ 
　　Elizabeth felt herself growing more angry every moment． 
　　‘Mr Darcy， you could not have made me the offer of your hand in any possible way that would have tempted me to accept it． The moment I first met you，I noticed your pride， your sense of superiority， and your selfish disdain for the feelings of others． Later events strengthened my dislike for you．You are the last man in the world whom I could ever be persuaded to marry．’ 
　　‘You have said quite enough， madam．I perfectly understand your feelings．Forgive me for having taken up so much of your time，and accept my best wishes for your health and happiness．’ 
　　With these words he hurried out of the room， and the house． Elizabeth felt so weak that she sat down and cried for half an hour．She was so astonished to have received a proposal from Mr Darcy！His affection for her must indeed have been strong，to conquer all the objections he had to her family and position， objections which had made him prevent his friend marrying her sister． But his terrible pride， his shameless confes－ sion of what he had done to separate Jane and Bingley， and his 150cruelty towards Wickham soon removed any pity she might have felt for him． 
　  
7 达西求婚 
　  
　　第二天早上，伊丽莎白独自坐着，给简写信。柯林斯太太和玛利亚在村里买东西。她听到门铃响，知道有客人来了，但她见到达西先生，并且只有达西先生一个人被领进屋时，感到奇怪极了。 
　　他发现她独自一人，也似乎很惊讶。“班纳特小姐，对不起，打扰你了。我还以为所有的女士都在家。” 
　　“达西先生，请不要客气。我想凯瑟琳夫人和小姐都还好吧？” 
　　“很好，谢谢。”他又不说话了。 
　　看样子他有危险陷入完全的沉默。伊丽莎白必须找话说了。她说：“达西先生，去年11月，你们离开尼日斐太突然了，我想彬格莱先生和他的妹妹在你离开伦敦时还好吧？” 
　　“很好，谢谢。”这就是全部回答。 
　　“我想我听说过，彬格莱先生不怎么打算再回尼日斐了？” 
　　“将来他可能不会在那个地方呆多长时间。他别处有很多朋友。” 
　　伊丽莎白不想再往下谈彬格莱先生了，下决心把话题留给达西先生，于是她保持沉默。他明白了，不一会儿，就又开口说话了。 
　　“柯林斯先生选了这样一位妻子似乎很幸运。” 
　　“是的，一点不错。有思想的妇女能接受他的不多，她便是其中的一个。不过，我不敢肯定地认为她嫁给柯林斯先生是最明智的做法。可是，她似乎十分幸福，况且从经济上讲，这个婚姻也不错。” 
　　“离娘家和朋友这么近，她一定觉得很满意。” 
　　“你说离得那么近？差不多八十公里呢！” 
　　“那算得了什么，半天多一点就到了，若是路好的话。是的，我认为是很近。” 
　　“我永远不会认为柯林斯太太住得离娘家近，”伊丽莎白大声说。 
　　“这说明你对哈福德郡的感情太深了。我想，浪搏恩以外的任何地方对你来说都是很远的。”他说话时，露出了一丝微笑。 
　　伊丽莎白想，也许他认为自己在想简和尼日斐，于是脸就红了。“距离的远近取决于很多因素。如果家庭收入足以支付频繁的往来，那么距离就不成问题。但是，虽然他们有舒适的收入，柯林斯夫妇是承受不起经常的旅行的。我相信，我的朋友不会认为汉斯福离她家很近。” 
　　达西先生把椅子朝她挪了挪，说：“你不该有这样强的乡土观念。可以肯定地说，你不会一辈子都在浪搏恩度过的。” 
　　伊丽莎白看起来有点惊奇。那位先生感受到了感情的变化，便又把椅子挪开，从桌上拿了一张报纸，瞟了瞟，用冷淡些的语气说：“你对肯特郡感到满意吗？”他们又平静客气地讨论了一会儿肯特郡，然后夏洛特和玛利亚打断了他们，这两个人已从村里回来了。达西先生又坐了一会儿，也没跟谁说多少话，便离开了。 
　　“这是什么意思！”他刚走，夏洛特就说。“亲爱的丽萃，他一定是爱上了你，否则，他绝不会以这种亲切的方式拜访我们。” 
　　可是，当伊丽莎白描述了他沉默的样子之后，甚至是满怀希望的夏洛特也觉得那不大可能。这样，她们只能猜测他是没事可做才来的。实际上，就从这时起，达西先生和费茨威廉上校开始定期造访教区长住宅。显然，费茨威廉上校来此是因为他喜欢与女士们交谈，伊丽莎白和他在一起感到很满意，而他又显然爱慕她，这两者都使她想起以前的宠儿韦翰先生。可是，要弄明白达西先生为什么来就更困难些。他不常讲话，也很少对谈话表现出兴趣。即使是密切注视达西先生的夏洛特，也不敢肯定他是否爱慕伊丽莎白，于是，她开始希望，也许伊丽莎白可以转而嫁给费茨威廉上校。 
　　伊丽莎白每天沿公园旁的小径散步时，不止一次地意外碰到达西先生。这就更奇怪了，因为她曾小心地告诉他这是她最喜欢的散步方式，以便让他避免碰见她。还有令人奇怪的是，他完全可以只和她打个招呼便继续往前走，可他总是觉得有必要掉转头和她一起走。她搞不大明白。 
　　可是有一天，她在散步时碰到了费茨威廉上校，而不是达西先生，便微笑着和他打了招呼。他们一块走回到教区长住宅。 
　　“你们这个星期日离开肯特郡吗？”她问道。 
　　“是的，如果达西不再往后推的话。” 
　　“他很幸运，安排事情有自主权。” 
　　“哎，我们都想有自主权，”费茨威廉上校回答说。“但是他习惯于我行我素，因为他很富有，而其他很多人都很穷。比方说我——我不是长子，你也知道，继承不了父亲的家产，因此，我永远不会像达西那样富有或独立自主。” 
　　“认真点儿讲，你不能说自己穷。你什么时候因缺钱受过罪？” 
　　“也许我还没有真正受过罪。但确实有困难。小儿子结婚时没有自由选择的余地。他没有经济能力同没有财产的女人结婚。” 
　　伊丽莎白脸一红，觉得他可能指自己，于是赶紧岔开了话题。她问他达西的妹妹的情况，并提及彬格莱姐妹很喜欢她。 
　　“彬格莱——是的，我认识她们。她们的哥哥很招人喜欢——是达西的好朋友之一，”费茨威廉上校回答说。 
　　“哦，是的，达西先生对彬格莱先生极好，对他十分关照，”伊丽莎白冷冰冰地说。 
　　“是的，我觉得达西确实关照彬格莱。我想起了最近的一件事，是达西在到这里来的路上告诉我的。他庆幸自己阻止了一位朋友卷入一桩最愚蠢的婚姻。当然，我不敢肯定这位朋友就是彬格莱，因为达西没有提他的名字。” 
　　“达西先生是否摆出了干涉的理由？” 
　　“我的理解是有些人强烈反对这位小姐。” 
　　伊丽莎白一时说不出话来。她压住心头的怒火，改变了话题。他们一到教区长住宅，她便向费茨威廉上校道了别，径直到了楼上自己的房间。现在终于可以不受干扰，独自思考一下他告诉她的这件事了。达西所指的那位朋友一定是彬格莱。她一直都在猜测达西参与了拆散简和彬格莱的计划，但现在似乎清楚了，是他，而不是彬格莱小姐，做了简已经遭受和继续遭受的痛苦的罪魁祸首。“强烈反对这位小姐”的原因可能包括她有一个姨父做乡村律师，还有个舅舅在伦敦做买卖。对简本人不大可能有什么反对意见，因为她聪颖、漂亮、迷人。也不会有人反对认班纳特先生做老岳父的。伊丽莎白想到母亲时，感到有点缺乏自信。但是，她仍然坚信，达西先生只喜欢攀出身高贵的人，不喜欢平民百姓。正是这种最恶毒的傲慢，暂时毁掉了世界上最挚诚、最宽厚的一颗心所抱的每一线获得幸福的希望。 
　　想到所有这些，伊丽莎白感到万分不安和难过，一会儿就犯了头痛病。到了晚上，头痛愈加剧烈，加上她不愿见到达西先生，于是她决定晚上不陪柯林斯夫妇去罗新斯了。相反，她呆在教区长家的起居室里，重读简最近从伦敦的来信。她难过地发现，虽然简从来没有抱怨过或提起过过去，但信中几乎每一行都流露出闷闷不乐的情绪。伊丽莎白读第一遍时没注意到，现在这使她有点焦急。一想到达西再过两天就要离开罗新斯，她本人也将在两周后见到简，心里便放松了一点。费茨威廉上校也将同达西一块走，但他已经挑明他无意向她求婚，所以，她不打算为他表示悲伤。 
　　正在这时，她听到了门铃声，心中纳闷会不会是费茨威廉上校来探问她的身体状况。但是，令她大吃一惊的是，她看到达西先生走进了屋子。他匆匆地开始询问她感觉如何。她冷冰冰地客气地回答了他。他坐下，呆了一会儿，然后又站起来，在房间里踱来踱去。伊丽莎白感到奇怪，但什么也没说。几分钟沉默过后，他朝她走过来，一扫平时的冷静，说道：“我徒劳地进行思想斗争，但毫无用处。我再也无法控制自己的感情了。请允许我告诉你我多么敬慕你，多么爱你。” 
　　伊丽莎白瞪大了眼睛，涨红了脸，满腹狐疑，一句话也说不出来。他一看这情景，认为是在怂恿自己说下去，立即向她倾吐了所有的感情，既有现在的，也有长期以来就感受到的。他表达得很充分，不但谈了他的爱，还谈到了他的傲慢，谈到他觉得她出身卑徽，正是这一点使他与感情进行了长期的思想斗争。 
　　虽然伊丽莎白讨厌他，但她认识到能得到这样的男人的爱是多大的恭维呀，所以开始时还对他即将接受的痛苦感到遗憾。但不久，她听到他说自己出身卑微，所有的怜悯之情便为愤怒所取代。但是，她耐心地等到他讲完。他最后形容了他对她的爱的力量，虽然他几经努力，但这种爱情的力量是无法用理性和经验战胜的，最后，他请求她接受他的求婚。她看得出，他自信能得到肯定的回答，这使得她更加恼怒。 
　　她回答道：“我想，在这种情况下，社会上会认为应当表达一下感激之情。因此，如果我真觉得感激，我现在会谢你的。可惜我现在没有这种感觉——我从来不稀罕你的抬举，我也不接受你的抬举。我不愿伤害任何人，但我并不是故意的，我希望这痛苦不会持续太久。你说过，高傲使得你长期以来无法表达爱慕之情，但在你听了我的解释之后，高傲会毫不费力地战胜你的感情。” 
　　达西先生一双眼睛紧紧盯着她的脸，听了这话，既气愤，又惊奇。他的脸色煞白，很显然在努力控制自己。可怕的停顿过后，他竭力装出一副镇定的样子说： 
　　“我很荣幸，竟能得到这样一个回答。也许我可以请教一下，为什么我竟会遭到如此无礼的拒绝？” 
　　“我也要请教你一下，你明明存心要冒犯我、侮辱我，却为什么要违背理性甚至自己的品格，说你爱我。但是，即便我对你的感情是肯定的，那么，也请你想一想，还有什么能打动我的心，让我去爱一个毁了我最亲爱的姐姐的幸福、甚至永远毁了她幸福的人？” 
　　达西听了她的话，脸色大变。但他听着她继续往下说，一时不想插嘴。 
　　“我有千万条理由把你往坏里想。你能否认你是拆散简和彬格莱先生、毁掉她幸福的罪魁祸首吗？你能否认吗？” 
　　“我不想否认我竭尽全力把他们拆散，而且我还为我的成功感到喜悦。我对朋友比对自己体贴。” 
　　伊丽莎白对他最后一句话十分鄙视，但他的用意她当然清楚。“但是，并不仅仅是因为简我才讨厌你。我对你早有成见，韦翰先生把你的品格全告诉我了。现在，对这个你还有什么话可说？你怎么为自己辩护？” 
　　“你对那位先生倒挺关心的，”达西说道，语气已没有先前镇定。他的脸也更红了。 
　　“凡是听过他不幸遭遇的人，谁能不关心他！” 
　　“不幸遭遇！”达西轻蔑地重复道。“是的，真够不幸的。” 
　　“这都是你一手造成的，”伊丽莎白使劲高声说。“是你剥夺了他享受舒适的收入和良好地位的机会，你清楚，这些本来都是属于他的。是你造成了他的贫困，让他无法独立，满心失望。这一切都是你干的！可是现在，你提起他的名字却还带着鄙夷。” 
　　“这就是你对我的看法！”达西一边大声叫嚷，一边快速往屋子那头走。“谢谢你解释得这样周全。不过要不是我把以前迟疑不决的原因如实说出来，伤害了你的自尊心，也许你不会计较我得罪你的这些地方。也许我应当把我的思想矛盾隐瞒起来，假装我有一切爱你的理由，来奉承你。但是，我不喜欢任何形式的伪装。我也不为自己的高傲感到羞耻，因为那是很自然的。难道你指望我为你那些同我的亲戚无法相提并论的微贱的亲戚欢欣鼓舞吗？” 
　　伊丽莎白感到越来越气恼。
“达西先生，你用任何方式向我求婚，也不能打动我，让我接受。从认识你的那一刹那起，我就注意到了你的狂妄自大、你高人一等的感觉以及对别人感情的自私蔑视。以后发生的事加深了我对你的反感。哪怕天下男人都死光了，我也不愿嫁给你。” 
　　“你说够了，小姐，我完全理解你的感情。占用了你这么多时间，请原谅。我衷心地祝愿你健康、幸福。” 
　　说完这些话，他匆匆走出房间，走出宅院。伊丽莎白感到虚弱无比，坐下来哭了半个小时。达西先生向他求婚，简直太令人惊讶了！他对她的爱一定的确十分强烈，它克服了家庭、地位的障碍，克服了自己用以阻挠朋友同她姐姐结婚的障碍。但他那可怕的高傲自大，他那对拆散简和彬格莱的姻缘的恬不知耻的坦白，以及他对韦翰的残酷无情，不久便把她可能产生的怜悯之情冲刷得荡然无存。 
　　　    


 