For several days I saw
little of Mr. Rochester. In the morning he seemed very busy with business, and
in the afternoon gentlemen from the neighborhood called and sometimes stayed to
dine with him. When his foot was well enough, he rode out a great deal.
During this time, all
my knowledge of him was limited to occasional meetings about the house, when he
would sometimes pass me coldly, and sometimes bow and smile. His changes of
manner did not offend me, because I had nothing to do with the cause of them.
One evening, several
days later, I was invited to talk to Mr. Rochester after dinner. He was sitting
in his armchair, and looked not quite so severe, and much less gloomy. There
was a smile on his lips, and his eyes were bright, probably with wine. As I was
looking at him, he suddenly turned, and asked me, “Do you think I am handsome,
Miss Eyre?”
The answer somehow
slipped from my tongue before I realized it: “No，sir.” “Ah，you
really are unusual! You are a quiet, serious little person, but you can be
almost rude.” “Sir, I'm sorry. I should have said that beauty doesn't matter,
or something like that.” “No, you shouldn't! I see, you criticize my
appearance, and then you stab (刺) me in the back! You have honesty and feeling.
There are not many girls like you. But perhaps I go too fast. Perhaps you have
awful faults to counterbalance your few good points.”
I thought to myself
that he might have too. He seemed to read my mind, and said quickly, “Yes,
you're right. I have plenty of faults. I went the wrong way when I was
twenty-one, and have never found the right path again. I might have been very
different. I might have been as good as you, and perhaps wiser. I am not a bad
man, take my word for it, but I have done wrong. It wasn't my character, but
circumstances which were to blame. Why do I tell you all this? Because you're
the sort of person people tell their problems and secrets to, because you're
sympathetic and give them hope.”
It seemed he had quite
a lot to talk to me. He didn't seem to like to finish the talk quickly, as was
the case for the first time.
“Don't be afraid of me,
Miss. Eyre,” he continued. “You don't relax or laugh very much, perhaps because
of the effect Lowood school has had on you. But in time you will be more
natural with me, and laugh, and speak freely. You're like a bird in a cage.
When you get out of the cage, you'll fly very high. Good night.”
51. At the beginning,
Miss Eyre's impressions of Mr. Rochester was all except __________.
A. busy B.
sociable C.
dull D.
changeable
52. The underlined
sentence means __________.
A. Only by meeting him
around the house sometimes did I know a little about him.
B. Only by coming to
the house could I know about him.
C. I occasionally met
him but my knowledge about him was poor.
D. What I knew about
him was limited in the house.
53. From what Mr.
Rochester told Miss Eyre, we can conclude that he wanted to __________.
A. tell her all his
troubles
B. tell her his life
experience
C. blame her for
misunderstanding him
D. change his
circumstances
54. At the end of the
passage, Mr. Rochester sounded __________.
A. rude B.
cold C.
polite D.
encouraging
55. According to the
passage, which of the following statements is WRONG?
A. Miss Eyre was at
Lowood School before she came to Mr. Rochester’s house.
B. Miss Eyre didn’t see
Mr. Rochester often.
C. Miss Eyre was
honest, brave and confident.
D. Miss Eyre was brave,
polite and warm-hearted.
