The Woman in White / Женщина в белом

Уильям Уилки Коллинз

Сергей Александрович Матвеев

Легко читаем по-английски

Роман У. Коллинза «Женщина в белом» по праву занимает одно из видных мест в ряду лучших образцов английской литературы ХIХ в.

Любовь и предрассудки, стяжательство и преступления – темы вечные, поэтому роман, написанный более 100 лет назад, и сейчас захватывает читателя напряженным сюжетом.

Текст произведения подготовлен для уровня 4 (т. е. для продолжающих учить английский язык верхней ступени Upper-Intermediate) и снабжен комментариями. В конце книги предлагается англо-русский словарик.

�здание предназначено для всех, кто стремится читать английскую литературу в оригинале.

Wilkie Collins / Уилки Коллинз

The Woman in White / Женщина в белом

Подготовка текста, комментарии и словарь С. А. Матвеева

© ООО «�здательство АСТ», 2015

The First Epoch

The Story Begun by Walter Hartright[1 - Walter Hartright – Уолтер Хартрайт] (of Clement’s Inn,[2 - Clement’s Inn – Клементс �нн] Teacher of Drawing)

One day I received a letter. Frederick Fairlie, Esquire, of Limmeridge House, Cumberland,[3 - Frederick Fairlie, Esquire, of Limmeridge House. Cumberland – Фредерик Фэрли, эсквайр, владелец имения Лиммеридж в Кумберленде] wanted to hire a competent drawing-master, for a period of four months.

The master was to superintend the instruction of two young ladies in the art of painting in water-colours;[4 - water-colours– акварель] and he was to devote his leisure time, afterwards, to the business of repairing and mounting a valuable collection of drawings. Four guineas a week was the salary!

“Oh, Walter, your father never had such a chance as this![5 - your father never had such a chance as this – твоему отцу никогда так не везло]” said my mother, when she had read the letter and had handed it back to me.

This teacher would live at Limmeridge House with the family. I knew I was very lucky to get this job. Teaching the young ladies would be easy and pleasant, and the pay and working conditions were excellent.

The next morning I sent my papers. Three days passed, and on the fourth day, an answer came. It announced that Mr. Fairlie accepted my services, and requested me to start for Cumberland immediately. All the necessary instructions for my journey were carefully and clearly added in a postscript.

The heat had been awful all day, and it was now a close and sultry night. The moon was full and broad in the dark blue starless sky. I decided to walk. I wound my way down slowly over the heath. By the time I had arrived at the end of the road I had become completely absorbed in my own fanciful visions of Limmeridge House, of Mr. Fairlie, and of the two ladies whose practice in the art of water-colour painting I was so soon to superintend.[6 - I was so soon to superintend – мне вскоре надлежало обучать]

I had now arrived at the point where four roads met – the road to Hampstead,[7 - Hampstead – Хэмпстед] along which I had returned, the road to Finchley,[8 - Finchley – Финчли] the road to West End, and the road back to London. I had mechanically turned in this latter direction. Suddenly I felt the touch of a hand laid lightly and suddenly on my shoulde