Chapter 9 Chapter 9 The Fire of Family Discord: Snobbery

The Hurstwoods lived in the North End near Lincoln Park. It was a three-story brick house with the ground floor a little lower than the street level, as was the fashion at the time. A large bay window Protruding from the second floor, there is a lawn measuring two feet five feet wide and one foot wide in front of the house, and there is a small yard behind the house, which is surrounded by the fence of the neighbor's house. There is a stable there, where he keeps horses and carriages place. There are ten rooms in this building, and there are four members of their family: he and his wife Julia, his son George Jr. and his daughter Jessica. There is also a maid, but the choice of maid is constantly changing. There are girls from all over the world, for Mrs. Hurstwood is not very easy to serve.

"George, I sent Mary away yesterday." This kind of conversation was often heard at their family table. "All right," he always replied simply. He was tired of such angry subjects. A warm family atmosphere is the most gentle and delicate flower in the world. Nothing can cultivate the character of people living in it and make them strong and upright. People who have never lived in this kind of family environment I can't understand why when listening to beautiful music, the wonderful melody will make people's eyes full of tears, and the tears will flicker between the eyelashes. The kind of heart that connects the world and the mysterious heartstring that inspires their emotions is something they will never understand.

Hurstwood's home could not be described as having such a warm atmosphere. It lacked the forbearance and consideration and affection without which what is a home? The rooms were beautifully furnished and furnished to the taste of the occupants. It was elegant and comforting enough. There were soft carpets, rich armchairs and couches, a grand piano, a marble statue of Venus by an unknown artist, and some But these and other knick-knacks, which are generally sold in the big furniture stores, are indispensable to the "perfect family home". In the dining-room there was a sideboard, lined with gleaming barware, utensils, and glass. The perfection of this sideboard could not be doubted. Hurstwood was expert in this matter, and he was engaged in a work which made him This has many years of research experience. He likes to talk about the art of wine display to every new maid. But he is not a talkative person. On the contrary, he has a kind of attitude towards family affairs. What people call a gentleman's manner: elegant and reserved. He does not argue with anyone, and does not open his mouth casually. There is a kind of autocratic air about him. He turns a blind eye to things that cannot be corrected; He tends to walk away from things.

There was a time when he loved Jessica very much. He was young and his career success was limited. But now Jessica is seventeen and has developed a cold, independent personality, which of course won't It helps to increase the love of her parents. She is still in high school, and her views on life are completely aristocratic. She likes beautiful clothes and keeps asking for new clothes. Her head is full of love, marriage and building a luxurious small family Imagine. In school, she met some girls who were richer than her family. Their fathers were all bosses or partners of local companies with prosperous businesses, so these girls spoke and behaved with the arrogance of rich girls. Jessica only socialized with these people at school.

The young little Hurstwood is 20 years old. He is working in a big real estate company. He has a bright future. He does not afford the family expenses at all. The family thinks that he is saving money to invest in real estate. He has some talents and is very vain , loves to be merry, but so far he has not let it impair his sense of duty, whatever he may be. He is in and out of the house, busy with whatever he wants or loves to do, sometimes Talked a little to his mother, and sometimes to his father about some trifle. On the whole, however, he did not go beyond small talk. He did not reveal his inner desires to anyone in the family, nor did he discover Someone in the family is very concerned about this.

Mrs. Hurstwood was a showy sort of woman, though always with a certain dismay at finding someone who was superior to her in some way. Her knowledge of life included the daily life of people in high society. She She wants to join that society, but she has not yet achieved her wish. She is not lacking in self-knowledge, and cannot see that she should not expect her dreams to come true in this life. She pinned her hopes on her daughter and hoped that through Jessica, her social status could be improved. If little Hurstwood succeeds, she can show it off. Hurstwood himself is not doing too badly. She hopes his little real estate venture will succeed. The income was good, and he had a solid relationship with his bosses, Fitch Gerald and Moy, who maintained a friendly and casual relationship with him.

One can imagine the atmosphere of a family composed of such a few people. This atmosphere can be felt from countless conversations. And each conversation is the same. "I'm going to Forks Lake to-morrow," announced little George at the dinner table on Friday evening. "What are you doing there?" asked Mrs. Hurstwood. "Eddie Farwaha bought a new motorboat. He asked me to come and see how it is." "How much did you pay for it?" asked his mother. "More than 2,000 yuan. He said the boat was beautiful." "Old Farwah must be making a lot of money," put in Hurstwood.

"I think that's true. Jack told me they were shipping to Australia. He also said they shipped a big box to Cape Town last week." "It's incredible," said Mrs. Hurstwood, "that they were living in the basement on Madison Avenue four years ago." "Jack told me they're going to build a six-story building on Robe Street in the spring." "It's amazing," said Jessica. This time Hurstwood wanted to leave home sooner. "I think I must go to the city," he said, rising. "Shall we go to the McVicker's on Monday?" asked Mrs. Hurstwood, who still sat without rising.

"Go ahead," he replied indifferently. They continued eating, and he went upstairs to get his hat and coat. Presently the door clicked. "I guess Pa is gone," said Jessica. Jessica's school news is another type of small talk. "The school is going to put on a play in the Great Hall," she reported one day, "and I'm going to take part." "Really?" said her mother. "Indeed, I'm going to have a new dress. Some of the best girls in the school are going to be in the play. Miss Palmers is going to play Portia." "Is it?" said Mrs. Hurstwood.

"They've got Martha Grieux in too. She thinks she can act." "She's poor, isn't she?" said Mrs. Hurstwood sympathetically. "She has nothing, is she?" "Yes," answered Jessica, "they're as poor as church mice." Many boys in the school are overwhelmed by her beauty. She has the strictest classification standards for them. "What do you think?" she said to her mother one evening, "that Herbert Crane wants to be my friend." "Who is he, my dear?" asked Mrs. Hurstwood. "Oh, Nobody," said Jessica, pursing her beautiful lips, "he's just a boy at school. He's got nothing."

When the soap factory owner's son, Little Brive, accompanied her home, her attitude was quite different. Mrs. Hurstwood was sitting in a rocking chair on the third floor reading a book, and happened to look up from the window. "Who were you with just now, Jessica?" she asked when Jessica came upstairs. "It's Mr. Brive, mother," she answered. "Is it?" said Mrs. Hurstwood. "Yes. He wants to go for a walk in the park with me," explained Jessica, flushing as she ran upstairs. "Well, dear," said Mrs. Hurstwood, "don't go too long." Mrs. Hurstwood watched with interest from the window as the two men walked down the road. Such things she liked to see, yes, very much. Hurstwood had lived in this atmosphere for many years, and had never bothered to think about it. It was his nature to dislike the distraction of a more perfect life, unless it lay before him, in sharp contrast to his present. The fact In fact, he has his gains and losses: he is annoyed by their selfish indifference in everyday matters, but at times he rejoices in their decency, which in his opinion contributes to their dignity and social status The tavern he runs, that is the center of his life. He spends most of his time there. When he comes home in the evening, it still looks very good. The food is the kind that ordinary servants can cook, but it is very There were seldom unpalatable moments. Besides, he was interested in the conversation of his children, who always looked so good. Mrs. Hurt was vain, so she was always dressed up. Hurstwood thought, It was better than simplicity. There was no love between them, but there was no great dissatisfaction. She had no shocking opinions about anything. What quarrels. They shared the same bed, according to the common fashion. Sometimes he met some young and lively woman, by whom his wife seemed far inferior. But the dissatisfaction caused by such encounters was short-lived, for he had to Consider his own social status and interests. He cannot let his family relations go wrong because it will affect his relationship with his bosses, who don't want scandal. A man in his position must be dignified, have a clean reputation, have a Respectable family establishment. So he is very cautious in every move. When he needs to appear in public in the afternoon or on a Sunday, he always takes his wife and sometimes his children. He goes to the local playground or to nearby Wisconsin When he went to stay for a couple of days at his vacation spot, he was always well-behaved and courteous, only hanging out where people usually go, doing only what people usually do. He knew the necessity of doing so. Many of the middle-class men he knew would shake his head if a rich fellow got into trouble in his personal life, and it was better not to talk about it. If he talked about it with people who could be called close friends, he Will criticize this thing for being too stupid: "Originally, this thing is nothing...what man would not do this kind of thing...but why is he not careful? No matter how careful a man is Not too much." He had no sympathy for those who made mistakes and were found out. For this reason, he still took some time to take his wife to the society. If he had not someone to entertain, or some entertainment that had nothing to do with her presence or absence, this person would pay attention to her. She was kind, He is vain and likes to be flattered. He knows very well that all these together may bring tragedy to a woman of her family status. As far as his thoughts are concerned, he has little confidence in women. His wife has never Not possessed of the virtues which would win the confidence and admiration of a man like him. He could see that while she still loved him, she could be assured of her. But as soon as love did not bind her . . . then, Maybe something will happen. For the past year or two, the family expenses seemed to be high. Jessica was constantly in need of beautiful new dresses, and Mrs. Hurstwood, who did not want her daughter to overwhelm her, kept updating her dress. Hurstwood had never done this before. Said something, but one day he complained a bit. "Jessica's going to get a new dress this month," said Mrs. Hurstwood one morning. Hurstwood was standing in front of a mirror in a well-crafted vest vest. "Didn't she just buy a new suit?" he said. "That suit is an evening dress," said his wife calmly. "It seems," replied Hurstwood, "that she has spent quite a lot on her dress of late." "Yes, but she's more involved now than she used to be," ended his wife, though she noticed something in his tone that she didn't have before. He was an infrequent traveller, but he was in the habit of taking her with him when he went out. A visiting trip to Philadelphia was recently arranged by the City Council, which was to take ten days, and Hurstwood was invited. "No one knows us there," said a Mr. Alderman, whose gentlemanly appearance could scarcely conceal the ignorance and lust of his face, and which always wore a very fine top hat. "We Have a good time." He twitched his left eye, which was a wink. "You must come with us, George." The next day Hurstwood informed his wife of his intention. "I'm going away, Julia," said he, "for a few days." "Where are you going?" she asked, looking up. "It's business to go to Philadelphia." She looked at him intentionally, waiting for his next words. "I won't take you with me this time." "Very well," she answered. But he could see that she was suspicious of the matter. Before she left, she asked him a few more questions, which annoyed him. He began to feel that she was a nuisance. baggage. He had a very good time on this trip. At the end he couldn't bear to leave. He was not a man of ambiguity, and hated any explanation of the matter. So he just said a few general words and said The matter was prevaricated. But Mrs. Hurstwood had been thinking about it for a long time. She traveled in a carriage more often than before, and dressed better. She also went to the theater often to make up for this time. Loss. This atmosphere can hardly be called a family atmosphere. This kind of family life is maintained by the force of habit and traditional ideas, and as time goes on, it will become more and more dry...In the end it becomes a ball of tinder, very It catches fire easily and burns everything down.