The Great Gatsby | Gradually Hardening Swedish A1-B2

The Great Gatsby | Gradually Hardening Swedish A1-B2

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I
Inmyyounger
och
and
morevulnerableyearsmy
far
father
gavemesomeadvice
som
that
I’vebeenturningoverinmymindever
sedan
since
.
“Wheneveryoufeellike
kritisera
criticizing
anyone,”hetoldme,“just
ihåg
remember
thatallthepeoplein
här
this
worldhaven’thadtheadvantagesthatyou’vehad.”
Hedidn’t
sa
say
anymore,butwe’ve
alltid
always
beenunusuallycommunicativein
ett
a
reservedway,andI
förstod
understood
thathemeantagreatdeal
mer
more
thanthat.
Inconsequence,I’minclinedto
förbehålla
reserve
alljudgements,ahabitthat
har
has
openedupmanycuriousnaturestome
och
and
alsomademethe
offer
victim
ofnotafewveteranbores.
Theabnormalmindisquickto
upptäcka
detect
andattachitselfto
denna
this
qualitywhenitappearsin
en
a
normalperson,andsoit
kom
came
aboutthatincollegeIwasunjustlyaccusedofbeing
en
a
politician,becauseIwasprivytothe
hemliga
secret
griefsofwild,unknownmen.
Mostof
de
the
confidenceswereunsought—frequentlyI
har
have
feignedsleep,preoccupation,or
en
a
hostilelevitywhenI
insåg
realized
bysomeunmistakablesign
att
that
anintimaterevelationwasquiveringon
de
the
horizon;
fortheintimaterevelationsof
unga
young
men,oratleast
de
the
termsinwhichthey
uttrycker
express
them,areusuallyplagiaristic
och
and
marredbyobvioussuppressions.
Förbehålla
Reserving
judgementsisamatterofinfinite
hopp
hope
.
Iamstilla
lite
little
afraidofmissingsomethingifI
glömmer
forget
that,asmyfathersnobbishly
föreslog
suggested
,andIsnobbishlyrepeat,
en
a
senseofthefundamentaldecenciesisparcelled
ut
out
unequallyatbirth.
And,afterboasting
detta
this
wayofmytolerance,I
kommer
come
totheadmissionthatithas
en
a
limit.
Conductmaybefoundedonthe
hårda
hard
rockorthewetmarshes,
men
but
afteracertainpointIdon’tcarewhatit’sfounded
on
.
WhenIcamebackfromthe
Öst
East
lastautumnIfeltthatI
ville
wanted
theworldtobeinuniform
och
and
atasortof
moralisk
moral
attentionforever;
Iwanted
inte
no
moreriotousexcursionswithprivilegedglimpsesinto
det
the
humanheart.
OnlyGatsby,
den
the
manwhogiveshis
namn
name
tothisbook,wasexemptfrommyreaction—Gatsby,who
representerade
represented
everythingforwhichI
har
have
anunaffectedscorn.
Ifpersonalityisanunbroken
serie
series
ofsuccessfulgestures,thentherewas
något
something
gorgeousabouthim,someheightened
känslighet
sensitivity
tothepromisesoflife,asifhewererelatedtooneof
dessa
those
intricatemachinesthatregisterearthquakes
tio
ten
thousandmilesaway.
Thisresponsivenesshad
inget
nothing
todowiththatflabbyimpressionabilitywhichis
värdigt
dignified
underthenameofthe“creativetemperament”—itwasanextraordinary
gåva
gift
forhope,aromanticreadinesssuchasI
har
have
neverfoundinany
annan
other
personandwhichitisnotlikelyIshallever
hitta
find
again.
No—Gatsbyturnedoutallrightattheend;
itiswhatpreyedonGatsby,whatfoul
damm
dust
floatedinthewakeofhisdreams
som
that
temporarilyclosedoutmy
intresse
interest
intheabortivesorrows
och
and
short-windedelationsofmen.
My
familj
family
havebeenprominent,well-to-do
människor
people
inthisMiddleWestern
stad
city
forthreegenerations.
TheCarrawaysare
något
something
ofaclan,andwe
har
have
atraditionthatwe’redescendedfrom
den
the
DukesofBuccleuch,but
den
the
actualfounderofmy
linje
line
wasmygrandfather’sbrother,who
kom
came
hereinfifty-one,sent
en
a
substitutetotheCivilWar,
och
and
startedthewholesalehardware
verksamhet
business
thatmyfathercarrieson
idag
today
.
Ineversawthisgreat-uncle,
men
but
I’msupposedtolooklikehim—with
särskild
special
referencetotheratherhard-boiledpainting
som
that
hangsinfather’soffice.
IgraduatedfromNewHavenin1915,
bara
just
aquarterofa
sekel
century
aftermyfather,and
ett
a
littlelaterIparticipatedin
som
that
delayedTeutonicmigrationknownasthe
Stora
Great
War.
Ienjoyedthecounter-raidsothoroughly
att
that
Icamebackrestless.
Istället
Instead
ofbeingthewarm
centrum
centre
oftheworld,theMiddleWest
nu
now
seemedliketheragged
kanten
edge
oftheuniverse—soI
bestämde
decided
togoEastand
lära
learn
thebondbusiness.
EverybodyI
kände
knew
wasinthebondbusiness,soI
antog
supposed
itcouldsupportonemoresingleman.
Allmyaunts
och
and
unclestalkeditoverasiftheywere
valde
choosing
aprepschoolforme,
och
and
finallysaid,“Why—ye-es,”with
mycket
very
grave,hesitantfaces.
Fatheragreedto
finansiera
finance
meforayear,
och
and
aftervariousdelaysI
kom
came
East,permanently,Ithought,inthe
våren
spring
oftwenty-two.
Thepracticalthingwasto
hitta
find
roomsinthecity,
men
but
itwasawarmseason,
och
and
Ihadjustlefta
land
country
ofwidelawnsandfriendlytrees,so
när
when
ayoungmanat
det
the
officesuggestedthatwe
tog
take
ahousetogetherinacommutingtown,itsoundedlikeagreat
idé
idea
.
Hefoundthehouse,
en
a
weather-beatencardboardbungalowateighty
en
a
month,butatthe
sista
last
minutethefirmorderedhimtoWashington,
och
and
Iwentouttothecountry
ensam
alone
.
Ihadadog—atleastI
hade
had
himforafewdays
tills
until
heranaway—andan
gammal
old
DodgeandaFinnish
kvinna
woman
,whomademybed
och
and
cookedbreakfastandmutteredFinnish
visdom
wisdom
toherselfoverthe
elektriska
electric
stove.
Itwaslonelyfor
en
a
dayorsountilone
morgon
morning
someman,morerecently
anlände
arrived
thanI,stoppedmeon
det
the
road.
“Howdoyou
kommer
get
toWestEggvillage?”
he
frågade
asked
helplessly.
Itoldhim.
Och
And
asIwalkedonIwas
ensam
lonely
nolonger.
Iwas
en
a
guide,apathfinder,an
original
original
settler.
Hehadcasuallyconferredonmethe
frihet
freedom
oftheneighbourhood.
Andso
med
with
thesunshineandthe
stora
great
burstsofleavesgrowingonthetrees,
precis
just
asthingsgrowinfastmovies,I
hade
had
thatfamiliarconvictionthatlifewas
började
beginning
overagainwiththe
sommaren
summer
.
Therewassomuchto
läsa
read
,foronething,andso
mycket
much
finehealthtobe
dra
pulled
downoutofthe
unga
young
breath-givingair.
Ibought
ett
a
dozenvolumesonbanking
och
and
creditandinvestmentsecurities,
och
and
theystoodonmy
hylla
shelf
inredandgoldlikenew
pengar
money
fromthemint,promisingtounfold
de
the
shiningsecretsthatonlyMidas
och
and
MorganandMaecenasknew.
Och
And
Ihadthehighintentionof
läsa
reading
manyotherbooksbesides.
Iwas
ganska
rather
literaryincollege—oneyearI
skrev
wrote
aseriesofvery
högtidliga
solemn
andobviouseditorialsfor
den
the
YaleNews—andnowIwasgoingtobring
tillbaka
back
allsuchthingsintomy
liv
life
andbecomeagainthat
mest
most
limitedofallspecialists,
den
the
“well-roundedman.”
Thisisn’t
bara
just
anepigram—lifeismuch
mer
more
successfullylookedatfromasingle
fönster
window
,afterall.
Itwasamatterof
slump
chance
thatIshouldhave
hyrt
rented
ahouseinoneofthestrangestcommunitiesinNorthAmerica.
Itwason
som
that
slenderriotousislandwhichextendsitselfdue
öster
east
ofNewYork—andwherethereare,
bland
among
othernaturalcuriosities,two
ovanliga
unusual
formationsofland.
Twentymilesfrom
den
the
cityapairof
enorma
enormous
eggs,identicalincontour
och
and
separatedonlybyacourtesybay,jut
ut
out
intothemostdomesticatedbodyofsaltwaterin
den
the
Westernhemisphere,thegreat
våta
wet
barnyardofLongIslandSound.
Theyarenotperfectovals—like
de
the
eggintheColumbus
berättelse
story
,theyarebothcrushed
platt
flat
atthecontactend—buttheir
fysiska
physical
resemblancemustbea
källa
source
ofperpetualwonderto
de
the
gullsthatflyoverhead.
To
de
the
winglessamoreinteresting
fenomen
phenomenon
istheirdissimilarityin
varje
every
particularexceptshapeand
storlek
size
.
IlivedatWestEgg,the—well,the
mindre
less
fashionableofthetwo,though
detta
this
isamostsuperficialtagto
uttrycka
express
thebizarreandnot
en
a
littlesinistercontrastbetween
dem
them
.
Myhousewasatthevery
spets
tip
oftheegg,onlyfiftyyardsfromtheSound,
och
and
squeezedbetweentwohugeplaces
som
that
rentedfortwelveorfifteen
tusen
thousand
aseason.
Theoneonmy
högra
right
wasacolossalaffairby
någon
any
standard—itwasafactual
imitation
imitation
ofsomeHôteldeVilleinNormandy,
med
with
atoweronone
sida
side
,spankingnewundera
tunt
thin
beardofrawivy,
och
and
amarbleswimmingpool,
och
and
morethanfortyacresof
gräsmatta
lawn
andgarden.
ItwasGatsby’s
herrgård
mansion
.
Or,rather,asIdidn’t
kände
know
Mr.Gatsby,itwas
en
a
mansioninhabitedbya
gentleman
gentleman
ofthatname.
My
eget
own
housewasaneyesore,
men
but
itwasasmalleyesore,
och
and
ithadbeenoverlooked,soI
hade
had
aviewofthe
vattnet
water
,apartialviewofmyneighbour’s
gräsmatta
lawn
,andtheconsolingproximityofmillionaires—allforeightydollarsamonth.
Acrossthecourtesy
bay
bay
thewhitepalacesoffashionableEastEggglittered
längs
along
thewater,andthe
historia
history
ofthesummerreally
börjar
begins
ontheeveningI
körde
drove
overtheretohave
middag
dinner
withtheTomBuchanans.
Daisy
Daisy
wasmysecondcousinonceremoved,
och
and
I’dknownTomin
college
college
.
AndjustafterthewarI
tillbringade
spent
twodayswiththeminChicago.
Herhusband,
bland
among
variousphysicalaccomplishments,hadbeenoneof
de
the
mostpowerfulendsthatever
spelat
played
footballatNewHaven—a
nationell
national
figureinaway,oneofthosemenwho
når
reach
suchanacutelimitedexcellenceattwenty-onethat
allt
everything
afterwardsavoursofanticlimax.
His
familj
family
wereenormouslywealthy—evenin
college
college
hisfreedomwithmoneywasa
fråga
matter
forreproach—butnowhe’d
lämnat
left
ChicagoandcomeEastina
sätt
fashion
thatrathertookyourbreathaway:
for
exempel
instance
,he’dbroughtdownastringofpoloponiesfrom
Lake
Lake
Forest.
Itwashardto
inse
realize
thatamaninmy
egen
own
generationwaswealthyenoughto
göra
do
that.
WhytheycameEastIdon’t
vet
know
.
Theyhadspenta
år
year
inFrancefornoparticular
anledning
reason
,andthendriftedhere
och
and
thereunrestfullywhereverpeople
spelade
played
poloandwererich
tillsammans
together
.
Thiswasapermanentmove,
sa
said
Daisyoverthetelephone,
men
but
Ididn’tbelieveit—I
hade
had
nosightintoDaisy’s
hjärta
heart
,butIfeltthatTomwoulddrifton
för alltid
forever
seeking,alittlewistfully,forthe
dramatiska
dramatic
turbulenceofsomeirrecoverablefootballgame.
Och
And
soithappenedthaton
en
a
warmwindyeveningI
körde
drove
overtoEastEggtosee
två
two
oldfriendswhomI
knappt
scarcely
knewatall.
Their
hus
house
wasevenmoreelaborate
än
than
Iexpected,acheerfulred-and-whiteGeorgian
Kolonial
Colonial
mansion,overlookingthebay.
Thelawn
började
started
atthebeachand
sprang
ran
towardsthefrontdoorfor
en
a
quarterofamile,
hoppar
jumping
oversundialsandbrickwalks
och
and
burninggardens—finallywhenit
nådde
reached
thehousedriftingupthesideinbrightvinesasthoughfromthemomentumofits
sprang
run
.
Thefrontwasbrokenby
en
a
lineofFrenchwindows,glowing
nu
now
withreflectedgoldandwideopento
den
the
warmwindyafternoon,andTomBuchananinridingclotheswas
stod
standing
withhislegsaparton
den
the
frontporch.
Hehad
förändrats
changed
sincehisNewHavenyears.
Nu
Now
hewasasturdystraw-haired
man
man
ofthirty,witha
ganska
rather
hardmouthandasupercilious
sätt
manner
.
Twoshiningarroganteyes
hade
had
establisheddominanceoverhis
ansikte
face
andgavehimtheappearanceof
alltid
always
leaningaggressivelyforward.
Not
ens
even
theeffeminateswankofhisridingclothes
kunde
could
hidetheenormouspowerofthatbody—he
tycktes
seemed
tofillthoseglisteningboots
tills
until
hestrainedthetoplacing,
och
and
youcouldseeagreatpackofmuscleshifting
när
when
hisshouldermovedunderhis
tunna
thin
coat.
Itwasa
kropp
body
capableofenormousleverage—a
grym
cruel
body.
Hisspeakingvoice,
en
a
gruffhuskytenor,addedtotheimpressionoffractiousnesshe
förmedlade
conveyed
.
Therewasatouchofpaternal
förakt
contempt
init,eventoward
människor
people
heliked—andthereweremenatNewHavenwho
hade
had
hatedhisguts.
“Now,don’tthinkmy
åsikt
opinion
onthesemattersisfinal,”he
verkade
seemed
tosay,“justbecauseI’m
starkare
stronger
andmoreofa
man
man
thanyouare.”
Wewereinthe
samma
same
seniorsociety,andwhilewewere
aldrig
never
intimateIalwayshadtheimpressionthathe
godkände
approved
ofmeandwantedmeto
gilla
like
himwithsomeharsh,defiantwistfulnessofhis
egen
own
.
Wetalkedfora
några
few
minutesonthesunnyporch.
“I’vegot
ett
a
niceplacehere,”he
sa
said
,hiseyesflashingaboutrestlessly.
Vände
Turning
mearoundbyone
arm
arm
,hemovedabroad
platt
flat
handalongthefrontvista,
däribland
including
initssweepasunkenItalian
trädgård
garden
,ahalfacreof
djupa
deep
,pungentroses,andasnub-nosedmotorboat
som
that
bumpedthetideoffshore.
“It
tillhörde
belonged
toDemaine,theoilman.”
He
vände
turned
mearoundagain,politely
och
and
abruptly.
“We’llgoinside.”
We
gick
walked
throughahighhallwayintoa
ljus
bright
rosy-colouredspace,fragilelyboundintothe
huset
house
byFrenchwindowsateither
änden
end
.
Thewindowswereajar
och
and
gleamingwhiteagainstthe
färska
fresh
grassoutsidethatseemedto
växa
grow
alittlewayinto
det
the
house.
Abreezeblew
genom
through
theroom,blewcurtainsinatone
änden
end
andouttheotherlikepaleflags,twistingthem
upp
up
towardthefrostedwedding-cakeofthe
taket
ceiling
,andthenrippledoverthewine-colouredrug,
gör
making
ashadowonitaswind
gör
does
onthesea.
The
enda
only
completelystationaryobjectin
det
the
roomwasanenormous
soffa
couch
onwhichtwoyoungwomenwerebuoyedupasthoughuponananchored
ballong
balloon
.
Theywerebothin
vitt
white
,andtheirdresseswererippling
och
and
flutteringasifthey
hade
had
justbeenblownbackinafter
en
a
shortflightaroundthe
huset
house
.
Imusthavestoodfor
en
a
fewmomentslisteningtothewhip
och
and
snapofthecurtains
och
and
thegroanofa
bild
picture
onthewall.
Thentherewas
ett
a
boomasTomBuchanan
stängde
shut
therearwindowsandthe
fångade
caught
winddiedoutaboutthe
rummet
room
,andthecurtainsandtherugs
och
and
thetwoyoungwomenballooned
långsamt
slowly
tothefloor.
The
yngre
younger
ofthetwowas
en
a
strangertome.
Shewas
utsträckt
extended
fulllengthatherendofthedivan,completelymotionless,
och
and
withherchinraiseda
lite
little
,asifshewere
balanserade
balancing
somethingonitwhichwasquitelikelyto
falla
fall
.
Ifshesawmeoutof
det
the
cornerofhereyesshe
gav
gave
nohintofit—indeed,Iwas
nästan
almost
surprisedintomurmuringan
ursäkt
apology
forhavingdisturbedherby
komma
coming
in.
Theothergirl,
Daisy
Daisy
,madeanattempttorise—sheleaned
något
slightly
forwardwithaconscientiousexpression—thenshe
skrattade
laughed
,anabsurd,charminglittle
skratt
laugh
,andIlaughedtoo
och
and
cameforwardintothe
rummet
room
.
“I’mp-paralysedwithhappiness.”
She
skrattade
laughed
again,asifshe
sade
said
somethingverywitty,and
höll
held
myhandfora
ögonblick
moment
,lookingupintomy
ansikte
face
,promisingthattherewas
inte
no
oneintheworldshesomuch
ville
wanted
tosee.
Thatwas
ett
a
wayshehad.
She
antydde
hinted
inamurmurthat
den
the
surnameofthebalancinggirlwas
Baker
Baker
.
(I’vehearditsaidthatDaisy’smurmurwas
bara
only
tomakepeoplelean
mot
toward
her;
anirrelevantcriticism
som
that
madeitnolesscharming.)
Atanyrate,
Fröken
Miss
Baker’slipsfluttered,she
nickade
nodded
atmealmostimperceptibly,
och
and
thenquicklytippedherhead
tillbaka
back
again—theobjectshewas
balanserade
balancing
hadobviouslytottereda
lite
little
andgivenhersomethingof
en
a
fright.
Againasortof
ursäkt
apology
arosetomylips.
Nästan
Almost
anyexhibitionofcompleteself-sufficiency
drar
draws
astunnedtributefromme.
I
tittade
looked
backatmycousin,who
började
began
toaskmequestionsinher
låga
low
,thrillingvoice.
Itwasthe
typ
kind
ofvoicethatthe
örat
ear
followsupanddown,asif
varje
each
speechisanarrangementofnotesthat
kommer
will
neverbeplayedagain.
Her
ansikte
face
wassadandlovely
med
with
brightthingsinit,
ljus
bright
eyesandabright
passionerad
passionate
mouth,buttherewasan
spänning
excitement
inhervoicethatmenwho
hade
had
caredforherfound
svårt
difficult
toforget:
asingingcompulsion,awhispered“Listen,”a
löfte
promise
thatshehaddone
homosexuella
gay
,excitingthingsjustawhile
sedan
since
andthattherewere
homosexuella
gay
,excitingthingshoveringin
det
the
nexthour.
Itoldher
hur
how
IhadstoppedoffinChicagofora
dag
day
onmywayEast,
och
and
howadozenpeople
hade
had
senttheirlovethroughme.
“Dothey
saknar
miss
me?”
shecriedecstatically.
“Thewhole
staden
town
isdesolate.
Allthecars
har
have
theleftrearwheel
målat
painted
blackasamourningwreath,
och
and
there’sapersistentwailall
natten
night
alongthenorthshore.”
“Howgorgeous!
Let’s
åker
go
back,Tom.
Tomorrow!”
Thenshe
tillade
added
irrelevantly:
“Yououghtto
se
see
thebaby.”
“I’dliketo.”
“She’sasleep.
She’s
tre
three
yearsold.
Haven’tyouever
sett
seen
her?”
“Never.”
“Well,yououghttosee
henne
her
.
She’s—”.
TomBuchanan,who
hade
had
beenhoveringrestlesslyaboutthe
rummet
room
,stoppedandrestedhis
hand
hand
onmyshoulder.
“Whatyou
gör
doing
,Nick?”
“I’mabondman.”
“Whowith?”
I
sa
told
him.
“Neverheardofthem,”heremarkeddecisively.
Här
This
annoyedme.
“Youwill,”I
svarade
answered
shortly.
“Youwillifyou
stannar
stay
intheEast.”
“Oh,I’ll
stannar
stay
intheEast,don’tyouworry,”he
sa
said
,glancingatDaisyandthen
tillbaka
back
atme,asifhewerealertfor
något
something
more.
“I’dbeaGoddamnedfoolto
bodde
live
anywhereelse.”
Atthispoint
Fröken
Miss
Bakersaid:
“Absolutely!”
with
sådan
such
suddennessthatIstarted—itwas
det
the
firstwordshehaduttered
sedan
since
Icameintothe
rummet
room
.
Evidentlyitsurprisedheras
mycket
much
asitdidme,forsheyawned
och
and
withaseriesofrapid,deftmovements
stod
stood
upintotheroom.
“I’mstiff,”she
klagade
complained
,“I’vebeenlyingonthatsofaforas
länge
long
asIcanremember.”
“Don’tlookatme,”
Daisy
Daisy
retorted,“I’vebeentryingto
get
youtoNewYorkallafternoon.”
“No,thanks,”
sa
said
MissBakertothe
fyra
four
cocktailsjustinfrom
de
the
pantry.
“I’mabsolutelyintraining.”
Her
värd
host
lookedatherincredulously.
“Youare!”
He
tog
took
downhisdrinkasifitwerea
droppe
drop
inthebottomofaglass.
“Howyouever
får
get
anythingdoneisbeyondme.”
I
tittade
looked
atMissBaker,wonderingwhatitwasshe“gotdone.”
I
njöt
enjoyed
lookingather.
Shewas
en
a
slender,small-breastedgirl,withan
upprätt
erect
carriage,whichsheaccentuatedby
kasta
throwing
herbodybackwardattheshoulderslike
en
a
youngcadet.
Hergreysun-strainedeyes
tittade
looked
backatmewith
artig
polite
reciprocalcuriosityoutof
en
a
wan,charming,discontentedface.
Itoccurredtome
nu
now
thatIhadseen
henne
her
,orapictureof
henne
her
,somewherebefore.
“Youlivein
West
West
Egg,”sheremarkedcontemptuously.
“I
känner
know
somebodythere.”
“Idon’t
känner
know
asingle—”.
“Youmust
känna
know
Gatsby.”
“Gatsby?”
demandedDaisy.
“WhatGatsby?”
Innan
Before
Icouldreplythathewasmy
granne
neighbour
dinnerwasannounced;
wedginghistensearmimperativelyundermine,TomBuchanancompelledmefromthe
rummet
room
asthoughhewere
flyttade
moving
acheckertoanothersquare.
Slenderly,languidly,theirhandssetlightlyontheirhips,the
två
two
youngwomenprecededus
ut
out
ontoarosy-coloured
veranda
porch
,opentowardthesunset,where
fyra
four
candlesflickeredonthe
bordet
table
inthediminishedwind.
“Whycandles?”
objected
Daisy
Daisy
,frowning.
Shesnappedthem
ut
out
withherfingers.
“In
två
two
weeksit’llbethe
längsta
longest
dayintheyear.”
She
tittade
looked
atusallradiantly.
“Doyou
alltid
always
watchforthelongest
dag
day
oftheyearandthen
missar
miss
it?
Ialwayswatchforthe
längsta
longest
dayintheyear
och
and
thenmissit.”
“Weoughtto
planera
plan
something,”yawnedMissBaker,
sitter
sitting
downatthetableasifshewere
komma
getting
intobed.
“Allright,”
sa
said
Daisy.
“What’llweplan?”
She
vände
turned
tomehelplessly:
“Whatdopeopleplan?”
Innan
Before
Icouldanswerhereyesfastened
med
with
anawedexpressiononher
lilla
little
finger.
“Look!”
shecomplained;
“I
skadade
hurt
it.”
Wealllooked—theknucklewas
svart
black
andblue.
“Youdidit,Tom,”she
sa
said
accusingly.
“Iknowyoudidn’t
menade
mean
to,butyoudid
gjorde
do
it.
That’swhatI
får
get
formarryingabruteof
en
a
man,agreat,big,hulking
fysisk
physical
specimenofa—”.
“I
hatar
hate
thatword‘hulking,’ ”objectedTomcrossly,“eveninkidding.”
“Hulking,”
insisterade
insisted
Daisy.
Sometimessheand
Fröken
Miss
Bakertalkedatonce,unobtrusively
och
and
withabanteringinconsequence
som
that
wasneverquitechatter,
som
that
wasascoolastheir
vita
white
dressesandtheirimpersonaleyesinthe
avsaknad
absence
ofalldesire.
Theywere
här
here
,andtheyacceptedTom
och
and
me,makingonlya
artig
polite
pleasantefforttoentertain
eller
or
tobeentertained.
They
visste
knew
thatpresentlydinnerwouldbe
över
over
andalittlelater
de
the
eveningtoowouldbe
över
over
andcasuallyputaway.
Itwassharplydifferentfrom
det
the
West,whereaneveningwashurriedfrom
fas
phase
tophasetowardsitsclose,in
en
a
continuallydisappointedanticipationorelsein
ren
sheer
nervousdreadofthemomentitself.
“Youmakeme
känna
feel
uncivilized,Daisy,”Iconfessedonmy
andra
second
glassofcorkybut
ganska
rather
impressiveclaret.
“Can’tyou
prata
talk
aboutcropsorsomething?”
I
menade
meant
nothinginparticularby
denna
this
remark,butitwastaken
upp
up
inanunexpectedway.
“Civilization’s
går
going
topieces,”brokeoutTom
våldsamt
violently
.
“I’vegottentobe
en
a
terriblepessimistaboutthings.
Har
Have
youreadTheRiseof
den
the
ColouredEmpiresbythis
mannen
man
Goddard?”
“Why,no,”I
svarade
answered
,rathersurprisedbyhistone.
“Well,it’s
en
a
finebook,andeverybodyoughtto
läsa
read
it.
Theideaisifwedon’tlookout
den
the
whiteracewillbe—willbeutterlysubmerged.
It’sall
vetenskapliga
scientific
stuff;
it’sbeenproved.”