《纯真年代》为“书虫·牛津英汉双语读物”系列5级读物，属简易文学，适合高二、高三的读者阅读。《纯真年代》由美国女作家伊迪丝·华顿的同名经典文学名著改编，更适合国内英语学习者阅读。本书大致内容：埃伦·奥兰斯卡伯爵夫人，曾作为一位波兰伯爵的妻子在欧洲生活多年，独自回到了她在纽约的家。她希望摆脱自己不幸婚姻带来的痛苦，但她不了解纽约的各种规则。然而，纽兰·阿彻深谙这些规则，而且，和他订婚的姑娘——年轻的梅·韦兰，生活中也恪守着这些规则，因为她无法想象还有其他任何的生活方式。纽兰、梅和埃伦陷入了一场爱情、名誉和责任的斗争。
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伊迪丝·华顿（1862－1937），美国女作家。华顿的代表作《纯真年代》于1921年获得普利策文学奖，使她成为第一个获得该奖的女性作家。
CONTENTS 目录
PEOPLE IN THIS STORY 人物介绍
1 A stranger in New York
纽约的陌生人
2 Newland has doubts
纽兰存有疑虑
3 The Countess causes trouble
伯爵夫人招惹麻烦
4 A second visit to the Countess
对伯爵夫人的第二次拜访
5 May surprises Newland
梅让纽兰大感意外
6 The wedding and beyond
婚礼及其后
7 Newland in Boston
CONTENTS 目录
PEOPLE IN THIS STORY 人物介绍
1 A stranger in New York
纽约的陌生人
2 Newland has doubts
纽兰存有疑虑
3 The Countess causes trouble
伯爵夫人招惹麻烦
4 A second visit to the Countess
对伯爵夫人的第二次拜访
5 May surprises Newland
梅让纽兰大感意外
6 The wedding and beyond
婚礼及其后
7 Newland in Boston
纽兰在波士顿
8 The Beaufort scandal
博福特的丑闻
9 Ellen returns to New York
埃伦返回纽约
10 Newland visits Paris
纽兰造访巴黎
Activities: Before Reading
Activities: While Reading
Activities: After Reading
When Newland Archer arrived at the New York Academy of Music, one January evening in the early 1870s, the opera had already begun. There was no reason why the young man should not have come earlier. He had had dinner at seven, alone with his mother and sister, and then sat unhurriedly smoking his cigar in his private library. But fashionable young men did not arrive early at the opera. That was one of the unwritten rules of society, and in Newland Archer’s New York these rules were as important as life and death.
Another reason for the young man’s delay was that he enjoyed looking forward to pleasures just as much as actually experiencing them, and Gounod’s Faust was one of his favourite operas. As he opened the door at the back of his box, he felt he had chosen just the right moment to arrive. Christine Nilsson, the Swedish singer whom all New York had gathered to hear, was singing, ‘He loves me – he loves me not – he loves me!’
She sang in Italian, of course, not in English, since an unquestioned law of the musical world demanded that the German words of French operas sung by Swedish singers should be translated into Italian, for the clearer understanding of English-speaking audiences. This seemed as natural to Newland as all the other laws that governed his life, like never appearing in society without a flower in his buttonhole, and having two silver-backed brushes for his hair.
He turned his eyes away from the singer and looked at the audience. Directly opposite him was the box of old Mrs Manson Mingott, who was now so fat that she was unable to attend the opera, but whose family often came on fashionable nights. Tonight the front of the box was filled by her daughter-in-law, Mrs Lovell Mingott, and her daughter, Mrs Welland. A little behind these ladies in their heavy silks sat a young girl in white, with her eyes fixed on the singer. As Madame Nilsson’s voice rose above the silent audience (the boxes always stopped talking during this song), a warm pink spread over the girl’s face and shoulders, right down to the top of her evening dress. She dropped her eyes to the enormous bunch of white flowers on her knee, and touched them gently.
19世纪70年代初一月的某个夜晚，当纽兰?阿彻来到纽约音乐学院时，歌剧已经开场。这个年轻人本没有理由不早点到。七点钟时，他已经和母亲、妹妹一起用了晚餐，然后坐在自己的私人图书室里不慌不忙地抽雪茄。然而，时尚的年轻人去听歌剧时是不会早到的，那是社交界不成文的规矩之一。在纽兰?阿彻所身处的纽约，这些规矩是与生死一样重要的大事。
这位年轻人晚到还有另一个原因，那就是，他不单喜欢享受快乐，且同样喜欢期盼快乐到来的感觉；而古诺的《浮士德》正是他最喜欢的歌剧之一。当他打开包厢后面的门时，他觉得自己来得刚好是时候。克里斯蒂娜?尼尔森，这位让全纽约的人都齐聚一堂来听她演唱的瑞典歌唱家，正在唱着“他爱我——他不爱我——他爱我！”
当然，她不是用英语，而是用意大利语演唱的。根据音乐界公认的法则，由瑞典歌唱家演唱的法国歌剧的德语文本，必须翻译成意大利语，以便让讲英语的听众理解得更清楚。对纽兰来说，这一点和他生活中遵循的所有其他规矩一样理所当然：比如，纽扣眼里永远得插一朵花才能在社交界露面；还要有两把梳理头发的银背刷子。
他把目光从歌唱家身上移开，扫视着观众。正对着他的是曼森?明戈特老太太的包厢。她因为过度肥胖，如今已经不能来听歌剧了。不过，在有时尚人士社交活动的晚上，她的家庭成员往往会出席。今晚，坐在包厢前排座位的是她的儿媳洛弗尔?明戈特太太和她的女儿韦兰太太。这两位身着层层锦缎的妇人身后坐着一位穿白衣的年轻姑娘，她正目不转睛地看着歌唱家。当尼尔森夫人的歌声划破观众席寂静的上空时（演唱这首歌期间，各包厢的人们总是会停止交谈），一抹红晕泛起在姑娘的面颊，漫过肩头，直至她晚礼服的领线。她垂下眼睛望着膝上那一大束白花，用手轻抚着。
……
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