영어로 읽는 고전 _ 앤드류 랭의 카인의 표식
"카인의 표식"은 19세기 후반에 쓰여진 소설입니다. 이야기는 런던의 한 클럽에서 열린 저녁 파티에서 시작되며, 주최자인 메이틀랜드가 손님들 사이에서 고립감을 느끼며 자신의 인생 선택을 되돌아보는 장면으로 시작됩니다. 이 이야기는 사회적 책임, 인간관계의 복잡성, 그리고 의심스러운 과거를 가진 것으로 밝혀진 크랜리라는 인물을 둘러싼 미스터리를 깊이 있게 다룹니다.
책의 시작 부분에서 독자들은 "히트 오어 미스"라는 노동자 계층의 선술집을 운영하면서 주변 사람들과의 단절감으로 고민하는 메이틀랜드를 만나게 됩니다. 그가 주최한 저녁 파티에는 바튼과 크랜리를 포함한 다양한 배경을 가진 인물들이 등장하며, 그들의 대화는 숨겨진 과거와 도덕적 딜레마를 암시합니다.
이 장은 메이틀랜드의 옛 지인인 디키 실즈가 눈 수레에서 시체로 발견되었다는 극적인 반전으로 끝나며, 이는 앞으로 펼쳐질 이야기의 미스터리를 예고합니다.
계급, 사회적 기대, 그리고 사회 문제에 대한 개인의 참여를 둘러싼 긴장감이 드러나기 시작하며, 이는 앞으로 등장할 인물들의 동기와 행동의 결과에 대한 더 깊은 탐구를 암시합니다.
Classics Read in English _ The Mark of Cain by Andrew Lang
"The Mark of Cain" by Andrew Lang is a novel written in the late 19th century. The narrative begins at a dinner party in a London club where the host, Maitland, feels isolated amid his guests and reflects on his life choices. The story delves into themes of social responsibility, the complexities of human relationships, and an undercurrent of mystery regarding the character of Cranley, who is revealed to have a questionable past. At the start of the book, readers are introduced to Maitland, who runs a working-class tavern called the "Hit or Miss" while grappling with his feelings of disconnection from those around him. The dinner party he hosts introduces characters with varied backgrounds, including Barton and Cranley, with conversations hinting at hidden pasts and moral dilemmas. The chapter ends with a dramatic turn as it becomes known that a former acquaintance of Maitland, Dicky Shields, has been found dead in a snowcart, setting the stage for further intrigue as the narrative unfolds. The tensions surrounding class, social expectations, and personal involvement in societal issues begin to emerge, suggesting a deeper exploration of character motivations and consequences of actions yet to come.
Among the contents
In the Strangers’ Room of the Olympic Club the air was thick with tobacco-smoke, and, despite the bitter cold outside, the temperature was uncomfortably high. Dinner was over, and the guests, broken up into little groups, were chattering noisily. No one had yet given any sign of departing: no one had offered a welcome apology for the need of catching an evening train.
Perhaps the civilized custom which permits women to dine in the presence of the greedier sex is the proudest conquest of Culture. Were it not for the excuse of “joining the ladies,” dinner-parties (Like the congregations in Heaven, as described in the hymn) would “ne’er break up,” and suppers (like Sabbaths, on the same authority) would never end.
“Hang it all, will the fellows never go?”
