Attachment: O'Henry's novel "Cut Bright Lights" (also translated as "Polished Lights")
A lighted lamp
Of course, there are two sides to this question. Let's look at the other side of the problem. We often hear people talk about "shop girls". There is no such person. Only girls who sell things in shops. That's their livelihood. Why do they use adjectives in their occupations? We should be fair. We didn't call the girl on Fifth Avenue a "wedding girl".
Lou and Nancy are good friends. They came to this big city to look for jobs because there was not enough food in their hometown. Nancy is nineteen years old; Lu is twenty years old. Both of them are beautiful and active rural girls, and neither of them has the ambition to go on stage.
The little angel above showed them and found a cheap and decent dormitory. Both of them found jobs and became employees. They are still good friends. It was six months before I asked you to come forward and introduce them. Nostalgic reader: This is my girlfriend, Miss Nancy and Miss Lu. When you shake hands with them, please pay attention to their clothes-but don't show any traces. Yes, don't show any traces, because they are as unhappy as the ladies in the box of the racecourse are stared at by others.
Lu works as an ironing worker in a manual laundry and gets a piece-rate salary. She is wearing a purple dress that doesn't fit, and the feathers on her hat are four inches longer than they should be; However, her mink hand tube and scarf are from 25 yuan, but before the season passes, its type will be priced at 98 cents in 7 yuan in the window. Her cheeks are rosy and her pale blue eyes are bright. She smells satisfied.
As for Nancy, you can call her a shop assistant-because you have formed a habit. The typical salesgirl doesn't exist at all; But some stubborn people are always looking for models, so let's call them Nancy models. She combed her hair in a fluffy and towering Pombadu style, and her face showed a serious look of overcorrection. The material of her skirt is rather poor, but the style is very timely. She doesn't have a fur coat to resist the cold of spring, but she strutted around in a wool coat as if it were made of Persian sheepskin. Find a typical person without mercy. Her face and eyes reveal the expression of a typical shop assistant. That look is a silent and arrogant resistance to wasting youth; Predict the coming revenge in dismay. Even when she laughed heartily, that expression still existed. The same expression can be seen in the eyes of Russian farmers; When Gabriel blew the horn of the final judgment, those of us who are still alive can see it in Gabriel's face. That look should have made men ashamed; But they will always be hippies, offering flowers with ulterior motives.
Now you can take off your hat and go your own way. You accepted Lu's happy goodbye and Nancy's sarcastic and sweet smile. Somehow, that smile seemed to pass by you, flapping its wings like a moth flying over the roof and soaring into the sky.
They are waiting for Dan at the corner. Dan is a good friend of Lu. Did you ask him about his loyalty? Well, if Mary needs to hire a dozen subpoenas to find her lamb, Dan is always there to help.
Nancy, are you cold? Lu said. "You work in that old shop for only eight dollars a week. What a fool! I made 18.5 dollars last week. Of course, ironing clothes is not as imposing as selling lace behind the counter, but it can make money. Our ironing workers earn at least ten dollars a week. I don't think this is a disgraceful job. "
"You do your job." Nancy cocked her nose and said. "I am willing to take eight dollars a week and live in a room. I like to stay where there are good things to associate with rich people. Besides, I still have many opportunities! A girl in our glove department married a man from Pittsburgh-a steelworker, a blacksmith, or someone else-worth a million dollars. One day, I will find a rich man myself. I'm not bragging about my looks or other advantages; But since there is a great chance, I will take a chance. What's the point of staying in the laundry? "
"Not really. I met Dan at the laundry. " Lu proudly said. "He came to get the shirt and collar he wore on Sunday and saw me ironing on the first table. All the girls in our laundry want to work at the first table. Ella Maginnis was ill that day, and I took her place. Dan said he noticed how plump and white my arms were at first sight. I rolled up my sleeves and worked. There are also upper-class people to wash clothes. You can recognize them by the way they hide their clothes in the suitcase and then suddenly sneak in. "
"Lou, how can you wear that vest?" Nancy said, narrowing her eyes and staring at the disgusting dress with concern and reproach. "It shows that your aesthetic power is too poor."
"This vest?" Zheng Lu zheng big eyes, said angrily. "Hey, this vest cost me 16 dollars. Actually, it's worth twenty-five dollars. A woman sent it to the laundry and never came to get it. The boss sold it to me. There are many yards of hand embroidery on it. You'd better comment on that ugly and plain thing about yourself. "
"This ugly and ordinary thing," Nancy said quietly, "was sewn according to the style of a suit on Mrs. Van Ulstin Fisher. The female colleague in the store said that she bought 12 thousand in our store last year. I made this myself, and it cost me a dollar and fifty cents. Ten steps away, you can hardly see the difference between mine and hers. "
"Oh, well," Lou said gently, "if you want to show off on an empty stomach, go ahead. I still do my job and hold my high salary; After I finish my work, I will buy myself some fancy clothes if economic conditions permit. "
At this moment, Dan came. He is an electrician with a weekly salary of 30 yuan. He wears a buckle tie and looks like a precocious teenager, without the frivolous habits of the city. He looked at Lu with Romeo's sad eyes and thought that her embroidered vest was a spider's web to which any fly would stick.
"This is my friend, Mr. Owens-shaking hands with Miss Danfoss," Lu said.
"Nice to meet you, Miss Danvers." Dan held out his hand and said. "I often hear Lu mention you."
"Thank you," Nancy said coldly, touching Dan's finger with her fingertips. "I heard her mention you-several times."
Reed giggled.
"Nancy, did you learn that handshake from Mrs. Van Alston Fisher?" She asked.
"If I learned it, you can copy it with confidence." Nancy said.
"Well, I don't deserve it. That way is too fancy for me. Raise your hand to show off the diamond ring. After I get a few pieces, I will start to learn. "
"You might as well learn first," Nancy said tactfully. "Then you have a better chance of getting the ring."
"To settle your argument," Dan said with a smile, "let me make a suggestion. Since I can't accompany you two to Tiffany's to do my duty, would you like to go to the amusement park? I have a ticket. We don't have a chance to shake hands with people who really wear diamond rings, so how about we go and see the diamonds on the stage? "
Loyal waiters walk on the sidewalk by the roadside; Reed is beside him, wearing bright and beautiful clothes, a bit like a peacock; Nancy walked at the bottom, slim and dressed like a sparrow, but her walking posture was authentic Van Alston Fisher-so the three of them began to look for their cheap evening pastime.
I don't think many people will regard a big department store as an educational institution. But the one where Nancy works is a bit like an educational institution for her. She is surrounded by elegant and exquisite things. If you are in a luxurious atmosphere, whether you or others spend money, that luxury belongs to you.
Nancy's customers are mostly women, and their clothes, manners and social status are cited as models for discussion. Nancy began to learn from each other's strengths-according to her own opinion, take the essence from everyone.
She imitates a person's gestures and practices them; I learned a meaningful eyebrow expression from another person; He also absorbed other people's gestures of walking, holding wallets, smiling, greeting friends and answering "low status". From Mrs. Van Alston Fisher, her most admired model, she borrowed that wonderful feature: a soft and deep voice, as clear as a silver bell and as round as a thrush. She is immersed in this elegant atmosphere, and it is impossible not to be deeply influenced. It is said that good habits can surpass good principles, so good manners may also surpass good habits. Your parents' teaching may not keep your conscience in New England; However, if you sit in a straight armchair and read the words "prism and pilgrim" forty times, the devil will not dare to invade you. When Nancy spoke in the voice of Van Alston Fisher, she even felt comfortable in her bones that "the nobles lived up to expectations".
Big department stores also have sources of knowledge. Whenever you see three or four shop assistants whispering together and jingling with bracelets, it seems that they are talking about irrelevant topics. Don't think that they are criticizing Ethel's hairstyle there. This meeting may not be as grand as one person's Council; But it is as important as Eve's first meeting with her eldest daughter. At that meeting, they made Adam understand his proper position in the family. It was a meeting of women against the world and men, defending and exchanging offensive and defensive strategies. The world is a stage, and men are spectators throwing bouquets on the stage. Women are the weakest and most helpless of all small animals-they have the elegance of deer, but not the agility of deer; Have the beauty of a bird, but have no ability to fly; There is honey made by bees, but there is no-oh, let's give up that metaphor-someone may be stung.
In this kind of military meeting, they supply weapons to each other and exchange the strategies they created and formulated in their life tactics.
"I told him," Sadie said, "you are too presumptuous! Who do you think I am to say such things to me? Guess what he said to me? "
The heads of all colors of hair, brown, black, light yellow, red and yellow, are all together; Find the answer, and if you decide to give tit for tat, prepare for a debate with the enemy in the future.
Therefore, Nancy learned the art of defense; For women, successful defense means victory.
The courses in department stores are all-inclusive. I'm afraid no university can better train her to realize her lifelong dream: winning the lottery in marriage.
Her position in the shop is favorable. The music department is not far from the department where she works, which gives her a chance to get familiar with the works of first-class composers-at least to the extent that she pretends to have the ability to appreciate music in the social world she is trying to set foot in. She is also cultivated from artworks, expensive and exquisite fabrics, and decorations that can almost replace women's cultivation.
Before long, all the other salesgirls discovered Nancy's ambition. "Here comes your millionaire Nancy." Whenever a man who looks like a rich man approaches Nancy's counter, they greet Nancy like this. When a man goes shopping with his wife, he always goes to the handkerchief counter to see linen handkerchiefs when he is bored. Nancy's imitation, noble bearing and true beauty are very attractive to them. So many men came to her to show off their style. Some of them may be real millionaires, others are just fake. Nancy learned the skill of identification. There is a window at the end of the handkerchief counter; From above, she can see rows of cars waiting for their owners to buy things in the shop. She has seen a lot and knows that the car is different from the owner.
On one occasion, an unusual gentleman bought four dozen handkerchiefs and flirted with her across the counter, just like the king of Pithois. After he left, a salesgirl said:
"What's the matter, Nancy, you just made out with that man. In my opinion, he is a real rich man. "
"He?" Nancy said with the most indifferent, charming and detached Van Alstin Fisher smile, "I don't like it. I saw him come by car. A 12 horsepower car and an Irish driver! Do you know what kind of handkerchief he bought? -Silk! He also has finger inflammation. Sorry, I want to be a real rich man, otherwise I would rather not. "
There are two most fashionable women in the shop-one is the head waiter and the other is the cashier-and they also have several "rich boyfriends" who often eat out together. Once, they invited Nancy to go with them. That dinner was eaten in a magnificent restaurant, and the seats for the New Year's Eve dinner were reserved one year in advance. There are two "boyfriends" here, one is bald (we can prove that luxury life has made him lose all his hair) and the other is a young man. He makes you appreciate his value and sophistication in two convincing ways: first, he wears diamond cufflinks; The other is that he always curses that any wine tastes like a cork. The young man found something unusual in Nancy. His hobby tends to shop girls; In front of her, in addition to the relatively straightforward charm of her own class, she also has the talk and demeanor of the upper class to which he belongs. So, the next day he went to the department store, bought a box of Irish linen handkerchiefs bleached by indigenous methods, and solemnly proposed to her. Nancy flatly refused. Ten steps away, a colleague with pompadou brown hair has been watching and listening. After the suitor left, she gave Nancy a good scolding.
"You are a hopeless little fool! That guy is a millionaire-he is the nephew of the old man Van skeat. He is sincere. Are you crazy, Nancy? "
"Me?" Nancy said. "I didn't promise him, did I? In fact, he is not a millionaire, and he is not ugly at all. His family only gives him 20 thousand yuan a year. At dinner that day, the bald guy made fun of him about it. "
The girl with pompadour brown hair narrowed her eyes and came closer.
"What do you want?" She asked, her voice hoarse from not chewing gum. "Isn't that enough for you? Do you want to be a Mormon and marry Rockefeller, gladstone Dowell and the Spanish king at the same time? Twenty thousand dollars a year is not enough for you? "
Nancy's face flushed under the gaze of those shallow black eyes.
"It's not all about money, Carrie." She explained. "At dinner that day, he lied with his eyes open and was exposed by his friends. He said he didn't go to the theatre with some girl, but it wasn't. I just can't stand liars. Various factors add up-I don't like him; So I screwed up. I'm waiting for the price, and I'll never pick a big auction day. Anyway, I have to find someone who looks like a man sitting in a chair. Yes, I'm looking for someone; But this object must have some kind of commitment, and it can't jingle like a child's piggy bank. "
"A mental hospital is for people like you!" The girl with pompadour brown hair walked away.
Nancy continues to cultivate these lofty ideas on her salary of eight yuan a week, even if it is not ideal. Day after day, she chewed dry bread, tightened her belt and followed Dai Yueli's unknown "prey". She always wears that cold but firm, sweet and cold smile, which is destined to prey on men. Department stores are her hunting grounds. Several times, she found what seemed to be a rare prey and raised her rifle to aim at it; But some deep and correct instinct-perhaps Orion's instinct, perhaps a woman's instinct-always stops her and makes her track again.
Lou is very proud in the laundry. She set aside $6 from her weekly salary of $0 18.5 to pay for rent and meals. Most of the rest is spent on clothes. Compared with Nancy, she has far fewer opportunities to improve her taste and manners. In the steaming laundry room, there is only work, work and reverie about future evening entertainment. All kinds of expensive and beautiful clothes pass under her iron; Her growing love for clothes may be transmitted to her from that kind of heat-conducting metal.
After a day's work, Dan is waiting for her outside the laundry. No matter what kind of light she stands in, Dan will always be her faithful shadow.
Sometimes, he would glance at Lu's clothes with trepidation. Those clothes are more dazzling than their styles. But this is not a change of heart; What he disapproves of is that these clothes attract her attention in the street.
Lu is still as loyal to her good friend as before. Where she and Dan go to play, she always invites Nancy to go with her, which has become a routine. Dan took on the extra burden happily and without complaint. It can be said that in this entertainment-seeking trio, Lu provided the color, Nancy provided the mood, and Dan assumed the weight. This guard, who is neatly dressed, obviously buys ready-made clothes, wears a snap tie, and has a reliable, sincere and ready-made wit, has never made a fuss or collapsed for such a burden. Some kind people, when they are in front of you, you often ignore them, but when they leave, you clearly think of them. Dan is such a person.
For Nancy's elegant interests, these ready-made entertainments are sometimes bitter; But she is too young to be a picky gourmet, so she can only make do with it and be an easy-going foodie.
"Dan always wants me to marry him at once." Lu once said to Nancy. "But why should I? I don't depend on others. Now I earn my own money and spend it how I want; After marriage, he will definitely not let me continue to work. Speaking of which, Nancy, why are you still in that shop? You don't have enough to eat and dress well. If you like, I can find you a seat in the laundry room right away. I have always had an idea that if I could earn more money, I wouldn't be so arrogant. "
"I don't think I'm arrogant, Lou," Nancy said, "but I'd rather stay in the old place, even if I'm half hungry and half full. I think this is a habit. What I want is an opportunity there. I don't expect to stand behind the counter all my life. I can learn something new every day. I am in contact with nobles and rich people from morning till night-even if I am only serving them; I was well informed before the atmosphere. "
"Do you have your millionaire?" Lu asked with a teasing smile.
"I haven't chosen yet." Nancy replied. "I'm choosing."
"oh! I cann't believe you want to pick one! Don't let that kind of person go easily, Nancy-even if he is only worth a few dollars, he is not qualified. On the other hand, this is not necessarily true-millionaires look down on professional women like us. "
"They still look up to it." Nancy said calmly and wisely. "People like us can teach them how to manage their money."
"If a millionaire talks to me," Lu said with a smile, "I will be scared to death."
"That's because you don't know them. The only difference between rich people and ordinary people is that you should take care of them more strictly. Lu, your red silk lining is a little too bright, don't you think? "
Lu glanced at her friend's simple light green jacket.
"Well, I don't think so-but maybe it's a little brighter than that faded thing on you."
"This jacket," Nancy said proudly, "is exactly the same as that worn by Mrs. Van Alstin Fisher last time. I only spent $3.98 on this material. I guess hers is one hundred dollars more expensive than mine. "
"Well," Lu said firmly, "in my opinion, this kind of clothes may not be able to make millionaires take the bait. Maybe I'll find one before you. "
To tell the truth, these two friends have their own theories. I'm afraid we have to ask philosophers to judge their value. Some girls like to be picky because of saving face and are willing to stay in shops and offices to make a living; Lou doesn't have this temper. She happily manipulated her iron in the noisy and boring laundry room. Her salary is enough for her to maintain a comfortable life; Therefore, her clothes are also stained with light, so that she sometimes glances impatiently at the well-dressed but not fastidious Dane-the loyal and consistent Dane.
As for Nancy, her situation is the same as that of thousands of people in Qian Qian. Satin, jewelry, lace, decorations, perfume and music, etc. These are all necessary for a gentle and polite society, all for women; It belongs to her. If she thinks these things are a part of life, let her get close to them if she wants. She will not betray her own interests like Esau; Although the red bean soup she earns is often very limited, she retains her inheritance right.
Nancy stays at home in this atmosphere. She is determined to eat her frugal meals and plan her cheap clothes. She already knows something about women, and now she is studying men as prey from two aspects: habits and selection conditions. One day, she will catch her favorite prey; But she promised herself long ago that if she didn't do it, she would hit the biggest and best prey she thought, and the smaller one would be abandoned.
So she cut the light and waited for the groom who would come at that time.
However, she learned another lesson, perhaps unconsciously. Her values began to change. Sometimes, the symbols of the Jin and Yuan Dynasties become blurred in her mind, forming words such as "truth" and "honor", and from time to time simply becoming the word "kindness". Let's take a man who hunts elk in a big forest as an example. He saw a small canyon, mottled moss, tree-lined, and a slow stream gurgling to tell him to rest and be comfortable. In this case, even Lu Ning's spear will become dull.
Sometimes, Nancy wants to know whether people who wear Persian sheepskin coats always regard Persian sheepskin as high as the market price.
One Thursday night, Nancy came out of the store, crossed Liu Ma Road and went west to the laundry. Last time Lu and Dan invited her to watch a musical comedy.
Dan had just come out of the laundry when she arrived. There is a strange and nervous expression on his face.
"I want to come and inquire about her." He said.
"Ask who?" Nancy asked. "Isn't Lou washing clothes?"
"I thought you knew." Dan said. "Since Monday, she hasn't been here, nor is she in her residence. She moved all her clothes. She told a colleague at the laundry that she might go to Europe. "
"Has anyone seen her?" Nancy asked.
Dane's firm gray eyes sparkled like steel, gritted his teeth in darkness and looked at Nancy.
"The laundromat told me," he said hoarsely, "that they saw her pass by here yesterday-sitting in the car. I think it's probably with a millionaire, the kind of millionaire that you and Lu never forget. "
Nancy flinched in front of men for the first time. She pressed her trembling hand on Dane's sleeve.
"You can't say that to me, Dan-I have nothing to do with it!"
"I didn't mean that." Dan said, softening his attitude. He fumbled in his vest pocket for a while.
"I have tickets for tonight's play." He pretended to be relaxed and said. "If you-"
Nancy always admires masculinity.
"I'll go with you, Dan." She said.
It was three months before Nancy saw Lu.
One night, the salesgirl hurried home along a quiet path in a small park. Hearing someone calling her name, she turned and hugged the running reed.
After they hugged each other, they leaned their heads back like snakes, as if preparing to attack or contain each other, and their tongues trembled quickly, sending out thousands of questions. Then, Nancy found that Lu's situation had been greatly improved. He put on a noble leather coat and glittering jewels, which was an achievement of tailor art.
"You little fool!" Lou cried affectionately. "I see you still work in that shop, or dressed so shabby. What about the object you want to hunt-I guess you haven't got a clue yet? "
Then, Lu looked at Nancy and found that something better than the good situation was coming to Nancy-that thing shone brighter than jewels in her eyes, looked redder than roses on her cheeks, jumped like an electron, and was ready to be released from her tongue at any time.
"Yes, I still work in the shop," said Nancy, "but I'm leaving there next week. I found my prey-the best prey in the world. Lu, you don't care now? I'm going to marry Dane. Marry Dane! Dane is mine now-what's the matter, Lou! "
At the corner of the park, a young policeman with a new job and a clean face came slowly. These young policemen decorated the police force and made people feel better-at least in terms of perception. He saw a woman wearing a luxurious leather coat and a diamond ring lying on the iron railing of the park, crying sadly, while a slim and simple-minded professional woman approached her and tried her best to comfort her. The new Gibson policeman pretended not to see it and strolled past; His wisdom is enough to make him understand that, as far as the power he represents is concerned, he can't do anything about it, even though he knocked on the nightstick on the sidewalk.