CHAPTER SIX
Life at Lowood Continues
Gradually the sickness left Lowood. I soon discovered that often, there were good sides to all the sad troubles in life. Because so many girls had died, other people learned of the terrible conditions at the school. Immediately, money was raised to build a new school in a better place, and many [-----1-----] were made. We had warm clothes, softer beds, and good food to eat. The best part was, Mr. Brocklehurst left the school! So Lowood became a truly good place for a girl to get an education. I stayed for eight years, and for the last two years I was a teacher. All that time I was happy, and my dear friend Miss Temple helped me greatly.
But when Miss Temple married and moved away, I decided it was time to change my life too. I had been at Lowood for many years, and I wanted to find new [-----2-----]. I decided to find a job as a governess. Soon I received an answer from a woman named Mrs. Fairfax. She wanted a governess for a little girl about eight years old. The school gave me [-----3-----] to go, so I accepted the job. Soon, I thought, I would have a new life. What would it be like?
Vocabulary Focus
governess:家庭女教師。作者本人曾做過(guò)家庭女教師,因而可以真實(shí)的筆觸描寫(xiě)簡(jiǎn)愛(ài)做家庭女教師的生活。當(dāng)時(shí)許多有錢(qián)人家為子女請(qǐng)家庭教師,與此同時(shí)對(duì)很多家境不好的女子,從事家教則是一份體面的職業(yè),她們往往同主人共同生活,地位雖高于奴仆,卻不能與主人平起平坐,其報(bào)酬也極低