d a novel about a mythical man called george f. babbitt.

i read dreiser's jennie gerhardt and sister carrie and they revived in me a vivid sense of my mother's suffering; i was overwhelmed. i grew silent, wondering about the life around me. it would have been impossible for me to have told anyone what i derived from these novels, for it was nothing less than a sense of life itself. all my life had shaped me for the realism, the naturalism of the modern novel, and i could not read enough of them.

steeped in new moods and ideas, i bought a ream of paper and tried to write; but nothing would come, or what did come was flat beyond telling. i discovered that more than desire and felling were necessary to write and i dropped the idea. yet i still wondered how it was possible to know people sufficiently to write about them? could i ever learn about life and people? to me, with my vast ignorance, my jim crow station in life, it seemed a task impossible of achievement. i now knew what being a negro meant. i could endure the hunger. i had learned to live with hate. but to feel that there were feelings denied me, that the very breath of life itself was beyond my reach, that more than anything else hurt, wounded me. i had a new hunger.

new words

lobby

n. entrance hall 门廊，门厅

porter

n. an employee who sweeps, cleans, does errands, etc. as in a bank, store, or restaurant 勤杂工

mop

vt. wash or wipe up; clean with a mop 擦；用拖把擦洗

commercial

a. having to do with business

hearsay

n. information or new heard from another person 传闻

furious

a. extremely angry; violent

denunciation

n. the act of denouncing; condemnation 谴责，痛斥

scorn

n. strong disrespect; contempt 鄙视，轻蔑

denounce

vt. criticize severely and publicly

castigate

vt. criticize severely

riverfront

n. the part of a city or town on or near a river or harbor area

patronize

vt. be a regular customer, reader, etc. of; give regular business to

insecure

a. anxious and unsure of oneself; not confident

offhand

a. careless or disrespectful in manner; casual

banter

vi. talk in a joking way

contempt

n. a feeling that sth. is of little value or worthless; scorn 轻视，轻蔑

solidarity

n. agreement of interests, aims, or standards

baptist

n. 浸礼会教徒

comprehend

vt. understand

kluxer

n. a member of the ku klux klan 三k党成员

sympathizer

n. a person who sympathizes with another persons or is favorably inclined toward a particular belief

anti-

prefix against; opposed to

refer(to)

vi. mention or speak about

pope

n. head of the roman catholic church（罗马天主教的）教皇

lover

n. one who is in love with sb. or sth.

southerner

n. a person from a southern region

imponderable

a. unable to be weighed or assessed

suspiciously

ad. distrustfully

pose

vt. put forward fro discussion; state

supervise

vt. keep watch over( work or workers) as the person in charge

forge

vt. make or write(sth. false) to deceive

foolproof

a. that can not go wrong

nigger

n. (derogatory) a negro

errand

n. a short journey made to get sth. or carry a message

doff

vt. take off

respectful

a. having or showing respect

unbookish

a. not inclined to read and study

patron

n. a person who uses a particular shop, hotel, etc, esp. regularly

optical

a. of or relating to light or the sense of light 光学的；视力的

suspicious

a. causing one to suspect; deserving or exciting suspicion

suspicion

n.

duck

vt. try to escape by hiding quickly 闪避

hold

a. showing or needing courage

pointedly

ad. in such a way as to make some meaning, reference or application quite unmistakable

doubtful

a. having, showing or causing doubt

title

n. a name given to a book, painting, play, etc.

thumb

vi. turn pages of (a book, etc.) rapidly with a thumb, reading only portions

frown

vi. draw the brows together in deep thought, anger or disapproval

pork

n. meat from pigs

bean

n. a rounded seed of a plant related to peas 豆

jar

vt. have a harsh, unpleasant effect on; shock

sweeping

a. forceful; comprehensive and wide-ranging

raging

a. violent; furious

rage

vi. be furious with anger; act violently

demon

n. an evil spirit

slash

vt. cut with a sweeping stroke of a sword, knife or whip

extol

vt. praise highly

mock

vt. laugh at; make fun of; ridicule

reality

n. the condition or quality of being real; the state of things as they are

weapon

n. an instrument used to attack another or defend oneself from attack

club

n. a heavy stick with one thick end, use as a weapon

conviction

n. a strong feeling or belief about sth.

revel

vi. take very great pleasure(in)