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Park sang joon Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
The analyses of a text #5
The narrator recalls his adolescence.
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The light in the passage was obscured for a moment, and my aunt came out. She was agitated, and told some money into his hand. I heard it chink.
'What's the use of this?' he demanded.
'I can spare no more,' returned my aunt.
'Then I can't go,' said he. 'Here! You may take it back!'
'You bad man,' returned my aunt, with great emotion; 'how can you use me so? But why do I ask? It is because you know how weak I am! What have I to do, to free myself for ever of your visits, but to abandon you to your deserts?'
'And why don't you abandon me to my deserts?' said he.
'You ask me why!' returned my aunt. 'What a heart you must have!'
He stood moodily rattling the money, and shaking his head, until at length he said:
'Is this all you mean to give me, then?'
'It is all I CAN give you,' said my aunt. 'You know I have had losses, and am poorer than I used to be. I have told you so. Having got it, why do you give me the pain of looking at you for another moment, and seeing what you have become?'
'I have become shabby enough, if you mean that,' he said. 'I lead the life of an owl.'
'You stripped me of the greater part of all I ever had,' said my aunt. 'You closed my heart against the whole world, years and years. You treated me falsely, ungratefully, and cruelly. Go, and repent of it. Don't add new injuries to the long, long list of injuries you have done me!'
'Aye!' he returned. 'It's all very fine - Well! I must do the best I can, for the present, I suppose.'
[David Copperfield by Charles Dickens]
1. I'd like to know what "told" means.
2. I'd like to know what "to your deserts" means.
3. I'd like to know what "must" means.
4. And I'd like to know if "having got it" means "Though you got it."
Thank you in advance for your help.
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The light in the passage was obscured for a moment, and my aunt came out. She was agitated, and told some money into his hand. I heard it chink.
'What's the use of this?' he demanded.
'I can spare no more,' returned my aunt.
'Then I can't go,' said he. 'Here! You may take it back!'
'You bad man,' returned my aunt, with great emotion; 'how can you use me so? But why do I ask? It is because you know how weak I am! What have I to do, to free myself for ever of your visits, but to abandon you to your deserts?'
'And why don't you abandon me to my deserts?' said he.
'You ask me why!' returned my aunt. 'What a heart you must have!'
He stood moodily rattling the money, and shaking his head, until at length he said:
'Is this all you mean to give me, then?'
'It is all I CAN give you,' said my aunt. 'You know I have had losses, and am poorer than I used to be. I have told you so. Having got it, why do you give me the pain of looking at you for another moment, and seeing what you have become?'
'I have become shabby enough, if you mean that,' he said. 'I lead the life of an owl.'
'You stripped me of the greater part of all I ever had,' said my aunt. 'You closed my heart against the whole world, years and years. You treated me falsely, ungratefully, and cruelly. Go, and repent of it. Don't add new injuries to the long, long list of injuries you have done me!'
'Aye!' he returned. 'It's all very fine - Well! I must do the best I can, for the present, I suppose.'
[David Copperfield by Charles Dickens]
1. I'd like to know what "told" means.
2. I'd like to know what "to your deserts" means.
3. I'd like to know what "must" means.
4. And I'd like to know if "having got it" means "Though you got it."
Thank you in advance for your help.
Top answer
1. It seems that this is "tell" in the sense of "count". g.
- 1.
- It seems that this is "tell" in the sense of "count".
- g.
- at a bank) is presumably related.
- 2.
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3 Answers
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1. It seems that this is "tell" in the sense of "count". Nowadays we rarely see this as a verb, but the somewhat more familiar word "teller" (cashier e.g. at a bank) is presumably related.
2. "your deserts" means what you deserve, implied here to be something bad. It is stressed "deSERTS", contrasted with "DESerts", which means arid regions.
3. Expressing speaker's belief or asse
2. "your deserts" means what you deserve, implied here to be something bad. It is stressed "deSERTS", contrasted with "DESerts", which means arid regions.
3. Expressing speaker's belief or asse
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Thank you, GPY, for your so very helpful answer. 
4. He knew the fact before he came to the narrator's aunt, so he shouldn't hav
4. He knew the fact before he came to the narrator's aunt, so he shouldn't hav
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park sang joon4. He knew the fact before he came to the narrator's aunt, so he shouldn't have come, I think.So I was wondering why you interpreted it as "now that you have got it."I believe that "Having got it" refers to his receipt of the money.
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