This excessive rumination and self-questioning is perhaps a morbid habit inevitable to a mind of much moral sensibility when shut out from its due share of outward activity and of practical claims on its affections—inevitable to a noble-hearted, childless woman, when her lot is narrow.

一颗道德感敏锐的心，若缺少应有的外界活动，也缺少需要它付出关爱的实际事务，或许就难免养成这种反复思量、自我追问的病态习惯；一个心地高尚、没有孩子的女人，若生活天地狭窄，也难免如此。