背诵为王 第 四 册 第 50 课

Lesson50 On the Origin of Middle Class
The rise of the merchant class was intimately linked with the growth oftowns and trade; that is to say that they were linked with the most dynamicelement in medieval European civilization and one hostile to its feudalsetting. It was an element which not only produced new wealth but newinstitutions. Feudal¹ institutions did not work easily in a society oftradesmen and craftsmen² for which they had no adequate theoretical place.
Yet feudal lords sought the support of towns against kings and kings soughtthe support of townsmen and their wealth against overmighty subjects. Theygave towns charters and privileges. The walls which surrounded the medievalcity were often the symbol and guarantee of its immunity³. #The air of a townmakes you free# said a German proverb. The communes and within them theguilds were associations of free men for a long time isolated⁵ in a worldunfree. The burgher - the bourgeois⁶, the dweller⁷ in bourg or borough⁸ - was aman who stood up for himself in a universe of dependence⁹.This salientcharacteristic of the new middle class is echoed today by the former BritishPrime Minister, Margaret Thatcher¹⁰, when she refers to the danger posed by a"nanny state" in its propensity¹¹ to encourage dependency among thepopulation.

medieval 中世纪的
feudal 封建制度的
overmighty 有势力过于强大的
guild⁴ (中世纪的)行会
burgher 公民；市民
bourgeois 资产阶级
bourg 市镇
borough 自治的市镇
salient 突出的
nanny state 保姆国家
propensity 倾向

论中产阶级的起源
商人阶层的出现与市镇和贸易的发展紧密相关；也就是说他们与中世纪欧洲文明中最有活力的因素和反对其所处的封建环境的因素有关联。这种因素不仅产生新的财富，而且产生新的制度。封建制度在一个商人和手工业社会中很难发挥作用，因为它们在理论上就没有合适的位置。然而封建领主寻求市镇的支持来反对国王，国王则寻求市民和他们的财富的支持以对抗这些势力强大的臣民。他们给予市镇特许状和特权。环绕中世纪城市的城墙通常是市镇豁免权的象征和保证。一条德国谚语说“市镇里的空气让你自由”
市镇和自治体里的行会是长时期孤立于一个不自由的世界里的自由人的协会组织。商人&&资产阶级，自治城镇的居民是在一个无独立的世界里捍卫自己利益的人。
时至今日，前英国首相玛格丽特撒切尔在提到“保姆国家”倾向于鼓励人们的依赖性而带来的危险时，重新提到了这一新中产阶级的突出特征。

1 feudal   

adj.封建的，封地的，领地的

参考例句：

• Feudal rulers ruled over the country several thousand years.封建统治者统治这个国家几千年。
• The feudal system lasted for two thousand years in China.封建制度在中国延续了两千年之久。

2 craftsmen   

n. 技工

参考例句：

• rugs handmade by local craftsmen 由当地工艺师手工制作的小地毯
• The craftsmen have ensured faithful reproduction of the original painting. 工匠保证要复制一幅最接近原作的画。

3 immunity   

n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权

参考例句：

• The law gives public schools immunity from taxation.法律免除公立学校的纳税义务。
• He claims diplomatic immunity to avoid being arrested.他要求外交豁免以便避免被捕。

4 guild   

n.行会，同业公会，协会

参考例句：

• He used to be a member of the Writers' Guild of America.他曾是美国作家协会的一员。
• You had better incorporate the firm into your guild.你最好把这个公司并入你的行业协会。

5 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

6 bourgeois   

adj./n.追求物质享受的(人)；中产阶级分子

参考例句：

• He's accusing them of having a bourgeois and limited vision.他指责他们像中产阶级一样目光狭隘。
• The French Revolution was inspired by the bourgeois.法国革命受到中产阶级的鼓励。

7 dweller   

n.居住者，住客

参考例句：

• Both city and town dweller should pay tax.城镇居民都需要纳税。
• The city dweller never experiences anxieties of this sort.城市居民从未经历过这种担忧。

8 borough   

n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇

参考例句：

• He was slated for borough president.他被提名做自治区主席。
• That's what happened to Harry Barritt of London's Bromley borough.住在伦敦的布罗姆利自治市的哈里.巴里特就经历了此事。

9 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

10 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

11 propensity   

n.倾向；习性

参考例句：

• He has a propensity for drinking too much alcohol.他有酗酒的倾向。
• She hasn't reckoned on his propensity for violence.她不曾料到他有暴力倾向。