背诵为王 第 四 册 第 53 课

Lesson53 The Appreciation¹ of Good Literature
When one reads a number of good authors and feels that one author describesthings very vividly², that another shows great tenderness of delicacy³, athird expresses things exquisitely⁴, a fourth has an indescribable charm, afifth one's writing is like good whiskey, a sixth one's is like mellow⁵ wine,he should not be afraid to say that he likes them and appreciates them, ifonly his appreciation is genuine. After such a wide experience in reading,he has the proper experiential basis for knowing what are mildness,mellowness⁶, strength, power, brilliance⁷, pungency⁸, delicacy, and charm. Whenhe has tasted all these flavours, then he knows what is good literaturewithout reading a single handbook.
The first rule of a student of literature is to learn to sample differentflavours. The best flavour is mildness and mellowness, but is most difficultfor a writer to attain⁹. Between mildness and mere¹⁰ flatness there is only avery thin margin¹¹.A writer whose thoughts lack depth and originality¹² may tryto write a simple style and end up by being insipid¹³. Only fresh fish may becooked in its own juice; stale fish must be flavoured with anchovy¹⁴ sauce andpepper and mustard - the more the better.
A good writer is like the sister of Yang Kueifei, who could go to see theEmperor himself without powder and rouge¹⁵. All the other beauties in thepalace required them. This is the reason why there are so few writers whodare to write in simple English.

exquisitely 精致地
mellowness 醇厚
pungency 辛辣
anchovy sauce 鱼鲜味酱油
insipid 索然无味的

文学作品的欣赏
当人们阅读了许多优秀作家的作品后，就会感到有的作家描写生动，有的作家细腻，第三位作家表达精致，第四位作家有难以言表的魅力，第五位作家犹如陈年威士忌， 第六位作家犹如醇厚的老窖，只要他的感受是真实的，他就只管大胆地这样说出来好了。有了这样广泛阅读的基础， 他就有了亲身经历的基础， 知道什么是柔和，醇厚，刚强，力量，聪明，辛辣，细腻和魅力。 当他尝遍了这些味道，不用读任何教科书，他就学会了如何判断优秀作品。
文学学生的第一条规则是学会品尝各种滋味。最佳的滋味是柔和和醇厚，但这对作家来说是最难达到的境地。在柔和与平淡无味之间只隔着薄薄的一层纸。
没有思想深度和创造性的作家可能试图写得柔和些，但结果常常是使作品味同嚼蜡。只有清水煮鲜鱼才能出佳味，烂鱼就一定得多用鱼鲜酱油，辣椒和芥末&&而且是多多益善。
好作家犹如杨贵妃，不用涂脂抹粉就可去见皇上。而其他宫中美人却少不得胭脂，这就是为什么很少有作家敢用简单的语言写作的道理。

1 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

2 vividly   

adv.清楚地，鲜明地，生动地

参考例句：

• The speaker pictured the suffering of the poor vividly.演讲者很生动地描述了穷人的生活。
• The characters in the book are vividly presented.这本书里的人物写得栩栩如生。

3 delicacy   

n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴

参考例句：

• We admired the delicacy of the craftsmanship.我们佩服工艺师精巧的手艺。
• He sensed the delicacy of the situation.他感觉到了形势的微妙。

4 exquisitely   

adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地

参考例句：

• He found her exquisitely beautiful. 他觉得她异常美丽。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He wore an exquisitely tailored gray silk and accessories to match. 他穿的是做工非常考究的灰色绸缎衣服，还有各种配得很协调的装饰。 来自教父部分

5 mellow   

adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟

参考例句：

• These apples are mellow at this time of year.每年这时节，苹果就熟透了。
• The colours become mellow as the sun went down.当太阳落山时，色彩变得柔和了。

6 mellowness   

成熟； 芳醇； 肥沃； 怡然

参考例句：

• I love these colours because they symbolize mellowness, abundance, strength and happiness. 我喜欢这秋色，因为它表示着成熟、昌盛和繁荣，也意味着愉快、欢乐和富强。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文
• The mellowness of the cuckoo report the come of spring. 杜鹃甜美的叫声报告了春天的来临。

7 brilliance   

n.光辉，辉煌，壮丽，（卓越的）才华，才智

参考例句：

• I was totally amazed by the brilliance of her paintings.她的绘画才能令我惊歎不已。
• The gorgeous costume added to the brilliance of the dance.华丽的服装使舞蹈更加光彩夺目。

8 pungency   

n.（气味等的）刺激性；辣；（言语等的）辛辣；尖刻

参考例句：

• I'd also like some pungency wings for appetizer. 我想要在餐前来点辣鸡翅。 来自辞典例句
• He commented with typical pungency. 他评论时带着典型的讽刺口气。 来自互联网

9 attain   

vt.达到，获得，完成

参考例句：

• I used the scientific method to attain this end. 我用科学的方法来达到这一目的。
• His painstaking to attain his goal in life is praiseworthy. 他为实现人生目标所下的苦功是值得称赞的。

10 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

11 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

12 originality   

n.创造力，独创性；新颖

参考例句：

• The name of the game in pop music is originality.流行音乐的本质是独创性。
• He displayed an originality amounting almost to genius.他显示出近乎天才的创造性。

13 insipid   

adj.无味的，枯燥乏味的，单调的

参考例句：

• The food was rather insipid and needed gingering up.这食物缺少味道，需要加点作料。
• She said she was a good cook,but the food she cooked is insipid.她说她是个好厨师，但她做的食物却是无味道的。

14 anchovy   

n.凤尾鱼

参考例句：

• Waters off the Peruvian coast become unusually warm,destroying the local anchovy fishing industry.由于异常的高温，秘鲁海岸的海水温度变化异常，影响了当地的凤尾鱼捕捞业。
• Anchovy together with sweet-peppergarlic,milk,chicken stock,and add cheese toasted.奶油状的搅打鸡蛋，放在涂有凤尾鱼糊的吐司面包上。

15 rouge   

n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红

参考例句：

• Women put rouge on their cheeks to make their faces pretty.女人往面颊上涂胭脂，使脸更漂亮。
• She didn't need any powder or lip rouge to make her pretty.她天生漂亮，不需要任何脂粉唇膏打扮自己。