精美英文欣赏:散文的品质

The Cardinal¹ Virtue² of Prose

Prose of its very nature is longer than verse, and the virtues³ peculiar⁴ to it manifest themselves gradually. If the cardinal virtue of poetry is love, the cardinal virtue of prose is justice; and, whereas love makes you act and speak on the spur of the moment, justice needs inquiry⁵, patience, and a control even of the noblest passions. By justice here I do not mean justice only to particular people or ideas, but a habit of justice in all the processes of thought, a style tranquillized and a form moulded by that habit.

The master of prose is not cold, but he will not let any word or image inflame⁶ him with a heat irrelevant⁷ to his purpose. Unhasting, unresting, he pursues it, subduing⁸ all the riches of his mind to it, rejecting all beauties that are not germane⁹ to it; making his own beauty out of the very accomplishment¹⁰ of it, out of the whole work and its proportions, so that you must read to the end before you know that it is beautiful. But he has his reward, for he is trusted and convinces, as those who are at the mercy of their own eloquence¹¹ do not; and he gives a pleasure all the greater for being hardly noticed.

In the best prose, whether narrative¹² or argument, we are so led on as we read, that we do not stop to applaud the writer, nor do we stop to question him.

散文的篇幅较诗歌长，它自身所蕴涵的特有品质，总是逐渐得向人们展示出来。如果说诗歌的主要品质是爱，那么散文的主要品质则为其合理公正性。爱使人热情奔放，瞬间爆发，而合理公正，则需要质疑，需要耐心，需要控制情感，即便是那最高尚的激情。我这里说的合理公正，并非指代某个特殊的人或是特殊的想法，而是指一种习性。它体现在一切思想的过程中，是一种文静的风格，一种由此习性塑成的形式。

散文的创作者并非冷酷无情，然而任何与其写作意图无关的词语，亦或是图象都休想热昏他的头脑。他从容不迫，反复推敲，脑海中那丰富的想象，华丽的辞藻，但凡与其文章主旨无关的，一概竭力抑制，不予理睬。一旦完成，它的整体以及枝节都完成了，那么他追求的，文章的那种独立的美也就出来了。所以你只有通篇全读后，才能真正领略到它的美。然而，对于这样的创作者，是有回报的。他让人充满信任，使人信服。而绝不像那些夸夸其谈者；他向我们展示的，是生活中那些不轻易为人察觉的美好事物。

一篇散文佳作，无论其是叙述型还是辩论型的，我们一旦开始阅读，就被其引领上路，无须停下为作者鼓掌喝彩亦或是唏嘘质疑。

1 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。

2 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

3 virtues   

美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处

参考例句：

• Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
• She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

4 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

5 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

6 inflame   

v.使燃烧；使极度激动；使发炎

参考例句：

• Our lack of response seemed to inflame the colonel.由于我们没有反应,好象惹恼了那个上校。
• Chemical agents manufactured by our immune system inflame our cells and tissues,causing our nose to run and our throat to swell.我们的免疫系统产生的化学物质导致我们的细胞和组织发炎，导致我们流鼻水和我们的喉咙膨胀。

7 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

8 subduing   

征服( subdue的现在分词 )； 克制； 制服； 色变暗

参考例句：

• They are the probation subduing the heart to human joys. 它们不过是抑制情欲的一种考验。
• Some believe that: is spiritual, mysterious and a very subduing colour. 有的认为：是精神，神秘色彩十分慑。

9 germane   

adj.关系密切的，恰当的

参考例句：

• He asks questions that are germane and central to the issue.他问了一些与论点有密切关系的重要问题。
• Fenton was a good listener,and his questions were germane.芬顿听得聚精会神，提问也切中要害。

10 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

11 eloquence   

n.雄辩；口才，修辞

参考例句：

• I am afraid my eloquence did not avail against the facts.恐怕我的雄辩也无补于事实了。
• The people were charmed by his eloquence.人们被他的口才迷住了。

12 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。