精美英文欣赏:讽刺文学

The Satiric¹ Literature

Perhaps the most striking quality of satiric literature is its freshness,its originality² of perspective.Satire³ rarely offers original ideas.Instead, it presents the familiar in a new form. Satirists do not offer the world new philosophies.What they do is to look at familiar conditions from a perspective that makes these conditions seem foolish, harmful, or affected⁴. Satire jars us out of complacence into a pleasantly shocked realization⁵ that many of the values we unquestioningly accept are false. Don Quixote derides⁶ the stupidity of knights⁷ Brave New World ridicules⁸ the pretensions⁹ of science; A Modest Proposal dramatizes starvation by advocating cannibalism¹⁰. None of these ideas is original. Chivalry¹¹ was suspect before Cervantes, humanists objected to the claims of pure science before Aldous Huxley, and people were aware of famine before Swift. It was not the originality of the idea that made these satires¹² popular. It was the manner of expression, the satiric method that made them interesting and entertaining. Satires are read because they are aesthetically¹³ satisfying works of art, not because they are morally wholesome¹⁴ or ethically¹⁵ instructive.They are stimulating¹⁶ and refreshing¹⁷ because with commonsense¹⁸ briskness¹⁹ they brush away illusions and secondhand opinions.With spontaneous irreverence,satire rearranges perspectives,scrambles familiar objects into incongruous juxtaposition²⁰, and speaks in a personal idiom instead of abstract platitude²¹.

Satire exists because there is need for it. It has lived because readers appreciate a refreshing stimulus²², an irreverent reminder²³ that they live in a world of platitudinous²⁴ thinking, cheap moralizing, and foolish philosophy.Satire serves to prod²⁵ people into an awareness²⁶ of truth, though rarely to any action on behalf of truth. Satire tends to remind people that much of what they see, hear, and read in popular media is sanctimonious²⁷, sentimental²⁸, and only partially²⁹ true. Life resembles in only a slight degree the popular image of it. Soldiers rarely hold the ideals that movies attribute to them, nor do ordinary citizens devote their lives to unselfish service of humanity.Intelligent people know these things but tend to forget them when they do not hear them expressed. 

讽刺文学

或许讽刺文学最显著的特点是其视角的新颖性和独特性。 讽刺作品很少有创造性的思想。 相反，它用一种新的形式把人们熟悉的东西呈现出来。 讽刺作家没有为世界贡献新的哲学。 他们所做的就是采取这样一种立场来看待熟悉的环境，使得它们看上去愚蠢、有害或者造作。 讽刺作品使我们排除了自满情绪，并愉快地惊叹道许多我们毫无疑问地接受的价值观是错误的。 《堂吉诃德》使骑士看起来愚蠢可笑； 《奇妙的新世界》嘲弄了科学的自命不凡；《温和的建议》戏剧性地提倡同类相食来消灭饥饿。 所有这些观点都不是创造性的。 在塞万提斯以前骑士制度就受到了怀疑，在阿尔道斯 ·赫胥黎以前的人文主义者就反对纯科学的主张，而且在斯威夫特以前就认识了饥荒。 并不是独创性的思考使这些讽刺作品变得流行，而是表达的方式、讽刺的方法手段使它们变得有趣和引人入胜。 人们读讽刺作品是因为在美感上它们是令人满意的艺术作品，而不是因为道德的完美和伦理的说教。它们有启发性、使人耳目一新是因为它们用简明的常识洗刷去了幻觉和旧的观点。讽刺作品用自然的嘲讽态度重新设置了观点，将熟悉的事物自相矛盾地置在一起。 讽刺文学用自己的语言，而不是采用抽象的陈词滥调来表达。 讽刺作品的存在是由于有需求。 它的存在是因为读者欣赏使人耳目一新的刺激，毫不客气地提醒他们活在一个思相陈腐、道德低廉、哲学荒谬的世界里。 讽刺作品有助于促进人们认识真相，虽然很少促动人们为真理而行动。 它有助于提醒人们日常媒介中所见所闻所谈的许多东西是假装神圣、感情用事或半真半假。 生活只在很少程度上与它流行的映像相象，战士很少有电影赋予他们的完美，一般的公民也很少奉献他们的生命为人类无私的服务。 明智的人们了解这些事理，但当他们没有听到这些事理，就倾向于把它们忘掉。

1 satiric   

adj.讽刺的，挖苦的

参考例句：

• Looking at her satiric parent she only gave a little laugh.她望着她那挖苦人的父亲，只讪讪地笑了一下。
• His satiric poem spared neither the politicians nor the merchants.政客们和商人们都未能免于遭受他的诗篇的讽刺。

2 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。

3 satire   

n.讽刺，讽刺文学，讽刺作品

参考例句：

• The movie is a clever satire on the advertising industry.那部影片是关于广告业的一部巧妙的讽刺作品。
• Satire is often a form of protest against injustice.讽刺往往是一种对不公正的抗议形式。

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 realization   

n.实现；认识到，深刻了解

参考例句：

• We shall gladly lend every effort in our power toward its realization.我们将乐意为它的实现而竭尽全力。
• He came to the realization that he would never make a good teacher.他逐渐认识到自己永远不会成为好老师。

6 derides   

v.取笑，嘲笑( deride的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• That newspaper columnist derides the mayor whenever he can. 那位报纸专栏作家从不放过取笑市长的机会。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Mr Bayrou derides his rivals for proposing to spend France's problems away. Bayrou先生嘲笑他的竞争者意图将法国的问题撇开。 来自互联网

7 knights   

骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马

参考例句：

• stories of knights and fair maidens 关于骑士和美女的故事
• He wove a fascinating tale of knights in shining armour. 他编了一个穿着明亮盔甲的骑士的迷人故事。

8 ridicules   

n.嘲笑( ridicule的名词复数 )；奚落；嘲弄；戏弄v.嘲笑，嘲弄，奚落( ridicule的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

9 pretensions   

自称( pretension的名词复数 )； 自命不凡； 要求； 权力

参考例句：

• The play mocks the pretensions of the new middle class. 这出戏讽刺了新中产阶级的装模作样。
• The city has unrealistic pretensions to world-class status. 这个城市不切实际地标榜自己为国际都市。

10 cannibalism   

n.同类相食；吃人肉

参考例句：

• The war is just like the cannibalism of animals.战争就如同动物之间的互相残。
• They were forced to practise cannibalism in order to survive.他们被迫人吃人以求活下去。

11 chivalry   

n.骑士气概，侠义；（男人）对女人彬彬有礼，献殷勤

参考例句：

• The Middle Ages were also the great age of chivalry.中世纪也是骑士制度盛行的时代。
• He looked up at them with great chivalry.他非常有礼貌地抬头瞧她们。

12 satires   

讽刺，讥讽( satire的名词复数 )； 讽刺作品

参考例句：

• Some of Aesop's Fables are satires. 《伊索寓言》中有一些是讽刺作品。
• Edith Wharton continued writing her satires of the life and manners of the New York aristocracy. 伊迪丝·沃顿继续写讽刺纽约贵族生活和习俗的作品。

13 aesthetically   

adv.美地，艺术地

参考例句：

• Segmental construction contributes toward aesthetically pleasing structures in many different sites. 对于许多不同的现场条件，分段施工都能提供美观，颇有魄力的桥型结构。
• All isolation techniques may be aesthetically unacceptable or even dirty. 所有的隔离方法都有可能在美观方面使人难以接受，或甚至是肮脏的。

14 wholesome   

adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的

参考例句：

• In actual fact the things I like doing are mostly wholesome.实际上我喜欢做的事大都是有助于增进身体健康的。
• It is not wholesome to eat without washing your hands.不洗手吃饭是不卫生的。

15 ethically   

adv.在伦理上，道德上

参考例句：

• Ethically , we have nothing to be ashamed about . 从伦理上说，我们没有什么好羞愧的。
• Describe the appropriate action to take in an ethically ambiguous situation. 描述适当行为采取在一个道德地模棱两可的情况。

16 stimulating   

adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的

参考例句：

• shower gel containing plant extracts that have a stimulating effect on the skin 含有对皮肤有益的植物精华的沐浴凝胶
• This is a drug for stimulating nerves. 这是一种兴奋剂。

17 refreshing   

adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的

参考例句：

• I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
• The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼，特别解乏提神。

18 commonsense   

adj.有常识的；明白事理的；注重实际的

参考例句：

• It is commonsense to carry an umbrella in this weather.这种天气带把伞是很自然的。
• These results are no more than a vindication of commonsense analysis.这些结果只不过是按常理分析得出的事实。

19 briskness   

n.敏捷，活泼

参考例句：

• A child who was flying a kite sensed it in terms of briskness.一个孩子在放风筝时猛然感到的飞腾。
• Father open the window to let in the briskness of the morning air.父亲打开窗户让早晨的清新空气进来。

20 juxtaposition   

n.毗邻，并置，并列

参考例句：

• The juxtaposition of these two remarks was startling.这两句话连在一起使人听了震惊。
• It is the result of the juxtaposition of contrasting colors.这是并列对比色的结果。

21 platitude   

n.老生常谈，陈词滥调

参考例句：

• The talk is no more than a platitude. 这番话无非是老生常谈。
• His speech is full of platitude. 他的讲话充满了陈词滥调。

22 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

23 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

24 platitudinous   

adj.平凡的，陈腐的

参考例句：

• The whole speech was platitudinous nonsense. 整篇讲话都是陈谷子烂芝麻。 来自互联网
• What troubles me most about this is not the workshop or platitudinous questionnaire the DNA bit. 我最感到苦恼的还不是研讨班，也不是这种陈腐的问卷调查，而是机构DNA这码事。 来自互联网

25 prod   

vt.戳，刺；刺激，激励

参考例句：

• The crisis will prod them to act.那个危机将刺激他们行动。
• I shall have to prod him to pay me what he owes.我将不得不催促他把欠我的钱还给我。

26 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

27 sanctimonious   

adj.假装神圣的，假装虔诚的，假装诚实的

参考例句：

• It's that sanctimonious air that people can't stand.人们所不能容忍的就是那副假正经的样子。
• You do not have to be so sanctimonious to prove that you are devout.您不必如此伪善。

28 sentimental   

adj.多愁善感的，感伤的

参考例句：

• She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny.她是多愁善感的人，她相信姻缘命中注定。
• We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie.我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。

29 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。