名人励志英语演讲 第116期:人类的精神(2)

 　　Until he does so, he labors¹ under a curse. He writes not of love but of lust², of defeats in which nobody loses anything of value, of victories without hope and, worst of all, without pity or compassion³. His grief grieves on no universal bones, leaving no scars. He writes not of the heart but of the glands⁴.

　　他若是做不到这样，他的气力终归白费。他不是在写爱而是在写情欲，他写的失败是没有人失去可贵东西的失败，他写的胜利是没有希望的胜利，更糟的是，甚至是没有怜悯或同情的胜利。他不是为遍地白骨而悲伤，所以留不下痕迹。他不是在写心灵而是在写器官。

　　Until he relearns these things, he will wirte as though he stood among and watched the end of man. I decline to accept the end of man. It is easy enough to say that man is immortal⁵ simply because he will endure: that when the last ding-dong of doom⁶ has clanged and faded from the last worthless rock hanging tideless in the last red and dying evening, that even then there will still be one more sound; that of his puny⁷ inexhaustible voice, still talking. I refuse to accept this. I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance. The poet's, the wirter's duty is to write about these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past. The poet's voice need not merely be the record of man; it can be one of the props⁸, the pillars to help him endure and prevail.

　　在他重新懂得这些之前，他写作时，就犹如站在处于世界末日的人类中去观察末日的来临。我不接受人类末日的说法。因人能传宗接代而说人是不朽的，这很容易。说即使最后一次钟声已经消失，消失在再也没有潮水冲刷的映在落日余晖里的海上的最后一块无用礁石旁时，还会有一个声音，人类微弱的，持续不断的话语声，这也很容易。但是我不能接受这种说法。我相信人类不仅能传宗接代，而且能战胜一切而永存。人之不朽不是因为在动物中唯独他永远能发言，而是因为他有灵魂，有同情、牺牲和忍耐的能力。诗人和作家的责任就是把这些写出来。诗文和作家的特权就是去鼓舞人的斗志，使人记住过去曾经有过的荣光——人类曾有过的勇气、荣誉、希望、自尊、同情、怜悯与牺牲精神。诗人的声音不应只是人类的记录，而应是使人类永存并得到胜利的支柱和顶梁。

　　重点讲解：

　　1. as though

　　好像；仿佛；

　　eg. He burst into a high-pitched laugh, as though he'd said something funny.

　　他突然放声大笑，好像讲了什么好笑的事似的。

　　eg. He looked as though butter wouldn't melt in his mouth.

　　他装出一副老实的样子。

　　2. decline to do sth.

　　婉拒；谢绝；拒绝做某事；

　　eg. He declined their invitation.

　　他谢绝了他们的邀请。

　　eg. The band declined to comment on the story.

　　乐队拒绝对这一报道作任何评论。

　　3. be capable of

　　有…能力的；能够…的；

　　eg. He appeared hardly capable of conducting a coherent conversation.

　　他好像连话都说不清楚。

　　eg. A man driven by jealousy⁹ is capable of anything.

　　嫉妒心可使人什么都做得出来。

　　4. remind sb. of sth.

　　使某人想起某事；

　　eg. So she simply welcomed him and reminded him of the last time they had met.

　　于是她只是对他表示欢迎，并且提醒说他们上次见过面。

　　eg. I had to remind myself that being confident is not the same as being perfect!

　　我得提醒自己表现得自信和表现得完美并不是一回事！

1 labors   

v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转

参考例句：

• He was tiresome in contending for the value of his own labors. 他老为他自己劳动的价值而争强斗胜，令人生厌。 来自辞典例句
• Farm labors used to hire themselves out for the summer. 农业劳动者夏季常去当雇工。 来自辞典例句

2 lust   

n.性(淫)欲；渴(欲)望；vi.对…有强烈的欲望

参考例句：

• He was filled with lust for power.他内心充满了对权力的渴望。
• Sensing the explorer's lust for gold, the chief wisely presented gold ornaments as gifts.酋长觉察出探险者们垂涎黄金的欲念，就聪明地把金饰品作为礼物赠送给他们。

3 compassion   

n.同情，怜悯

参考例句：

• He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
• Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

4 glands   

n.腺( gland的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a snake's poison glands 蛇的毒腺
• the sebaceous glands in the skin 皮脂腺

5 immortal   

adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的

参考例句：

• The wild cocoa tree is effectively immortal.野生可可树实际上是不会死的。
• The heroes of the people are immortal!人民英雄永垂不朽！

6 doom   

n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定

参考例句：

• The report on our economic situation is full of doom and gloom.这份关于我们经济状况的报告充满了令人绝望和沮丧的调子。
• The dictator met his doom after ten years of rule.独裁者统治了十年终于完蛋了。

7 puny   

adj.微不足道的，弱小的

参考例句：

• The resources at the central banks' disposal are simply too puny.中央银行掌握的资金实在太少了。
• Antonio was a puny lad,and not strong enough to work.安东尼奥是个瘦小的小家伙，身体还不壮，还不能干活。

8 props   

小道具； 支柱( prop的名词复数 )； 支持者； 道具； （橄榄球中的）支柱前锋

参考例句：

• Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
• The government props up the prices of farm products to support farmers' incomes. 政府保持农产品价格不变以保障农民们的收入。

9 jealousy   

n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌

参考例句：

• Some women have a disposition to jealousy.有些女人生性爱妒忌。
• I can't support your jealousy any longer.我再也无法忍受你的嫉妒了。