走遍全世界42: 埃及的社会结构和支付方式

Egyptian society had a strictly¹ organized class structure. The majority of people consisted of farmers and craftsmen² who were led by the land-owning elite³ of officials and priests.

埃及社会有一套严格组织起来的社会等级结构。大部分人都是农民和工匠，他们由拥有土地的官员和牧师所组成的精英阶级所领导。

Everyone belonged to a group and worked in a team, usually in huge workshops, or "Storehouses", which were controlled by the king and the temples.

每个人都隶属于一个群体，在团队里面劳作，工作常常是在国王和神殿掌控下的大型的作坊里，或叫做“储藏所”。

The organization of society was based on the master-servant principle: just as the king was the servant of the gods and was himself the master of his people, so was every Egyptian the master of one and the servant of another. At the top of this social ladder were the high officials, the intellectuals or "Scribes", and on the lowest rungs were those who did the simple but heavy work, such as kitchen staff and farm laborers⁴. The heaviest work was done by prisoners-of-war and criminals.

整个社会的组织结构是建立在主仆原则上的：正如国王是诸神的仆人同时又是他的臣民的主人，每个埃及人都同时是一个人的主人又是另一个人的仆人。在这个社会等级结构顶端的是高级官员们、知识分子或者“抄书吏”，最底层的则是那些做着简单却繁重的工作的人们，比如在厨房里干活的人们和农场的劳工。最重的活儿是由战俘和罪犯来做的。

A working week lasted nine days and was followed by one day of rest. There was no work for almost half of the year, since nobody worked on festival days to honor the gods (and there were a lot of those in Egypt), or other special occasions.

一个工作周持续9天，休息一天之后另一个工作周又开始了。一年中大部分的时间都不用工作，因为不会有人在敬神的节日里（在埃及有许多这样的节日）或其他特殊场合里工作。

Barter⁵, rather than circulated money, was the means of payment. A basket cost so much grain, a stone coffin⁶ so many cows or other goods. Taxes were paid in products and grain, but also in work, such as compulsory⁷ work for the king. Economic depressions, often caused by famine, could result in social unrest and even strikes.

在埃及，支付方式是以物易物，而不是使用流通的货币。一个篮子值这么多的谷子，一座石棺值那么多的母牛或者别的货物。赋税是用产品和谷物缴的，但也可以用劳务来缴税，比如强制为国王干活。通常因饥荒而引起的经济不景气会引发社会动乱甚至罢工。

英语词汇整理：

1. elite n.精英，精华

eg: He is an educated and intellectual elite.
他是受过教育的知识分子精英。

短语：
elite education 精英教育，英才教育

2. intellectual n. 凭理智做事者，知识分子 adj. 智力的，聪明的

eg: High levels of lead could damage the intellectual development of children.
高含铅量会损害儿童的智力发育。

词语用法：
intellectual用作形容词的意思是“智力的,善于思维的”,可用于人、人的言行或特性,侧重于人的才华。在句中一般用作定语。

3. criminal n. 罪犯 adj. 犯罪的，刑事的，违法的

eg: Her husband faces various criminal charges.
她丈夫面临多项刑事的指控。

短语：
loose criminal 在逃犯
criminal action 刑事诉讼
criminal act 罪行，犯罪行为

4. festival adj.节日的，喜庆的 n. 节日，欢宴，庆祝及祭祀

eg: Many towns hold their own summer festivals of music, theatre, and dance.
很多城市都举办自己的夏季音乐、戏剧和舞蹈节。

短语：
lantern festival 元宵节，灯节
music festival 音乐节
spring festival春节

5. circulated adj.流通的

eg: We should often open the windows to allow the air to circulate.
我们应当经常打开窗户以使空气流通。

短语：
circulated usage 循环使用
circulated cheque 周转支票

6. coffin n. 棺材，柩

eg: We draped the flag round the coffin.
我们把旗帜覆盖在灵柩上。

短语：
drive a nail into someone's coffin 促使某人早死(或毁灭)
flying coffin  飞机；滑翔机
coffin chamber⁸ 墓室

7. compulsory adj. 强制的，势在必行的，义务的

eg: Chinese is a compulsory subject.
汉语是必修课。

短语：
compulsory contribution 强迫捐款
compulsory execution 强制执行

8. depression n.沮丧，萧条

eg: Many people were idle during the depression.
在那萧条时期，很多人都无事可做。

短语：
fall into a (deep)depression 变得意志消沉，精神沮丧

9. famine n. 饥荒，极度缺乏

eg: Thousands of refugees are trapped by war, drought and famine.
成千上万的难民陷于战争、干旱和饥荒的困境。

短语：
suffer from famine 闹饥荒
die of famine 饿死

佳句采摘：
The organization of society was based on the master-servant principle: just as the king was the servant of the gods and was himself the master of his people, so was every Egyptian the master of one and the servant of another.
整个社会的组织结构是建立在主仆原则之上的：正如国王是诸神的仆人同时又是他的臣民的主人，每个埃及人都同时是一个人的主人又是另一个人的仆人。

1 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

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 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

4 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

5 barter   

n.物物交换，以货易货，实物交易

参考例句：

• Chickens,goats and rabbits were offered for barter at the bazaar.在集市上，鸡、山羊和兔子被摆出来作物物交换之用。
• They have arranged food imports on a barter basis.他们以易货贸易的方式安排食品进口。

6 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

7 compulsory   

n.强制的，必修的；规定的，义务的

参考例句：

• Is English a compulsory subject?英语是必修课吗？
• Compulsory schooling ends at sixteen.义务教育至16岁为止。

8 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。