1-11

 

11.

The next morning Pa and I went to a beautiful lodge¹ on a snaky river. KwaZulu-Natal. I knewabout this place, where Redcoats and Zulu warriors² clashed in the summer of 1879. I’d heard allthe stories, legends, and I’d seen the movie Zulu countless³ times. But now I was going to becomea bona fide expert, Pa said. He’d arranged for us to sit on camp chairs before a log fire and listen toa world-famous historian, David Rattray, re-create the battle.

It might’ve been the first lecture to which I ever really paid attention.

The men who fought on this ground, Mr. Rattray said, were heroes. On both sides—heroes.

The Zulus were ferocious⁴, utter wizards with a short spear known as the iklwa, which was namedfor the sucking sound it made when pulled from a victim’s chest. And yet a mere⁵ 150 Britishsoldiers on hand managed to hold off four thousand Zulus, and that improbable stand, calledRorke’s Drift, instantly became part of British mythology⁶. Eleven soldiers were awarded theVictoria Cross, the greatest number ever won in one battle by a single regiment⁷. Another twosoldiers, who held off the Zulus one day before Rorke’s Drift, became the first to win the VictoriaCross posthumously⁸.

Posthumously, Pa?

Er, yes.

What does it mean?

After they, you know.

What?

Died, darling boy.

Though a source of pride for many Britons, Rorke’s Drift was the outgrowth of imperialism,colonialism, nationalism—in short, theft. Great Britain was trespassing⁹, invading a sovereignnation and trying to steal it, meaning the precious blood of Britain’s finest lads had been wastedthat day, in the eyes of some, among them Mr. Rattray. He didn’t glide¹⁰ over such difficult facts.

When necessary, he condemned¹¹ the British roundly. (Locals called him the White Zulu.) But I wastoo young: I heard him and also didn’t hear. Maybe I’d seen the movie Zulu too many times,maybe I’d waged too many pretend battles with my toy Redcoats. I had a view of battle, ofBritain, which didn’t permit new facts. So I zoomed¹² in on the bits about manly¹³ courage, andBritish power, and when I should’ve been horrified¹⁴, I was inspired.

On the way home I told myself the whole trip had been a smash. Not only a terrific adventure,but a bonding experience with Pa. Surely life would now be altogether different.

 

1 lodge   

v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆

参考例句：

• Is there anywhere that I can lodge in the village tonight?村里有我今晚过夜的地方吗？
• I shall lodge at the inn for two nights.我要在这家小店住两个晚上。

2 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

3 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

4 ferocious   

adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的

参考例句：

• The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
• The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。

5 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。

6 mythology   

n.神话，神话学，神话集

参考例句：

• In Greek mythology,Zeus was the ruler of Gods and men.在希腊神话中，宙斯是众神和人类的统治者。
• He is the hero of Greek mythology.他是希腊民间传说中的英雄。

7 regiment   

n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制

参考例句：

• As he hated army life,he decide to desert his regiment.因为他嫌恶军队生活，所以他决心背弃自己所在的那个团。
• They reformed a division into a regiment.他们将一个师整编成为一个团。

8 posthumously   

adv.于死后，于身后；于著作者死后出版地

参考例句：

• He was confirmed posthumously as a member of the Chinese Communist Party. 他被追认为中国共产党党员。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Her last book was published posthumously in 1948. 她最后的一本书在她死后于1948 年出版了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 trespassing   

[法]非法入侵

参考例句：

• He told me I was trespassing on private land. 他说我在擅闯私人土地。
• Don't come trespassing on my land again. 别再闯入我的地界了。

10 glide   

n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝

参考例句：

• We stood in silence watching the snake glide effortlessly.我们噤若寒蝉地站着，眼看那条蛇逍遥自在地游来游去。
• So graceful was the ballerina that she just seemed to glide.那芭蕾舞女演员翩跹起舞，宛如滑翔。

11 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

12 zoomed   

v.（飞机、汽车等）急速移动( zoom的过去式 )；（价格、费用等）急升，猛涨

参考例句：

• Traffic zoomed past us. 车辆从我们身边疾驰而过。
• Cars zoomed helter-skelter, honking belligerently. 大街上来往车辆穿梭不停，喇叭声刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 manly   

adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地

参考例句：

• The boy walked with a confident manly stride.这男孩以自信的男人步伐行走。
• He set himself manly tasks and expected others to follow his example.他给自己定下了男子汉的任务，并希望别人效之。

14 horrified   

a.(表现出)恐惧的

参考例句：

• The whole country was horrified by the killings. 全国都对这些凶杀案感到大为震惊。
• We were horrified at the conditions prevailing in local prisons. 地方监狱的普遍状况让我们震惊。