世界小史 第111期:艰苦的战争

 　　Greece's age of splendor¹ was short-lived.

　　希腊的辉煌时期很短暂。

　　The Greeks could do everything but live in peace with one another.

　　希腊人什么都能，但是他们不能与其他城邦和睦相处。

　　Above all, it was Athens and Sparta who could not put up with one another for long.

　　尤其是雅典人和斯巴达人没有能长期和睦相处。

　　By 430 BC the two states were locked in a long and bitter conflict.

　　到公元前420年这两个城邦之间就进行了一场长期的、艰苦的战争。

　　This was the Peloponnesian War.

　　这就是伯罗奔尼撒战争。

　　The Spartans² marched on Athens, savagely⁴ laying waste to the countryside all around.

　　斯巴达人向雅典挺进并大肆蹂躏了这片土地。

　　They uprooted⁵ all the olive trees and this was a terrible misfortune because it takes years for a newly planted olive tree to bear fruit.

　　他们挖掘了所有的油橄榄树。这是一场可怕的灾祸，因为一棵新栽的油橄榄树要很久才会结果。

　　The Athenians hit back, attacking the Spartan³ colonies to the south of Italy, at Syracuse in Sicily.

　　雅典人又向斯巴达回击，向斯巴达在意大利以南的西西里的锡拉库扎殖民地进军。

　　There was a great deal of fighting and retaliation⁶, a terrible plague in Athens in which Pericles died and, in the end, Athens lost the war and the city walls were torn down.

　　这是一场大规模的战斗和报复，雅典发生了一场严重的瘟疫，伯里克利死于这场瘟疫，最后，雅典输掉了这场战争，它的城墙被拆毁。

 

1 splendor   

n.光彩；壮丽，华丽；显赫，辉煌

参考例句：

• Never in his life had he gazed on such splendor.他生平从没有见过如此辉煌壮丽的场面。
• All the splendor in the world is not worth a good friend.人世间所有的荣华富贵不如一个好朋友。

2 spartans   

n.斯巴达（spartan的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The ancient Spartans used to expose babies that they did not want. 古斯巴达人常遗弃他们不要的婴儿。
• But one by one the Spartans fell. 可是斯巴达人一个一个地倒下了。

3 spartan   

adj.简朴的，刻苦的；n.斯巴达；斯巴达式的人

参考例句：

• Their spartan lifestyle prohibits a fridge or a phone.他们不使用冰箱和电话，过着简朴的生活。
• The rooms were spartan and undecorated.房间没有装饰，极为简陋。

4 savagely   

adv. 野蛮地，残酷地

参考例句：

• The roses had been pruned back savagely. 玫瑰被狠狠地修剪了一番。
• He snarled savagely at her. 他向她狂吼起来。

5 uprooted   

v.把（某物）连根拔起( uproot的过去式和过去分词 )；根除；赶走；把…赶出家园

参考例句：

• Many people were uprooted from their homes by the flood. 水灾令许多人背井离乡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The hurricane blew with such force that trees were uprooted. 飓风强烈地刮着，树都被连根拔起了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》