世界小史 第136期:对法律的忠诚

 　　There are many old and wonderful stories telling of the love Romans had for their native land and of their faithfulness to its laws.

　　有许多古老的、美好的故事讲述罗马人的这种对家乡的热爱和他们对法律的忠诚。

　　Stories of fathers who sentenced their own sons to death without turning a hair, because the law so demanded,

　　有的故事讲述父亲泰然自若就处死了他们自己的儿子，因为法律要求这样做。

　　and of heroes who didn't hesitate to give their lives for their fellow countrymen on the battlefield or in captivity¹.

　　的故事讲述英雄们在战场上或在监禁中毫不犹豫为其同胞作出自我牺牲。

　　While we don't have to believe every word of them,

　　这些故事我们不见得字字句句都信，

　　such stories give us an idea of what was expected of a Roman: the harshness² and discipline that it was his duty to show towards himself and to others whenever his native land or the law were involved.

　　但是这些故事给我们的印象是罗马人在评价一个人时看重的是什么：在涉及到法或祖国时的刚强和严厉。

　　Nothing could shake these Romans. They never gave up.

　　没有什么不幸能把这些罗马人吓倒。他们从不放弃。

　　Not even when their city was captured and burnt to the ground by tribesmen from the north called Gauls, in 390 BC.

　　就连他们的城市在公元前390年被北方的一个部落，高卢人攻陷并烧毁的时候，

　　They just rebuilt it, fortified³ it, and gradually brought the small surrounding towns back under their control.

　　他们也没有泄气。他们将它重建，重新加固它并渐渐迫使各毗邻的小城邦臣服。

1 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

2 harshness   

n.严酷，恶劣

参考例句：

• They sought solace in religion from the harshness of their everyday lives. 他们日常生活很艰难，就在宗教中寻求安慰。
• The harshness of everyday reality disenchanted him of his idealistic hopes. 冷酷的日常现实使他从理想主义的幻梦中清醒过来。

3 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。