Who Was Eleanor Roosevelt 安娜·埃莉诺·罗斯福 Chapter 2 Daddy’s Little Girl

Eleanor’s father called her “Little Nell.” Her nickname¹ came from one of her father’s favorite books by Charles Dickens, The Old Curiosity² Shop. Charles Dickens was a popular English author who lived in the 1800s and wrote many famous novels, such as A Tale of Two Cities and David Copperfield. Elliott Roosevelt was a great reader and loved to tell stories. Often, he entertained Eleanor by telling stories. Eleanor later said that her father always made her feel brave. She tried to do things that she knew would please her father. She loved to make her father smile.

Eleanor’s mother, however, was a colder parent. She did not hug Eleanor or play with her. She called Eleanor “Granny” because Eleanor was such a quiet, serious little girl. Eleanor said that when she heard herself called Granny, she wanted to sink through the floor.

Eleanor looked so serious because she did not like to smile. She wanted to hide her buckteeth. When Eleanor was a child, dentists did not know how to straighten teeth with braces³. So Eleanor rarely laughed because she thought people would think she was ugly.

Eleanor heard people talk about what a beauty her mother was. Reporters wrote about her mother in the society pages. No one told Eleanor that she was pretty. No one except her father. He reminded Eleanor that in Hans Christian⁴ Andersen’s story, “The Ugly Duckling,” the duckling turns into a beautiful swan. He said that would happen to Eleanor, too. Eleanor could not wait until she turned into a swan. Until then, Eleanor promised herself that she would be the best girl that she could be. And she tried.

Eleanor’s mother often got headaches. Eleanor rubbed her forehead to make the headaches go away. It made Eleanor happy to be able to help her mother. Eleanor later wrote that these times together made her feel useful and wanted. Eleanor also had a baby brother. Elliott Roosevelt Jr. was born in the fall of 1889. She loved being the older sister. Her relatives told Eleanor that she was a sweet and good girl.

When Eleanor was almost six, she and her family sailed for Europe again. This time, Eleanor enjoyed the trip across the Atlantic. Her father promised nothing bad would happen. And it didn’t!

Eleanor loved the time that the Roosevelts spent in Italy. She and her father rode in gondolas⁵ in the canals of Venice. They tossed⁶ pennies into the volcano⁷ Vesuvius. The pennies were thrown back at them covered in lava⁸! Eleanor rode a donkey⁹ on mountain paths. The guide did not have shoes and his feet often bled as he walked on the rugged¹⁰ paths. So Eleanor bought him a pair of shoes. This simple act of kindness was typical of Eleanor. All her life, the hardships of others touched her very deeply.

The time in Europe was not always happy, however. Eleanor’s father often drank too much. Finally, he got help for his problem at a hospital in France. His family settled nearby.

Eleanor’s mother was expecting another baby. While her mother prepared for the birth of her baby, Eleanor lived at a French school run by nuns¹¹. She was only six years old. Eleanor could not speak French and she missed her family. She was very lonely. She wanted the attention of the nuns; she wanted the other girls to notice her.

One day, a girl swallowed a coin. The nuns called a doctor. Everyone fussed¹² over the little girl. That gave Eleanor an idea. She told the nuns that she had swallowed a coin, too! But she hadn’t. And the nuns knew it. They did not call a doctor. Instead, they called her mother who took her out of the school. Anna Roosevelt was very angry with Eleanor. She told her never to lie again. Eleanor felt terrible. All she had wanted was some attention.

On June 2, 1891, Eleanor’s brother Hall was born in France. Her father was with the family when Hall was born. Now Eleanor went to a nearby school in the mornings. In the afternoons, she and her father took long walks and fed the ducks in the park. Eleanor said that her father was the only one who did not treat her as if she were a criminal. But her father became ill again. He went to a hospital near Paris. As soon as Eleanor’s mother could travel, in early summer, the Roosevelt family returned to New York—without Eleanor’s father.

One day, an aunt of Eleanor’s found out that she could not read. Eleanor was almost seven years old at the time. Her aunt was furious¹³ and told Eleanor’s mother that Eleanor must learn to read, sew, and cook immediately! Like other rich New Yorkers, Anna Roosevelt wanted her children taught at home. So she started a school on the third floor of their house. A few of the neighbors’ children came, too.

At first, Eleanor was shy. The other children knew more than she did. She couldn’t spell simple words. Her mother, who sat in the back of the room, told her to try harder. Eleanor did. By the end of the first year, she was the best reader in her class! Eleanor also learned¹⁴ to sew, but she never learned to cook!

Finally, Eleanor’s father returned home. He was feeling better, but was weak. Often he had to stay in the hospital for months. However, when her father was home, they went on walks again and talked about books. He taught her to feed the horses with a lump¹⁵ of sugar or a piece of apple. They studied nature together. Eleanor’s father taught her to open her eyes and really look at the world around her. He always asked Eleanor what she was thinking. From her father, Eleanor learned to question things and to seek answers for herself.

The Roosevelts were rich, but Eleanor’s father wanted her to respect poor people and appreciate what she had. One week around Thanksgiving, her father took her to a home for poor boys—“newsies,” they were called. The newsies sold newspapers on the street corners of New York City. They earned about a nickel¹⁶ for every ten papers they sold. They were supposed to sell the papers after school. Instead, most boys skipped school to sell more papers. Many were orphans¹⁷ and not much older than Eleanor. They were poor and hungry.

Eleanor’s grandfather had started the home for the “newsies.” So Eleanor and her father brought lots of holiday food to the boys. Eleanor felt terrible for them. She saw how important it was to help people in any way that she could.

It was a lesson that her father taught her. It was a lesson that she would never forget.

1 nickname   

n.绰号，昵称；v.给...取绰号，叫错名字

参考例句：

• She called me by my nickname.她叫我的外号。
• Why do you fasten such a nickname on her?你为什么给她取这样一个绰号？

2 curiosity   

n.好奇心，新奇的事物，珍品

参考例句：

• He gave in to curiosity and opened my letter.他抑制不住好奇心，拆开了我的信。
• The children are dying of curiosity to see what's in the parcel.孩子们出于好奇，迫不及待地想看看包裹中是什么东西。

3 braces   

n.吊带，背带；托架( brace的名词复数 )；箍子；括弧；（儿童）牙箍v.支住( brace的第三人称单数 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来

参考例句：

• The table is shaky because the braces are loose. 这张桌子摇摇晃晃，因为支架全松了。
• You don't need braces if you're wearing a belt! 要系腰带，就用不着吊带了。

4 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

5 gondolas   

n.狭长小船( gondola的名词复数 )；货架（一般指商店，例如化妆品店）；吊船工作台

参考例句：

• When the G-Force is in motion, the gondolas turn as well. 当“惊呼狂叫”开始旋转时，平底船也同时旋转。 来自互联网
• Moreton Engineering &Equipment Co. Ltd. -Services include sales tower crane, gondolas, material hoist construction equipment. 山明模型工作室-制作建筑模型，包括售楼模型、规划模型、比赛模型等。 来自互联网

6 tossed   

v.（轻轻或漫不经心地）扔( toss的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）摇荡；摇匀；（为…）掷硬币决定

参考例句：

• I tossed the book aside and got up. 我把书丢在一边，站了起来。
• He angrily tossed his tools and would work no longer. 他怒气冲冲地扔下工具不肯再干了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 volcano   

n.火山

参考例句：

• The volcano unexpectedly blew up early in the morning.火山一早突然爆发了。
• It is most risky to go and examine an active volcano.去探察活火山是非常危险的。

8 lava   

n.熔岩，火山岩

参考例句：

• The lava flowed down the sides of the volcano.熔岩沿火山坡面涌流而下。
• His anger spilled out like lava.他的愤怒像火山爆发似的迸发出来。

9 donkey   

n.驴子；蠢人；顽固的人

参考例句：

• This donkey can carry two sacks of grain.这头驴能驮两袋粮食。
• "I'll buy your donkey,"said the two.“我想要买你的驴子”两人异口同声说。

10 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

11 nuns   

n.（通常指基督教的）修女， （佛教的）尼姑( nun的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Ah Q had always had the greatest contempt for such people as little nuns. 小尼姑之流是阿Q本来视如草芥的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Nuns are under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. 修女须立誓保持清贫、贞洁、顺从。 来自辞典例句

12 fussed   

小题大做，大惊小怪( fuss的过去式和过去分词 )； 烦恼，激动（尤指对小事）； 瞎忙一气，过分关心

参考例句：

• She fussed over dinner. 她为准备晚饭忙碌。
• She fussed about, unable to hide her impatience. 她激动不安，无法掩饰她的急躁。

13 furious   

adj.狂怒的，暴怒的，强烈的，激烈的

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• His wife was furious with him.他妻子对他大发雷霆。

14 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

15 lump   

n.块状，瘤，很多；v.使...成块状，混在一起，忍耐

参考例句：

• I thanked him with a lump in my throat.我哽咽着向他道谢。
• If you don't like it,you may lump it.你不喜欢，也得容忍一下。

16 nickel   

n.镍，（美国和加拿大的）五分钱

参考例句：

• Nickel can be used for making coins.镍可做成钱币。
• May I have a nickel?能给我五分钱吗？

17 orphans   

孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
• Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。