英国语文第二册 第53期:国王和王后的故事

 　　LESSON 53 About kings and queens 第五十三课 国王和王后的故事

　　Kings and Queens are the chief persons in the countries over which they rule. 国王和王后在他们统治的国家是最主要的人物。

　　The British Commonwealth¹ and Empire is ruled over by Queen Elizabeth II, who came to the throne after the death of her father, King George VI. 英国的议会和皇室由女皇伊丽莎白二世统治着，她在她的父亲，国王乔治六世过世后登上女皇的宝座。

　　Kings and Queens have crowns, which are generally made of gold and precious stones. 国王和王后都拥有用黄金或者其他贵重石块做的皇冠。

　　The crown of the sovereign of Britain is worth many thousands of pounds! 英国皇室的王冠价值堪比成千上万的英镑。

　　Some boys and girls may have seen the Queen of Great Britain passing through the towns in which they live; 一些男孩和女孩也许看到过大英帝国的王后经过他们居住的城镇，

　　but it is very unlikely that they have seen her wearing her crown. 但是看到他们带着王冠则几乎是不可能的。

　　It is too heavy to be placed on her head, but it is sometimes carried before her. 头戴王冠是很重的，所以有时王冠被携带在王后前面。

　　Except upon great occasions, such as her coronation, the Queen dresses just like any other lady in the land. 除了在重要的场合，例如她的加冕典礼，王后和其他女士的穿着是一样的。

　　Here is a picture of some of the things which belong to the Queen. 这里有一些物件的图片是属于王后的。

　　The crown is placed on a velvet² cushion, and lying near it are the golden orb³ and the sceptre. 王冠被放置在丝绒的坐垫上，在它附近放着黄金质的圆球和权杖。

　　The swords which you see are carried before her by her officers. 你所看到的剑是由在王后前面的官员携带的。

　　Some people think that if they were kings and queens they would always be happy. 一些人认为如果他们是国王或者王后的话，那么他们将会很幸福。

　　This is a great mistake. The poorest subject is sometimes much happier than his sovereign. 但这是一个重大的错误。最可怜的人就是有时候比君王还幸福的人。

　　Queen Elizabeth's time is not her own. 伊丽莎白女王的时间不是她自己的。

　　She cannot always be seeking to please herself; for God has given her a great empire to rule over. 她不能一直寻找自己开心的事，因为上帝给了她一个大帝国需要她去管理。

　　The Bible tells us to honour those who rule over us; therefore it is our duty to obey the laws of our country. 圣经告诉我们要尊敬那些统治我们的人，因此，遵守我们国家的法律是我们的职责。

1 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

2 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。

3 orb   

n.太阳；星球；v.弄圆；成球形

参考例句：

• The blue heaven,holding its one golden orb,poured down a crystal wash of warm light.蓝蓝的天空托着金色的太阳，洒下一片水晶般明亮温暖的光辉。
• It is an emanation from the distant orb of immortal light.它是从远处那个发出不灭之光的天体上放射出来的。