08 American Revolution

08 American Revolution

The American Revolution was not a revolution in the sense of a radical¹ or toal change .It was not a sudden and violent overturning of the political and social framework, such as later occurred in France and Russia, when both were already independent nations. Significant changes were ushered(引导，展示) in, but they were not breathtaking(惊人的，惊险的). What happened was accelerated evolution rather than outright(直率的，彻底的) revolution. During the conflict itself people went on working and praying, marrying and playing. Most of them were not seriously disturbed by the actual fighting, and many of the more isolated² communities scarcely knew that a war was on.

America's War of Independence heralded(预报，宣布) the birth of three modern nations. One was Canada, which received its first large influx(注入，流入) of English-speaking population from the thousands of loyalists(忠诚的人，反对独立的人) who fled there from the United States. Another was Australia, which became a penal(刑事的) colony now that America was no longer available for prisoners and debtors³. The third newcomer-the United States-based itself squarely on republican principles.

Yet even the political overturn was not so revolutionary as one might suppose. In some states, notably⁴ Connecticut and Rhode Island, the war largely ratified⁵ a colonial self-rule already existing. British officials, everywhere ousted⁶, were replaced by a home-grown governing class, which promptly⁷ sought a local substitute for king and Parliament.(现在就算是政治革命也不如以前想像的那样具有革命性。在一些州，特别明显的像康涅狄格和瑞候德岛，战争在很大程度上批准一些殖民居住地自治的做法已经存在。英国政府到处掠夺，它被本国的政治阶层所取代，而这个政治阶层很快地在当地为国王和国会找到本国的替代品)

1 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

2 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

3 debtors   

n.债务人，借方( debtor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Never in a debtors' prison? 从没有因债务坐过牢么？ 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

4 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

5 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

6 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

7 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。