英语名篇诵读 我们是谁？

Who Are We?

我们是谁？

Ralph Waldo Emerson(拉尔夫·沃尔多·爱默生)

The Time is the child of the Eternity¹ . The main interest which any aspects of the Times can have for us, is the great spirit which gazes through them, the light which they can shed on the wonderful questions, What are we? And whither we tend? We do not wish to be deceived. Here we drift, like white sail across the wild ocean, now bright on the wave, now darkling in the trough of the sea;  — but from what port did we sail? Who knows? Or to what port are we bound ? Who knows? There is no one to tell us but such poor weather-tossed mariners² as ourselves, whom we speak to as we pass, or who have hoisted³ some signal, or floated to us some letter in a bottle from far. But what know they more than we? They also found themselves on this wondrous⁴ sea. No; from the older sailors, nothing. Over all their speaking-trumpets, the grey sea and the loud winds answer, Not in us, Not in Time.

时间是永恒之子。这个时代各个方面所能呈献给我们的主要意味，就在于那种伟大的精神，它注视着世事沧桑，在一些奇妙的问题上给我们以启示。我们是谁？又走向何方？我们不想受到欺骗。我们在人世间漂泊，就像浩瀚大海上的白帆，时而跃上浪尖，亮光闪闪，时而坠入谷底，一片昏暗；——但是我们是从哪个港口起航的？有谁知道？或者我们要驶往哪个海港？又有谁知道？无人相告，只有像我们这样饱经风吹浪打的可怜的水手，相遇时我们同他们说句话，或者他们竖起某个旗语，或者从远方用瓶子给我们漂来某封信。但是他们能比我们多知道些什么呢？他们也发现自己漂泊在这奇妙的大海上。不，从那些年长的水手那里，也没有得到答案。昏暗的大海和呼啸的狂风使劲吹着他们的喇叭筒，给我们的答复是——不得而知。

1 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。

2 mariners   

海员，水手（mariner的复数形式）

参考例句：

• Mariners were also able to fix their latitude by using an instrument called astrolabe. 海员们还可使用星盘这种仪器确定纬度。
• The ancient mariners traversed the sea. 古代的海员漂洋过海。

3 hoisted   

把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He hoisted himself onto a high stool. 他抬身坐上了一张高凳子。
• The sailors hoisted the cargo onto the deck. 水手们把货物吊到甲板上。

4 wondrous   

adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地

参考例句：

• The internal structure of the Department is wondrous to behold.看一下国务院的内部结构是很有意思的。
• We were driven across this wondrous vast land of lakes and forests.我们乘车穿越这片有着湖泊及森林的广袤而神奇的土地。