英语听力精选进阶版 6160

Big Week for the Bard¹ 大吟游诗人光彩的一周

It’s not every week that England’s greatest playwright² William Shakespeare hits the headlines, but the Bard of Avon has been the subject of two news stories in recent days as new information has come to light about the writer and his working environment.

In the first development, a portrait of Shakespeare, which is believed to be the only picture painted of him during his lifetime, was unveiled in London.

The artwork has been dated back to 1610, meaning it was painted six years before the writer’s death.

The painting had been owned by a family descended³ from Shakespeare’s literary patron for hundreds of years without them ever knowing who the man in the picture was.

Alec Cobbe, who inherited the portrait, realised that the painting was a likeness⁴ of Shakespeare after visiting an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery where he saw a portrait that had, until 70 years ago, been accepted as a life portrait of Shakespeare.

Mr Cobbe immediately realised he was looking at a copy of the painting that had been in his family for centuries.

The painting will now go on display in Shakespeare’s hometown Stratford-upon-Avon.

In a separate story, archaeologists in London believe they have unearthed⁵ the remains⁶ of Shakespeare’s first theatre.

The site was excavated⁷ by a team from the Museum of London last summer, and is believed to have been built in 1576.

Experts think that Shakespeare himself acted at the theatre, which may have been where the play Romeo and Juliet was premiered.

It is believed that 25 years after construction, the building was dismantled⁸ and moved timber by timber to the South Bank of the Thames, where a reconstruction⁹ of the theatre now stands.

GLOSSARY 词汇表

playwright 剧作家

hits the headlines 登上头条

Bard of Avon 艾芬河的吟游诗人

come to light 显露

portrait 肖像

unveiled 揭开面纱，公开

dated 源于（某日期）

descended from 后代

literary patron 文学赞助人

inherited 继承

likeness 相似物

archaeologists 考古学家

unearthed 挖掘出了

remains 遗留物

site 遗址

excavated 发掘

premiered 首次公演

dismantled 拆除

timber by timber 一块一块木条

reconstruction 再建 

1 bard   

n.吟游诗人

参考例句：

• I'll use my bard song to help you concentrate!我会用我的吟游诗人歌曲帮你集中精神！
• I find him,the wandering grey bard.我发现了正在徘徊的衰老游唱诗人。

2 playwright   

n.剧作家，编写剧本的人

参考例句：

• Gwyn Thomas was a famous playwright.格温·托马斯是著名的剧作家。
• The playwright was slaughtered by the press.这位剧作家受到新闻界的无情批判。

3 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

4 likeness   

n.相像，相似（之处）

参考例句：

• I think the painter has produced a very true likeness.我认为这位画家画得非常逼真。
• She treasured the painted likeness of her son.她珍藏她儿子的画像。

5 unearthed   

出土的（考古）

参考例句：

• Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 excavated   

v.挖掘( excavate的过去式和过去分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘

参考例句：

• The site has been excavated by archaeologists. 这个遗址已被考古学家发掘出来。
• The archaeologists excavated an ancient fortress. 考古学家们发掘出一个古堡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 dismantled   

拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消

参考例句：

• The plant was dismantled of all its equipment and furniture. 这家工厂的设备和家具全被拆除了。
• The Japanese empire was quickly dismantled. 日本帝国很快被打垮了。

9 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。