英语专业晨读美文-文化篇 13 Naps

[00:02.32]Naps
[00:04.55]Napping is too luxurious¹, too sybaritic,
[00:09.14]too unproductive, and it's free;
[00:11.56]pleasures for which we don't pay make us anxious.
[00:14.93]Besides, it seems to be a natural inclination².
[00:18.34]Those who get paid to investigate such things
[00:21.48]have proved that people deprived of daylight
[00:23.57]and their wristwatches, with no notion of
[00:26.41]whether it was night or day,
[00:28.22]sink blissfully asleep in mid-afternoon as regular as clocks.
[00:32.55]The American nap is even scarier because it's unilateral.
[00:36.66]Sleeping Frenchmen are surrounded by sleeping compatriots,
[00:39.83]but Americans who lie down by day stiffen³
[00:42.46]with the thought of the busy world rushing past.
[00:45.27]There we lie, visible and vulnerable on our daylit bed,
[00:49.22]ready to cut the strings⁴ and sink into the dark,
[00:52.29]swirling, almost sexual currents of the impending⁵ doze⁶,
[00:55.75]but what will happen in our absence? Our stocks will fall;
[00:59.45]our employees will mutiny and seize the helm;
[01:02.00]our clients will tiptoe away to competitors.
[01:04.63]Even the housewife, taking advantage of the afternoon lull⁷,
[01:08.40]knows at the deepest level of consciousness
[01:11.16]that the phone is about to ring.
[01:13.18]And of course, for those of us with proper jobs,
[01:16.53]there's the problem of finding a bed. Some corporations,
[01:19.97]in their concern for their employees' health and fitness,
[01:22.89]provide gym rooms where we can commit
[01:25.00]strenuous exercise at lunchtime, but where are our beds?
[01:28.26]In Japan, the productivity wonder of
[01:31.09]the industrialized world, properly run companies
[01:34.35]maintain a nap room wherein the workers
[01:36.97]may refresh themselves. Even in America, rumor⁸ has it,
[01:40.50]the costly⁹ CEOs of giant corporations
[01:43.22]work sequestered¹⁰ in private suites¹¹,
[01:45.97]guarded by watchpersons,
[01:47.55]mainly so they can curl up unseen to
[01:50.32]sharpen their predatory powers with a quick snooze.
[01:53.43]A couple of recent presidents
[01:55.57]famous for their all-night energies
[01:57.65]kept up the pace by means of naps. Other presidents,
[02:01.27]less famous for energy, slept by day and night;
[02:04.85]woe to the unwary footstep
[02:07.24]that wakened Coolidge in the afternoon.
[02:09.36]This leaves the rest of us lackeys¹² bolt upright,
[02:12.18]toughing it out, trying to focus on the computer screen,
[02:15.98]from time to time glancing furtively¹³ around
[02:18.52]to see if we were noticed.
[02:20.04]The modern office isn't designed for privacy,
[02:22.99]and most of our cubicles¹⁴ have no doors to close,
[02:25.94]only gaps in the portable partitions.
[02:28.71]Lay our heads down on the desk at the appropriate hour
[02:32.02]and we're exposed to any passing snitch
[02:34.94]who strolls the halls enforcing alertness.
[02:36.94]It's a wonder they don't walk around ringing bells
[02:39.61]and blowing trumpets¹⁵ from one till three.
[02:41.80]American employers do not see the afternoon forty winks¹⁶
[02:45.67]as refreshing¹⁷ the creative wellsprings of mere¹⁸ employees.
[02:49.02]They see it as goofing¹⁹ off.
[02:50.75]But now, it's time to rethink the nap
[02:53.66]from both the corporate²⁰ and the personal viewpoint.
[02:56.37]Bed is not a shameful²¹, shiftless place to be by day,
[02:59.99]nor is it necessary to run a fever of 102 to deserve it.
[03:04.70]Bed can even be productive.
[03:07.28]The effortless horizontal body
[03:09.36]and the sensory²² deprivation²³ of the quiet bedroom
[03:12.19]leave the mind free, even in sleep,
[03:14.79]to focus, to roam, sometimes to forge ahead.
[03:18.33]Knotty problems can unknot themselves as if by magic.
[03:21.99]Creative solutions can tiptoe across the coverlet
[03:25.25]and nestle onto the pillow of the napper,
[03:27.68]even while the black velvet²⁴ paws of Morpheus
[03:30.79]lie closely over his eyes.
[03:32.65]He may wake half an hour later
[03:35.05]with the road ahead laid clear.
[03:37.43]Creativity doesn't come a running to
[03:40.21]those who toil²⁵ and slave for her;
[03:42.15]she's as much the daughter of rest
[03:44.18]and play as of effort. Just because we're uncomfortable
[03:47.81]doesn't mean we're productive;
[03:49.62]just because we're comfortable doesn't mean we're lazy.
[03:53.35]Milton wrote Paradise Lost in bed. Winston Churchill,
[03:57.53]a prodigious²⁶ producer, wrote all those
[04:00.53]large important histories in bed.
[04:02.57]Brandy bottle at the ready.
[04:04.54]No doubt when inspiration flagged and his thoughts
[04:07.22]refused to marshal, he took a nip and a nap.
[04:10.33]Now, there was a man who knew a thing
[04:13.14]or two about a good day's work.

1 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

2 inclination   

n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好

参考例句：

• She greeted us with a slight inclination of the head.她微微点头向我们致意。
• I did not feel the slightest inclination to hurry.我没有丝毫着急的意思。

3 stiffen   

v.(使)硬，(使)变挺，(使)变僵硬

参考例句：

• The blood supply to the skin is reduced when muscles stiffen.当肌肉变得僵硬时，皮肤的供血量就减少了。
• I was breathing hard,and my legs were beginning to stiffen.这时我却气吁喘喘地开始感到脚有点僵硬。

4 strings   

n.弦

参考例句：

• He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。
• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

5 impending   

a.imminent, about to come or happen

参考例句：

• Against a background of impending famine, heavy fighting took place. 即将发生饥荒之时，严重的战乱爆发了。
• The king convoke parliament to cope with the impending danger. 国王召开国会以应付迫近眉睫的危险。

6 doze   

v.打瞌睡；n.打盹，假寐

参考例句：

• He likes to have a doze after lunch.他喜欢午饭后打个盹。
• While the adults doze,the young play.大人们在打瞌睡，而孩子们在玩耍。

7 lull   

v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇

参考例句：

• The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
• Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后，地面战又突然爆发了。

8 rumor   

n.谣言，谣传，传说

参考例句：

• The rumor has been traced back to a bad man.那谣言经追查是个坏人造的。
• The rumor has taken air.谣言流传开了。

9 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

10 sequestered   

adj.扣押的；隐退的；幽静的；偏僻的v.使隔绝，使隔离( sequester的过去式和过去分词 )；扣押

参考例句：

• The jury is expected to be sequestered for at least two months. 陪审团渴望被隔离至少两个月。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Everything he owned was sequestered. 他的一切都被扣押了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 suites   

n.套( suite的名词复数 )；一套房间；一套家具；一套公寓

参考例句：

• First he called upon all the Foreign Ministers in their hotel suites. 他首先到所有外交部长住的旅馆套间去拜访。 来自辞典例句
• All four doors to the two reserved suites were open. 预定的两个套房的四扇门都敞开着。 来自辞典例句

12 lackeys   

n.听差( lackey的名词复数 )；男仆（通常穿制服）；卑躬屈膝的人；被待为奴仆的人

参考例句：

• When the boss falls from power, his lackeys disperse. 树倒猢狲散。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The singer was surrounded by the usual crowd of lackeys and hangers on. 那个歌手让那帮总是溜须拍马、前呼後拥的人给围住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 furtively   

adv. 偷偷地, 暗中地

参考例句：

• At this some of the others furtively exchanged significant glances. 听他这样说，有几个人心照不宣地彼此对望了一眼。
• Remembering my presence, he furtively dropped it under his chair. 后来想起我在，他便偷偷地把书丢在椅子下。

14 cubicles   

n.小卧室，斗室( cubicle的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Security guards, operating inside bullet-proof glass cubicles, and speaking through microphones, scrutinized every arrival and departure. 警卫们在装有防弹玻璃的小室里值勤，通过麦克风细致盘问每一个进出的人。 来自辞典例句
• I guess they thought me content to stay in cubicles. 我猜他们认为我愿意呆在小房间里。 来自互联网

15 trumpets   

喇叭( trumpet的名词复数 )； 小号； 喇叭形物； （尤指）绽开的水仙花

参考例句：

• A wreath was laid on the monument to a fanfare of trumpets. 在响亮的号角声中花圈被献在纪念碑前。
• A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King. 嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。

16 winks   

v.使眼色( wink的第三人称单数 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮

参考例句：

• I'll feel much better when I've had forty winks. 我打个盹就会感到好得多。
• The planes were little silver winks way out to the west. 飞机在西边老远的地方，看上去只是些很小的银色光点。 来自辞典例句

17 refreshing   

adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的

参考例句：

• I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
• The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼，特别解乏提神。

18 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

19 goofing   

v.弄糟( goof的现在分词 )；混；打发时间；出大错

参考例句：

• He should have been studying instead of goofing around last night. 他昨晚应该念书，不应该混。 来自走遍美国快乐40招
• Why don't you just admit you're goofing off? 偷了懒就偷了赖，还不爽爽快快承认？ 来自辞典例句

20 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

21 shameful   

adj.可耻的，不道德的

参考例句：

• It is very shameful of him to show off.他向人炫耀自己，真不害臊。
• We must expose this shameful activity to the newspapers.我们一定要向报社揭露这一无耻行径。

22 sensory   

adj.知觉的，感觉的，知觉器官的

参考例句：

• Human powers of sensory discrimination are limited.人类感官分辨能力有限。
• The sensory system may undergo long-term adaptation in alien environments.感觉系统对陌生的环境可能经过长时期才能适应。

23 deprivation   

n.匮乏；丧失；夺去，贫困

参考例句：

• Many studies make it clear that sleep deprivation is dangerous.多实验都证实了睡眠被剥夺是危险的。
• Missing the holiday was a great deprivation.错过假日是极大的损失。

24 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。

25 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

26 prodigious   

adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的

参考例句：

• This business generates cash in prodigious amounts.这种业务收益丰厚。
• He impressed all who met him with his prodigious memory.他惊人的记忆力让所有见过他的人都印象深刻。