最新15篇文章贯通英语四级词汇MP3 Unit5-Part2

[00:00.00]An article in the Illustrated¹
[00:03.48] London News in January 1875
[00:05.57]gave  some insight into
[00:09.29]the emigration process of
[00:11.69]the Chinese by conveying the ideas
[00:13.77]of changes they might undergo.
[00:15.63]The author thought the modifications²
[00:19.68]would be slight and principally external.
[00:23.94]He believed that, in an attempt
[00:26.57]to blend in, the Chinese
[00:29.09]would adopt American language,
[00:30.95]culture, and dress. However,
[00:35.11] because the Chinese brought
[00:36.97]with them a strong sense
[00:38.60]of their own identity,
[00:40.14]it wasn’t necessary for
[00:42.33]them to cultivate a
[00:43.74]North American way of life,
[00:45.83]nor did they feel an obligation
[00:48.23]to abandon their traditions.
[00:50.42]Much of the article
[00:52.94]would be considered insulting
[00:55.24]by today’s standards.
[00:56.55]In the United States, there were
[01:01.47]two opposing points of view.
[01:04.10]On one side of the coin,
[01:05.84]the Chinese were seen as
[01:07.71]an inexpensive means of providing
[01:10.00] the manual labor³ necessary to
[01:12.74]develop the assets of the country,
[01:15.48]most often in hazardous⁴ occupations.
[01:18.21]On the other side,there were
[01:21.49]those who branded them
[01:23.35]as the “curse” of the nation.
[01:25.65]Some Americans applauded the Chinese
[01:29.15]but others condemned⁵ them as evil.
[01:32.76] Some were disturbed by
[01:34.95]what might happen if all
[01:36.70]the immigrants decided⁶ to stay.
[01:38.76] Their distress⁷ was unfounded however,
[01:42.48] as most Chinese had
[01:44.24]no intention of staying.
[01:46.86]Their greatest wish was to
[01:49.38]accumulate as much money
[01:51.13]as possible and return to China.
[01:53.97]Guilds⁸ were set up
[01:56.38]to provide lodging⁹ and
[01:57.80]employment for the emigrants¹⁰,
[01:59.88]for a fee of course.
[02:01.52]The fee ensured that
[02:03.93]the worker would be paid a decent wage
[02:05.90] and that his employer
[02:08.08]would not deceive him.
[02:10.61]The accumulated fees amounted to
[02:13.99]a large sum, allowing the Guilds
[02:16.73]to help those who
[02:18.37]were ill or out of work.
[02:20.56]They not only saw that
[02:22.96]the worker received whatever
[02:24.61]was due to him, they also
[02:26.35]made him pay all his debts.
[02:28.33]The worker wasn’t allowed to
[02:31.50]return to his own country
[02:33.14]without a certificate from
[02:35.22] his agent stating he owed nothing.
[02:37.63]Many Chinese were able to
[02:42.66] save a portion of their earnings¹¹
[02:44.41]to take with them to
[02:46.16] their family back home.
[02:48.02]Often, after workers returned to China,
[02:51.41] they would revisit North America
[02:54.26]to accumulate more money.
[02:55.90]Before being allowed to
[02:59.61]board a ship in China,
[03:01.37]however, they had to prove
[03:03.34]that they were going of
[03:04.87]their own free will and
[03:07.06]were under no labor contract.
[03:09.13]Before the ships set sail,
[03:12.09]the authorities  would visit
[03:14.28]to guarantee that all on board
[03:16.57]had their tickets stamped
[03:18.54]and were not leaving
[03:20.29] the country against their will

1 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

2 modifications   

n.缓和( modification的名词复数 )；限制；更改；改变

参考例句：

• The engine was pulled apart for modifications and then reassembled. 发动机被拆开改型，然后再组装起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The original plan had undergone fairly extensive modifications. 原计划已经作了相当大的修改。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

5 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

8 guilds   

行会，同业公会，协会( guild的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• View list of the guilds that Small has war on. 看目前有哪些公会是我们公会开战的对象及对我们开战的对象。
• Guilds and kingdoms fit more with the Middle Age fantasy genre. （裴）:公会和王国更适合中世纪奇幻类型。

9 lodging   

n.寄宿，住所；(大学生的)校外宿舍

参考例句：

• The bill is inclusive of the food and lodging. 账单包括吃、住费用。
• Where can you find lodging for the night? 你今晚在哪里借宿?

10 emigrants   

n.（从本国移往他国的）移民( emigrant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At last the emigrants got to their new home. 移民们终于到达了他们的新家。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• 'Truly, a decree for selling the property of emigrants.' “有那么回事，是出售外逃人员财产的法令。” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

11 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。