如何选择适合自己的英文读物

 　　To cultivate one’s taste in English prose, the most effective way is to read English books extensively. Yet one may be at a loss to choose the appropriate books, especially as a beginner. I would like to share some of my experience.

　　在培养阅读英文的兴趣方面，最有效的途径就是广泛的阅读英文作品。但是尤其对于初学者而言，在面对应该选择什么样的读物时很容易不知所措。在此呢，我希望可以分享一些自己经验来给大家一些指引。

　　My first English novel was Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, recommended by many English teachers and professors as an ideal book for English learners. But my experience was somewhat disastrous¹. Stumbling along the lines, I had great difficulty in understanding the novel, let alone enjoying it. It’s not the vocabulary that troubled me, but rather the way Austen constructs sentences, and her way of thinking, which seemed too remote to me at that time. My fading enthusiasm was much recovered after reading Hemingway’s novel Farewell to Arms. No long and complicated sentences. And I particularly liked his concise² and straightforward³ style. So my first suggestion is, as a beginner, you’d better choose contemporary novels instead of classical ones. You can easily engage yourself in reading, get fun out of it, and gradually build up confidence. I do not mean to exclude classical novels for ever. Actually, the second reading of Pride and Prejudice greatly pleased me (probably the result of my improved English comprehension). It is only that classical novels are less accessible to beginners due to their language styles and social background. I’d like to recommend three contemporary novelists to you－Ursula Le Guin, Ernest Hemingway, and Doris Lessing.

　　我所读的第一本英文小说是简·奥斯丁的《傲慢与偏见》，这本书被许多英语老师和教授推荐给英语学习者。但是我个人的经验却比较悲催。在阅读的过程中我连理解文章都非常困难，更谈不上欣赏文章了。倒不是里面有很多生词，更多的时候是简·奥斯丁的句法结构，还有她的思维模式，总让我觉得和我不在一个维度。而我的热情是在读了海明威的《永别了，武器》才重新回到我身边的。这本书里没有什么复杂的句子。我非常喜欢这种简约明快的文字风格。所以我对于初步涉足英文阅读的人的第一个建议就是，先读一些当代的文章而不是经典的文章。你可以更为轻松的获得阅读快感，并且找到阅读乐趣，最终慢慢的建立起自信。我并不是说就完全不用去读古典小说了。事实上，当我第二次拿起《傲慢与偏见》来读的时候，阅读体验非常不错(当然也不排除是由于我的英文水平提高了的缘故)。主要的原因是因为古典文章对于新手来说由于它的年代和语言方式更为难以理解。我在此推荐3个当代的小说家给大家：厄休拉·勒奎恩，欧内斯特·海明威还有多丽丝·莱辛。

　　However, reading novels is not the only way to improve your English. In fact, if you restrict yourself to novels you will miss a lot of treasures. English essays can at once inform you, entertain you, and refine your taste in English. The best example is Bertrand Russell’s work. Its language is plain, yet you cannot help feeling the elegance⁴ and the peculiar⁵ sense of humor. His simple language enables his philosophy within the reach of ordinary people. The same is true of George Orwell’s work. Here comes my second suggestion－essays are indispensable。

　　但是呢，阅读英文小说并不是唯一一个提升英文水平的办法。事实上，如果你只读小说，就会错失一大块宝藏。英语散文同样可以在第一时间给你知识和娱乐，同时还提高你的英文阅读品味。最好的例证就是伯特兰·罗素的作品了。虽然说他的语言本身比较平实，但是你依然能够从他的语言当中体会到那份优雅和特别的幽默。他语言的简单明了使得他的哲学可以被大多数普通人所理解。具有相同特点的还有乔治·奥威尔。所以我的第二个建议就是——散文同样是必不可少的。

　　My last advice is never follow others’ recommendations and opinions blindly, however famous or influential⁶ the person might be. Some days ago, I listened to the audiobook of Somerset Maugham’s autobiography⁷ The Summing Up. In a chapter he regards Edward Gibbon and Samuel Johnson’s style as pompous⁸. Though I admire Maugham’s prose, I cannot agree with his view. Probably one can label Johnson’s work as pretentious⁹, but definitely not Gibbon’s. In fact, his lucid¹⁰ style makes his works highly readable, and you can hardly believe they were written over 200 years ago. Therefore, we should be open to various ideas, but always think and determine for ourselves. As a saying goes, one man’s meat is another man’s poison. With that in mind, we are bound to find out our favorite writers through reading and develop our fine taste in English.

　　我的最后一个建议就是永远都不要盲目地跟随那些所谓名人或者有社会影响力的人的建议和推荐。我记得以前，我听毛姆自传《总结》的音频书籍。在某一章，他认为爱德华·吉布森和萨缪尔·约翰逊的风格是非常浮华的。虽然我非常欣赏毛姆，但是我并不同意他的观点。可能人们可以把约翰逊的文章说成是浮华，但是吉布森的文章则绝对不能这么说。事实上，吉布森的文字非常容易理解，以至于你都难以相信那是200年以前的作品。因此，我认为我们应该保持开放的心态，但是保持对自我的忠实。就像一句老话所说的，一个人的佳肴可能是另一个人的毒药。有这句话在心中，我们就可以尽情的去寻找那些我们最喜欢的作者，并提高自己的英语阅读品味。

1 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。

2 concise   

adj.简洁的，简明的

参考例句：

• The explanation in this dictionary is concise and to the point.这部词典里的释义简明扼要。
• I gave a concise answer about this.我对于此事给了一个简要的答复。

3 straightforward   

adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的

参考例句：

• A straightforward talk is better than a flowery speech.巧言不如直说。
• I must insist on your giving me a straightforward answer.我一定要你给我一个直截了当的回答。

4 elegance   

n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙

参考例句：

• The furnishings in the room imparted an air of elegance.这个房间的家具带给这房间一种优雅的气氛。
• John has been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰因为衣着讲究而出名。

5 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

6 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

7 autobiography   

n.自传

参考例句：

• He published his autobiography last autumn.他去年秋天出版了自己的自传。
• His life story is recounted in two fascinating volumes of autobiography.这两卷引人入胜的自传小说详述了他的生平。

8 pompous   

adj.傲慢的，自大的；夸大的；豪华的

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities.他有点自大，自视甚高。
• He is a good man underneath his pompous appearance. 他的外表虽傲慢，其实是个好人。

9 pretentious   

adj.自命不凡的，自负的，炫耀的

参考例句：

• He is a talented but pretentious writer.他是一个有才华但自命不凡的作家。
• Speaking well of yourself would only make you appear conceited and pretentious.自夸只会使你显得自负和虚伪。

10 lucid   

adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的

参考例句：

• His explanation was lucid and to the point.他的解释扼要易懂。
• He wasn't very lucid,he didn't quite know where he was.他神志不是很清醒，不太知道自己在哪里。