历史回眸:被释放的那一天 曼德拉昂首挺立

 　　It is one of the supreme¹ ironies² that on 11 February 1990, the day that Nelson Mandela was released after 27-and-a-half years in prison, the event that much of South Africa and the rest of the world had been waiting decades for, the country was not ready for him.

　　在1990年2月11日，被囚禁27年半的的曼德拉终于获释，这真是个极大的讽刺。因为大部分南非人和世界上其他人民都等这一刻数十年了，这个国家还没有准备好迎接他的变革。

　　The iconic image of that moment – a lean, beaming Mandela in a dark suit emerging from Victor Verster prison holding hands with Winnie, both raising triumphant³ clenched⁴ fist salutes⁵ – belied⁶ the chaos⁷ around them.

　　瘦弱却神采奕奕的曼德拉穿着深色套装，和妻子温妮手拉手从维克多·韦斯特监狱走出来成为了这一刻的标志性形象，他们举起握拳的双手，与周围混乱的场面有些不符。

　　The first person to shake Mandela's hand as he exited the prison gates was John Battersby, a journalist with the Christian⁸ Science Monitor, who had arrived on the scene five minutes before only to walk straight into Mandela, who greeted him with his trademark⁹ bonhomie (much to the chagrin¹⁰ of the rest of the journalist pack, who had been waiting outside the gates for 11 hours).

　　在他走出监狱后第一个和他握手的是《基督教科学箴言报》的记者约翰·巴特斯比，他提前五分钟来这里，径直走向曼德拉，后者向他投以标志性的温和笑容（这让其他记者很懊恼，他们已经在门口等了11个小时。）

　　The release, at 5 pm, was an hour late. Mandela had not been seen in public in almost three decades, and that was in 1962, 14 years beforeSouth Africa got television. He had been absent all that time. Yet in his absence he had grown ever more present.

　　曼德拉是在那天下午5点被释放的，比预计时间晚了一个小时。此前，曼德拉在公众面前几乎消失了30年。他入狱的时候是1962年，14年之后，电视才开始在南非普及。所以在媒体报道上，他从未露面。但在他的离开却让他今天的复出更加抢镜。

　　The convoy¹¹ stopped a few times so that Mandela could get out and speak to ordinary South Africans along the route. People stared dazed and disbelieving as the convoy made its slow, 40-mile journey to downtown Cape¹² Town.

　　在去开普敦的40英里的路上，护送队曾多次停下以便曼德拉能够和道路上的南非平民交谈。在看见这位伟人后，人们几乎不敢相信自己的眼睛，护送队就这样缓慢地向前走去。

　　In the city centre, the expectant crowd of more than 60,000 crushed into the Grand Parade in front of the City Hall, and in the extreme heat, grew restless. Late afternoon gave way to evening and hundreds of people fainted and had to be treated by the first-aid ambulances. Skirmishes broke out and a number of people were shot by police.

　　在市中心，超过6万人的人群涌入市政厅前的阅兵场，人群满怀期待，激动难耐，（在得知曼德拉即将到来时），他们激动的心情变得愈加焦躁不安。从下午晚些时候直到晚上，上百人激动得晕厥过去，不得不被急救车接走。同时，小规模的冲突时有爆发，一些涉案人员被警方逮捕。

　　All eyes were on the balcony where Mandela was to make his appearance. Familiar faces showed themselves to polite cheering, but people had not come to see Allan Boesak or Jesse Jackson. When Mandela and entourage finally arrived, some time before midnight, he appeared stiff and serious. He read from a prepared speech, carefully spelling out each word.

　　当曼德拉出现在阳台上时，立即成为了万众瞩目的焦点。在这个阳台上曾经出现过其他熟悉的面孔，也受到了礼貌的欢呼，但这次人们来见的可不是艾伦·博萨克或杰西·杰克逊。午夜前，曼德拉和随行人员终于到达了。他表现得冷峻严肃，在朗读事先准备好的讲稿时，他每个字都说得清晰谨慎。

　　Many South Africans were not pleased on that balmy evening with what he had to say. Mandela reaffirmed his dedication¹³ to the cause of the struggle and the African National Congress, and called for disciplined mass action. This disappointed many whites and those in the business community who, somewhat stupidly, had not expected him to sound so militant¹⁴.

　　很多南非人都不满他在如此温馨的夜晚做出如此严肃的演讲。曼德拉重申了他对斗争事业和南非非洲国民大会的忠诚，并呼吁有组织性纪律性的大规模游行。这使许多南非白人和商界人士失望之极，他们曾愚蠢地期待，曼德拉不会表现得这么好战。

　　But he also declared that President FW de Klerk was a "man of integrity", legitimating¹⁵ the Afrikaner leader in the eyes of the black majority, and thereby¹⁶ validating¹⁷ negotiations¹⁸ with the regime as the route to liberation.

　　曼德拉还宣布，德克勒克总统是一个正直的人，在许多黑人的眼里，他也是一位合法的南非白人领袖，因此，依靠谈判改变政体，甚至达到自由解放都是可行的。

　　This perplexed¹⁹ many of his young followers²⁰ who were gearing up for the final assault on the apartheid state.

　　这番讲话让许多追随他的年轻人们困惑不解，他们原本积极地准备着对南非白人制定的种族隔离政策发动最后的猛攻。

　　His voice becoming extraordinarily²¹ powerful, Mandela closed by repeating his pledge from the Rivonia dock, before he was taken off to life imprisonment²² on Robben Island, that he was prepared to die in the struggle against white and black domination.

　　曼德拉的声音变得格外的有力，他反复以在尼沃利亚作出的保证来结尾，在他被带到罗本岛被判处无期徒刑之前，他曾做好赴死的准备和白人政权以及白人对黑人的支配抗争到底。

　　Remembering the euphoria of that night, where Mandela stood tall, reunited with his wife and family, and ready to start building the new South Africa, we could not have known that it would take four more years and many thousands of deaths to reach the promised land.

　　请记住那一晚曼德拉带给我们的欣慰，当这位伟人昂首挺胸，和他的妻儿团聚之时，他也着手开始构建新的南非。我们当时并不知道，要达到这个希望之乡还要花费四年的时间，并需要千万的进步人士为之献身。

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 ironies   

n.反语( irony的名词复数 )；冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事；嘲弄

参考例句：

• It was one of life's little ironies. 那是生活中的一个小小的嘲弄。
• History has many ironies. 历史有许多具有讽刺意味的事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 triumphant   

adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的

参考例句：

• The army made a triumphant entry into the enemy's capital.部队胜利地进入了敌方首都。
• There was a positively triumphant note in her voice.她的声音里带有一种极为得意的语气。

4 clenched   

v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He clenched his fists in anger. 他愤怒地攥紧了拳头。
• She clenched her hands in her lap to hide their trembling. 她攥紧双手放在腿上，以掩饰其颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 salutes   

n.致敬，欢迎，敬礼( salute的名词复数 )v.欢迎，致敬( salute的第三人称单数 )；赞扬，赞颂

参考例句：

• Poulengey salutes, and stands at the door awaiting orders. 波仑日行礼，站在门口听侯命令。 来自辞典例句
• A giant of the world salutes you. 一位世界的伟人向你敬礼呢。 来自辞典例句

6 belied   

v.掩饰( belie的过去式和过去分词 )；证明（或显示）…为虚假；辜负；就…扯谎

参考例句：

• His bluff exterior belied a connoisseur of antiques. 他作风粗放，令人看不出他是古董鉴赏家。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Her smile belied her true feelings. 她的微笑掩饰了她的真实感情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

8 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

9 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

10 chagrin   

n.懊恼；气愤；委屈

参考例句：

• His increasingly visible chagrin sets up a vicious circle.他的明显的不满引起了一种恶性循环。
• Much to his chagrin,he did not win the race.使他大为懊恼的是他赛跑没获胜。

11 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

12 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

13 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。

14 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

15 legitimating   

v.合情合理的( legitimate的现在分词 )；合法的；法律认可的；法定的

参考例句：

• The role of Parliament became one of legitimating the measures put before it. 国会的一项职能是使提交的法案正式成为法律。 来自互联网

16 thereby   

adv.因此，从而

参考例句：

• I have never been to that city,,ereby I don't know much about it.我从未去过那座城市，因此对它不怎么熟悉。
• He became a British citizen,thereby gaining the right to vote.他成了英国公民，因而得到了投票权。

17 validating   

v.证实( validate的现在分词 )；确证；使生效；使有法律效力

参考例句：

• His politics at home were validating his efforts in the hemisphere. 他的国内政策也有效地支持了他对本半球所做的努力。 来自辞典例句
• A number of different experimental approaches have aided in validating the concept. 许多不同的实验方法，有助于确证这种概念。 来自辞典例句

18 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

19 perplexed   

adj.不知所措的

参考例句：

• The farmer felt the cow,went away,returned,sorely perplexed,always afraid of being cheated.那农民摸摸那头牛，走了又回来，犹豫不决，总怕上当受骗。
• The child was perplexed by the intricate plot of the story.这孩子被那头绪纷繁的故事弄得迷惑不解。

20 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

21 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

22 imprisonment   

n.关押，监禁，坐牢

参考例句：

• His sentence was commuted from death to life imprisonment.他的判决由死刑减为无期徒刑。
• He was sentenced to one year's imprisonment for committing bigamy.他因为犯重婚罪被判入狱一年。