一路玫瑰

 　　Roses, Roses, All the way

　　Martha Duffy

　　It has now been five years since Margaret Thatcher¹ resigned as Britain’s Prime Minister. In her heyday² she strode the international headlines with such bravura³ that she seemed inevitable⁴, a natural force. The world stage seemed just the right size for her, as she chaffed her conservative soul mate Ronald Reagan or flattered the “new man”, Mikhail Gorbachev.

　　Now the political world has begun to focus on the immensity of her achievement. How on earth did she manage to get there? She was elected to Parliament at 32 in 1958 (five years before the Feminine Mystique was published). She parried her way through the complacent⁵, male-dominated councils of power—no woman had ever roiled⁶ those waters. Couldn’t the old boys see her coming? After all, there was nothing subtle about her personality or her approach.

　　As The Path to Power the second volume of her autobiography⁷, makes clear, Thatcher was probably too simple and direct for the Tories, with their heavy baggage of class and compromise. She traveled light, proud of her roots as a grocer’s daughter from the small town of Grantham but never tethered by working-class resentments⁸ or delusions⁹ of inferiority. Her parents taught her the verities¹⁰ they believed in: Methodism, hard work, thrift¹¹ and the importance of the individual. She has never wavered from them, and they run through the book.

　　“Nothing in our house was wasted.” Or, “I had less leisure time than other children.” These are boasts of a childhood recalled in tranquility. Late they became a philosophy: “Being conservative is never merely a matter of income, but a whole way of life, a will to take responsibility for oneself.”

　　From the start, she notes almost with bemusement, there was a contrast between her own “executive style” and her colleagues’ “more consultive style.” Thatcher laid down the law. In her 11-year leadership, she broke the crippling power of British unions, made many thousands of her countrymen homeowners, strengthened British ties with the U.S. and the Soviet¹² Union and gave voice to Britain’s reluctance¹³ about joining Europe, a reluctance that still plagues her successor, John Major.

　　The Downing Street Years, the first volume of her memoirs¹⁴, covered her time in power. This one is more interesting and better fun, a formidable leader looking back on her early winning battles. She is known now as the Iron Lady, but as a pretty, naive¹⁵ young pol who cut through cant¹⁶, prevarication¹⁷ and some very real problems, she must have been exhilarating. Her rise, as she once described the star-is-born press coverage¹⁸ that greeted her maiden¹⁹ speech in commons, was “roses, roses all the way.”

　　In a final section on the ‘90s political scene, she calls for renewed dedication²⁰ to her principles. The imperiled John Major cannot take comfort in the timing²¹ of The Path to Power. Thatcher has relentlessly²² flogged the book in Britain and the U.S., giving TV interviews that scourge²³ what she sees as the collapse²⁴ of her country’s leadership. The one thing she doesn’t say is that as this old century draws to a close, there simply aren’t that many leaders. Thatcher was one.

　　一路玫瑰

　　马落·达菲

　　马格丽特·撒切尔从英国首相位置上退下来已经五年了。在她（政治生涯）的鼎盛时期，她以光彩照人的风格而成为国际上的新闻人物，她好像必然如此，她是一股自然的力量。在她跟她的的保守的精神伙伴罗纳德·里根打趣时，或是在奉承新人米哈伊尔·戈尔巴乔夫时，这个世界看来恰好是适合她驰骋的舞台。

　　现在政界开始关注她辉煌的政绩。她到底是如何进入政界的呢？1958年（《女性的奥秘》发表前五年）她三十二岁时被选进议会。她左挡右闪闯进了那些由自满的男人控制的权力机构—过去还不曾有妇人到那里去搅和过。难道那些老家伙们没看见她到来吗？她的性格和手法毕竟没有什么微妙之处。

　　正如她的第二本自传《通往权力的路》清楚指明的那样，对于那阶级意识很强、善于折中的英国保守党员，也许撒切尔过于简单，过于直来直去。她没有负担。她以自己是格兰瑟姆小镇一个杂货商的女儿而感到自豪，但她没有被劳动阶级因为地位低下而产生的怨恨或煽惑所束缚。她的父母教她懂得了他们所信仰的真理：卫斯理派，刻苦，节俭，以及个人的重要性。对于这些信仰，她从未动摇过。这些内容贯穿着全书。

　　“我们家从不浪费任何东西。”或者是，“我的闲暇时间比别的孩子们都少。”这是在生活平静下来以后回忆童年时颇具自豪的语言。后来这些信仰变成了一种哲学：“信仰保守决不仅仅是收入问题，而完全是一种生活方式，一种自己勇于承担责任的意志。”

　　一开始，她几乎是带着一种困惑注意到，她自己的“施政风格”和她的同僚的“更喜欢磋商的风格”形成鲜明的对照。撒切尔一人说了算。在她长达十一年的执政期间，她削弱了英国工会的破坏力，使成千上万的同胞有了自己的住宅，加强了英国与美国和苏联的关系，并且明确表示了英国不加入欧洲，她的这个意见至今仍在烦扰着她的继承人约翰·梅杰。

　　她的第一本自传《唐宁街的岁月》记录了她的执政历程。而这一本更有意思，一个令人敬佩的领导人回顾她早年所打的一个又一个的胜仗。她现在以“铁娘子”著称，可是作为一个漂亮、天真、年轻的政治家，在虚伪和含糊其辞的人们中间以及问题成灾的地方披荆斩棘，她一定令人感到兴奋。新闻界在报道她第一次在下院发表学说时，对其表示了赞许，说她是一颗已经诞生的新星；正像撒切尔在描述这一报道时说，她是沿着一条“铺满玫瑰的路”冉冉升起的。

　　在最后一部分谈及九十年代世界政局时，她号召人们重新献身她的原则。《通往权力的路》在这个时候出版，身陷困境的约翰·梅杰是不会感到舒服的。撒切尔毫不客气地在英国和美国销售此书，同时接受电视台采访，起到了鞭笞在她看来摇摇欲坠的英国领导的作用。有一件事她没有明说，在本世纪即将结束的时候，根本就找不出那么多领导人。而撒切尔是一个。

1 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

2 heyday   

n.全盛时期，青春期

参考例句：

• The 19th century was the heyday of steam railways.19世纪是蒸汽机车鼎盛的时代。
• She was a great singer in her heyday.她在自己的黄金时代是个了不起的歌唱家。

3 bravura   

n.华美的乐曲；勇敢大胆的表现；adj.壮勇华丽的

参考例句：

• The music ends with a display of bravura.音乐以一段壮丽的乐章结束。
• This picture has a bravura of execution.这幅画作风大胆。

4 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

5 complacent   

adj.自满的；自鸣得意的

参考例句：

• We must not become complacent the moment we have some success.我们决不能一见成绩就自满起来。
• She was complacent about her achievements.她对自己的成绩沾沾自喜。

6 roiled   

v.搅混（液体）( roil的过去式和过去分词 )；使烦恼；使不安；使生气

参考例句：

• American society is being roiled by the controversy over homosexual marriage. 当今美国社会正被有关同性恋婚姻的争论搞得不得安宁。 来自互联网
• In the past few months, instability has roiled Tibet and Tibetan-inhabited areas. 在过去的几个月里，西藏和藏人居住区不稳定。 来自互联网

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 resentments   

（因受虐待而）愤恨，不满，怨恨( resentment的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He could never transcend his resentments and his complexes. 他从来不能把他的怨恨和感情上的症结置之度外。
• These local resentments burst into open revolt. 地方性反感变成公开暴动。

9 delusions   

n.欺骗( delusion的名词复数 )；谬见；错觉；妄想

参考例句：

• the delusions of the mentally ill 精神病患者的妄想
• She wants to travel first-class: she must have delusions of grandeur. 她想坐头等舱旅行，她一定自以为很了不起。 来自辞典例句

10 verities   

n.真实( verity的名词复数 )；事实；真理；真实的陈述

参考例句：

• the eternal verities of life 生命永恒的真理

11 thrift   

adj.节约，节俭；n.节俭，节约

参考例句：

• He has the virtues of thrift and hard work.他具备节俭和勤奋的美德。
• His thrift and industry speak well for his future.他的节俭和勤勉预示着他美好的未来。

12 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

13 reluctance   

n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿

参考例句：

• The police released Andrew with reluctance.警方勉强把安德鲁放走了。
• He showed the greatest reluctance to make a reply.他表示很不愿意答复。

14 memoirs   

n.回忆录；回忆录传( mem,自oir的名词复数)

参考例句：

• Her memoirs were ghostwritten. 她的回忆录是由别人代写的。
• I watched a trailer for the screenplay of his memoirs. 我看过以他的回忆录改编成电影的预告片。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 naive   

adj.幼稚的，轻信的；天真的

参考例句：

• It's naive of you to believe he'll do what he says.相信他会言行一致，你未免太单纯了。
• Don't be naive.The matter is not so simple.你别傻乎乎的。事情没有那么简单。

16 cant   

n.斜穿，黑话，猛扔

参考例句：

• The ship took on a dangerous cant to port.船只出现向左舷危险倾斜。
• He knows thieves'cant.他懂盗贼的黑话。

17 prevarication   

n.支吾；搪塞；说谎；有枝有叶

参考例句：

• The longer negotiations drag on, the greater the risk of permanent prevarication. 谈判拖延的时间越久，长期推诿责任的可能性就越大。 来自互联网
• The result can be a lot of needless prevarication. 结果就是带来一堆的借口。 来自互联网

18 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

19 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

20 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。

21 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

22 relentlessly   

adv.不屈不挠地；残酷地；不间断

参考例句：

• The African sun beat relentlessly down on his aching head. 非洲的太阳无情地照射在他那发痛的头上。
• He pursued her relentlessly, refusing to take 'no' for an answer. 他锲而不舍地追求她，拒不接受“不”的回答。

23 scourge   

n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏

参考例句：

• Smallpox was once the scourge of the world.天花曾是世界的大患。
• The new boss was the scourge of the inefficient.新老板来了以后，不称职的人就遭殃了。

24 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。