精美英文欣赏:作者自述 The Author's Account of Himself（在线收听）

The Author's Account of Himself

作者自述

This rambling propensity strengthened with my years.

寒来暑往，年岁渐增，游兴愈浓。

Books of voyages and travels became my passion,and in devouring their contents,

我对游记类的书籍爱不释手，如饥似渴、狼吞虎咽地阅读这些书，

I neglected the regular exercises of the school.

使我荒废了学校的正常功课。

How wistfully would I wander about the pierheads in fine weather, and watch the parting ships,bound to distant climes-with what longing eyes would I gaze after their lessening sails,and waft myself in imagination to the ends of the earth!

在风和日丽的日子，我常若有所思地游荡在码头外边，望着轮船渐渐离港，驶往遥远的地方；我渴望的双眼注视着渐行渐远的点点风帆，任思绪将我带向天涯海角。

Further reading and thinking,

随着涉猎的书籍增多和思想的越发成熟，

though they brought this vague inclination into more reasonable bounds,only served to make it more decided.

这一懵懵懂懂的嗜好变得较为理智一些，但是也更为根深蒂固。

I visited various parts of my own country;

我踏遍了本国的山山水水；

and had I been merely a lover of fine scenery,I should have felt little desire to seek elsewhere its gratification,for on no country have the charms of nature been more prodigally lavished.

倘若仅仅是喜爱美景佳色而已，我就不会有去异国他乡一饱眼福的欲望，因为没有哪个国度能像我的祖国那样得到大自然的垂青厚爱，处处皆是鬼斧神工的迷人风光。

Her mighty lakes, like oceans of liquid silver;

浩淼的湖泊，如同银色的海洋，浩浩荡荡；

her mountains, with their bright aerial tints;

逶迤的群山，高耸云霄、郁郁葱葱、光彩夺目；

her valleys, teeming with wild fertility;

幽幽的溪谷，草木丛生，飞禽走兽匿迹其间；

her tremendous cataracts, thundering in their solitudes;

宽阔的瀑布，飞流直下，发出孤寂的雷鸣；

her boundless plains, waving with spontaneous verdure;

苍茫的原野，草青木翠、随风摇曳；

her broad deep rivers, rolling in solemn silence to the ocean;

长江大川，水阔流深，肃穆无声，奔流入海；

her trackless forests,where vegetation puts forth all its magnificence;

人迹罕至的森林，各色植物争奇斗艳，蔚为大观；

her skies, kindling with the magic of summer clouds and glorious sunshine-no, never need an American look beyond his own countryfor the sublime and beautiful of natural scenery.

夏日的长空，艳阳高照、云蒸霞蔚，变幻莫测—不，一个美国人根本无须远游故土之外去发现壮丽的自然风景。