2006年VOA标准英语-Dodona Manor – Former Home of General George Ma

By Liu Enming
Leesburg, Virginia
28 November 2006
 
watch Dodona Manor¹ report

In the quaint², historic town of Leesburg, in the eastern state of Virginia lies Dodona Manor, home to one of the most significant figures in the 20th century, a man who helped rebuild Europe after World War II.  For producer Liu Enming, VOA's Elaine Lu takes a look at the House of General George Marshall.

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Dodona Manor
Dodona Manor was home to a man Winston Churchill cited as the greatest American of the 20th Century - George Marshall.   He was said to have personified America's transformation³ from small-town insularity⁴ to global prominence⁵. 

During his career Marshall served in two World Wars, and under eight U.S. presidents. He was the only professional soldier to have been awarded the Nobel Prize - in 1953. 

 
George Marshall
But Rachael Thompson, the Education Director at Dodona Manor, says Marshall is perhaps best remembered for the plan he helped to develop and implement⁶ in his role as U.S. Secretary of State in the Truman administration in 1947 - the Marshall Plan for European reconstruction⁷ after World War II.

"People in Europe remember him for that,” says Thompson. “We open our door to guests here - to Dodona Manor - we have people who come from Germany, we have people who come from the Netherlands, from European countries that were recipients⁸ of the Marshall Plan.  They come into this house, with tears in their eyes. They say we would not have survived without the Marshall Plan, and that makes us feel that he was America's hero to the world."

Born in Uniontown, in the eastern state of Pennsylvania in 1880, Marshall went on to become a soldier and statesman who, Thompson says, left an indelible mark on American history. 

 
Marshall (l) with President Harry⁹ Truman
"He graduated from VMI [Virginia Military Institute] and after he graduated he took the test to get his commission into the United States Army.  On September 1, 1939, he became the U.S. Army's Chief of Staff, which meant that he controls [oversaw] the entire United States Army, quite a hefty task during World War II.   And in 1944, he became a five star general, one of very few."

At the height of his career, amidst all the attention, George Marshall and his wife Katherine were seeking a place of repose¹⁰.  Kristie Lalire, the Assistant Director at Dodona Manor, explains. "Mrs. Marshall felt like they were sort of living in a fish bowl, they really did not have a lot of privacy, so they were looking for a place just to get away a little bit, maybe on the weekend some place to [go]."

Katherine Marshall found their Leesburg home in the foothills of the Blue Ridge¹¹ Mountains in 1941. 

Kristie Lalire guides the tour of the house. "We are standing¹² in the hallway of the Marshall's house Dodona Manor,” she tells visitors. “It's an 18th century house with two later 19th century additions. This hallway is very typical of the federal style of architecture where you have the center hallway with parlors¹³ on either side."

From the layout of the furniture to wallpaper color and design, everything in the house was restored faithfully to its original design.  

 
Marshall's bedroom at Dodona Manor was furnished simply
To preserve Marshall's legacy¹⁴, The George C. Marshall International Foundation started a four-phase restoration project in 1999.   The project started with exterior¹⁵ stabilization¹⁶ and restoration, and moved on to the interior restoration, such as re-engineering the floor in the dining room to accommodate the many daily visitors to the house.

Here, Lalire says, visitors get a glimpse of Marshall's low-profile life style from his bedroom, the smallest in the house with very simple furnishings. "He did not require very much in order to live, we have only one major piece of furniture, besides the bed, this is a 'chiffonier’ [chest of drawers], where he kept his shirts."

In her memoir¹⁷, "Together", Katherine Marshall recalled her husband returning from war-torn Europe to Dodona Manor after World War II, saying, "This is home, a real home after 41 years of wandering."

Marshall had two favorites at Dodona Manor - the garden and a library, where he spent many a quiet moment pondering matters of international significance.

Now, nearly a half century after this statesman pondered the world from a weathered bench, Marshall's legacy lingers, just like the scent¹⁸ from the blooming garden of honeysuckle.

1 manor   

n.庄园，领地

参考例句：

• The builder of the manor house is a direct ancestor of the present owner.建造这幢庄园的人就是它现在主人的一个直系祖先。
• I am not lord of the manor,but its lady.我并非此地的领主，而是这儿的女主人。

2 quaint   

adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的

参考例句：

• There were many small lanes in the quaint village.在这古香古色的村庄里，有很多小巷。
• They still keep some quaint old customs.他们仍然保留着一些稀奇古怪的旧风俗。

3 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

4 insularity   

n.心胸狭窄；孤立；偏狭；岛国根性

参考例句：

• But at least they have started to break out of their old insularity.但是他们至少已经开始打破过去孤立保守的心态。
• It was a typical case of British chauvinism and insularity.这是典型的英国沙文主义和偏狭心理的事例。

5 prominence   

n.突出；显著；杰出；重要

参考例句：

• He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
• This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。

6 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

7 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

8 recipients   

adj.接受的；受领的；容纳的；愿意接受的n.收件人；接受者；受领者；接受器

参考例句：

• The recipients of the prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者的姓名登在报上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The recipients of prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者名单登在报上。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

9 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

10 repose   

v.(使)休息；n.安息

参考例句：

• Don't disturb her repose.不要打扰她休息。
• Her mouth seemed always to be smiling,even in repose.她的嘴角似乎总是挂着微笑，即使在睡眠时也是这样。

11 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

12 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

13 parlors   

客厅( parlor的名词复数 )； 起居室； （旅馆中的）休息室； （通常用来构成合成词）店

参考例句：

• It had been a firm specializing in funeral parlors and parking lots. 它曾经是一个专门经营殡仪馆和停车场的公司。
• I walked, my eyes focused into the endless succession of barbershops, beauty parlors, confectioneries. 我走着，眼睛注视着那看不到头的、鳞次栉比的理发店、美容院、糖果店。

14 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

15 exterior   

adj.外部的，外在的；表面的

参考例句：

• The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
• We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。

16 Stabilization   

稳定化

参考例句：

• The position of barycentre on plane directly impacts the stabilization and manipulation of plane. 飞机重心位置直接影响飞机的稳定和操纵特性。
• With the higher olefins, stabilization of the energetic intermediates occurs more easily. 在较高的烯烃情况下，高能的中间物稳定作用更易出现。

17 memoir   

n.[pl.]回忆录，自传；记事录

参考例句：

• He has just published a memoir in honour of his captain.他刚刚出了一本传记来纪念他的队长。
• In her memoir,the actress wrote about the bittersweet memories of her first love.在那个女演员的自传中，她写到了自己苦乐掺半的初恋。

18 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。