2006年VOA标准英语-Fidel Castro - A Profile

By Bill Rodgers
Washington
01 August 2006

Fidel Castro Ruz was born August 13, 1926, on a sugar plantation¹ in eastern Cuba, the son of a Spanish immigrant landholder and a household servant. An intellectually gifted student, he attended Jesuit schools and later enrolled² at the University of Havana where he received a law degree and also became active in politics. A powerful and charismatic speaker, he soon emerged as one of the leaders in the growing movement against the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista.

Cuban President Fidel Castro, speaks in Havana, September 9, 2002 (File photo)  
  
By the late 1950's, Mr. Castro was leading a large guerrilla force based in Cuba's Sierra Maestra Mountains, in the southeastern part of the country. Victory over Batista's forces finally came in January 1959, and his victorious³ guerrillas, many of them bearded and wearing fatigues⁴, marched into Havana.

His victory and triumphant⁵ entry into the Cuban capital captured the world's attention. He soon steered⁶ the country toward communism - collectivizing farms and nationalizing banks and industries, including more than $1 billion worth of U.S. properties. Political liberties were suspended and government critics jailed.

Frank Calzon, a Cuban pro-democracy activist⁷, says many of his one-time supporters became disillusioned⁸ and fled the island. "He is a man who made a lot of promises to the Cuban people. Cubans were going to have freedom. They were going to have honest government," said Calzon. "They were going to have a return to the constitution," said Calzon. "Instead, what he gave them was a Stalinist type of government."

Mr. Castro fostered a close alliance with the Soviet⁹ Union, a policy that put Cuba on a collision course with the United States. Washington imposed a trade embargo¹⁰ against Cuba in 1960 and broke off diplomatic relations in early 1961.

In April of that year, the United States armed and directed a poorly-planned invasion by Cuban exiles, which was easily defeated at the Bay of Pigs. One year later, Cuba was at the center of a confrontation¹² between Washington and Moscow over the placement of Soviet nuclear missiles on the island. A nuclear war was narrowly averted¹³.

Following the Cuban missile crisis, Mr. Castro built up his armed forces and sent his troops around the globe to various Cold War hotspots, such as Angola. He also supported leftist guerrilla movements in Latin America in the 1960's and 70's in an attempt to spread communism in the hemisphere.

Former U.S. diplomat¹¹ and Cuba expert Wayne Smith says Mr. Castro's actions turned Cuba into an international player. "I think he will be remembered as the leader who put Cuba on the world map," said Smith. "Before Castro, Cuba was considered something of a banana republic. It did not count for anything in world politics. Castro certainly changed all that, and suddenly Cuba was playing a major role on the world stage, in Africa as an ally of the Soviet Union, in Asia, and certainly in Latin America."

At the same time, Mr. Castro established a health care and education system that lifted Cuba among the top nations in the developing world for high literacy rates and low infant mortality. These programs succeeded in large part because of financial support from Moscow. By the time the Soviet Union collapsed¹⁴ in the early 1990's, Cuba had been receiving up to $6 billion a year in Soviet subsidies¹⁵.

These achievements in social welfare came at the cost of human rights and democracy. Dissidents were thrown in jail and those who protested were often assaulted by pro-government mobs. "Fidel Castro kept power through fear, through the use of the secret police, through manipulating political forces, just like Stalin did or just like Hitler did," said Calzon.

The disappearance¹⁶ of Soviet subsidies in the early 1990's plunged¹⁷ Cuba into a deep depression and forced the government to enact¹⁸ some limited economic reforms, such as legalizing the use of the dollar and allowing tiny private businesses like restaurants to operate. But Mr. Castro resisted even these small steps toward a free market system and clamped down once the immediate¹⁹ economic crisis was over. He blamed Cuba's economic troubles on the U.S. trade embargo and often presided over anti-American rallies in Havana to denounce the United States.

In his later years, Mr. Castro cultivated a strong friendship and alliance with Venezuela's leftist president, Hugo Chavez. Together, the two men worked to counter U.S. influence in Latin America - and met some success in mobilizing anti-American sentiment in the hemisphere.

Another Cuba specialist, Thomas Paterson of the University of Connecticut, compares Mr. Castro to Chinese leader Mao Zedong, and believes he will be remembered this way.

"I think he will be remembered much as Mao Zedong is remembered in China as one who overthrew²⁰ a corrupt²¹, dictatorial²² system, who embodied²³ the identity of his nation, who pushed out foreigners," said Paterson. "At the same time, as is the case of the Chinese critique of Mao today, there will be a criticism of him as authoritarian²⁴, repressive and having imposed incredible sacrifices on the Cuban people."

1 plantation   

n.种植园，大农场

参考例句：

• His father-in-law is a plantation manager.他岳父是个种植园经营者。
• The plantation owner has possessed himself of a vast piece of land.这个种植园主把大片土地占为己有。

2 enrolled   

adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起

参考例句：

• They have been studying hard from the moment they enrolled. 从入学时起，他们就一直努力学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He enrolled with an employment agency for a teaching position. 他在职业介绍所登了记以谋求一个教师的职位。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 victorious   

adj.胜利的，得胜的

参考例句：

• We are certain to be victorious.我们定会胜利。
• The victorious army returned in triumph.获胜的部队凯旋而归。

4 fatigues   

n.疲劳( fatigue的名词复数 )；杂役；厌倦；（士兵穿的）工作服

参考例句：

• The patient fatigues easily. 病人容易疲劳。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Instead of training the men were put on fatigues/fatigue duty. 那些士兵没有接受训练，而是派去做杂务。 来自辞典例句

5 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。

6 steered   

v.驾驶( steer的过去式和过去分词 )；操纵；控制；引导

参考例句：

• He steered the boat into the harbour. 他把船开进港。
• The freighter steered out of Santiago Bay that evening. 那天晚上货轮驶出了圣地亚哥湾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

8 disillusioned   

a.不再抱幻想的，大失所望的，幻想破灭的

参考例句：

• I soon became disillusioned with the job. 我不久便对这个工作不再抱幻想了。
• Many people who are disillusioned in reality assimilate life to a dream. 许多对现实失望的人把人生比作一场梦。

9 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。

10 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

11 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

12 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

13 averted   

防止，避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 )； 转移

参考例句：

• A disaster was narrowly averted. 及时防止了一场灾难。
• Thanks to her skilful handling of the affair, the problem was averted. 多亏她对事情处理得巧妙，才避免了麻烦。

14 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

15 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 disappearance   

n.消失，消散，失踪

参考例句：

• He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。
• Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。

17 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

18 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

19 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

20 overthrew   

overthrow的过去式

参考例句：

• The people finally rose up and overthrew the reactionary regime. 人们终于起来把反动的政权推翻了。
• They overthrew their King. 他们推翻了国王。

21 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

22 dictatorial   

adj. 独裁的，专断的

参考例句：

• Her father is very dictatorial.她父亲很专横。
• For years the nation had been under the heel of a dictatorial regime.多年来这个国家一直在独裁政权的铁蹄下。

23 embodied   

v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 )；象征；包括；包含

参考例句：

• a politician who embodied the hopes of black youth 代表黑人青年希望的政治家
• The heroic deeds of him embodied the glorious tradition of the troops. 他的英雄事迹体现了军队的光荣传统。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。