VOA常速英语2017--5月29日——美国阵亡将士纪念日

Like many nations, the United States pauses each year to honor those who died in its defense¹ through military service. The custom is an ancient one, recalling a speech by the Athenian statesman Pericles that the casualties of war are worthy² men and the living need not have a more heroic spirit.

和很多国家一样，美国每年都会纪念那些在参军期间为保卫祖国而阵亡的将士。这个惯例由来已久，正是应了雅典政治家伯里克利的那番话——为战伤亡的人们都值得我们敬仰，对于生者来说，没有比他们更英勇的灵魂。

On Monday, May 29, Memorial Day, in communities across America, there will be speeches striking similar themes and a moment of silence will be observed. Like the poppies in Flanders Fields, small flags will be seen among the graves in the nation's many military cemeteries³ and the families of the fallen will stop to remember.

5月29日的周一是阵亡将士纪念日，整个美洲大陆上都回荡着类似主题的演说，震人心弦，人们会为纪念这一天而默哀。正如诗作《在佛兰德斯战场》中所描述的罂粟地场景那样，无数美国将士的墓地里屹立着一面面小旗帜，逝者的家人驻足悼念。

Beyond mere⁴ ceremony, the day represents a debt paid by the living to those Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure their country's freedom. Some died in battle, some of disease. Others were lost in foreign prisons and never returned. Most died very young, defending their nation's ideals and liberties perhaps even before they had much of a chance to fully⁵ appreciate them. Hundreds of thousands died fighting to make others free too, in North Africa, Europe, the Pacific, Asia and the Middle East.

这一天不仅是一个仪式，它还代表着生者对逝者的补偿，因为这些逝者做了至高无上的牺牲，以确保美国能够自由。他们中的一些人死于战场，一些死于疾病。还有一些人客死他乡牢狱，遗体也未能回归祖国的怀抱。他们大多数人英年早逝，只为捍卫祖国的理想和自由，甚至可能自己还未尝能够充分地亲身体会到这一切。还有很多将士是为其他国家的人争取自由而战死在北非、欧洲、亚太、中东地区。

Memorial Day honors no single battle or war. Its meaning transcends⁶ heroic monuments. Rather, it is the recognition by a grateful nation that lives and blood lost in defense of its freedoms are never given in vain.

阵亡将士纪念日并非铭记战争的日子。它的意义超越了任何英雄纪念碑。实际上，它是一个有感恩之心的国家的一种精神高度，即为捍卫自由而陨落的生命洒下的热血终将实现其价值。

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

3 cemeteries   

n.（非教堂的）墓地，公墓( cemetery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It's morbid to dwell on cemeteries and such like. 不厌其烦地谈论墓地以及诸如此类的事是一种病态。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• In other districts the proximity of cemeteries seemed to aggravate the disease. 在其它地区里，邻近墓地的地方，时疫大概都要严重些。 来自辞典例句

4 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 transcends   

超出或超越（经验、信念、描写能力等）的范围( transcend的第三人称单数 )； 优于或胜过…

参考例句：

• The chemical dilution technique transcends most of the difficulties. 化学稀释法能克服大部分困难。
• The genius of Shakespeare transcends that of all other English poets. 莎士比亚的才华胜过所有的其他英国诗人。