英语一2005年Text4解析

发布时间:2019-06-29 23:06:31   来源:自考网
①Americans no longer expect public figures, whether in speech or in writing, tocommandthe English language with skill and gift.②Nor do theyaspireto such command themselves.③In his latest book,Doing Our Own Thing: The Degradation of Language and Music and Why We Should, Like, Care, John McWhorter, a linguist and controversialist of mixedliberalandconservativeviews, sees thetriumphof 1960scounter-cultureas responsible for thedeclineof formal English.

【重点词汇】
1. command:动词,“掌握”
2. aspire:动词,“渴望”
3. liberal:形容词,“自由的”
4. conservative:形容词,“保守的”
5. triumph:名词,“胜利”
6. counter-culture:名词,“反文化”
7. decline:名词,“衰退”

【背景知识】
反文化运动是指60年代发生在美国社会的抗议运动,既包括校园民主运动、妇女解放运动、黑人民权运动、反战和平运动、环境保护运动、同性恋者权利运动等方面的政治“革命”,也包括摇滚乐、性解放、吸毒、嬉皮文化,及神秘主义和自我主义的复兴等方面的文化“革命”。
【段落翻译】
美国人已不再期待公众人物在演讲或写作中能运用技巧和天赋来驾驭英语,而公众人物自己也不渴望这样。语言学家和辩论家麦克沃特的观点混杂着自由派与保守派的看法。在他最近的书《做我们自己的事:语言和音乐的退化,以及我们为什么要在乎这样的事情》中,这位学者认为60年代反文化运动的胜利要为正式英语的衰退负责。
①Blaming thepermissive1960s is nothing new, but this is not yet another criticism against the decline in education.②Mr. McWhorter’s academicspecialityis language history and change, and he sees thegradualdisappearance of “whom”, for example, to be natural and no moreregrettablethan the loss of the case-endings of Old English.
【重点词汇】
1. permissive:形容词,“放任的”
2. speciality:名词,“专业”
3. gradual:形容词,“逐渐的”
4. regrettable:形容词,“令人遗憾的”
【难句分析】
Mr. McWhorter’s academic speciality is language history and change, and he sees the gradual disappearance of “whom”, for example, to be natural and no more regrettable than the loss of the case-endings of Old English.
1. see…to be...:认为…是…
2. A is no more+形容词+than B: A和B都不…
e.g. Tom is no more careful than me.
Tom和我一样,都不仔细。
麦克沃特先生专长于语言史和语言变迁。比如说,他认为“whom”一词的逐渐消失是自然的,这和古英语中词格尾缀的消失一样,都不是令人惋惜的事。
【段落翻译】
责备放纵的六十年代并不鲜见,但这次并不是对教育退步的又一场批判。麦克沃特先生专长于语言史和语言变迁。比如,他认为“whom”一词的逐渐消失是自然的,这和古英语中词格尾缀的消失一样,都不是令人惋惜的事。
①But thecultof theauthenticand the personal, “doing our own thing”, hasspeltthe death of formal speech, writing, poetry and music.②While even themodestlyeducated sought anelevatedtonewhen they put pen to paper before the 1960s, even the mostwell regardedwriting since then has sought tocapturespoken English on the page.③Equally, in poetry, the highly personal, performativegenreis the only form that could claim real liveliness.④In both oral and written English, talking is triumphing over speaking,spontaneityovercraft.
【重点词汇】
1. cult:名词,“狂热”
2. authentic:形容词,“真实的”
3. spelt:动词,“导致”(spelt是spell的过去分词)
4. modestly:副词,“适当地”
5. elevated:形容词,“高尚的”
6. tone:名词,“语气”
7. well regarded:形容词,“受好评的”
8. capture:动词,“捕捉”
9. genre:名词,“体裁”
10. spontaneity:名词,“自发性”
11. craft:名词,“精心雕刻”
【段落翻译】
然而,“做自己的事”这一崇尚真实和个性化的时尚,造成了正式演讲、写作、诗歌及音乐的消亡。在20世纪60年代以前,仅受过一般教育的人在下笔时都会寻求一种更高雅的腔调;而那之后,即使是最受好评的文章也开始逮住口语就写在纸面上。同样的,对于诗歌来说,非常个性化和富有表现力的创作风格成为了能够表达真实生动含义的唯一形式。无论作为口语还是书面语的英语,随意言谈胜过雅致的言辞,自我发挥也压过了精心准备。
①Illustrated withanentertainingarray ofexamples from both high and low culture, the trend that Mr. McWhorterdocumentsis unmistakable.②But it is less clear, to take the question of his subtitle, why we should, like, care.③As a linguist, he acknowledges that all varieties of human language, including non-standard ones like Black English, can be powerfullyexpressive—there exists no language ordialectin the world that cannot conveycomplexideas.④He is not arguing, as many do, that we can no longerthink straightbecause we do not talkproper.
【重点词汇】
1. an array of:大量
2. document:动词,“记录”
3. expressive:形容词,“有表现的”
4. dialect:名词,“方言”
5. complex:形容词,“复杂的”
6. think straight:清晰地思考
7. proper:形容词,“恰当的”
【段落翻译】
麦克沃特先生从上层和下层文化中列举了一系列有趣的例子,从而说明他记录的这种趋势是确凿无误的。但就书中副标题中的疑问“我们为什么要在乎(这样变化趋势)”,答案却不够明确。作为语言学家,麦克沃特认为各种各样的人类语言,包括像黑人语言这样的非标准语言,都具有强大的表达力――世上没有传达不了复杂思想的语言或方言。他并不像许多人那样,认为我们说话方式不再规范就会使我们不能够准确地思考。

①Russians have a deep love for their own language and carry large chunks of memorized poetry in their heads, while Italian politicians tend toelaboratespeech that would seem old-fashioned to most English-speakers.②Mr. McWhorter acknowledges that formal language is not strictly necessary, andproposesnoradicaleducation reforms—he is reallygrievingover the loss of something beautiful more than useful.③We now take our English “on paper plates instead of china”.④A shame, perhaps, but probably aninevitableone. (392 words)
【重点词汇】
1. elaborate:动词,“详细阐述”
2. propose:动词,“提议”
3. radical:形容词,“彻底的”
4. grieve:动词,“哀悼”
5. inevitable:形容词,“不可避免的”
【段落翻译】
俄罗斯人深爱自己的语言,并在脑海中存储了大量诗歌;而意大利的政客们往往精心准备演讲,即使这在大多数讲英语的人们眼里已经过时。麦克沃特先生认为正式语言并非不可或缺,也没有提出要进行彻底的教育改革——他其实只是为那些美好事物而不是实用品的消逝而哀叹。我们现在用“纸盘子”而非“瓷器”装着我们的英语大餐。真是惭愧啊,但是却是一种不可避免的趋势。
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