Lesson 24 Beauty美

Beauty

C. E. M. Joad ^{课文作者介绍}

• C. E. M. Joad was a British philosopher, one of Britain’s most colorful and controversial figures of the 1940s.
• He is often described as a formalist (形式主义者).

• Sometimes beauty defies description.^{美有时是无法描述的。}
• Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.^{情人眼里出西施/美在观者眼中。}

A young man sees a sunset and, unable to understand or to express the emotion that it rouses in him, concludes that it must be the gateway to a world that lies beyond.

rouse ^{唤醒/激起（某种情感）}

• A persistent ringing roused her from a sweet dream.^{一阵持续的铃声将她从甜美的梦中唤醒。}
• The sunset rouses an emotion in him that he cannot express.^{日落在他心中激起了一种他无法表达的情感。}
• The speech was intended to rouse the passion of the audience.^{这次演讲旨在激起听众的热情。}

conclude ^{得出结论/使结束}

• What do you conclude from the evidence?^{你从这些证据中得出什么结论？}
• The young man concludes that it must be the gateway to another world.^{这个年轻人断定它必定是通往另一个世界的门户。}
• We will conclude the rally with the national anthem.^{我们将以国歌来结束这次集会。}

gateway to ^{通往…的门户/途径}

• Dover is England's gateway to Europe.^{多佛是英格兰通往欧洲的门户。}
• Education is the gateway to success.^{教育是通往成功的途径。}
• The sunset must be the gateway to a world that lies beyond.^{日落必定是通往一个超越此在的世界的门户。}

It is difficult for any of us in moments of intense aesthetic experience to resist the suggestion that we are catching a glimpse of a light that shines down to us from a different realm of existence, different and, because the experience is intensely moving, in some way higher.

in moments of ... ^{在…的时候}

• People need support in moments of grief.^{人们在悲伤的时候需要支持。}
• It is difficult to think clearly in moments of intense rage.^{在极度愤怒的时候很难清晰地思考。}
• It is difficult for any of us in moments of intense aesthetic experience to resist the suggestion.^{我们任何人在强烈的审美体验时刻，都很难抗拒这种联想。}

写作句型仿写 ^{对某人来说抵制…很困难}

• It is difficult for any of us in moments of ecstasy to resist the temptation of sharing it with our friends.^{无论是谁，在欣喜若狂的时候，都很难抵制与朋友们分享这种快乐的诱惑。}
• It is difficult for managers in moments of crisis to resist the pressure of making a hasty decision.^{对于管理者来说，在危机时刻很难抗拒做出仓促决定的压力。}

catch a glimpse of ^{一眼看见/无意间看见}

• I only caught a glimpse of the celebrity as she rushed past.^{她匆忙经过时，我只瞥见了那位名人一眼。}
• We are catching a glimpse of a light that shines down to us.^{我们正在瞥见一束光，它照耀着我们。}
• The vision passes before it is fully glimpsed.^{幻象在被完全瞥见之前就消失了。}

in some way / to some degree / in some measure ^{某种程度上}

• The new policy is effective in some measure.^{新政策在某种程度上是有效的。}
• He helped me in some way to complete the task.^{他在某种程度上帮助我完成了任务。}
• The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained liberation from the self.^{一个人的真正价值主要取决于他在多大程度上以及以何种方式实现了自我解放。}

And, though the gleams blind and dazzle, yet do they convey a hint of beauty and serenity greater than we have known or imagined.

blind / dazzle ^令人目眩

• The sun, glinting from the pool, dazzled / blinded me.^{阳光从水池中闪烁，使我眼花缭乱。}
• I was dazzled by her beauty.^{我被她的美貌所倾倒。}
• The gleams blind and dazzle, yet do they convey a hint of beauty.^{这些微光使人目眩神迷，但它们确实传达出一种我们未曾知晓或想象的更伟大的美和宁静。}

yet (adv.) ^{然而/但是（常用于句首加强转折）}

• It is strange, and yet it is true.^{这很奇怪，然而却是事实。}
• Though he is poor, yet he is satisfied with his situation.^{尽管他很穷，但他对自己的处境感到满意。}
• Though the gleams blind and dazzle, yet do they convey a hint of beauty.^{尽管微光令人目眩，但它们确实传达出一种美和宁静。}

Greater too than we can describe; for language, which was invented to convey the meanings of this world cannot readily be fitted to the uses of another.

无法描述的表达 ^{beyond description / defy description}

• The beauty and serenity are beyond description.^{这种美和宁静是无法描述的。}
• The beauty and serenity defy description.^{这种美和宁静是无法描述的。}
• The beauty is more than words can describe.^{这种美是语言难以形容的。}

readily (adv.) ^{容易地/乐意地}

• The equipment was cheap and readily available.^{该设备价格便宜且容易获得。}
• The information is readily accessible on the Internet.^{该信息在互联网上很容易获取。}
• Language cannot readily be fitted to the uses of another world.^{语言不能轻易地被用于另一个世界的用途。}

fit A to B ^{改动A以适应B}

• A prudent man fits his standard of living to his budget.^{一个谨慎的人会根据自己的预算来调整生活标准。}
• Language cannot readily be fitted to the uses of another.^{语言不能轻易地被改动以适应另一个世界的用途。}

That all great art has this power of suggesting a world beyond is undeniable.

That... is undeniable. ^{主语从句作主语（圆周句/掉尾句）}

• That all great art has this power of suggesting a world beyond is undeniable.^{所有伟大的艺术都具有暗示一个超越此在的世界的力量，这是不可否认的。（强调句尾的 undeniable）}
• The idea that modern art can only be seen in museums is mistaken.^{认为现代艺术只能在博物馆里才能看到的想法是错误的。（强调句尾的 mistaken）}
• Although Tchaikovsky himself thought of the Pathetic Symphony as his crowning masterpiece, the premiere on October 28th 1893 in St. Petersburg proved a disappointment.^{尽管柴可夫斯基本人认为《悲怆交响曲》是他最杰出的杰作，但 1893 年 10 月 28 日在圣彼得堡的首演却证明是一个失望。（强调句尾的 disappointment）}

In some moods, nature shares it.

mood ^{情绪/心境}

• The current political mood is one of uncertainty.^{当前的政治气氛是不确定的。}
• She seems to be in a melancholy mood today.^{她今天似乎心情忧郁。}
• In some moods, nature shares this power of suggesting a world beyond.^{在某些心境下，大自然也拥有暗示一个超越此在的世界的力量。}

share ^{有同样的感情（或想法、经历等）}

• I believe my view is widely shared.^{我相信我的观点得到了广泛的认同。}
• Not everyone will share your enthusiasm for the plan.^{不是每个人都会对你的计划抱有和你一样的热情。}
• We share an interest in botany.^{我们对植物学有着共同的兴趣。}

There is no sky in June so blue that it does not point forward to a bluer, no sunset so beautiful that it does not waken the vision of a greater beauty, a vision which passes before it is fully glimpsed, and in passing leaves an indefinable longing and regret.

写作仿写 ^{没有…会…（排比句型）}

• There is no achievement so satisfying that it does not awaken the desire for a greater.^{没有一项成就是如此令人满意，以至于它不会唤醒对更大成就的渴望。}
• There is no success so great that it does not come with the challenge for an even better.^{没有一种成功是如此伟大，以至于它不会伴随着对更好成功的挑战。}

写作文法：parallelism ^{排比（增强气势）}

• We shall fight him by land we shall fight him by sea we shall fight him in the air, until, with God’s help, we have rid the earth of his shadow and liberated its peoples from his yoke.^{我们将通过陆地、海上和空中与他作战，直到在上帝的帮助下，我们将他的阴影从地球上清除，并将人民从他的枷锁中解放出来。}
• Neither of us seeks the territory of the other; neither of us seeks domination over the other; neither of us seeks to stretch out our hands to rule the world.^{我们双方都不寻求对方的领土；我们双方都不寻求对对方的支配；我们双方都不寻求伸出双手统治世界。}

long / yearn / hunger / crave ^{渴望/热望}

• She longed for a hot drink / to see him again.^{她渴望喝一杯热饮/再次见到他。}
• In moments of stress and worry, I often experience an indefinable longing for my childhood.^{在压力和担忧的时刻，我经常感到一种难以形容的对童年的渴望。}
• She yearned to have a baby.^{她渴望生一个孩子。}
• The refugees hunger for peace and stability.^{难民们渴望和平与稳定。}

But, if this world is not merely a bad joke, life a vulgar flare amid the cool radiance of the stars, and existence an empty laugh braying across the mysteries; if these intimations of a something behind and beyond are not evil humour born of indigestion, or whimsies sent by the devil to mock and madden us, if, in a word beauty means something yet we must not seek to interpret the meaning.

哲学观念：虚无主义 (nihilism) ^{否定生命的意义和价值}

• The passage rejects the idea that this world is merely a bad joke, a statement often associated with philosophical nihilism.^{这段文字拒绝接受这个世界“仅仅是一个拙劣的笑话”的观点，这种观点通常与哲学上的虚无主义相关。}
• Nihilism is a belief that nothing has any meaning or value.^{虚无主义是一种认为一切都没有任何意义或价值的信仰。}

排比、并列句的省略 ^{省略重复的谓语动词}

• Life (is not merely) a vulgar flare... and existence (is not merely) an empty laugh...^{生命（不仅仅是）一颗低俗的闪光…存在（不仅仅是）一声空洞的嘶笑…}
• In the light of this statement, teachers live by selling knowledge, philosophers (live) by selling wisdom and priests (live) by selling spiritual comfort.^{根据这个说法，教师靠出售知识为生，哲学家靠出售智慧为生，神父靠出售精神慰藉为生。}
• Some books are to be tasted, others (are) to be swallowed, and some few (are) to be chewed and digested.^{有些书只需浅尝，有些书需要吞咽，而有少数书则需要咀嚼和消化。}

近义词：火 ^{blaze / flame / flare / glow}

• Blaze ^{熊熊燃烧的火}：A fierce blaze destroyed the whole building.^{一场猛烈的火焰摧毁了整个建筑物。}
• Flame ^火苗：We could see the tiny flame of a cigarette-lighter in the darkness.^{在黑暗中，我们可以看到打火机微小的火苗。}
• Flare ^{（短暂）转瞬熄灭}：Life is a vulgar flare amid the cool radiance of the stars.^{生命是群星的清冷光辉中短暂的俗艳闪光。}

amid (prep.) ^{在…之中/被…包围}

• He sat amid the trees.^{他坐在树木之中。}
• The village is situated amid clusters of trees.^{这个村庄坐落在成群的树木之中。}
• Life is a vulgar flare amid the cool radiance of the stars.^{生命是群星的清冷光辉之中。}

bray (v.) ^{以刺耳的高声讲话/（驴子）嘶叫}

• He began to bray with laughter at the joke.^{他开始刺耳地大声嘲笑这个笑话。}
• Existence is an empty laugh braying across the mysteries.^{存在是跨越神秘发出的空洞嘶笑。}

something ^{重要的人/值得重视的事}

• The author refers to a something behind and beyond, implying a great, mysterious reality.^{作者指的是“超越此在的某种东西”，暗示着一个伟大的、神秘的实在。}
• We must try to make something of our lives.^{我们必须努力使我们的人生有所成就。}

born (out) of ^{因…而生/…的结果}

• The new art form was born of the industrial revolution.^{这种新的艺术形式是工业革命的产物。}
• With strength born of desperation, he forced the door open.^{他以绝望而生的力量强行打开了门。}

mock / tease / sneer at / taunt / ridicule ^{嘲笑/讥讽}

• The naughty boys mocked the cripple.^{淘气的男孩们嘲笑那个跛子。}
• Sam’s sisters used to tease him because he was overweight.^{山姆的姐妹们过去常常因为他超重而戏弄他。}
• She sneered at Tom’s musical taste.^{她讥讽汤姆的音乐品味。}

interpret (v.) ^{解释/说明/口译}

• He interpreted the symbol as a warning.^{他将这个符号解释为一个警告。}
• She works as a simultaneous interpreter at international conferences.^{她在国际会议上担任同声传译员。}
• We must not seek to interpret the meaning of beauty.^{我们一定不要试图解释美的含义。}

If we glimpse the unutterable, it is unwise to try to utter it, nor should we seek to invest with significance that which we cannot grasp.

同根词不替换 ^{增强对比效果}

• If we glimpse the unutterable, it is unwise to try to utter it.^{如果我们瞥见了不可言喻的东西，试图说出来是不明智的。}
• Beauty in terms of our human meanings is meaningless.^{美就人类的意义而言是毫无意义的。}
• The mower firmly refused to mow, so I decided to dismantle it.^{割草机坚决拒绝割草，所以我决定把它拆卸。}

nor should we... ^{也不应该…（nor引出部分倒装）}

• Spiders are not insects, as many people think, nor even nearly related to them.^{蜘蛛不是昆虫，正如许多人认为的那样，甚至与昆虫没有近亲关系。}
• He didn't complain about the work, nor did he ask for a raise.^{他没有抱怨工作，也没有要求加薪。}
• ...nor should we seek to invest with significance that which we cannot grasp.^{…我们也不应该试图去赋予我们无法掌握的东西以意义。}

Beauty in terms of our human meanings is meaningless.

in terms of ... ^{从某种角度/以某种方法}

• The decision was disastrous in political terms.^{从政治角度来看，这个决定是灾难性的。}
• The figures are shown in terms of a percentage.^{这些数字以百分比的形式显示。}
• Beauty in terms of our human meanings is meaningless.^{美就人类的意义而言是毫无意义的。}