2019年经济学人 巴黎圣母院火灾(2)

 

Yet the emotions the sight aroused were less about the building itself than about what losing it might mean. Notre Dame¹ is an expression of humanity at its collective best. Nobody could look up into that vaulted² ceiling without wondering at the cumulative³ genius of the thousands of anonymous⁴ craftsmen⁵ who, over a century and a half, realised a vision so grand in its structural⁶ ambition and so delicate in its hand-chiselled detail. Its survival through 850 years of political turbulence—through war, revolution and Nazi⁷ occupation—binds⁸ the present to the past.

但这一现象所引发的情感与其说是对于建筑本身，不如说是因为失去这个建筑意味着什么。巴黎圣母院是在集体意义上人性的表达。仰望拱形穹顶，无人不惊叹于成千上万无名工匠的累积神工，一个半世纪以来，工匠们实现了一个愿景，结构如此宏伟，手工雕刻的细节如此精巧。圣母院在850年的政治动荡中生存下来，经历了战争、革命和纳粹占领，将现在和历史连接起来。

The fire also binds people to each other. The outpouring of emotion it has brought forth⁹ is proof that, despite the dark forces of division now abroad, we are all in it together. When nationalism is a rising threat, shared sadness makes borders suddenly irrelevant¹⁰. When politics is polarised, a love of culture has the power to unite. When extremism divides Muslim from Christian¹¹ and religious people from atheists, those of all faiths and none are mourning together. An edifice¹² built for the glory of God also represents the unity¹³ of the human spirit.

而人们彼此也因这场火联系起来。这场火引起的情感流露表明，尽管现在国外存在分裂的暗黑势力，但我们团结一致。民族主义成为一个日益严重的威胁时，共同的悲伤让边界突然变得无关紧要。政治两极分化时，对文化的热爱具有团结的力量。极端主义将穆斯林与基督徒、宗教人士与无神论者区分开时，带有各种信仰的人以及无神论者都在一起哀悼。这座为神的荣耀建造的建筑也代表了人类精神的统一。

And it will be rebuilt. The morning after the fire, the many Parisians who went to the cathedral to mourn its destruction found comfort instead. Although the spire¹⁴ is gone, the towers are still standing¹⁵ and it seems likely that the whole building can be revived. The effort to rebuild it, like the fire, will bring people together. Within 24 hours.

1 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

2 vaulted   

adj.拱状的

参考例句：

• She vaulted over the gate and ran up the path. 她用手一撑跃过栅栏门沿着小路跑去。
• The formal living room has a fireplace and vaulted ceilings. 正式的客厅有一个壁炉和拱形天花板。

3 cumulative   

adj.累积的，渐增的

参考例句：

• This drug has a cumulative effect.这种药有渐增的效力。
• The benefits from eating fish are cumulative.吃鱼的好处要长期才能显现。

4 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

5 craftsmen   

n. 技工

参考例句：

• rugs handmade by local craftsmen 由当地工艺师手工制作的小地毯
• The craftsmen have ensured faithful reproduction of the original painting. 工匠保证要复制一幅最接近原作的画。

6 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

7 Nazi   

n.纳粹分子，adj.纳粹党的，纳粹的

参考例句：

• They declare the Nazi regime overthrown and sue for peace.他们宣布纳粹政权已被推翻，并出面求和。
• Nazi closes those war criminals inside their concentration camp.纳粹把那些战犯关在他们的集中营里。

8 binds   

v.约束( bind的第三人称单数 )；装订；捆绑；（用长布条）缠绕

参考例句：

• Frost binds the soil. 霜使土壤凝结。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Stones and cement binds strongly. 石头和水泥凝固得很牢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

10 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

11 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

12 edifice   

n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室)

参考例句：

• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。
• There is a huge Victorian edifice in the area.该地区有一幢维多利亚式的庞大建筑物。

13 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

14 spire   

n.(教堂)尖顶，尖塔，高点

参考例句：

• The church spire was struck by lightning.教堂的尖顶遭到了雷击。
• They could just make out the spire of the church in the distance.他们只能辨认出远处教堂的尖塔。

15 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。