纪录片《大英博物馆世界简史》 070复活节岛雕像（10）

 

Rapa Nui is perhaps a good place to end this second part of our history of the world. It was one of the last places on earth to be settled by humans - a final destination in our great journey out of Africa. Hoa Hakananai'a now stands in the gallery devoted¹ to living and dying, surrounded by objects that show how other societies in the Pacific and the Americas have addressed the predicaments that confront humanity everywhere. He is a supremely² powerful statement of the fact that all societies keep looking for new ways to make sense of their changing world, and to ensure that they survive in it. In 1400, when this part of our story ends, none of these cultures was known to Europeans. But this of course was about to change.

In the final part of the series, we will be looking at the way in which these many different worlds - even islands as remote as Rapa Nui - became integral parts of one global system. It's a history that's in many ways very familiar, but as always objects have the power to engage, to surprise and to enlighten. I hope that you'll join me on that last part of our story.

何瓦何卡纳奈阿如今被安放在“生与死”主题厅，周围错落放置着表现太平洋地区和美洲其他社会如何应对这一人类永恒困境的文物。它极有力地证明，所有社会都尽力寻找着适应幻变世界的新方式，以保证自己的生存。在公元一千四百年，欧洲人对这个展厅陈列的任何一种文明都一无所知。而在接下来的讲述中，我们将会看到这些不同的世界如何——不管是自愿还是被迫——被逐渐纳入统一的全球体系，就连拉帕努伊岛这样的偏远之地也不例外。这段历史从各方面来说都并不陌生，但文物所讲述的故事仍能吸引我们，给我们惊喜和启迪。

1 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

2 supremely   

adv.无上地，崇高地

参考例句：

• They managed it all supremely well. 这件事他们干得极其出色。
• I consider a supremely beautiful gesture. 我觉得这是非常优雅的姿态。