【美国精神】第3期

Explanation:

   The idea behind the words “We the people” is one of the most important ones in a democracy¹. A democracy is a government where the citizens (the people who are part of a country) vote for and elect (or choose) the people who will govern (or lead and make decisions for) them. The United States has a representative democracy, which means that citizens vote for people who then represent them in the government, making laws and decisions that reflect (or are the same as) what the citizens want.

   These first three words of the Constitution, “We the people,” also tell us about the main difference between the United States and the European countries that most of the United States’ first citizens came from. Back in the 1700s, countries like England and France, where many of the first Americans came from, were ruled by a monarch² (or a king). These monarchs³ usually inherited⁴ their power (or received it because one of their relatives had been a ruler or a king and then died) and often made decisions that their citizens did not like. One of the reasons that the American colonists⁵ (or the people who moved to the new country) fought the Revolutionary War to get their independence from Great Britain was because the colonists felt that the English king, George III, was treating them badly. Americans said that they were

fighting the Revolutionary War for the right to self-government, or to have the ability to create their own government and elect their own officials or leaders.

   The authors (or writers) of the Constitution were not writing it for just themselves. The writers of the Constitution wrote it on behalf⁶ of (or in the name of) all Americans. This is because they believed that for a government to be fair, it would have to be made by the people (that is, elected by citizens) and for the people, meaning doing things for the good of all citizens, not just a few.

 

问题：

The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?

Answer:

We the People

1 democracy   

n.民主政治，民主制度；民主精神，民主作风

参考例句：

• Democracy is based on good will and mutual understanding.民主建立在善意和相互理解的基础上。
• Did democracy have its beginnings in Athens? 民主制度是创始于雅典吗？

2 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

3 monarchs   

君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Monarchs ruled England for centuries. 世袭君主统治英格兰有许多世纪。
• Serving six monarchs of his native Great Britain, he has served all men's freedom and dignity. 他在大不列颠本国为六位君王服务，也为全人类的自由和尊严服务。 来自演讲部分

4 inherited   

adj.通过继承得到的，遗传的；继承权的v.继承( inherit的过去式和过去分词 )；经遗传获得（品质、身体特征等）接替（责任等），继任

参考例句：

• She had not inherited her mother's forgiving nature. 她没有承袭她母亲的宽厚天性。
• She inherited a fortune from her father. 她从她父亲那里继承了一大笔财富。

5 colonists   

n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Colonists from Europe populated many parts of the Americas. 欧洲的殖民者移居到了美洲的许多地方。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Some of the early colonists were cruel to the native population. 有些早期移居殖民地的人对当地居民很残忍。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 behalf   

n.利益，方面；支持，赞成

参考例句：

• Ken is not present,so I shall accept the prize on his behalf.肯没有出席，所以我将代表他领奖。
• They fixed on him to speak on their behalf.他们已经确定他作为代表发言。