名校励志英语演讲 56:拯救世界 拯救儿童

 　　Friends, let me paint a picture for you. Here is a typical day in America—six youths under the age of 20 will commit suicide, 12 children under the age of 20 will die from firearms—remember this is a DAY, not a year—399 kids will be arrested for drug abuse, 1,352 babies will be born to teen mothers. This is happening in one of the richest, most developed countries in the history of the world.

　　朋友们，让我给大家描述一幅这样的情景，这是美国典型的一天——每一天将有6个不满20岁的青年自杀，12个20岁以下的孩子死于枪击——记住这只是一天，不是一年——另外还有399个少年因为服用毒品而被逮捕，1352个婴儿被十几岁的妈妈生下来，这些都发生在世界上最富有最发达的国家。

　　Yes, in my country there is an epidemic¹ of violence that parallels no other industrialized nation. These are the ways young people in America express their hurt and their anger. But don't think that there is not the same pain and anguish² among their counterparts in the United Kingdom. Studies in this country show that every single hour, three teenagers in the UK inflict³ harm upon themselves, often by cutting or burning their bodies or taking an overdose. This is how they have chosen to cope with the pain of neglect and emotional agony.

　　是的，我国所充斥的暴力，其他的工业化国家无法与之相比。这只是美国年轻人宣泄他们的伤痛和愤怒的方式，但是，不要认为英国就不存在有这样痛苦和烦恼的人。种种调查表明英国每小时都会有3个青少年自残，他们通常会割伤或烫伤自己的身体或者服用过量药剂。这是他们所选择的用来发泄被忽视的痛苦和烦恼的方法。

　　In Britain, as many as 20% of families will only sit down and have dinner together once a year. Once a year! And what about the time-honored tradition of reading your kid a bedtime story? Research from the 1980s showed that children who are read to, had far greater literacy and significantly outperformed their peers at school.

　　在大不列颠，多达20%的家庭一年只能聚在一起吃一次晚饭，一年才一次！那么给孩子们讲睡前故事的悠久传统又处于一种什么状况呢？20世纪80年代以来的研究表明，听睡前故事的孩子在读写方面远胜过学校的同龄孩子。

　　abuse

　　n. 滥用；辱骂

　　eg. Hailstones of abuse were pelting⁴ him.

　　阵阵辱骂冰雹般地向他袭来。

　　anguish

　　n. 痛苦；苦恼

　　eg. The loss of her husband anguished⁵ her deeply.

　　丧夫使她极为悲痛。

　　inflict

　　vt. 造成；使遭受（痛苦等）

　　eg. The highjacker inflict all kinds of indignity⁶ on their captive.

　　劫持者对人质百般侮辱。

　　overdose

　　n. 药量过多

　　eg. You were overdosed on succeeding then.

　　你那时过分沉溺于胜利的喜悦之中了。

　　literacy

　　n. 读写能力

　　eg. This money will help the development of literacy in developing countries.

　　这笔钱将有助于提高发展中国家的文化水平。

1 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

2 anguish   

n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼

参考例句：

• She cried out for anguish at parting.分手时，她由于痛苦而失声大哭。
• The unspeakable anguish wrung his heart.难言的痛苦折磨着他的心。

3 inflict   

vt.(on)把…强加给，使遭受，使承担

参考例句：

• Don't inflict your ideas on me.不要把你的想法强加于我。
• Don't inflict damage on any person.不要伤害任何人。

4 pelting   

微不足道的，无价值的，盛怒的

参考例句：

• The rain came pelting down. 倾盆大雨劈头盖脸地浇了下来。
• Hailstones of abuse were pelting him. 阵阵辱骂冰雹般地向他袭来。

5 anguished   

adj.极其痛苦的v.使极度痛苦(anguish的过去式)

参考例句：

• Desmond eyed her anguished face with sympathy. 看着她痛苦的脸，德斯蒙德觉得理解。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The loss of her husband anguished her deeply. 她丈夫的死亡使她悲痛万分。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 indignity   

n.侮辱，伤害尊严，轻蔑

参考例句：

• For more than a year we have suffered the indignity.在一年多的时间里,我们丢尽了丑。
• She was subjected to indignity and humiliation.她受到侮辱和羞辱。