Who Was Eleanor Roosevelt 安娜·埃莉诺·罗斯福

During the 1930s and early 1940s, Eleanor Roosevelt was our country’s first lady. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was president of the United States then, was her husband. There have been more than forty first ladies of the United States. What made Eleanor Roosevelt so special? Well, for one thing, Eleanor was first lady longer than anyone else was.

FDR, as he was called, was elected president four times. Eleanor was first lady for twelve years—from 1933 to 1945, when FDR died. Before Eleanor, first ladies gave dinner parties. They gave teas. But they did not speak out on important issues concerning¹ our country. That’s what the president did.

Eleanor Roosevelt, however, worked while she was first lady. She wrote newspaper columns² and books. She gave radio interviews and taught classes. She worked hard to help start the United Nations. Eleanor had opinions and shared them with the world. She let people know what she thought about important issues of the time, such as equality for all Americans.

Eleanor Roosevelt paved³ the way for the first ladies who followed her. Now, most first ladies have a cause. Some have focused on the danger of drugs, others have fought for better schools and libraries, and others for health care.

Eleanor Roosevelt was a smart and brave first lady. And even after she left the White House, Eleanor continued to work. By the time of her death in 1962, Eleanor Roosevelt was known as “the First Lady of the World.”

1 concerning   

prep.关于，论及

参考例句：

• What do you know concerning this?关于这事你知道些什么？
• Some senior students wrote in asking for information concerning postgraduate studies.一些四年级学生写信询问有关研究生课程的信息。

2 columns   

n.柱( column的名词复数 )；纵队；栏；（舰队的）纵列

参考例句：

• The temple is supported by marble columns. 这座庙宇由大理石柱支撑。
• There are two columns on each page of this dictionary. 这本词典每一页有两栏。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 paved   

v.铺( pave的过去式和过去分词 )；为…铺平道路

参考例句：

• a paved area near the back door 后门旁一块石板地
• The wide paved road degenerated into a narrow bumpy track. 铺好的宽阔道路渐渐变窄，成了一条崎岖不平的小径。 来自《简明英汉词典》