2006年VOA标准英语-Unusual Tribute To 9/11 Victims Goes On Display

By Amanda Cassandra
New York
08 September 2006

A small clothing store that became a makeshift shrine¹ after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center is now the centerpiece of an exhibit commemorating² the fifth anniversary of the attacks.

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		Chelsea Jeans Exhibit at the New York Historical Society

The exhibition is a stark³ reminder⁴ of what happened on September 11.  A thick layer of ash and debris⁵ cover what was once a clothing display from the The Chelsea Jeans Store in lower Manhattan, illustrating⁶ the desolation left behind when the Twin Towers collapsed⁷ in a cloud of dust that rained down over the entire area.

The New York Historical Society decided⁸ to exhibit the window display from that fateful day: rows of hanging clothes in an array of bright yellows, reds, blues⁹, blacks and whites that were muted by thick layers of gray ash.

In the days following the attacks, the store, one block away from the World Trade Center complex, became an impromptu¹⁰ place of pilgrimage for thousands of mourners and tourists.  They stopped just to look and remember.

The store closed in October of 2002, like many stores in the area that experienced an economic slump¹¹ in the wake of the attacks.

Chelsea Jeans owner David Cohen says he was determined¹² to preserve part of the store because of the memories held in the dust.

"I remember there was one lady who walked in with her son and they asked to take some the ashes," he explained.  "I said 'sure, you're welcome to take some.'   I mean the store was full with ash and she just took like a coffee cup filled it up with some of the dust from the ashes. And then I went in and I was like may I ask just why? And she said that her husband, the father of the kid, was in the buildings and they can't find him and they just want something to hold onto."

Moved by her response, Cohen decided to the leave display intact.

"I think we need to remember," he added.  "There are things that it is very important to keep them the way they are because taking a history book in twenty or thirty years from now and looking at this or looking at pictures is never going to be the same as actually standing¹³ in front of it and seeing what happened that day."

The store display was moved in sections to the New York Historical Society and stored in moisture resistant¹⁴ crates¹⁵ to keep the fragile clothing materials from degrading. The display has been reconstructed as part of the fifth anniversary exhibit, Elegy¹⁶ in the Dust: September 11 and the Chelsea Jeans Memorial.

Historical Society Conservator Alan Balicki says this exhibit is a departure from other exhibits about September 11.

"Most of the other exhibits are photographs and they are artifacts as well found at Ground Zero, damaged material," he noted¹⁷.  "This is actually a time capsule and I think that differs dramatically from the other exhibitions."

In the wake of the attacks, the dust from the collapsed buildings was determined to be hazardous¹⁸ material. Exhibit Curator, Amy Weinstein, says the Society took great care to protect visitors.

"We designed a Plexiglas case which is sealed to the floor with silicon," she said.  "It's Plexiglas. It's sealed so there's no air exchange. All of our visitors can feel comfortable, feel safe looking at the memorial knowing that they're not breathing in the dust."

Weinstein says the Society understands that the dust is not only historic, but to some, sacred.

"We don't know precisely¹⁹ what's in this small sample of the dust, but what we chose to do was treat it with a great deal of respect and reverence²⁰, because if nothing else, symbolically²¹ it stands for the 3,000 people, who lost their lives in the attacks on the World Trade Center," she added.

Photographs that portray²² the timeline and the aftermath of the September 11 attacks accompany the glass-encased display. A video also documents the removal and reconstruction²³ process of the Chelsea Jeans display.

This exhibit is part of the History Responds initiative launched by the Society to help the public learn about, and learn from the September 11 attacks.

1 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。

2 commemorating   

v.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was presented with a scroll commemorating his achievements. 他被授予一幅卷轴，以表彰其所做出的成就。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The post office issued a series commemorating famous American entertainers. 邮局发行了一个纪念美国著名演艺人员的系列邮票。 来自互联网

3 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

4 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

5 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

6 illustrating   

给…加插图( illustrate的现在分词 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明

参考例句：

• He upstaged the other speakers by illustrating his talk with slides. 他演讲中配上幻灯片，比其他演讲人更吸引听众。
• Material illustrating detailed structure of graptolites has been etched from limestone by means of hydrofluoric acid. 表明笔石详细构造的物质是利用氢氟酸从石灰岩中侵蚀出来。

7 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

10 impromptu   

adj.即席的，即兴的；adv.即兴的(地)，无准备的(地)

参考例句：

• The announcement was made in an impromptu press conference at the airport.这一宣布是在机场举行的临时新闻发布会上作出的。
• The children put on an impromptu concert for the visitors.孩子们为来访者即兴献上了一场音乐会。

11 slump   

n.暴跌，意气消沉，（土地）下沉；vi.猛然掉落，坍塌，大幅度下跌

参考例句：

• She is in a slump in her career.她处在事业的低谷。
• Economists are forecasting a slump.经济学家们预言将发生经济衰退。

12 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

13 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。

14 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

15 crates   

n. 板条箱, 篓子, 旧汽车 vt. 装进纸条箱

参考例句：

• We were using crates as seats. 我们用大木箱作为座位。
• Thousands of crates compacted in a warehouse. 数以千计的板条箱堆放在仓库里。

16 elegy   

n.哀歌，挽歌

参考例句：

• Good heavens,what would be more tragic than that elegy!天哪，还有什么比那首挽歌更悲伤的呢！
• His book is not intended to be a complete history but a personal elegy.他的书与其说是一部完整的历史，更像是一篇个人挽歌。

17 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

18 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

19 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

20 reverence   

n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• We reverence tradition but will not be fettered by it.我们尊重传统，但不被传统所束缚。

21 symbolically   

ad.象征地，象征性地

参考例句：

• By wearing the ring on the third finger of the left hand, a married couple symbolically declares their eternal love for each other. 将婚戒戴在左手的第三只手指上，意味着夫妻双方象征性地宣告他们的爱情天长地久，他们定能白头偕老。
• Symbolically, he coughed to clear his throat. 周经理象征地咳一声无谓的嗽，清清嗓子。

22 portray   

v.描写，描述；画(人物、景象等)

参考例句：

• It is difficult to portray feelings in words.感情很难用言语来描写。
• Can you portray the best and worst aspects of this job?您能描述一下这份工作最好与最坏的方面吗？

23 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。