英语短文名人故事 哲学思想家 第32期:亨利·梭罗

 14 Henry Thoreau 亨利·梭罗

He was born David Henry Thoreau in Concord¹, Massachusetts, to John Thoreau (a pencil maker) and Cynthia Dunbar.  梭罗出生时取名大卫·亨利·梭罗，他出生在马萨诸塞州的康科德镇，父亲是约翰·梭罗（铅笔制造商），母亲叫辛西娅·邓巴。

David Henry was named after a recently deceased paternal² uncle, David Thoreau.  大卫·亨利以新近去世的叔叔大卫·梭罗命名。

He did not become "Henry David" until after college, although he never petitioned to make a legal name change.  他直到大学毕业后才使用"亨利·大卫"这个名字，虽然他从未请求合法地改变姓名。

He had two older siblings³, Helen and John Junior, and a younger sister, Sophia. 他有一个姐姐海伦和一个哥哥小约翰，还有一个妹妹，索菲娅。

Thorea's birthplace still exists on Virginia Road in Concord and is currently the focus of preservation⁴ efforts.  梭罗的出生地仍然保存于康科德的Virginia Road,是目前的重点文物保护遗址。

The house is original, but it now stands about 100 yards away from its first site. 房子还是老房子，但据最初的地点有100码远。

Thoreau studied at Harvard University between 1833 and 1837.  梭罗1833年到1837年间就读哈佛大学。

He lived in Hollis Hall and took courses in rhetoric⁵, classics, philosophy, mathematics, and science.  他住在霍利斯大厅，学习修辞、古典文学、哲学、数学和科学。

A legend proposes that Thoreau refused to pay the five-dollar fee for a Harvard diploma.  据说，梭罗拒绝支付五美元的费用以获得哈佛文凭。

In fact, the master's degree he declined to purchase had no academic merit:  事实上，他拒绝购买的这个硕士学位，没有学术价值：

Harvard College offered it to graduates "who proved their physical worth by being alive three years after graduating,  哈佛大学向那些"毕业三年后还活着回来证明其实际价值的毕业生"颁发此学位，

and their saving, earning, or inheriting quality or condition by having Five Dollars to give the college." His comment was: "Let every sheep keep its own skin." 同时"他们的储蓄、收入、所承袭的财产或是社会地位使之能向学院支付五美元。" 而他对此的评论是"让每个人都能有不同的个性"。

In appearance he was homely⁶, with a nose that he called "my most prominent feature," again in Cape⁷ Cod⁸.  在外表上他并无吸引力，他有着一个被其称为"我最突出的特征"的鼻子，在《科德角》中他也这么说。

Of his face, Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote: "is as ugly as sin, long-nosed, queer-mouthed, and with uncouth⁹ and rustic¹⁰, though courteous¹¹ manners, corresponding very well with such an exterior¹².  有关梭罗的脸，纳撒尼尔·霍桑如此描写道(梭罗）简直其丑无比，鼻子长，嘴巴怪，笨拙且粗俗，然而他彬彬有礼却和这样的外表很好地相互映衬。

But his ugliness is of an honest and agreeable fashion, and becomes him much better than beauty." 他的丑陋带着正直与和蔼可亲的风格，比美貌更适合他。"

After college, Thoreau taught school, wrote essays and poems for The Dial, and briefly¹³ attempted freelance writing in New York City.  大学毕业后，梭罗在学校教书，为《曰规》撰写散文和诗歌，他还在纽约短暂地尝试了一下做一名自由撰稿人。

The death of his brother in 1842 was a profound emotional shock and may have influenced his decision to live with his parents and never to marry. 1842年他兄弟的死对他打击很大，可能同时也影响了他的决定，使其和父母一起生活而且终生未娶。

1 concord   

n.和谐；协调

参考例句：

• These states had lived in concord for centuries.这些国家几个世纪以来一直和睦相处。
• His speech did nothing for racial concord.他的讲话对种族和谐没有作用。

2 paternal   

adj.父亲的，像父亲的，父系的，父方的

参考例句：

• I was brought up by my paternal aunt.我是姑姑扶养大的。
• My father wrote me a letter full of his paternal love for me.我父亲给我写了一封充满父爱的信。

3 siblings   

n.兄弟，姐妹( sibling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A triplet sleeps amongst its two siblings. 一个三胞胎睡在其两个同胞之间。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She has no way of tracking the donor or her half-siblings down. 她没办法找到那个捐精者或她的兄弟姐妹。 来自时文部分

4 preservation   

n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持

参考例句：

• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
• The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

5 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

6 homely   

adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的

参考例句：

• We had a homely meal of bread and cheese.我们吃了一顿面包加乳酪的家常便餐。
• Come and have a homely meal with us,will you?来和我们一起吃顿家常便饭，好吗？

7 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

8 cod   

n.鳕鱼；v.愚弄；哄骗

参考例句：

• They salt down cod for winter use.他们腌鳕鱼留着冬天吃。
• Cod are found in the North Atlantic and the North Sea.北大西洋和北海有鳕鱼。

9 uncouth   

adj.无教养的，粗鲁的

参考例句：

• She may embarrass you with her uncouth behavior.她的粗野行为可能会让你尴尬。
• His nephew is an uncouth young man.他的侄子是一个粗野的年轻人。

10 rustic   

adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬

参考例句：

• It was nearly seven months of leisurely rustic living before Michael felt real boredom.这种悠闲的乡村生活过了差不多七个月之后,迈克尔开始感到烦闷。
• We hoped the fresh air and rustic atmosphere would help him adjust.我们希望新鲜的空气和乡村的氛围能帮他调整自己。

11 courteous   

adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的

参考例句：

• Although she often disagreed with me,she was always courteous.尽管她常常和我意见不一，但她总是很谦恭有礼。
• He was a kind and courteous man.他为人友善，而且彬彬有礼。

12 exterior   

adj.外部的，外在的；表面的

参考例句：

• The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
• We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。

13 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。