英语美文背诵 American dream

To Americans, industriousness¹, thrift² and ambition are possitive values.We encourage our children to be competitive, to get ahead, to make money, to acquire possassion. In games and in business alike, the aim is to win the game, the trorphy, the contract.We go in for laboursaving devices, gadgets³, speed and shortcuts⁴.We think every young couple should set up a home of their own.And we pity the couple who must share their home with their parent, let alone with other relatives.Actually, of course, not all Americans hold all these values.And those who do may hold other, and at times contradictory⁵ values that affect their ways of behaving. In the main, however, the collective expectation of our society is that these are desirable goals,and the individual, whatever his personal inclination⁶, is under considerable pressure to conform.

对于我们美国人，勤劳、节俭和志气都是积极的价值观。我们鼓励孩子们进取、成功、赚钱、富有。在竞赛和商业活动中也是一样，我们追求的是赢取比赛、获得奖杯、拿到合同。我们致力于节省劳力的工具、速度和捷径。我们提倡所有的小两口都能靠自己的双手构建家园。我们为那些必须依靠父母或亲戚生活的夫妇感到遗憾！其实，并不是所有的美国人都拥有这样的价值观，甚至有些人或许会拥有相反的价值观，这样的价值观会影响他们的行为。不过，我们的社会的主流意识/期望还是这种积极的目标，不论个人的倾好如何，他的行为也是被规范在一定的范围之内的。

1 industriousness   

n.勤奋

参考例句：

• Aunt Harriet could not find words to praise Bessie's industriousness and efficiency. 哈丽特不知该用什么言辞来赞扬贝西的勤奋与高效。 来自新概念英语第三册
• They have brought to our country an industriousness that boosts our economy. 他们带来的勤奋精神促进了我们经济的发展。

2 thrift   

adj.节约，节俭；n.节俭，节约

参考例句：

• He has the virtues of thrift and hard work.他具备节俭和勤奋的美德。
• His thrift and industry speak well for his future.他的节俭和勤勉预示着他美好的未来。

3 gadgets   

n.小机械，小器具（ gadget的名词复数 ）

参考例句：

• Certainly. The idea is not to have a house full of gadgets. 当然。设想是房屋不再充满小配件。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• This meant more gadgets and more experiments. 这意味着要设计出更多的装置，做更多的实验。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

4 shortcuts   

n.捷径( shortcut的名词复数 )；近路；快捷办法；被切短的东西（尤指烟草）

参考例句：

• In other words, experts want shortcuts to everything. 换句话说，专家需要所有的快捷方式。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Offer shortcuts from the Help menu. 在帮助菜单中提供快捷方式。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

5 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

6 inclination   

n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好

参考例句：

• She greeted us with a slight inclination of the head.她微微点头向我们致意。
• I did not feel the slightest inclination to hurry.我没有丝毫着急的意思。