戈尔·维达尔因敢于对美国及世界热点问题发表自己的观点而出名。维达尔是个多产的小说家，散文家和荧幕、舞台的剧作家。他也曾竞选美国参议员。维达尔与美国前总统吉米·卡特和诺贝尔奖得主阿尔·戈尔都有联系。他强烈批判乔治·沃克·布什政府。

　　Vidal was born EugeneLuther Vidal Jr. in New York in 1925.His father worked in the US Air Force and his mother was an actress.He disliked his first name and changed it to Gore when he was a teenager.He was raised and educated in Washington D.C. and spent a great deal of time learning from his grandfather, Democratic Senator Thomas Gore.Vidal's writing career began when he was nineteen. The book 'Williwaw' was about his experiences in the military.In 1948,aged 22, he wrote his ground-breaking 'The City and the Pillar', which shocked many Americans.It was the first American novel to focus on homosexuality.The New York Times refused to review his next five books.This established Vidal's reputation for his outspokenness.For six decades Vidal wrote commentaries on American politics and society.He has a huge following of admirers, including critic Martin Amis, who said Vidal "is learned, funny and exceptionally clear-sighted. Even his blind spots are illuminating."Vidal was a member of the World Can't Waitorganization, which demands the impeachment of George W. Bush for crimes against humanity.He died in August 2012.

　　维达尔1925年出生在纽约，原名叫尤金·卢瑟·维达尔。他的父亲效命于美国空军，母亲是个演员。维达尔不喜欢自己的名字，于是少年时更名为戈尔。维达尔在华盛顿长大上学，陪在他的祖父——民主党参议员托马斯·维达尔身边学习了很久。维达尔的写作生涯始于19岁。《Williwaw》一书是描写他的军旅生活的。1948年，维达尔22岁，写了他的里程碑式作品《城市与栋梁》，在美国引起了巨大轰动。《城市与栋梁》是美国第一本侧重讲同性恋的小说。纽约杂志拒绝评论他接下来的5本书。《城市与栋梁》确立了维达尔大胆直言的名声。维达尔连续60年都写关于美国政治与社会的评论。维达尔有大量的追捧者，其中包括批评家马丁·艾米斯，他说维达尔“知识渊博，说话风趣，眼光敏锐独特。即使他模糊不清的地方也具有启发性。”维达尔是“世界不能等待”组织的成员，这个组织谴责乔治·沃克·布什犯了反人道的罪。维达尔2012年8月逝世。

　　1.run for 竞选

　　例句：Each group selected candidates to run for president and vice-president.

　　每个组推举出候选人参加总统和副总统竞选。

　　2.a great deal of 大量

　　例句：Because the list of open file descriptors of an application give a great deal ofinformation about the application itself, being able to peer into this list is helpful.

　　因为应用程序打开文件的描述符列表提供了大量关于这个应用程序本身的信息，所以能够查看这个列表将是很有帮助的。

　　3.clear-sighted 目光敏锐的

　　例句：The refined details of a silversmith are seductive but they are undercut by anastringent clear-sighted questioning.

　　在完善细节，银匠是诱人的，但它们削弱了明确的涩有远见的讯问。

　　4.blind spots 盲点

　　例句：The challenge is finding an audience for “news” that is best known for its blind spots.

　　不过，最大的挑战在于新华社如何为那些“盲点”重重的新闻找到受众。