VOA标准英语2013--Britain Says Goodbye to Former PM Thatcher

 

Britain Says Goodbye to Former PM Thatcher¹

Her casket was carried on a horse-drawn gun carriage through the center of London, as people crowded the sidewalks to pay their respects.

It was escorted by military units, and all along the route security was even tighter than originally planned because of Monday’s Boston Marathon bombings. 

There were some protests, but there were no serious incidents.

Inside St. Paul’s Cathedral, the casket lay in front of more than 2,000 mourners. The current Prime Minister David Cameron was there, as were leaders and former leaders from around the world. But there was no official from Argentina, which Thatcher defeated in the 1982 Falkland Islands War.

It was a prayer service, with no formal eulogy². But the Bishop³ of London, Richard Chartres, gave a brief address, saying, "After the storm of a life lived in the heat of political controversy⁴, there is a great calm. ... Lying here, she is one of us, subject to the common destiny of all human beings.”

Margaret Thatcher was Britain’s only female prime minister, and the longest serving of the 20th Century, holding the office for 11 years. Her passionately⁵ conservative policies transformed the country, and ignited strong emotions both in favor and opposed, feelings that have been on display again during the past week, even though she left office 23 years ago.

And that, in the end, is testament⁶ to the impact of her life. 

1 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

2 eulogy   

n.颂词；颂扬

参考例句：

• He needs no eulogy from me or from any other man. 他不需要我或者任何一个人来称颂。
• Mr.Garth gave a long eulogy about their achievements in the research.加思先生对他们的研究成果大大地颂扬了一番。

3 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

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。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

4 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

5 passionately   

ad.热烈地，激烈地

参考例句：

• She could hate as passionately as she could love. 她能恨得咬牙切齿，也能爱得一往情深。
• He was passionately addicted to pop music. 他酷爱流行音乐。

6 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。