翻译篇第八章短文翻译练习11.ppt

短文35-36 短文35 It’s worth keeping in mind that reading itself is an inherent human activity, an invention that in evolutionary terms has existed only for a blink of an eye. School districts have wasted billions of dollars in recent decades to correct “reading disabilities” when in fact there is no such thing as “reading ability” to start with. Reading is an artificial construct that is of high value for a very limited set of human activities—but by no means all activities. 短文36 There is no question that reading is a desirable and often enjoyable skill to possess. In 2025, tens of millions of Americans continue to enjoy books and magazines as recreational pursuits, and this happy habit will undoubtedly remain part of the landscape for generations to come. But just as every citizen is not forcibly trained to enjoy classical music, neither should they be coerced into believing that reading is necessarily pleasurable. For the majority of students, reading and writing are difficult enterprises with limited payoffs in the modern world. 短文37-38 短文37 我永远忘不了1946年的复活节。那一年我14岁，妹妹奥丝12岁， 姐姐达琳16岁。我们和母亲住在一起，我们四个人都知道该如何在 所得很少的情况下过日子。我的父亲在5年前去世了，没给母亲留 下一分钱，只给她留下了7个正在上学的孩子。 短文38 那天，教堂中有一位传教士。他谈到非洲的教堂是如何用被风干的 砖块砌成，但是他们仍需要买屋顶材料的钱。他说建一座教堂， 屋顶需要花费100美元。传教士补充道：“难道我们不能做出一点 牺牲来帮助那些贫穷的人吗？”我们彼此看了看，脸上均露出了 一星期以来的第一次微笑。 短文37-38 短文37 I’ll never forget Easter 1946. I was fourteen, my little sister, Ocy, was twelve and my older sister, Darlene, was sixteen. We lived at home with our mother, and the four of us knew what it was to do without many things. My dad had died five years before, leaving Mom with no money and seven school-aged kids to raise. 短文38 At church we had a missionary speaker. He talked about how churches in Africa made buildings out of sun-dried bricks, but they needed money to buy roofs. He said one hundred dollars would put a roof on a church. The minister added, “Can’t we all sacrifice to help these poor people?” We looked at each other and smiled for the first