第一篇：英語美文

Jaguar is an endangered animal.It is said that there are less than 20 jaguars in the world currently, one of which is now living in the national zoo of Peru.In order to protect this jaguar, Peruvians singled out a pitch of land in the zoo for it, where there are herds of cattle, sheep and deer for the jaguar to eat.Anyone who has visited the zoo praised it to be the “Heaven of Tiger”.However, strange enough, no one has ever seen the jaguar prey on the cattle and sheep.What we could see is its lying in its house eating and sleeping.美洲虎是一種瀕臨滅絕的動物,據(jù)說,現(xiàn)在世界上尚存不足20只,其中有一只生活在秘魯?shù)膰覄游飯@里。為了保護(hù)這只美洲虎,秘魯人在動物園里單獨圈出一塊地,讓它自由生存,圈地中有成群的牛、羊、鹿供老虎享用。參觀過虎園的人都說這是“虎的天堂”。然而奇怪的是,沒人看見這只老虎去捕捉牛羊,唯一見到的情景就是它躺在空洞的虎房里吃了睡、睡了吃。

Some people thought that the jaguar felt too lonely, so they collected money and rented a female tiger to accompany it.Nonetheless, it did not make too much sense.The jaguar just sometimes went out of its house with its “girlfriend”and stayed in the sun for a while before it came back to its house again.“It is normal for the jaguar to be lazy in this environment.Tiger is the king of forest but you simply put some small animals around him.That is why the jaguar shows no interest in going out.Why don’t you put two wolves or at least a jackal around him?”A visitor proposed.Others all agreed with him and put five panthers into the jaguar’s territory.Since then, the jaguar did not go back to its house any more.It either stands on top of the hill roaring or goes down from the hill strolling without sleeping all day long.It did not eat the meat provided by the zoo staff and has totally got back to its nature.一些市民認(rèn)為它太孤獨了,就集資從國外租雌虎來陪它生活。然而此舉并未帶來多大改觀,那只老虎最多陪伴外來的“女友”走出虎房,到陽光下站一站,不久就又回到它的“臥室”?！八跄懿粦醒笱竽?虎是林中之王,你們放一群吃草的小動物,能提起它的興趣嗎?這么大的一個老虎保護(hù)區(qū),你們不放兩只狼,至少也得放一只豺狗吧?”一位來此參觀的市民建議道。人們覺得他說得有理,就把5只美洲豹投進(jìn)了虎園。結(jié)果,自從豹子進(jìn)園后,美洲虎就再沒回過虎房,它不是站在山頂長嘯,就是從山上下來,在草地上游蕩,不再長時間睡覺,不再吃管理員送來的肉,基本恢復(fù)了本性。

Actually, this principle does not only apply to animals, but also apply to human beings.Here is another story.There was a rich man who was selecting a husband for his only child among a multitude of pursuers.The man led all the pursuers to a river and pointed to the crocodiles, saying, “Anyone who can swim across the river safe and sound will marry my daughter.” Those pursuers looked at each other and no one dare take the initiative.At that moment, a man plunged into the river bravely and swam at a staggering speed to the other side.All the people applauded for his courage with great sense of admiration.Nevertheless, the man, after landing on the bank, shouted angrily, “Who pushed me into the river just now?”

不僅是動物,人也如此。有則故事說,一個富人為獨生女兒選婿,求婚者眾多。于是這個富人將求婚的男子們帶到一條河邊,指著河中的鱷魚說:“如果有人能夠安全地游到對岸,我就把女兒嫁給他。”這些男子你看我我看你,誰也不敢跳進(jìn)河里。正在互相觀望之際,突然有一個男子“撲通”一聲跳了下去,然后以超乎尋常的速度游到對岸。大家對這個勇敢的男子充滿欽佩和羨慕, 報以熱烈的掌聲。沒想到這個男子上岸后,生氣地大聲問:“剛才是誰把我推下河去的?”

Maybe the man, after thinking of the whole process and the good consequence he is going to obtain, will feel obliged to the one who pushed him into the river.It is fairly common that disadvantages will turn into advantages and misfortunes into fortunes!But many of us cannot manage to realize the significance of our “rivals” to our success.Generally speaking, many people will see the one who “pushes him into the river” as an opponent.However, if you think in a deeper sense, you will realize that it is also a blessing and opportunity to have someone like that!It is the one who “pushes you into the river”who makes you feel the sense of crisis and stimulates your ambition and desire to strive!You will resolve to eliminate all difficulties and progress to another stage of your life!

也許那位男子回過神來想一想,他應(yīng)該感謝那個把他推下去的人。不利變?yōu)橛欣?壞事變成好事,現(xiàn)實生活中比比皆是,但許多人往往認(rèn)識不到造成這個結(jié)果的那個“對手”的作用。一般來講,許多人都會把推他“下河” 的人視為敵人,但只要仔細(xì)想一想,便會發(fā)現(xiàn)有一個強(qiáng)勁的推自己“下河”的人存在,未嘗不是一種福分,一種機(jī)遇。因為這個推你“下河”的人,會讓你產(chǎn)生危機(jī)感,會激發(fā)你更加旺盛的精神和斗志,會讓你下定決心排除一切艱難險阻,在超越中實現(xiàn)矛盾的轉(zhuǎn)化。

In our world, one creature without any rivals is a lifeless creature.If a man lives without rivals, he is bound to be satisfied with the present and will not strive for the better.He would hold back before all difficulties and decline in inaction and laziness.Adverse environment tends to cultivate successful people.Therefore, your rivals are not your opponents or those you grudge.Instead, they are your good friends!In our lives, we need some rivals to “push us into the river”, leaving us striving ahead in all difficulties and competitions.In our work, we need some rivals to be picky about us and supervise our work with rigorous requirements and standards.Due to our rivals, we can bring out our potential to the best;Due to our rivals, we will continuously promote our capabilities when competing with them!一種沒有對手的生物,一定是死氣沉沉的生物;一個人假如沒有了對手,同樣難免會變得安于現(xiàn)狀,不思進(jìn)取,知難而退,在怠惰和沒落中消沉。逆境往往造就成功。所以,對手既不是敵人也不是冤家,而是諍友、摯友。人生中,我們需要一個對手推自己“下河”,讓自己在阻力中前進(jìn),在競爭中發(fā)展;工作中,我們需要一個對手,對自己橫挑鼻子豎挑眼,督促你發(fā)現(xiàn)不足,嚴(yán)要求,高標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。有了對手,我們就會把自己的潛能發(fā)揮到極致;有了對手,我們就會在與對手的比拼中提高素質(zhì),不斷進(jìn)步。

機(jī)遇就存在于生活的細(xì)節(jié)中。同樣的一件事，一個成功的人會看得更多更遠(yuǎn)??

John and Bobby joined a wholesale company togther just after graduation from college the same year.Both worked very hard.After several years, however, the boss promoted Bobby to the posotion of manager but John remained an ordinary employee.John could not take it anymore, tendered his resignation to the boss and complained the boss did not know how to delegate and did not value hard working staff, but only promoted those who flattered him。

約翰和博比同年大學(xué)畢業(yè)后，被同一家批發(fā)公司錄用。他們二人工作都很努力。然而，幾年后，老板提拔博比為部門經(jīng)理，而約翰還是一名普通員工。約翰再也無法忍受，沖動之下寫了一封辭職信，并抱怨老板不會用人，不重用那些敬業(yè)的員工，只提升那些奉承他的人。

The boss knew that John worked very hard for the years.He thought for a moment and said, “Thank you for your criticism, but I have a request.I hope you will do one more thing for our company before you leave.Perhaps you will change your mind and take back your resignation.”

老板知道這幾年約翰工作確實很努力。他想了一會兒說：“謝謝你對我的批評。但是我只有一個請求，我希望在你離開之前再為公司做一件事情?；蛟S到時你會改變決定，收回辭呈。”

John agreed.The boss asked him to go and find out anyone selling watermelon in the market.John went and returned soon.He said he had found out a man selling watermelon.The boss asked how much per kg? John shook his head and went back to the market to ask and returned to inform the boss $1.2 per kg。

約翰答應(yīng)了。老板讓他去市場找到一個賣西瓜的人。約翰去了并很快回來。他說他找到了一個賣西瓜的人。老板問他每公斤多少錢？約翰搖搖頭，回到市場去問，然后又回來告訴老板每公斤1.2美元。

Boss told John to wait a second, and he called Bobby to come to his office.He asked Bobby to go and find anyone seling watermelon in the market.Bobby went, returned and said, boss, only one person selling watermelon.$1.2 per kg, $10 for 10kg, he has inventory of 340 melons.On the table 58 melons, every melon weights about 2 kg, bought from the South two days ago, they are fresh and red, good quality。

老板讓約翰等一會兒，這時他把博比叫到辦公室。他讓博比去市場找到一個賣西瓜的人。博比去了，回來之后說：“老板，只有一個賣西瓜的人，每公斤 1.2美元，每10公斤賣10美元。這個人一共有340個西瓜，其中58個放在貨架上，每個西瓜重約2公斤，都是兩天前從南方運(yùn)來的，新鮮，紅瓤，質(zhì)量好?！?/p>

John was very impressed and realized the difference between himself and Bobby.He decided not to resign but to learn from Bobby。

約翰受到很大的觸動，他意識到自己與博比之間的差距。他決定收回辭呈并向博比學(xué)習(xí)。

My dear friends, a more successful person is more observant, thinks more and explores in depth.Chances exists in the daily details.For the same matter, a more successful person sees more and farther so that he can find out an opportunity and catch it to realize his aim.If a person sees one year ahead, while another sees only tomorrow.The difference between a year and a day is 365 times, how could you win?

親愛的朋友們，成功的人更善于觀察，勤于思考和孜孜探求。機(jī)遇就存在于生活的細(xì)節(jié)中。同樣的一件事，一個成功的人會看得更多更遠(yuǎn)。有人看到一年后的情景，而你只看到明天。一年與一天的差距是365倍，你怎么能贏呢？

Slow Down

As the old saying goes,“What is learned in the cradle carried to the grave.” How often I wish I could read a story leisurely and patiently, word by word as I did when I was eight years old or even younger.As a little girl with fervent desire to seek knowledge, my motto had been,“Soon ripe, soon rotten.Soon learn, soon forgotten.” So I preferred spending lots of time on repeatedly reading a lovely story through and through.At that time, maybe some other children about my age thought of me as a deranged person.However, I just let myself do what I liked, saying nothing.But, then, the quick fix lifestyle today is getting more and more popular.One can not put back the clock.Efficiency means life or death.Therefore, I can not avoid changing my reading habits.Usually, I do not have enough time and energy to read a lovely story word by word.I have no other alternative but to enjoy a pre-digest instead, especially when I am too busy.As a result, I am forced to lose a chance to linger over every word of classic novels or the latest best sellers.Do not get me wrong.I am not saying every work is worth reading word by word.Sometimes, perhaps reading in this way is just a waste of time and energy.But I am saying that it will be really a big pity when I run into a wonderful work I have no time and energy to enjoy it, that is to say, I can only read it superficially.In addition, some works are easy to understand and not worth spending too much time reading thoroughly.For those works, we might discard the dross and select the essence as well.Sometimes, it is the truth that “You may know by a handful the whole sack.”

Why not slow down and enjoy a lovely story like an innocent child?

放慢速度

俗話說：“在搖籃里學(xué)的東西會帶進(jìn)墳?zāi)??！蔽叶嗝聪Ｍ约耗軌蛳?歲甚至更年幼的時候那樣，悠閑、有耐心、逐字逐句地進(jìn)行閱讀。作為一個有著強(qiáng)烈求知欲的小女孩，我的座右銘曾是：“學(xué)得快，忘得快?！彼晕蚁矚g花大量的時間去反復(fù)地閱讀一個可愛的故事。或許那個時候，一些同齡的孩子會把我當(dāng)作神經(jīng)病。不過，我堅持我喜歡做的事，沒理會他們。

但是，話說回來，現(xiàn)在快節(jié)奏生活方式越來越普遍了。時光不會倒流，效率就意味著生命。因而我不得不改變我的閱讀習(xí)慣?，F(xiàn)在的我通常沒有足夠的時間和精力去逐字逐句地閱讀一個可愛的故事。所以我別無選擇，只能享受濃縮版，尤其是太忙的時候。無奈，我失去了推敲經(jīng)典小說或最新暢銷書中每一個字的機(jī)會。

不要誤解我的意思。我不是說每一部作品都值得逐字逐句去閱讀。有時候，這樣的閱讀方式反而是浪費時間和精力。我是說當(dāng)我邂逅一部偉大的作品時，卻沒有時間和精力去細(xì)細(xì)品味，或者說，我只能大致地瀏覽一番，對我來說實在是個大遺憾。而有些作品比較易懂，也不值得花太多時間去深究。對于這樣的作品，我們不妨取其精華，去其糟粕?！耙娢⒅被蛟S是對的。

因此，何不放慢速度，做一個天真的孩子，去享受一個可愛的故事呢？

第二篇：英語美文

美文欣賞

When You Are Old

When you are old and gray and full of sleep, And nodding by the fire, take down this book, And slowly read, and dream of the soft look, Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep.How many loved your moments of glad grace, And loved your beauty with love false or true, But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you, And loved the sorrows of your changing face.And bending down beside the glowing bars, Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled, And paced upon the mountains overhead, And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.當(dāng)你老了

當(dāng)你老了，白發(fā)蒼蒼，睡意沉沉，倦坐在爐邊，取下這本書來，慢慢讀著，追夢當(dāng)年的眼神，那柔美的神采與深幽的暈影。

多少人愛過你青春的片影，愛過你的美貌，處于虛偽或真情，唯獨一人愛你那朝圣者的靈魂，愛你哀戚的臉上歲月的留痕。

在爐柵邊，你彎下了腰，低語著，帶著淺淺的傷感，愛情是怎樣逝去，又怎樣步上群山，將面龐藏在了繁星之間。

向大家推薦一首老歌——《昨日重現(xiàn)》，這是我12歲那年聽到的第一首英文歌曲，當(dāng)時就被它的旋律迷住了，后來慢慢了解了歌詞的意思。很老，但很美！希望大家都能把美好留在自己的記憶里！卡朋特yesterday once more_在線視頻觀看_土豆網(wǎng)視頻 影視

Yesterday Once More

昨日重現(xiàn)-卡朋特

When I was young I'd listen to the radio

waiting for my favorite songs when they played I'd sing along，it make me smile.Those were such happy times and not so long ago how I wondered where they'd gone.But they're back again just like a long lost friend

all the songs I love so well.every shalala every wo'wo

still shines.Every shing-a-ling-a-ling that they're starting

to sing so fine when they get to the part where he's breaking her heart it can really make me cry

just like before.It's yesterday once more.(shoobie do lang lang)looking bak on how it was in years gone by

and the good times that had makes today seem rather sad, so much has changed.It was songs of love that i would sing to them

and I'd memorise each word.Those old melodies still sound so good to me

as they melt the years away every shalala every wo'wo still shines every shing-a-ling-a-ling that they're startingto sing

so fine all my best memorise come back clearly to me

some can even make me cry

just like before.it's yesterday once more.(shoobie do lang lang)every shalala every wo'wo still shines.Every shing-a-ling-a-ling that they're starting to sing

so fine every shalala every wo'wo still shines.Every shing-a-ling-a-ling that they're starting to sing.

第三篇：英語美文

Diogenes was a famous Greek philosopher of the fourth century B.C.,who established the philosophy of cynicism.He often walked about in the daytime holding a lighted lantern,peering around as if he were looking for something.When auestioned about his odd behavior,he would reply,“I am searching for an honest man.” Diogenes held that the good man was self-sufficient and did not require material comforts or wealth.He believed that wealth and possessions constrained humanity's natural state of freedom.In keeping with his philosophy,he was perefectly satisfied with making his home in a large tub discarded from the temple of Cybele,the goddess of nature.This earthen tub,called a pithos,and formerly been used for holding wine or oil for the sacrifices at the temple.One day,Alexander the Great ,conqueror of half the civilized world,saw Diogenes sitting in this tub in the sunshine.So the king,surrounded by his countries,approached Diogenes and said,“I am Alexander the Great.”The philosopher replied rather contemptuously,“I am Diogenes,the Cynic.”Alexander then asked him if he could help him in any way.“ Yes,”shot back Diogenes,“don't stand between me and the sun.”A surprised Alexander then replied quickly,“If I were not Alexander,I would be Diogenes.”

提奧奇尼斯是公元前四世紀(jì)一位著名的希臘哲學(xué)家,就是他創(chuàng)立了犬儒派哲學(xué)。他經(jīng)常在白天點著燈籠四處走動、張望，像是在找什么東西似的。哪人們問起他這古怪行為時，他會回答說：“我正在尋找正人君子?！碧釆W奇尼斯認(rèn)為好人是自給自足的，不需要物質(zhì)享受和財富。他認(rèn)為財富、財產(chǎn)束縛了人們天生的自由狀態(tài)。與他的哲學(xué)相一致，他拿一個從別人從自然之母的廟里丟棄的大壇作為自己的家，還對此萬分滿意。這個陶制的大壇叫做圣壇，過去在廟里是用來盛裝祭祀用的酒和油的。一天，征服了半個文明世界的亞歷山大大帝看見提奧奇尼斯坐在大壇里曬太陽。于是這位君主在大臣們的簇?fù)硐伦哌^去，對提奧奇尼斯說：“我是亞歷山大大帝?！闭軐W(xué)家相當(dāng)傲慢地回答說：“我是提奧奇尼斯————犬儒學(xué)者?！比缓髞啔v山大問他是否需要任何幫助?！笆堑摹?，提奧奇尼斯駁回道，“別站在我和太陽之間?！贝蟪砸惑@的亞歷大繼而迅速回答道：“假如我不是亞歷山大，我就會是提奧奇斯?！?/p>

If I were a boy again, I would practice perseverance more often, and never give up a thing because it was or inconvenient.If we want light, we must conquer darkness.Perseverance can sometimes equal genius in its results.“There are only two creatures,” syas a proverb, “who can surmount the pyramids—the eagle and the snail.” If I were a boy again, I would school myself into a habit of attention;I would let nothing come between me and the subject in hand.I would remember that a good skater never tries to skate in two directions at once.The habit of attention becomes part of our life, if we begain early enough.I often hear grown up people say “ I could not fix my attention on the sermon or book, although I wished to do so” , and the reason is, the habit was not formed in youth.If I were to live my life over again, I would pay more attention to the cultivation of the memory.I would strengthen that faculty by every possible means, and on every possible occasion.It takes a little hard work at first to remember things accurately;but memory soon helps itself, and gives very little trouble.It only needs early cultivation to become a power.假如我又回到了童年，我做事要更有毅力，決不因為事情艱難或者麻煩而撒手不干，我們要光明，就得征服黑暗。毅力在效果上有時能同天才相比。俗話說：“能登上金字塔的生物，只有兩種——鷹和蝸牛?！奔偃缥矣只氐搅送辏揖鸵B(yǎng)成專心致志的習(xí)慣；有事在手，就決不讓任何東西讓我分心。我要牢記：優(yōu)秀的滑冰手從不試圖同時滑向兩個不同的方向。如果及早養(yǎng)成這種專心致志的習(xí)慣，它將成為我們生命的一部分。我常聽成年人說：“雖然我希望能集中注意聽牧師講道或讀書，但往往做不到?！倍蚓褪悄贻p時沒有養(yǎng)成這種習(xí)慣。假如我現(xiàn)在能重新開始我的生命，我就要更注意記憶力的培養(yǎng)。我要采取一切可能的辦法，并且在一切可能的場合，增強(qiáng)記憶力。要正確無誤地記住一些東西，在開始階段的確要作出一番小小的努力；但要不了多久，記憶力本身就會起作用，使記憶成為輕而易舉的事，只需及早培養(yǎng)，記憶自會成為一種才能。

If I were a boy again, I would cultivate courage.“Nothing is so mild and gentle as courage, nothing so cruel and pitiless as cowardice,” syas a wise author.We too often borrow trouble, and anticipate that may never appear.” The fear of ill exceeds the ill we fear.” Dangers will arise in any career, but presence of mind will often conquer the worst of them.Be prepared for any fate, and there is no harm to be freared.If I were a boy again, I would look on the cheerful side.Life is very much like a mirror: if you smile upon it, I smiles back upon you;but if you frown and look doubtful on it, you will get a similar look in return.Inner sunshine warms not only the heart of the owner, but of all that come in contact with it.“ who shuts love out ,in turn shall be shut out from love.” If I were a boy again, I would school myself to say no more often.I might write pages on the importance of learning very early in life to gain that point where a young boy can stand erect, and decline doing an unworthy act because it is unworthy.If I were a boy again, I would demand of myself more courtesy towards my companions and friends, and indeed towards strangers as well.The smallest courtesies along the rough roads of life are like the little birds that sing to us all winter long, and make that season of ice and snow more endurable.Finally, instead of trying hard to be happy, as if that were the sole purpose of life, I would , if I were a boy again, I would still try harder to make others happy.假如我又回到了童年，我就要培養(yǎng)勇氣。一位明智的作家曾說過：“世上沒有東西比勇氣更溫文爾雅，也沒有東西比懦怯更殘酷無情。”我們常常過多地自尋煩惱，杞人憂天?！芭碌満Ρ鹊満Ρ旧砀膳??！狈彩露加形ｋU，但鎮(zhèn)定沉著往往能克服最嚴(yán)重的危險。對一切禍福做好準(zhǔn)備，那么就沒有什么災(zāi)難可以害怕的了。假如我又回到了童年，我就要事事樂觀。生活猶如一面鏡子：你朝它笑，它也朝你笑；如果你雙眉緊鎖，向它投以懷疑的目光，它也將還以你同樣的目光。內(nèi)心的歡樂不僅溫暖了歡樂者自己的心，也溫暖了所有與之接觸者的心?！罢l拒愛于門外，也必將被愛拒諸門外。”假如我又回到了童年，我就要養(yǎng)成經(jīng)常說“不”字的習(xí)慣。一個少年要能挺得起腰，拒絕做不應(yīng)該做的事，就因為這事不值得做。我可以寫上好幾頁談?wù)勗缒昱囵B(yǎng)這一點的重要性。假如我又回到了童年，我就要要求自己對伙伴和朋友更加禮貌，而且對陌生人也應(yīng)如此。在坎坷的生活道路上，最細(xì)小的禮貌猶如在漫長的冬天為我們歌唱的小鳥，那歌聲使冰天雪地的寒冬變得較易忍受。最后，假如我又回到了童年，我不會力圖為自己謀幸福，好像這就是人生唯一的目的；與之相反，我要更努力為他人謀幸福。

第四篇：經(jīng)典英語美文

有一種旅行叫做人生

Life comes in a package.This package includes happiness andsorrow, failure and success, hope and despair.Life is a learningprocess.Experiences in life teach us new lessons and make us abetter person.With each passing day we learn to handle varioussituations.人生好似一個包裹，這個包裹里藏著快樂與悲傷、成功與失敗，希望與絕望。人生也是一個學(xué)習(xí)的過程。那些經(jīng)歷給我們上了全新的課，讓我們變得更好。隨著每一天的過去，我們學(xué)會了處理各種各樣的問題。

FailureandSuccess Failure is the path to success.It helps us to touch the sky, teaches us to survive and shows us aspecific way.Success brings in money, fame, pride and self-respect.Here it becomes veryimportant to keep our head on out shoulder.The only way to show our gratitude to God forbestowing success on us is by being humble, modest, courteous and respectful to the lessfortunate ones.失敗是成功之母。它讓我們觸及藍(lán)天，它教會我們?nèi)绾紊?，它給予我們一條特殊的路。成功給予我們金錢、名譽(yù)、驕傲和自尊。這里，保持頭腦清醒便顯得尤為重要。唯一能讓我們感激上帝給予的成功便是始終卑微、謙虛、禮貌并且尊重沒有我們幸運(yùn)的人們。

美文:我們心中的“如果”“到那時”

IF and WHEN were friends.Every week they met and had lunch.Their conversation usually centered on all the things they weregoing to achieve.They both had many dreams and they lovedto talk about them.“如果”和“到那時”是一對好朋友。他們每星期相約吃一頓午餐。會面時，他們談?wù)摰脑掝}通常圍繞在他們即將要做的事情上面。兩個人都有著許多夢想，并且他們熱衷于這種交談。

This particular Saturday when they met, WHEN sensed that IF was not in a great mood.As usualthey sat at the table reserved for them and ordered their lunch.Once they placed their order,WHEN questioned IF.“IF what is wrong with you? You don't seem your usual cheery self?” 這個星期六他們見面時“到那時”覺察到“如果”的心情不是很好。像往常一樣，他們坐在特意預(yù)留給他們的餐桌上點餐。剛一點完“到那時”就問道:如果，你怎么了?你看起來好像不太高興?！?/p>

IF looked at WHEN and replied, ”I'm not sure, I just don't feel like I am making any progress.Thislast week I saw a course I wanted to take if only I had the time to take it.“ ”如果“看了看”到那時“答道”我也不知道怎么了，只是覺得自己沒什么進(jìn)步。上個星期我發(fā)現(xiàn)一個很好的課程，如果有時間的話，我就去學(xué)?！?/p>

WHEN knew exactly how IF felt.”Yeah,“ replied WHEN, ”I too saw a course and I am going toregister when I get enough money together.“ WHEN then said, ”well what about that new job youwere going to apply for.You were so excited about it last week, did you apply?“ ”到那時“非常理解”如果“的感受。他答道是啊，我也看到一項課程，等到錢充足的時候，我就去報名。對了，你打算申請的新工作怎么樣了?上星期見你說得那么情緒激昂，申請了嗎? ”

IF responded, “If my computer didn't break down last week, I would have applied.But, mycomputer is not working, so I could not type my resume.” “如果”回答道“如果不是上周我的電腦壞了，我會申請的。但是它壞了，我無法打印簡歷，所以只能放棄了?！?/p>

“Don 't worry about it IF, when you are ready another job will come through.I have been thinkingabout looking for another job also, but I will wait and when the weather gets nicer I will look then.”WHEN then went on to tell IF about his week, hoping that it would cheer him up a bit.“別著急，等到你準(zhǔn)備好時，另-個工作就出現(xiàn)了。我也一直考慮著換個工作，但是我想等到天氣看起來好一些時再行動?！比缓螅暗侥菚r”繼續(xù)跟“如果”談?wù)撝男瞧谟媱?，希望這樣能使他的朋友高興起來。

The man at the next table couldn't help overhear WHEN and IF.They both were talking aboutwhen this and if that, finally he couldn't take it anymore.“Excuse me gentlemen,” the man said.IFand WHEN both looked at the man and wondered what he wanted.The man continued, “I'msorry, but I couldn't help hearing your conversation.I think I know how you could solve yourproblems.” 鄰桌的一個男人無意中聽到他們的談話。他昕見兩個人一直在說著“等什么什么時候如果這樣那樣”的話，他再也無法忍受了。于是，男人說道“打擾一下，先生們。”“如果”和“到那時”吃驚地看著他，不知道他要做什么。男人繼續(xù)道很抱歉，我無意中聽到你們的交談。我想我知道如何解決你們的問題。“

IF smiled and thought, how could a complete stranger know how to solve all of their problems.Ifonly he knew.When he realized the challenges they faced there was no way he could solve theirproblems!Curious, IF asked the gentleman, ”How do you think you can solve our problems?“ ”如果“笑了笑，心想，一個完全陌生的人怎么會知道如何解決他們兩個人生活中的問題呢。如果讓他認(rèn)識到他們所面對的困難，恐怕他再也不會那樣說了。出于好奇”如果“還是問道你認(rèn)為應(yīng)該如何解決我們的問題呢? ”

The gentleman smiled and said , “You only need listen to yourselves.It reminds me of an oldproverb: ”If and When were planted , and Nothing grew.“ 男人笑著答道”你們說的話讓我想起一句古老的諺語:'只想不做，就會沒有收獲?！?/p>

IF and WHEN looked puzzled.The gentleman smiled and said, ”Start counting how many timesyou use the words 'if' and 'when'.Rather than thinking 'if and when', start doing, take action, stoptalking about 'if and when'.“ ”如果“和”到那時“疑惑地看著他。男人繼續(xù)說從現(xiàn)在開始，數(shù)一下你們用了多少次?如果'和?到那時'這兩個詞語。你們不要總是思考?如果怎樣怎樣到那時怎樣怎樣而是應(yīng)該著手去做，采取行動，請不要再談?wù)?如果和到那時'?！?/p>

IF and WHEN both looked surprised, and suddenly realized that what the gentleman had said wasso true.Both of them were guilty of thinking,acting and living their life for the “ifs and whens', Thegentleman left and IF and WHEN's conversation changed.They made a pact that when they metfor lunch next week, there would be no ”ifs and whens“;they would only talk about what theyaccomplished!”如果“和”到那時“感到十分驚訝，他們突然意識到這個男人說得很正確。兩個人都為自己把思想、行為、生活的希望放在”如果和到那時“上感到慚愧。男人離開后，他們談話的內(nèi)容有了改變。他們約定下個星期一起吃午餐時，再也沒有”如果“和”到那時他們只會談?wù)撘呀?jīng)完成的事情。

Two Roads 兩條路

【英語散文賞析】

It was New Year's night.An aged man was standing at awindow.He raised his mournful eyes towards the deep blue sky,where the stars were floating like white lilies on the surface of aclear calm lake.When he cast them on the earth where fewmore hopeless people than himself now moved towards theircertain goal-the tomb.He had already passed sixty of the stagesleading to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse.Now his healthwas poor, his mind vacant, his heart sorrowful, and his old age short of comforts.這是新年的夜晚一位老人站在窗邊，憂傷的眼睛眺望著深藍(lán)的天空空中的繁星，猶如漂浮在清澈如鏡的湖面上的朵朵百合。他慢慢將目光投向地面。此刻，沒有什么人比他還絕望。他即將邁向他最終的歸宿——墳?zāi)?。他已走過通向墳?zāi)沟牧壟_階，除了錯誤和悔恨，他一無所獲?，F(xiàn)在他體弱多病，精神空虛，心哀神傷，人到晚年卻無所慰藉。

The days of his youth appeared like dream before him, and he recalled the serious moment whenhis father placed him at the entrances of the two roads One leading to a peaceful, sunny placecovered with flowers, fruits and resounding with soft, sweet songs;the other leading to a deepdark cave which was endless, where poison flowed instead of water and where devils and poisonsnakes hissed and crawled.年輕歲月，如夢般展現(xiàn)在他面前，老人想起父親把他帶到岔路口的那個莊嚴(yán)時刻。一條路通向安寧、快樂的世界，鮮花遇布，果實豐碩，甜美輕柔的歌聲在空中回蕩；另一條路則通向幽深黑暗，沒有盡頭的洞，洞內(nèi)流淌著的不是水而是毒液，群魔亂舞，毒蛇嘶嘶爬動。

He looked towards the sky and cried painfully,“0h youth, return!Oh, my father, place me oncemore at the entrance to life and I'II chose the better way!”But both his father and the days of hisyouth had passed away.他仰望星空，痛苦地大喊：“啊，青春，回來吧！啊，父親，再一次帶我到人生的岔路口吧，我會選一條更好的道路?！钡牵母赣H和他的青春歲月都已一去不復(fù)返了。

He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness, and these were the days of his wasted life;he saw astar fall from the sky and disappeared, and this was the symbol of himself.His remorse which waslike a sharp arrow struck deeply into his heart.Then he remembered his friends in his childhood,which entered life together with him.But they had made their way to success and were nowhonored and happy on this New Year's night.他看到燈光在黑暗中流逝，就像他揮霍掉的往昔；他看到一顆流星自天邊墜落，消失不見，就像是他的化身。無盡的悔恨，像一支利箭，深刺心間。他又記起和自己一同邁入人生之途的兒時玩伴，j但他們已功成名就，在這個新年之夜，倍受尊崇，幸福快樂。

The clock in the high church tower struck and the sound made him remember his parents' earlylove for him.They had taught him and prayed to God for his good.But he chose the wrong waywith shame and grief he dared no longer to look towards the heaven where his father lived.Hisdarkened eyes were full of tears, and with a despairing effort.He burst out a cry:“Come back, myearly days!Come back!” 高高的教堂鐘樓傳來鐘聲，這聲音使他記起父母早年對他的疼愛：他們教育他，為他祈禱。然而，他卻選擇了錯誤的道路：羞愧和悲哀使他再也沒有勇氣仰望父親所在的天堂：黯淡的雙眼溢滿了淚水，他絕望地嘶聲大呼：“回來吧，我的往昔！回來吧！”

And his youth did return for all this was only a dream which he had on New Year's night.He was stillyoung though his faults were real.He had not yet entered the deep dark cave, and he was still freeto walk on the road which leads to the peaceful and sunny land.他的青春真的回來了，所有這些只是一個夢，一個他在新年之夜所做的夢，他仍然年輕，雖然他犯的錯誤是真實的；他尚未走入那幽深黑暗的洞穴，還有自由選擇通向安寧、快樂的道路：

Those who still linger on the entrance of life hesitating to choose the bright road remember thatwhen years are passed and your feet stumble on the dark mountains.You will cry bitterly, but invain.“0h youth return!Oh give me back my early days!” 仍在人生路口徘徊，仍在為是否應(yīng)當(dāng)選擇光明坦途而猶豫不決的人們啊，請記住：當(dāng)青春不再，當(dāng)你在黑暗的山嶺間跌倒時，你會痛苦地呼喊：“啊，青春，回來吧！啊，還給我往昔吧！”此時，一切已是徒勞。

散文:青春常在

No young man believes he will ever die.It was a saying of mybrother's, and a fine one.年輕人不相信自己會死。這是我哥哥的話，可算得一句妙語。

There is a feeling of Eternity in youth, which makes us amendfor everything.青春有一種永生之感——它能彌補(bǔ)一切。

To be young is to be as one of the Immortal Gods.One half of time indeed is flown — the otherhalf remains in store for us with all its countless treasures, for there is no line drawn, and we see nolimit to our hopes and wishes.We make the coming age our own — 人在青年時代好像一尊永生的神明。誠然，生命的一半已經(jīng)消逝，但蘊(yùn)藏著不盡財富的另一半還有所保留，我們對它也抱著無窮的希望和幻想。未來的時代完全屬于我們——

The vast, the unbounded prospect lies before us.無限遼闊的遠(yuǎn)景在我們面前展現(xiàn)。

Death, old age, are words without a meaning that pass by us like the idea air which we regard not.死亡，老年，不過是空話，毫無意義;我們聽了，只當(dāng)耳邊風(fēng)，全不放在心上。

Others may have undergone, or may still be liable to them — we “bear a charmed life”, whichlaughs to scorn all such sickly fancies.這些事，別人也許經(jīng)歷過，或者可能要承受——但我們自己“冥冥中有神保佑”，對于諸如此類脆弱的念頭，統(tǒng)統(tǒng)付之輕蔑的一笑。

As in setting out on delightful journey, we strain our eager gaze forward — 像是剛剛走上愉快的旅程，極目遠(yuǎn)眺——

Bidding the lovely scenes at distance hail!向遠(yuǎn)方的美景歡呼!

And see no end to the landscape, new objects presenting themselves as we advance.——此時，但覺好風(fēng)光應(yīng)接不暇，而且，前程更有美不勝收的新鮮景致。

So, in the commencement of life, we set no bounds to our inclinations, nor to the unrestrictedopportunities of gratifying them.在這生活的開端，我們聽任自己的志趣馳騁，放手給它們一切滿足的機(jī)會。

We have as yet found no obstacle, no disposition to flag;and it seems that we can go on soforever.到此為止，我們還沒有碰上過什么障礙，也沒有感覺到什么疲憊，因此覺得還可以一直這樣向前走去，直到永遠(yuǎn)。

We look round in a new world, full of life, and motion, and ceaseless progress;and feel inourselves all the vigor and spirit to keep pace with it, and do not foresee from any presentsymptoms how we shall be left behind in the natural course of things, decline into old age, anddrop into the grave.我們看到四周一派新天地——生機(jī)盎然，變動不居，日新月異;我們覺得自己活力充盈，精神飽滿，可與宇宙并駕齊驅(qū)。而且，眼前也無任何跡象可以證明，在大自然的發(fā)展過程中，我們自己也會落伍，衰老，進(jìn)入墳?zāi)埂?/p>

It is the simplicity, and as it were abstractedness of our feelings in youth, that(so to speak)identifies us with nature, and(our experience being slight and our passions strong)deludes us intoa belief of being immortal like it.由于年輕人天真單純，可以說是茫然無知，因而將自己跟大自然劃上等號;并且，由于經(jīng)驗少而感情盛，誤以為自己也能和大自然一樣永世長存。

Our short-lives connexion with existence we fondly flatter ourselves is an indissoluble and lastingunion — a honeymoon that knows neither coldness, jar, nor separation.我們一廂情愿，癡心妄想，竟把自己在世上的暫時棲身，當(dāng)作千古不變、萬事長存的結(jié)合，好像沒有冷淡、爭執(zhí)、離別的蜜月。

As infants smile and sleep, we are rocked in the cradle of our wayward fancies, and lulled intosecurity by the roar of the universe around us — we quaff the cup of life with eager haste withoutdraining it, instead of which it only overflows the more — objects press around us, filling the mindwith their magnitude and with the strong of desires that wait upon them, so that we have noroom for the thoughts of death.像嬰兒帶著微笑入睡，我們躺在用自己編織成的搖籃里，讓大千世界的萬籟之聲催哄我們安然入夢;我們急切切、興沖沖地暢飲生命之杯，怎么也不會飲干，反而好像永遠(yuǎn)是滿滿欲溢;森羅萬象紛至沓來，各種欲望隨之而生，使我們騰不出工夫想死亡。

美文:擁抱生活

We often close ourselves off when traumatic events happen inour lives;instead of letting the world soften us, we let it drive usdeeper into ourselves.We try to deflect the hurt and pain bypretending it doesn?t exist, but although we can try this all wewant, in the end, we can?t hide from ourselves.We need tolearn to open our hearts to the potentials of life and let the worldsoften us.生活發(fā)生不幸時，我們常常會關(guān)上心門;世界不僅沒能慰藉我們，反倒使我們更加消沉。我們假裝一切仿佛都不曾發(fā)生，以此試圖忘卻傷痛，可就算隱藏得再好，最終也還是騙不了自己。既然如此，何不嘗試打開心門，擁抱生活中的各種可能，讓世界感化我們呢?

Whenever we start to let our fears and seriousness get the best of us, we should take a stepback and re-evaluate our behavior.The items listed below are six ways you can open your heartmore fully and completely.當(dāng)恐懼與焦慮來襲時，我們應(yīng)該退后一步，重新反思自己的言行。下面六個方法有助于你更完滿透徹地敞開心扉。

1.Breathe into pain 直面痛苦

Whenever a painful situation arises in your life, try to embrace it instead of running away or tryingto mask the hurt.When the sadness strikes, take a deep breath and lean into it.When we runaway from sadness that?s unfolding in our lives, it gets stronger and more real.We take anemotion that?s fleeting and make it a solid event, instead of something that passes through us.當(dāng)生活中出現(xiàn)痛苦的事情時，別再逃跑或隱藏痛苦，試著擁抱它吧;當(dāng)悲傷來襲時，試著深呼吸，然后直面它。如果我們一味逃避生活中的悲傷，悲傷只會變得更強(qiáng)烈更真實——悲傷原本只是稍縱即逝的情緒，我們卻固執(zhí)地耿耿于懷。

By utilizing our breath we soften our experiences.If we dam them up, our lives will stagnate, butwhen we keep them flowing, we allow more newness and greater experiences to blossom.深呼吸能減緩我們的感受。屏住呼吸，生活停滯;呼出呼吸，更多新奇與經(jīng)歷又將拉開序幕。

2.Embrace the uncomfortable 擁抱不安

We all know what that twinge of anxiety feels like.We know how fear feels in our bodies: thetension in our necks, the tightness in our stomachs, etc.We can practice leaning into these feelingsof discomfort and let them show us where we need to go.我們都經(jīng)歷過焦灼的煎熬感，也都感受過恐懼造成的生理反應(yīng)：脖子僵硬、胃酸翻騰。其實，我們有能力面對這些痛苦的感受，從中領(lǐng)悟到出路。

The initial impulse is to run away — to try and suppress these feelings by not acknowledging them.When we do this, we close ourselves off to the parts of our lives that we need to experience most.The next time you have this feeling of being truly uncomfortable, do yourself a favor and lean intothe feeling.Act in spite of the fear.我們的第一反應(yīng)總是逃避——以為否認(rèn)不安情緒的存在就能萬事大吉，可這也恰好妨礙了我們經(jīng)歷最需要的生活體驗。下次感到不安時，不管有多害怕，也請試著勇敢面對吧。

3.Ask your heart what it wants 傾聽內(nèi)心

We?re often confused at the next step to take, making pros and cons lists until our eyes bleed andour brains are sore.Instead of always taking this approach, what if we engaged a new part ofourselves that isn?t usually involved in the decision making process? 我們常對未來猶疑不定，反復(fù)考慮利弊直到身心俱疲。與其一味顧慮重重，不如從局外人的角度看待決策之事。

I know we?ve all felt decisions or actions that we had to take simply due to our “gut” impulses:when asked, we can?t explain the reasons behind doing so — just a deep knowing that it had toget done.This instinct is the part of ourselves we?re approaching for answers.其實很多決定或行動都是我們一念之間的結(jié)果：要是追問原因的話，恐怕我們自己也道不清說不明，只是感到直覺如此罷了。而這種直覺恰好是我們探索結(jié)果的潛在自我。

To start this process, take few deep breaths then ask, “Heart, what decision should I make here?What action feels the most right?”

開始前先做幾次深呼吸，問自己：“內(nèi)心認(rèn)為該做什么樣的決定呢?覺得采取哪個方案最恰當(dāng)?”

See what comes up, then engage and evaluate the outcome.看看自己的內(nèi)心反應(yīng)如何，然后全力以赴、靜待結(jié)果吧。

4.Engage your shadow 了解陰暗面

Many of us who are on the personal development path get caught up in embracing characteristicswe want to have, like happiness, compassion, love, and passion.In this pursuit we end up losingparts of ourselves that make us whole, such as suppressing our negative qualities instead ofengaging them.Try asking yourself a few questions: 很多人在成長過程中都或多或少養(yǎng)成期望的性格，比如快樂、同情、愛心以及激情等等;與此同時，我們也會陷入消極壓抑的品性。這時，你就要問問自己：

What parts of myself could I do without? 我有哪些可以完全拋棄的性格?

How do I get in my own way? 有哪些品性會妨礙我的成長?

Is there anything I?m hiding from myself? 我對自己是不是足夠誠實坦白?

Don?t be afraid of what comes out;you might want to run from the answers, but instead,acknowledge them and be with them as much as possible.Once you?re a little clearer about whatexactly you?ve been hiding, from it gets easier to shine your light on it.別害怕最終得出的結(jié)果，也別逃避，相反，你應(yīng)該面對并盡量接受現(xiàn)實。如果你能確切了解自己的陰暗面，也就更容易去改正。

5.Spend time alone 享受獨處

For most of our lives we?re surrounded by people: our friends, colleagues, peers, family members,loved ones, and strangers.How often do we really spend time alone? 大部分人身邊總不缺陪伴：朋友、同事、同伴、親人、愛侶，還有陌生人。那么，怎樣才能真正獨處呢?

When you spend time in solitude, you?re free from the influences of other people, and can trulyopen yourself and explore whatever you?d like.See where your thoughts take you.The goldenticket here is to not let yourself become distracted;just see what it?s like to be alone.獨處使人免受他人干擾，能讓我們真正敞開心懷去探究所喜所惡，讓自己跟著思緒游走——一定要保持專心，用心體會獨處的曼妙。

It might be painful or even scary at first, but by opening yourself up to these new feelings, you?lladd a whole new layer of depth, experience, and understanding into your life.一開始可能會感到痛苦甚至惶恐，可一旦敞開心胸面對這些感受，你便能達(dá)到更高一層境界，收獲別樣的經(jīng)驗，也更理解自己的生活。

6.Get outside of yourself 走出自我

This may seem a little contradictory to the last tip, but in reality, they actually work hand-in-hand.After you?ve explored the depths of yourself, you come away with a new understanding.這和前一個建議貌似有點矛盾，但其實兩者卻是相輔相成的。獨處之后，你對自己獲得了全新了解。

Now, it?s time to share that — not through telling others, but through being with others.然后，你應(yīng)該把它分享出來——當(dāng)然，這不是要你直接把它告知與人，而是要求你通過與人交往進(jìn)行分享。

When you?re in a group of people, try to give them your full energy and attention so you canunderstand them just as you did yourself.Appreciate their uniqueness, as if they are an extensionof you.Lose yourself in the beauty of others;see what they can teach you about yourself.當(dāng)你與人交往時，請試著用心去了解他們，就好比你用心了解自己一樣。感同身受地欣賞他們的個性、觀察他們的優(yōu)點，看看自己能從中學(xué)到什么。

Remember, there?s no need to do every one of these at the same time.Take each one a day at atime, determine which work best for you, and see what you can discover.請記住：以上建議并不要求你一氣呵成，你可以每天嘗試一個，選擇最適合自己的建議，看看自己能從中收獲什么。

美文:2015如何做嶄新的自己?

THE annual ritual of the New Year?s resolution — I?ll lose 10pounds, get my finances in order, be more patient with myfamily, feel more grateful — misses the point.We try to steel ourwills to do what we already know we should be doing.Kick-in-the-pants reminders, however stern, are missed opportunitiesfor genuine self-renewal.(Not to mention that the shelf life ofany motivational juice we generate in January tends to expirein February.)制定新年規(guī)劃這個一年一度的常規(guī)動作——我要減重10磅，要解決財務(wù)問題，要更耐心地對待家人，要更知道感恩——總是放錯重點。我們竭力強(qiáng)化意志，去做已經(jīng)意識到自己該做的那些事情。但好似“催命符”的備忘錄不管多嚴(yán)苛，都無法激勵人們進(jìn)行真正的自我更新。（更別提1月份才成形的這些宏圖大志是多么容易過期，2月份一到，它們往往就宣告破產(chǎn)。）

The turning over of a new year is an opportunity to create ourselves anew.How? The key, Isuggest, is in shifting our understanding of the choices we make.For many people, the mostimportant choices in life are sources of agony, dread, paralysis — even depression or suicide.Itdoesn?t have to be like this.新年來臨之際是重新塑造自我的良機(jī)。如何塑造呢？我認(rèn)為，關(guān)鍵在于換個角度來理解我們所做的選擇。對很多人而言，生命中最重要的一些選擇是痛苦、恐懼、無力的根源，甚至?xí)屓水a(chǎn)生抑郁和自殺傾向。但事情并不一定非是如此不可。

A hypothetical example: Eve works as a textbook editor at a Boston publishing house and wasapproached by a small but prestigious imprint on the West Coast that was looking for a fictioneditor.The job would be a big promotion, with a significant raise, and Eve had always wanted towork in fiction.比方說，伊芙是波士頓某出版社的教科書編輯，西海岸一家正在尋找小說編輯的出版公司找到了她。該公司規(guī)模雖小，但卻久負(fù)盛名。接受這份工作，伊芙的職位會大大提升，薪水會大幅提高，而且她一直都想在小說領(lǐng)域發(fā)展。

But Eve is in crisis.Should she move her husband and young daughter from their cozy life inBoston, her home of 15 years, to the wilds of California? If she stays, will she be forsaking theopportunity of a lifetime? If she moves, will her new boss turn out to be a jerk? Will her child bebullied at school? What if her husband can?t find a good job? Will the family quarrel, the marriagedissolve, her boss fire her for being incompetent, and she and her child end up on food stamps ina homeless shelter? 但伊芙卻面臨著艱難的抉擇。她已經(jīng)在波士頓生活了15年，該讓丈夫和年幼的女兒拋開這里的愜意生活，與她一起搬走嗎？如果選擇留在波士頓，她能夠割舍一生中難得的機(jī)遇嗎？如果選擇搬去西海岸，要是發(fā)現(xiàn)新老板是個混球可怎么辦？要是她的孩子在學(xué)校挨欺負(fù)可怎么辦？要是她丈夫找不到好工作可怎么辦？家里是否會爭吵不斷，婚姻是否會解體，老板是否會因為她無法勝任工作而炒她魷魚，她和孩子是否會落得在收容所靠食品券度日的田地？

Many people are like Eve and see their choices as, in essence, problems of computation.Butchoosing between jobs is not like computing the distance between Memphis and Mumbai.The viewof choice as a matter of calculating maximal value is assumed in cost-benefit analysis, governmentpolicy making and much of economic theory.It?s even embedded in the apps you can downloadthat purport to help you decide whether to buy a new car, get married or change jobs.許多人都和伊芙差不多，他們其實把選擇看成了計算利害得失的問題。但在不同工作之間做出選擇，跟測量從孟菲斯到孟買的距離可不是一回事。把選擇看作對價值最大化的計算，是內(nèi)化于成本收益分析、政府決策過程以及許多經(jīng)濟(jì)理論之中的一種觀念。它甚至潛藏在可以從網(wǎng)上下載的某些旨在幫助你決定是否要買新車、是否要結(jié)婚、是否要換工作的應(yīng)用程序之中。

At the heart of this model is a simple assumption: that what you should choose is alwaysdetermined by facts in the world about which option has more value — facts that, if only you weresmart enough to discover, would make decision-making relatively easy.該模型的核心假設(shè)非常簡單：你的選擇總是取決于世界上的某些與哪個選項會帶來更大價值有關(guān)的事實——你只要聰明到足以發(fā)現(xiàn)這些事實，就能夠相對容易地做出決策。

But the assumption is false.When we compute distances, there are only three possibilities: onedistance is more than, less than or equal to another.Similarly, when we compute value, there areonly three possibilities: one thing is better than, worse than or just as good as another.But weshouldn?t assume that goodness is like distance.Values don?t have the same structure as facts.但這個假設(shè)是錯誤的。我們測算距離的時候，所面對的可能性只有三種：一段距離比另一段長，比另一段短，或者跟另一段相等。同樣，我們計算價值的時候，所面對的可能性也只有三種：一個事物比另一個好，比另一個糟，或者跟另一個差不多。但我們不該把事物的好壞和距離的長短等同起來。價值的體系和事實的體系是截然不同的。

Options can be “on a par” — different in value while being in the same overall neighborhood.Ifyour alternatives are on a par, you can?t make a mistake of reason in choosing one instead of theother.Since one isn?t better than the other, you can?t choose wrongly.But nor are they equallygood.When alternatives are on a par, when the world doesn?t determine a single right thing to do,that doesn?t mean that value writ large has been exhausted.Instead of looking outward to find thevalue that determines what you should do, you can look inward to what you can stand behind,commit to, resolve to throw yourself behind.By committing to an option, you can confer value onit.各種選項可能會“平分秋色”——雖然價值不完全相同，但也相差無幾。如果你有一些平分秋色的選項，你無論選擇哪個，都不會犯判斷上的錯誤。因為兩種選擇沒有優(yōu)劣之分，你不可能做出錯誤的選擇。不過，它們也并非一樣好。當(dāng)選項平分秋色時，當(dāng)世界上并非只有唯一正確的答案時，那并不意味著真正的價值已經(jīng)枯竭。與其從外部尋找價值來判斷自己應(yīng)該做些什么，你可以向內(nèi)心來詢問自己能夠支持、承諾，以及決心投身于什么。只要篤定于一個選項，你就為它賦予了價值。

Of course, this isn?t to say that you should commit to being a first-class jerk, pedophile ormurderer.That?s because being a jerk is not on a par with being a good person.當(dāng)然了，這并不是說你應(yīng)該篤定于成為一個頭號混蛋、戀童癖，或者殺人犯。這是因為，做一個混蛋和做一個好人可不是平分秋色的選項。When we choose between options that are on a par, we make ourselves the authors of our ownlives.Instead of being led by the nose by what we imagine to be facts of the world, we shouldinstead recognize that sometimes the world is silent about what we should do.In those cases, wecan create value for ourselves by committing to an option.By doing so, we not only create valuefor ourselves but we also(re)create ourselves.Eve might resolve to make her life in Boston.Someone else, in her shoes, might resolve to start a new life in California.There is no error here,only different resolutions that create different sorts of people.當(dāng)我們在平分秋色的選項中做選擇時，我們就成了自己人生的創(chuàng)造者。我們不應(yīng)該被我們想象中的世界現(xiàn)實牽著鼻子走，而是應(yīng)該認(rèn)識到，有時，這個世界不會告訴我們應(yīng)該做什么。在這種情況下，我們應(yīng)該篤定一種選項，創(chuàng)造我們自己的價值。這樣做的話，我們不僅為自己創(chuàng)造了的價值，我們也（重新）創(chuàng)造了自己。伊芙可能決心在波士頓生活。而面臨同樣的境遇，另一個人可能會決定在加州開始新的生活。這無所謂對錯，只是不同的解決方案造就不同類型的人罷了。

So Eve, faced with her choice, should reflect on what kind of person she can be.Can she besomeone who abandons a contented life for a new adventure? A choice between alternatives thatare on a par is a precious opportunity to create the sort of person she can commit to being, bycommitting to being that sort of person.因此，伊芙在做出選擇時，應(yīng)該考慮的是，她能成為什么樣的人。她能為了新的冒險而放棄舒適的生活嗎？在平分秋色的選項中做決定是一個寶貴的機(jī)會，可以創(chuàng)造出一個自己能夠決心成為的人，方法就是下決心成為那種類型的人。

第五篇：英語美文

;It is not difficult to imagine a world short of ambition.It would probably be a kinder world: without demands, without abrasions, without disappointments.People would have time for reflection(磨損).Such work as they did would not be for themselves but for the collectivity.Competition would never enter in, conflict would be eliminated, tension become a thing of the past.The stress of creation would be at an end.Art would no longer be troubling, but purely celebratory in its functions.Longevity would be increased, for fewer people would die of heart attack or stroke caused by tumultuous endeavor.Anxiety would be extinct.Time would stretch on and on, with ambition long departed from the human heart.Ah, how unrelieved boring life would be!

There is a strong view that holds that success is a myth, and ambition therefore a sham(騙子).Does this mean that success does not really exist? That achievement is at bottom empty? That the efforts of men and women are of no significance alongside the force of movements and events? Now not all success, obviously, is worth esteeming, nor all ambition worth cultivating.Which are and which are not is something one soon enough learns on one's own.But even the most cynical secretly admit that success exists;that achievement counts for a great deal;and that the true myth is that the actions of men and women are useless.To believe otherwise is to take on a point of view that is likely to be deranging.It is, in its implications, to remove all motives for competence, interest in attainment, and regard for posterity.We do not choose to be born.We do not choose our parents.We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing.We do not, most of us, choose to die;nor do we choose the time or conditions of our death.But within all this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we shall live: courageously or in cowardice, honorably or dishonorably, with purpose or in drift.We decide what is important and what is trivial in life.We decide that what makes us significant is either what we do or what we refuse to do.But no matter how indifferent the universe may be to our choices and decisions, these choices and decisions are ours to make.We decide.We choose.And as we decide and choose, so are our lives formed.In the end, forming our own destiny is what ambition is about.