高级英语复习

Blackmail

Sentences

Para.18

The words spat forth with sudden savagery, all pretense of blandness gone.

Paraphrased sentence 7

The words were uttered angrily and sharply with great contempt and sudden rudeness as if he were spitting, Ogilvie threw away all his pretended politeness.

他此时凶相毕露，先前装出的那副温和劲儿荡然无存。(absolute structure)

Para.19The Duchess of Croydon—three centuries and a half of inbred arrogance behind her—did not yield easily.

Paraphrased sentence 9

The Duchess was supported by her arrogance coming from parents of noble families for more than 3 hundred years, so she did not give in easily.

克罗伊敦公爵夫人——依仗着三个半世纪祖传下来的狂傲天性——并没有轻易就范。Para.20Even the self-assurance of Ogilvie flickered for an instant.

Paraphrased sentence11

For a brief moment, Olgilviefelt unsure if his assumption about them was right.

(But the moment was very short and passed quickly.)

欧吉维虽有那股自信劲儿，也不禁为之一震。

Para.75The Duchess of Croydon kept firm, tight rein on her racing mind.

Paraphrased sentence 16

The Duchess kept firm and tight control of her mind which is working quickly.

克罗伊敦公爵夫人极力控制自己那如脱缰野马般的思绪。

(thinking quickly but at the same time keeping her thoughts under control)

Para.75her husband now a tense but passive spectator of the exchange between the evil fat man and herself.

Paraphrased sentence 17

her husband now watches nervously and anxiously , incapable of taking an active role in the deal between the Duchess and the vicious fat man.

在她与这个存心恶毒的肥佬之间的激烈交锋中，她的丈夫只当了一名紧张而被动的旁观者。(nominative absolute structure)

Para.97Her eyes were riveted on his face, her handsome, high-cheekboned features set in their most imperious mold.

Paraphrased sentence 20

Her eyes were fixed on his face firmly, and her handsome and high-cheeckboned features were set in a most arrogant and domineering manner.

她目光紧紧盯住他的脸，同时她那漂亮、高颧骨的俏脸上展出一副霸道的神态。(second part of the sentence-nominaltive absolute construction with a noun)

Para.100Theremust be no mistake, no vacillation or dallyingbecause of her own smallness of mind.

Paraphrased sentence22

She mustn't make any mistakes in her plan, or waver in mind and show indecision or deal with the situation carelessly due to small-mindedness.

(In other words, she had to take a big chance, to do something very daring, so she must be bold, resolute, decisive and rise to the occasion.)

克罗伊敦公爵夫人知道，接下来的行动也许会是她一生中所作出的最重大的决定。决不能因自己的见识有限而出半点差错，决不能优柔寡断或举棋不定。

Para.100When you were praying for the highest stakes, you made the highest bid. Paraphrased sentence 23

When your reputation and career were at stake, you had to pay the highest price.

要想赢大钱，就得下大注。

Para.100She must do so in such a way as to place the outcome beyond any doubt. Paraphrased sentence 24

She must offer him so much money as to make sure that Ogilvie would undoubtedly agree to do what she would ask him to do however dangerous it was.

她想利用这大肥佬的贪心大赌一场，而且恰到好处，使结果能保证万元一失。Vocabulary inBlackmail

Para.1Cryptic: adj. hidden, secret, mysterious, difficult to understand

Eg:He has issued a short, cryptic statement denying the spying charges.

She made a cryptic comment about how the film mirrored her life

Para.1Fray: v. become strained and irritated使紧张，烦躁

Eg.This kind of life was beginning to fray her nerves.

In the process of basketball contest, tempers began to fray as the two teams failed to score.

Para.4Sardonically: disdainfully, showing a feeling of being too good or important to consider a matter or person seriously, scornfully, cynically 嘲笑地，讥讽地

John noticed them quite clearly as he made his report , and smiled sardonically to himself.

Some say sardonically that combat pay is good and that one can do quite well out of this war.

Para.4Encompass: v. to surround on all sides, to form a circle about, enclose 包含或包括某些事物

Eg.No single document could encompass all the shades of interpretation.

Usually these needs are in abundance and encompass a variety of task

Para.7Incongruous: adj. not in harmony or agreement with, not harmonious, absurd, inappropriate behavior不协调的/不适宜的

Eg.He could not have introduced a more incongruous proposal.

His private opinions were incongruous with his public statements

Para.18Blandness: n. gentle or polite in manner or talk温和，柔和

Eg:Blandness in the basic politics of the media became standard.

She said with false blandness , “Could you stay longer?”

Para.19Wrathful: adj. (fml) extremely angry大怒的，恼怒的

Eg:The wrathful crowd surged forward, the rude man backed away in fear . Meanwhile the Captain strode wrathful away to the council.

Para.19Wither v. to render speechless or incapable of action; become weak; dry up and die

Eg:Age cannot wither Herbing.

Industries unable to modernize have been left to wither.

Farmers in the Midwest in Grapes of Wrath have watched their crops wither because of drought conditions.

Para.26Smug: adj. be pleased with oneself, showing too mu ch satisfaction with one‘s qualities, position, etc沾沾自喜

Eg:He had the smugness that many lawyers show.

I reckon she has good reason to feel smug.

Para.32Reprovingly: adv. Expressing a blame or rebuke 表示职责地

Eg:Even Thomas, always dignified, looked at her reprovingly.

The old man pointed his forefinger at the young man reprovingly .

Para.42Concede: v. reluctantly accept sth. as true, usu. suggesting the strength of the opponent‘s argument.承认

E.g.:The lawyer refused to concede that the two cases were at all similar.

The diplomat claimed that we could not concede any of our territory.

Para.82Incriminate. to accuse of a crime or the other wrongful act控告……有罪，使负罪Eg.

He claimed that the drugs had been planted to incriminate him.

He had been forced to incriminate himself in cross - examinations .

Para.97Peremptory /peremptorily : intolerantly positive；dictatorial；dogmatic；imperious高傲的；武断的；专横的；

Eg.With a brief, almost peremptory gesture he pointed to a chair .

The consular porter spoke peremptorily.

Para.97Imperious: proud and expected to be obeyed; overbearing；arrogant；masterful，domineering傲慢的；专横的；盛气凌人的

Eg:Her attitude is imperious at times.

A person, who is imperious and tries to gloss over his fault, is bound to suffer in the end.

Para.99Comply: v. to act in accordance with another’s command,

request or rule 顺从

The commander said that the army would comply with the ceasefire . Candidates must comply strictly with these instructions .

Para.100Vacillation: n. the state of swinging indecisively from one opinion to another, indecision. 犹豫不定，踌躇不决

Eg:His constant vacillation made him an unfit administrator.

You are expected to answer the call with immediate actions and not with vacillation. Para.100Dally: v. act or move very slowly, wasting time ;be slow or waste time浪费时间，延误

Eg:How can you dally with such a serious problem?

He did not dally over the choice of a partner.

Hiroshima---the "Liveliest" City in Japan

Paraphrase

●And secondly, because I had a lump in my throat and a lot of sad thoughts on

my mind that had little to do with anything a Nippon railways official might say.(Page22-Paragraph1)

●Paraphrased sentence1-para.1

●And secondly because I was choked with emotion and I was occupied with some

sad thoughts which had no connection with what the Japanese stationmaster might say.

●The tall buildings of the martyred city flashed by as we lurched from side to

sidein response to the driver’s sharp twists of the wheel.

(Page22-Paragraph3)

●Paraphrased sentence 7-para.3

●The high buildings passed swiftly and when the driver made abrupt changes of

direction, we sometimes swung to one side, sometimes to other side as a

reaction to the swaying motion of the car .

●As in Tokyo, taxi drivers in Hiroshima often know little of their city, but to avoid

loss of face before foreigners, will not admit their ignorance, and will accept any destination without concern for how long it may take them to find it. (page

22-para.4)

●Paraphrased sentence 9-para.4

●As in Tokyo, taxi drivers in Hiroshima often do not know much of their city. But in

order to keep up dignity before foreigners, they will not confess that they have no idea about the destination and will agree to go where they are asked to

without caring how long it may take them to find it.(para.4)

?The rather arresting spectacle of little old Japan adrift amid beige concrete

skyscrapers is the very symbol of the incessant struggle between the kimono

and the miniskirt. (Page23-Paragraph7)

●Paraphrased sentence 10-para.7

●The rather striking picture of traditional Japan floating houses among high

modern buildings represents the constant struggle between old traditional

culture and new Western style.

?This done, I entered one of the low-ceilinged rooms of the little floating

house, treading cautiously on the soft tatami matting and experiencing a

twinge of embarrassmentat the prospect of meeting the mayor of Hiroshima

in my socks.

●(Page23-Paragraph8)

●Paraphrased sentence 11-para.8

●After taking off my shoes, I got/stepped/came into one of the low-ceilinged

rooms of the adrift houses. I was not accustomed to walking in my socks so I

walked carefully on the soft tatami matting, suffering from a strong feeling of shamewhen I thought of /had the expectation of meeting the mayor of

Hiroshima in my socks.

◆Quite unexpectedly, the strange emotion which had overwhelmed me

at the station returned, and I was again crushed by the thought that I

now stood on the site of the first atomic bombardment, where

thousands upon thousands of people had been slain in one second,

where thousands upon thousands of others had lingered on to diein

slow agony.

●(Page23-Paragraph9)

●Paraphrased sentence 12-para.9

●Quite out of the expectation, I was again overcome by a guilty conscience as I

had been when I first arrived at the station. And the thought that I now stood on the site of the first atomic bombardment once again overwhelmed me. Here

large numbers of people had been killed in a second; while another large plenty of people died slowly andin great pain.

◆I was just about tomake my little bow of assent, when the meaning of

these last words sank in, jolting me out of my sad

reverie.(Page24-Paragraph18)

●Paraphrased sentence 14-para.18

●I was on the point ofshowing my agreement by nodding when I suddenly realized

what he meant. His words shocked me out of my sad dreamy thinking.

◆There are two different schools of thought in this city of oysters, one

that would like to preserve traces of the bomb, and the other that

would like to get rid of everything, even the monument that was

erected at the point of impact. (Page25-Paragraph25)

●Paraphrased sentence 15-para.25

●There are two kinds of thoughts in this city, one that would like to maintain and

protect the signs of destruction caused by the bomb, and the other that would like to wipe out everything, even the monument that was constructed at the

exact point over where the bomb exploded.

◆It is humiliating to survive in this city. If you bear any visible scars of

atomic burns, your children will encounter prejudiceon the part of

those who do not.(Page26-Paragraph34)

●Paraphrased sentence 18-para.34

●It is a disgrace for an atomic victim to remain alive in this city. If you carry any

visible scars of atomic burns, your children will be looked down uponby those who are not atomic victims.

Vocabulary

Difficult words and Synonyms

Para.2Preoccupation--a state of mind in which you think about something so much that you do not consider other things to be important.

Eg.Keats's poetry shows a profound preoccupation with the natural world.

He always takes his preoccupation with the educational cause

Para. 3--lurchmake a sudden movement, especially forwards, in an uncontrolled way; move suddenly from one course of action or attitude to another in an uncontrolled way Eg.As the car sped over a pothole, Sophie lurch ed forward.

The first round of multilateral trade talks between America and Japan has lurch ed between hope and despair.

Synonym: lurch, stagger, sway,rock

Stagger--walk very unsteadily ;

Sway-- lean or swing slowly from one side to the other;

Lurch--make a sudden movement, especially forwards

Rock—move slowly and regularly backwards and forwards or from side to side Para. 8--twingea sudden sharp feeling or emotion, usually an unpleasant one.

Eg.Jon would have twinge s of guilt occasionally even after the hurricane.

The manager could not help feeling a twinge of panic at the news.

Para.10-inibited

Syn: abstain, refrain, restrain,

Abstained—deliberately stop doing whath you want to do；

Refrain--deliberately not do sth.

restrain --stop people from doing what they intended or wanted to do, usually by using your physical strength ；

Inhibit--find it difficult to behave naturally and show their feelings (implying it is bad); slow down because of preventions

Curb--control it and keep it within limits

examples

Do you drink alcohol, smoke, or abstain?

He appealed to all factions to refrain from violence

One onlooker had to be restrain ed by police.

Inflation needs to be curb ed in America.

The high cost of borrowing is inhibit ing investment by industry in new equipment.

Para.1-heinous

Syn.

Heinous--extremely evil or horrible穷凶极恶的、无法饶恕的

Abominable--very unpleasant or bad. (令人不快）憎恶的、讨厌的；

Atrocious--emphasizing that its quality is very bad. （造成恶劣伤害）恶毒的、残忍的Examples

Her life has been permanently blighted by his heinous crime committed in World War II. The President described the killings as an abominable crime.

The food in the canteens is atrocious.

Para.22-cataclysmSyn.

Disaster--a very bad accident such as an earthquake or a plane crash, especially one in which a lot of people are killed （一般用词）不可预测的意外事故所造成的灾难或不幸，失败；Cataclysm-- an event that causes a great deal of damage, destruction, or personal distress, more serious than ‘disaster’严重、主观发生的剧烈变动或灾难（如洪水、地震等）；Catastrophe---an unexpected event that causes great suffering or damage. 突如其来的、极严重的大灾难或灾祸，强调可怕性和突然性

examples

Many had lost all in the disaster and were destitute.

If the world is to avoid environmental catastrophe, advanced economies must undergo a profound transition.

The extinct volcano's eruption would mean a cataclysm for the city

Para.25. preserveSyn: preserve, conserve, reserve

Conserve--protect it from harm, loss, or change保持完好，防止受到损失或伤害；Preserve--remains as it is, and does not change or end保持某物品长时间良好的状态；Reserve—keep a supply of something that is available for use when it is needed保存、储备（食物）

examples

We need to preserve the forest.

The Government-funded body is responsible for conserving historic buildings.

In the United States lanes are reserve d for cars with more than one occupant.

Para.25. demolish

Syn. demolish, destroy, ruin, damage, spoil

Demolish--destroy it completely on purpose or by accidentally as a building and so on. 拆毁（巨大的东西），推翻、拆除；

Destroy--cause so much damage to it that it is completely ruined or does not exist any more.摧毁、消灭；

Ruin-- severely harm, damage, or spoil毁坏（尤指完好的建筑或人生）

Damage--break it, spoil it physically, or stop it from working properly损坏;破坏;毁坏

Spoil--prevent it from being successful or satisfactory弄糟;损坏;破坏

examples

The building is now being demolish ed to make way for a motorway.

No one was injured in the explosion, but the building was completely destroy ed . Grandfather was ruin ing his health through worry .

The sun can damage your skin.

It's important not to let mistakes spoil your life.

Para.34. humiliate

Syn.: humiliate, abase, disgrace, degrade, humble

Humiliate--say or do something which makes sb. feel ashamed or stupid （遭受奚落而感到的）使丢脸、羞辱；

Abase--cause to feel shame; hurt the pride of;

使、、、谦卑，表示自谦；

Disgrace—emphasize that other people disapprove of them and do not respect them because of something that they have done不光彩的、蒙羞的；

Degrade--cause people to have less respect for sb.降级、贬黜；

Humble—make you realize that you are not as important or good as you thought you were 降低（身份、地位），自卑

examples

Tom’s teacher continually humiliate s him in maths lessons.

It is said Tess has disgraced womankind.

We hold the notion that pornography degrade s women.

Nixon was not willing to abase himself before the nation.

I am sure millions of viewers were humble d by this story .

高级英语整理

20160528 Exam Items for Advanced English, Vol 1

I.Vocabulary (1%x20=20%)

II.Paraphrase (2%x10=20%)

III.Reading (2%x10=20%)

IV.E-C Translation (4%x5=20%)

V.Writing (20%x1=20%)

Face to Face with Hurricane

Sentence Paraphrasing

10.(para13)The wind sounded like the roar of a train passing a few yards away. The house shuddered and shifted from its foundationsThe sound of the hurricane was similar to the deep, loud noise of a passing train a few yards away. The house shook and was loosened from its foundations. 狂风就像在身边呼啸而过的列车一样发出震耳的响声，房屋在地基上晃动移位。

11. (para 17) John watched the water lap at the steps, and felt a crushing guilt.

As John watched the water inch its way up the steps, he felt a strong sense of guilt because he blamed himself for endangering the whole family by deciding not to flee inland. (contrast--lap: tap lightly; crushing: overwhelming)

约翰望着海水漫过一级一级的台阶，心里感到一阵强烈的内疚。

16. (para20): Richelieu Apartments were smashed apart as if by a gigantic fist.

Richelieu Apartments were destroyed completely by the hurricane as if by a powerful fist. (simile& personification: fist)

结果像是有一个其大无比的拳头把公寓打得粉碎。

17.(para 21)She carried on alone for a few bars; then her voice trailed away.

Grandmother Koshaksang a few words alone and then her voice gradually grew dimmer and stopped. 老奶奶独个儿唱了几句，然后她的声音就完全消失了。

19 (para 27):Strips of clothing festooned the standing trees, blowndown power lines coiled like spaghetti over roads.

The remaining trees were decorated with pieces of clothing, the broken electrical wires , which looked like a black spaghetti, wined around over the roads. (metaphor: clothing=flowers; simile: like…)

尚未被风刮倒的树上结彩似地挂满被撕成布条的衣服，吹断的电线像黑色的空心面一样盘

成一圈一圈地散在路面上。

21. (para 34) :Janis had just one delayed reaction.

paraphrased

Janis displayed rather late the exhaustion brought about by the nervous tension caused by the hurricane.詹尼斯对于这场灾难的反应则是过了几天才表现出来。

22．（para35）It could have been depressing but it wasn’t: eachsalvaged item represented a little victory over the wrath of the storm.

Going through the wrecked home picking things could have a depressing effect, but it didn’t. When they picked up some useful things they felt as if they had won some kind of a victory over the storm.

这项工作原本让人感到沮丧但实则不然。每件幸存下来的物品都代表着对这场愤怒的飓风

的小小胜利。

23．（para39）We lost practically all our possessions, but the family came through it. When I think of that, I realize we lost nothing important.

Though we have lost all material possessions, the whole family survived the storm, which is

the most important thing for us. (topic sentence)

我们虽然在物质上损失殆尽，但一家人幸存了下来。这样一想，我就觉得我们并没有损失

什么重要的东西。

Vocabulary

Para.1lash（v.)-strike with great force鞭打; tie…to the other捆绑；criticize severely鞭挞；

The worst winter storms of the century lashed New York. 本世纪最恶劣的冬季暴风雪横扫纽约。

Sophy lashed her motorboat to the rail. 索菲亚把快艇在栏杆上栓牢。

The paper lashes into police commanders for failing to act on information. 该文章严斥警局指挥官没有根据情报采取行动。

Para.1- Pummel （v.)

see syn.Pummel-sweep席卷；beat or hit with repeated blows（尤指用拳头）连续打

On Feb. 17, blizzards started to pummel a huge swath of southern Canada.2月17日，暴风雪开始席卷加拿大南部地区。

The thief was pushed and pummeled by an angry crowd in the street.

街上一群人推搡并痛打小偷。

Para.3 demolish（v.)see syn.-destroy completely摧毁；refute驳倒

A storm moved directly over the region, demolish ing buildings and flooding streets.暴风雨径直席卷该地区，摧毁了建筑，淹没了街道。

The rumor that Ma Yun is not open to those four strategies from Ma Huateng, I believe, has been demolished at a stroke.

关于马云对马化腾的四个策略不予理会的y谣言，我认为，一下子就被驳倒了。

Para.8 disintegrate (v.)

Separate into parts or fragments碎裂; lose or cause to lose wholeness, disunite瓦解

In 1991 the Soviet Union began to disintegrate. 1991年，苏联开始瓦解。

At 420mph the windscreen would disintegrate. 挡风玻璃在时速420英里时会破碎。

Para. 9 fling (v.)throw, esp. with force or violence猛扔, hurl cast 扔在一边，抛弃

It's good to fling off heavy clothing now that spring is here. 春天到了，脱去笨重的冬装真让人高兴。

You should not fling your clothes into the drawer. Instead, you may put them in neatly. 不要把你的衣服随便往抽屉里一扔，把它们整齐地放在里面。

She flung herself into novel. 她全身心投入小说创作。

Para.9 douse（v.）Plunge or thrust suddenly into liquid浸泡；turn off熄灭

Those firemen are using water - dropping planes to douse the flames. 消防队员们正使用喷水飞机灭火。

The authorities blamed 'technical problems' for the decision to douse the torch.

当局对熄灭火炬的决定，解释为遇到了“技术问题”。

P12 scramble（v.)Climb, crawl or clamber with the hands and feet攀登；compete energetically 争夺，抢夺

Tourists were scrambling up the steep cliff appreciating the sunrise.

游客们在正爬上陡峭的悬崖欣赏日出。

In China, business is booming and foreigners are scrambling to invest in the field of finance. 在中国商业繁荣，外国人争相在金融业投资。

（n.）The inexperienced young promising men were pushed aside in the scramble for places.

在求职竞争中，没有经验的有为青年都给挤掉了。

Para.13 shudder (v.)see syn.

Shake or tremble suddenly and violently震动; shake in horror or extreme disgust战栗；发抖；The UN community shudder to think what would have happened if the next crisis would break out. 联合国不敢设想如果下次危机爆发会发生什么事。。

The bus began to pull out of the stop — then suddenly shuddered to a halt.

公汽渐渐驶出了车站，然后突然猛震几下停了下来。

Para.17 ferocity （n.）

The quality or condition of being violent ，fierce and savagery凶猛，残暴；暴行

The police were shocked by the ferocity of the murder. 警方对那起屠杀的凶残感到震惊。The ferocity of the attack took the armed forces by surprise. 进攻之猛烈把武装部队打了个措手不及。

Para.19 devastate（v.)to lay waste, destroy totally 毁灭, 蹂躏；

A flood would devastate all the precious paper-historical documents of the city completely. 一场洪水足以使这座城市的珍贵的纸质资料全部摧毁.

In the 19th century a big fire had devastated large parts of Chicago

19世纪芝加哥被一场大火几近烧毁。

Para.20 perish（v.）to be utterly destroyed or ruined 毁灭；end, specifically to die a violent or ultimately death丧生；

It was reported that the disaster in which 63 passengers perished was manmade. 据报道，造成63名乘客丧生的事故是人为的。

Conquerors and their valour perish, But masters of beauty live forever." 英雄割据虽已矣！文采风流今尚存。

Para. 28 strew（v.)Spread about 遍布；scatter here and there by散落于；

By the end, fragments of the bombs were strewn all round the headquarters building. 最终，总部大楼四周遍布着炸弹的碎片。

The guards were strewing the floor with French chalk so that the sportsmen would not slip.警卫们正在往地板上撒滑石粉以运动员滑倒。

Para.36 afflict （v.)Cause pain or suffering to使受痛苦；distress 折磨 ,使苦恼；

New medical technology will cure more ailments that afflict humanity. 新的医学技术可以治疗更多困扰人类的疾病

Russia has been afflicted by political corruption for decades. 几十年来俄国一直饱受政治腐败之苦.

Mark Twain—--Mirror of America

Paraphrasing sentences In Mark Twain

Para.1Most Americans remember Mark Twain as the father of Huck Finn’s idyllic cruise through eternal boyhood and Tom Sawyer’s endless summer of freedom and adventure.

Paraphrased sentence1Mark Twain is known to most Americans as the author of The Adventure of Tom Sawyer and its sequel The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn, which are regarded as his greatest works. For Finn’s simple and pleasant journey through his boyhood w hich seems eternal and Tom Sawyer’s free roam of the country and his adventure in one summer which seems

ever-lasting.

(The youth and summer are eternal because this is the only age and time we knew them. They are frozen in the age /season for all readers.)

在大多数美国人的心目中，马克?吐温是位伟大作家，他描写了哈克?费恩永恒的童年时代中充满诗情画意的旅程和汤姆?索亚在漫长的夏日里自由自在历险探奇的故事。

para.4The cast of characters set before him in his new profession was rich and varied—— a cosmos.

Sampled sentence 4He came across people from all walks of life in his new job as a river pilot, and the steamboat was a miniature of the boundless universe.

(alliteration: cast of characters; metaphors: cast of characters [actors and actress in a play]

=people in all walks of life, cosmos=people in the universe )

在这个新的工作岗位上，他接触到的是各式各样的人物，看到的是一个多姿多彩的大干世界。para.5From them all Mark Twin gained a keen perception of the human race, of the difference between what people claim to be and what they really are.

Paraphrased sentence7From these people Mark Twain understood better the humankind , as well as the difference between their words and deeds.

(antithesis: what people claim to be & what they really are.)

马克?吐温敏锐地认识了人类，认识了人们的言与行之间的差距。

Para.9Mark Twain honed and experimented with his new writing muscles, but he had to leave the city for a while because of some scathing columns he wrote.

Paraphrased sentence 13Mark Twain practiced and tried out his new writing ability, but he had to leave the city for some time because he had written some severe and harsh articles. metaphor: hone (grinding the knife)=make …perfect; muscle (strength)=writing skill)

马克?吐温磨炼并试验了他的新的写作技能,但他却因写了一些尖锐的评论文章而被迫暂时离开这座城市。

Para.9It was a splendid population-for all the slow, sleepy, sluggish-brained sloths stayed at home.

Paraphrased sentence15It was a wonderful place because all those lazy-bones that are slow in action/not active, dull with sleepiness/not energetic and slow of understanding /not intellegient/alert stayed at home (implying that all those who came pioneering out west were energetic, courageous, and reckless people.)(alliteration: slow, sleepy, sluggish, sloth, stayed)这

儿的人们真是了不起,因为那些笨手笨脚、无精打彩、呆头呆脑的懒汉都呆在家里

Para.9It was that population that gave to California a name for getting up astounding enterprises and rushing them through with a magnificent dash and daring and a recklessness of cost or consequences, which she bears unto this day.

Paraphrased sentence 16The wonderful population made California famous for starting/ organizing amazing undertakings and carrying them out, developing them at high speed with great energy and courage regardless of cost of money or adverse outcomes, and California still maintains this name until today.

正是那些人们为加利福尼亚赢得了这样的声誉：当他们着手进行一项宏伟的事业时，他们会不计代价或风险而以一种豪迈的气概和闯劲勇往直前，一干到底。加利福尼亚人至今仍保持着这样的声誉

Para.15Tom’s mischievous daring, ingenuity, and the sweet innocence of his affection for Becky Thatcher are almost as sure to be studied in American schools today as is the declaration of Independence.

Paraphrased sentence 19Tom’s tricking courage, cleverness and the unsophisticated and simple love for Becky Thatcher will be studied in all American schools just as the Declaration of Independence is learned at these schools.

这部描写汤姆的顽皮、勇敢、机智以及他对贝琪?莎切尔的天真纯洁的感情的故事几乎像《独立宣言》一样成了今天美国学校里的必读书本。

para.19Whata robust people, what a nation of thinkers we might be, if we would only lay ourselves on the shelf occasionally and renew our edges.

Paraphrased sentence 20If we would stay away from all this crazy struggle for success at times and keep the daring and enterprising spirit, we would be able to remain strong and continue to produce great thinkers, and we would be strong and energetic.

“我们只消偶尔地躺下来好好放松休息一下，保持锋棱利角，我们将有可能成为一个多么朝气蓬勃的民族，一个多么富有思想的民族啊!”

Para.22“…they vanish from a world where they were of no consequence; where they achieved nothing ; where they were a mistake and a failure and a foolishness; where they have left no sign that they had existed—a world which will lament them a day and forget them forever.”Paraphrased sentence 25theydisappear from this world where they were of no value/importance, where they had made no achievement, where their existence were something erroneous, defeated and stupid, where nothing would show that they had existed at all—a world which would mourn for their death for a short time and then forget them and never recall such a loss.

他们从世界上消失了，在这个世界上他们无足轻重，无所成就；甚至他们的存在本身就是个错误，是个失败，是种愚蠢。这个世界上也没有留下丝毫能表明他们存在过的痕迹。这个世界赠给他们的只是一日的哀伤和永久的遗忘。

Vocabulary

idyllicidyll *‘idil, / aidl+ n. short piece of poetry or prose that describes a happy and peaceful scene or event, esp of country life

an idyllic setting, holiday, marriage; simple & carefree田园诗般的,质朴宜人的，简单而美妙的examples To an outsider this looks like an idyllic life.

在局外人看来这好像是一种田园式的生活.

Many people living in big cities yearn for an idyllic country life.

现在的很多都市人向往那种田园化的生活.

Married life was not as idyllic as he had imagined.

婚姻生活并不像他想象的那么浪漫美好。

Para.1 cynical

--------- Do you have to be so cynical about everything?

Cynical：scornful of the motives，believing that people do things only to help themselves rather than for good or honest reasons愤世嫉俗，认为人皆自私的

2) A cynical disregard for the safety of others if there is some advantage for you

-------------只顾自己不顾他人安慰只顾自己不顾他人，见利忘义的

Examples

Christmas should be a time of excitement and wonder, not a cynical marketing ploy.

圣诞节应该是兴奋和美妙的时刻，而不该是一种肆无忌惮的营销策略。

George’s cynical defiance of federal authority was more than Congress would tolerate.

乔治对联邦权威的极端蔑视,使国会再也无法容忍.

With that cynical outlook, Mike doesn't trust anyone.

抱着那种愤世嫉俗的观点, 麦克不相信任何人.

Obsess (AmE), fill the mind continuously, to worry continuously and unnecessarily. 使困惑，使着迷

examples

He became absolutely obsessed with a girl reporter on television.

She is obsessed by the desire to become a great scientist.

Women who obsess about clothes also obsess about shoes, and bags.

痴迷于服装的女性也痴迷于鞋, 和包.

And don't obsess over the end goal, such as your proposed 15 - pound weight loss.

不要纠结于最终的目标, 比如你计划好的减掉15磅.

Para.1frailty：a fault, esp. weakness of resolution, arising from the imperfections of human nature; a weakness of character or behavior; the condition of having poor health. (品格上的)缺点、短处;(体质的)虚弱

Examples Frailty, thy name is woman. 弱者, 你的名字是女人。〔Hamlet)

Don't always confide your trouble to your friends and show your frailty.

不要总是向你的朋友倾诉你的烦心事,展示您的脆弱.

We triumph over each other with human frailty.