原文赏析

You have to be smart,

你需要有智慧

you have to have vision, you have to have

你需要有远见

all these different things,

你需要有很多特质

but the most successful people

不过最终成功的人

are the people that had the right idea

是坚持正确想法

but never ever quit or gave up.

并永不退缩放弃的人

The people that really succeed in life

生命中获得真正成功的人

are those that don't quit.

是那些永不放弃的人

Rockefeller needs to quickly expand his company,

洛克菲勒需要快速扩张他的公司

and to do that, he needs investors.

要做到这一点 他需要投资者

The problem is, kerosene is getting a bad name.

问题在于 煤油正在得到恶名

Stories of the fuel exploding and burning down homes

经常有燃料爆炸和起火事件

are on the front page of newspapers across the country,

出现在全国各地报纸的头版上

making potential investors skeptical.

这让潜在投资者们有些疑虑

Due to high demand, many refiners

由于需求量很大 很多炼油商

are rushing to market with dangerous kerosene

都将匆忙赶制的危险煤油提供到市场上

that's extremely volatile.

这种煤油挥发性很强

Rockefeller sees the problem as an opportunity.

洛克菲勒将这一问题看成机遇

He realizes that there's a need to calm the public's fears

他意识到 公众的恐惧需要平息

and provide them with a product they can rely on.

并为他们提供一种可靠的产品

Oil refining. Warehouses. Barrel making.

炼油 仓储 制桶

And shipping facilities.

还有运输设施

Why the name?

为什么取这个名字

Because Standard Oil will be the only company

因为标准石油公司将成为行业中

in the industry to guarantee a uniform quality of kerosene.

唯一一家能保证煤油统一高质量的公司

The Rockefellers, and all these guys,

洛克菲勒家族的这些人

they were all great salesman.

都是销售能手

At the end of the day, it's the salesmen who make the money.

最后 赚钱的就是这些销售者

Well, you can certainly understand

很容易理解

how Rockefeller could've named his oil company

为什么洛克菲勒会那样命名他的石油公司

Standard Oil.

标准石油

Pretty ambitious, organic name.

很有雄心的名字

He was creating a standard, and, uh, it worked.

他要创建一个标准 而且也确实成功了

Rockefeller's Standard Oil quiets fears

洛克菲勒的标准石油公司平息了民众的恐惧

and immediately becomes the most sought-after product in the country,

并很快成为了全国最受欢迎的产品

bringing in investor after investor.

投资者也因此接踵而至

视频资料

视频资料

洛克菲勒、范德比尔特、卡内基、阿斯托、福特和摩根，他们的名字几乎是美国梦的近义词，也代表着美国梦的历史。他们转变了他们所接触的每个行业：石油、铁路、钢铁、船运、汽车，还有金融。他们的付出改变了一个国家。出身贫寒，他们却多次涉足总统选举，设立经济政策，影响他们那个年代——内战到大萧条时期。他们，被称为造就美国的人。

重点讲解

1.skeptical (about/of sth) 怀疑的

例句：I am sceptical about his chances of winning.

我怀疑他取胜的可能性。

The public remain sceptical of these claims.

公众对这些说法仍持怀疑态度。

She looked highly sceptical.

她一脸深表怀疑的神色。

2.uniform quality 质量统一

uniform rates of pay 统一的薪资标准

The walls were a uniform grey.

墙壁一律都是灰色。

Growth has not been uniform across the country.

全国各地的发展程度不一。

uniform lines of terraced houses (= they all looked the same)

整齐的一列列排房

3.At the end of the day 最终，到头来

例句：At the end of the day, he'll still have to make his own decision.

最终,他还得自己拿主意。

4.sought-after 争相获得的；吃香的；广受欢迎的

例句：This design is the most sought after.

这一款最为紧俏。

a much sought-after actress

非常走红的女演员

5.a leader of vision 有远见的领袖

例句：We need a man of vision as leader of the party .

我们需要一个有远见卓识的人作党的领导人。