(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
I'm Steve Ember. And I'm Barbara Klein with PEOPLE IN AMERICA in VOA Special English. Economics is a field based on mathematics. Yet it cannot provide answers to every problem. Some people question whether economics is a science at all.
For many years, possibly the loudest critic was himself an economist, John Kenneth Galbraith.
John Kenneth Galbraith was an economist, liberal thinker, author, professor, presidential advisor and ambassador. He stood over two meters tall. He was excellent at arguing positions and making complex ideas understandable. These two qualities made Mister Galbraith a powerful personality able to influence people at the highest levels of government.
He was also a productive writer and an effective critic of many popular ideas of his time. For some, he was an easy person to dislike. He was very sure of himself and his arguments. Yet, he clearly influenced the economic ideas of many people, including politicians and presidents.
John Kenneth Galbraith was born on a farm near Iona Station, Canada in nineteen-oh-eight. It was a long way from the East Coast of the United States and the political power centers he would come to influence. He learned about politics from his father, William Archibald Galbraith, who was a farmer. He also served in many local government positions and was a community leader. John once said that his mother, Sarah Catherine Kendall Galbraith, wanted him to be a farmer also. But she died when he was fourteen.
Young John first studied agriculture at Ontario Agricultural College. But he soon found economics more interesting. His studies led him to the University of California at Berkeley. He got a doctorate degree in agricultural economics in nineteen thirty-four.
In his early years, Mister Galbraith was greatly influenced by the economist Thorstein Veblen and his book, "The Theory of the Leisure Class." Mister Veblen argued that people gathered wealth for the purpose of "conspicuous consumption." He meant that people earned money to spend on valuable things to gain respect in society.
Mister Galbraith said he was also deeply affected by the economic disaster that was expanding around him and across the country: The Great Depression.
The Great Depression severely affected the American economy and society. At the height of the Depression, at least one in five Americans did not have a job.
Mister Galbraith became an instructor at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In nineteen thirty-seven, he became an American citizen. He married Catherine Atwater, the daughter of a New York lawyer. They later had four sons.
That year, Mister Galbraith also went to England to study under the most influential economist of the twentieth century. John Maynard Keynes was teaching at Cambridge University at the time.
He had published the "General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money" the year before. Mister Keynes argued that deep economic crises required strong measures by the government. He said large public works projects and government price controls were needed to increase employment during economic downturns.
In nineteen thirty-nine, John Kenneth Galbraith began working for the government. He joined the National Defense Advisory Committee in Washington. He later was in charge of controlling prices for the Office of Price Administration.
Mister Galbraith held the powerful position of top price controller in the administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In nineteen forty-three, however, he was forced to resign from the job. Later, he would say that he had been ousted by the politics of price control.
The same year, Mister Galbraith started writing for Fortune magazine, which was owned by noted conservative Henry Luce. Mister Galbraith developed into a highly skilled writer. Even his strongest critic praised his writing ability, even if they did not agree with what he wrote.
Near the end of World War Two, Mister Galbraith took part in the Strategic Bombing survey. The study was meant to measure the effectiveness of the American bombing campaign against Germany. He angered many people by saying that the bombing had done little to halt the German war effort. He found the Germans had simply moved industrial operations to new places after the bombing.
In nineteen fifty-eight, Mister Galbraith published his most famous book,"The Affluent Society." He argued that while private individuals in America were becoming wealthier, public institutions were growing poor. He criticized the American culture that he said was rich in goods but poor in social services.
Mister Galbraith also used the term "conventional wisdom" in the book. This term describes an idea that everyone accepts as true, but is not closely considered or examined.
"The Affluent Society" created a lot of discussion at the time. Critics said the book forced the nation to reexamine its values. It is still considered an excellent example of reasoning and writing.
Mister Galbraith was also involved in politics, which was unusual for an economist. He wrote speeches for Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson during two campaigns in the nineteen fifties. Mister Galbraith later became a trusted adviser to President John F. Kennedy.
President Kennedy appointed him ambassador to India in nineteen sixty-one. Thirty years later, Mister Galbraith received India's second-highest civilian honor for his work to strengthen ties between India and the United States.
The years working for the Kennedy Administration were happy times. But on November twenty-second, nineteen sixty-three, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
Vice President Lyndon Johnson took office after the tragedy. Mister Galbraith had good relations with the new president and became an adviser. But that lasted only until the war in Vietnam became the biggest issue in the United States. Mister Galbraith opposed the involvement of the United States in the war. He spoke about that time.
JOHN KENNETH GALBRAITH: "I liked Lyndon Johnson very much. And I respected him as a man who combined intelligence with a will to action--a wonderful combination. And so breaking with him in the mid to late sixties on the issue of Vietnam was something I regretted very much."
Public opposition to the war in Vietnam caused President Johnson not to seek another term in office. The issue of the war caused Mister Galbraith to become active in politics again. He supported the anti-war presidential candidate Eugene McCarthy.
He even nominated Mister McCarthy at the Democratic Party Convention in Chicago, Illinois, in nineteen sixty-eight. Mister Galbraith would later say: "I was more strongly moved by the need for opposition to Vietnam than any other major issue of my lifetime."
In the years after the Vietnam War, Ken Galbraith put his energy into writing. He debated conservative thinkers such as his friend William F. Buckley, Junior. And he continued to advise Democratic Presidents.
In nineteen ninety-six, his book "The Good Society" was published. It was an update of his book "The Affluent Society." He wrote that his earlier concerns had worsened. The United States had become even more a place for the wealthy, or a "democracy of the fortunate."
In all, he wrote more than thirty books during his career. In two thousand, President Bill Clinton recognized Mister Galbraith's service by awarding him the Medal of Freedom.
John Kenneth Galbraith died in two thousand six at the age of ninety-seven. William F. Buckley said his friend was more interested in the social and ethical questions related to economics. Mister Galbraith's books lack the mathematical and statistical research found in most works on economics. Yet they remain excellent examples of thinking about social responsibility and ethics.
One of his most famous criticisms of his profession was this: "Economics is extremely useful as a form of employment for economists."
重点解析
1.for the purpose of为了…目的
All tests are not for the purpose of medical diagnosis or treatment.
所有身体检查并非作为医务诊断或治疗用途。
2.At the height of 在…的顶峰或鼎盛时期
At the height of her career she ranked second in the world.
在她事业的顶峰时期，她排名世界第二位。
3.in charge of负责；主管
My assistant will be in charge of the department in my absence.
我的助理将在我不在的时候负责这个部门。
4.even if即使
But even if we pass this bill, the battle will not be over.
但是，即使我们通过了这次法案，战争也不会结束。
5.take part in参与
Join one of our craft classes. Then you can take part in these very enjoyable hobbies.
参加其中的一门工艺课程，然后你能加入这些令人愉快的兴趣爱好活动。
6.involved in涉及
In this section, we will briefly describe possible ways of reducing the costs and risks involved in doing this.
在这一部分中，我们将简要描述降低成本的可能方法以及这样做所涉及的风险。
参考译文
我是史蒂夫·恩贝尔，我是芭芭拉·克莱因，这里是VOA慢速英语栏目《美国人物志》。经济学是一门基于数学的学科。但是它不能为所有的问题提供答案。有些人质疑经济学到底是不是科学。
多年来，可能最大的批评来自经济学家约翰·肯尼斯·加尔布雷斯。
约翰·肯尼斯·加尔布雷斯是一位经济学家、自由主义思想家、作家、教授、总统顾问和大使。他身高两米多。他擅长辩论立场，使复杂的想法变得容易理解。这两项品质使加尔布雷思成为了一个强大的人物，他可以影响到政府最高级别的人物。
他也是一位多产的作家，对他那个时代的许多流行观点进行了卓有成效的批判。对有些人来说，他是一个很容易让人讨厌的人。他对自己和自己的论点非常自信。然而，他显然影响了许多人的经济思想，包括政治家和总统。
1908年，约翰·肯尼斯·加尔布雷斯出生在加拿大爱奥纳车站附近的一个农场。那里离美国东海岸和他后来影响的政治权力中心很远。他从他的父亲威廉·阿奇博尔德·加尔布雷斯那里学习了政治，他的父亲是个农民。他还担任过许多地方政府职位，是一位社区领袖。约翰曾说，他的母亲萨拉·凯瑟琳·肯德尔·加尔布雷斯想让他成为一名农民。但她在他十四岁时去世了。
年轻的约翰最初在安大略农业学院学习农业。但他很快发现经济学更有趣。他的研究使他进入了加州大学伯克利分校。他在1934年获得农业经济学博士学位。
早年，加尔布雷斯先生深受经济学家索尔斯坦·维布伦及其著作《休闲阶级理论》的影响。维布伦先生认为人们聚集财富的目的是为了“炫耀性消费”。他的意思是，人们挣钱后把钱花在有价值的事情上面，以在社会上获得尊重。
加尔布雷斯先生说，他也深受一次经济灾难的影响，这场灾难当时在他周围和全国蔓延：大萧条。
大萧条严重影响了美国的经济和社会。在大萧条最严重的时候，至少五分之一的美国人没有工作。
加尔布雷斯先生成为马萨诸塞州剑桥市哈佛大学的讲师。1937年，他成为了一名美国公民。他和凯瑟琳·阿特沃特结为夫妻，她是一位纽约律师的女儿。他们后来有了四个儿子。
那一年，加尔布雷思先生去到英国，向20世纪最有影响力的经济学家约翰·梅纳德·凯恩斯学习。约翰·梅纳德·凯恩斯当时在剑桥大学教学。
他在前一年发表了《就业、利息和货币通论》。凯恩斯认为，政府需要采取强有力的措施来应对严重的经济危机。他认为，在经济衰退期间，需要大型公共工程项目和政府价格控制来增加就业。
1939年，约翰·肯尼斯·加尔布雷斯开始为政府工作。他加入了华盛顿的国防咨询委员会。后来，他负责价格管理办公室的价格控制。
加尔布雷斯先生在富兰克林·德拉诺·罗斯福政府中担任最高价格管制员的要职。但是，在1943年，他被迫辞职。后来，他说他被价格控制的政治手段赶下台了。
同年，加尔布雷思开始为《财富》杂志撰稿，该杂志的所有者是著名的保守派亨利·卢斯。加尔布雷思成长为一名技艺高超的作家。即使是他最严厉的批评者也称赞他的写作能力，即使他们不同意他写的东西。
二战末期，加尔布雷斯先生参加了战略轰炸调查。这项调查旨在衡量美国轰炸德国的效果。他说轰炸并没有阻止德国的战争，这激怒了许多人。他发现，在轰炸后，德国人就是简单地把工业作业转移到了新地方。
1958年，加尔布雷思出版了他最著名的作品《富裕社会》。他认为，当美国的个人变得越来越富有时，公共机构却越来越穷。他批评了美国文化，他认为美国商品丰富，但是社会服务贫乏。
在书中，加尔布雷思先生也使用了“传统智慧”这个词。这个词描述了大家都认为正确的观点，但是它没有被仔细考虑或检查过。
《富裕社会》这本书在当时引发了很多讨论。评论家称这本书迫使美国重新思考国家的价值观。现在这本书仍然被认为是关于论证和写作的一个很好的例子。
加尔布雷斯先生也参与政治，这对经济学家来说是不寻常的。在20世纪50年代的两次竞选活动中，他为民主党总统候选人阿德莱·史蒂文森撰写演讲。加尔布雷斯后来成为约翰·F·肯尼迪总统值得信赖的顾问。
肯尼迪总统于1961年任命他为驻印度大使。30年后，加尔布雷思先生凭借其在增强美国和印度之间关系上做出的贡献，被授予印度平民第二高的荣誉。
为肯尼迪总统政权工作的那些年是快乐的时光。但是1963年11月22日，肯尼迪总统在德克萨斯州的达拉斯遇刺身亡。
悲剧发生后，副总统林登·约翰逊成为总统。加尔布雷斯先生与新总统关系良好，并成为他的顾问。但这只持续到了越战成为美国最大的问题的时候。加尔布雷思反对美国参加越战。他提到了那段时光。
约翰·肯尼斯·加尔布雷斯：“我非常喜欢林登·约翰逊。我尊重他，认为他是一个集智慧和行动意志于一身的人——一个绝妙的结合。因此，在60年代中后期，因越南问题我与他分道扬镳，这是我非常遗憾的事情。”
公众对越南战争的反对导致约翰逊总统不再寻求连任。战争的问题使加尔布雷思在政治领域再次活跃起来。他支持反战总统候选人尤金·麦卡锡。
他甚至在1968年伊利诺斯州芝加哥的民主党大会上提名麦卡锡先生。加尔布雷思后来表示：“反对越南的必要性比我一生中遇到的任何其他重大问题都更让我感动。”
在越战后的几年里，肯·加尔布雷思将他的精力放在了写作上。他和保守派思想家辩论，比如他的朋友小威廉·F·巴克利。他也继续为民主党总统提建议。
1996年，他的作品《美好社会》出版。此书是《富裕社会》的更新版。他写道，他早先的担忧已经更加严重。美国已经成为富人、或者“幸运人的民主”的国度。
在他的职业生涯中，他总共写了三十多本书。2000年，比尔·克林顿总统授予加尔布雷斯先生自由勋章，以表彰他的贡献。
约翰·肯尼斯·加尔布雷斯于2006年去世，享年97岁。威廉·F·巴克利称，他的朋友对跟经济学有关的社会和伦理问题更加感兴趣。加尔布雷斯先生的书缺乏在大多数经济学著作中发现的数学和统计研究。然而，他们仍然是思考社会责任和道德的优秀例子。
他对自己职业最著名的批评是：“经济学作为经济学家就业的一种形式是非常有用的。”
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