品嚼语段

特别声明

该文章选自《书虫》之《苔丝》，语段精讲为可可编辑编写。

品嚼语段

When he was a boy，people admired his great qualities．

当他还是个孩子时，他就有令人羡慕的聪颖天资。

Now he was a man，something vague and undecided in his look showed that he had no particular purpose in life．

现在他长大成人了，但神情里有一种模糊不定的东西显示出他在生活中还没有特定的目标。

He was the youngest son of a poor parson．他是一位穷牧师的最小的孩子。

One day when he was studying at home， his father discovered that Angel had ordered a book of philosophy，which questioned the Church's teaching．

有一天，当安吉尔在家里学习时，他父亲发现他订购了一本哲学书，该书对教会的教育提出了质疑。

How could his son become a priest if he read such books？

如果他的儿子读这种书，他还怎么做一名牧师呢？

Angel explained that he did not in fact wish to enter the Church like his brothers，because the Church's views were too strict and did not allow free thinking．

安吉尔解释说他实际上并不想像哥哥们那样从事神职工作，因为教会的观念太刻板，没有自由思想的余地。

The simple parson was shocked．

这让虔诚的牧师感到震惊。

He was a man of fixed ideas and a firm believer．

他是一个顽固、执着而又坚定的信仰者。

And if Angel did not want to become a priest，what was the use of sending him to study at Cambridge？

如果安吉尔不打算成为一名牧师，那送他到剑桥读书又有什么意义呢？

For the parson the whole point of going to university was to become a minister of God．

对这位牧师而言，上大学的唯一目的，就是将来从事神职，成为一名牧师。

语段精讲

1. Neither Angel Clare nor his family had originally chosen farming as a profession for him．

文法解析：neither...nor...：既不......也不......

（1）语法用法：其含义是否定的，可连接任意两个并列的成份。若将neither...nor...句型变为肯定句，只需把neither...nor...改为both...and...即可，同时谓语动词必须用复数形式。

e.g. She likes neither butter nor cheese. 她既不喜欢黄油也不喜欢乳酪。（此句中neither...nor...连接两个宾语。）

e.g. Neither dad nor mum is at home today. 今天父母都不在家。（连接两个主语时，也应遵循"就近原则"。）Both dad and mum are at home today. 今天父母都在家。

语言要点：chose something as something for somebody这个短语结构表示“为某人选择某事作为某人所干的事情”。例如：

My father chose English translation as profession for me. 我的父亲为我选择的是将英语翻译作为我的职业。

2. When he was a boy，people admired his great qualities．

语言要点：quality的原意“优点”的意思，在这里可以理解为“才华，才智”。例如：

As an actor she shows real quality. 她表现出演员的真正才华。

3. Now he was a man，something vague and undecided in his look showed that he had no particular purpose in life．

短语注释：vague and undecided：模糊未定 in life：在生活中 in one’s look：在某人的眼光里 have a particular purpose：有特定的目标

文法解析：vague and undecided in his look是形容词短语做后置定语修饰不定代词“something”。

3. One day when he was studying at home， his father discovered that Angel had ordered a book of philosophy，which questioned the Church's teaching．

文法解析：which questioned the Church's teaching是非线性定语从句，修饰表示物且在定于从句中做主语的先行词philosophy。

语言要1：question在这里作为动词用，意思是“express or feel doubt about (sth) ”是指“对（某事物）表示或感到怀疑”。例如：

Do you question my right to read this? 你是否怀疑我无权看这份材料?

I seriously question whether we ought to continue. 我真正怀疑我们是否应该继续下去。

语言要点2：teaching在这里做名词用，意思是“教义；所教的东西；学说”，作为这个意思解释时，它是可数名词，通常用复数。例如：the teachings of Jesus（耶稣的教义）；heir teachings on sexuality and marriage（他们关于性和婚姻的教义）。