BBC英国史

The next day in the Abbey,little Richard had his shirt taken off him behind a golden screen

第二天 在教堂 小理查在金色幕帘之后 褪去衣衫

and his face, hands and chest touched with the holy oil.

额头 双手和胸前被涂上圣油

As they listened to him in his little boy's voice promise to protect the Church,

人们倾听他用稚嫩的童声 宣誓保护教堂

do justice and respect the laws and customs of his ancestors,

维护公平 遵从祖先遗留的法律和传统

the assembly of nobles and priests must have imagined him growing

贵族和牧师们一定想象过 他长大成人

to fit the huge throne of his ferocious great great grandfather Edward I.

戴上他凶残的曾祖父爱德华一世 留下的那顶巨大皇冠的样子

Inevitably, as the long ceremony droned on in the darkness,Richard fell asleep.

庆典单调乏味地进行到夜晚 理查睡着了

As he was carried from the Abbey, his legs dangling,

他被带离教堂的时候 双腿在空中悬着

one of his oversized slippers fell off,but who'd think that an ill omen?

一只不合脚的鞋掉落 但谁会认为这是不祥之兆呢

He was, after all, only ten.

毕竟 他只有十岁

How was the child marked by all this? 22 years later,

22年后 他还会记得这些吗

did he remember this moment of anointing as a kind of apotheosis,

他会将这个 被涂圣油的时刻

a magical transformation from a little man into a little god?

当做自己神化的一次奇妙转变吗

Perhaps it was as well that Richard mistook himself for a messiah,

也许正因此 理查误以为自己是救世主

since only someone with that kind of innate self-confidence

因为只有拥有这种 天生自信的人

could have faced down, at the tender age of 14,

才会在14岁时 就敢于面对

the most violent upheaval in the history of medieval England.

中世纪英国史上 最为动荡的剧变

词汇解析

1、take off

(飞机)起飞

We eventually took off at 11 o'clock and arrived in Venice at 1.30.

我们终于在11点起飞，1:30 到达威尼斯。

(产品、活动、事业等)腾飞，突然成功

They need to expand the number of farmers who are involved if the scheme's going to really take off.

这个方案要想真正成功，他们就需要增加参与的农场主的人数。

In 1944, he met Edith Piaf, and his career took off.

1944 年，他结识了伊迪思·比阿夫，从此他的事业开始腾飞。

(突然)离开，走开，走掉

He took off at once and headed back to the motel.

他立刻离开，回到汽车旅馆。

He took himself off to Mexico.

他突然动身去了墨西哥。

2、transformation

转换;改变;改造

Your metabolic rate is the speed at which your body transforms food into energy.

新陈代谢率是身体把食物转换为能量的速度。

Delegates also discussed transforming them from a guerrilla force into a regular army.

代表们还讨论了把他们从游击队武装改造为正规军的问题。

改善;使改观;使改头换面

The Minister said the Urban Development Corporation was now transforming the area.

部长声称城市开发公司如今正使该地区改头换面。

A cheap table can be transformed by an interesting cover

一块趣味盎然的桌布就能使一张廉价桌子面目一新。