课文文本

Lesson 38 The Sculptor Speaks 雕刻家谈话录

Appreciation of sculpture depends upon the abi8lity to respond to form in three dimensions. That is perhaps why sculpture has been described as the most difficult of all arts; certainly it is more difficult than the arts which involve appreciation of flat forms, shape in only two dimensions. Many more people are 'form-blind' than colour-blind. The child learning to see, first distinguishes only two-dimensional shape; it cannot judge distances,depths. Later, for its personal safety and practical needs, it has to develop(partly by means of touch) the ability to judge roughly three-dimensional distances. But having satisfied the requirements of practical necessity, most people go no further. Though they may attain considerable accuracy in the perception of flat form, they do not make the further intellectual and emotional effort needed to comprehend form in its full spatial existence.

This is what the sculptor must do. He must strive continually to think of , and use, form in its full spatial completeness. He gets the solid shape, as it were, inside his head--he thinks of it, whatever its size, as if he were holding it completely enclosed in the hollow of his hand. He mentally visualizes a complex form from all round itself; he knows while he looks at one side what the other side is like; he identifies himself with its centre of gravity, its mass, its weight; he realizes its volume, as the space that the shape displaces in the air. And the sensitive observer of sculpture must also learn to feel shape simply as shape, not as description or reminiscence. He must, for example, perceive an egg as a simple single solid shape, quite apart from its significance as food,or from the literary idea that it will become a bird.

And so with solids such as a shell, a nut, a plum, a pear, a tadpole, a mushroom, a mountain peak, a kidney, a carrot, a tree-trunk, a bird, a bud, a lark, a ladybird, a bulrush, a bone. From these he can go on to appreciate more complex forms of combinations of several forms.

生词短语

sculpture n. 雕刻（人体雕像，大型的雕塑像）
statuary 雕像 engrave 在一些东西上刻花，刻工艺品，刻字
inscribe 题字 score 刻成一些比较可爱的小东西
form-blind a. 行盲的（指空间感不足）
colour-blind a. 色盲的 perception n. 知觉
perceptible a. 可感知的 perceptive + to sth. 思维敏感
sensitive + to sth. 身体敏感 emotional a. 感情的 sentimental 多愁善感
emotional 更加情绪化，由于当时的情况变化而产生情绪的激昂，指一时的冲动
Girls are more or less sentimental when they saw some sad things.
comprehend vt. 理解 comprehension n.
apprehend v. 理解 apprehension n.
comprehensibly 好理解地
comprehensive ability 理解综合能力
spatial a. 空间的 temporal 时间的
We all follow spatial and temporal order.我们写作要严循时空顺序。
spacious a.=huge and big 宽敞的
spatial state 空间状态
as it were （虽不可能）但似乎是…
visualize vt. 设想=imagine
visual 眼睛的，关于视野的 audit 听力的 audience 观众
visual and audit lesson 视听课 vision 视野 view 观点
visible 可见的 visual effect 视觉效果 visual mobility 视觉动感
conceive
envisage
picture v.
I can picture sth. in my mind.我头脑中构思…
centre of gravity 重心
reminiscence n. 回忆，联想
remind 回忆
The fade coloured picture reminds me of my happy childhood.
这幅发黄的照片使我回忆起了童年。
reminiscent a.
The picture is reminiscent of my happy childhood.
The picture is a reminiscence of my happy childhood.
reminder 勾起回忆的物品
literary a. 文学的
literature 文学 literary works 文学作品 literary field 文学界
literary criticism 文学批评，文学评论 literate 有知识的，识字的人
illiterate 不识字的，文盲
anti-illiteracy movement 扫盲运动
anti-drags movement 禁毒运动
literary translation 直译=word to word translation free translation 意译=paraphrase
plum n. 李子
pear n. 梨子 peach 桃子，大美人
peachblossom 桃花 peach flower fan/ peachblossom fan 桃花扇
tadpole n. 蝌蚪 I'm a Tadpole.我是密西西比(Mississippi)人。
frog 青蛙
The tadpole is the larva of the frog.蝌蚪是青蛙的幼体。
mushroom n. 蘑菇
to spring up like mushrooms 如雨后春笋般
Individual enterprises are springing up like mushrooms.
carrot n. 胡萝卜
the stick and the carrot policy 软硬兼施政策
parrot n. v. 鹦鹉
He always parrots.他老是鹦鹉学舌。
bud n. 花蕾
The flower is in bud.这朵花含苞欲放。
nip sth. in the bud 防患于未然
lark n. 云雀=skylark ladybird n. 瓢虫=ladybug litterbug 乱扔垃圾的人
bulrush n. 芦苇 She/He is a bulrush.她/他是墙头草。
combination n. 结合体
My article combines the simplicity and the elegance.我的文章既简洁又美观。
sculptor n. 雕刻家

课文注释

Notes on the text 课文注释
This article is about how to enjoy/appreciate beauty in terms of sculpture.怎样欣赏美的雕塑
appreciation of sculpture 欣赏，理解雕塑
depend upon=depend on
口语多用depend on，书面语多用depend upon
respond to 对…有一种反映能力
involve 与…有关
is concerned with
distinguish=differ
practical necessity 实际需求
strive to 追求
solid 固定的=physical 实在的
inside his head 在他脑子中间
whatever its size=no matter what size it is 不论其什么样的形状
enclose 包着
all round 整个周围
penetrability 穿透力
identify with 与…等同
He identifies himself with masses.他和群众打成一片。
mass 质量
realize=regard 看作…
volume 体积
displace 排出，排放，放置
Archimedes 浮力定律，阿基米德
principle of buoyancy 浮力定律
apart from=different
so with=seem as
Henry Moore (1898-1986)