故事发生在一八六一年美国南北战争前夕。生活在南方的少女思嘉从小深受南方文化传统的熏陶，可在她的血液里却流淌着野性的叛逆因素。随着战火的蔓廷和生活环境的恶化，思嘉的叛逆个性越来越丰满，越鲜明，在一系列的的挫折中她改造了自我，改变了个人甚至整个家族的命运，成为时代时势造就的新女性的形象。　

作者:玛格丽特.米歇尔　

本书在描绘人物生活与爱情的同时，勾勒出南北双方在政治，经济，文化各个层次的异同，具有浓厚的史诗风格，堪称美国历史转折时期的真实写照，同时也成为历久不衰的爱情经典。

名著阅读

CHAPTER I第一章

SCARLETT O’HARA was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were.

思嘉·奥哈拉长得并不漂亮，但是男人们像塔尔顿家那对孪生兄弟为她的魅力所迷住时，就不会这样想了。

In her face were too sharply blended the delicate features of her mother, a Coast aristocrat of French descent, and the heavy ones of her florid Irish father.But it was an arresting face, pointed of chin, square of jaw. Her eyes were pale green without a touch of hazel, starred with bristly black lashes and slightly tilted at the ends.

她脸上有着两种特征，一种是她母亲的娇柔，来自法兰西血统的海滨贵族；一种是她父亲的粗犷，来自浮华俗气的爱尔兰人，这两种特征混在一起显得不太协调，但这张脸上尖尖的下巴和四方的牙床骨，是很引人注意的，她那双淡绿色的眼睛纯净得没有一丝褐色，配上乌黑的睫毛和翘起的眼角，显得韵味十足。

Above them, her thick black brows slanted upward, cutting a startling oblique line in her magnolia-white skin—that skin so prized by Southern women and so carefully guarded with bonnets, veils and mittens against hot Georgia suns.

上面是两条墨黑的浓眉斜在那里，给她木兰花般白皙的肌肤划上十分分明的斜线，这样白皙的皮肤对南方妇女是极其珍贵的。她们常常用帽子、面纱和手套把皮肤保护起来，以防受到佐治亚炎热太阳的暴晒。

词汇释义

1.descent [di'sent] n. 下落, 家世, 倾斜, 侵袭

He traces his descent back to an old norman family.
他追踪自己的世系上溯至一个古老的诺曼家族。

2.florid adj. 华丽的, 红润的, 炫耀的, 绚丽的

a florid complexion
红润的面色

3.arresting adj. 醒目的, 引人注意的, 有趣的

an arresting sculpture
一座引人注意的雕塑

4.hazel ['heizl] n. 榛, 淡褐色

This small animal has a pair of hazel eyes.
这只小动物有一双淡褐色的眼睛。

5.bristly adj. 1. (毛发)短而硬的2. 长满刚毛的；粗糙的3. 林立的4. 易怒的

She finds his beard too bristly.
她觉得他的胡须太扎人。

6.slant [slɑ:nt] vt. 使倾斜, 歪曲 vi. 倾斜

We slanted across the river.
我们斜渡过河。

7.oblique adj. 间接的, 斜的

He made oblique references to her lack of experience.
他拐弯抹角地说她缺乏经验。

8.magnolia n. 木兰, 玉兰类的植物

9.bonnet n. 软帽

The little girl wears a red bonnet.
那小女孩戴着一顶小红帽。

10.mitten ['mitn] n. 连指手套, 露指手套

In winter she wears mittens.
冬天时她戴连指手套。

难句解析

1.but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were

【难句解析】it指上句所指的“SCARLETT O’HARA was not beautiful”，when后面省略了they(men),as此处表示“和...一样”

【句子译文】但是男人们像塔尔顿家那对孪生兄弟为她的魅力所迷住时，就不会这样想了。

2.In her face were too sharply blended the delicate features of her mother, a Coast aristocrat of French descent, and the heavy ones of her florid Irish father.

【难句解析】这句话相当于her face blends the delicate features and the heavy ones...

【句子译文】她脸上有着两种特征，一种是她母亲的娇柔，来自法兰西血统的海滨贵族；一种是她父亲的粗犷。