书城外语每天都是精彩:英语诵读美文240篇(英汉对照)
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第25章

A Clean,Well-Lighted Place

Guidance for Reciting

Besides China's National Day,Oct. 1st is another Festival:International Day of Older Persons. To respect the elderly and take care of the young is one of traditional virtues in China. These plain words,from Ernest Hemingway,are aimed to evoke your care about senior citizens.

It was very late and everyone had left the cafe except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light. In the day time the street was dusty,but at night the dew settled the dust and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he felt the difference. The two waiters inside the cafe knew that the old man was a little drunk,and while he was a good client they knew that if he came too drunk he would leave without paying,so they kept watch on him.

Notes

1.drunk [drQNk] a. 喝醉了的[作表语]

一个干净明亮的地方

诵读导言

除了中国国庆节,10月1日还是另一个节日:国际老人节;尊老爱幼是中华民族的优良传统。这篇朴素的文字来自于海明威,希望能唤起你对老年人的关爱之情。

时间很晚了,大家都离开了餐馆,只有一个老人还坐在树叶挡住灯光的阴影里。白天里,街上尽是尘埃,到了晚上,露水压住了尘埃。这个老人喜欢坐得很晚,因为他是个聋子,现在是夜里,十分寂静,他感觉得到跟白天的不同。呆在餐馆里的两个侍者知道这老人有点儿醉了,他虽然是个好主顾,可是,他们知道,如果他喝得太醉了,他会不付账就走,所以他们一直在留神他。

口语点津

文中“well-lighted”的意思是“光线很足,很明亮”,这种构词法很常见。比如“well-informed”(消息灵通的)、“well-educated”(受到良好教养的)、“deep-rooted”(根深蒂固的),等等。