優(yōu)秀英語美文摘抄
閱讀經(jīng)典美文可以豐富學(xué)生的知識,鞏固學(xué)習(xí)成果;可以提高學(xué)生的閱讀能力和寫作能力;可以學(xué)生的審美能力和陶冶情操。小編精心收集了經(jīng)典優(yōu)秀的英語美文,供大家欣賞學(xué)習(xí)!
經(jīng)典優(yōu)秀的英語美文篇1
First Inaugural Address
We observe today not a victory of party, but a celebration of freedom, symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning; signifying renewal, as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago.
In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than in mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course. Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty. The graves of young Americans who answered the call to service surround the globe.
Now the trumpet summons us again, not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are; but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, “rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation”, a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.
Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility. I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it. And the glow from that fire can truly light the world.
And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.
My fellow citizens of the world, ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.
Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth, God’s work must truly be our own.
就職演講(節(jié)選)
今天我們慶祝的不是政黨的勝利,而是自由的勝利。這象征著一個結(jié)束,也象征著一個開端;意味著延續(xù)也意味看變革。因為我已在你們和全能的上帝面前,宣讀了我們的先輩在170多年前擬定的莊嚴(yán)誓言。
公民們,我們方針的最終成敗與其說掌握在我手中,不如說掌握在你們手中。自從合眾國建立以來,每一代美國人都曾受到召喚去證明他們對國家的忠誠。響應(yīng)召喚而獻(xiàn)身的美國青年的墳?zāi)贡榧叭颉?/p>
現(xiàn)在,號角已再次吹響---不是召喚我們拿起武器,雖然我們需要武器;不是召喚我們?nèi)プ鲬?zhàn),雖然我們嚴(yán)陣以待。它召喚我們?yōu)橛永杳鞫缲?fù)起漫長斗爭的重任,年復(fù)一年,從希望中得到歡樂,在磨難中保持耐性,對付人類共同的敵人---專制、社團(tuán)、疾病和戰(zhàn)爭本身。
為反對這些敵人,確保人類更為豐裕的生活,我們能夠組成一個包括東西南北各方的全球大聯(lián)盟嗎?你們愿意參加這一歷史性的努力嗎?
在漫長的世界歷史中,只有少數(shù)幾代人在自由處于最危急的時刻被賦予保衛(wèi)自由的責(zé)任。我不會推卸這一責(zé)任,我歡迎這一責(zé)任。我不相信我們中間有人想同其他人或其他時代的人交換位置。我們?yōu)檫@一努力所奉獻(xiàn)的精力、信念和忠誠,將照亮我們的國家和所有為國效勞的人,而這火焰發(fā)出的光芒定能照亮全世界。
因此,美國同胞們,不要問國家能為你們做些什么、而要問你們能為國家做些什么。
全世界的公民們,不要問美國將為你們做些計人,而要問我們共同能為人類的自由做些什么。
最后,不論你們是美國公民還是其他國家的公民,你們應(yīng)要求我們獻(xiàn)出我們同樣要求于你們的高度力量和犧牲。問心無愧是我們唯一可靠的獎賞,歷史是我們行動的最終裁判,讓我們走向前去,引導(dǎo)我們所熱愛的國家。我們祈求上帝的福佑和幫助,但我們知道,確切地說,上帝在塵世的工作必定是我們自己的工作。
經(jīng)典優(yōu)秀的英語美文篇2
Gettysburg Address
Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation,conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now, we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation soconceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war.We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting-place for those who heregave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should dothis.
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow thisground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above ourpoor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here,but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated hereto the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It israther for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us---that from thesehonored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last fullmeasure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain;that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom; and that government of thepeople, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
在葛底斯堡的演說
87年前,我們的先輩們在這個大陸上創(chuàng)立了一個新國家,它孕育于自由之中,奉行一切人生來平等的原則?,F(xiàn)在我們正從事一場偉大的內(nèi)戰(zhàn),以考驗這個國家,或者任何一個孕育于自由和奉行上述原則的國家是否能夠長久存在下去。我們在這場戰(zhàn)爭中的一個偉大戰(zhàn)場上集會。烈士們?yōu)槭惯@個國家能夠生存下去而獻(xiàn)出了自己的生命,我們來到這里,是要把這個戰(zhàn)場的一部分奉獻(xiàn)給他們作為最后安息之所。我們這樣做是完全應(yīng)該而且是非常恰當(dāng)?shù)摹?/p>
但是,從更廣泛的意義上來說,這塊土地我們不能夠奉獻(xiàn),不能夠圣化,不能夠神化。那些曾在這里戰(zhàn)斗過的勇士們,活著的和去世的,已經(jīng)把這塊土地圣化了,這遠(yuǎn)不是我們微薄的力量所能增減的。我們今天在這里所說的話,全世界不大會注意,也不會長久地記住,但勇士們在這里所做過的事,全世界卻永遠(yuǎn)不會忘記。毋寧說,倒是我們這些還活著的人,應(yīng)該在這里把自己奉獻(xiàn)于勇士們已經(jīng)如此崇高地向前推進(jìn)但尚未完成的事業(yè)。倒是我們應(yīng)該在這里把自己奉獻(xiàn)于仍然留在我們面前的偉大任務(wù)——我們要從這些光榮的死者身上汲取更多的獻(xiàn)身精神,來完成他們已經(jīng)完全徹底為之獻(xiàn)身的事業(yè);我們要在這里下定最大的決心,不讓這些死者白白犧牲;我們要使國家在上帝福佑下得到自由的新生,要使這個民有、民治、民享的政府永世長存。
經(jīng)典優(yōu)秀的英語美文篇3
VTo be or not to be
Outside the Bible, these six words are the most famous in all the literature of the world. Theywere spoken by Hamlet when he was thinking aloud, and they are the most famous words inShakespeare because Hamlet was speaking not only for himself but also for every thinking manand woman. To be or not to be, to live or not to live, to live richly and abundantly and eagerly,or to live dully and meanly and scarcely. A philosopher once wanted to know whether he wasalive or not, which is a good question for everyone to put to himself occasionally. He answeredit by saying: "I think, therefore am."
But the best definition of existence ever saw did another philosopher who said: "To be is to bein relations." If this true, then the more relations a living thing has, the more it is alive. To liveabundantly means simply to increase the range and intensity of our relations. Unfortunatelywe are so constituted that we get to love our routine. But apart from our regular occupationhow much are we alive? If you are interest-ed only in your regular occupation, you are aliveonly to that extent. So far as other things are concerned--poetry and prose, music, pictures,sports, unselfish friendships, politics, international affairs--you are dead.
Contrariwise, it is true that every time you acquire a new interest--even more, a newaccomplishment--you increase your power of life. No one who is deeply interested in a largevariety of subjects can remain unhappy; the real pessimist is the person who has lostinterest.
Bacon said that a man dies as often as he loses a friend. But we gain new life by contacts, newfriends. What is supremely true of living objects is only less true of ideas, which are also alive.Where your thoughts are, there will your live be also. If your thoughts are confined only toyour business, only to your physical welfare, only to the narrow circle of the town in which youlive, then you live in a narrow cir-conscribed life. But if you are interested in what is going on inChina, then you are living in China~ if you’re interested in the characters of a good novel, thenyou are living with those highly interesting people, if you listen intently to fine music, you areaway from your immediate surroundings and living in a world of passion and imagination.
To be or not to be--to live intensely and richly, merely to exist, that depends on ourselves. Letwiden and intensify our relations. While we live, let live!
生存還是毀滅
“生存還是毀滅。”如果把《圣經(jīng)》除外,這六個字便是整個世界文學(xué)中最有名的六個字了。這六個字是哈姆雷特一次喃喃自語時說的,而這六個字也就成了莎士比亞作品中最有名的幾個字了,因為這里哈姆雷特不僅道出了他自己的心聲,同時也代表了一切有思想的男男女女。是活還是不活——是要生活還是不要生活,是要生活得豐滿充實,興致勃勃,還是只是活得枯燥委瑣,貧乏無味。一位哲人一次曾想弄清他自己是否是在活著,這個問題我們每個人也大可不時地問問我們自己。這位哲學(xué)家對此的答案是: “我思故我在。”
但是關(guān)于生存我所見過的一條最好的定義卻是另一位哲學(xué)家下的:“生活即是聯(lián)系。”如果這話不假的話,那么一個有生命者的聯(lián)系越多,它也就越有生氣。所謂要活得豐富充實也即是要擴(kuò)大和加強(qiáng)我們的各種聯(lián)系。不幸的是,我們往往會因為天性不夠豐厚而容易陷入自己的陳規(guī)舊套。試問除去我們的日常工作,我們的真正生活又有多少?如果你只是對你的日常工作才有興趣,那你的生趣也就很有限了。至于在其它事物方面,比如詩歌、散文、音樂、美術(shù)、體育、無私的友誼、政治與國際事務(wù),等等——你只是死人一個。
但反過來說,每當(dāng)你獲得一種新的興趣——甚至一項新的造詣——你就增長了你的生活本領(lǐng)。一個能對許許多多事物都深感興趣的人是不可能總不愉快的,真正的悲觀者只能是那些喪失興趣的人。
培根曾講過,一個人失去朋友即是死亡。但是憑著交往,憑著新朋,我們就能獲得再生。這條對于活人可謂千真萬確的道理在一定程度上也完全適用于人的思想,它們也都是活的。你的思想所在,你的生命便也在那里。如果你的思想不出你的業(yè)務(wù)范圍,不出你的物質(zhì)利益,不出你所在城鎮(zhèn)的狹隘圈子,那么你的一生便也只是多方受著局限的狹隘的一生。但是如果你對當(dāng)前中國那里所發(fā)生的種種感到興趣,那么你便可說也活在中國;如果你對一本佳妙小說中的人物感到興趣,你便是活在一批極有趣的人們中間;如果你能全神貫注地聽點好的音樂,你就會超脫出你的周圍環(huán)境而活在一個充滿激情與想象的神奇世界之中。
生存還是毀滅——活得熱烈活得豐富,還是只是簡單存在,這就全在我們自己。但愿我們都能不斷擴(kuò)展和增強(qiáng)我們的各種聯(lián)系。只要一天我們活著,就要一天是在活著。
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