高中生英语必背美文(中英文对照).docx

1、1 惟独你不可取代惟独你不可取代 As a teenager，I felt I was always letting people down. I was rebellious1 outside，but I wanted to be liked inside. Once I left home to hitch-hike2 to California with my friend Penelope. The trip wasnt easy，and there were many times I didnt feel safe. One situation in particular kept

2、me grateful to still be alive. When I returned home， I was different， not so outwardly sure of myself. I was happy to be home. But then I noticed that Penelope，who was staying with us，was wearing my clothes. And my family seemed to like her better than me. I wondered if I would be missed if I werent

3、 there. I told my mom，and she explained that though Penelope was a lovely girl，no one could replace me. I pointed out， “he is more patient and is neater than I have ever been.” My mom said these were wonderful qualities，but I was the only person who could fill my role. She made me realize that even

4、with my faultsand there were manyI was a loved member of the family who couldnt be replaced. I became a searcher，wanting to find out who I was and what made me unique. My view of myself was changing. I wanted a solid base to start from. I started to resist3 pressure to act in ways that I didnt like

5、any more， and I was delighted by who I really was. I came to feel much more sure that no one can ever take my place. Each of us holds a unique place in the world. You are special，no matter what others say or what you may think. So forget about being replaced. You cant be. 当我还是个 10 几岁的少年的时候，觉得自己总是让人失

6、望。从外表上看，我似乎很叛逆，但是在内心深处，我是如此 地渴望被人疼爱。 有一次我离开了家和我的朋友佩内洛普搭便车去了加利福尼亚。这次旅行并不轻松，而且有很多次我感觉不安。有一 次的突发状况让我一直庆幸自己还活着。回到家，我发觉自己变了，看上去不那么自信了。 我很高兴能回到家，但不久我注意到和我们一起的佩内洛普穿着我的衣服，而且我父母看上去更喜欢她，我想知道如 果我不在家的话他们是否会想念我。后来，我把我的想法告诉了母亲，她说尽管佩内洛普是个可爱的女孩，但她始终不能 取代我，我说： “她比我有耐心而且无论何时看上去她都比我要整洁大方。 ”母亲说这些都是非常好的优点，但我却是惟一 个能扮演好自己

7、角色的人。母亲让我感到尽管我有缺点似乎还很多但是，我被家中每一个人爱着，谁也无法 取代。 我成了一个探寻者，想要知道自己到底是谁，又是什么让我变得独一无二。我的人生观开始改变。我需要一个坚固的 基础来发展，我忍受住压力，不再做自己不喜欢做的事。而且我为真实的我感到高兴。渐渐地我越发肯定自己无可替代。 每个人在这个世界上都占有一个独一无二的位置。无论别人说什么，你自己怎么想，你都是特别的。所以，不要担心 自己会被取代，因为你永远是惟一的。 2 就在正上方就在正上方 太多的时候，我们总认为光明就在脚下，就在不远的前方，于是忘了去仰望头顶的那片天 If you put a buzzard1) in

8、a pen2) six to eight feet square and entirely open at the top, the bird, in spite of its ability to fly, will be an absolute prisoner. The reason is that a buzzard always begins a flight from the ground with a run of ten to twelve feet. Without space to run, as is its habit, it will not even attempt

9、3) to fly, but remain a prisoner for life in a small jail with no top. The ordinary bat that flies around at night, who is a remarkable nimble4) creature in the air, cannot take off from a level place. If it is placed on the floor or flat ground, all it can do is to shuffle5) about helplessly and, n

10、o doubt, painfully, until it reaches some slight elevation6) from which it can throw itself into the air. Then, at once, it takes off like a flash. A bumblebee7) if dropped into an open tumbler8) will be there until it dies, unless it is taken out. It never sees the means of escape at the top, but p

11、ersists9) in trying to find some way out through the sides near the bottom. It will seek a way where none exists, until it completely destroys itself. In many ways, there are lots of people like the buzzard, the bat and the bumblebee. They are struggling about with all their problems and frustration

12、s10), not realizing that the answer is right there above them. 如果把一只秃鹫放在一个 68 平方英尺的无顶围栏里，这只大鸟尽管会飞，也绝对会成为这栏中之囚。原因是秃鹫从 地面起飞前总要先助跑 1012 英尺的距离。这是它的习惯，如果没有了足够的助跑空间，它甚至不会尝试去飞，只会终身 困囿于一个无顶的小囚笼中。 晚上飞来飞去的普通的蝙蝠，本是一种在空中极其敏捷的动物，但却无法在平地上起飞。如果被放在地板或平坦的地面 上，它就只会无助地挪动，毫无疑问这样很痛苦。除非它到了稍高的位置，有了落差，才可以立刻闪电般地起飞。 一只大黄蜂如果掉

13、进了一个敞口平底玻璃杯里，除非有人把它拿出来，否则它就会一直呆在里边直到死去。它永远不知 道可以从杯口逃出，只坚持试图从杯底的四壁寻找出路。它会在根本不存在出口的地方寻找出路，直到彻底毁了自己。 其实在很多方面，很多人也像秃鹫、蝙蝠和大黄蜂一样，使尽浑身解数试图解决问题、克服挫折，却没有意识到解决之 道就在正上方。 Vocabulary 1.buzzard n. 动秃鹫 2.pen pen n. 围栏，围圈 3.attempt vt. 尝试，企图 4.nimble adj. 敏捷的 5.shuffle v. 拖着脚走，慢吞吞地走 6.elevation n. 高地，海拔 7.bumblebee

14、 n. 动大黄蜂 8.tumbler n. (平底)玻璃杯 9.persist vi. 坚持，持续 10.frustration n. 失败，挫折 3 我的第一份工作我的第一份工作 Both my parents came from towns in Mexico. I was born in El Paso, Texas, and when I was four, my family moved to a housing project in East Los Angeles. Even though we struggled to make ends meet, my parents st

15、ressed1) to me and my four brothers and sisters how fortunate we were to live in a great country with limitless opportunities. They imbued2) in us the concepts of family, faith and patriotism. I got my first real job when I was ten. My dad, Benjamin, injured his back working in a cardboard-box facto

16、ry and was retrained as a hairstylist. He rented space in a little mall and gave his shop the fancy name of Mr. Bens Coiffure3). The owner of the shopping center gave Dad a discount on his rent for cleaning the parking lot three nights a week, which meant getting up at 3 a.m. To pick up trash, Dad u

17、sed a little machine that looked like a lawn mower. Mom and I emptied garbage cans and picked up litter4) by hand. It took two to three hours to clean the lot. Id sleep in the car on the way home. I did this for two years, but the lessons I learned have lasted a lifetime. I acquired5) discipline and

18、 a strong work ethic6), and learned at an early age the importance of balancing lifes competing interests7) in my case8), school, homework and a job. This really helped during my senior year of high school, when I worked 40 hours a week flipping9) burgers at a fast-food joint10) while taking a full

19、load of percolate courses. The hard work paid off11). I attended12) the U.S. Military Academy and went on to receive graduate degrees in law and business from Harvard. Later, I joined a big Los Angeles law firm and was elected to the California state assembly. In these jobs and in everything else Iv

20、e done, I have never forgotten those days in the parking lot. The experience taught me that there is dignity13) in all work and that if people are working to provide for themselves and their families that is something we should honor. 我的父母都来自墨西哥的小镇。我出生于得克萨斯州的埃尔帕索城。我四岁时，全家搬到了东洛杉矶的一处低收入住宅区。 尽管我们当时要做到收

21、支平衡都很困难，但父母仍对我和四个兄弟姐妹强调说，能在这样一个充满无限机遇的国家里落户，我 们是多么幸运啊！他们给我们灌输了家庭、信仰以及爱国主义的观念。 十岁的时候，我得到了人生第一份真正的工作。我的爸爸本杰明在纸箱厂工作时背部受了伤。经过再培训，他成了一名发型师。 他在一个规模不大的商业区租下了一个摊位，并给他的店取了个奇妙的名字：“本先生的发型”。 商业中心的老板在租金上给爸爸打了个折扣，但条件是每周打扫三次停车场，这意味着凌晨三点就要起床干活。爸爸用一个看 起来像除草机的小机器来收捡垃圾，而我和妈妈则要清空垃圾桶并用手拾捡散落的垃圾。打扫这个停车场要用两到三个小时。我 总是在回家时的车

22、里就睡着了。 这份工作我干了两年，但从中学到的东西却让我受用终生。我学会了自律，建立了很强的职业道德。从小我就懂得了平衡生活 中各种利益冲突的重要性对我而言，就是上学、作业和工作。这在我高二那年真是很有用处。那时，我在一家快餐连锁店制 作汉堡包，每周工作四十个小时，同时还肩负着沉重的大学预科课程的学习任务。 辛勤的工作终见回报。我考入了美国军事学院，接着又获得了哈佛大学的法律和商业硕士学位。后来，我进入洛杉矶一家著名 的律师事务所并被选为加州议会参议员。在做这些工作和其他所有事情的过程中，我从未忘记过在停车场辛勤工作的那些日子。 那段经历使我懂得工作无贵贱, 靠自食其力来供养自己和家人就值得人

23、们敬佩。 Vocabulary 1.stress stres v. 强调，着重 2.imbue v. 灌输，深深影响 3.coiffure n. 发式 4.litter n. 废弃物，被胡乱扔掉的东西(尤指废纸等杂物) 5.acquire vt. 获得，学到 6.work ethic: 职业道德 7.interest n. 利益，利害关系 8.in ones case: 就某人的情况而言 9.flip vt. 使翻转 10.joint n. 连接，结合，本文中指连锁店 11.pay off: 得到好结果，取得成功 12.attend E5tend vt. 上(大学等) 13.dignity 5

24、dInItI n. 尊贵，高贵 4 一个那样的哥哥一个那样的哥哥 给予比获得更让人幸福. Paul received an automobile from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a street boy was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it. Is this your car, Mister? he asked. Paul nodded. My brother gave it to

25、me for Christmas. The boy was astonished. You mean your brother gave it to you and it didnt cost you anything? Boy, I wish. He hesitated. Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But what the lad1 said made Paul quite surprised. I wish, the

26、boy went on, that I could be a brother like that. Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then impulsively2 he added, Would you like to take a ride in my automobile? Oh, yes, Id love that. After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes shining, said, Mister, would you mind driving in front of

27、my house? Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again. Will you stop where those two steps are? the boy asked. He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Paul heard him coming bac

28、k, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled3 brother. He sat him down on the bottom step, then sort of4 squeezed up5 against him and pointed to the car. There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didnt cost him a cent. A

29、nd some day Im gonna6 give you one just like it. then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that Ive been trying to tell you about. Paul got out and lifted the lad to the front seat of his car. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of th

30、em began a memorable holiday ride. That Christmas Eve, Paul learned that it was more blessed to give. 保罗收到一辆汽车，那是他哥哥送的圣诞礼物。圣诞节 前夜，保罗从办公室出来时，一个街头少年绕着那辆闪闪发 亮的新车，十分羡慕。 “先生，这是你的车？”少年问道。 保罗点点头：“这是我哥哥送我的圣诞礼物。”男孩十分 惊讶：“你是说这是你哥送你的，你一分钱也没花？好家伙， 我希望”他停住了。保罗当然知道男孩他希望什么。他 希望能有一个那样的哥哥。 但那少年接下来说的话却让保罗 大吃一惊。 “我希望，

31、”男孩继续说：“我能成为那样的哥哥。” 保罗惊愕地看着那男孩，他冲口而出：“你要不要坐我的 车去兜一兜风？” “哦，当然，我愿意！” 车开出一小段路后，男孩转过头来，眼睛闪闪发亮地说： “先生，你是否介意把车子开到我家门前？”保罗微笑。他想 他知道男孩想干什么。 那男孩肯定是要向邻居炫耀他能坐一 部大轿车回家。但是这次保罗又猜错了。 “你能不能把车子停在那两个台阶前？”男孩要求。男孩 跑上台阶， 过了一会儿保罗听到他回来了， 但动作有些缓慢。 他背来了他跛脚的弟弟。他让弟弟坐在最下面的台阶上，略 有些挤靠着自己，然后指着那辆车。“这就是那车，巴迪， 就是我刚才在楼上对你说的。他哥哥送他的圣诞礼

32、物，他一 分钱也没花。将来某一天我也会送给你一辆像这样的车，到 那时候， 你就能自己去看我一直努力给你描绘的那些圣诞节 陈列窗里的漂亮东西了。” 保罗走下车子，把跛脚的男孩抱到车子前座。兴奋得满 眼放光的哥哥也爬上车子，坐在弟弟身旁。三个人开始了一 次令人难忘的假日兜风。 那个圣诞节前夜，保罗体会到“施与比获得更让人幸 福” 5 成长不息成长不息 Sir Edmund Hillary is famous for being the first person to climb Mt. Everest (n. 珠穆朗玛峰). What many people do not know is that

33、 Sir Hillary did not make it to the top of Everest the first time he tried. The first attempt was a complete failure. His climbing party encountered one problem after another and more than half his climbing party died. Nonetheless (adv. 虽然如此), the British Parliament (n. 议会) decided to honor him with

34、 some type of award. When he entered the chamber to receive his award, Sir Hillary saw that a large picture of Everest had been setup. During the standing ovation (n. 热烈欢迎) that he was receiving, he walked over to the picture, shook his fist at it and said, “You won, this time. But you are as big as

35、 you are ever going to get. And Im still growing.” We frequently hear the stories of people who have succeeded. And we frequently assume that they succeeded the first time. But in fact its the exact opposite. The road to success is paved with the bricks of failure. 埃德蒙 希拉里爵士是登上珠穆朗玛峰的第一人，他因此而闻名天下。 然而

36、，很多人并不知道，希拉里爵士第一次试着攀登珠穆朗玛峰时并未成功登顶。第一次登山以彻底的失败而告终。他 们接二连三遇到问题，登山队中超过半数的人都丧生了。 尽管如此，英国议会还是决定授予他某种奖励。希拉里爵士走进议会大厅领奖时，看到里面竖着一幅很大的珠穆朗玛峰 的画。 大家起立热烈欢迎希拉里爵士，这时他走到画跟前，冲画挥动了一下拳头，说道：“你这次赢了。但是你就这么高，再 也不会长，而我还在长。” 我们常常听到成功人士的故事。我们常常以为他们第一次就成功了。 但事实恰恰相反。 成功之路是由失败之砖垫就的。 6 把你的目标放在心里把你的目标放在心里 在无法看见彼岸的时候，请坚信浓雾后的不远处一定是

37、陆地把你的目标放在心里！ When she looked ahead, Florence Chadwick saw nothing but a solid wall of fog1. Her body was numb2. She had been swimming for nearly sixteen hours. Already she was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions. Now, at age 34, her goal was to become the first woman to sw

38、im from Catalina Island to the California coast. On that Fourth of July morning in 1952, the sea was like an ice bath and the fog was so dense3 she could hardly see her support boats. Alongside Florence in one of the boats, her mother and her trainer offered encouragement. They told her it wasnt muc

39、h farther. But all she could see was fog. They urged her not to quit. She never had.until then. With only a half mile to go, she asked to be pulled out. Still warming her chilled4 body several hours later, she told a reporter,“Look, Im not excusing myself, but if I could have seen land I might have

40、made it.”It was not fatigue5 or even the cold water that defeated her. It was the fog. She was unable to see her goal. Two months later, she tried again. This time, despite the same dense fog, she swam with her faith and her goal clearly pictured in her mind. She knew that somewhere behind that fog

41、was land and this time she made it! Florence Chadwick became the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel, eclipsing6 the mens record by two hours! 当弗洛伦斯 查德威克朝前方看去时，除了一团浓雾，她什么也看不见。她的身体已经麻木，她游了快 16 个小时了。 她是第一位游泳往返英吉利海峡的女性。现在她已 34 岁了，她的目标是成为第一个从卡特林娜岛游到加利福尼亚海岸 的女性。 1952 年 7 月 4 日的早晨，大海就像个冰窖，雾浓得她连自己的支援船

42、都看不见。 在靠近她的一艘船上，她的母亲和教练在不断鼓励她。他们告诉她离岸已经不太远了，但她的眼前只有雾。他们劝她不 要放弃，她从未在中途放弃过除了这次。她在离岸仅半英里处要求支援船把她拉上去。 几个小时后，她还在暖着她那冻僵了的身体，她告诉记者：“听着，我不是为自己辩解，但是如果我能看到陆地，我是 可以成功的。”打败她的不是疲劳或者寒冷的海水，而是浓雾。她无法看到目标。 两个月后，她再一次尝试。这次，尽管雾依然很浓，但是她怀着坚定的信念，目标清晰地呈现在心中。她知道浓雾后的 某个地方就是陆地，而这次她成功了！弗洛伦斯 查德维克成为第一个游过卡特林娜海峡的女性，而且还比男子纪录快了两 个小时！

43、 7 竹的启示竹的启示 One of my fondest memories as a child is going by the river and sitting idly on the bank. There I would enjoy the peace and quiet, watch the water rush downstream, and listen to the chirps1 of birds and the rustling2 of leaves in the trees. I would also watch the bamboo trees bend under

44、pressure from the wind and watch them return gracefully to their upright or original position after the wind had died down. When I think about the bamboo trees ability to bounce back or return to its original position, the word resilience3 comes to mind. When used in reference to a person this word

45、means the ability to readily recover from shock, depression or any other situation that stretches4 the limits of a persons emotions. Have you ever felt like you are about to snap5? Have you ever felt like you are at your breaking point? Thankfully, you have survived the experience to live to talk ab

46、out it. During the experience you probably felt a mix of emotions that threatened your health. You felt emotionally drained, mentally exhausted and you most likely endured unpleasant physical symptoms. Life is a mixture of good times and bad times, happy moments and unhappy moments. The next time yo

47、u are experiencing one of those bad times or unhappy moments that take you close to your breaking point, bend but dont break. Try your best not to let the situation get the best of you. A measure of hope will take you through the unpleasant ordeal6. With hope for a better tomorrow or a better situat

48、ion, things may not be as bad as they seem to be. The unpleasant ordeal may be easier to deal with if the end result is worth having. If the going gets tough and you are at your breaking point, show resilience. Like the bamboo tree, bend, but dont break. 对我而言，童年时代最珍爱的回忆就是去河边散步、在堤岸上慵懒地闲坐。在那里，我可以尽情地享受这份恬静和闲适， 看着向下游奔涌的河水、倾听鸟鸣和树叶的“沙沙”声。我也会经常注视那片竹林，由于风的压力，竹子会弯下身子，然而当 风力逐渐减小乃至完全停止时，它们便会优雅地恢复到原来那种竖直状态。 当我回想起竹子所具有的这种恢复原状的本领时，“韧性”这个词便在我的脑海中浮现出来。这个词用来形容人的时候， 则表示一个人具有从惊