Genius only means hard working all one's life,
天才只意味着终身不懈的努力。
Genius is nothing but diligence.
天才不过是勤奋而已。
genius n. 天才
diligence n. 勤奋
all one's life“一生”
nothing but“只不过”
I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.
我所能奉献的没有其他,只有热血、辛劳、眼泪与汗水。
blood n. 血液
toil n. 辛苦,辛劳
Progress is the activity of today and the assurance of tomorrow.
进步是今天的活动、明天的保证。
assurance n. 确信,保证
Our destiny offers not the cup of despair, but the chalice of opportunity.
命运给予我们的不是失望之酒,而是机会之杯。
despair n. 绝望,丧失信心
chalice n. 杯,酒杯
opportunity n. 机会,良机
Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.
忍耐是痛苦的,但它的果实是甜蜜的。
patience n. 耐心,忍耐
bitter a. 苦的,痛苦的
Man errs so long as he strives.
人只要奋斗就会犯错误。
err v. 犯错误
strive v. 奋斗
so long as = as long as “只要”
No pain, no gain.
不劳则无获。
It is only through hard work that someone can achieve real success.
一个人只有经过艰苦的努力才能取得真正的成功。
pain n. 痛苦,劳苦,辛苦,努力
gain n. 收获,得到
第二句是个强调句,其结构为“It is+被强调成分+that+其他”。
The man who has made up his mind to win will never say "impossible".
凡是决心取得胜利的人是从来不说“不可能的”。
make up one's mind“下定决心”
The world can be changed by man's endeavor, and this endeavor can lead to something new and better.
人经过努力可以改变世界,这种努力可以使人类达到新的、更美好
的境界。
endeavor n. 努力
lead to“导致,结果”
2.实用对话
On Striving关于奋斗
Mary: Did you attend the lecture last night?
玛丽:昨晚你去听讲座了吗?
Jason: You mean the one by Zhang Jinlai?
杰森:你是说章金莱先生的讲座吗?
Mary: Yeah, I went last night and was wondering if you were there. The speech was excellent.
玛丽:我昨晚去了。我在想你是不是也去了。讲得太精彩了。
Jason: Yeah, I did go and I feel like I leamed a lot. When I was a kid, I watched his TV show all the time.
杰森:是的,我去了,我觉得学到了很多。我小时候一直看他演的电视剧呢。
Mary: Me too. I really admire his spirit. He played the Monkey King for 17 years. My favorite part of the show was that it
seemed like no matter how hard situation, he always faced it head-on and overcame it. Of course the show was a big success.
玛丽:我也是,我真的很佩服他的那种精神。他演美猴王这个角色演了十七年。这部电视剧我最喜欢的地方就是不管多么艰难的境况,他都正面相迎并且最终克服困难。这部电视剧当然取得了很大的成功。
Jason: He taught me that it is only through hard work that someone can achieve real success. No pain, no gain.
杰森:他教会我,一个人只有经过艰苦的努力才能取得真正的成功。不劳则无获。
Mary: He taught us that inside every broken heart is a new seed, and that gems can't shine unless they are polished. We
cannot truly improve ourselves without some kind of hardship.
玛丽:他还让我们懂得,每一颗破碎的心都孕育着新的萌芽,还有宝石不经磨砺就不能发光。没有磨难,我们就无法真正完善自我。
Jason: Maybe that was the essence of the Monkey King.
杰森:也许这就是美猴王的本质所在吧。
3.详细解说
1.时话中出现的“章金莱先生”是《西游记》中孙悟空的扮演者,其艺名为“六小龄童”。
2.“no matter”表示“不管,不论,不顾”,后面必须与“now,when,where,whether, which, who, what”等词连用,例如: Feeding a baby is a messy job no matter how careful you are.(不管你多仔细,喂孩子的工作都会令人手忙脚乱。)I'm determined to visit Japan no matter what it costs.(不管花多少钱,我都决定去日本。)另外,“no matter what”在口语中表示”不管怎样,无论如何”,例如:I'll call you tonight, no matter what.(不管怎样,我今天晚上都会给你打电话。)
4.文化洗礼
美国人信仰个人奋斗
在美国,个人奋斗致富的观念深入人心,一项调查显示,60%的美国人相信贫穷是因为“懒惰”所致;60%的欧洲人则认为贫穷没有道理可言,并难以改变。可以说,美国人热爱奋斗,其年平均工作时间高达1976小时,比欧洲最勤奋的德国人高达400小时。
如此说来,美国人是最有钱的。但实际上,《世界财富报告》发布7年来,美国百万富翁的总数与欧洲相差不多。二战之后欧洲普遍实行高福利,利用税收杠杆调节社会分配,因此社会呈现出相对均富的局面。此外,欧洲人大多不想做赚钱机器,他们更愿意在高福利社会里享受生活的快乐。难怪有人说,美国人钱多却保不住;欧洲人的钱刚好让他们抓得住。
《国家地理》杂志称,欧洲人的财富之所以在市场动荡时保持相对稳定,与欧洲国家的财产世袭有很大关系。美国投资银行的发言人说,“继承,这种资本积累的模式在欧洲已持续了几个世纪”。
相反,美国百万富翁的财产只有10%来自继承,大多数人都是白手起家。他们也不愿把遗产传给后代,美国的高遗产税是一个原因,同时更多美国富人认为,将巨额财产传给子女不利于其成长。