英文名人介绍.doc

.名人素材专项l SocratesSocrates (469 BC399 BC) was a Classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary Aristophanes. Many would claim that Platos dialogues are the most comprehensive accounts of Socrates to survive from antiquity. Through his portrayal in Platos dialogues, Socrates has become renowned for his contribution to the field of ethics, and it is this Platonic Socrates who also lends his name to the concepts of Socratic irony and the Socratic method, or elenchus. The latter remains a commonly used tool in a wide range of discussions, and is a type of pedagogy in which a series of questions are asked not only to draw individual answers, but also to encourage fundamental insight into the issue at hand. It is Platos Socrates that also made important and lasting contributions to the fields of epistemology and logic, and the influence of his ideas and approach remains strong in providing a foundation for much western philosophy that followed. As one recent commentator has put it, Plato, the idealist, offers an idol, a master figure, for philosophy. A Saint, a prophet of the Sun-God, a teacher, condemned for his teachings as a heretic. Yet, the real Socrates, like many of the other Ancient philosophers, remains at best enigmatic and at worst unknown. （历史伟人对后人的影响，老师对学生的影响，历史的真实性？）l AristotleAristotle (384 BC 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology. Together with Plato and Socrates (Platos teacher), Aristotle is one of the most important founding figures in Western philosophy. Aristotles writings were the first to create a comprehensive system of Western philosophy, encompassing morality and aesthetics, logic and science, politics and metaphysics. (师生关系？对真理的追求？)Aristotles views on the physical sciences profoundly shaped medieval scholarship, and their influence extended well into the Renaissance, although they were ultimately replaced by Newtonian physics. In the zoological sciences, some of his observations were confirmed to be accurate only in the 19th century. His works contain the earliest known formal study of logic, which was incorporated in the late 19th century into modern formal logic. In metaphysics, Aristotelianism had a profound influence on philosophical and theological thinking in the Islamic and Jewish traditions in the Middle Ages, and it continues to influence Christian theology, especially Eastern Orthodox theology, and the scholastic tradition of the Catholic Church. His ethics, though always influential, gained renewed interest with the modern advent of virtue ethics. All aspects of Aristotles philosophy continue to be the object of active academic study today. Though Aristotle wrote many elegant treatises and dialogues (Cicero described his literary style as a river of gold), it is thought that the majority of his writings are now lost and only about one-third of the original works have survived. （少数个人而非群体对历史的影响）Despite the far-reaching appeal that Aristotles works have traditionally enjoyed, today modern scholarship questions a substantial portion of the Aristotelian corpus as authentically Aristotles own. （质疑既定权威）Analytics and the Organon （分析法和推理法）What we today call Aristotelian logic, Aristotle himself would have labeled analytics. The term logic he reserved to mean dialectics. Most of Aristotles work is probably not in its original form, since it was most likely edited by students and later lecturers. The logical works of Aristotle were compiled into six books in about the early 1st century AD:1. Categories 2. On Interpretation 3. Prior Analytics 4. Posterior Analytics 5. Topics 6. On Sophistical Refutations The order of the books (or the teachings from which they are composed) is not certain, but this list was derived from analysis of Aristotles writings. It goes from the basics, the analysis of simple terms in the Categories, the analysis of propositions and their elementary relations in On Interpretation, to the study of more complex forms, namely, syllogisms (in the Analytics) and dialectics (in the Topics and Sophistical Refutations). The first three treatises form the core of the logical theory stricto sensu: the grammar of the language of logic and the correctness rules of reasoning. There is one volume of Aristotles concerning logic not found in the Organon, namely the fourth book of Metaphysics.Chance and spontaneity （机遇性、自发性）Spontaneity and chance are causes of effects. Chance as an incidental cause lies in the realm of accidental things. It is from what is spontaneous (but note that what is spontaneous does not come from chance). For a better understanding of Aristotles conception of chance it might be better to think of coincidence: Something takes place by chance if a person sets out with the intent of having one thing take place, but with the result of another thing (not intended) taking place. For example: A person seeks donations. That person may find another person willing to donate a substantial sum. However, if the person seeking the donations met the person donating, not for the purpose of collecting donations, but for some other purpose, Aristotle would call the collecting of the donation by that particular donator a result of chance. It must be unusual that something happens by chance. In other words, if something happens all or most of the time, we cannot say that it is by chance.There is also more specific kind of chance, which Aristotle names luck, that can only apply to human beings, since it is in the sphere of moral actions. According to Aristotle, luck must involve choice (and thus deliberation), and only humans are capable of deliberation and choice. What is not capable of action cannot do anything by chance. （新的发现，科学的进步大多数都是巧合？机遇性？）理论的缺陷 In places, Aristotle goes too far in deriving laws of the universe from simple observation and over-stretched reason. Todays scientific method assumes that such thinking without sufficient facts is ineffective, and that discerning the validity of ones hypothesis requires far more rigorous experimentation than that which Aristotle used to support his laws.Aristotle also had some scientific blind spots. He posited a geocentric cosmology that we may discern in selections of the Metaphysics, which was widely accepted up until the 16th century. From the 3rd century to the 16th century, the dominant view held that the Earth was the center of the universe (geocentrism).Since he was perhaps the philosopher most respected by European thinkers during and after the Renaissance, these thinkers often took Aristotles erroneous positions as given, which held back science in this epoch. However, Aristotles scientific shortcomings should not mislead one into forgetting his great advances in the many scientific fields. For instance, he founded logic as a formal science and created foundations to biology that were not superseded for two millennia. Moreover, he introduced the fundamental notion that nature is composed of things that change and that studying such changes can provide useful knowledge of underlying constants.l Alexander the Great Alexander the Great (356323 BC) was a Greek king of Macedon. He is the most celebrated member of the Argead Dynasty and created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Although both Alexanders reign and empire were short-lived, the cultural impact of his conquests lasted for centuries. Alexander was known to be undefeated in battle and is considered one of the most successful commanders of all time. He is one of the most famous figures of antiquity, and is remembered for his tactical ability, for his conquests, and for spreading Greek culture into the East, marking the beginning of Hellenistic civilization. （个人成就、历史地位、对历史的影响）Alexander was tutored by the famed philosopher Aristotle. (教师的影响)His mother had huge ambitions for Alexander, and encouraged him to believe it was his destiny to conquer the Persian Empire Alexanders relationship with his father generated the competitive side of his personality; he had a need to out-do his father, as his reckless nature in battle suggests. （父母的影响）Alexanders most evident personality traits were his violent temper and rash, impulsive nature, which undoubtedly contributed to some of his decisions during his life. Plutarch thought that this part of his personality was the cause of his weakness for alcohol. Although Alexander was stubborn and did not respond well to orders from his father, he was easier to persuade by reasoned debate. Indeed, set beside his fiery temperament, there was a calmer side to Alexander; perceptive, logical, and calculating. He had a great desire for knowledge, a love for philosophy, and was an avid reader. This was no doubt in part due to his tutelage by Aristotle; Alexander was intelligent and quick to learn. （性格特点、反应时代的价值观？）l Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 1599 3 September 1658) was an English military and political leader best known in England for his involvement in making England into a republican Commonwealth and for his later role as Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland. Events that occurred during his reign and his politics are a cause of animosity between Ireland and the UK. He was one of the commanders of the New Model Army which defeated the royalists in the English Civil War. After the execution of King Charles I in 1649, Cromwell dominated the short-lived Commonwealth of England, conquered Ireland and Scotland, and ruled as Lord Protector from 1653 until his death from malaria in 1658.Cromwell has been a controversial figure in the history of the British Islesa regicidal dictator to some historians and a hero of liberty to others. In Britain he was elected as one of the Top 10 Britons of all time in a 2002 BBC poll. His measures against Irish Catholics have been characterised as genocidal or near-genocidal.（历史地位、个人成就）He made an Independent style of Puritanism an essential part of his life. （宗教信仰）l Sir Winston ChurchillWinston Churchill (30 November 1874 24 January 1965) was a British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the great wartime leaders.A noted statesman and orator, Churchill was also an officer in the British Army, a historian, writer and artist. To date, he is the only British prime minister to have received the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the first person to be recognized as an honorary citizen of the United States. （个人成就、历史地位）Churchill as artist, historian, and writer (通才实例、政治家的博学)Winston Churchill was also an accomplished artist and took great pleasure in painting, especially after his resignation as First Lord of the Admiralty in 1915.He found a haven in art to overcome the spells of depression, or as he termed it, the Black Dog, which he suffered throughout his life. He is best known for his impressionist scenes of landscape, many of which were painted while on holiday in the South of France, Egypt or Morocco.197 He continued his hobby throughout his life and painted hundreds of paintings, many of which are on show in the studio at Chartwell as well as private collections. （艺术的重要性）Despite his lifelong fame and upper-class origins Churchill always struggled to keep his income at a level that would fund his extravagant lifestyle. MPs before 1946 received only a nominal salary so many had secondary professions from which to earn a living. From his first book in 1898 until his second stint as Prime Minister, Churchills income was almost entirely made from writing books and opinion pieces for newspapers and magazines. （职业规划）Churchill was also a prolific writer of books, writing a novel, two biographies, three volumes of memoirs, and several histories in addition to his many newspaper articles. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953 for his mastery of historical and biographical description as well as for brilliant oratory in defending exalted human values.（文学造诣、个人的伟大不是由后人评价）Churchill applied to attend the Royal Military College, Sandhurst in 1893. It took three attempts before he passed the entrance exam; he applied for cavalry rather than infantry because the grade requirement was lower and did not require him to learn mathematics, which he disliked. (学术或职业追求与个人兴趣)As a commander he continued to exhibit the reckless daring which had been a hallmark of all his military actions, although he disapproved strongly of the mass slaughter involved in many western front actions. （道德妥协、领导者的能力） Churchill 的名言You have enemies? Good. That means youve stood up for something, sometime in your life.（竞争、对手类） A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. （机会、困境） All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope.（复杂的事情变简单）Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things. （批评）l Margaret ThatcherMargaret Thatcher served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She is the only woman to have held either post. Thatchers tenure as Prime Minister was the longest since that of Lord Salisbury and the longest continuous period in office since Lord Liverpool in the early 19th century. (历史地位)Margaret Roberts was brought up a strict Methodist by her father. Her father was active in local politics and religion, serving as an Alderman and Methodist lay preacher. （家庭影响）The term Thatcherism came to refer to her policies as well as aspects of her ethical outlook and personal style, including moral absolutism, nationalism, interest in the individual, and an uncompromising approach to achieving political goals.63 American author Claire Berlinski, who wrote the biography There Is No Alternative: Why Margaret Thatcher Matters, argues repeatedly throughout the volume that it was this Thatcherism, specifically her focus on economic reform, that set the United Kingdom on the path to recovery and long term growth（政治领导人、政策）l George WashingtonGeorge Washington (February 22, 1732 December 14, 1799) served as the first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797, and as the commander of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War from 1775 to 1783. His role in the revolution and subsequent independence and formation of the United States was significant, and he is seen by Americans as the Father of Our Country. (历史地位)Washington presided over the Philadelphia Convention that drafted the United States Constitution in 1787 because of general dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation. Today, Washingtons face and image are often used as national symbols of the United States, along with the icons such as the flag and great seal. Perhaps the most prominent commemoration of his legacy is the use of his image on the one-dollar bill and the quarter-dollar coin. Washington, together with Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln, is depicted in stone at the Mount Rushmore Memorial. The Washington Monument, one of the most well known American landmarks, was built in his honor. Many things have been named in honor of Washington. Washingtons name became that of the nations capital, Washington, D.C. （现在的影响）l John F KennedyJohn Fitzgerald Jack Kennedy (May 29, 1917 November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963.John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th President at noon on January 20, 1961. In his inaugural address he spoke of the need for all Americans to be active citizens, famously saying, Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. He also asked the nations of the world to join together to fight what he called the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself. He added: All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin. In closing, he expanded on his desire for greater internationalism: 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. (就职演说) John Kennedy met his future wife, Jacqueline Bouvier, when he was a congressman. They were married a year after he was elected senator, on September 12, 1953. Kennedy and his wife were younger in comparison to presidents and first ladies that preceded them, and both were popular in ways more common to pop singers and movie stars than politicians, influencing fashion trends and becoming the subjects of numerous photo spreads in popular magazines. Although Eisenhower had allowed presidential press conferences to be filmed for television, Kennedy was the first president to ask for them to be broadcast live and made good use of the medium. Jacqueline brought new art and furniture to the White House, and directed a restoration. They invited a range of artists, writers and intellectuals to rounds of White House dinners, raising the profile of the arts in America. （媒体、政治名人）The economy turned aroun