第二十篇Tales_of_the_Terrible_Past__讲述可怕的过去.doc

*第二十篇Tales故事、传说 of the Terrible Past 讲述可怕的过去It is not the job of fiction 小说writers to analyze and interpret 诠释history. Yet by writing about the past in a vivid 生动and compelling 引人入胜的manner方式，storytellers can bring earlier eras时代 to life and force readers to consider them seriously. Among those taking on the task 作业、苦差使of recounting 详述history are some black writers who attempt to examine检查 slavery奴隶制度 from different points of view. 分析和诠释历史并不是小说家的工作。然而通过用一种生动有趣的方式来描写过去，小说家 可以重现早斯时代，并引起读者的重视。在叙述历史的作家中，有一些黑人作家试图从不同的角度审视奴隶制。Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison deals经营 specifically 特有的with the legacy遗产 of slavery in her book Beloved可爱的人. The main character特点 in this novel，a former slave called Sethe，lives in Ohio俄亥俄州 in the years following the Civil War，but she cannot free herself from her horrific恐怖 memories. Through a series of flashbacks倒叙、闪回 and bitter痛苦的 reminiscences回忆，the reader learns how and why Sethe escaped from the plantation种植园 she had lived on; the fate of her husband，who also tried to escape; and finally，what happened to the child called Beloved. Morrisons scenes场景 of torture 拷问and murder谋杀 are vivid生动的 and strongly强烈的 convey 传达the desperation 绝望的of the slaves and the cruelty残忍的 of their owners. 诺贝尔奖获得者托妮莫里森在她的作品宠儿中专门阐述了奴隶制问题。小说的主人公叫塞丝，她以前是个奴隶，内战之后住在俄亥俄，但是她无法让自己从可怕的记忆中解脱出来。 通过一系列的倒序和痛苦的回忆，读者了解到赛丝为什么以及怎样逃出她赖以生存的种植园，她 那同样试图逃出来的丈夫的命运，以及最后发生在叫做宠儿的孩子身上的事情。莫里森对奴隶受 折磨和遭谋杀的场景描写得很生动，充分地表达出奴隶们的绝望以及奴隶主的残酷。Charles Johnsons Middle Passage approaches接近 slavery 奴隶身份from a different，yet no less violent暴力，vantage优势 point. His main character，Rutherfprd Calhoun，is a neer-do-well饭桶 free black American who stows 无票偷乘away on a slave ship bound for Africa to collect 收集its cargo货物. Put to work after he is discovered，Calhoun witnesses 见证人firsthand亲身 the appalling骇人听闻的 conditions in which the captured俘获 Africans非洲人 are transported情不自禁的. When they finally rebel and take over the ship，he finds himself in the middle - and is forced to come to terms with who he is and what his values are. 查尔斯约翰逊的小说中途从另一个不同的角度来描写奴隶制，但同样充满着暴力。他 的主人公叫做卢瑟福卡尔霍恩，是一个游手好闲、身份自由的美国黑人。他偷偷登上了一艘开 往非洲贩卖奴隶的船只。被发现后，他开始为之工作，并亲眼目睹了非洲人被抓起来，然后被运 送到美国这种可怕的状况。当非洲人最终抵抗并占有了船只后，他发现了自己的中间性并且 被迫与他自己的身份和价值观念妥协。Neither Beloved宠儿 nor Middle Passage中途 is an easy read，but both exemplify举例证明 African American writers attempts to bring significant重要的 historical situations情况 alive for a modem audience. 不论是宠儿还是中途读起来都不轻松，但是它们都是非裔美国作家努力为现代观众 重现重要历史的典范之作。词汇: interpret /int?:prit/ v. 解释，翻译 desperation /desp?rei?n/ n. 绝望的境地 recount /rikaunt / v. 叙述 capture /kpt? / v. 俘获 slavery /sleiv?ri / n. 奴隶制度 注释: 1. Yet by writing about the past in a vivid and compelling manner，storytellers can bring earlier eras to life and force readers to consider them seriously. 然而通过用一种生动有趣的方式来描 写过去，小说家可以将早期时代重现，并引起读者的重视。 2. His main character. Rutherford Calhoun. is a neer-do-well free black American who stows away on a slave ship bound for Africa to collect its cargo .他的主人公叫做 Rutherford Calhoun，是一个游手好闲，身份自由的美国黑人。他偷偷登上了一艘开往非洲贩卖奴隶的船只。 练习: 1. This passage is mostly大部分 about_. A) the causes of slavery in America B) black writers in the late 20th century C) why Morrison and Johnson wrote the books they did D) two novels that deal with slavery 1. D 本题问的是:这篇文章主要讲什么? A的意思是美国奴隶制的原因。B的意思是20世纪的黑人作家。C的意思是莫里森和约翰逊写书的原因。D的意思是关于奴隶制的两本小说。本文主要介绍了莫里森和约翰逊各自关于奴隶制的小说的主要内容，因此D是正确的答案。 2. Beloved is set_. A) on a slave ship B) on a plantation before the Civil War C) in Ohio after the Civil War D) in an African town 2. C 本题问的是:“宠儿”的设置背景是什么?根据第二段的第二句话:a fornier slave called Sethe，lives in Ohio in the years following the Civil War可知其背景是在内战之后的俄亥俄州。因此C是正确的答案。3. The writer seems to feel that_. A) eveyone should read Morrisons and Johnsons novels B) the books are worthwhile值得 but challenging有挑战性的 C) black writers should ignore忽视 racial种族 issues 流出D) we will repeat复述 the past if we dont learn about it 3. B 本题问的是:作者的感觉是什么?A的意思是每个人都应该读莫里森和约翰逊的小说。B的意思是这些作品非常值得写但又很有挑战性。C的意思是黑人作家应当忽略种族问题。D的意思是如果我们没有学习过去，那么这些过去会重现。A，C，D原文没有体现，因此B是正确的答案。 4. The writer emphasizes强调 that the two books are similar类似 in their_. A) use of flashbacks 倒叙闪回B) treatment of women C) criticism of whites D) portrayal肖像 of violence 4.D 本题问的是:作者强调两部作品的共同之处是什么?根据第三段的第一句话:yet no less violent可知两部作品都有对暴力的描写。因