向大师学英文——边欣赏边思考边应用（2）

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在《向大师学英文——边欣赏边思考边应用（1）》中我欣赏了林语堂先生用英文创作的《生活的艺术》一书中有关“阅读的艺术”的第一段。其中谈到阅读可以让人暂时逃离世俗的生活而进入书籍营造的另一个世界。此段中我最欣赏的英文词汇是"immediate",以前只是知道它的意思是：立刻的，立即的；查字典才知道原来它还有"最接近的，直接的，当前的"意思。向林语堂先生学了一个很精准的表达：周遭环境，immediate world.

继续欣赏林语堂先生在他的《生活的艺术》一书中有关“阅读的艺术”的第二段。

什么是真正的阅读？

阅读有什么益处呢？

先看译文：

“但读书的益处还不止这些。读者常会被携带到一个沉思的世界里去。即使是一篇描写事实的文章，亲身经历和从书中读到事情的经过，两者之间也有很大的不同。因为事实一经描写到书中之后便成为了一幅景物。而读者则成为一个脱身是非的真正旁观者了。所以真正有益的读书，便是能引领我们进到这个沉思境界的读书，而不是单单去知道一些事实经过。人们往往耗费许多时间去读报纸，我以为这不能算是阅读。因为一般的报纸读者，他们的目的不过是要了解一些毫无回味价值的事实经过罢了。”

然后再看英文原著：

“But there is more to it than this. The reader is always carried away into a world of thought and reflection. Even if it is a book about physical events, there is a difference between seeing such events in person or living through them, and reading about them in books, for then the events always assume the quality of a spectacle and the reader becomes a detached spectator. The best reading is therefore that which leads us into this contemplative mood, and not that which is merely occupied with the report of events. The tremendous amount of time spent on newspapers I regard as not reading at all, for the average readers of papers are mainly concerned with getting reports about events and happenings without contemplative value.”

自己总结一下：单单只是为了获取信息和事情经过的阅读不是真正的阅读。只有能让人进入客观的、沉思状态的阅读才是真正的阅读。阅读的益处之一就是可以让读者以旁观者的身份去客观观察和思考阅读的内容。

.这一段中我最欣赏的词是“contemplative mood”——沉思的状态。

我自己的应用：

I enjoy getting up early in the morning. The quiet atmosphere and a cup of hot black coffee can help me get into the contemplative mood.

我喜欢早起。早晨安静的氛围，再配上一杯热的黑咖啡，我就可以进入沉思的状态。

I don't satisfy with only being a detached spectator of life, I want to dive into it.

我并不满足于成为一个生活的旁观者，我想深入生活。