大学英语美文阅读

教学中,充分利用经典美文资源,挖掘经典美文中的想象因素,运用仿写、改写、续写等方法,引导学生学习经典美文中的想象技巧,进一步提高学生的习作想象力。我精心收集了大学经典英语美文，供大家欣赏学习!

重生 Reborn

Who are you? It’s the most elemental question in the world, but one that is not always easy toanswer. We tend to answer this question by naming roles that we fulfill, which were writer,boyfriend, son, entrepreneur, etc.

你是谁?这是世界上最基本的，但又总是难回答的问题。我们试图凭借清数自己扮演的角色来回答这个问题，如作家，男友，儿子，企业家等等。

It makes sense, because these are the roles that others see us fulfilling every day. In the worldwe operate in, we need to market ourselves as this or that role so that others know how torelate to us. But these are actually things that we do rather than what we are.

这点似乎合情合理，因为我们每天都在履行这些角色，别人都看在眼里。在我们经营的世界里，我们需要以这种或那种角色将自己推销出去，以便别人知晓如何与我们产生联系。这些确实是我们在做的事情，然而这些却无法诠释我们究竟是谁。

Most religions and spiritual belief systems teach that we are not our bodies, though we inhabitthem and identify with them through the course of a lifetime. Nor are we our minds, though weuse our minds and intelligence to guide us in our daily interactions.

大多数宗教和精神理念体系教诲我们不属于肉体，尽管我们以肉体形式存在，且终其一生都与肉体剪不断理还乱。我们也不属于思想，尽管我们使用思想和智慧指导日常交往。

When we identify with these things we cannot accept their loss through physical illness, injury,or death.

当我们认为人等同于肉体和思想，就会无法接受由身体疾病，伤痛或死亡带来的损失。

Whether you believe that some part of us survives our physical death or not, it’s easy to seethat when we identify with the roles that we fulfill, it becomes very difficult to accept it whenthose roles must change.

不论你是否相信人的某个部分可以永恒，如果我们将自己等同于我们扮演的角色的话，一旦这些角色必须改变，接受改变是非常困难的，这点显而易见。

When we lose our job or must change careers, when we go through a divorce or whensomeone who helps define a role goes away or dies, who are we then?

当我们失业，需要换工作，当我们历经离婚，亦或帮我们定义角色的某人离开或死亡，到那时我们又是谁呢?

There’s no single answer to this question. For some, there may be a realization that you existoutside of the body and self that you think of as “you” and that you will continue to “be” nomatter what roles you shed or even when you shed your physical body.

这个问题答案不是唯一的。对一些人来讲，或许存在某种意识，就是你存在于肉体和自身之外，你认为的自己，不论你自己角色如何转换，甚至你卸下肉体的躯壳，你终将继续是你。

For others, it may be more a matter of considering the purpose of the roles you fulfill. Theirpurpose may seem more like a lesson on the road to fulfilling your life’s purpose.

对于其他人来讲，这或许属于认清自己扮演角色目的事情了。各种角色的目的更像人生路上的一堂课程，以此来实现人生的意义。

For example, you may believe that each role allows you to learn more about yourself andothers, or that each role is a way for you to manifest and offer love to others during yourlifetime.

例如，你或许相信每种角色使你更加地了解自己和他人，亦或，每种角色在你生命中让你向他人证明并奉献了自己的爱。

In this case, when one of the roles you fulfill comes to an end—whether through separation ordeath or other means—you may need to consider that perhaps you’ve fulfilled the role. Maybethat’s all that was being asked of you.

此种情况下，当过你扮演的角色中，某个角色告终—不论是离别或死亡或其他原因引起的—你或许需要这样考虑，你已经完满了这个角色。或许你能做的已经不遗余力了

If that’s the case, then it’s time to let go of that role and move on. As long as you are alive,there will always be new roles to fulfill if you are open to the possibilities they represent.

如果事已如此，是时间放手继续前行了。只要一息尚存，如果你不将机会拒之门外，新的角色将接踵而至。

Life is all about change.

生命在于改变。

Change is seldom easy or comfortable, but when we don’t let go and allow life to flow the wayit’s going, we miss out on opportunities to grow, learn, and have new adventures.

改变不是那般简单，而令人舒适的。然而，如果我们不放手，不能让生活顺其自然，我们终将逝去成长，学习及新鲜的冒险机遇。

伤心时不必独处

There are times when we are faced with illnesses, disorders, disabilities some type of tragedythat causes us to lose contact with ourselves and the world in which we live. Our happinessbegins to fade and our heart begins to grow heavy. This affects the way we think, live, feel andthe way we look at life.

有时候我们会遭遇疾病，混乱， 残疾等一些灾难，这些灾难会暂时使我们迷失自我，并与这个我们赖以生存的世界失去联系。我们的快乐开始褪却，我们的内心开始变得沉重。这一切影响着我们的思维，生活，感情以及对待生活的方式。

None of us can be happy all the time. During times of tragedy, it is natural and even beneficialto be sad, but not to hold unhappy, anger or any negative emotion that takes control. Wemust heal ourselves emotionally and spiritually.

没有人始终都保持着快乐。当身处灾难时，悲伤是自然的，也是非常有益的。但不要让不愉快，愤怒或任何消极的情绪操控你的生活。我们必须从情绪上和精神上治愈我们心灵上的创伤。

Talk with optimistic and encouraging people for they bring a sense of hope into the world, anew meaning to life. They help you see past the clouds on a glooming day，they bring sunlighteveryday.

去和积极乐观的人们聊聊天，因为他们带给世界一线希望，带给生活新的意义。他们会帮助你在阴郁的天气里抹去乌云，让你的每天都是晴天。

Happiness is when you are with people who love you for who you are, this is the true meaningof love and friendship. Each day you are reborn with love and joy when you realize that youhave people by your side that care.

当你和真正关爱你的人在一起时，这才是快乐，同时这也是爱与友谊的真正含义。每天当你意识到有人在你身边关爱着你时，你便和爱与喜悦一起重生。

of Nature in Men

论人的天性

Nature is often hidden; sometimes overcome; seldom extinguished. Force maketh nature more violent in me return: doctrine and discourse maketh nature less importune: but custom only doth alter and subdue nature. He that seeketh victory over his nature, let him not set himself too great, nor too small tasks: for the first will make him dejected by often failings; and the second will make him a small proceeder, though by often prevailings.

天性常常是隐而不露的，有时可以压伏，而很少能完全熄灭的。压力之于天性，使它在压力减退之时更烈于前;但是习惯却真能变化气质，约束天性。凡是想征服自己底天性的人，不要给自己设下过大或过小的工作;因为过大的工作将因为常常失败的原故而使他灰心;而过小的工作，虽然能使他常常成功，但是将使他成为一个进步甚小的人。

And at the first, let him practise with helps, as swimmers do with bladders, or rushes: but after a time, let him practise with disadvantages, as dancers do with thick shoes. For it breeds great perfection, if the practice be harder then the use. Where nature is mighty, and therefore the victory hard, the degrees had need be; first to stay and arrest nature in time; like to him, that would say over the four and twenty letters, when he was angry: then to go less in quantity; as if one should, in forbearing wine, come from drinking healths, to a draught at a meal: and lastly, to discontinue altogether. But if a man have the fortitude, and resolution, to enfranchise himself at once, that is the best; optimus ille animi vindex, laedentia pectus vmcula qui rupit, dedoluitque semel.

还有，在起始的时候他应当用些帮忙的事务来练习，就好象学游泳的人用浮胞和苇筏一样;但是过了些时候以后，他应当与困难相搏以为练习，就好象舞蹈家之穿着厚鞋练习一样。因为，假如练习比实用还难，那么其结果就更为完美了。凡是天性甚强，因之不容易克服的地方，其克服的工夫就必须如此方可：第一，在时间方面要阻止天性，不要放纵，就好象有的人在生气的时候默诵24个字母底名字以抑怒气的一样;这段工夫做到了，然后在量底方面应该减少，就好象要戒酒的人，从引觞互祝减到每餐一饮一样;最后，才可以完全戒绝，但是假如一个人有那种毅力和决心，能够一举而解放自己，那是最好的：最能坚持灵魂底自由的人，就是那挣断磨胸的锁链，一举而永免受罪的人。

Neither is the ancient rule amiss, to bend nature as a wand, to a contrary extreme, whereby to set it right: understanding it, where the contrary extreme is no vice.

还有古人底遗训说应当把天性屈到相反的另一极端去，好象一根杆杖似的，以便它再反过来的时候可以适中，这句话也是不错的;不过我们须要明白，此处所谓的另一极端当然要不是恶德才行。

Let not a man force a habit upon himself, with perpetual continuance, but with some intermission. For both the pause reinforceth the new onset; and if a man that is not perfect be ever in practice, he shall as well practise his errors, as his abilities; and induce one habit of both: and there is no means to help this, but by seasonable intermissions.

一个人不可强给自己加上一种不断的继续的习惯，而应当稍有间歇。因为一则这种休息或间歇可以援助新的尝试;二则，假如一个德行不完全的人永远继续练习的话，他不仅练习了他底优点，连谬误也一定要练习了，并且使优点与谬误将同具一种习惯。这种情形，没有别的补救之策，除了用合时的间歇和休止。

But let not a man trust his victory over his nature too far, for nature will lay buried a great time, and yet revive, upon the occasion or temptation. Like as it was with Aesop's damsel, turned from a cat to a woman; who sat very demurely, at the board's end, till a mouse ran before her. Therefore let a man either avoid the occasion altogether, or put himself often to it, that he may be little moved with it A man's nature is best perceived in privateness, for there is no affectation; in passion, for that puttefh a man out of his precepts; and in a new case or experiment, for there custom leaveth him.

但是一个人也不可过于相信他对于自己底天性底胜利，因为天性能够长期潜伏着，而到有了机会或诱惑的时候复活起来。就好象《伊索寓言》中的猫变的女子一样，她坐在餐桌底一头，坐得端端正正地，可是有一只小鼠在她面前跑过的时候，她就不如此了。因此一个人应当或者完全躲避这种机会，或者常常与这种机会接触，以便少被牵动。人底天性在私生活里最易看出，因为在那种生活里是没有虚饰的;在热情里也最易看出，因为热情使人把平日的教训忘了;在一种新的事情或尝试之中也最易看出，因为在这种情形里是无惯例可援的。

They are happy men, whose natures sort with their vocations; otherwise they may say, multum incola fuit aruma mea, when they converse in those things, they do not affect In studies, whatsoever a man commandeth upon himself, let him set hours for it: but whatsoever is agreeable to his nature, let him take no care for any set times: for his thoughts will fly to it of themselves; so as the spaces of other business, or studies, will suffice. A man's nature runs either to herbs, or weeds; therefore let him seasonably water the one, and destroy the other.

凡是天性与职业适合的人是有福的人;反之，那些从事于他们本不想做的事业的人，他们可以说：“我底灵魂曾久与天性不合之事物周旋”。在学问方面，一个人对于与他底天性不合而勉强去学的学科，应当有固定的时间;但是凡是与天性相合的学科，那就不必有什么规定的时间;因为他底思想会自己作主，飞到那方面去的;只要别的事情或学科所剩下来的时间足够研究这些学问就行。一个人底天性不长成药草，就长成莠草;所以他应当以时灌溉前者而芟除后者。