湖北八省联考英语

Weddings in The United StatesWeddings in the United States vary as much as the people do. There are church weddings with a great deal of fanfare; there are weddings on mountain-tops with guests barefooted; and there have been weddings on the ocean floor with oxygen tanks for the guests. But many weddings, no matter where or how they are performed, include certain traditional customs.Before a couple is married, they become engaged. And then invitations are sent to those who live nearby, their close friends and their relatives who live far away. When everything is ready, then comes the most exciting moment. 美国人的婚礼 美国的国土上居住着各种各样的人，他们的婚礼也千差万别。有热闹庄重的教堂婚礼；有在山顶上举行的婚礼，客人们光着脚陪伴登高；也有在海底举行的婚礼，客人们戴着氧气罐跟着入水。但婚礼无论在哪儿举行或怎样举行，总有某些传统的风俗。 在举行婚礼前先要先订婚，然后发放请贴给住在附近的人和好朋友以及远方的亲戚。当一切准备就绪，就该到最激动人心的时刻了。 The wedding itself usually lasts between 20 and 40 minutes. The wedding party enters the church while the wedding march is played. The bride carrying a bouquet enters last with her father who will "give her away". The groom enters the church from a side door. When the wedding party is gathered by the altar, the bride and groom exchange vows. It is traditional to use the words "To have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part[3]". Following the vows, the couple exchange rings. Wearing the wedding ring on the fourth finger of the left hand is an old custom. 婚礼本身通常进行20至40分钟。婚礼一行人伴着结婚进行曲进入教堂。新娘手持一束鲜花和她的父亲最后进来，父亲要把她交给新郎。而新郎则要从侧门进入教堂。当婚礼一行人聚集到教堂的祭坛前时，新娘和新郎互相表达誓言。常用的结婚誓言是：“而今而后，不论境遇好坏，家境贫富，生病与否，誓言相亲相爱，至死不分离。”宣誓过后，二人交换戒指。通常把戒指戴在左手无名指上，这是一个古老的风俗。 After the ceremony there is often a party, called a "reception" which gives the wedding guests an opportunity to congratulate the newlyweds.The car in which the couple leaves the church is decorated with balloons, streamers and shaving cream. The words "Just Married" are painted on the trunk or back window. The bride and groom run to the car under a shower of rice[4] thrown by the wedding guests. When the couple drives away from the church, friends often chase them in cars, honking and drawing attention to them. And then the couple go on their honeymoon. 礼仪过后，通常会有宴会，叫“喜宴”。宴会给参加婚礼的人一个向新婚夫妇祝贺的机会。新郎新娘乘坐汽车离开教堂，汽车上装饰有气球，彩色纸带、刮须膏之类的东西。“新婚燕尔”几个字常写在汽车后的行李箱上或后玻璃窗上。新娘新郎从婚礼客人撒下的雨点般的生大米中跑向汽车。小两口儿开车离开教堂时，朋友们常常开车追赶他们，不停地按喇叭，引他们注意。然后小两口儿就接着去度蜜月了。 Grooming and Personal Hygiene of Americans Grooming and personal hygiene have been around for ages. It's hard to imagine a time when people weren't concerned with taking care of their appearance and their bodies. Perhaps these practices started when Adam first took a bath and combed his hair before going on a date with Eve. Or maybe they began when Eve put on some herbal makeup to make herself more beautiful. No matter where they started, grooming and personal hygiene have become an important part of everyone's daily routine.You might think that all modern societies would have the same grooming and personal hygiene practices. After all, doesn't everybody take baths? Most people do recognize the need for hygiene, which is the basis for cleanliness and health-and a good way to keep one's friends. Grooming practices include all the little things people do to make themselves look their best, such as combing their hair and putting on makeup. However, while most modern people agree that these things are important, people in different cultures take care of themselves in different ways.There used to be an old joke in America that people should take a bath once a week, whether they need one or not. In fact, though, Americans generally take a bath-or more commonly, a shower-every day. But in contrast to some cultures, most Americans get their shower in the morning, so they can start the day fresh. And instead of going to a beauty parlor for a shampoo, many Americans prefer to wash and style their own hair. So if Americans have a "bad hair day," they have no one to blame but themselves. But most people in America do head for the beauty parlor or barber shop occasionally for a haircut, a perm or just some friendly conversation.Americans are known for having very sensitive noses. In America, "B.O." (body odor) is socially unacceptable. For that reason, Americans consider the use of deodorant or anti-perspirant a must. Ladies often add a touch of perfume for an extra fresh scent. Men may splash on after-shave lotion or manly-smelling cologne. Another cultural no-no in America is bad breath. Americans don't like to smell what other people ate for lunch-especially onions or garlic. Their solution? Mouthwash, breath mints and even brushing their teeth after meals.Some of the cultural variations in grooming practices result from physical differences between races. Whereas many Asian men have little facial hair, Westerners have a lot. As a result, most American men spend some time each day shaving or grooming their facial hair. Beards and mustaches are common sights in America, although their popularity changes from generation to generation. Most American men who wear facial hair try to keep it nicely trimmed. American women, on the other hand, generally prefer not to be hairy at all. Many of them regularly shave their legs and armpits.Americans put great value on both grooming and personal hygiene. For some people, taking care of themselves has become almost a religion. As the old saying goes, "Cleanliness is next to godliness." Whether or not being clean and well-groomed brings one closer to God, it certainly brings one closer to others. Americans look down on people who don't take care of themselves, or who "let themselves go." To Americans, even if we don't have much to work with, we have to make the best of what we've got.美国人的仪容整洁与个人卫生 仪容整洁和个人卫生的讲究已经行之有年了。很难想象一个人们不在乎打理外表和身体清洁的时代。或许这些卫生习惯始于亚当第一次洗澡梳头去赴夏娃的约；也可能始于夏娃第一次搽上青草制的化妆品使自己更美丽。无论是从何时开始的，仪容整洁与个人卫生已经成为每个人生活例行事务中重要的一部份。你可能以为所有现代社会中的仪容整洁与卫生习惯都是一样的。毕竟，不是每一个人天天都要洗澡的吗？大部份人的确肯定卫生的必要性，它是清洁与健康的基础，也是维持友谊的好办法。仪容整洁的工作涵盖了所有可以使人看起来体面的琐碎小事，像是梳头和化妆。虽然大多数的现代人都同意这些事很重要，但不同文化背景的人打理自己的方法也不一样。以前在美国有一个老笑话，说不管人们需不需要，他们至少每个礼拜该洗一次澡。不过事实上，美国人每天会洗一次澡，或者更普遍的作法是每天淋浴一次。但是不同于某些文化习惯的是，美国人在清晨淋浴，以使他们展开清新的一天。而且美国人不上美容院去洗头，他们宁可自己洗头和整理发型。所以美国人如果有一天头发很丑，除了怪自己之外就没什么好抱怨的了。然而大部份的美国人偶尔会到美容院或理发厅去，剪头发、烫头发，或是去跟人聊聊天。 美国人的鼻子是出了名的灵。在美国，体臭在社交上是不被接受的。因此，美国人会认为使用除臭剂或止汗剂是必须的。女士们通常会再抹点香水以增加清香；男士则拍一些刮胡水或是男性古龙水在脸上。在美国文化里的另一项禁忌是口臭。美国人不喜欢闻别人午餐后留在口中的味道,尤其是洋葱或大蒜。他们怎么解决这问题呢？漱口、吃薄荷糖、甚至饭后刷牙。有些仪容整洁方面的文化差异是源自于种族间生理条件的不同。亚洲男性面部的胡髭长得并不多，但西方人却长得多，因此美国的男性每天得花些时间去刮除或整理他们的脸毛。在美国，男人在下巴部份或嘴唇上方留胡子是很普通的，不过不同时代胡子受欢迎的样式不相同。在美国大部份留胡子的男性都会试着将胡子修剪整齐，但另一方面，美国女性通常不喜欢毛茸茸的，很多人会定期地刮除腿部和腋下的毛。 美国人非常看重仪容整洁与个人卫生。对某些人而言，打理自己几乎成了一种信仰，如一句古老的谚语说：清洁是仅次于圣洁第二重要的事。不管整齐清洁是不是能使人更接近上帝，但它的确能拉近与人的距离。美国人轻视那些不在乎打理自己或让自己随随便便就好的人。对美国人而言，就算我们没有非常好的先天条件，但至少该尽力将已有的好好发挥。