concrete1997全国高校英语专业八级考试教育部官方译文

2021年1月10日发(作者：易慧)
1,
Night is a dead monotonous period under a roof; but in the open would it passes
lightly, with its stars and dews and perfumes, and the hours are marked by changes in
the face of Nature. What seems a kind of death to people choked between walls and
curtains, is only light and living slumber to the man who sleeps afield. All night long
he can hear Nature breathing deeply and freely; even as she take her rest, she turns
and smiles; and there is one stirring hour unknown to those who dwell in houses when
a wakeful influence goes abroad over the sleeping hemisphere, and all the outdoor
world are on their feet. It is then that the cock first crows, not this time to announce
the dawn, but like a cheerful watchman speeding the course of night. Cattle awake on
the meadows; sheep break their fast on dewy hillsides, and change to a new lair
among the ferns; and houseless men, who have lain down with the fowls, open their
dim eyes and behold the beauty of the night.
简评： 这篇小品文的主题是：露宿野外所看到的夜。 通篇以night开头，以night
结尾，意义连贯，文字优美。一共五句话，第一句是主题句，第二 三句主要是对
野外之夜的过程的感受，第四五句是在野外看到的夜的离去，请大家在翻译的过
程 中注意始终围绕“夜”这一主题。在词义理解正确的基础上，翻译的主要难点在
于：英汉句法结构的转换 ；长句的断句；段落的连贯。
参考译文（自《英美背诵名篇》，外研社）：
夜在室内是死气 沉沉，单调乏味的时刻。但是在室外，有星星，有露珠，还有芬
芳的香气，夜轻快地流逝，而大自然的面 貌却在夜里时刻变化着。禁锢在室内和
帘后的人们觉得夜似乎是一种死亡，而露宿野外的人却觉得夜只是 一场充满生机
的微睡。他整夜能听见大自然深沉的、自由自在的呼吸。大自然即使在休息时也
在 转动和微笑。当沉睡着的半球出现苏醒迹象的时候，室外的万物都起来了，那
种忙碌的时刻是居住在室内 的人所不知道的。雄鸡最先啼鸣，这时不是报晓，而
是像欢乐的更夫在催黑夜快走。草地上牛群醒来；露 珠晶莹的山坡上羊群在进早
餐，然后在羊齿植物丛中改换新窝；与禽鸟共眠的无家可归的人们睁开了惺松 的
双眼，观赏美丽的夜。
2,
Opera is expensive: that much is inevitable. But expensive things are not inevitably
the province of the rich unless we abdicate society’s power of choice. We can choose
to make opera, and other expensive forms of culture, accessible to those who cannot
individually pay for it. The question is: why should we? Nobody denies the
imperatives of food, shelter, defense, health and education. But even in a prehistoric
cave, mankind stretched out a hand not just to eat, drink or fight, but also to draw. The
impulse towards culture, the desire to express and explore the world through
imagination and representation is fundamental. In Europe, this desire has found
fulfillment in the masterpieces of our music, art, literature and theatre. These
masterpieces are the touchstones for all our efforts; they are the touchstones for the
possibilities to which human thought and imagination may aspire; they carry the most
profound messages that can be sent from one human to another.
简评：本段落一共9个句子，主题为人类对于文化产品的本能需求。 难点在于
本段落并不是开门见山给出主题句（第七句）， 而是按照议论文结构：先举例提
出问 题（第1-4句），然后回答问题，表明观点（第5-7句），最后以欧洲为例，