英语美文背诵50篇(文本+MP3)

[经典英语美文]经典英语美文背诵100篇Dear Arizona,亲爱的亚利桑那：My brother is so lucky. Good stuff is always happening to him. Do you believe in luck And if so, how can I get more of it我的兄弟运气特别好，常有好事发生在他身上。

你相信运气吗？如果真有运气，我怎样才能得到更多一些呢？—Looking for Luck in Louisiana——身在路易斯安那寻找好运的人Dear Looking,亲爱的运气寻觅者：I was eating breakfast with one hand, petting my cat, Cow, with the other, and reading the back of the cereal box, when—“YOUCH!” I screamed. “Why’d you pinch me”我当时正一手吃早餐，一手爱抚着我的猫“牛牛”，同时在看燕麦片盒子背面的信息。

就在这时——“哎呦”，我尖叫起来，“你干嘛捏我？”“You’re not wearing green,” said my little brother, Tex. “Everyone knows you get pinched if you don’t wear green on Saint Patrick’s Day!”“因为你没穿绿色衣服，”我的小弟弟特克斯说，“人人都知道如果在圣帕特里克节里不穿绿色衣服就会被捏！”“It’s true,” said my little sister, Indi.“这是真的！”我的小妹妹英蒂说。

I was mostly mad about getting pinched, but also a tiny bit glad about being reminded that it was Saint Patrick’s Day.我对自己被掐感到非常生气，但有一点儿值得高兴的是，这提醒了我今天是圣帕特里克节。

·第一篇：Youth 青春YouthYouth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of the deep springs of life.Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease. This often exists in a man of 60 more than a boy of 20. Nobody grows old merely by a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals.Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. Worry, fear, self-distrust bows the heart and turns the spirit back to dust.Whether 60 or 16, there is in every human being’s heart the lure of wonders, the unfailing appetite for what’s next and the joy of the game of living. In the center of your heart and my heart, there is a wireless station; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, courage and power from man and from the infinite, so long as you are young.When your aerials are down, and your spirit is covered with snows of cynicism and the ice of pessimism, then you’ve grown old, even at 20; but as long as your aerials are up, to catch waves of optimism, there’s hope you may die young at 80.1．青春--------------------------------------------------------------------------青春不是人生的一个阶段，而是一种心境；青春不是指粉红的面颊、鲜艳的嘴唇、富有弹性的膝盖，而是指坚定的意志、丰富的想象、充沛的情感；青春，它是清新的生命之泉。

1 . English in the WorldSome people say that the English language no longer belongs to the English, and it belongs to the world. It is estimated that the number of people who use English exceeds 750 million. Among these, about 350 million are native speakers, while the rest use it as an official language. If we ad d to this number the people who have acquired the language to some extent, the total is close to one billion. English plays an increasingly important role in the world as a medium for conducting international business and diplomacy, as well as in science and medicine, the Internet, air and sea communications, international sports events, radio and TV programs, pop songs and movies.世界上的英语有人说英语已不再属于英国人了，它属于全世界。

据估计，使用英语的人超过七亿五千万，其中大约有三亿五千万是以英语为母语的人，而其余的人将英语作为官方语言使用。

如果我们再加上已经掌握英语到一定程度的人，这个总数将接近十亿。

听写50篇文本Passage 1 Town and Country Life in England There is a big difference between town life and country life in England. In the country, everybody knows everybody else. They know what time you get up, what time you go to bed and what you have for dinner. If you want help, you will always get it and you will be glad to help others.In a large town like London, however, it can sometimes happen that you have never seen your next door neighbor and you do not know his name or anything about him. People in London are often very lonely. This is because people go to different places in the evenings and at weekends. If you walk through the streets in the centre of London on Sunday, it is like a town without people. One is sorry for old people living on their own. They could die in their homes and would not be discovered for weeks or even months. (154 words.)Passage 2 A Change in Women’s LifeThe important change in women’s life-pattern has only recently begun to have its full effect on women’s economic position. Even a few years ago most girls left school at the first opportunity, and most of them took a full-time job. However, when they married, they usually left work at once and never returned to it. Today the school-leaving age is sixteen, many girls stay at school after that age, and though women tend to marry younger, more married women stay at work at least until shortly before their first child is born. Very many more afterwards return to full-time or part-time work. Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage, with husband accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfactions of family life and with both husband and wife sharing more equally in providing the money, and running the home, according to the abilities and interests on each of them. (154 words)Passage 3 A Popular Pastime of the English People One of the best means of understanding the people of any nation is watching what they do with their non-working time.Most English men, women and children love growing things, especially flowers. Visitors to England in spring, summer, or autumn are likely to see gardens all the way along the railway lines. There are flowers at the airports and flowers in factory grounds, as well as in gardens along the roads. Each English town has at least one park with beautifully kept flower beds. Public buildings of every kind have brilliant window boxes and sometimes baskets of flowers are hanging on them.But what the English enjoy most is growing things themselves. If it is impossible to have a garden, then a widow box or something growing in a pot will do. Looking at each other’s gardens is a popular pastime with the English. (144words.)Passage 4 British and American Police Officers Real policemen, both in Britain and the U.S., hardly recognize any common points between their lives and what they see on TV—if they ever get home in time.Some things are about the same, of course, but the policemen do not think much of them.The first difference is that a policeman’s real life deals with the law. Most of what he learns is the law. He has to know actually what actions are against the law and what facts can be used to prove them in court. He has to know nearly as much law as a lawyer, and what’s more, he has to put it into practice on his feet, in the dark a nd, running down a narrow street after someone he wants to talk to.Little of his time is spent in talking with beautiful girls or in bravely facing cruel criminals. He will spend most of his working life arranging millions of words on thousands of forms about hundreds of sad, ordinary people who are guilty — or not of stupid, unimportant crimes. (177words)Passage 5 Living SpaceHow much living space does a person need? What happens when his space needs are not met? Scientists are doing experiments on rats to try to determine the effects of overcrowded conditions on man. Recent studies have shown that the behavior of rats is greatly affected by space. If rats have enough living space, they eat well, sleep well and produce their young well. But if their living conditions become too crowded, their behavior and even their health change obviously. They can not sleep and eat well, and signs of fear and worry become clear. The more crowded they are, the more they tend to bite each other and even kill each other. Thus, for rats, population and violence are directly related. Is this a natural law for human society as well? Is enough space not only satisfactory, but necessary for human survival? These are interesting questions.(147 words)Passage 6 The United NationsIn 1945, representatives of 50 nations met to plan this organization. It was called the United Nations. After the war, many more nations joined.There are two major parts of the United Nations. One is called the General Assembly. In the General Assembly, every member nation is represented and has an equal vote.The second part is called the Security Council. It has representatives of just 15 nations. Five nations are permanent members: the United States, Russia, France, Britain and China. The 10 other members are elected every two years by the General Assembly.The major job of the Security Council is to keep peace in the world. If necessary, it can send troops from member nations to try to stop little wars before they turn into big ones.It is hard to get the nations of the Security Council to agree on when this is necessary. But they did vote to try to stop wars. (156 words)Passage 7 PlasticWe use plastic wrap to protect our foods. We put our garbage in plastic bags or plastic cans. We sit on plastic chairs, play with plastic toys, drink from plastic cups, and wash our hair with shampoo from plastic bottles!Plastic doesn’t grow in nature. It is made by mixing certain things together. We call it a produced or manufactured material. Plastic was first made in the 1860s from plants, such as wood and cotton. That plastic was soft and burned easily.The first modern plastics were made in 1930s. Most clear plastic starts out asthick, black oil. That plastic coating inside a pan begins as natural gas.Over the years, hundreds of different plastics have been developed. Some are hard and strong. Some are soft and bendable. Some are clear. Some are many-colored. There is a plastic for almost every need. Scientists continue to experiment with plastics. They hope to find even ways to use them! (160 words)Passage 8 Display of GoodsAre supermarkets designed to persuade us to buy more?Fresh fruit and vegetables are displayed near supermarket entrances. This gives the impression that only healthy food is sold in the shop. Basic foods that everyone buys, like sugar and tea, are not put near each other. They are kept in different aisles so customers are taken past other attractive foods before they find what they want. In this way, shoppers are encouraged to buy products that they do not really need.Sweets are often placed at children’s eye level at the checkout. While parents are waiting to pay, children reach for the sweets and put them in the trolley.More is bought from a fifteen-foot display of one type of product than from a ten-foot one. Customers also buy more when shelves are full than when they a half empty. They do not like to buy from shelves with few products on them because they feel there is something wrong with those products that are there. (166 words)Passage 9 Albert EinsteinAlbert Einstein was born in Germany in 1879. His father owned a factory that made electrical devices. His mother enjoyed music and books. His parents were Jewish but they did not observe many of the religion’s rules. Albert was a quiet child who spent much of his time alone. He was slow to talk and had difficulty learning to read. When Albert was five years old, his father gave him a compass. The child was filled with wonder when he discovered that the compass needle always pointed in the same direction—to the north. He asked his father and his uncle what caused the needle to move. Their answers about magnetism and gravity were difficult for the boy to understand. Yet he spent a lot of time thinking about them. He said later that he felt something hidden had to be behind things. (143 words.)Passage 10 Private CarsWith the increase in the general standard of living, some ordinary Chinese families begin to afford a car. Yet opinions of the development of a private car vary from person to person.It gives a much greater degree of comfort and mobility. The owner of a car is no longer forced to rely on public transport, and hence no irritation caused by waiting for buses or taxis. However, others strongly object to developing private cars. They maintain that as more and more cars are produced and run in the street, a large volume of poisonous gas will be given off, polluting the atmosphere and causing actual harm to the health of people.Whether private cars should be developed in China is a difficult question to answer, yet the desire for the comfort and independence a private car can bring will not be eliminated.(143words)Passage 11 A Henpecked Husband and His WifeThere was once a large, fat woman who had a small, thin husband. He had a job in a big company and was given his weekly wages every Friday evening. As soon as he got home on Fridays, his wife used to make him give her all his money, and then she used to give him back only enough to buy his lunch in his company every day.One day, the small man came home very excited. He hurried into the living-room. His wife was listening to the radio and eating chocolates there.“You will never guess what happened to me today, dear,” he said.He waited for a few seconds and then added, “I won ten thousand dollars on the lottery!”“That is wonderful!” said his wife delightedly. But then she pulled a long face and added angrily, “But how could you afford to buy the ticket?” (148 words)Passage 12 A Young Man’s PromiseOne day a young man was writing a letter to his girl friend who lived just a few miles away in a nearby town. He was telling her how much he loved her and how wonderful he thought she was. The more he wrote, the more poetic he became. Finally, he said that in order to be with her he would suffer the greatest difficulties, he would face the greatest dangers that anyone could imagine. In fact, to spend only one minute with her, he would swim across the widest river, he would enter the deepest forest, and he would fight against the fiercest animals with his bare hands.He finished the letter, signed his name, and then suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to mention something quite important. So, in a postscript below his name, he added:“By the way, I’ll be over to see you on Wednesday night, if it doesn’t rain.” (154 words)Passage 13 A Kind NeighborMr. and Mrs. Jones’ apartment was full of luggage, package, furniture and boxes. Both of them were very busy when they heard the doorbell ring. Mrs. Jones went to open it and she saw a middle-aged lady outside. The lady said she lived next door. Mrs. Jones invited her to come in and apologized because there was no place for her to sit. “Oh, that’s OK,” said the lady. “I just come to welcome you to your new home. As you know, in some parts of this city neighbors are not friendly at all. There are some apartment houses where people don’t know any of their neighbors, not even the ones next door. But in this building everyone is very friendly with everyone else. We are like one big happy family. I’m sue you’ll be very happy here. ” Mr. and Mrs. Jones said, “But madam, we are not new dwellers in this department. We’ve lived her for two years. We’re moving out tomorrow. ” (163 words)Passage 14 That Isn’t Our FaultMr. and Mrs. Williams got married when he was twenty-three, and she was twenty. Twenty-five years later, they had a big party, and a photographer came and took some photographs of them.Then the photographer gave Mrs. Williams a card and said, “They’ll be ready next Wedne sday. You can get them from studio.”“No,” Mrs. William said, “Please send them to us.”The photographs arrived a week later, but Mrs. Williams was not happy when shesaw them. She got into her car and drove to the photographer’s studio. She went inside a nd said angrily, “You took some photographs of me and my husband last week, but I’m not going to pay for them.”“Oh, Why not?” the photographer asked.“Because my husband looks like a monkey,” Mrs. William said.“Well,” the photographer answered, “that isn’t our fault. Why didn’t you think of that before you married him?” (148 words)Passage 15 A Guide’s AnswerIn 1861, the Civil War started in the United States between the Northern and the Southern states. The war continued with great bitterness until 1865, when the Northerners were victorious. However, even today, many Southerners have not forgotten their defeat, or forgiven the Northerners.A few years ago, a party of American tourists were going round one of the battlefield of the Civil War with a guide who came from one of the Southern states. At each place, the guide told the tourists stirring stories about how a few Southern soldiers had conquered powerful forces of Northerners there.At last, one of the tourists, a lady who came from the North, stopped the guide and said to him, “But surly the Northern army must have won at least one victory in the Civil War?”“Not as long as I’m the guide here, madam,” answered the Southern guide.(147 words)Passage 16 A Qualified PilotThe captain of a small ship had to go along a rocky coast, but he was unfamiliar with it, so he tried to find a qualified pilot to guide him. He went ashore in one of the small ports, and a local fisherman pretended that he was a pilot because he needed some money. The captain took him on board and asked him where to steer the ship.After half an hour the captain began to suspect that the fisherman did not really know what he was doing and where he was going.“Are you sure you are a qualified pilot?” he asked.“Oh, yes,” answered the fisherman. “I know every rock on this part of the coast.”Suddenly there was a terrible crash from under the ship. At once the fisherman added, “And that’s one of them.” (138 words)Passage 17 Living Things ReactYou and all organisms live in an environment. An environment is made up of everything that surrounds an organism. It can include the air, the water, the soil, and even other organism.An organism responds to changes in its environment. When an organism responds to a change, it reacts in a certain ways. All living things respond in some way.Have you ever noticed how plants and insects respond to light? Plants bend toward light. Insects fly toward light.Living things also respond in other ways. The leaves on some trees respond to a change in season. In autumn, they change colors and then fall off the branches. Animals also respond to a change in season. Squirrels save nuts for the winter. Bears sleep through the winter in a cave.You respond to your environment in many ways, too. You may shiver if you are cold. What other ways do you respond to changes in your environment? (156 wordsPassage 18 Flowering PlantsWhat are the parts of a flower?Flowers can have male parts and female parts. The female parts make eggs that become seeds. The male parts make pollen. Pollen is a powdery material that is needed by the eggs to make seeds. To make seeds, pollen and eggs must come together. The wind, insects, and birds bring pollen to eggs. Many animals love flowers’ bright colors. They also like a sugary liquid in flowers. This is called nectar. While they drink nectar, pollen rubs off on their bodies. As they move, some of this pollen gets delivered to the female flower parts.Over time, the female parts turn into fruits that contain seeds. Animals often eat the fruits and the seeds pass through their bodies as waste. The animals do not know they are working for the plants by planting seeds as they travel to different places. (147 words)Passage 19 Finding the Direction and Location How can you tell which direction? By day, look for the Sun. It is in the east in the morning and the west in the afternoon. At night, use the Big Dipper to help you find the North Star. It would be better to bring a compass because its needle always points north.How do you know how far you have gone? You could count every step. Each step is about two feet. You’d better wear a pedometer which is a tool that counts steps. If you know where you started, which direction you are heading, and how far you have gone, you can use a good map to figure out exactly where you are.Today there is a new way for travelers to figure out where they are. It is the GPS. It has 24 satellites that orbit the earth and constantly broadcast their positions. Someday you may carry a small receiver as you hike and use GPS to find out if you are there yet!Passage 20 WavesHow does light get from the sun to the earth? How does music get from the stage to the audience? They move the same way — in waves!Light and sound are forms of energy. All waves carry energy, but they may carry it differently. Light and sound travel through different kinds of matter. For example, light waves cannot move through walls, but sound waves can. That is why you can hear people talking in another room even though you cannot see them. The energy of some waves is destructive. An earthquake produces seismic waves.Catch a wave. Ask a friend to stand a few feet away from you. Stretch a spring between you. Shake the spring to transfer energy to it. What happens? The spring bounces up and down in waves. When the waves reach your friend, they bounce back to you!Light waves travel 300,000 kilometers (186,000 miles) per second! They can also travel through a vacuum. That is why light from the sun and distant stars can travel through space to the earth.(175 words)Passage 21 SoilsThere are many different kinds of soils. Different soils have different types of rock and minerals in them than other. Some soils have more water in them than others. Some soils might have more plant and animal material in them, too.Different kinds of soils are found in different parts of the world. There are several kinds of soils found in the United States. In some areas, the soil has a lot of clay. Other soils are very sandy. Loam is a kind of soil that has a good mixture of clay and sand.In some places, soil layers are very thick. Lots of plants grow in places with a thick soil layer. In dry and windy places soil layers are much thinner. Layers of soil on mountains are thin because gravity pulls the soil downhill.The type of soil in a particular place affects what kinds of plants can grow there. (150 words)Passage 22 CrisisLife is a contest! Who will win? A bluebird and sparrow both compete for space to build their nests. A fast-growing maple tree and slower-growing dogwood compete for the sunlight they both need. Oil competes with coal and nuclear power as an energy source for electric power plants.There is a problem. There is a limited amount of space for birds, sunlight for trees, and energy for people! If we do not cut back on our uses of some of our resources, someday they will be gone!How can we use energy today and know we will have enough to go around in the future? We can choose alternate, or replacement, energy resources. It takes the earth millions of years to create coal, oil, and gas. They are nonrenewable resources.Solar energy, wind energy and water energy are renewable. What other ways we conserve our resources? How can we make sure there is always enough to go around? (159 words.)Passage 23 America’s Worst SurpriseDecember 7, 1941 was one of the worst days in American history. Nearly all Americans who are old enough to remember that day can still remember what they were doing at the moment they heard “the news”. The news was that America had been attacked!Shortly before 2:00 P.M., a radio dispatch came into Washington from Honolulu, Hawaii. “Air Raid, Pearl Harbor —This is no drill.” Japanese planes had begun an attack on the largest American military base in the Pacific. They first destroyed places on the ground. Then they bombed the ships in the harbor.No one had expected the attack. So no one was prepared for it. And it did not take long for the Japanese to do their damage. When the smoke cleared, the Navy counted its losses. Eighteen ships had been sunk or badly damaged. Nearly 150 planes had been destroyed. More than 2,400 Americans had been killed and more than 1,200 wounded. (157 words)Passage 24 Great Depression in the U.S.In 1929, the bills started to come in. American industry had produced too many goods. Americans could not afford to buy all of them. So factories had to cut down on their production. Many workers lost their jobs. Investors tried to get their moneyback. But businesses did not have enough money to pay them. Banks tried to get their money back from investors. But the investors could not pay, either. Too many people owned money. And few of them could pay their bills.During the next few years, business got worse and worse. By 1932, banks all over the country were closing.People without money could not buy goods. So more businesses closed. More and more people lost their jobs. By 1932, more than 12 million Americans were jobless. Millions more were earning barely enough to live on. The country was in a great depression they had never experienced before. (151 words)Passage 25 A Place of Our OwnWe are all usually very careful when we buy something for the house. Why? Because we have to live with it for a long time. We paint a room to make it brighter, so we choose the colours carefully.We buy new curtains in order to match the newly decorated room, so they must be the right colour. We move the furniture round so as to make more space — or we buy new furniture — and so on. It is an endless business.Rich or poor, we take time to furnish a room. Perhaps some people buy furniture in order to impress their friends. But most of us just want to enjoy our surroundings. We want to live as comfortably as we can afford to. We spend a large part of our lives at home. We want to make a small corner in the world which we can recognize as oPassage 26 Travel for WorkYou can see them in every airport in the world. They are businessmen and women who have to travel for their work.When they first applied for the job, they may have thought of good food and hotels, huge expense accounts and fashionable cities. Now they have to sit in airport lounges, tired and uncomfortable in their smart clothes, listening to the loudspeaker announce “The flight to Tokyo, or Berlin, or New York is delayed for another two hours”. Some people say to me, “How lucky you are to be able to travel abroad in your work! You can go sightseeing without paying any money by yourself!” They think that my job is like a continual holiday. It is not.There are advantages, of course, and I do think I am lucky, but only because I can go to places I would never visit if I was a tourist. (149 words)Passage 27 IntelligenceAre some people born clever, and others born stupid? Or is intelligence developed by our environment and our experience?Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. To some extent our intelligence is given us at birth, and no amount of special education can make a genius out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in rich and varied surroundings. Thus, the limits of a person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This view, held by most experts now, can be supported in a number of ways. As is easy to show that intelligence is to some extent something we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people is, the closer they are likely to be in intelligence.(154 words)Passage 28 A Free Dress Every WeekThe temptation to steal is greater than ever before especially in large shops and people are not so honest as they once were.A detective recently watched a well-dressed woman who always went into a large store on Monday mornings. One Monday, there were fewer people in the shop than usual when the woman came in, so it was easier for the detective to watch her. The woman first bought a few small articles. After a little time, she chose one of the most expensive dresses in the shop and handed it to an assistant who wrapped it for her as quickly as possible. The woman simply took the parcel and walked out of the shop without paying. When she was arrested, the detective found out that the shop assistant was her daughter.. Believe it or not, the girl “gave” her mother a free dress every week. (148 words)Passage 29 TimeTime is tangible. One can gain time, spend time, waste time, save time, or even kill time. Common questions in American English reveal this concrete quality as though time were a possession. “Do you have any time?”, “Can you get some time for this?”, “How much free time do you have?” The treatment of time as a possession influences the way that time is carefully divided.Generally, Americans are taught to do one thing at a time and may be uncomfortable when an activity is interrupted. In businesses, the careful scheduling of time and the separation of activities are common practices. Appointment calendars are printed with 15-, 30-, and 60-min ute time slots. The idea that “there is a time and place for everything” extends to American social life. Visitors who drop by without prior notice may interrupt their host’s personal time. Thus, calling friends on the telephone before visiting them is gen erally preferred to visitors’ dropping by. (157 words)Passage 30 CartoonistIn a good cartoon, the artist can tell in a few lines as much as a writer can tell in half a dozen paragraphs. The cartoonist not only tells a story but he also tries to persuade the reader to his way of thinking. He has great influence on public opinion. In a political campaign, he plays an important part. Controversial issues in Congress or at meetings of the United Nations may keep the cartoonist well-supplies with current materials.A clever cartoonist may cause laughter because he often uses humour in his drawings. If he is sketching a famous person, he takes a prominent feature and exaggerates it. Cartoonists, for instance, like to lengthen an already long nose and to widen a n already broad grin. This exaggeration of a person’s characteristics is called caricature. The artist uses such exaggeration to put his message across. (144 words)Passage 31 Water PollutionWater is very important to us. Factories and plants need water for industrial uses and large pieces of farmland need it for irrigation. Without water to drink, people die in a short time.Today most water sources are so dirty that people must purify water beforedrinking. Water becomes dirty in many ways: industrial pollution is one of them. With the development of industry, plants and factories pour tons of industrial wastes into rivers every day. The rivers have become seriously polluted, and the water is becoming unfit for drinking or irrigation. The same thing has also happened to our seas and oceans. So, the problem of water pollution is almost worldwide.Scientists of many countries have done a lot of work to stop pollution. The polluted water in some places has become clean and drinkable again. Perhaps one day the people in all towns and cities will be drinking clean water. That day, we believe, is not very far off. (161 words)Passage 32 Making a ComplaintComplaining about faulty goods or bad services is never easy. But if something you have bought is faulty or does not do what was claimed for it, you are not asking for a favour to get it put right.Complaints should be made to a responsible person. Go back to the shop where you bought the goods, taking with you any receipt you may have. In a small store the assistant may also be the owner so you can complain direct. In a chain store, ask the manager. If you telephone, ask the name of the person who handles your enquiry, otherwise you may never find out who dealt with the complaint later. If you do not want to do it in person, write a letter. Stick to the facts and keep a copy of what you write. At this stage you should give any receipt number, but you should not need to give receipt or other papers to prove you bought the article. (164 words)Passage 33 Where Do the British LiveNearly everyone in Britain would like to own their own home and, whether they do or not, they are prepared to put time and money into decorating and furnishing it or even making structural alterations to it. Because of the climate and because of the expense involved in going out for the evening, the British spend a lot of time at home and a large part of their social life takes place there.Young people tend to stay with their families longer these days as accommodation is expensive but, when they move away to a job or college, there are various options open to them. They can get lodgings with a landlady. This means that they rent a room in someone’s house and have breakfast with the family. They can also get a bed-sitting room, that is to say one self-contained room in which they can cook, live and sleep. Alternatively, they can share a rented flat or house with a group of young people, perhaps the most popular option of all. (172 words)Passage 34 Will Computer Replace Human Beings?We are in the computer age today. The computers are working all kinds of wonders now. They are very useful in automatic control and data processing. At the same time, computers are finding their way into the home. They seem to be so clever and can solve such complicated problems that some people think sooner or later they will replace us.But I do not think that there is such a possibility. My reason is very simple: Computers are machines, not humans. And our tasks are far too various and complicated for any one single kind of machine to perform.Probably the greatest difference between man and computer is that the former。

2023年最新的英语经典散文欣赏50篇英语经典散文欣赏50篇Dear son...孩子The day that you see me old and I am already not， have patience and try to understand me哪天你看到我日渐老去，身体也渐渐不行，请耐着性子试着了解我If I get dirty when eating if I cannot dress have patience.如果我吃的脏兮兮，如果我不会穿衣服有耐性一点Remember the hours I spent teaching it to you.你记得我曾花多久时间教你这些事吗If， when I speak to you，I repeat the same things thousand and one times如果，当我一再重复述说Do not interrupt me listen to me同样的事情不要打断我，听我说 .When you were small， I had to read to you thousand and one times the same story until you get to sleep你小时候，我必须一遍又一遍的读着同样的故事，直到你静静睡着 ..When I do not want to have a shower，neither shame me nor scold me当我不想洗澡，不要羞辱我也不要责骂我Remember when I had to chase you with thousand excuses Iinvented， in order that you wanted to bath你记得小时后我曾编出多少理由，只为了哄你洗澡 ..When you see my ignorance on new technologies give me thenecessary time and not look at me with your mocking smile当你看到我对新科技的无知，给我一点时间，不要挂着嘲弄的微笑看着我I taught you how to do so many things to eat good， to dress wellto confront life我曾教了你多少事情啊 .如何好好的吃，好好的穿如何面对你的生命When at some moment I lose the memory or the thread of our conversation如果交谈中我忽然失忆不知所云，let me have the necessary time to remember给我一点时间回想and if I cannot do it，如果我还是无能为力，do not become nervous请不要紧张 ..as the most important thing is not my conversation but surely to be with you and to have you listening to me对我而言重要的不是对话，而是能跟你在一起，和你的倾听 ..英语经典散文欣赏50篇The Pennsylvania-landscape was in severe wintry garb as our car sped westover the interstate Ul The season was wrong, butI couldn t get bluebirds outof my head.Only three weeks before, at Christmas, Dad had given me a nesting box he dmade: He had a special feeling for the brilliant creatures, and each spring heeagerly awaited their return. Now I wondered, willhe ever see one againIt was a heart attack. Dad s third.When I got to the hospital at 2 a.m., he was losing the fight. As the familyhovered at his bedside, he drifted in and out of consciousness.Once he looked up at.Mom sitting beside the bed holding his hand. Theywant me to let go, he said, :but I can t. I don t want to. Mom patted his arm. Just hold on to me, she murmured.The next morning the cardiologist met us in the waiting room. He s stillfighting, the doaor said. I ve never seen such strengthMy youngest brother was only five when Ileft home 30 years ago.Relation-ships between my brothers- and sisters had become -frayed because of dis-tance and commitments to our own families. But Dad needed his childrennow, so we stayed at the hospital. During the long vigil, we reminisced aboutour years at home.A miner, Dad had not had an easy life. He and Mom raised six kids at a timewhen coal miners eamed as little as 25 cents a ton, and he loaded nine tonsa day. Even now, I m sure we don t know most of the sacrifices they madefor us.I remembered Dad s hard hat, its carbide lamp showing a fine pall of coaldust. Dad s graygreen eyes seemed large and wise as an owl sin his black-ened face. They often sparkled with devilment when theymet yours inconversation. .Each evening he came home, eager to take up his crosscut saw or clawhammer. Dad could chock a piece of walnut on his lathe and deffly tum outa beautiful salad bowl for Mom. He could build a cherry fold-top desk withfine, dovetailed drawers as easily as he could fashion a fishing-line threaderout of an old ballpoint pen.Dad bought our plain, two-story house from the coal company and immedi~ately began to remodel it. Our house was the first on the hill to have anindoor bathroom and hot water. He spent one summer digging out the clay-filled foundation to install a coal furnace. We children no longer shivered inour bed-rooms on cold winter mornings.We loved to watch him work. When Dad needed something, we ran to getit. If we called it a thingamabob he would say, That s a nail set (thetool for sinking the head of a nail below the surface of the wood). It has aname. Use it. Dad carried a spirit of craftsmanship into every job and expeaed the samefrom all six children. Each job had its claim on your best efforts. And evertool had its name. Those were his principles, and we lived by them just aSDad did.His playful spirit would set us to giggling-like the time he was buildingfireplace in the back yard. He sent us to look for the stone-bender he needeto make the comer stones fit more evenly. Guess I ll have to bend theiamyself, he said when we retumed empty-handed. We saw the sparkle in.bijeyes, and knew we d been had.Sitting in the hospitalwaitting room, I thought back to an afteon in Dad sworkshop several years ago..He was retired by then, but he kept busy building beautiful furniture, now for his children s homes.A volunteer naturalist,I was eager to tell him about the help bluebirds needed.When the early settlers had cleared forests for farmland, I explained, blueLbirds flourished, nesting in fence-posts and orchard trees. But their habitatwas disappearing, and now the birds needed nesting boxesDad listened as-I spoke, his hands gently moving a finegrained sand-paperover a piece of oak. I asked him if he would like to build a box. He said hewould think about it.Several weeks later he invited me into his workshop. There, on his workbench,sat three well-crafted bluebird nesting boxes. Think the birds willlike themThe asked.As much as I do, I replied, hugging him. Dad put up the boxes, and thenext spring bluebirds nested in his yard. He was hooked.Dad became quite an expert on the species. Bluebirds, he would say, areharbingers of hope and triumph, renowned for family loyalty.A pair willhave two or three broods a year, the earlier young sometimes helping to feedthe later nestlings.The presence of his children must have boosted Dad s spirits afterhis attackbecause he grew stronger and left the hospital on Valentine s Day WhenI visited my parents at the end of March, Dad was confined to the downstairs.But I noticed that he paused longer and longer at the windows facing theback yard. I knew what he was hoping to see. And one day a bright flash ofcolor circled the nesting box closest to our house.Well, it s about time the rascals showed, don t you think Dad said.Sporting a resplendent blue head, back, wings and tail, a male bluebird sanghis courtship song so passionately that we dubbed him Caruso, after theItalian tenor. A female appeared, but rejected the nesting box. Caruso foundanother in the field below the yard. He circled the new box, singing feverishly.She remained aloof on a distant perch.Dad was walking more and more each day as the love story unfolded. Icould see strength coming back into his wiry frame.One day Caruso battled a rival for the female s attentions. Then she foughtan even more vehement battle with another female. Afterward she resumedher haughty. stance while he fervently continued with his rapturous repertoire.Suddenly one exquisite morning, when the sky mirrored Caruso scourtingraiment, she flew back to the box nearest the house and inspected itthoroughly. Caruso hovered nearby and sang blissfully as she finally acceptedhim.Shortly thereafter she proceeded to lay one egg a day until there were six.Caruso fluttered outside, defending the nest while she incubated.Dad was now well enough to go outside, but he still couldn t reach the back-yard. He asked us to check inside the nesting box once a day. When we dreturn, the questions came. Is she on the nest he asked. Have the eggshatched Did you see that showboat what s-his-name Caruso, Dad, I replied. He has a name, you know. Dad s sly grin re:flected the devilment that had returned to his eyes.When the eggs hatched, we marveled at the herculean efforts Caruso andhis mate expended to capture insects for their brood. Nestlings must be fedevery 20 minutes.Near the end of May, the fledglings left the nest. By then Dad was able towalk to the fields beyond and see what other bluebird news there might be.Mom and I would watch him from the kitchen window. He gave some-thing to those bluebirds, she said quietly one day. Now they ve given itback.蓝知更鸟的希望我们的汽车奔驰西行越过州界，宾夕法尼亚州一派严冬景象，时令不正常，可是我对蓝知更鸟一直不能忘怀。

经典英语美文背诵100篇(MP3+中英字幕)2015-04-12 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•夏天的飞鸟，飞到我的宙前唱歌，又飞去了。

秋天的黄叶，它们没有什么可唱，只叹息一声，飞落在那里。

2015-04-11 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•自由就是秩序，自由就是力量。

放眼寰球,你定然会对那些具有启发性的景象钦佩不已。

你会看到，自由不仅仅是力量和秩序，而且是占据统治地位的不可征服的力量和秩序它使其他一切力量的源泉都相形见绌。

2015-04-10 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•奥运会所代表的崇高理想，就是各国的运动选手用运动员精神超越政治障碍聚集在一起。

可是，其利害关系不仅在于谁获得金牌。

每一届奥运会后不久，各国又重新开始争夺下一届奥运会的主办权。

2015-04-09 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•公司的首席执行官未必都是经过许多正规培训的人。

所以，我认为接受更多的学校教育未必就能促使你在成功的阶梯上步步高升。

2015-04-08 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•即使上帝只赐予了你一半的生命，我们今天还是趁此机会来感谢你以自己的那种方式使我们的生命熠熠生辉。

我们大家永远都会有一种上当受骗的感觉，因为你过早地香销玉殒，但是我们仍然必须学会感恩，2015-04-07 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•一年四季之中，大自然的外貌最美不过的一个月就是八月。

春天有许多美的地方，五月是新鲜和娇艳的月份，但是这种时节的媚人之处是由于和冬季的对照而加强起来的。

2015-04-06 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•在所有与古巴有关的亊情中，有一个人常常令我无法忘怀。

美西战争爆发以后，美国必须马上与反抗军首领加西亚将军取得联系。

加西亚将军隐藏在古巴辽阔的崇山峻岭中——没有人知道确切的地点，2015-04-05 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•那么，人生的工作是什么？那些伟大的人物们，还有那些被我们称为英雄的人们，他们春风得意地走过世界的舞台时又做了些什么呢？难道就是要在众口喧称中变得伟大，并且还要在历史上占据许多篇章吗？2015-04-04 编辑：wendy 标签：我来听写•也许克服对死亡恐惧的最好方法是想一想，人生有始也就必有终。

此文档下载后即可编辑The road to successIt is well that young men should begin at the beginning and occupy the most subordinate positions. Many of the leading businessmen of Pittsburgh had a serious responsibility thrust upon them at the very threshold of their business lives sweeping out of the office.I notice we have janitors and janitresses now in offices, and our young men unfortunately miss that salutary branch of business education. But if by chance the professional sweeper is absent any morning, the boy who has the genius of the future partner in him will not hesitate to try his hand at the broom. It does not hurt the newest comer to sweep out the office if necessary. I was one of those sweepers myself.Assuming that you have all obtained employment and are fairly started, my advice to you is “aim high”. I would not give a fig for the young man who does not already see himself the partner or the head of an important firm.Do not rest content for a moment in your thoughts as head clerk, or foreman, or general manager in any concern, no matter how extensive. Say to yourself, “my place is at the top”.Be king in your dreams. And there is the prime condition of success, the great secret: concentrate your energy, thought, and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged. Having begun in one line, resolve to fight it out on the line, to lead in it, adopt every improvement, have the best machinery, and know the most about it.The concerns which fail are those which have scattered their capital, which means that they have scattered their brains also. They have investments in this, or that, or the other, here, there, and everywhere.“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” is all wrong. I tell you to “put all your eggs in one basket, and then watch that basket.”Look round you and take notice, men who do that not often fail. It is easy to watch and carry too many baskets that break most eggs in this country. He who carries three baskets must put one on his head, which is apt to tumble and trip him up. One fault of the American businessman is lack of concentration.To summarize what I have said: aim for the highest; never enter a bar room; do not touch liquor, or if at all only at meals; never speculate; never indorse beyond your surplus cash fund; make the firm’s interest yours; break orders always to save owners; concentrate; put all your eggs in one basket, and watch that basket; expenditure always within revenue; lastly, be not impatient, for as Emerson says, “no one can cheat you out of ultimate succ ess but yourself.”When love beckons youWhen love beckons to you, follow him, though his ways are hard and steep. And when his wings enfold you, yield to him, though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you. And when he speaks to you, believe in him, though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning. Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun, so shall he descend to our roots and shake them in their clinging to earth.But if, in your fear you would seek only love’s peace and love’s pleasure, then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love’s threshing-floor, into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, and weep, but not all of your tears. Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself. Love possesses not, nor would it be possessed, for love is sufficient unto love.Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself. But if you love and must have desires, let these be you desires:To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.To know the pain of too much tenderness.To be wounded by your own understanding of love.And to bleed willingly and joyfully.To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving. To rest at noon hour and meditate love’s ecstasy. To return home at eventide with gratitude.And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.If I rest, I rustThe significant inscription found on an old key-----“if I rest, I rust.”-----would be an excellent motto for those afflicted with the slightest bit of idleness. Even the most industrious person might adopt it with advantage to serve as a reminder that, if one allows his faculties to rest, like he iron in the unused key, they will soon show signs of rust and, ultimately, cannot do the work required of them.Those who would attain the heights reached and kept by great men must keep their faculties polished by constant use, so that they may unlock the doors of knowledge, the gate that guard the entrances to the professions, to science, art, literature ----- every department of human endeavor.Industry keeps bright the key that opens the treasury of achievement. If Hugh Miller, after toiling all day in a quarry, had devoted his evenings to rest and recreation, he would never have become a famous geologist. The celebrated mathematician, Edmund Stone, would never have published a mathematical dictionary, never have found the key to science of mathematics, if he had given his spare moments to idleness, had the little Scotch lad, Ferguson, allowed the bust brain to go to sleep while he tended sheep on the hillside instead of calculating the position of the stars by a string of beads, he would never have become a famous astronomer.Labor vanquishes all ----- not inconstant, spasmodic, or ill-directed labor, but faithful, unremitting, daily effort toward a well-directed purpose. Just as truly as eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, so is eternal industry the price of noble and enduring success.A wet Sunday in a country inn A wet。

2\ Learn to live in the present moment学会生活在现实中To a large degree,the measure of our peace of mind is determined by how much we are able to live on the present moment. Irrespective of what happened yesterday or last year, and what may or may not happen tomorrow, the present moment is where you are---always!我们内心是否平和在很大程度上是由我们是否能生活在现实之中所决定的．不管昨天或去年发生了什么，不管明天可能发生或不发生什么，现实才是你时时刻刻所在之处．Without question, many of us have mastered the neurotic art of spending much of our lives worrying about variety of things--all at once. We allow past problems and future concerns dominate your present moments, so much so that we end up anxious,frustrated,depressed,and hopeless. On the flip side, we also postpone our gratification, our stated priorities, and our happiness, often convincing that "someday" will be much better than today. Unfortunately, the same mental dynamics that tell us to look toward the future will only repeat themselves so that 'someday' never actually arrives. Jhon Lennone once said, "Life is what is happening while we are busy making other plans." When we are busy making 'other plans', our children are busy growing up, the people we love are moving away and dying, our bodies are getting out of shape, and our dreams are slipping away. In short, we miss out on life.毫无疑问，我们很多人掌握了一种神经兮兮的艺术，即把生活中的大部分时间花在为种种事情担心忧虑上－－而且常常是同时忧虑许多事情．我们听凭过去的麻烦和未来的担心控制我们此时此刻的生活，以至我们整日焦虑不安，委靡不振，甚至沮丧绝望．而另一方面我们又推迟我们的满足感，推迟我们应优先考虑的事情，推迟我们的幸福感，常常说服自己＂有朝一日＂会比今天更好．不幸的是，如此告戒我们朝前看的大脑动力只能重复来重复去，以至＂有朝一日＂哟贫农公元不会真的来临．约翰．列侬曾经说过：＂生活就是当我们忙于制定别的计划时发生的事．＂当我们忙于指定种种＂别的计划＂时，我们的孩子在忙于长大，我们挚爱的人里去了甚至快去世了，我们的体型变样了，而我们的梦想也在消然溜走了．一句话，我们错过了生活．Many people lives as if life is a dress rehearsal for some later date. It isn't. In fact, no one have a guarantee that he or she will be here tomorrow. Now is the only time we have, and the only time that we have any control over. When we put our attention on the present moment, we push fear from our minds. Fear is the concern over events that might happen in the future--we won't have enoughh money,our children will get into trouble,we will get old and die,whatever.许多人的生活好象是某个未来日子的彩排．并非如此．事实上，没人能保证他或她肯定还活着．现在是我们所拥有的唯一时间，现在也是我们能控制的唯一的时间．当我们将注意力放在此时此刻时，我们就将恐惧置于脑后．恐惧就是我们担忧某些事情会在未来发生－－我们不讳有足够的钱，我们的孩子会惹上麻烦，我们会变老，会死去，诸如此类．To combat fear, the best stradegy is to learn to bring your attention back to the present. Mark Twain said,"I have been through some terrible things in life, someof which actually happened." I don't think I can say it any better. Practice keeping your attention on the here and now. Your effort will pay great dividends. 若要克服恐惧心理，最佳策略是学会将你的注意力拉回此时此刻．马克．吐温说过：＂我经历过生活中一些可怕的事情，有些的确发生过．＂我想我说不出比这更具内涵的话．经常将注意力集中于此情此景，此时此刻，你的努力终会有丰厚的报偿．3\How High Can You Jump?Flea trainers have observed a strange habit of fleas while training them. Fleas are trained by putting them in a cardboard box with a top on it. The fleas will jump up and hit the top of the cardboard box over and over and over again.As you watch them jump and hit the lid, something very interesting becomes obvious. The fleas continue to jump, but they are no longer jumping high enough to hit the top.When you take off the lid, the fleas continue to jump, but they will not jump out of the box. They won't jump out because they can't jump out. Why? The reason is simple. They have conditioned themselves to jump just so high.Once they have conditioned themselves to jump just so high, that's all they can do!Many times, people do the same thing. They restrict themselves and never reach their potential. Just like the fleas, they fail to jump higher, thinking they are doing all they can do.跳蚤训练人在训练跳蚤时发现跳蚤有一个奇怪的习惯。

英语背诵美文30篇(附中文翻译)(共20页)--本页仅作为文档封面，使用时请直接删除即可----内页可以根据需求调整合适字体及大小--生而为赢——英语背诵美文 30 篇目录：·第一篇：Youth 青春·第二篇： Three Days to See(Excerpts)假如给我三天光明（节选）·第三篇：Companionship of Books 以书为伴（节选）·第四篇：If I Rest, I Rust 如果我休息，我就会生锈·第五篇：Ambition 抱负·第六篇：What I have Lived for 我为何而生·第七篇：When Love Beckons You 爱的召唤·第八篇：The Road to Success 成功之道·第九篇：On Meeting the Celebrated 论见名人·第十篇：The 50-Percent Theory of Life 生活理论半对半·第十一篇：What is Your Recovery Rate 你的恢复速率是多少·第十二篇：Clear Your Mental Space 清理心灵的空间·第十三篇：Be Happy 快乐·第十四篇：The Goodness of life 生命的美好·第十五篇：Facing the Enemies Within 直面内在的敌人·第十六篇：Abundance is a Life Style 富足的生活方式·第十七篇：Human Life a Poem 人生如诗·第十八篇：Solitude 独处·第十九篇：Giving Life Meaning 给生命以意义2·第二十篇：Relish the Moment 品位现在·第二十一篇：The Love of Beauty 爱美·第二十二篇：The Happy Door 快乐之门·第二十三篇：Born to Win 生而为赢·第二十四篇：Work and Pleasure 工作和娱乐·第二十五篇：Mirror, Mirror--What do I see 镜子,镜子,告诉我·第二十六篇：On Motes and Beams 微尘与栋梁·第二十七篇：An October Sunrise 十月的日出·第二十八篇：To Be or Not to Be 生存还是毁灭·第二十九篇：Gettysburg Address 葛底斯堡演说·第三十篇：First Inaugural Address(Excerpts) 就职演讲（节选）·第三篇：Companionship of Books 以书为伴（节选） Companionship of Books A man may usually be known by the books he reads as well as by the company he keeps; for there is a companionship of books as well as of men; and one should always live in the best company, whether it be of books or of men.A good book may be among the best of friends. It is the same today that it always was, and it will never change. It is the most patient and cheerful of companions. It does not turn its back upon us in times of adversity or distress. It always receives uswith the same kindness; amusing and instructing us in youth, and comforting and consoling us in age.Men often discover their affinity to each other by the mutual love they have for a book just as two persons sometimes discover a friend by the admiration which both entertain for a third. There is an old proverb, …Love me, love my dog.” But there is more wisdom in this:” Love me, love my book.” The book is a truer and higher bond of union. Men can think, feel, and sympathize with each other through their favorite author. They live in him together, and he in them.A good book is often the best urn of a life enshrining the best that life could think out; for the world of a man‟s life is, for the most part, but the world of his thoughts. Thus the best books are treasuries of good words, the golden thoughts, which, remembered and cherished, become our constant companions and comforters. Books possess an essence of immortality. They are by far the most lasting products of human effort. Temples and statues decay, but books survive. Time is of no account with great thoughts, which are as fresh today as when they first passed through their author‟s minds, ages ago. What was then said and thought still speaks to us as vividly as ever from the printed page. The only effect of time have been to sift out the bad products; for nothing in literature can long survive e but what is really good.Books introduce us into the best society; they bring us into the presence of the greatest minds that have ever lived. We hear what they said and did; we see the as if they were really alive; we sympathize with them, enjoy with them, grieve with them; their experience becomes ours, and we feel as if we were in a measure actors with them in the scenes which they describe.The great and good do not die, even in this world. Embalmed in books, their spirits walk abroad. The book is a living voice. It is an intellect to which on still listens.7·第四篇：If I Rest,I Rust 如果我休息，我就会生锈 If I Rest, I RustThe significant inscription found on an old key---“If I rest, I rust”---would be an excellent motto for those who are afflicted with the slightest bit of idleness. Even the most industrious person might adopt it with advantage to serve as a reminder that, if one allows his faculties to rest, like the iron in the unused key, they will soon show signs of rust and, ultimately, cannot do the work required of them.Those who would attain the heights reached and kept by great men must keep their faculties polished by constant use, so that they may unlock the doors of knowledge, the gate that guard the entrances to the professions, to science, art, literature, agriculture---every department of human endeavor.Industry keeps bright the key that opens the treasury of achievement. If Hugh Miller, after toiling all day in a quarry, had devoted his evenings to rest and recreation, he would never have become a famous geologist. The celebrated mathematician, Edmund Stone, would never have published a mathematical dictionary, never have found the key to science of mathematics, if he had given his spare moments to idleness, had the little Scotch lad, Ferguson, allowed the busy brain to go to sleepwhile he tended sheep on the hillside instead of calculating the position of the stars by a string of beads, he would never have become a famous astronomer.Labor vanquishes all---not inconstant, spasmodic, or ill-directed labor; but faithful, unremitting, daily effort toward a well-directed purpose. Just as truly as eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, so is eternal industry the price of noble and enduring success.8·第五篇：Ambition 抱负 AmbitionIt is not difficult to imagine a world short of ambition. It would probably be a kinder world: with out demands, without abrasions, without disappointments. People would have time for reflection. Such work as they did would not be for themselves but for the collectivity. Competition would never enter in. conflict would be eliminated, tension become a thing of the past. The stress of creation would be at an end. Art would no longer be troubling, but purely celebratory in its functions. Longevity would be increased, for fewer people would die of heart attack or stroke caused by tumultuous endeavor. Anxiety would be extinct. Time would stretch on and on, with ambition long departed from the human heart.Ah, how unrelieved boring life would be!There is a strong view that holds that success is a myth, and ambition therefore a sham. Does this mean that success does not really exist That achievement is at bottom empty That the efforts of men and women are of no significance alongside the force of movements and events now not all success, obviously, is worth esteeming, nor all ambition worth cultivating. Which are and which are not is something one soon enough learns on one‟s own. But even the most cynical secretly admit that success exists; that achievement counts for a great deal; and that the true myth is that the actions of men and women are useless. To believe otherwise is to take on a point of view that is likely to be deranging. It is, in its implications, to remove all motives for competence, interest in attainment, and regard for posterity. We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time or conditions of our death. But within all this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we shall live: courageously or in cowardice, honorably or dishonorably, with purpose or in drift. We decide what is important and what is trivial in life. We decide that what makes us significant is either what we do or what we refuse to do. But no matter how indifferent the universe may be to our choices and decisions, these choices and decisions are ours to make. We decide. We choose. And as we decide and choose, so are our lives formed. In the end, forming our own destiny is what ambition is about.9·第六篇：What I have Lived for 我为何而生 What I Have Lived ForThree passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong, have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind. These passions, like great winds, have blown me hither and thither, in a wayward course, over a deep ocean of anguish, reaching to the very verge of despair.I have sought love, first, because it brings ecstasy---ecstasy so great that I would often have sacrificed all the rest of my life for a few hours for this joy. I have sought it, next, because it relieves loneliness---that terrible loneliness in which one shivering consciousness looks over the rim of the world into the cold unfathomable lifeless abyss. I have sought it, finally, because in the union of love I have seen, in a mystic miniature, the prefiguring vision of the heaven that saints and poets have imagined. This is what I sought, and though it might seem too good for human life, this is what---at last---I have found.With equal passion I have sought knowledge. I have wished to understand the hearts of men. I have wished to know why the stars shine. And I have tried to apprehendthe Pythagorean power by which number holds sway above the flux. A little of this, but not much, I have achieved.Love and knowledge, so far as they were possible, led upward toward the heavens. But always it brought me back to earth. Echoes of cries of pain reverberate in my heart. Children in famine, victims tortured by oppressors, helpless old people a hated burden to their sons, and the whole world of loneliness, poverty, and pain make a mockery of what human life should be. I long to alleviate the evil, but I cannot, and I too suffer.This has been my life. I have found it worth living, and would gladly live it again if the chance were offered me.10·第七篇：When Love Beckons You 爱的召唤 When Love Beckons YouWhen love beckons to you, follow him, though his ways are hard and steep. And when his wings enfold you, yield to him, though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you. And when he speaks to you, believe in him, though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning. Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun, so shall he descend to our roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth.But if, in your fear, you would seek only love‟s peace and love‟s pleasure, then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love‟s threshing-floor, into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears. Love gives naught but it self and takes naught but from itself. Love possesses not, nor would it be possessed, for love is sufficient unto love.Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself. But if you love and must have desires, let these be your desires:To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.To know the pain of too much tenderness.To be wounded by your own understanding of love;And to bleed willingly and joyfully.To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;To rest at the noon hour and meditate love‟s ecstasy;To return home at eventide with gratitude;And then to sleep with a payer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.11·第八篇：The Road to Success 成功之道 The Road to SuccessIt is well that young men should begin at the beginning and occupy the most subordinate positions. Many of the leading businessmen of Pittsburgh had a serious responsibility thrust upon them at the very threshold of their career. They were introduced to the broom, and spent the first hours of their business lives sweeping out the office. I notice we have janitors and janitresses now in offices, and our young men unfortunately miss that salutary branch of business education. But if by chance the professional sweeper is absent any morning, the boy who has the genius of the future partner in him will not hesitate to try his hand at the broom. It does not hurt the newest comer to sweep out the office if necessary. I was one of those sweepers myself.Assuming that you have all obtained employment and are fairly started, my advice to you is “aim high”. I would not give a fig for the young man who does not already see himself the partner or the head of an important firm. Do not rest content for a moment in your thoughts as head clerk, or foreman, or general manager in any concern, no matter how extensive. Say to yourself, “My place is at the top.” Be king in your dreams.And here is the prime condition of success, the great secret: concentrate your energy, thought, and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged. Having begun in one line, resolve to fight it out on that line, to lead in it, adopt every improvement, have the best machinery, and know the most about it. The concerns which fail are those which have scattered their capital, which means that they have scattered their brains also. They have investments in this, or that, or the other, here th ere, and everywhere. “Don‟t put all your eggs in one basket.” is all wrong. I tell you to “put all your eggs in one basket, and then watch that basket.” Look round you and take notice, men who do that not often fail. It is easy to watch and carry the one basket. It is trying to carry too many baskets that breaks most eggs in this country. He who carries three baskets must put one on his head, which is apt to tumble and trip him up. One fault of the American businessman is lack of concentration.To summarize what I have said: aim for the highest; never enter a bar room; do not touch liquor, or if at all only at meals; never speculate; never indorse beyond your surplus cash fund; make the firm‟s interest yours; break orders always to save owners; concentrate; put all your eggs in one basket, and watch that basket;expenditure always within revenue; lastly, be not impatient, for as Emerson says, “no one can cheat you out of ultimate success but yourselves.”12·第九篇：On Meeting the Celebrated 论见名人 On Meeting the CelebratedI have always wondered at the passion many people have to meet the celebrated. The prestige you acquire by being able to tell your friends that you know famous men proves only that you are yourself of small account. The celebrated develop a technique to deal with the persons they come across. They show the world a mask, often an impressive on, but take care to conceal their real selves. They play the part that is expected from them, and with practice learn to play it very well, but you are stupid if you think that this public performance of theirs corresponds with the man within.I have been attached, deeply attached, to a few people; but I have been interested in men in general not for their own sakes, but for the sake of my work. I have not, as Kant enjoined, regarded each man as an end in himself, but as material that might be useful to me as a writer. I have been more concerned with the obscure than with the famous. They are more often themselves. They have had no need to create a figure to protect themselves from the world or to impress it. Their idiosyncrasies have had more chance to develop in the limited circle of their activity, and since they have never been in the public eye it has never occurred to them that they have anything to conceal. They display their oddities because it has never struck them that they are odd. And after all it is with the common run of men that we writers have to deal; kings, dictators, commercial magnates are from our point of view very unsatisfactory. To write about them is a venture that has often tempted writers, but the failure that has attended their efforts shows that such beings are too exceptional to form a proper ground for a work of art. They cannot be made real. The ordinary is the writer‟s ri cher field. Its unexpectedness, its singularity, its infinite variety afford unending material. The great man is too often all of a piece; it is the little man that is a bundle of contradictory elements. He is inexhaustible. You never come to the end of the surprises he has in store for you. For my part I would much sooner spend a month on a desert island with a veterinary surgeon than with a prime minister.13·第十篇：The 50-Percent Theory of Life 生活理论半对半 The 50-Percent Theory of LifeI believe in the 50-percent theory. Half the time things are better than normal; the other half, they re worse. I believe life is a pendulum swing. It takes time and experience to understand what normal is, and that gives me the perspective to deal with the surprises of the future.Let‟s benchmark the parameters: yes, I will die. I‟ve dealt with the deaths of both parents, a best friend, a beloved boss and cherished pets. Some of these deaths have been violent, before my eyes, or slow and agonizing. Bad stuff, and it belongs at the bottom of the scale.Then there are those high points: romance and marriage to the right person; having a child and doing those Dad things like coaching my son‟s baseball team, paddling around the creek in the boat while he‟s swimming with th e dogs, discovering his compassion so deep it manifests even in his kindness to snails, his imagination so vivid he builds a spaceship from a scattered pile of Legos.But there is a vast meadow of life in the middle, where the bad and the good flip-flop acrobatically. This is what convinces me to believe in the 50-percent theory.One spring I planted corn too early in a bottomland so flood-prone that neighbors laughed. I felt chagrined at the wasted effort. Summer turned brutal---the worst heat wave and drought in my lifetime. The air-conditioned died; the well went dry; the marriage ended; the job lost; the money gone. I was living lyrics from a country tune---music I loathed. Only a surging Kansas City Royals team buoyed my spirits. Looking back on that horrible summer, I soon understood that all succeeding good things merely offset the bad. Worse than normal wouldn‟t last long. I am owed and savor the halcyon times. The reinvigorate me for the next nasty surprise and offer assurance that can thrive. The 50-percent theory even helps me see hope beyond my Royals‟ recent slump, a field of struggling rookies sown so that some year soon we can reap an October harvest.For that on blistering summer, the ground moisture was just right, planting early allowed pollination before heat withered the tops, and the lack of rain spared the standing corn from floods. That winter my crib overflowed with corn---fat, healthy three-to-a-stalk ears filled with kernels from heel to tip---while my neighbors‟ fields yielded only brown, empty husks.14Although plantings past may have fallen below the 50-percent expectation, and they probably will again in the future, I am still sustained by the crop that flourishes during the drought.15·第十一篇：What is Your Recovery Rate 你的恢复速率是多少 What is Your Recovery RateWhat is your recovery rate How long does it take you to recover from actions and behaviors that upset you Minutes Hours Days Weeks The longer it takes you to recover, the more influence that incident has on your actions, and the less able you are to perform to your personal best. In a nutshell, the longer it takes you to recover, the weaker you are and the poorer your performance.You are well aware that you need to exercise to keep the body fit and, no doubt, accept that a reasonable measure of health is the speed in which your heart and respiratory system recovers after exercise. Likewise the faster you let go of an issue that upsets you, the faster you return to an equilibrium, the healthier you will be. The best example of this behavior is found with professional sportspeople. They know that the faster they can forget an incident or missd opportunity and get on with the game, the better their performance. In fact, most measure the time it takesthem to overcome and forget an incident in a game and most reckon a recovery rate of 30 seconds is too long!Imagine yourself to be an actor in a play on the stage. Your aim is to play your part to the best of your ability. You have been given a script and at the end of each sentence is a ful stop. Each time you get to the end of the sentence you start a new one and although the next sentence is related to the last it is not affected by it. Your job is to deliver each sentence to the best of your ability.Don‟t li ve your life in the past! Learn to live in the present, to overcome the past. Stop the past from influencing your daily life. Don‟t allow thoughts of the past to reduce your personal best. Stop the past from interfering with your life. Learn to recover quickly.Remember: Rome wasn‟t built in a day. Reflect on your recovery rate each day. Every day before you go to bed, look at your progress. Don‟t lie in bed saying to you, “I did that wrong.” “I should have done better there.” No. look at your day and not e when you made an effort to place a full stop after an incident. This is a success. You are taking control of your life. Remember this is a step by step process. This is not a make-over. You are undertaking real change here. Your aim: reduce the time spent in recovery.The way forwardLive in the present. Not in the precedent.16·第十二篇：Clear Your Mental Space 清理心灵的空间 Clear Your Mental Space Think about the last time you felt a negative emotion---like stress, anger, or frustration. What was going through your mind as you were going through that negativity Was your mind cluttered with thoughts Or was it paralyzed, unable to thinkThe next time you find yourself in the middle of a very stressful time, or you feel angry or frustrated, stop. Yes, that‟s right, stop. Whatever you‟re doing, stop and sit for one minute. While you‟re sitting there, completely immerse yourself in the negative emotion.Allow that emotion to consume you. Allow yourself one minute to truly feel that emotion. Don‟t cheat yourself here. Take the entire minute---but only one minute---to do nothing else but feel that emotion.When the minute is over, ask yourself, “Am I wiling to keep holding on to this negative emotion as I go through the rest of the day”Once you‟ve al lowed yourself to be totally immersed in the emotion and really fell it, you will be surprised to find that the emotion clears rather quickly.If you feel you need to hold on to the emotion for a little longer, that is OK. Allow yourself another minute to feel the emotion.When you feel you‟ve had enough of the emotion, ask yourself if you‟re willing to carry that negativity with you for the rest of the day. If not, take a deep breath. As you exhale, release all that negativity with your breath.This exercise seems simple---almost too simple. But, it is very effective. By allowing that negative emotion the space to be truly felt, you are dealing with the emotion rather than stuffing it down and trying not to feel it. You are actually taking away the power of the emotion by giving it the space and attention it needs. When you immerse yourself in the emotion, and realize that it is only emotion, it loses its control. You can clear your head and proceed with your task. Try it. Next time you‟re in the middle of a negative emotion, give yourself the space to feel the emotion and see what happens. Keep a piece of paper with you that says the following:Stop. Immerse for one minute. Do I want to keep this negativity Breath deep, exhale, release. Move on!17This will remind you of the steps to the process. Remember; take the time you need to really immerse yourself in the emotion. Then, when you feel you‟ve felt it enough, release it---really let go of it. You will be surprised at how quickly you can move on from a negative situation and get to what you really want to do!18·第十三篇：Be Happy 快乐 Be Happy!“The days that make us happy make us wise.”----John Masefieldwhen I first read this line by England‟s Poet Laureate, it startled me. What did Masefield mean Without thinking about it much, I had always assumed that the opposite was true. But his sober assurance was arresting. I could not forget it. Finally, I seemed to grasp his meaning and realized that here was a profound observation. The wisdom that happiness makes possible lies in clear perception, not fogged by anxiety nor dimmed by despair and boredom, and without the blind spots caused by fear.Active happiness---not mere satisfaction or contentment ---often comes suddenly, like an April shower or the unfolding of a bud. Then you discover what kind of wisdom has accompanied it. The grass is greener; bird songs are sweeter; the shortcomings of your friends are more understandable and more forgivable. Happiness is like a pair of eyeglasses correcting your spiritual vision.Nor are the insights of happiness limited to what is near around you. Unhappy, with your thoughts turned in upon your emotional woes, your vision is cut short as though by a wall. Happy, the wall crumbles.The long vista is there for the seeing. The ground at your feet, the world about you----people, thoughts, emotions, pressures---are now fitted into the larger scene. Everything assumes a fairer proportion. And here is the beginning of wisdom.19·第十四篇：The Goodness of life 生命的美好 The Goodness of LifeThough there is much to be concerned about, there is far, far more for which to be thankful. Though life‟s goodness can at times be overshadowed, it is never outweighed.For every single act that is senselessly destructive, there are thousands more small, quiet acts of love, kindness and compassion. For every person who seeks to hurt, there are many, many more who devote their lives to helping and to healing.There is goodness to life that cannot be denied.In the most magnificent vistas and in the smallest details, look closely, for that goodness always comes shining through.There si no limit to the goodness of life. It grows more abundant with each new encounter. The more you experience and appreciate the goodness of life, the more there is to be lived.Even when the cold winds blow and the world seems to be cov ered in foggy shadows, the goodness of life lives on. Open your eyes, open your heart, and you will see that goodness is everywhere.Though the goodness of life seems at times to suffer setbacks, it always endures. For in the darkest moment it becomes vividly clear that life is a priceless treasure. And so the goodness of life is made even stronger by the very things that would oppose it. Time and time again when you feared it was gone forever you found that the goodness of life was really only a moment away. Around the next corner, inside every moment, the goodness of life is there to surprise and delight you.Take a moment to let the goodness of life touch your spirit and calm your thoughts. Then, share your good fortune with another. For the goodness of life grows more and more magnificent each time it is given away.Though the problems constantly scream for attention and the conflicts appear to rage ever stronger, the goodness of life grows stronger still, quietly, peacefully, with more purpose and meaning than ever before.20·第十五篇：Facing the Enemies Within 直面内在的敌人 Facing the Enemies WithinWe are not born with courage, but neither are we born with fear. Maybe some of our fears are brought on by your own experiences, by what someone has told you, by what you‟ve read in the papers. Some fears are valid, like walking alone in a bad part of town at two o‟clock in the morning. But once y ou learn to avoid that situation, you won‟t need to live in fear of it.Fears, even the most basic ones, can totally destroy our ambitions. Fear can destroy fortunes. Fear can destroy relationships. Fear, if left unchecked, can destroy our lives. Fear is one of the many enemies lurking inside us.Let me tell you about five of the other enemies we face from within. The first enemy that you‟ve got to destroy before it destroys you is indifference. What a tragic disease this is! “Ho-hum, let it slide. I‟ll just drift along.” Here‟s one problem with drifting: you can‟t drift your way to the to of the mountain.The second enemy we face is indecision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity and enterprise. It will steal your chances for a better future. Take a sword to this enemy. The third enemy inside is doubt. Sure, there‟s room for healthy skepticism. Youcan‟t believe everything. But you also can‟t let doubt take over. Many people doubt。

英语标准美文100篇001 Saving money for College on My Own作者：struggle 来源：人人听力网时间：09-01-06 [提示：]双击单词，即可查看词义!(QQ群：55611196(严禁加多个群，进群看公告))-MP3|Lrc下载文本下载上一课下一课返回列表文章内容Finally, I entered the institution. Because of my careful savings, I did not have to work during the school year. Then, summer came and it was time to work harder than ever. I continued working as a waitress at night, instructed tennis camps several mornings a week and worked as a secretary for a few hours in the afternoons. Being a little overzealous, I also decided to take a class at a community college. This class at the community college saved me $650. it was an exhausting summer and made me anxious to return to my relatively easy life at college.During my second and third years of undergraduate schooling, I decided to work about five hours per week in the campus admissions office answering phones. This provided a little spending money and kept me from draining my savings. The overall situation looked hopeful as I approached my senior year as long as I could make as much money as I had the previous summer.I wanted to go to Israel to study for 3 weeks, but I hesitated in making this decision because it would cost me $1,600 more to get the credits in Israel. About two weeks later my Mom called to tell me that I had $1,600 in the bank that I had forgotten about! One of my concerns about this trip was not only the cost, but the loss of time to make money; however, I made as much that summer in the ten weeks when I was at home as I had made during the fourteen weeks when I was at home the summer before. The way everything worked together to make this trip feasible was one of the most exciting things that have ever happened to me.This experience has shaped me in many important ways. The first thing that I learned was the importance of a strong work ethic. Working long hours did a lot to mold my character and helped me learn the value of a dollar. It also made me learn how to craft creative solutions to difficult dilemmas.Whenever I am overwhelmed or afraid of the future, I can remember my $64,268 miracle.Passage 2CompetitionIt is a plain fact that we are in a world where competition is going on in all areas and at all levels.This is exciting.Yet, on the other hand, competition breeze a pragmatic attitude.People choose to learn things that are useful,and do things that are profitable.Todays' college education is also affected by this general sense of utilitarianism. Many college students choose business norcomputing programming as their majors convinced that this professions are where the big money is. It is not unusual to see the college students taking a part time jobs as a warming up for the real battle.I often see my friends taking GRE tests, working on English or computer certificates and taking the driving licence to get a licence. Well, I have nothing against being practical. As the competition in the job market gets more and more intense, students do have reasons to be practical. However, we should never forget that college education is much more than skill training. Just imagine, if your utilitarianism is prevails on campus, living no space for the cultivation of students' minds,or nurturing of their soul. We will see university is training out well trained spiritless working machines.If utilitarianism prevails society, we will see people bond by mind-forged medicals lost in the money-making ventures;we will see humality lossing their grace and dignity, and that would be disastrous.I'd like to think society as a courage and people persumed for profit or fame as a horese that pulls the courage.Yet without the driver picking direction the courage would go straight and may even end out in a precarious situation .A certificate may give you some advantage, but broad horizons, positive attitudes and personal integrities ,these are assets you cannot acquire through any quick fixed way.In today's world, whether highest level of competition is not of skills or expertise , but vision and strategy. Your intellectual quality largely determinds how far you can go in your career.college students' idolsSuccessful entrepreneurs have surpassed pop stars as college students' idols, a recent Fudan University survey has found.In the survey, which sampled 150 students from different grades and departments, 96 chose successful entrepreneurs as their idols, 91 added scientists and scholars to the list, while only some 75 opted for stars of stage and screen.The results toppled the old perception that young college students are most impressed by the stars of shows.Fudan's students seemed not to be influenced too much by popular TV shows and new stars, despite the latest Supergirl, Shang Wenjie having graduated from the university last year."It's normal for students to have traditional ideas about the qualities an idol should have. They think of idols as people who have made a great contribution to society. These kinds of ideas aren't easily changed by TV shows," said Zhen Zhiwei, a second-year post-graduate student who conducted the survey.But students do have new standards for selecting idols. Some students voted for ordinary people and even fictional characters, such as Harry Potter."It reveals the diversity of students' standards," Zhen said. "Under the influence of pop culture, some students now view fictional figures as their idols. They see the same qualities in those fictional figures as in other real people."We are also delighted to see that more and more students are concerned with the roles ordinary people play in society. Wealth, social status and fame are not the only standards they use to select idols."The survey also revealed that 57% college students do not want to be idols for others."The result can be regarded as a good illustration for why most of them choose successful entrepreneurs and scholars as their idols," said Zhen. "They have high expectations for idols, so they believe that to be an idol means having to take on more responsibilities and pressure than other people, and they are not ready to take so much responsibility yet."。