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高考英语写作素材积累
晨读美文记背 Day 4-6
Day 4 Three Days to See
By Helen Keller
All of us have read thrilling stories in which the hero had only a
limited and specified time to live．Sometimes it was as long as a year；
sometimes as short as twenty-four hours，but always we were interested
in discovering just how the doomed man chose to spend his last days or
his last hours．I speak，of course，of free men who have a choice，not
condemned criminals whose sphere of activities is strictly delimited ．
Such stories set up thinking ，wondering what we should do under
similar circumstances ．What associations should we crowd into those
last hours as mortal beings？What happiness should we find in reviewing
the past，what regrets？
Sometimes I have thought it would be an excellent rule to live each
day as if we should die tomorrow ．Such an attitude would emphasize
sharply the values of life．We should live each day with a gentleness，a
vigor，and a keenness of appreciation which are often lost when time
stretches before us in the constant panorama of more days and months
and years to come．There are those，of course，who would adopt the
epicurean motto of“Eat，drink，and be merry”，most people would be
chastened by the certainty of impending death ．
Most of us take life for granted ．We know that one day we must
die，but usually we picture that day as far in the future，when we are in
buoyant health，death is all but unimaginable．We seldom think of it．
The days stretch out in an endless vista ．So we go about our petty
task，hardly aware of our listless attitude towards life．
The same lethargy ，I am afraid ，characterizes the use of our
faculties and senses．Only the deaf appreciate hearing，only the blind
realize the manifold blessings that lie in sight ．Particularly does this
observation apply to those who have lost sight and hearing in adult life．
But those who have never suffered impairment of sight or hearing
seldom make the fullest use of these blessed faculties．Their eyes and
ears take in all sights and sound hazily ，without concentration，and
with little appreciation．It is the same old story of not being grateful for
what we have until we lose it，of not being conscious of health until we
are ill．
I have often thought it would be a blessing if each human being were
stricken blind and deaf for a few days at some time during his early adult
life ．Darkness would make him more appreciative of sight ；silence
would teach him the joys of sound．
Now and then I have tested my seeing friends to discover what they
see．Recently I was visited by a very good friend who had just returned
from a long walk in the woods ，and I asked her what she had
observed．“Nothing in particular，”she replied．I might have been
incredulous had I not been accustomed to such responses，for long ago I
became convinced that the seeing see little．
How was it possible，I asked myself，to walk for an hour through
the woods and see nothing worthy of note ？I who cannot see find
hundreds of things to interest me through mere touch．I feel the delicate
symmetry of a leaf．I pass my hands lovingly about the smooth skin of a
silver birch ，or the rough shaggy bark of a pine．In spring I touch the
branches of trees hopefully in search of a bud ，the first sign of
awakening Nature after her winter's sleep I feel the delightful ，velvety
texture of a flower，and discover its remarkable convolutions ；and
something of the miracle of Nature is revealed to me．Occasionally，if I
am very fortunate，I place my hand gently in a small tree and feel the
happy quiver of a bird in full song．I am delighted to have cool water of
a brook rush through my open fingers ．To me a lush carpet of pine
needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious
Persian rug．To me the pageant of seasons is a thrilling and unending
drama，the action of which streams through my finger tips．At times my
heart cries out with longing to see all these things．If I can get so much
pleasure from mere touch，how much more beauty must be revealed by
sight．Yet，those who have eyes apparently see little．The panorama of
color and action which fills the world is taken for granted．It is human，
perhaps ，to appreciate little that which we have and to long for that
which we have not，but it is a great pity that in the world of light and the
gift of sight is used only as mere convenience rather than as a means of
adding fullness to life．
Oh，the things that I should see if I had the power of sight for three
days！
Words and Expressions
doomed adj． 命中注定的，难逃一死的
condemned adj． 被宣告有罪的
delimit vt． 限定
panorama n． 全景
epicurean n． 享乐者
chasten vt． 惩戒，磨炼
impending death 垂死，濒死
buoyant adj． 轻松愉快的，开朗的
vista n． 远景
lethargy n． 昏睡，没精打采
manifold adj． 多种多样的，多方面的
impairment n． 损伤，损害
hazily adv． 模糊地，朦胧地
in particular 尤其，特别
incredulous adj． 表示怀疑的，不相信的
symmetry n． 对称，整齐
silver birch 白桦树
shaggy adj． 又长又粗的
velvety adj． 天鹅绒般柔软的
convolution n． 回旋，盘绕
quiver n． 微颤，抖动
lush adj． 茂盛的，葱翠的
spongy adj． 海绵似的，柔软吸水的
Read and recite the following sentences：
I have often thought it would be a blessing if each human being were
stricken blind and deaf for a few days at some time during his early adult
life ．Darkness would make him more appreciative of sight ；silence
would teach him the joys of sound．
Now try writing the sentences out here：
I have often thought it would be __________ if each human
being__________ ．Darkness would make him __________ ；silence
would __________．
Try and make your own sentence here：
I have often thought it would be __________ if __________．
Which sentence(s) do you like most？Write it（or them）out here：
参考译文
假如拥有三天光明
海伦·凯勒
我们都读过这样一些动人的故事，故事里主人公将不久于人世。
长则一年，短则24 小时。但是我们总是很想知道这个即将离开人世
的人是决定怎样度过他最后的日子的。当然，我所指的是有权作出
选择的自由人，不是那些活动范围受到严格限制的死囚。
这一类故事会使我们思考在类似的处境下，我们自己该做些什
么？在那临终前的几个小时里我们会产生哪些联想？会有多少欣慰
和遗憾呢？
有时我想，把每天都当作生命的最后一天来度过也不失为一个很
好的生命法则。这种人生态度使人非常重视人生的价值。每一天我
们都应该以和善的态度、充沛的精力和敏锐的观察来度过，而这些
恰恰是在来日方长时往往被我们忽视的东西。当然，有这样一些人
奉行享乐主义的座右铭——吃喝玩乐，但是大多数人却不能摆脱死
亡来临的恐惧。
我们大多数人认为生命理所当然，我们明白总有一天我们会死
去，但是我们常常把这一天看得非常遥远。当我们身体强壮时，死
亡便成了难以想象的事情了。我们很少会考虑它，日子一天天过
去，好像没有尽头。所以我们为琐事奔波，并没有意识到我们对待
生活的态度是冷漠的。
我想我们在运用我们所有五官时恐怕也同样是冷漠的。只有聋子
才珍惜听力，只有盲人才能认识到能见光明的幸运。对于那些成年
致盲或失聪的人来说尤其如此。但是那些听力或视力从未遭受损失
的人却很少充分利用这些天赐的官能，他们对所见所闻不关注、不
欣赏。这与常说的不失去不懂得珍贵，不生病不知道健康可贵的道
理是一样的。
我常想如果每一个人在他成年的早些时候，有几天成为聋子或瞎
子也不失为一件幸事。黑暗将使他更珍惜光明；沉寂将教他知道声
音的乐趣。
有时我会试探我的看得见的朋友们，想知道他们看见了什么。最
近我的一位非常要好的朋友来看我，她刚刚在树林里走了很长时
间，我问她看见了什么。“没什么特别的，”她回答说。如果不是
我早已习惯了这样的回答，我也许不会轻易相信，因为很久以前我
就相信了看得见东西的人却看不到什么。
我问自己，在树林中走了一个小时，怎么可能什么值得注意的东
西都没有看到呢？而我一个盲人仅仅通过触摸就发现了数以百计的
有趣的东西。我感到树叶的对称美，用手摸着白桦树光滑的树皮或
是松树那粗糙的厚厚的树皮。春天里我满怀着希望触摸着树枝寻找
新芽，那是大自然冬眠后醒来的第一个征象。我感到了花朵的可爱
和茸茸的感觉，发现它层层叠叠地绽开着，大自然的神奇展现在我
的面前。当我把手轻轻地放在一棵小树上，如果幸运的话，偶尔会
感到歌唱的小鸟欢快的颤动。我会愉快地让清凉的溪水从手指间流
过。对我来说，满地厚厚的松针和松软的草坪比奢华的波斯地毯更
惹人喜爱。对我来说四季变换的景色如同一场动人心魄的不会完结
的戏剧，剧中的人物动作从我的指尖流过。我的心不时在呐喊，带
着对光明的渴望。既然仅仅通过触摸就能使我获得如此多的喜悦，
那么光明定会展示更多美好的事物啊。可惜的是那些有眼睛的人分
明看到很少，整个世界缤纷的色彩和万物的活动都被认为是理所当
然。也许不珍惜已经拥有的，想得到还没有得到的是人的特点，但
是在光明的世界里只把视觉用做一种方便的工具，而不是丰富生活
的工具，这是令人多么遗憾的事情啊。
噢，假如我拥有三天光明，我将会看见多少事物啊！
Day 5 Three Passions
By Bertrand Russell
Three 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 life for a few hours
of 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 ．I have tried to apprehend the 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 pity 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．
Words and Expressions
hither and thither 到处，向各处，忽此忽彼
wayward adj． 反复无常的
anguish n． （尤指心理上的）极度的痛苦
ecstasy n． 狂喜，忘我的境界
unfathomable adj． 深不可测的，无底的，难解的
abyss n． 深渊
prefigure vt． 预示
Pythagorean adj． 毕达哥拉斯的
Pythagora 毕达哥拉斯（古希腊哲学家和数学家）
reverberate vi． 回想，回荡
make a mockery of 嘲弄，把……作笑料；糟蹋
alleviate vt． 减轻，缓解，缓和
Read and recite the following sentences：
Three 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．
Now please write them out here：
Three __________，__________ but overwhelmingly __________，
__________：the __________，the __________ and __________．
Now please think of three important people or things in your life and
complete the following sentence：
Three __________ （，__________ but __________ ，）
__________ my life：__________，__________ and __________．
Which sentence(s) do you like most？Write it（or them）out here：
参考译文
三种激情
伯特兰·罗素
三种激情虽然简单，却异常强烈，它们统治着我的生命，那便
是：对爱的渴望，对知识的追求，以及对人类苦难的难以承受的同
情。这三种激情像变化莫测的狂风任意地把我刮来刮去，把我刮入
痛苦的深渊，到了绝望的边缘。
我曾经寻找爱，首先是因为它能使我欣喜若狂——这种喜悦之情
如此强烈，使我常常宁愿为这几个小时的愉悦而牺牲生命中的其他
一切。我寻求爱，其次是因为爱能解除孤独——在这种可怕的孤独
中，一颗颤抖的良心在世界的边缘，注视着下面冰凉、毫无生气、
望不见底的深渊。我寻求爱还因为在爱的融合中，我能以某种神秘
的图像看到曾被圣人和诗人想象过的天堂里未来的景象。这就是我
所追求的东西，虽然这似乎对于人类的生命来说过于完美，但这确
实是我最终发现的东西。
我曾怀着同样的激情去寻找知识，我曾渴望着理解人心，我曾渴
望知道为何星星会闪烁，我还企图弄懂毕达哥拉斯所谓的用数字控
制变化的力量，但在这方面，我只知道一点点。
爱的力量和知识的力量引我接近天堂，但同情之心往往又把我拉
回大地。痛苦的哭泣回响、震荡在我的心中。饥饿的儿童，被压
迫、受折磨的人们，成为儿孙们讨厌的包袱的、无助的老人们，充
斥着整个世界的孤独的气氛，贫穷和苦难，所有这一切都是对人类
生活原本该具有的样子所作的讽刺。我渴望消除一切邪恶，但我办
不到，因为我自己也处于苦难之中。
这就是我的生活，我认为值得一过。而且，如果有第二次机会，
我将乐意地再过一次。
Day 6 Churchill's Speech
I have nothing to offer but blood，toil ，tears，and sweat．We have
before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind ．We have before us
many，many months of struggle and suffering．You ask，what is our
aim？I can answer in one word．It is victory．Victory at all costs —
victory in spite of all terrors—victory，however long and hard the road
may be，for without victory there is no survival．
Let that be realized．No survival for the British Empire，no survival
for all that the British Empire has stood for，no survival for the urge，
the impulse of the ages ，that mankind shall move forward toward his
goal．
I take up my task in buoyancy and hope．I feel sure that our cause
will not be suffered to fail among men．I feel entitled at this juncture
，at this time，to claim the aid of all and to say，“Come then，let us
go forward together with our united strength．”
Words and Expressions
toil n． 辛苦
ordeal n． 严峻的考验；苦难的经历；磨难
at all costs 不惜任何代价
buoyancy n． 轻松的心情
entitled adj． 有资格的，有权力的
juncture n． 时刻，关键时刻
Read and recite the following sentence：
Come then，let us go forward together with our united strength．
Write the sentence out here：
Read the two sentences and make your own sentences：
（1）I have nothing to offer but blood，toil，tears，and sweat．
I have nothing to __________ ，but __________ ，__________ ，
__________ and __________．
（2）Without victory there is no survival．
Without__________，there is no __________．
Which sentence(s) do you like most？Write it（or them）out here：
参考译文
丘吉尔演说词
我所能奉献的没有其他，只有热血、辛劳、眼泪和汗水。我们所
面临的将是一场极为残酷的考验，我们面临的将是旷日持久的斗争
和苦难。你若问我们的目标是什么？我可以用一个词来概括，那就
是胜利，不惜一切代价去夺取胜利，不畏惧一切恐怖去夺取胜利。
不论前路再长再苦也要夺取胜利，因为没有胜利就无法生存。
我们务必认识到，没有胜利就不复有大英帝国，没有胜利就不复
有大英帝国所象征的一切，没有胜利就不复有多少世纪以来的强烈
要求和冲动：人类应当向自己的目标迈进。
我精神振奋、满怀信心地承担起我的任务。我确信，大家联合起
来，我们的事业就不会遭到挫败。在此时此刻的危急关头，我觉得
我有权要求各方面的支持。我要说：“来吧，让我们群策群力，并
肩前进！”
