名校励志英语演讲 21:失败的额外收益和想象力的重要性

 　　He was a foot taller than I was, and seemed as fragile as a child. I was given the job of escorting him back to the Underground Station afterwards, and this man whose life had been shattered by cruelty took my hand with exquisite 1 courtesy, and wished me future happiness.

　　他比我高一英尺，但看上去却像个孩子一样脆弱。随后我遵照组织的安排护送他到地铁站时，这名人生已遭到残酷摧残的男子彬彬有礼地握住我的手，祝我未来幸福。
　　And as long as I live I shall remember walking along an empty corridor and suddenly hearing, from behind a closed door, a scream of pain and horror such as I have never heard since. The door opened, and the researcher poked 2 out her head and told me to run and make a hot drink for the young man sitting with her. She had just had to give him the news that in retaliation 3 for his own outspokenness 4 against his country’s regime, his mother had been seized and executed.
　　在我有生之年，我都会记得一件事，当时我正经过一条空旷的走廊，突然听到紧闭着的房门口里传出一声痛苦和恐惧的尖叫，那是至今我从未听过的，那扇门打开了，调查员探出头请我快去给坐在她旁边的年轻男子倒一杯热饮料。她刚刚告诉那个年轻人，为报复他对祖国专政的直言批判，他的母亲已被抓走并处决了。
　　Every day of my working week in my early 20s I was reminded how incredibly fortunate I was, to live in a country with a democratically elected government, where legal representation and a public trial were the rights of everyone.
　　在我20多岁的那段日子里，每一天的工作都是在提醒我自己是多么幸运，能够生活在一个民主选举的政府领导国家，人人都享有依法申诉和公开审理的权力。
　　Every day, I saw more evidence about the evils humankind will inflict 5 on their fellow humans, to gain or maintain power. I began to have nightmares, literal nightmares, about some of the things I saw, heard, and read.
　　每一天，我都能看到更多关于恶人的证据，他们为了获得或维护权力而对自己的同胞实施暴行。我开始做恶梦，真实的噩梦，全都和我的所见所闻有关。
　　And yet I also learned more about human goodness at Amnesty International than I had ever known before.
　　同时在大赦国际我也更多地了解了人类的善良，远比我以前了解的多。
　　inflict
　　vt. 造成；使遭受
　　eg. We should inflict severe chastisement 6 on criminals.
　　我们应该对罪犯施加严厉的惩罚。
　　fragile
　　adj. 脆弱的
　　eg. He taught me how to deal with fragile egos 7.
　　他教会了我如何应付脆弱的自尊心。
　　escort
　　vt. 护送
　　eg. Policemen had to escort the referee 8 from the football field.
　　警察不得不护送这位裁判离开足球场。
　　shatter
　　vt. 摧毁，损坏
　　eg. Nothing could shatter his faith.
　　没有什么东西能动摇他的信念。
　　exquisite
　　adj. 高雅的
　　eg. This exquisite embroidery 9 won people's great admiration 10.
　　这件精美的绣品， 使人惊叹不已。
　　courtesy
　　n. 礼貌
　　eg. She called on us merely for the sake of courtesy.
　　她来访只是为了礼貌。
　　retaliation
　　n. 报复；反击
　　eg. He endured hardships to plan retaliation.
　　他卧薪尝胆, 图谋报复。
　　outspokenness
　　n. 坦言相告
　　eg. Mr Son’s outspokenness is as rare in Japan as his enterprising spirit.
　　孙先生的直言不讳和进取精神在日本国内都算是罕见的。
　　democratically
　　adv. 民主地
　　eg. It is the most powerful democratically elected dynasty in history.
　　这是民主选举的历史上最有势力的王朝。
　　representation
　　n. 陈述；代表
　　eg. There is no effective institutional representation of either workers or employers.
　　无论是工人，还是雇主都没有有效的公共机构代表。
　　evil
　　n. 罪恶
　　eg.He cloaked his evil purpose under sweet words.
　　他用甜言蜜语掩盖着他邪恶的目的。
　　literal
　　adj. 真实的；不夸张的
　　eg. There had been a literal truth in his declaration.
　　从字面上看，他刚才说的话并不假。