簡單英文短篇美文閱讀

　　近年來，閱讀在高中英語教學和高考中的地位越來越顯著。新課程改革以及普通高中英語新課程標準的制訂，進一步突出了英語閱讀的重要性。下面是小編帶來的簡單短篇英文美文閱讀，歡迎閱讀!

　　簡單短篇英文美文閱讀篇一

　　The facts

　　Editors of newspapers and magazines often go to extremes to provide their readers with unimportant facts and statistics. Last year a journalist had been instructed by a well-known magazine to write an article on the president's palace in a new African republic. When the article arrived, the editor read the first sentence and then refused to publish it. The article began: 'Hundreds of steps lead to the high wall which surrounds the president's palace.' The editor at once

　　sent the journalist a fax instructing him to find out the exact number of steps and the height of the wall.

　　The journalist immediately set out to obtain these important facts, but he took a long time to send them. Meanwhile, the editor was getting impatient, for the magazine would soon go to press. He sent the journalist two urgent telegrams, but received no reply. He sent yet another telegram informing the journalist that if he did not reply soon he would be fired. When the journalist again failed to reply, the editor reluctantly published the article as it had originally been written. A week later, the editor at last received a telegram from the journalist. Not only had the poor man been arrested, but he had been sent to prison as well. However, he had at last been allowed to send a cable in which he informed the editor that he had been arrested while counting the 1084 steps leading to the 15-foot wall which surrounded the president's palace.

　　報刊雜誌的編輯常常為了向讀者提供成立一些關緊要的事實和統計數字而走向極端。去年，一位記者受一家有名的雜誌的委託寫一篇關於非洲某個新成立共和國總統府的文章。稿子寄來後，編輯看第一句話就拒絕予以發表。文章的開頭是這樣的：“幾百級臺階通向環繞總統的高牆。”編輯立即給那位記者發去傳真，要求他核實一下臺階的確切數字和圍牆的高度。

　　記者立即出發去核實這些重要的事實，但過了好長時間不見他把數字寄來，在此期間，編輯等得不耐煩了，因為雜誌馬上要付印。他給記者先後發去兩份傳真，但對方毫無反應。於是他又發了一份傳真，通知那位記者說，若再不迅速答覆，將被解僱。但記者還是沒有回覆。編輯無奈，勉強按原樣發稿了。一週之後，編輯終於接到記者的傳真。那個可憐的記者不僅被捕了，而且還被送進了監獄。不過，他終於獲准發回了一份傳真。在傳真中他告訴編輯，就在他數通向15英尺高的總統府圍牆的1，084級臺階時，被抓了起來。

　　簡單短篇英文美文閱讀篇二

　　Smash-and-grab

　　The expensive shops in a famous arcade near Piccadilly were just opening. At this time of the morning, the arcade was almost empty. Mr Taylor, the owner of a jewellery shop was admiring a new window display. Two of his assistants had been working busily since 8 o'clock and had only just finished. Diamond necklaces and rings had been beautifully arranged on a background of black velvet. After gazing at the display for several minutes, Mr Taylor went back into his shop.

　　The silence was suddenly broken when a large car, with its headlights on and its horn blaring, roared down the arcade. It came to a stop outside the jeweler's. One man stayed at the wheel while two others with black stockings over their faces jumped out and smashed the window of the shop with iron bars. While this was going on, Mr Taylor was upstairs. He and his staff began throwing furniture out of the window. Chairs and tables went flying into the arcade. One of the thieves was struck by a heavy statue, but he was too busy helping himself to diamonds to notice any pain. The raid was all over in three minutes, for the men scrambled back into the car and it moved off at a fantastic speed. Just as it was leaving, Mr Taylor rushed out and ran after it throwing ashtrays and vases, but it was impossible to stop the thieves. They had got away with thousands of pounds worth of diamonds.

　　皮卡迪利大街附近的一條著名拱廊街道上，幾家高檔商店剛剛開始營業。在早晨的這個時候，拱廊街上幾乎空無一人。珠寶店主泰勒先生正在欣賞新佈置的櫥窗。他手下兩名店員從早上8點就開始忙碌，這時剛剛佈置完畢。鑽石項鍊、戒指漂亮地陳列在黑色絲絨上面。泰勒先生站在櫥窗外凝神欣賞了幾分鐘就回到了店裡。

　　寧靜突然被打破，一輛大轎車亮著前燈，響著喇叭，呼嘯著衝進了拱廊街，在珠寶店門口停了下來。一人留在駕駛座上，另外兩個用黑色長筒絲襪蒙面的人跳下車來。他們用鐵棒把商店櫥窗的玻璃砸碎。這開始發生時，泰勒先生正在樓上。他與店員動手向窗外投擲傢俱，椅子，桌子飛落花流水在拱廊街上。一個竊賊被一尊很重的雕像擊中，但由於他忙著搶鑽石首飾，竟連疼痛都顧不上了。這場搶劫只持續了3分鐘，因為竊賊爭先恐後地爬上轎車，以驚人的速度開跑了。就在轎車離開的時候，泰勒先生從店裡衝了出來，跟在車後追趕，一邊還往車上扔菸灰缸、花瓶。但他已無法抓住那些竊賊了。他們已帶著價值數千鎊的首飾逃之夭夭了。

　　簡單短篇英文美文閱讀篇三

　　Mutilated ladies

　　Children often have far more sense than their elders. This simple truth was demonstrated rather dramatically during a civil defence exercise in a small town in Canada. Most of the inhabitants were asked to take part in the exercise during which they had to pretend that their city had been bombed. Air-raid warnings were sounded and thousands of people went into special air-raid shelters. Doctors and nurses remained above ground while Police patrolled the streets in case anyone tried to leave the shelters too soon.

　　The police did not have much to do because the citizens took the exercise seriously. They stayed underground for twenty minutes and waited for the siren to sound again. On leaving the air-raid shelters, they saw that doctors and nurses were busy. A great many people had volunteered to act as casualties. Theatrical make-up and artificial blood had been used to make the injuries look realistic. A lot of People were lying 'dead' in the streets. The living helped to carry the dead and wounded to special stations. A Child of six was brought in by two adults. The child was supposed to be dead. With theatrical make-up on his face, he looked as if he had died of shock. Some people were so moved by the sight that they began to cry. However, the child suddenly sat up and a doctor asked him to comment on his death. The child looked around for a moment and said, 'I think they're all crazy!'

　　這種事情在你身上出現過嗎?你有沒有把褲子塞洗衣機，然後又想在褲子的後兜有一張大面值的紙幣?當你把褲子搶救出來時，你有沒有發現那張紙幣已經變得比白紙還白?當英國人犯這種錯誤時，他們不必感到絕望***而許多國家的人都有這種絕望的感覺***。對英國人來說，值得慶幸的是英國銀行有一個殘鈔鑑別組，負責理那些把錢塞進機器或塞給狗的人提出的索賠要求。看起來，狗很喜歡咀嚼錢幣。

　　最近的一個案例與簡.巴特林有關，她的未婚夫約翰擁有一家生意興隆傢俱店。有一天約翰的生意很好，他把一隻裝有3,000 英鎊的錢包放進微波爐內儲存。然後，他和簡一起去騎馬。回家後，簡用微波爐煮了晚飯，無意中之中把她未婚夫的錢包也一起煮了。可以想像他們發現一隻煮得很好看的錢包，鈔票已化成灰時的沮喪心情。約翰去找銀行經理，經理把約翰的錢包和紙幣的殘留物送到英國銀行在紐卡斯爾的一個專門部門——殘鈔鑑別組。他們鑑定了這些殘留物。約翰拿回了他損失的全部數額。“只要有東西可供識別，我們會把錢還給人家的，”銀行的一位女發言人說。“去年，我們對21，000 起索賠要求支付了150萬英鎊。”