優美英文散文文章

　　有些學生傾向以語音學習語文，因此他們能夠很好地掌握以音節為主的語文如英文和德文，而面對華文時卻如臨大敵;下面是有，歡迎參閱。

　　：不一樣的春天Spring

　　Springs are not always the same. In some years, April bursts upon Virginia hills in one prodigious leap – and all the stage is filled at once, whole choruses of tulips, arabesques of forsythia, cadenzas of flowering plum. The trees grow leaves overnight.

　　In other years, spring tiptoes in. It pauses, overcome by shyness, like my grandchild at the door, peeping in, ducking out of sight, giggling in the hallway. "I know you're out there," I cry. "Come in!" And April slips into our arms.

　　The dogwood bud, pale green, is inlaid with russet markings. Within the perfect cup a score of clustered seeds are nestled. One examines the bud in awe: Where were those seeds a month ago? The apples display their milliner's scraps of ivory silk, rose-tinged. All the sleeping things wake up – primrose, baby iris, blue phlox. The earth warms – you can smell it, feel it, crumble April in your hands.

　　Look to the rue anemone, if you will, or the pea patch, or to the stubborn weed that thrusts its shoulders through a city street. This is how it was, is now, and ever shall be, the world without end. In the serene certainty of spring recurring, who can fear the distant fall?

　　春不總是千篇一律的。有時候，四月一個健步就躍上了弗吉尼亞的小山丘。頓時，整個舞臺活躍起來：鬱金香們引吭高歌，連翹花翩翩起舞，梅花表演起了獨奏。樹木也在一夜之間披上了新綠。

　　有時候，春又悄然來臨。它欲前又止，羞澀靦腆，就像我的小孫女，倚在門口，偷偷往裡瞅，又一下子跑開了，不見蹤影，從門廳傳出她咯咯的笑聲。我喊一聲：“我知道你在那兒，進來吧!”於是四月便倏地一下飛進我們懷中。

　　山茱蓃的花骨朵兒嫩綠嫩綠的，鑲著赤褐色的花邊。在那漂亮的花萼裡，竟穩穩地簇擁著十幾顆小種子。我們不禁要驚羨地問一句：一個月前這些種子還在哪兒呢?蘋果樹則像賣帽人，向人們展示他帽子上那一片片微帶點玫瑰紅地乳白色絲緞。所有熟睡的都醒了——櫻草花、小蝴蝶花、藍夾竹桃。大地也暖和起來了——你可以聞到四月的氣息，感覺到它那股馨香，把它捧在手中賞玩。

　　去看看白頭翁花，如果你願意，再去看看豌豆畦，或是那倔強地手臂伸過城市街道的野花。它們從前是這樣，現在是這樣，將來還會是這樣，這是個永不停息的世界。當我們發現，春已切切實實地回來了，在恬靜之中，誰還會害怕遙遠的秋天呢?

　　：熱血、辛勞、眼淚和汗水

　　The leadership of Neville Chamberlain proved insufficient during the war, and in May 1940, Winston S. Churchill was appointed Prime Minister of an all-party government. Churchill proved to be an inspiring leader in the fight with Germany. On May 13, 1940he gave his first speech to the House of Commons, a speech which displays the oratorical skills which were so effective in keeping up public morale.

　　On Friday evening last I received from His Majesty the mission to form a new administration. It was the evident will of’ Parliament and the nation that this should be conceived on the broadest possible basis and that it should include all parties.

　　I have already completed the most important part of this task.

　　A war cabinet has been formed of five members, representing, with the Labour, Opposition, and Liberals, the unity of the nation. It was necessary that this should be done in one single day on account of the extreme urgency and rigor of events. Other key positions were filled yesterday. I am submitting a further list to the king tonight. I hope to complete the appointment of principal ministers during tomorrow.

　　The appointment of other ministers usually takes a little longer. I trust when Parliament meets again this part of my task will be completed and that the administration will be complete in all respects. I considered it in the public interest to suggest to the Speaker that the House should be summoned today. At the end of today’s proceedings, the adjournment of the House will be proposed until May 21 with provision for earlier meeting if need be. Business for that will be notified to MPs at the earliest opportunity.

　　I now invite the House by a resolution to record its approval of the steps taken and declare its confidence in the new government.

　　The resolution: "That this House welcomes the formation of a government representing the united and inflexible resolve of the nation to prosecute the war with Germany to a victorious conclusion."

　　To form an administration of this scale and complexity is a serious undertaking in itself. But we are in the preliminary phase of one of the greatest battles in history. We are in action at many other points-in Norway and in Holland-and we have to be prepared in the Mediterranean. The air battle is continuing, and many preparations have to be made here at home.

　　In this crisis I think I may be pardoned if I do not address the House at any length today, and I hope that any of my friends and colleagues or former colleagues who are affected by the political reconstruction will make all allowances for any lack of ceremony with which it has been necessary to act.

　　I say to the House as I said to ministers who have joined this government, 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 policy? I say it is to wage war by land, sea, and air. War with all our might and with all the strength God has given us, and to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.

　　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."

　　溫斯頓·邱吉爾 1940年5月13日

　　星期五晚上，我接受了英王陛下的委託，組織新政府。這次組閣，應包括所有的政黨，既有支援上屆政府的政黨，也有上屆政府的反對黨，顯而易見，這是議會和國家的希望與意願。我已完成了此項任務中最重要的部分。戰時內閣業已成立，由5位閣員組成，其中包括反對黨的自由主義者，代表了舉國一致的團結。三黨領袖已經同意加入戰時內閣，或者擔任國家高階行政職務。三軍指揮機構已加以充實。由於事態發展的極端緊迫感和嚴重性，僅僅用一天時間完成此項任務，是完全必要的。其他許多重要職位已在昨天任命。我將在今天晚上向英王陛下呈遞補充名單，並希望於明日一天完成對政府主要大臣的任命。其他一些大臣的任命，雖然通常需要更多一點的時間，但是，我相信會議再次開會時，我的這項任務將告完成，而且本屆政府在各方面都將是完整無缺的。

　　我認為，向下院建議在今天開會是符合公眾利益的。議長先生同意這個建議，並根據下院決議所授予他的權力，採取了必要的步驟。今天議程結束時，建議下院休會到5月21日星期二。當然，還要附加規定，如果需要的話，可以提前復會。下週會議所要考慮的議題，將盡早通知全體議員。現在，我請求下院，根據以我的名義提出的決議案，批推已採取的各項步驟，將它記錄在案，並宣佈對新政府的信任。

　　組成一屆具有這種規模和複雜性的政府，本身就是一項嚴肅的任務。但是大家一定要記住，我們正處在歷史上一次最偉大的戰爭的初期階段，我們正在挪威和荷蘭的許多地方進行戰鬥，我們必須在地中海地區做好準備，空戰仍在繼續，眾多的戰備工作必須在國內完成。在這危急存亡之際，如果我今天沒有向下院做長篇演說，我希望能夠得到你們的寬恕。我還希望，因為這次政府改組而受到影響的任何朋友和同事，或者以前的同事，會對禮節上的不周之處予以充分諒解，這種禮節上的欠缺，到目前為止是在所難免的。正如我曾對參加本屆政府的成員所說的那樣，我要向下院說：“我沒什麼可以奉獻，有的只是熱血、辛勞、眼淚和汗水。”

　　擺在我們面前的，是一場極為痛苦的嚴峻的考驗。在我們面前，有許多許多漫長的鬥爭和苦難的歲月。你們問：我們的政策是什麼?我要說，我們的政策就是用我們全部能力，用上帝所給予我們的全部力量，在海上、陸地和空中進行戰爭，同一個在人類黑暗悲慘的罪惡史上所從未有過的窮凶極惡的暴政進行戰爭。這就是我們的政策。你們問：我們的目標是什麼?我可以用一個詞來回答：勝利——不惜一切代價，去贏得勝利;無論多麼可怕，也要贏得勝利，無論道路多麼遙遠和艱難，也要贏得勝利。因為沒有勝利，就不能生存。大家必須認識到這一點：沒有勝利，就沒有英帝國的存在，就沒有英帝國所代表的一切，就沒有促使人類朝著自己目標奮勇前進這一世代相因的強烈慾望和動力。但是當我挑起這個擔子的時候，我是心情愉快、滿懷希望的。我深信，人們不會聽佳我們的事業遭受失敗。此時此刻，我覺得我有權利要求大家的支援，我要說：“來吧，讓我們同心協力，一道前進。”

　　：女人的淚水是為人類而流的

　　" Why are you crying?", he asked his Mom.

　　" Because I'm a woman", she told him.

　　" I don't understand," he said.

　　His Mom just hugged him and said," And you never will." ……

　　Later the little boy asked his father, " Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?"

　　"All women cry for no reason." was all his Dad could say……

　　The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry……

　　Finally he put in a call to God; when God got on the phone, the man said, " God, why do women cry so easily?"

　　God said…… " When I made woman she had to be special. I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world; yet gentle enough to give comfort……

　　I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children……

　　I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up and take care of her family through fatigue and sickness without complaining……

　　I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt them very badly……

　　I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.

　　I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly.

　　I gave her a tear to shed. It's hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed. It's her only weakness……

　　It's a tear for mankind……"

　　中文：

　　“你為什麼哭呀?”他問他的媽媽。

　　“因為我是個女人。”她告訴他。

　　“我不明白。”他說。

　　他的媽媽只是摟緊了他說，“你永遠也不會明白。”……

　　後來這個小孩問他的父親，“為什麼母親無緣無故地哭?”“所有女人都會無緣無故地哭。”他的父親只能這樣說……

　　小男孩長成了大男人，依然沒有弄明白女人為什麼哭……

　　最後他給上帝撥了個電話。當上帝接到電話時，這位長大成人的男子問，“上帝，為什麼女人那麼容易哭?”上帝說……“當我創造女人時她必須是特殊的。我讓她的肩膀堅強得足以承擔這個世界的重量，但又足夠溫柔地給人慰藉……

　　我給她內在的力量以承受分娩的劇痛，去忍受孩子們一次又一次的厭棄……

　　我給她堅韌，使她在人人都放棄時能獨自堅持下去，不顧自身的疲憊和病痛毫無怨言地照料家人……