One of the saddest things about the period in which we live is the growing estrangement between America and Europe. This may be a surprising discovery to those who are over impressed by the speed with which turbojets can hop from New York to Paris. But to anyone who is aware of what America once meant to English libertarian poets and philosophers, to the young Ibises bitterly excoriating European royalty for the murder of Lincoln, to Italian novelists and poets translating the nineteenth century American classics as a demonstration against Fascism, there is something particularly disquieting in the way that the European Left, historically "pro-American" because it identified American with expansive democracy, now punishes America with Europe's lack of hope in the future.
Although America has obviously not fulfilled the visionary hope entertained for it in the romantic heyday, Americans have, until recently, thought of themselves as an idea, a "proposition" (in Lincoln's word) set up for the enlightenment and the improvement of mankind. Officially, we live by our original principles; we insist on this boastfully and even inhumanly. And it is precisely this steadfastness to principle that irks Europeans who under so many pressures have had to shift and to change, to compromise and to retreat.
Historically, the obstinacy of America's faith in "principles" has been staggering -- the sacrament of the Constitution, the legacy of the Founding Fathers, the moral rightness of all our policies, the invincibility of our faith in the equality and perfectibility of man. From the European point of view, there is something impossibly romantic, visionary, and perfectibility of man. From the European point of view, there is something impossibly romantic, visionary, and finally outrageous about an attachment to political formulas that arose even before a European revolutionary democracy was born of the French revolution, and that have survived all the socialist utopias and internationals. Americans honestly insist on the equality of men even when they deny this equality in practice; they hold fast to romantic doctrines of perfectibility even when such doctrines contradict their actual or their formal faith- whether it be as scientists or as orthodox Christians.
It is fact that while Americans as a people are notoriously empirical. Pragmatic, and unintellectual, they live their lives against a background of unalterable national shibboleths. The same abundance of theory that allowed Walt- Whitman to fill out his poetry with philosophical road signs of American optimism allows a president to make pious references to God as an American tradition － references which, despite their somewhat mechanical quality, are not only sincere but which, to most Americans, express the reality of America.
- The writer uses the example of Ibises and others to maintain that__________
- Europeans do not have the proper appreciation of the United States
- Europeans have made a notable shift in attitude toward the United States
- American culture has been rediscovered by Europeans
- Europeans no longer feel that there should be an exchange of ideas with Americans
- The writer states that, until recently, Americans thought of their country as a________
- source of enlightenment B. leader in technological progress
- recipient of European heritage D. peacemaker
- The author states that American democracy in practice sometimes is in conflict with_______
- theoretical notions of equality B. other political systems
- Europe's best interests D. Both A and B
- Which of the following was NOT mentioned by the author as an American principle
- Equality of man.
- Moral rightness as American policy decisions.
- Man's capacity to become perfect.
- The inviolability (不可侵犯) of the individual's integrity.
核心词汇注释
estrangement n．疏远
turbojet n．涡轮喷气飞机
ibis n．朱鹭
irk vt．使厌倦，使苦恼
sacrament n．[基督教)．圣礼， 基督教圣餐
adj．沉默的 v．用土覆盖：立誓
Utopia n．乌托邦，理想的完 美境界，空想的社会改良计划
doctrine n．教条，学说
orthodox adj．正统的，传统 的，习惯的，保守的；东正教的
shibboleth n．口令
pious adj．虔诚的，尽责的
长难句剖析
But to anyone who is aware of what America once meant to English libertarian poets and philosophers, to the young Ibises bitterly excoriating European royalty for the murder of Lincoln, to Italian novelists and poets translating the nineteenth century American classics as a demonstration against Fascism, there is something particularly disquieting in the way that the European Left, historically "pro-American" because it identified America with expansive democracy, now punishes America with Europe's lack of hope in the future.
[结构分析]本句主干是there is something particularly disquieting in the ay。在主句前面，由三个并列的介词to引导的短语做状语，who引导的定语从句用来修饰to的宾语anyone;现在分词bitterly excoriating．．．用来修饰to的宾语the young ibises现在分词translating…Fascism用来修饰to的宾语Italian novelists and poets。在主句中，that引导的定语从句修饰前面的way。在这个从句中，主干部分是the European Left，historically “pro-American”…now punishes America．…中间是一个由because引导的原因状语从句。
[参考译文]对那些英国自由主义诗人哲学家、那些因为林肯遇刺案而痛斥欧洲皇室的热血青年以及那些翻译19世纪美国经典文学作品以示反抗法西斯的意大利小说家或诗人来说，美国的影响都是意义深远的；但现在欧洲左派——因为他们曾经认为美国就是全面的民主，所以历史上又被称为“亲美派”——对美国这种民主的前景却缺乏信心。
Although America has obviously not fulfilled the visionary hope entertained for it in the romantic heyday, Americans have, until recently, thought of themselves as an idea, a "proposition" (in Lincoln's word) set up for the enlightenment and the improvement of mankind.
[结构分析]本句是一个主从复合句。主句的主语是Americans，谓语动词部分是have， until recently ,thought of themselves as…。句子最后还有一个过去分词词组set up for．．．mankind做后置定语，修饰前面的anode，a “proposition”。从句是由although引导的让步状语从句，
[参考译文]在这个所谓的鼎盛期，虽然美国还没有完全实现他们所抱有的一些不切实际的梦想，但直到最近，美国人还认为他们自己是一个被建立起来的典范、“主题”(出自林肯)，可以启迪人类，推动进步。
The same abundance of theory that allowed Walt Whitman to fill out his poetry with philosophical road signs of American optimism allows a president to make pious references to God as an American tradition － references which, despite their somewhat mechanical quality, are not only sincere but which, to most Americans, express the reality of America.
[结构分析]本句主干是The same abundance of theory…allows a president to make pious references to God as an American tradition。定语从句that allowed…optimism修饰主句的主语，破折号后面的部分是对references to God的进一步解释，前者可以看作是后者的同位语，两个并列的由which引导的定语从句是用来修饰references的，另外在这个定语从句中despite．．．做让步状语。
[参考译文]丰富的理论允许惠特曼用美国乐观主义的哲学路标填写诗句，也同样允许美国总统把虔诚地引用上帝当成了一个传统——这样的引用，除了有点呆板，不仅是真诚的，而且对于大多数美国人而言，表达了美国的现实。
全文参考译文
美国和欧洲之间日渐疏远是我们当前生活的时代最悲哀的事件之一。这对于那些对瞬间即可从纽约抵达巴黎的高速喷气式飞机留下深刻印象的人来说可能是个惊人的发现。诚然，在过去，对于那些英国自由主义诗人和哲学家、那些因为林肯遇刺案而痛斥欧洲皇室的热血青年以及那些翻译19世纪美国经典文学作品以示反抗法西斯的意大利小说家或诗人来说，美国的影响都有着深远的意义；但现在欧洲左派——因为他们曾经认为美国就是全面的民主，所以历史上又称为“亲美派”——对美国这种民主的前景却缺乏信心。任何一个意识到了这点变化的人，都应感到极大的担忧和不安。
在这个所谓的鼎盛期，尽管美国还没有完全实现他们所抱有的一些不切实际的梦想，可直到最近，美国人还认为他们自己是一个被树立起来的典范、“主题”(出自林肯)，可以启迪人类，推动进步。我们非常呆板地依照我们最初的原则生活；我们很自负甚至是有些不近人情地坚持这些原则。而正是这种对原则的坚持使欧洲人厌烦，使他们在巨大的压力下，不得不去转换、改变、妥协，甚至退却。
从历史上看，美国人对“原则”信仰的固执一直以来令人惊愕——宪法的神圣、开国元勋的遗产、我们的一切政策中的道德至善论、我们对自由的坚定信仰以及人的完善性。从欧洲人的观点来看，这是一种与甚至在欧洲革命民主产生于法国大革命之前就出现的政体崇拜有关的太过浪漫、幻想、最终令人无法容忍的东西在社会主义改良计划和国际主义之后的遗留。美国人真诚地坚持人人平等，即使当他们在实践中否定这种平等的时候；他们牢牢地信守着至善论的浪漫教条，即使当这种教条和他们真正或是正式的信仰有悖时——无论是作为科学家还是东正教徒。
实际上美国人作为一个民族是臭名昭著的经验主义者。固执专断，缺乏理智，他们在一种充满不变的民族陈词滥调的背景下生活。丰富的理论允许惠特曼用美国乐观主义的哲学路标填写诗句，也同样允许美国总统把虔诚地引用上帝当成了一个传统——这样的引用，除了有点呆板，不但是真诚的，并且对于大多数美国人来说，表达了美国的现实。
题目答案与解析
1．作者举出热血青年等例子是用来主张________。 [答案]B
A．欧洲人对美国缺乏适当的评价 B．欧洲人对美国的态度已经有了明显的转变
C．美国文化被欧洲人重新发现 D．欧洲人不再认为应该同美国人之间进行思想交流
[解析]本题可参照文章的第1段。从中可知，美国在历史上对于欧洲人的影响是非常深远的，但现在，曾经的欧洲亲美派都对于美国的自由缺乏信心。因此B是正确答案。
2．作者认为，美国人直到最近依旧把他们的国家看作是________。 [答案]A
A．教化之源 B．技术进步的领袖 C．欧洲传统的容纳者 D．和事佬
[解析]本题的依据是文章第2段中的Americans have，until recently, thought of themselves as an idea，a “proposition”(in Lincoln's word)set up for the enlightenment and the improvement of mankind。从中可知A项是正确答案。
3．作者认为，美国民主事实上是与________ 相矛盾的。[答案]D
A．理论上平等的概念 B．其他政治体系 C．欧洲的最大利益 D．A和B
[解析]本题的依据是文章第3段的最后几句话Americans honestly insist on the equality of men even when they deny出is equity in precede；They hold fast to romantic doctrines of perfectibility even When Such distends contradict their actual .....formal finch，从中可知D项是正确答案。
4． 作为美国的原则，下面哪一项没有被作者提及 [答案]D
A．人人平等 B．美国政策的道德公正至善论
C．人类变得完美的能力 D．个人完整性的不可侵犯
[解析]本题可参照文章第3段的第1句话。其中作者提到了the moral rightness of all our policies(对应B项)，the invincibility of our faith in the equality(对应A项)和perfectibility of man(对应C项)，但没提到the inviolability(不可侵犯)of the individual's integrity，因此D项是正确答案。