新概念英语第三册：Illusions of Pastoral peace
Illusions of Pastoral peace 宁静田园生活的遐想
The quiet life of the country has never appealed to me. City born and city bred. I have always regarded the country as something you look at through a train window, or something you occasionally visit during the weekend. Most of my friends live in the city, yet they always go into raptures at the mere mention of the country. Though they extol the virtues of the peaceful life, only one of them has ever gone to live in the country and he was back in town within six months. Even he still lives under the illusion that country life is somehow superior to town life. He is forever talking about the friendly people, the clean atmosphere, the closeness to nature and the gentle pace of living. Nothing can be compared, he maintains, with the first cock crow, the twittering of birds at dawn, the sight of the rising sun glinting on the trees and pastures. This idyllic pastoral scene is only part of the picture. My friend fails to mention the long and friendless winter evenings in front of the TV -- virtually the only form of entertainment. He says nothing about the poor selection of goods in the shops, or about those unfortunate people who have to travel from the country to the city every day to get to work. Why people are prepared to tolerate a four-hour journey each day for the dubious privilege of living in the country is beyond me. They could be saved so much misery and expense if they chose to live in the city where they rightly belong.
宁静的乡村生活从来没有吸引过我。我生在城市，长在城市，总认为乡村是透过火车车窗看到的那个样了，或偶尔周末去游玩一下景象。我的许多朋友都住在城市，但他们只要一提起乡村，马上就会变得欣喜若狂。尽管他们都交口称赞宁静的乡村生活的种种优点，但其中只有一个人真去农村住过，而且不足6个月就回来了。即使他也仍存有幻觉，好像乡村生活就是比城市生活优越。他滔滔不绝地大谈友好的农民，洁净的空气，贴近大自然的环境和悠闲的生活节奏。他坚持认为，凌晨雄鸡第一声啼叫，黎明时分小鸟吱喳欢叫，冉冉升起的朝阳染红树木、牧场，此番美景无与伦比。但这种田园诗般的乡村风光仅仅是一个侧面。我的朋友没有提到在电视机前度过的漫长寂寞的冬夜——电视是唯一的娱乐形式。他也不说商店货物品种单调，以及那些每天不得不从乡下赶到城里工作的不幸的人们。人们为什么情愿每天在路上奔波4个小时去换取值得怀疑的乡间的优点，我是无法理解的。要是他们愿意住在本来属于他们的城市，则可以让他们省去诸多不便与节约大量开支。
New words and expressions 生词与短语
illusion
n. 幻想，错觉
pastoral
adj. 田园的
breed (bred, bred)
v. 培育
rapture
n. 欣喜
extol
v. 赞美，颂扬
superior
adj. 优越的
cockcrow
n. 鸡叫
v. (鸟)吱吱叫，嘁嘁喳喳叫
glint
v. 闪烁
pasture
n. 牧场
idyllic
adj. 田园诗的
virtually
adv. 几乎，差不多
dubious
adj. 可疑的，怀疑的
privilege
n. 特权
misery
n. 苦难
acquaintance
n. 熟人
treat
n. 难得的乐事，享受
dweller
n. 居住者
stagger
v. 摇晃，蹒跚
exotic
adj. 导乎寻常的，外来的
glow
n. 白炽光
descend
v. 缩进，隐藏
descend
v. 缩进，隐藏
obstinately
adv. 固执地，顽固地
