英语经典美文诵读100篇：052.the american character

[00:05.20]052. The American Character [00:11.40]Most Americans have great vigor and enthusiasm. [00:15.40]They prefer to discipline themselves rather than be disciplined by others. [00:20.22]They pride themselves on their independence, their right to make up their own minds. [00:26.02]They are prepared to take the initiative, even when there is a risk in doing so. [00:31.63]They have courage and do not give in easily. [00:35.07]They will take any sort of job anywhere rather than be unemployed. [00:39.89]They do not care to be looked after by the government. [00:43.43]The average American changes his or her job nine or ten times during his or her working life. [00:51.44]Americans have a warmth and friendliness which is less superficial than many foreigners think. [00:57.75]They are considered sentimental. When on ceremonial occasions they see a flag, [01:03.68]or attend parades celebrating America’s glorious past, tears may come to their eyes. [01:10.40]Reunions with family and friends tend to be emotional, too. [01:15.54]They like to dress correctly, even if “correctly” means flamboyantly. [01:21.15]They love to boast, though often with tongue in cheek. [01:25.18]They can laugh at themselves and their country, and they can be very self-critical, [01:30.33]while remaining always intensely patriotic. They have a wide knowledge of everyday things, [01:36.95]and a keen interest in their particular city and state. Foreigners sometimes complain, however, [01:43.62]that they have little interest in or knowledge of the outside world. [01:48.48]The Americans have a passion for grandeur. Their skyscrapers, [01:53.08]bridges and dams often have a splendor which matches in beauty and scale the country’s natural wonders. [02:01.04]Is the sole aim of most Americans to make money and possess luxuries which could be called excessive? [02:08.73]The majority of Americans would certainly deny this, [02:12.38]though most feel proud to amass wealth and possessions through hard work. In the USA, [02:17.45]about 90% of the population is well enough off to expect a brighter future. [02:24.53]The USA still has one of the highest standards of living in the world, although, [02:29.37]at the present time, 10% are below what the Government considers to be the “poverty line.” [02:36.12]While these underprivileged people receive help from the Government, [02:39.97]they have no high hopes for their future. It is from this “underclass,” [02:45.04]and those who take advantage of it, that most of the violence springs, [02:49.57]which is one of the least pleasant aspects of American society. [02:54.25]Americans are beginning to realize that this terrible problem of poverty is their problem and not just the Government’s. [03:01.89]It has been said that the individual American is generous, but that the American nation is hard. [03:08.36]The USA is reputed to be a classless society. [03:12.26]There is certainly not much social snobbery or job snobbery. [03:16.41]The manual worker is usually quite at ease in any company. [03:20.96]This is partly explained by the fact that people of all income groups go together to the same schools. [03:28.02]Americans are far more race-conscious than they are class-conscious.

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