
随着全球经济一体化的发展,我国的 教育 和 文化 等方面也在不断地向前发展。英语作为全球通用的语言,是不同国家的人们之间沟通的桥梁。下面是我带来的英语短篇美文朗诵,欢迎阅读!英语短篇美文朗诵篇一 Who’s who It has never been explained why university students seem to enjoy practical jokes more than anyone else. Students specialize in a particular type of practical joke: the hoax. Inviting the fire-brigade to put out a non-existent fire is a crude form of deception which no self-respecting student would ever indulge in, Students often create amusing situations which are funny to everyone except the victims. When a student recently saw two workmen using a pneumatic drill outside his university, he immediately telephoned the police and informed them that two students dressed up as workmen were tearing up the road with a pneumatic drill. As soon as he had hung up, he went over to the workmen and told them that if a policeman ordered them to go away, they were not to take him seriously. He added that a student had dressed up as a policeman and was playing all sorts of silly jokes on people. Both the police and the workmen were grateful to the student for this piece of advance information. The student hid in an archway nearby where he could watch and hear everything that went on. Sure enough, a policeman arrived on the scene and politely asked the workmen to go away. When he received a very rude reply from one of the workmen, he threatened to remove them by force. The workmen told him to do as he pleased and the policeman telephoned for help. Shortly afterwards, four more policemen arrived and remonstrated with the workmen. As the men refused to stop working, the police attempted to seize the pneumatic drill. The workmen struggled fiercely and one of them lost his temper. He threatened to call the police. At this, the police pointed out ironically that this would hardly be necessary as the men were already under arrest. Pretending to speak seriously, one of the workmen asked if he might make a telephone call before being taken to the station. Permission was granted and a policeman accompanied him to a call-box. Only when he saw that the man was actually telephoning the police did he realize that they had all been the victims of a hoax. 谁也弄不清为什么大学生好像比任何人都更喜欢恶作剧。大学生擅长一种特殊的恶作剧——戏弄人。请消防队来扑灭一场根本没有的大火是一种低级骗局,有自尊心的大学生决不会去做。大学生们常常做的是制造一种可笑的局面,使大家笑上一场,当然受害者是笑不出来的。 最近有个学生看见两个工人在学校门外用风钻干活,马上打电话 报告 警察,说有两个学生装扮成工人,正在用风钻破坏路面。挂上电话后,他又马上来到工人那儿,告诉他们若有个警察来让他们走开,不要把他当回事,还对工人说,有个学生常装扮成警察无聊地同别人开玩笑。警察与工人都对那个学生事先通报情况表示感谢。 那个学生躲在附近一拱形的门廊里,在那儿可以看见、听到现场发生的一切。果然,警察来了,不礼貌地请工人离开此地;但其中一个工人粗鲁地回了几句。于是警察威胁要强行使他们离开。工人说,悉听尊便。警察去打电话叫人。一会儿工夫,又来了4个警察,规劝工人离开。由于工人拒绝停下手中的活,警察想夺风钻。两个工人奋力抗争,其中一个发了火,威胁说要去叫警察。警察听后讥讽地说,这大可不必,因为他俩已被逮捕了。其中一个工人装模作样地问道,在被带往警察局之前,是否可以打一个电话。警察同意了,陪他来到一个投币地电话前,当他看到那个工人真的是给警察挂电话,才恍然大悟,原来他们都成一场骗局的受害者。 英语短篇美文朗诵篇二 Daniel Mendoza Boxing matches were very popular in England two hundred years ago. In those days, boxers fought with bare fists for Prize money. Because of this, they were known as 'prize-fighters'. However, boxing was very crude, for there were no rules and a prize-fighter could be seriously injured or even killed during a match. One of the most colourful figures in boxing history was Daniel Mendoza who was born in 1764. The use of gloves was not introduced until 1860 when the Marquis of Queensberry drew up the first set Of rules. Though he was technically a prize-fighter, Mendoza did much to change crude prize-fighting into a sport, for he brought science to the game. In his day, Mendoza enjoyed tremendous popularity. He was adored by rich and poor alike. Mendoza rose to fame swiftly after a boxing-match when he was only fourteen years old. This attracted the attention of Richard Humphries who was then the most eminent boxer in England. He offered to train Mendoza and his young pupil was quick to learn. In fact, Mendoza soon became so successful that Humphries turned against him. The two men quarrelled bitterly and it was clear that the argument could only be settled by a fight. A match was held at Stilton where both men fought for an hour. The public bet a great deal of money on Mendoza, but he was defeated. Mendoza met Humphries in the ring on a later occasion and he lost for a second time. It was not until his third match in 1790 that he finally beat Humphries and became Champion of England. Meanwhile, he founded a highly successful Academy and even Lord Byron became one of his pupils. He earned enormous sums of money and was paid as much as &100 for a single appearance. Despite this, he was so extravagant that he was always in debt. After he was defeated by a boxer called Gentleman Jackson, he was quickly forgotten. He was sent to prison for failing to pay his debts and died in poverty in 1836. 两百年前, 拳击 比赛在英国非常盛行。当时,拳击手们不戴手套,为争夺奖金而搏斗。因此,他们被称作“职业拳击手”。不过,拳击是十分野蛮的,因为当时没有任何比赛规则,职业拳击手有可能在比赛中受重伤,甚至丧命。 拳击史上最引人注目的人物之一是丹尼尔.门多萨,他生于1764年。1860年昆斯伯里侯爵第一次为拳击比赛制定了规则,拳击比赛这才用上了手套。虽然门多萨严格来讲不过是个职业拳击手,但在把这种粗野的拳击变成一种 体育运动 方面,他作出了重大贡献。是他把科学引进了这项运动。门多萨在的全盛时期深受大家欢迎,无论是富人还是穷人都对他祟拜备至。 门多萨在14岁时参加一场拳击赛后一举成名。这引起当时英国拳坛名将理查德.汉弗莱斯的注意。他主动提出教授门多萨,而年少的门多萨一学就会。事实上,门多萨不久便名声大振,致使汉弗莱斯与他反目为敌。两个人争吵不休,显而易见,只有较量一番才能解决问题。于是两人在斯蒂尔顿设下赛场,厮打了一个小时。公众把大笔赌注下到了门多萨身上,但他却输了。后来,门多萨与汉弗莱斯再次在拳击场上较量,门多萨又输了一场。直到1790年他们第3次对垒,门多萨才终于击败汉弗莱斯,成了全英拳击冠军。同时,他建立了一所拳击学校,办得很成功,连拜伦勋爵也成了他的学生。门多萨挣来大笔大笔的钱,一次出场费就多可达100英镑。尽管收入不少,但他挥霍无度,经常债台高筑。他在被一个叫杰克逊绅士的拳击手击败后很快被遗忘。他因无力还债而被捕入狱,最后于1836年在贫困中死去。 英语短篇美文朗诵篇三 By heart Some plays are so successful that they run for years on end. In many ways, this is unfortunate for the poor actors who are required to go on repeating the same lines night after night. One would expect them to know their parts by heart and never have cause to falter. Yet this is not always the case. A famous actor in a highly successful play was once cast in the role of an aristocrat who had been imprisoned in the Bastille for twenty years. In the last act, a gaoler would always come on to the stage with a letter which he would hand to the prisoner. Even though the noble was expected to read the letter at each performance, he always insisted that it should be written out in full. One night, the gaoler decided to play a joke on his colleague to find out if, after so many performances, he had managed to learn the contents of the letter by heart. The curtain went up on the final act of the play and revealed the aristocrat sitting alone behind bars in his dark cell. Just then, the gaoler appeared with the precious letter in his hands. He entered the cell and presented the letter to the aristocrat. But the copy he gave him had not been written out in full as usual. It was simply a blank sheet of paper. The gaoler looked on eagerly, anxious to see if his fellow-actor had at last learnt his lines. The noble stared at the blank sheet of paper for a few seconds. Then, squinting his eyes, he said: 'The light is dim. Read the letter to me.' And he promptly handed the sheet of paper to the gaoler. Finding that he could not remember a word of the letter either, the gaoler replied: 'The light is indeed dim, sire. I must get my glasses.' With this, he hurried off the stage. Much to the aristocrat's amusement, the gaoler returned a few moments later with a pair of glasses and the usual copy of the letter which he proceeded to read to the prisoner. 有些剧目十分成功,以致连续上演好几年。这样一来,可怜的演员们可倒霉了。因为他们需要一夜连着一夜地重复同样的台词。人们以为,这些演员一定会把台词背得烂熟,绝不会临场结巴的,但情况却并不总是这样。 有一位名演员曾在一出极为成功的剧目中扮演一个贵族角色,这个贵族已在巴士底狱被关押了20年。在最后一幕中,狱卒手持一封信上场,然后将信交给狱中那位贵族。尽管那个贵族每场戏都得念一遍那封信。但他还是坚持要求将信的全文写在信纸上。 一天晚上,狱卒决定与他的同事开一个玩笑,看看他反复演出这么多场之后,是否已将信的内容记熟了。大幕拉开,最后一幕戏开演,贵族独自一人坐在铁窗后阴暗的牢房里。这时狱卒上场,手里拿着那封珍贵的信。狱卒走进牢房,将信交给贵族。但这回狱卒给贵族的信没有像往常那样把全文写全,而是一张白纸。狱卒热切地观察着,急于想了解他的同事是否记熟了台词。贵族盯着纸看了几秒钟,然后,眼珠一转,说道:“光线太暗,请给我读一下这封信。”说完,他一下子把信递给狱卒。狱卒发现自己连一个字也记不住,于是便说:“陛下,这儿光线的确太暗了,我得去眼镜拿来。”他一边说着,一边匆匆下台。贵族感到非常好笑的是:一会儿工夫,狱卒重新登台,拿来一副眼镜以及平时使用的那封信,然后为那囚犯念了起来。
在英语教学中,开展经典美文教学不仅能提高学生的文学水平,而且能提高学生的语文素养,对培养学生的语言素养和人文素养具有极大益处,更能丰富学生的精神世界,磨炼学生的意志。我整理了英语经典美文诵读材料,欢迎阅读!
人生如诗
I think that,from a biological standpoint,human life almost reads like a poem.It has its own rhythm and beat,its internal cycles of growth and decay.It begins with innocent childhood,followed by awkward adolescence trying awkwardly to adapt itself to mature society,with its young passions and follies, its ideals and ambitions;then it reaches a manhood of intenseactivities, profiting from experience and learning more about society and human nature; at middle age, there is a slight easing of tension,a mellowing of character like the ripening of fruit or the mellowing of good wine,and the gradual acquiring of a more tolerant, more cynical and at the same time a kindlier view of life;then in the sunset of our life, the endocrine glands decrease their activity,and if we have a true philosophy of old age and have ordered our life pattern according to it,it is for us the age of peace and security and leisure and contentment;finally, life flickers out and one goes into eternal sleep, never to wake up again.One should be able to sense the beauty of thisrhythm of life, to appreciate, as we do in grand symphonies, its main theme,its strains of conflict and the final resolution.
The movements of these cycles are very much the same in a normal life, but the music must be provided by the individual himself.In some souls, the discordant note becomes harsher and harsher and finally overwhelms or submerges the main melody.Sometimes the discordant note gains so much power that the music can no longer go on, and the individual shoots himself with a pistol or jumps into a river.But that is because his original leitmotif has been hopelessly over shadowed through the lack of a good self education. Otherwise the normal human life runs to its normal end in a kind of dignified movement and procession.
No one can say that a life with childhood, manhood and old age is not a beautiful arrangement; the day hasits morning, noon and sunset, and the year has its seasons, and it is good that it is so. There is no goodor bad in life, except what is good according to its own season.And if we take this biological view of life and try to live according to the seasons, no one but a conceited fool or an impossible idealist can denythat human life can be lived like a poem.
我想,从生物学的观点来说,人生品味起来就像一首诗。它有其自身的韵律和节拍,有其生老病死的内在循环过程。它以天真烂漫的童年为序曲;接着便是青涩的青舂期,带着青年人的热情和愚蠢、理想和抱负,羞涩、惽懂地迈向成人的世界;然后便进入一个活力充沛的成年时期,这个时期人们从阅历中获益,对社会及人性也有了更多了解;到中年之时,压力才稍为减轻,人的性格就像熟透的水果或醇厚的美酒一般,更为圆熟,这时候,对人生的态度也逐渐变得更宽容、更随性、更仁慈。此后,便到了我们的迟暮之年,内分泌腺的活动逐渐趋缓。如果我们对年老持一种真正的达观态度,并以此来安排我们的生活方式,那么,这个时期对我们来说,就是安宁、稳定、闲逸和满足的时期;最终,生命的火光摇曳不定,之后人将永远地长眠,不再醒来。人应该能够体会这种人生之韵的美,应该能够像欣赏盛大的交响乐那样,去欣赏人生的主旋律,欣赏它的冲突片断和最后的尾声。
这些循环过程的运动在每个常人的生命中并无二至,但是生命的乐曲须由我们每个人自己来谱写。在有些人的灵魂之中,不和谐的音符变得愈加刺耳,到最后完全盖过或是湮没了生命的主旋律。有时候,这种不和谐的音符会如此强大以至于生命的乐曲不能继续演奏,而使人饮弹自尽或者投河而亡。但男阳由于缺乏良好的自我修养,人最初的主旋律就已投上了无望的阴影。否则,一个正常人的生活会以一种尊贵的方式演进而最后得以正常结束。
没有人能够说,由童年、成年和老年组成的人生不是一种完美的安排; 就像一天有早晨、中午和晚上,一年有四季,如此存在就是美好的。人生并没有好坏之分,只要符合我们所处的阶段, 生活就都是人生的大好时光。而如果我们采纳这种看待人生的生物学观点,并且,尽量依照不同的阶段来生活,那么,除了狂妄自大的蠢人或不可理喻的理想主义者之外,没有人能够否认:人生可以活得像一首诗。
施爱者和被爱者
First of all, love is a joint experience between two persons but the fact that it is a joint experience does not mean that it is a similar experience of the two people involved. There are the lover and the beloved, but these two come from different countries. Often the beloved is only a stimulus for all the stored uplove which has lain quiet within the lover for a long time hitherto. And somehow every lover knows this. He feels in his soul that his love is a solitary thing. He comes to know a new, strange loneliness and it is this knowledge which makes him suffer. So there is only one thing for the lover to do. He must house hislove within himself as best he can; he must create for himself a whole new inward world - a world intense and strange, complete in himself. Let it be added here that this lover about whom we speak need not necessarily be a young man saving for a wedding ring this lover can be a man, woman, child, or indeed any human creature on this earth.
Now, the beloved can also be of any description. The most outlandish people can be the stimulus for love. A man may be a doddering great grandfather and still love only a strange girl he saw in the streets of Cheehaw one afternoon two decades past. The preacher may love a fallen woman. The beloved may be treacherous,greasy headed, and given to evil habits. Yes, and the lover may see this as clearly as anyone else - but that does not affect the evolution of his love one whit. A most mediocre person can be the object of a lovewhich is wild, extravagant, and beautiful as the poison lilies in the swamp. A good man may be the stimulus for a love both violent and debased, or a jabbering madman may bring about in the soul of someone a tender and simple idyll. Therefore, the value and quality of any love is determined solely by the lover himself.
It is for this reason that most of us would rather love than be loved. Almost everyone wants to be the lover. And the curt truth is that, in a deep secret way, the state of being beloved is intolerable to many. The beloved fears and hates the lover, and with the best of reasons. For the lover is forever trying to strip bare his beloved. The lover craves any possible relation with the beloved, even if this experience can cause him only pain.
爱,首先是两个人之间共同的一种经历。但是,这并不意味着相关的两个人的经历是相似的。其中,一方是施爱者,另一方则是被爱者。他们两个来自不同的世界。通常,被爱者只是一个刺激因素,激发起施爱者长期隐藏在心底的爱。而每一位施爱者都明白这一点。在灵魂深处,他感到他的爱是孤独的。他会逐渐地认识到一种新奇而又陌生的孤寂。而且,正是这一认识使他忍受痛苦。因此,施爱者只有惟——种选择。他 必须尽可能地把爱珍藏在心底。他必须自己创造一个全新的内心世界--个深切、陌生而却完整的世界。需要补充说明的是,我们谈论的施爱者未必是一个为买结婚戒指而储蓄的年轻 人——他可能是男人、女人或者是孩子,甚或是世界上任何一个人。
当然,被爱者也同样可能是任何类型的人。最怪异的人可能会激起爱的涟漪。一位步屐蹒跚的曾祖父可能依旧爱恋着二十年前的一个下午在街头见到的一位陌生女郎。一位牧师也许会爱上一个堕落的女人。被爱者也可能奸诈、油头滑脑,而且沉溺于各种恶习。的确,施爱者对此可能像其他人一样了解得一清二楚。但是,这丝毫不影响他的爱情的进展。一个很平凡的人可能成为一个疯狂、放纵而美丽的爱的对象,就像沼泽地里的毒百合;一个善良的人可能激发起一种粗暴而有损人格的爱;或者一个语无伦次的疯子也可能使某个人充满温柔而纯朴的浪漫情怀。因此,任何一种爱的价值和品质只能取决于施爱者本身。
正是基于这一原因,我们当中的大多数人宁愿去爱而不是被人所爱。几乎每个人都想成为爱的给予者。而事实上,对许多人来说,处于被爱的情形在内心深处是难以承受的。被爱者总是害怕进而憎恨施爱者,而这种心理的产生有其充分的理由。 因为,施爱者总是在试图不断地使被爱者尊严无存。他总是企盼能够与被爱者建立任何可能的某种关系,即使这一经历结果只能给他招致痛苦。
汽车
My friend said cars are a pain. What he meant was that his car was a lot of trouble. I supposehe must have bought a “lemon”, that is, a car full of problems and not worth its keep.
Not everybody feels the same way about cars. To some, cars are just machines onwheels.These people hunt for the best value. They look for vehicles that are affordable butreliable,gas efficient, comfortable enough, reasonably safe and not too expensive to repair.Incontrast, you have also seen owners who lovingly polished their machines, dressing them infancy seat covers,and attaching cute little doodads to the windows.
To some, cars are not machines. They are the emotional extensions of their owners.Thinkabout the adrenalin high when one looks at a BMW. The status, speed and wealth identifiedwith the BMW are certainly tempting. Think Jaguar, and we picture the sleek, dangerous, fastand powerful black cat with rippling muscles leaping after its prey. What about the latest hotwheels - the mini-vans and jeeps? They spell outdoors, young, sporty, carefree, cool. Or cutelittle Smart cars - trendy, city, efficient, modern.
There is also a special class of car owners - the sentimental.To them, modern day vehicles areartistic disasters - tasteless and boring. For them, the only real cars are vintage those reallyold-fashion vehiclesyou see in movies about the days of our great grandparents. These carsmay be antique but not ugly. They are polished to a dazzling shine, with spotless chrome andbright clean tires.
As for me, I shudder at the cost of a new vehicle. So for now, just get me a sturdy used carthat can bring me from here to there without breaking down. Besides, I do not have to fretabout someone running an initiation scratch on the new paint job.
我的朋友视汽车为眼中钉,他的意思是他的车子为他添了许多麻烦。我猜想他必定是买了一件"蹩脚货",也就是一辆问题多多、不值得保留的汽车。
每个人对汽车都有不同的看法。对某些人而言,汽车只不过是装有轮子的机器。这些人会寻找最有价值的汽车。他们所寻找的是购买得起而且也可靠、省油、足够舒适、相当安全,并且维修费用不太高的汽车。相比之下,你也会看到车主温柔的把他们的车子擦亮,并套上特制的椅套,还在车窗上挂上可爱的小饰物。
对有些人而言,汽车不是机器,而是车主情感上的延伸。想想看到一辆宝马车时的兴奋之感,它所带来的对地位、速度和财富的认同的确颇具诱惑。想到美洲虎,就可能想到一只皮毛光滑、危险、快速和肌肉强健有力的黑猫在抓捕猎物。而最近炙手可热的车子——小型车辆和吉普车——又代表什么?它们代表 户外、年轻、运动气质、自由自在、独具一格。另外,小巧可爱的Smart,代表时髦、都市、效率和现代。此外,还有另一族群的车主,就是怀旧感伤的车主。他们把 现代的汽车视为艺术的败类单调又乏味。对他们而言,古典精致的车辆才真正称得上汽车一就是那些我们可以从祖父辈时代的影片上看到的古董老爷车。这些车虽然古老但并不丑陋,它们已被擦得明亮眩目,并且具有无瑕的铬片和干净亮丽的轮胎。
至子我,想到一辆新汽车的价位就令我颤抖。所以到目前为止,只要给我一辆坚固耐用的、能将我从此地运至彼地而中途又不抛锚的车子即可。除此以外,我也用不着顾虑有人在新漆的车身上刮上划痕。