When we approach the notion of friendship, our first problem is that there is a lack of socially acknowledged criteria for what makes a person a friend. In one setting, we may describe someone as a friend; in another, the label may seem less appropriate. Therefore, people tend to have a very thin understanding of what friendship really means. To help us understand what friendship really means, we need to review some classical views of friendship.
One classical view of friendship is provided by Aristotle, the famous ancient Greek philosopher. Aristotle distinguishes between what he believes to be genuine friendships and two other forms: one based on mutual usefulness, the other on pleasure. So, according to Aristotle, we may find three kinds of friendship:
Friendship based on utility. Utility is an impermanent thing: it changes according to circumstances. When the ground for friendship disappears, the friendship also breaks up. Friendships of this kind seem to occur most frequently between the elderly, because at their age what they want is not pleasure but utility. Friendships based on utility are also frequently found among those in middle or early life who are pursuing their own advantage. Such persons do
not spend much time together, because sometimes they do not even like one another, and therefore feel no need of such an association unless they are mutually useful. They take pleasure in each other's company only in so far as they have hopes of advantage from it.
翻译
1.以共同兴趣为基础的友谊是不容易破裂的。(Ground; break up)
2.孩子们必须学会将电脑游戏中的暴力与勇敢区分开来。(Distinguish between; violence)
3. 当今世界每天涌现如此多新鲜事物，要求一个人什么都知晓是不合情理的。(Sensible)
4. 诸如背弃朋友 (betrayal to friends) 这类事并不受法律制约，所以才有了我们称作的“道德法庭”。 (Regulate)
5. 有人把今天的文化描述为“快餐文化”。无论做什么事，人们只是追求用最短时间达到最大的满足。 (Describe as; pursue)
6. 常言说，天下没有免费的午餐。如果你想要什么，就得去挣。(As the saying goes)
1. The friendship grounded on common / shared interest does not break up easily. / It is not easy for the friendship grounded on common / shared interest to break up.
2. Children must learn to distinguish between violence and bravery / courage in computer games.
3. There spring up so many new things every day in the world that it is no longer sensible to expect a person to know / keep track of everything.
4. Laws do not regulate such things as betrayal to friends; that is why there is what we call / is called \"the court of morality\".
5. Today’s culture is described as “fast-food culture”. Whatever they may be / are doing, people just pursue the greatest / maximum satisfaction within the shortest time.
6. As the saying goes, there is no such thing as a free lunch. If you want something, go and earn / work for it.
Unit 3
This process can have counterproductive effects. I have an incentive to work and earn more: it will make me happier. So do other members of society, who also care about their relative standard of life. Since society as a whole cannot raise its position relative to itself, the effort which its members devote to that end could be said to be a waste —the balance between leisure and work has been shifted \"inefficiently\" towards work.
To reinforce the case, let me explain it in terms of status, which may derive as much from the earning of income as from the spending of it. People work, in part at least, to improve their status. But status is a system of ranking: one, two, three and so on. So if one person improves his status, someone else loses an equal amount. It is a zero-sum game: private life sacrificed in order to increase status is a waste from the point of view of society as a whole. That is why the rat race is sodestructive: we lose family life and peace of mind in pursuing something whose total cannot be altered.
翻译
1.千百年来哲学家们费尽心机从各自的角度阐述何为幸福。(take
pains; point of view)
2刚上大学时，突然发现自己得处理所有日常事物，直到那时自己才觉得在父母身边生活真是幸 福。(leave … with …)
3你不要总是和别人攀比，否则你可能会陷于忧郁之中，因为毕竟有许多人比你强。(comparison; depression)
4今天人们生活比以前富裕多了，闲暇时间也多了，奇怪的是人们反而觉得生活乏味了。(better off; leisure)
5. 事实上，人生是漫长而缺少兴奋的。如果期待每天都如戏剧般精彩必定会遭遇失望。(in effect; inevitable)
6过于顺利的生活可能具有破坏性，因为人们没有机会学会怎样应对挫折。这能部分解释年轻人居高不下的自杀率。(destructive; in part)
1. For thousands of years philosophers have taken pains to illustrate / explain / interpret the meaning of happiness from their own points of view.
2. When I first came to college, I suddenly found myself left with everything to deal with by myself. It was not until then did I realize that living with my parents was truly a happy experience.
3. You shouldn’t always make comparison with others; otherwise, you may be trapped in / fall into depression, for there are always many others who are better than you.
4. Today people are much better off and enjoy more leisure. Strangely enough, they find life boring / dull.
5. Life, in effect, is long but short of excitement. You are sure to suffer from inevitable disappointment if you expect everyday life to be as exciting as a drama.
6. A life that is too easy / smooth may also be destructive because it offers no opportunity for one to learn how to deal with / handle failures / frustrations / setbacks. That / This in part explains / accounts for the high rates of suicide among young people.
Unit 5
For want of a clearer explanation of my career situation, I told the man who inquired that I teach in cyberspace. \"I'm a virtual professor,\" I tried explaining. \"Distance learning … online degree programs … virtual universities.\"
The man's face remained as blank as a clear summer sky. I couldn't tell whether he was silent out of respect or keen confusion. I imagined both to be the case, so I settled in to explain what I have to explain frequently these days: the decline of the American college campus and the rise of the American educational mind – as I see it.
Distance learning, or educational programs where pupil and professor never meet face-to-face, is nothing new. Sir Isaac Pitman of Bath, England, hit upon the idea of having rural residents learn secretarial skills by translating the Bible into shorthand, then mailing these translations back to him for grading. He began doing this in 1840. And he made mounds of money doing it.
翻译
1.培养正确的感情是极其必要的，因为它可为一个人将来学习和工作的成功奠定基础。 (Indispensable; lay the foundations for)
2. 中国西部发展急需人才，政府为此制定了优惠政策，号召更多大学毕业生去西部工作。(Cry out for; to this end)
3. 你怎么可以在我这样艰难的时候对我置之不理呢？我们患难与共差不多半个世纪了。(turn one’s back on; practically)
4. 网虫们 (web addicts) 很多时间都泡在网上，以至于他们无法分辨虚拟世界与现实世界。(Draw a distinction between; virtual)
5. 生活在城市的人常常有这样的幻想：乡村生活是闲适安逸的。其实不一定是这回事儿。(Resident; rural; be the case)
6远程学习是个全球化的趋势(trend)。随着它的迅速发展，人们无论身处何地都能有同样方便的途径享受教育资源。(global; access)
1. Cultivating the right emotions is indispensable in that / because it lays the foundations for the successes of one’s future work and studies.
2. West China is crying out for talented people for its development. To this end, the government has laid down / made favorable policies, calling for more college graduates to go and work there.
3. How can you turn your back on me when I am in such difficulty? We have gone through trials and tribulations for practically half a century.
4. Web addicts spend so much time on the Internet that they are
unable to draw a distinction between the virtual world and the real world.
5. Urban / City residents often have the illusion that rural life is always leisurely and comfortable. In fact, that may not be the case.
6. Distance learning is a global trend. With its quick growth / development, people are given / can enjoy an equally convenient access to educational resources, no matter where they are.
Unit 7
They never quit. The 1992 Summer Olympics featured two tremendously poignant moments. American sprinter Gail Devers, the clear leader in the 100-meter hurdles, tripped over the last barrier. She agonizingly pulled herself to her knees and crawled the last five meters, finishing the fifth — but finishing.
Even more heart-breaking was the 400-meter semifinal in which British runner Derek Redmond had one leg injured and fell to the track. He struggled to his feet and began to hobble, determined to complete the race. His father ran from the stands to help him off the track, but the athlete refused to quit. He leaned on his father, and the two limped to the finish line together, to deafening applause.
They make their own luck. When Paul Wylie won a silver medal in men's figure skating at Albertville, he surprised everyone but himself. Several skaters who had been expected to win medals had been injured or had performed poorly. \"I was the last person expected to make the winners' podium,” Wylie said. \"But I had trained like crazy, and when the favorites faltered, I was ready.\"
翻译
1.奥运旗帜白色的背景上印着五个相连的彩色圆圈，代表五大洲。 (Feature)
2.他差0.02秒就得金牌。那些目睹这一比赛的人们不禁发出叹息。 (Narrowly; witness)
3.长跑比赛是对耐力的极大考验。运动员不仅流汗，还会流泪，甚至流血。 (Tolerance; shed)
4.绊到另一个选手的脚，他摔倒在跑道上，但他很快爬起来，一瘸一拐地走到终点。 (trip; limp; rise to one’s feet）
5.故事的最初版本是这样的：那个助理教练因为率领球队打赢了
与古巴队（Cuba）的比赛而一夜成名。 (Original; version; conquer)
6.有些运动员承认以提高竞技成绩为名服用过兴奋剂（dope），而且他们的教练也不对这种违法行为表示异议。(Confess; in the name of)
1. Against the white background, the Olympic flag features five interlinked colour circles, representing the five continents.
2. He narrowly missed the gold medal by 0.02 seconds. Those who had witnessed the race could not help giving a sigh.
3. Long-distance race is a hard test on tolerance. The athletes shed not only sweat, but also tears, and even blood.
4. Having tripped over another athlete's foot, he fell down on the track, but he soon rose to his feet and limped to the finish line.
5. The original version of the story goes like this (Or: As the original version of the story goes), the assistant coach rose to fame / became famous overnight by leading his team to conquer Cuba.
6. Some sportsmen confessed that they had taken dope in the name of improving / enhancing performance, and that their coaches showed no disagreement with such illegal acts.
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