?Youth is a state of mind

By Samuel Ullman

李池紅（譯）

◆語篇導(dǎo)讀

青春是什么？它不是階段，而是心境；它不是粉妝玉砌，而是深沉的意志；它不是人云亦云，而是恢宏的想象；它不是枯藤老樹，而是炙熱的情感。它是轟轟烈烈執(zhí)著的追求，它是生命盎然的涌流！

Youth is not a time of life, it is a state of mind. It is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and soft knees. It is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a hope of the feeling, it is the freshness of the deep springs of life.

Youth means atemperamental predominanceof courage overtimidity, of the thought for adventure over the love of ease. This often exists in a man of sixty more than a boy of twenty. Nobody grows old only by a number of years and we grow old by giving up our ideals.

Years maywrinklethe skin, but to give upenthusiasmwrinkles the soul. Worry, fear and no confidence bow the heart and turn the spirit back to dust. Whether sixty or sixteen, in every human being's heart, there are some thoughts of wonder, the unfailing child-like knowing about what's next, and the joy of the game of living.

In the center of your heart and my heart, there is a wireless station. So long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage and power from men and from theinfinite, you and I are always young.When they are down, your spirit is covered with snows ofcynicismand the ice of disappointment. Then you are grown old, even at twenty, but as long as your lines are up, to catch the waves of happiness, there is hope you may be young at eighty.

◆詞語積淀

temperamental /?tempr??mentl/ adj. 氣質(zhì)的；性情的

predominance /pr??d?m?n?ns/ n.（數(shù)量上的）優(yōu)勢；主導(dǎo)地位

timidity /t??m?d?ti/ n. 膽怯；羞怯

ease /i:z/ n. 安逸；容易

wrinkle /?r??kl/ v.（使臉上）起皺紋；皺起

enthusiasm /?n?θju?zi?z?m/ n. 熱情；熱忱；熱心

infinite /??nf?n?t / n. 無限的事實；無窮盡的事物

cynicism /?s?n?s?z?m/ n. 玩世不恭

◆典句賞析

1.Nobody grows old only by a number of years and we grow old by giving up our ideals.沒有人僅僅因為時光的流逝而變得衰老，只有放棄理想才會日益衰老。

nobody在這里作不定代詞，意為“沒有人”，只能指人，不能指物，作主語時謂語動詞要用單數(shù)形式，近義詞是no one；a number of是固定詞組，意為“許多；若干”，后面接可數(shù)名詞的復(fù)數(shù)或代詞。該短語作主語時，謂語動詞要用復(fù)數(shù)形式。

【即時嘗試】目前沒有人知道怎樣解決這個問題。

2.Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.歲月可能讓皮膚長出皺紋，但喪失熱情則會讓心靈起皺。

這是含有情態(tài)動詞may的句子，故實義動詞要用原形；動詞不定式短語to give up...作句子的主語，該短語也可以用動名詞短語giving up...的形式來代替。無論動詞不定式短語還是動名詞短語作主語，謂語動詞均用單數(shù)形式。

【即時嘗試】駕駛這輛車可能讓我有點緊張。

3.Whether sixty or sixteen, in every human being's heart, there are some thoughts of wonder...無論是六旬老人還是十六歲少年，每個人的心都會被新奇事物所吸引……

whether在這里作連詞，意為“不管；無論”，引導(dǎo)讓步狀語從句，句中省略了you are。

【即時嘗試】不論你來還是留在家中，我都要去。

4.When they are down, your spirit is covered with snows of cynicism and the ice of disappointment.一旦這天線坍塌，你的心靈被玩世不恭的寒雪和悲觀絕望的冰霜所覆蓋。

be covered with是固定詞組，意為“被……覆蓋”，屬于被動語態(tài)形式；when作連詞引導(dǎo)時間狀語從句。

【即時嘗試】秋天，公園里的地面上覆蓋著一些樹葉。

(答案見第63頁)

譯文助讀

青春不是人生的一個階段，而是一種心態(tài)。青春并非桃面、丹唇和柔膝，而是堅強的意志、理性的思維，是情感活動中的一股勃勃朝氣，是生命的深泉在涌流。

青春意味著一種勇猛的氣質(zhì)優(yōu)勢，蓋過怯弱，渴求冒險壓倒安逸。六旬男子比二十歲的小伙子更多地?fù)碛腥绱虽J氣。沒有人僅僅因為時光的流逝而變得衰老，只有放棄理想才會日益衰老。

歲月可能讓皮膚長出皺紋，但喪失熱情則會讓心靈起皺。憂慮、恐懼、喪失自信，只會讓人心靈扭曲、意氣如灰。無論是六旬老人還是十六歲少年，每個人的心都會被新奇事物所吸引，都對未來之事和人生競爭中的歡樂懷著孩子般無窮無盡的渴望。

在你我心靈的深處都有一座無線電臺。只要它不停地從人群中、從無限的時空中接收美的信息，接收充滿希望、激勵、勇氣和力量的信息，你我就會永葆青春。一旦這天線坍塌，你的心靈被玩世不恭的寒雪和悲觀絕望的冰霜所覆蓋，即使你年方二十，也已衰老。但是如果天線始終矗立在你的心中，捕捉著每一個快樂向上的電波，那么你就有希望在八十歲的年紀(jì)仍有一顆年輕的心。