Abraham Lincoln　　亞伯拉罕·林肯　　亞伯拉罕·林肯（1809—1865），出生在肯塔基州哈丁縣一個(gè)清貧的農(nóng)民家庭，他的童年是“一部貧窮的簡(jiǎn)明編年史”。在青年時(shí)代，林肯通過自學(xué)使自己成為一個(gè)博學(xué)而充滿智慧的人。1860年，林肯成為共和黨的總統(tǒng)候選人，11月，選舉揭曉，他以200萬票當(dāng)選為美國(guó)第16任總統(tǒng)。他信仰人人平等，領(lǐng)導(dǎo)美國(guó)南北戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)走向全面勝利，并頒布了《解放黑人奴隸宣言》，維護(hù)了美聯(lián)邦統(tǒng)一，為美國(guó)在19世紀(jì)躍居世界頭號(hào)工業(yè)強(qiáng)國(guó)開辟了道路，被稱為“偉大的解放者”�！　�Abraham Lincoln was born in 1809 in a log cabin① to very humble， uneducated parents； he did grow up in a backwoods settlement that was virtually a wilderness； there， beginning at the age of seven， he did help his father to hew a farm out of that wilderness with an axe； with the benefit of only a few months of schooling， he did study diligently on his own to acquire basic skills in reading and writing； as a young man out on his own and working at menial jobs， he did teach himself from books such subjects as English grammar， sufficient mathematics to learn surveying， and enough law to enter the legal profession at the age of 27. And， of course， he did perform triumphantly in the United States’ most severe crisis， saving his country from dissolution， presiding over the destruction of slavery， and dying an authentic American martyr②.　　亞伯拉罕·林肯1809年出生于一戶貧困人家的小木屋里，父親母親都沒怎么上過學(xué)。林肯自幼在野地里長(zhǎng)大，長(zhǎng)到7歲時(shí)，開始幫助父親在村中做一些砍伐的活計(jì)。幼年的林肯從僅有的幾個(gè)月上學(xué)時(shí)間里刻苦習(xí)得了基本的讀寫能力。逐漸長(zhǎng)大后，小伙子開始自食其力，做一些體力活，并通過讀書自學(xué)了英語文法、基本算數(shù)技能，并由此掌握測(cè)量調(diào)查的學(xué)問。其法律知識(shí)更是自學(xué)成才，到27歲時(shí)林肯已能通過法律專業(yè)的考核。正是他帶領(lǐng)全美人民度過了最嚴(yán)峻的國(guó)難危機(jī)，拯救國(guó)家于分裂之中，主持廢除了奴隸制度，不愧是一位美國(guó)本土的國(guó)家英雄。　　A Mind Ripe for Learning　　From the very beginning， Abraham Lincoln was different， and in a way that many of hisneighbors—and especially his father—did not approve. Unlike almost everyone else he grew　　up with， Lincoln was intensely interested in words and meanings. He learned to read and writeat a very early age， actively seeking out books to borrow and taking notes on what he read.When he left home and struck out on his own at the age of 22， Lincoln settled in thesmall village of New Salem， Illinois， where he spent six eventful years. Unprepossessing① inappearance， he was frequently described as gawky② and ill-dressed， but the other residents soon discovered he had many assets. In addition to being intelligent and surprisingly well informed， he was unusually good-natured and friendly. He excelled in popular athletic contests such as running， jumping， and throwing weights； he was unusually strong and a nearly unbeatable wrestler； and though he did not drink， he was convivial③ and had great ability as a storyteller. He was thus well liked.　　Supporting himself with a variety of jobs， Lincoln studied assiduously during his New Salem years to make up for his lack of formal education， of which he remained painfully conscious all his life. Borrowing books wherever he could， he studied history and biography， and he displayed an eager appetite for literature， being particularly fond of Shakespeare and of the Scottish poet Robert Burns.　　年少發(fā)奮　　林肯從小就是個(gè)另類，行為處事之不尋常讓許多鄰居都難以接受，尤其是他的父親，更是頗為不滿。與眾多同伴不同，幼年的林肯對(duì)于文字與語義表現(xiàn)出極大的興趣，小小年紀(jì)就學(xué)會(huì)了識(shí)字、寫字，還積極尋找圖書，借來閱讀，讀完還寫讀書筆記�！　�22歲時(shí)，林肯離家獨(dú)自闖蕩，在伊利諾伊州一處名叫新塞勒姆的小村子里定居下來，在此度過6年的時(shí)光。由于外表不招人喜歡，林肯常常被人笑為怪人，但還是有許多鄰居很快發(fā)現(xiàn)了他身上諸多的閃光點(diǎn)。他不僅聰明伶俐，還上知天文、下曉地理，除此之外，心地善良，待人十分友好。大眾流行的體育運(yùn)動(dòng)他都擅長(zhǎng)，跑步、跳高、投擲等，無所不能。他身體也非常結(jié)實(shí)，是個(gè)摔跤能手。盡管他不喝酒，卻能在酒宴上制造歡樂的氣氛，他還是個(gè)講故事的好手。如此，人們都喜歡同他來往�！　∧嵌稳兆永�，林肯同時(shí)打幾份工來維持生計(jì)。但他從未停止過對(duì)于學(xué)習(xí)的熱情，在新塞姆村居位的時(shí)光里他一直孜孜不倦，以彌補(bǔ)自己沒有接受過正規(guī)教育的遺憾。這一遺憾整整伴隨了他的一生。無論何時(shí)，只要有機(jī)會(huì)，他就借書來讀，鉆研歷史知識(shí)、研讀人物傳記，還對(duì)文學(xué)表現(xiàn)出極大的熱情，尤其鐘愛莎士比亞和蘇格蘭詩(shī)人羅伯特·彭斯�！　�As a Member of Congress　　Before his first year in New Salem was out， he declared himself a candidate for the state legislature， but failed. When he ran again at the next election， he won handily， and served four successive terms. In his second term， in spite of being one of the youngest legislators， he was chosen as his Whig Party’s floor leader， an honor that reflected his effectiveness as a speaker， his energy， and his organizational and leadership abilities.　　At about the time of his marriage， Lincoln declined to run for a fifth term in the state legislature and began angling for election to the U.S. Congress. When he finally succeeded and took his seat in the House of Representatives in December 1847， the Mexican War was coming to a victorious conclusion， and Lincoln lost no time in joining other Whig members in attacking President James K. Polk for unconstitutionally① provoking an unjust war for the purpose of acquiring new territory.　　This earned Lincoln considerable criticism back home， where the war was very popular. Even as Lincoln contradicted his pro-war Democratic constituents② on a matter of principle， he offended some of his fellow Whigs with his practicality. So when Lincoln’s congressional term was over， he was denied as the head of the General Land Office.　　As his brief congressional career ended， Lincoln returned to Illinois， his political ambitions frustrated. With this greater attention to his legal profession， Lincoln’s skill and reputation as a lawyer rose， and his firm gained a prominent position in the Illinois bar. He was “l(fā)osing interest in politics，” he said of this period. But as the slavery issue heated up in the 1850s， Lincoln’s long-standing affi nity① for political controversy unexpectedly revived.　　……