每年的5月8號是VE ( Victory in Europe Day)。昨天是75th anniversary of Victory in Europe(二戰歐洲勝利75周年紀念日). 75年前,伊莉莎白女王的父親喬治六世發表了歷史性的講話,標誌著第二次世界大戰的結束。75年後,昨天,女王發表了動人的全國講話。伊莉莎白女王在溫莎城堡(Windsor Castle)發表講話時,將戰時的那一代人與目前面臨冠狀病毒(coronavirus)大流行挑戰的人進行了比較。她說,她為人們有決心克服這一困難而感到自豪。
名人演講特別是賞讀如何恰當用詞是學習寫作詞彙積累和語言運用能力提升最好的方法之一。下面分享美文用詞賞讀,The Queen's speech in full on VE Day---女王的演講全文如下,附漢語翻譯:
"I speak to you today at the same hour as my father did, exactly 75 years ago. His message then was a salute to the men and women at home and abroad who had sacrificed so much in pursuit of what he rightly called a 'great deliverance'.
「戰爭是一場全面的戰爭;它影響了所有人,沒有人能倖免。無論男女都被召去服兵役;家庭彼此分離;或者人們被要求扮演新的角色和技能來支持戰爭的努力,所有人都發揮了作用。
"The war had been a total war; it had affected everyone, and no one was immune from its impact. Whether it be the men and women called up to serve; families separated from each other; or people asked to take up new roles and skills to support the war effort, all had a part to play.「
"At the start, the outlook seemed bleak, the end distant, the outcome uncertain. But we kept faith that the cause was right - and this belief, as my father noted in his broadcast, carried us through.
Never give up, never despair - that was the message of VE Day. I vividly remember the jubilant scenes my sister and I witnessed with our parents and Winston Churchill from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
「外面和全國各地聚集的人群中洋溢著深深的喜悅,雖然我們在慶祝歐洲的勝利,但我們知道還會有更多的犧牲。」直到8月,遠東地區的戰鬥才停止戰爭終於結束了。
"The sense of joy in the crowds who gathered outside and across the country was profound, though while we celebrated the victory in Europe, we knew there would be further sacrifice. It was not until August that fighting in the Far East ceased and the war finally ended.
Many people laid down their lives in that terrible conflict. They fought so we could live in peace, at home and abroad. They died so we could live as free people in a world of free nations. They risked all so our families and neighbourhoods could be safe. We should and will remember them.「
當我現在回想起我父親的話和歡樂的慶祝活動時,我們中的一些人親身經歷過,我感謝聯合王國、大英國協和我們所有的盟友表現出的力量和勇氣。戰時的那一代人知道,紀念那些沒有從戰爭中歸來的人的最好辦法,就是確保這種事不再發生。
"As I now reflect on my father's words and the joyous celebrations, which some of us experienced first-hand, I am thankful for the strength and courage that the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and all our allies displayed. The wartime generation knew that the best way to honour those who did not come back from the war, was to ensure that it didn't happen again.
"The greatest tribute to their sacrifice is that countries who were once sworn enemies are now friends, working side by side for the peace, health and prosperity of us all.
Today it may seem hard that we cannot mark this special anniversary as we would wish. Instead we remember from our homes and our doorsteps. But our streets are not empty; they are filled with the love and the care that we have for each other.
"And when I look at our country today, and see what we are willing to do to protect and support one another, I say with pride that we are still a nation those brave soldiers, sailors and airmen would recognise and admire. I send my warmest good wishes to you all."
註明:圖片及英文均來源於網絡,若侵權請告知作者刪除!