全新版大學(xué)英語綜合教程第二冊單元8課文解讀
導(dǎo)語：保護(hù)自然肯定是有好處的，但也需要成本，怎樣權(quán)衡利弊呢，下面是一篇關(guān)于保護(hù)環(huán)境的英語課文，歡迎大家學(xué)習(xí)。
Protecting Our Environment
Part I Pre-Reading Task
Listen to the recording two or three times and then think over the following questions:
1. What kind of paradise is described in the song?
2. Why do people have to pay to see the trees?
3. What would happen if farmers continued to use DDT?
4. What is the theme of the song?
The following words in the recording may be new to you:
pink
a. 粉紅色的
boutique
n. 時(shí)裝店
hot spot
n. (sl.) nightclub 夜總會
insect
n. 昆蟲
Part II
Text
Protecting nature certainly has benefits, but it has costs as well. How are we to balance the two when deciding how far we should go in caring for the environment?
SAVING NATURE, BUT ONLY FOR MAN
Charles Krauthammer
Environmental sensitivity is now as required an attitude in polite society as is, belief in democracy or aversion to nylon. But now that everyone has claims to love Mother Earth, how are we to choose among the dozens of conflicting proposals, restrictions, projects, regulations and laws advanced in the name of the environment? Clearly not everything with an environmental claim is worth doing. How to choose?
There is a simple way. First, distinguish between environmental luxuries and environmental necessities. Luxuries are those things it would be nice to have if costless. Necessities are those things we must have regardless. Then apply a rule. Call it the fundamental principle of sensible environmentalism: Combating ecological change that directly threatens the health and safety of people is an environmental necessity. All else is luxury.
For example: preserving the atmosphere, by both protecting the ozone layer and halting the greenhouse effect, is an environmental necessity. In April scientists reported that ozone damage is far worse than previously thought. Ozone reduction not only causes skin cancer and eye cataracts, it also destroys plankton, the beginning of the food chain on top of which we humans sit.
The reality of the greenhouse effect is more speculative, though its possible consequences are far deadlier: melting ice caps, flooded coastlines, disturbed climate, dried up plains and, ultimately, empty breadbaskets. The American Midwest feeds the world. Are we prepared to see Iowa acquire Albuquerque's climate? And Siberia acquire Iowa's?
Ozone reduction and the greenhouse effect are human disasters. They happen to occur in the environment. But they are urgent because they directly threaten man. A sensible environmentalism, the only kind of environmentalism that will win universal public support, begins by unashamedly declaring that nature is here to serve man. A sensible environmentalism is entirely man-centered: it calls for man to preserve nature, but on the grounds of self-preservation.
A sensible environmentalism does not sentimentalize the earth. It does not ask people to sacrifice in the name of other creatures. After all, it is hard enough to ask people to sacrifice in the name of other humans. (Think of the public resistance to foreign aid and welfare.) Ask hardworking voters to sacrifice in the name of the snail darter, and, if they are feeling polite, they will give you a shrug.
Of course, this man-centeredness runs against the grain of a contemporary environmentalism that worships the earth to the point of excess. One scientific theory — Gaia theory — actually claims that Earth is a living organism. This kind of environmentalism likes to consider itself spiritual. It is nothing more than sentimental. It takes, for example, a highly selective view of the kindliness of nature. My nature worship stops with the May storms that killed more than 125,000 Bengalis and left 10 million homeless.
A non-sentimental environmentalism is one founded on Protagoras' principle that "Man is the measure of all things." Such a principle helps us to fight our way through the jungle of environmental argument. Take the current debate raging over oil drilling in a corner of the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. Environmentalists, fighting against a bill working its way through Congress to permit such exploration, argue that we should be conserving energy instead of drilling for it. This is a false either/or proposition. The country does need a substantial energy tax to reduce consumption. But it needs more production too. Government estimates indicate a nearly fifty-fifty chance that under the ANWR lies one of the five largest oil fields ever discovered in America.
We have just come through a war fought in part over oil: Energy dependence costs Americans not just dollars but lives. It is a ridiculous sentimentalism that would deny ourselves oil that is peacefully attainable because it risks disrupting the breeding grounds of Arctic reindeer.
I like the reindeer as much as the next man. And I would be rather sorry if their mating patterns are disturbed. But you can't have everything. And if the choice is between the welfare of reindeer and reducing oil dependence that gets people killed in wars, I choose man over reindeer every time.
Similarly the spotted owl. I am no enemy of the owl. If it could be preserved at no or little cost, I would agree: the variety of nature is a good, a high aesthetic good. But it is no more than that. And sometimes aesthetic goods have to be sacrificed to the more fundamental ones. If the cost of preserving the spotted owl is the loss of livelihood for 30,000 logging families, I choose family over owl.
The important distinction is between those environmental goods that are fundamental and those that are merely aesthetic. Nature is our charge. It is not our master. It is to be respected and even cultivated. But it is man's world. And when man has to choose between his well-being and that of nature, nature will have to accommodate.
Man should accommodate only when his fate and that of nature are bound up together. The most urgent accommodation must be made when the very integrity of man's environment — e.g., atmospheric ozone — is threatened. When the threat to man is of a lesser order (say, the pollutants from coal- and oil-fired generators that cause death from disease but not fatal damage to the ecosystem), a more moderate accommodation that balances economic against health concerns is in order. But in either case the principle is the same: protect the environment — because it is man's environment.
The sentimental environmentalists will call this saving nature with a totally wrong frame of mind. Exactly. A sensible — a humanistic — environmentalism does it not for nature's sake but for our own.
New Words and Expressions
environmental
a. (自然)環(huán)境的
environment n.
sensitivity
n. 敏感(性)
belief
n. 信念，信仰;相信
democracy
n. 民主(制度)
conflicting
a. being in disagreement, collision, or opposition 不一致的，沖突的，矛盾的
conflict vi.
proposal
n. sth. proposed 提議，建議
restriction
n. sth. that restricts, such as a law or rule 限制;限制性規(guī)定
regulation
n. an official rule or order 規(guī)章;規(guī)定
in the name of
for the reason of; using the excuse of 以…為由，以…為借口，以…的名義
distinguish
v. recognize the difference (between) 區(qū)別，辨別
regardless
ad. in spite of everything; anyway 不顧一切地;無論如何
fundamental
a. of the basis or foundation of sth. 基本的，根本的
environmentalism
n. 環(huán)境保護(hù)論;環(huán)境論
combat
v. fight or struggle (against) (與…)斗爭，戰(zhàn)斗
ecological
a. of ecology 生態(tài)的;生態(tài)學(xué)的
atmosphere
n. 大氣;氣氛
ozone▲
n. 臭氧
layer
n. a single thickness of a material covering a surface 層
reduction
n. making or becoming less or smaller 減少
cancer
n. 癌，惡性腫瘤
cataract
n. 白內(nèi)障
plankton
n. 浮游生物
reality
n. 現(xiàn)實(shí);真實(shí)
speculative
a. 猜測性的，推測的
consequence
n. the result or effect of an action or condition 后果，結(jié)果
deadly
a. causing or able to cause fatal injury or serious damage 致命的，毀滅性的
melt
v. (cause a solid to) become liquid (使)融化，(使)熔化
urgent
a. calling for immediate attention 緊急的;急迫的
universal
a. 全世界的;普遍的，全體的
unashamedly
ad. without showing guilt or embarrassment 坦然地，滿不在乎地
man-centered
a. 以人為中心的，只考慮人類的利益的
call for
require, demand 要求
on the grounds of/on…grounds
for reasons of 因?yàn)?以…為理由
self-preservation
n. 自我保護(hù)
sentimentalize
vt. treat or consider in a sentimental way 感情用事地對待(或看待)
creature
n. a living being, especially an animal 生物(尤指動(dòng)物)
resistance
n. opposition 反對，反抗
voter
n. 投票者，(法定)選舉人
vote
v. express one's choice in favour of (a person or political party) at an election 投票選舉
snail darter
n. 蝸牛魚(一種瀕臨絕種的很小的淡水魚)
run/go against the grain (of sth. or to do sth.)
be contrary to one's inclination, desire, or feeling 與(…)格格不入;違反意愿(做某事)
contemporary
a. current; modern 當(dāng)代的，現(xiàn)代的
worship
n., vt. 崇拜;崇敬
to the point of
to a degree that can be described as 達(dá)到…的程度
excess
n. more than the reasonable degree or amount 過節(jié)，無節(jié)制
organism
n. 生物體，有機(jī)體
spiritual
a. of the spirit as opposed to matter 精神的;非物質(zhì)的
nothing more than
just the same as; only 無異于;只不過，僅僅
sentimental
a. 感情用事的;多愁善感的
selective
a. of or characterized by selection 選擇的;有選擇性的
Bengali
n., a. 孟加拉人(的);孟加拉語(的);孟加拉的
jungle
n. 雜亂無章的事物;(熱帶)叢林
current
a. occurring in or existing at the present time 當(dāng)前的，現(xiàn)在的
debate
n. 辯論;爭論
rage
vi. continue with great force; be intense 激烈地進(jìn)行
wildlife
n. wild animals and vegetation, especially animals living in a natural state (總稱)野生動(dòng)物(尤指野生動(dòng)物)
refuge▲
n. a place providing protection or shelter 庇護(hù)所;避難處
work one's way
manage to reach or go through; make efforts to attain one's goal 設(shè)法抵達(dá)(或獲得通過);努力達(dá)到目標(biāo)
congress
n. 國會;立法機(jī)關(guān);代表大會
exploration
n. the act or an instance of exploring 勘查，探測;探索
conserve▲
vt. protect from loss or harm; preserve 保護(hù);保存
either/or
a. 只能兩者擇其一的`
proposition▲
n. 提議;命題
consumption
n. the act of consuming; the amount consumed 消費(fèi)(量)
come through
experience, survive or overcome (a difficulty, etc.) 經(jīng)歷;從(…中)活下來(或挺過來)
in part
to some extent; partly 在某種程度上;部分地
dependence
n. the state of being dependent 依靠，依賴
ridiculous
a. absurd 可笑的，荒謬的
sentimentalism
n. 感情用事;多愁善感，感傷主義
deny
vt. refuse to grant or allow 不給;不準(zhǔn)
attainable
a. that can be reached or achieved 可達(dá)到的;可得到的
attain
vt. 達(dá)到;取得
disrupt▲
vt. throw into confusion or disorder 使陷于混亂;干擾
breeding ground
動(dòng)物繁殖的地方
breed (bred)
v. bear, produce (young) (使)繁殖;產(chǎn)(后代)
reindeer
n. (單復(fù)同)馴鹿
Arctic
a., n. 北級(的)，北極圈(的)
mate
v. (使)交配
similarly
ad. in a similar way 同樣地，相同地
owl▲
n. 貓頭鷹
aesthetic▲
a. 美學(xué)的;美感的;美的
livelihood
n. a means of living 生計(jì)
logging
n. 伐木業(yè)
log
v. cut down, trim, and haul (timber) 砍伐;伐(木)
distinction
n. difference 區(qū)別，差別
charge
n. a person or thing committed to the care of another 被照管的人(或事物)
well-being
n. the state of being healthy, happy, or prosperous 幸福;福祉
accommodate▲
vi. adapt 適應(yīng)新的情況;遷就
vt. 容納，向…提供住處;協(xié)調(diào)
accommodation n.
fate
n. 命運(yùn)，結(jié)局
bind (bound)
vt. tie or fasten; tie together 捆，綁;將…綁在一起
e.g. (abbr.)
for example 例如
atmospheric
a. of, relating to, or existing in the atmosphere 大氣的
threat
n. 威脅
lesser
a. smaller in amount, value, or importance 較小的，更少的，次要的
pollutant
n. something that pollutes 污染物
generator
n. 發(fā)電機(jī)
fatal
a. causing death; bringing ruin 致命的;毀滅性的
ecosystem
n. 生態(tài)系統(tǒng)
moderate
a. not extreme; within sensible limits 適中的;適度的
concern
n. 有利害關(guān)系的事，關(guān)心的事，擔(dān)擾
frame
n. state, condition; basic structure around which sth. is built 狀態(tài);框架，構(gòu)架
frame of mind
mental attitude or outlook 心緒;心境
humanistic
a. of humanism or humanists 人本主義的，人文主義的
Proper Names
Charles Krauthammer
杰爾斯·克勞特哈默
Midwest
美國中西部
Lowa
(美國)愛荷華州
Albuquerque
阿爾伯克基(美國新墨西哥州城市)
Siberia
西伯利亞(俄羅斯一地區(qū))
Gaia
(希神)蓋亞(大地女神)
Protagoras
普羅泰戈拉 (c.481 — c.411 B.C.，古希臘哲學(xué)家)
Alaska
(美國)阿拉斯加州
Language sense Enhancement
1. Read aloud paragraphs 1-5 and learn them by heart.
2. Read aloud the following poem:
The Beauty of Nature
James Teh
One cool evening, I put aside all duty,
To sit alone, watching the sun set,
And as I do, I think of scenes filled with beauty,
Scenes I wish to never forget.
I think of the beach, with the sand and the sea,
The waves roaring up, then gently lapping the beach,
The cries of the seagulls, so happy, so free,
It only men realized the lesson it can teach.
I think of a lake, the crystal clear water,
So pure, so smooth, and cool on my skin,
The air, so clean, no toxic slaughter,
There's a key, a lesson held within.
I think of a waterfall, water freely flowing,
The gentle gush, gurgling in my ears,
The wind on my face, calmly blowing,
So many have not learnt in so many years.
The sunset, the beach, the lake, the waterfall,
They're things of nature, not man-made at all,
Characteristics unbeatable by man have they all,
They're peace and beauty, both of which it seems men want to fall.
3. Read the following quotations. Learn them by heart if you can. You might need to look up new words in a dictionary.
Complete adaptation to environment means death. The essential point in all response is the desire to control environment.
—— John Dewey
We won't have a society if we destroy the environment.
—— Margaret Mead
We make the world we live in and shape our own environment.
—— Orison Swett Marden
When man is happy, he is in harmony with himself and his environment.
—— Oscar Wilde
4.Read the following joke for fun:
Man: how many environmentalists does it take to change a light bulb?
Woman: Ten. One to install the new bulb and nine to figure out what to do with the discarded bulb for the next 10,000 years.
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