偶像勵志英語演講23:失敗的好處和想象的重要性(5)

Now, I am not going to stand here and tell you that failure is fun. That period of my life was a dark one, and I had no idea that there was going to be what the press has since represented as a kind of fairy tale resolution. I had no idea then how far the tunnel extended, and for a long time, any light at the end of it was a hope rather than a reality.

現(xiàn)在，我不打算站在這里告訴你們失敗是有趣的。那段日子是我生命中的黑暗歲月，我不知道我會寫出被新聞界稱為“童話故事的革命”的作品。我也不知道自己還要在黑暗中走多久，不知道還要過多久才能看到希望的光芒而不是現(xiàn)實的黑暗。

So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finshing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had already been realised, and I was still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.

那么我為什么要談論失敗的收益呢?很簡單，因為失敗意味著剔除那些無關緊要的東西。因此我不再偽裝自己，我把所有的精力傾注在對我來說最重要的事情上。如果我真的在其他領域取得了成功，或許我永遠都不會下定決心在我確信真正發(fā)于我的舞臺上取得成功。我得到了解脫，因為雖然我最害怕的事情已經發(fā)生了，但我還活著，還有一個我深愛著的女兒，一臺舊打字機和一個了不起的想法。所以人生的低俗是我重新開始生活的堅實基礎。

You might never fail on the scale I did, but some failure in life is inevitable. It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all--in which case, you fail by default.

你們也許不會敗得像我這么慘，但人生中有些失敗是不可避免的。人生中不可能沒有失敗，除非你們活得過于謹慎，這樣倒還不如根本沒在世上活過，因為在這種情況下，放棄嘗試的權利就是你們最大的失敗。

Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way. I discovered that I had a strong will, and more discipline than I had suspected; I also found out that I had friends whose value was truly above the price of rubies.

失敗賦予我內心一種安全感。這種安全感是我無法從通過考試中獲得的。失敗讓我了解了自己，這也是無法通過其他途徑做到的。經歷失敗讓我發(fā)現(xiàn)我有堅強的意志力，比我想象的更有自律性。我還發(fā)現(xiàn)，我擁有比寶石更加珍貴的朋友。

重點講解：

1. strip away

剝去;剝下;揭去;

eg. Sensitive Cream will not strip away the skin's protective layer.

敏感肌膚專用面霜不會破壞皮膚表面的保護層。

eg. It is difficult to strip away the greasy dirt on the table.

要除去桌上的油污太難了。

2. set free

釋放;解放;

eg. The general directed that the prisoners should be set free.

將軍命令釋放囚犯。

eg. The final verdict were inspiring. Irene were set free.

最初的裁定是鼓舞人心的，艾琳自由了。

3. rock bottom

最低點;最低水平;低谷;非常糟糕的狀態(tài);極度沮喪的處境;

eg. Prices have hit rock bottom.

價格跌到了谷底。

eg. She was at rock bottom. Her long-term love affair was breaking up and so was she.

她整個人跌至了谷底。她漫長的愛情要告結束了，她也要崩潰了。

4. might as well

只好(做);(做…)也無妨;

eg. Anyway, you're here; you might as well stay.

反正你已經在這兒了，那就留下來吧。

eg. I'll come with you if you like. I might as well.

如果你想的話，我會和你在一起來。我無所謂。

5. by default

(事情的發(fā)生)自動地(因可能阻止或改變結果之事未發(fā)生);

eg. Spassky won the first game, and was awarded by the second by default, when Fischer failed to put in an appearance.

斯帕斯基贏了第一局，又因菲舍爾第二局未能上場而再勝一局。

eg. It's hard to get money. It's not the sort of thing that happens by default.

獲得資金并不容易，它不是那種你不作為就會發(fā)生的事情。