Unit04Themaninthewater译文
Unit04Themaninthewater译文
Lesson SixText A水里那个人The Man in the Water和一般灾难相比，这次灾难非常可怕，但并不特殊，肯定也不是美国有记录的最悲惨的堕机事件之一。
As disasters go, this one was terrible, but not unique, certainly not among the worst U. S. air crashes on record.当然，不同寻常的有那座桥，还有飞机是在交通高峰期撞到桥上。
另外，还有这个事件发生的地点。
There was the unusual element of the bridge, of course, and the fact that the plane hit it at a moment of high traffic. Then, too, there was the location of the event.华盛顿这个布局合理、井然有序的城市，由于寒冬一阵突如其来的强劲气流和金属之间的剧烈碰撞而陷入混乱之中。
Washington, the city of form and rules, turned chaotic by a blast of real winter and a single slap of metal on metal.从华盛顿国家机场起飞的喷气客机，通常会像饥饿的海鸥一样绕着总统纪念建筑物飞过。
眼下，这架坠落的飞机成了它们的代表。
The jets from Washington National Airport that normally fly around the presidential monuments like hungry gulls are, for the moment represented by the one that fell.而且还有给人以美感的撞击——蓝绿相间的佛罗里达航空公司（“佛罗里达航空公司”字面意思是“飞翔的花园”）的飞机，沉入了黑色的河流中，被灰色的巨大冰块所包围。
the man in the water课文原文带段落
The Man in the Water1.As disasters go, this one was terrible, but not unique, certainly not among the worst of the roster of U.S. air crashes. There was the unusual element of the bridge, of course, and the fact that the plane hit it at a moment of high traffic. Then, too, there was the location of the event. Washington, the city of form and rules, turned chaotic by a blast of real winter and a single slap of metal on metal. The jets from Washington National Airport that normally fly around the presidential monuments like hungry gulls are, for the moment, represented by the one that fell. And there was the aesthetic clash as well—blue-and-green Air Florida, the name a flying garden, sunk down among gray chunks of ice in a black river. All that was worth noticing, to be sure. Still, there was nothing very special in any of it, except death, which, while always special, does not necessarily bring millions to tears or to attention. Why, then, the shock here?2.Perhaps because the nation saw in this disaster something more than a mechanical failure. Perhaps because people saw in it no failure at all, but rather something successful about themselves. Here, after all, were two forms of nature in collision: the elements and human character. Last Wednesday. the elements, indifferent as ever, brought down Flight 90. And on that same afternoon, human nature—groping and struggling —rose to the occasion.3.Of the four acknowledged heroes of the event, three are able to account for their behavior. Donald Usher and Eugene Windsor, a park police helicopter team, risked their lives every time they dipped the skids into the water to pick up survivors. On television, side by side, they described their courage as all in the line of duty. Lenny Skutnik, a 28-year-old employee of the Congressional Budget Office, said: “It’s something I never thought I would do”—referring to his jumping into the water to drag an injured woman to shore. Skutnik added that “somebody had to go in the water,”delivering every hero’s line that is no less admirable for being repeated. In fact, nobody had to go into the water. That somebody actually did so is part of the reason this particular tragedy sticks in the mind.4. But the person most responsible for the emotional impact of the disaster is the one known at first simply as “the man in the water.”Balding, probably in his 50s, a huge mustache. He was seen clinging with five other survivors to the tail section of the airplane. This man was described by Usher and Windsor as appearing alert and in control. Every time they lowered a lifeline and flotation ring to him, he passed it on to another of the passengers. “In a mass casualty, you’ll find people like him.”said Windsor. “But I’ve never seen one with that commitment.”When the helicopter came back for him, the man had gone under. His selflessness was one reason the story held national attention; his anonymity another. The fact that he went unidentified gave him with a universal character. For a while he was Everyman, and thus proof (as if one needed it) that no man is ordinary.5.Still, he could never have imagined such a capacity in himself. Only minutes before his character was tested, he was sitting in the ordinary plane among the ordinary passengers, dutifully listening to the stewardess telling him to fasten his seat belt and saying something about the “no smoking sign.”So our man relaxed with the others, some of whom would owe their lives to him. Perhaps he started to read, or to doze, or to regret some harsh remark made in the office that morning. Then suddenly he knew that the trip would not be ordinary. Like every other person on that flight, he was desperate to live, which makes his final act so stunning.6.For at some moment in the water he must have realized that he would not live if hecontinued to hand over the rope and ring to others. He had to know it, no matter how gradual the effect of the cold. He felt he had no choice. When the helicopter took off with what was to be the last survivor, he watched everything in the world move away from him, and he let it happen.7.Yet there was something else about our man that kept our thoughts on him, and which keeps our thoughts on him still. He was there, in the essential, classic circumstance. Man in nature. The man in the water. For its part, nature cared nothing about the five passengers. Our man, on the other hand, cared totally. So age-old battle began again in the Potomac. For as long as that man could last, they went at each other, nature and man; the one making no distinctions of good and evil, acting on no principles, offering no lifelines; the other acting wholly on distinctions, principles and, perhaps, on faith.8.Since it was he who lost the fight, we ought to come again to the conclusion that people are powerless in the world. In reality, we believe the opposite, and it takes the act of the man in the water to remind us of our true feelings in this matter. It is not to say that everyone would have acted as he did, or as Usher, Windsor and Skutnik. Yet whatever moved these men to challenge death on behalf of their fellows is not peculiar to them. Everyone feels the possibility in himself. That is the enduring wonder of the story. That is why we would not let go of it. If the man in the water gave a lifeline to the people gasping for survival, he was likewise giving a lifeline to those who watched him.9.The odd thing is that we do not even really believe that the man in the water lost his fight. “Everything in Nature contains all the powers of Nature.”said Emerson. Exactly. The man In the water had his own natural powers. He could not make ice storms, or freeze the water until it froze the blood. But he could hand life over to a stranger, and that is a power of nature too. The man in the water set himself against an immovable, impersonal enemy; he fought it with kindness and he held it to a standoff. He was the best we can do.。
The Man in the Water译文教学提纲
T h e M a n i n t h e W a t e r译文The Man in the Water (课文翻译)跟人类所经历的其他灾难相比，这次算得上是相当严重，但并不是史无前例的，确切的说，算不上美国历史上最严重的空难。
当然，这次灾难也有与众不同的地方。
例如，事故发生在桥上，肇事飞机在交通高峰期撞到桥上。
还有就是事故发生的地点与众不同。
华盛顿这个秩序井然的城市，因为隆冬的匆匆到来和这次事故变得人心惶惶。
事故发生时，华盛顿国家机场的飞机跟往常一样像饥饿的鸽子般在总统纪念碑上空盘旋，坠落的那架就成了它们的象征。
紧接着，那架蓝绿相间有空中花园之称的佛罗里达客机轰得坠落，在冰块中消失的无影无踪，虽然这样，姿势却仍优雅万分。
可以肯定地说，这些都是值得注意的。
然而除了死亡人数之外，这次事故再没有什么与众不同的地方。
死亡总是特别的，但未必总会引起千百万人的瞩目。
那么震惊之处何在呢？也许在这场灾难中，人们看到的不仅仅是机械故障，或许他们就根本没有看到故障，而是发现了自己的某些成功之处。
毕竟，这是两种力量的碰撞：自然力量和人的性格。
大自然的力量总是如此无情，上周三硬是让90次航班坠落。
也正是在那天下午，人的品质——在摸索与挣扎中——奋起反抗，应对灾难。
在这次事件中，有四个公认的英雄，其中三个有幸活下来解释他们的英勇行为。
唐纳德厄舍和尤金温沙是公园巡警直升机的队员，他们两人一次次冒着生命危险把起落架放进水中去搭救幸存者。
在电视上，他们俩并排站着，把自己的所作所为说成是分内之事。
28岁的斯库尼克是国会预算办公室职员，他说：“我从未想过自己会那样做”——指他跳下水去把一个受伤的妇女拖上岸的事迹，他又接着说：“总得有人跳下水。
”这句话成为众多英雄的口头禅，虽无新意却仍令人钦佩。
事实上，并没有谁非下水不可，但有人却真的这样做了，这也是之所以悲剧的阴霾在人们心中久久不能散去的原因。
这次灾难中最最牵动千万人心弦的当属那个起初被称为“水中人”的英雄，他秃顶，大约五十多岁的年纪。
in the water的中文
in the water的中文
"in the water" 的中文翻译是 "在水中"。
"in" 是一个介词，表示在某个位置或状态中，而 "the water" 意思是水。
因此，这个
短语的意思是在水中。
这个短语可以用来描述物体或人处于水中的
位置或状态。
例如，"The fish is swimming in the water"（鱼在
水中游泳）。
"in the water" 这个短语也可以引申为比喻性的意义，表示某人或某物处于某种困境或境地之中。
例如，"She found herself in deep trouble, just like a fish in the water"（她
发现自己陷入了深深的麻烦，就像水中的鱼一样）。
在不同的语境下，这个短语可能会有不同的解释和用法。
The Man in the Water(水中人幻灯片)
他以尖刻恶毒的语言大肆抨击自己的对手。 He said many harsh and unkind things about his opponents.
5. adj. （现实、真相）残酷的，无情的 The harsh truth is that luck plays a big part in who will live or
Page 7
harsh
1. adj. Harsh climates or conditions are very difficult for people, animals, and plants to live in. （气候或条件）艰苦的，恶 劣的，严峻的
天气变得恶劣、寒冷且变化莫测。 The weather grew harsh, chilly and unpredictable.
Page 4
So our man relaxed with the others, some of whom would owe their lives to him.
the man in the water
owe sth to sb
1、 owe sb sth; 2、have to pay sb for sth (esp.
应给予感激
3、Japan owes us an apology, and that’s one of the main reasons
why we disapprove of its being granted the status as a permanent
unit-4-the-man-in-the-water学习资料
Detailed Discussion of Text A
1. As disasters go, this one was terrible, but not unique, certainly not among the worst US air crashes on record. (para. 1)
Air crashes usually involve a heavy loss of lives. Compared with other air crashes, this one was not the worst. This air crash was remembered for a different reason.
4. And there was the aesthetic clash as well-blue-and-green Air Florida, ... sunk down among gray chunks of ice in a black river. (para. 1)
When the air crash occurred, it was not just a clash (a loud sound made by two objects) of metal against the bridge,
element: Here it means "factor".
high traffic: heavy traffic; heavy flow of vehicles
3. Washington, the city of form and rules, turned chaotic by a blast of real winter and a single slap of metal on metal. (para. 1)
精读2-Unit-4-the-man-in-the-water
Background Information
I. Author II. The Air Crash III. Washington, D.C. IV. Presidential Monument V. Potomac River VI. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Unit 4 The Man in the Water
I. Do You Know?
What makes a hero? Can you name some heroes? What do you think that makes them heroes? Have you ever tried to find a hero in yourself? Do you think every ordinary person can be a hero if he wants to?
Relative thinking
▪ 1. Do you think ordinary persons like you and me can become heroes in certain circumstances? When something dangerous happens, what will first come to your mind?
▪ and awards from the Overseas Press
Roger Rosenblatt Professor of English
▪ Club and the American Bar
Professor of Writing AB, New York University
▪ Association.
Unit 4 The Man in the Water
indifferent natural forces.
I.
Text Analysis
Question: What is referred to as one of man’s natural powers according to
the passage?
Sacrificing his life for the life of
3. to defy challenge
4. in a state of complete disorder and confusiong so much desperate
Check of preview
Find the words from the text which have the same meaning as the following. 6. sleep slightly doze
Backgroun d
Category of News
News fall into basic categories: hard news and soft news. • “Hard news” includes stories of a timely nature about events or conflicts that have just happened or are about to happen, such as crimes, fires, meetings, protest rallies, speeches and testimony in court cases. • These stories have immediacy. • “Soft news” is defined as news that entertains or informs, with an emphasis on human interest(人情味) and novelty(新奇) and less immediacy than hard news. • “Soft news” can also be stories that focus on people, places or issues that affect readers’ lives. These types of stories are called“feature stories.”
themaninthewater课文主旨
themaninthewater课文主旨
【最新版】
目录
1.课文概述
2.文本主题
3.课文结构
4.主要人物和情节
5.课文主旨
正文
1.课文概述
《男人在水中》是一篇描述一位中年男子在水中挣扎的故事。
文章通过描绘男子在水中的困境，表现了人生的无常和挑战，以及人在面对困境时的坚韧和毅力。
2.文本主题
课文的主题是“人生的挑战与坚韧”。
文章通过描述男子在水中的挣扎，展现了人生中不可避免的困境和挑战，以及人在面对这些困境时的坚韧和毅力。
3.课文结构
课文分为三个部分：第一部分描绘了男子在水中的困境；第二部分描述了男子的努力和挣扎；第三部分展示了男子最终的成功和自我超越。
4.主要人物和情节
课文的主要人物是一位中年男子。
故事的情节主要围绕男子在水中的挣扎展开。
男子在游泳时突然发现自己无法浮出水面，他开始感到恐慌，但他没有放弃，而是用尽全身力气挣扎。
最终，他成功浮出水面，并因此
体验到了自我超越的喜悦。
5.课文主旨
课文的主旨是：“人生如戏，全靠演技；人生如水，全靠挣扎。
”文章通过描绘男子在水中的挣扎，表现了人生的无常和挑战，以及人在面对困境时的坚韧和毅力。
unit4themaninthewater
unit4themaninthewaterTest 4 The Man in the WaterPart I Vocabulary & GrammarDirections: In this part there are 30 incomplete sentences, each with four suggested answers. Choose the one that best completes the sentence.1. One American consumes three times more food than the average person who comes from places that______ for two thirds of the world’s population.A.occupyB.accountC.assignD. overload2. Please remind me ______taking medicine after supper; you know, I'm so forgetful .A. withB. ofC.forD.in3. Without a whole hearted ______ to a keen forward-looking vision and a great insight, you cannot be a leader.A. commitmentB. dutyC.resolutionD. determination4. As the director can't come to the reception. I'm representing the company______ .A. on his accountB. on his behalfC. for his partD. in bis interest5. It is a tradition on Wall Street to______ periods of sustained economic loss and recession as “bear” markets.A. make outB.look outC.go overD.refer to6.The goal of the artist is to produce an observable artifact that provokes a(n) ______ response.A.academicB. distinctC.aestheticD.curious7. The police received a(n) ______ call giving them valuable information that led to an arrest. The caller refused to give his name out of fear of reprisals.A. anonymousB. privateC. obscureD. public8. Even as the local climate changed from humid to arid and back---a change that caused other animals to become extinct---our ancestors______ by learning how to use the new flora.A. survivedB.migratedC. anticipated/doc/ca6604315.html,bored9.Getting to know potential romantic partners requires the awkward and time-consuming process called dating. At thisstage, relationships are new, unstable, and often______ .A.strikingB. chaoticC. strategicD.smart10. Behind the group's desire to paint the Canadian landscape lay the genuine conviction that it was the northern landscape that ______ and expressed the country’s unique character.A.nominatedB.supportedC.supervisedD.represented11.The astonishing distrust of the news media isn’t rooted in inaccuracy or poor reportorial skills but in the daily______ of world views between reporters and their readers.A.claimB. clapC.clashD.clasp12. Since all the pre-election reports showed his challenger in the lead, the governor's re-election was a ______ victory.A.submittedB.surprisingC.summarizedD.stunning13.A lthough it must be admitted that hard drugs can never be ______ defeated, there are a number of steps that should be taken to reduce their use.A. exclusivelyB.modestlyC.mainlyD.totally14. All of the social sciences are interested in patterned regularities in human social behavior, the______ among the social sciences are chiefly in the kinds of regularities of interest.A.distinctionsB.contrastsC.contradictionsD.collisions15. In winter drivers have trouble stopping their cars from______ on icy roads.A. skatingB.skiddingC.slidingD.slipping16. If Bernard wants to call me or ______, I’ll be here all day.A.somethingB.anythingC. nothingD.everything17. I think it is high time we______ the fact that environmental pollution in this area is getting more serious than before.A. wake up toB. must wake up toC. woke up toD. are waking up toI8. An old woman was badly hurt in______ the police describe as an apparently motiveless attack.A.thatB. whatC.whateverD.which19.One aim of China's economic reform is to separate enterprises from the government. It has been implemented for almost 20 years, but breakthroughs______.A. have yet to be madeB.have yet to makeC. have been made yetD.to have yet made20.______considered the human body aesthetically satisfactory.A.Nor prehistoric cave man or late- industrial urban manB.No prehistoric cave man nor late- industrial urban manC.Neither prehistoric cave man nor late- industrial urban manD.Neither prehistoric cave man or late- industrial urban man21.Hiram Revels, the first black member of the United States Senate, served as senator from Mississippi, an office ______ he was elected in 1870.A.on whichB.and whichC.to whichD.being which22. The annual worth of Utah's manufacturing is greater than______.A.that of its mining and farming combinedB.mining and farming combinationC.that mining and farming combinedD.of its combination mining and farming23. Evidence came up ______specific speech sounds arerecognized by babies as young as five months old.A. whichB.whatC.thatD.when24. Noise in a room may be reduced by carpeting, draperies, and upholstered furniture,______ absorb sound.A.which they allB.all of whichC.of them allD.of all which25. A bridge must be strong enough to support its own weight ______the weight of the people and vehicles that use it.A.as wellB.so wellC.as well asD.so well as26.______ all rainwater falling from a cloud reaches the ground; some of it is lost through evaporationA. NowhereB. NoC. NoneD. Not27. Studies of the gravity field of the Earth indicate______ yield when unusual weight is placed on them.A. although its crust and mantleB. that its crust and mantleC. its crust and mantleD. for its crust and mantle to28. His failure was due to______ he had never taken his studyseriously.A. thatB. the factC.whyD. the fact that29. Although the Earth's chemical composition had been studied for years, only toward the end of the nineteenth century______ as a discipline in its own right.A.was geochemistry recognizedB.when geochemistry was recognizedC.then recognized as geochemistryD.as geochemistry was recognized30. The fossilized remains of a type of camel______ a dog have been found in the Badlands of South Dakota.A. no more large thanB. not larger thanC.no longer thanD. which no larger thanPart II TranslationDirections: Translate the following sentences into English.1.旅行社负责安排我们在欧洲期间的观光及食宿.( (to be responsible for)2.许多从前似乎无法解释的自然现象,我们现在可以根据新的科学发现作出解释了.（account for）3.洪水大有冲决水库之势,人们都紧急动员起来,很快地加固了堤岸。
精读2,Unit 4 the_man_in_the_water
The Potomac River
▪
The Potomac River is often referred to as the "Nation's River," because it flows through the nation's capital, where the magnificent monuments of the Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln memorials are reflected in its waters. ▪ It is one of the most beautiful and bountiful rivers on the East Coast and is known for its historic, scenic and recreational significance.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803—1882)
one of the most famous American essayists, poets and philosophers. Known as a transcendentalist, his main themes are individualism, independent thinking, selfreliance, idealism and the worship of nature. His works include Nature, Selfreliance, American Scholar, Overload and many other essays and poems.
average就一般情况而定与与一般情况相比moretolearntranslate一双鞋卖二十英镑就目前情况而论还算可以
The Man in the Water译文
The Man in the Water (课文翻译)跟人类所经历的其他灾难相比，这次算得上是相当严重，但并不是史无前例的，确切的说，算不上美国历史上最严重的空难。
当然，这次灾难也有与众不同的地方。
例如，事故发生在桥上，肇事飞机在交通高峰期撞到桥上。
还有就是事故发生的地点与众不同。
华盛顿这个秩序井然的城市，因为隆冬的匆匆到来和这次事故变得人心惶惶。
事故发生时，华盛顿国家机场的飞机跟往常一样像饥饿的鸽子般在总统纪念碑上空盘旋，坠落的那架就成了它们的象征。
紧接着，那架蓝绿相间有空中花园之称的佛罗里达客机轰得坠落，在冰块中消失的无影无踪，虽然这样，姿势却仍优雅万分。
可以肯定地说，这些都是值得注意的。
然而除了死亡人数之外，这次事故再没有什么与众不同的地方。
死亡总是特别的，但未必总会引起千百万人的瞩目。
那么震惊之处何在呢？也许在这场灾难中，人们看到的不仅仅是机械故障，或许他们就根本没有看到故障，而是发现了自己的某些成功之处。
毕竟，这是两种力量的碰撞：自然力量和人的性格。
大自然的力量总是如此无情，上周三硬是让90次航班坠落。
也正是在那天下午，人的品质——在摸索与挣扎中——奋起反抗，应对灾难。
在这次事件中，有四个公认的英雄，其中三个有幸活下来解释他们的英勇行为。
唐纳德厄舍和尤金温沙是公园巡警直升机的队员，他们两人一次次冒着生命危险把起落架放进水中去搭救幸存者。
在电视上，他们俩并排站着，把自己的所作所为说成是分内之事。
28岁的斯库尼克是国会预算办公室职员，他说：“我从未想过自己会那样做”——指他跳下水去把一个受伤的妇女拖上岸的事迹，他又接着说：“总得有人跳下水。
”这句话成为众多英雄的口头禅，虽无新意却仍令人钦佩。
事实上，并没有谁非下水不可，但有人却真的这样做了，这也是之所以悲剧的阴霾在人们心中久久不能散去的原因。
这次灾难中最最牵动千万人心弦的当属那个起初被称为“水中人”的英雄，他秃顶，大约五十多岁的年纪。
留着大胡子，有人看到他和其他五个幸存者紧紧抓住机舱尾部。
unit4 the man in the water
Background
The Disaster
Aircraft type: Boeing 737-222 Operator: Air Florida Passengers: 74 Crew: 5 Date: January 13, 1982 Type: Crash on takeoff Accident site: Washington, D.C. Fatalities: 78 (4 on ground) Injuries: 10 Survivors: 5
Warm-up
I. Sing a Song II. Do You Know?
I. Sing a Song
Hero There’s a hero if you look inside your heart You don’t have to be afraid of what you are There’s an answer if you reach into your soul And the sorrow that you know will melt away And then a hero comes along With the strength to carry on And you cast your fears aside And you know you can survive So when you feel like hope is gone Look inside you and be strong And you’ll finally see the truth that a hero lies in you
The end of Author.
II. The Air Crash
The Man in the Water(水中人幻灯片)
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过去式： stunned 过去分词： stunned 现在分词： stunning stunned When they told me she had gone missing I was totally
I roped myself to the chimney. 我用绳子把自己系在烟囱上。
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3. n.The ropes refers to the fence made of rope that surrounds a boxing ring or a wrestling ring. (拳击或摔跤场地的)围绳，圈绳
应给予感激
3、Japan owes us an apology, and that’s one of the main reasons
why we disapprove of its being granted the status as a permanent
member of the United Nations Security Council.
2. adj. A stunning event is extremely unusual or unexpected. 令人惊奇万分的;令人震惊的;极不寻常的
The minister resigned last night after a stunning defeat in Sunday's vote.
The Man in the Water
pra.5-6 罗云飞
Still, he could never have imagined such a capacity in himself.(para. 5)
Unit 04 The man in the water 译文
Lesson SixText A水里那个人The Man in the Water和一般灾难相比，这次灾难非常可怕，但并不特殊，肯定也不是美国有记录的最悲惨的堕机事件之一。
As disasters go, this one was terrible, but not unique, certainly not among the worst U. S. air crashes on record.当然，不同寻常的有那座桥，还有飞机是在交通高峰期撞到桥上。
另外，还有这个事件发生的地点。
There was the unusual element of the bridge, of course, and the fact that the plane hit it at a moment of high traffic. Then, too, there was the location of the event.华盛顿这个布局合理、井然有序的城市，由于寒冬一阵突如其来的强劲气流和金属之间的剧烈碰撞而陷入混乱之中。
Washington, the city of form and rules, turned chaotic by a blast of real winter and a single slap of metal on metal.从华盛顿国家机场起飞的喷气客机，通常会像饥饿的海鸥一样绕着总统纪念建筑物飞过。
眼下，这架坠落的飞机成了它们的代表。
The jets from Washington National Airport that normally fly around the presidential monuments like hungry gulls are, for the moment represented by the one that fell.而且还有给人以美感的撞击——蓝绿相间的佛罗里达航空公司（“佛罗里达航空公司”字面意思是“飞翔的花园”）的飞机，沉入了黑色的河流中，被灰色的巨大冰块所包围。
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Lesson SixText A水里那个人The Man in the Water和一般灾难相比，这次灾难非常可怕，但并不特殊，肯定也不是美国有记录的最悲惨的堕机事件之一。
As disasters go, this one was terrible, but not unique, certainly not among the worst U. S. air crashes on record.当然，不同寻常的有那座桥，还有飞机是在交通高峰期撞到桥上。
另外，还有这个事件发生的地点。
There was the unusual element of the bridge, of course, and the fact that the plane hit it at a moment of high traffic. Then, too, there was the location of the event.华盛顿这个布局合理、井然有序的城市，由于寒冬一阵突如其来的强劲气流和金属之间的剧烈碰撞而陷入混乱之中。
Washington, the city of form and rules, turned chaotic by a blast of real winter and a single slap of metal on metal.从华盛顿国家机场起飞的喷气客机，通常会像饥饿的海鸥一样绕着总统纪念建筑物飞过。
眼下，这架坠落的飞机成了它们的代表。
The jets from Washington National Airport that normally fly around the presidential monuments like hungry gulls are, for the moment represented by the one that fell.而且还有给人以美感的撞击——蓝绿相间的佛罗里达航空公司（“佛罗里达航空公司”字面意思是“飞翔的花园”）的飞机，沉入了黑色的河流中，被灰色的巨大冰块所包围。
And there was the aesthetic clash as well—blue-and-green Air Florida, the name of a flying garden, sunk down among grey chunks of ice in a black river.Florida出自词根flo(u)r-，意为“花”。
例如：floral花的，floret小花，florid华丽的，florist花匠，florescence花期，floriculture花的培养，flourish繁荣herb=grass草：herbicide除草剂佛罗里达州的名称来自西班牙语Florida，其意义是“多花的地方”。
佛罗里达州的名称来自西班牙语，西班牙航海家胡安•庞塞•德莱昂在1513年4月2 日，发现这片地方。
时值西班牙人称为Pascua Florida（花的复活节）的节日，所以此地被德莱昂命名为La Florida。
确实，所有那些事情都值得注意。
All that was worth noticing, to be sure.然而，除了死亡，事件中没有什么很特别的。
死亡虽然总是很特别，但也不是一定会引起成千上万的人哭泣或注意。
Still, there was nothing very special in any of it, except death, which, while always special, does not necessarily bring the nation to tears or to attention.那么，为什么这次事件中我们受到巨大的震动呢？Why, then, the shock here?也许是因为在这场灾难里面，全国人民所看到的不仅仅是机器故障。
Perhaps because the nation saw in this disaster something more than a mechanical failure.也许是因为在里面人们看到的根本不是失败（故障），而是他们自己的成功。
Perhaps because people saw in it no failure at all, but rather something successful about themselves.这次事件中，毕竟有两种形式的自然力量相撞了，那就是恶劣的天气和人的品质。
Here, after all, were two forms of nature in collision: the elements and human character.上周三，与平时一样冷漠的恶劣天气，将90次班机击落下来。
Last Wednesday, the elements, indifferent as ever, brought down Flight 90.在同一个下午，人的品质——搜索着，挣扎着——奋起应对这个（艰难）时刻。
On that same afternoon, human nature—groping and struggling—rose to the occasion.（牛津）rise to the occasion, challenge, task, etc 挺身而出处理危机、迎接挑战、完成任务等的能力这次事件中公认的四位英雄里，有三位能够为他们的行为做出解释。
Of the four acknowledged heroes of the event, three are able to account for their behavior.公园巡警直升机机组人员唐纳德·厄舍和尤金·温莎每一次将飞机的起落架贴近水面，拉起幸存者时，都要冒着失去生命的危险。
Donald Usher and Eugene Windsor, a park police helicopter team, risked their lives every time they dipped their skids into the water to pick up survivors.在电视节目里，他们肩并肩地坐着，把自己的勇气完全描绘成是职责所在。
On television, side by side, they described their courage as all in the line of duty.勒尼·斯库尼克是一名28岁的国会预算办公室的雇员，他说：“那样的事我从来没想过会去做”——他指的是跳入水中将一个受伤的妇女拖到岸上。
Lenny Skutnik, a 28-year-old employee of the Congressional Budget Office, said, "It's something I never thought I would do"—referring to his jumping into the water to drag an injured woman to shore.斯库尼克又说道：“总是有人要下水的”。
他说了每个英雄都会说得话，这话并不因为重复多遍而不受敬仰。
Skutnik added that "somebody had to go in water", delivering every hero's line that is no less admirable for being repeated.I did not marry her because I loved her.因为爱她，我没和她结婚。
/ 我和她结婚并不是因为爱她。
（两个译文都可以，要看上下文决定）He is very sad not because his younger sister disappeared.他很悲伤，并不是因为他妹妹失踪了。
/ 他并不是因为妹妹失踪了而悲伤。
这句话也可以说成：He is not very sad because his younger sister disappeared.A：他很悲伤，并不是因为他妹妹失踪了。
（√）B：因为妹妹失踪了，他不是很悲伤。
（X）He was not absent from the meeting because he was ill.A：他没来开会并不是因为病了。
（√）B：因为他病了，所以没缺席会议。
（X）She is not learning English very well because she is slow-witted.A：她英语学得很好，并不是因为她脑子迟钝。
（X）B：她英语学得不很好，因为她脑子迟钝。
（√）Don’t give up because it is difficult.We should not despise a man because he is poor.Please do not look down upon your classmate because he is backward in learning.Don’t be vain because you’re good-looking.The seed does not complain because there are stones in its way.（谚）种子不因有石头挡路而抱怨。
实际上，没有人必须跳入水中。
有人确实这样做了，这就是这个特殊的悲剧能铭刻在人们心中的部分原因。
In fact, nobody had to go into the water. That somebody actually did so is part of the reason this particular tragedy sticks in the mind.但是，有一个人是这次灾难带来的情感冲击的最重要原因，最初，他仅仅被叫做“水里的那个人”。
But the person most responsible for the emotional impact of the disaster is the one known at first simply as "the man in the water".他正在顶，可能是50多岁，上唇留着浓密的胡子。
Balding, probably in his 50s, a huge mustache.人们看见他与另外五个幸存者紧紧地抓着机尾部分。