英語美文欣賞7-《人和自然》

The intimacy between man and Nature began with the birth of man on the earth, and becomes each century more intelligent and far-reaching. To Nature, therefore, we turn as to the oldest aim most influential teacher of our race; from one point of view once our task-master, now our servant; from another point of view, our constant friend, instructor and inspirer. The very intimacy of this relation robs it of a certain mystery and richness which it would have for all minds if it were the reward of the few instead of being the privilege of the many. To the few it is, in every age, full of wonder and beauty; to the many it is a matterof course.

The heavens shine for all, but they have a changing splendor to those only who see in every midnight sky amajesty of creative energy and resource which no repetition of the spectacle can dim. If the stars shone but once in a thousand years, men would gaze, awe struck and worshipful, on a vision which is not less but more wonderful because it shines nightly above the whole earth. In like manner, and for the same reason, we become indifferent to that delicately beautiful or sublimely impressive sky scenery which the clouds form and reform, compose and dissipate, a thousand times on a summer day. The mystery, the terror, and the music of the sea; the secret and subduing charm of the woods, so full of healing for the spent mind or the restless spirit; the majesty of the hills, holding in their recesses the secrets of light and atmosphere; the infinite variety of landscape, never imitative or repetitious, but always appealing to the imagination with some fresh and unsuspected loveliness; who feels the full power of these marvelous resources for the enrichment of life, or takes from them all the health, delight, and enrichment they have to bestow?

人與自然的親密關係從地球上人類誕生就開始了，並且每個世紀變得愈發理性和深遠。因此，我們求助於自然就好像求助於我們人類最年長最有影響力的老師。從某個觀點來看，自然曾是我們的監工，現在卻是我們的奴僕。但從另一個觀點來看，自然一直是我們的朋友、教導者和啟發者。如果自然僅僅是少數人的回饋而不能作為作為大多數人的禮遇，這種親昵關係就會剝奪去相當一部分它在所有人心中的神秘感和富足感。對於少數人而言，這種關係在每個時代充滿奇幻和美妙，對於大多數人也理所當然。

天空照耀著每一個人，但是只在少數人的心中有一種變化多端的壯美，他們每個半夜都能欣賞到天空創造能力和源泉的莊嚴之美，這種美沒有什麼光景可以使之暗淡。如果星辰一千年才閃耀一次，人們將懷著敬畏之心去凝視這種美景，而這種景色每晚在全世界的上空照耀，它的美妙不會減損，反而會更勝。同樣，一個道理，我們對夏日天空浮雲聚散飄忽所形成的一日之間千變萬化或柔美或壯闊的景色也變得熟視無睹。海的神秘、恐怖和樂章；叢林的神秘感和魔幻力可治癒疲憊的心靈和煩躁的精神；群山的奇峻把光與氣之玄妙藏於幽深處；變幻無窮的風景從不模仿或重複，永遠以一種出乎意料的新鮮美麗來衝擊人的想像力——誰能感受到這些奇幻事物給我們生活的富足帶來的全部力量，或者得到它們賜予我們的健康、快樂和充實?

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