【英语阅读】乔治华盛顿：言行规范造就“美国国父”-George Washington's rules of good behavior

      The good qualities that would make George Washington a respected Ieader and a genuine hero of American history were evident at a young age. General Edward Braddock, Washington's commander during the French and Indian War, wrote the fo1lowing comments to a friend in 1755:
　　

       “Is Mr. Washington among your acquaintances? If not, I recommend you to embrace the first opportunity to form hisfriendship. He is about twenty-three years of age; with a countenance both mild and pleasant, Promising of both wit and judgment, He is of comely and dignifie demeanor, at the same time displays much self-reliance and decision.He strikes me as being a young man of extraordinary and exalted character, and is destined to make no inconsiderable figure in our country.
　　

       （Kinnaird, George Washington, the pictoral biography）
　　

         As a youth, Washington led a troubled life. His father died when he was eleven. As a result, he spent much of his formative years living with his older brothers, Austin and Lawrence. He received some formal education between the years of six and fourteen, but the majority of what he learned was home-spun.

        乔治-华盛顿所具备的种种优秀品质使他成为受人尊敬的领袖和美国历史上名副其实的大英雄，这些特质在他年轻时期就已显露无遗。爱德华-布拉多克将军是法国人与印第安人战争时期华盛顿手下的指挥官，他于1755年给一位朋友写下了对华盛顿的评价：

     “你认识华盛顿先生吗？如果不认识，我建议你一有机会就和他交个朋友吧。他大概二十三岁，面貌和蔼可亲，显得机智聪颖且富有判断力。他举止得体庄重，同事又表现出了相当的自立和果敢。我（深深地）感到：他是一个杰出而崇高品质的年轻人，在我们国家，他必定会有一番作为。”

      （金奈尔德《乔治-华盛顿画传》）

       华盛顿幼年时生活坎坷。他11岁时父亲就过世了，因此，成长期的大部分时间他都是跟哥哥奥斯汀和劳伦斯一起度过。他到6岁到11岁期间接受了一些正规教育，但他所学到的大部分知识都是靠自学。

　　one staple of his se1f-learning was a book entitled the Young Man's Companion published in London in 1664.The book's title page proclaimed that it was written “in a plain and easy style so that a young man may attain the same, without a tutor.” Included in the book was a list of rules for proper social behavior that had been developed by French Jesuits almost a century earlier. The thirteen or fourteen-year-old George Washington would spend hours fil1ing the pages of his notebook with copies of these rules, many of which he modified to better fit his own view of proper behavior. The boy entitled his writings as the Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior In Company and Conversation.

       他自学的一个主要来源就是一本名为《青年美德指南》的书（于1664年在伦敦出版），书籍扉页上称，这本书是“以明了简易的风格写成的，因此年轻人即使没有家庭教师也能获取同等程度的知识”。书中收录了大约一个世纪前由法国耶稣会会士制定一系列得体恰当的社交行为规范。十三四岁的乔治-华盛顿会花好几个小时在自己的笔记本上抄写这些准则，其中有很多他都做了修改和调整，以更好地适应自己行为规范官。这个男孩把自己的纪录起名为《交往及交谈中的文明与得体行为规范》。

       The result of young Washington's effort was two-fold. First, he was able to perfect his penmanship-handwriting so immaculate that it was commented upon throughout the rest of his life. Secondly, and more importantly, he developed a set of rules that both reflected and molded his sense of character and good behavior for the rest of his life. These Rules of Civility were instrumental in the transformation of the young boy who filled his notebook with them to the adult who would become the “Father of His Country.”
　　

       Fussy or not, they represent more than just manners. They are the small sacrifices that we should all be willing to make for the good of all and the sake of living together. These rules proclaim our respect for others and in turn give us the gift of self-respect and heightened self-esteem.

       青年华盛顿的努力产生了两层效果。第一，他能够完善自己的书法--他的字迹如此工整以至于在他的整个一生中都被人谈论。第二，更重要的是，他为自己今后的生活制订了一套反映并塑造其品德及良好行为观的规范。这些《文明行为规范》为这个把规则都抄写在笔记本上的年轻男孩转变为将来成为“美国国父”的成年人发挥了重要的作用。

       无论是否琐碎，这些规范所体现的都不仅仅是行为举止，而是我们为了所有人的幸福以及共同生活而都应该愿意去做的小小牺牲。这些规范即体现了我们对他人的尊重，也转而赋予我们自重的能力以及更强的自尊心。

本篇阅读生词：

1、comely:英俊的，标致的；demeanor:行为，举止。

2、strike：给…以（深刻）印象，引起（感情、情绪等）；exalted：高贵的，崇高的；character：（人的）品德，品质； make a figure：崭露头角，有作为。

3、home-spun：家里做的。

4、staple：主要内容，基本内容。

5、penmanship：书法，书写技巧；immaculate：整洁，无污迹的。

6、mold：塑造，对…产生影响。