二、課文精解

Text I

1．My sturdy and ingenious father could turn his hand to almost anything and was never short of carpentry and handyman work. （Para. 2）: 我父親身體結(jié)實(shí)，心靈手巧，他那雙手幾乎無所不能，從不缺木匠和手工活。turn one’s hand to為固定搭配，意為“著手做某事；承擔(dān)”，如：She will graduate next year and now she must turn her hand to writing the dissertation.明年她就要畢業(yè)了，所以現(xiàn)在必須開始著手寫畢業(yè)論文了。此處引申為“擅長做某事”，如：She can turn her hand to all sorts of jobs.她能做各種工作。

2．Every day I would battle back tears as I stood in front of my peers, embarrassed and, most often, alone. （Para. 6）: 我每天站在同學(xué)面前，只能強(qiáng)忍淚水，不僅羞愧難耐，而且常常只有我一個(gè)人挨罰。battle一般用作名詞，意為“戰(zhàn)爭”，如：We must fight this battle through to victory. 我們必須把這次戰(zhàn)斗打到最后勝利。也可用作不及物動詞，意為“斗爭；搏斗”，如：They battled against heavy odds. 他們以寡敵眾。此處可以引申為“強(qiáng)忍著淚水”的意思。

3．However, in my 12-year-old mind I had no choice but to see the punishment through. （Para.7）:不過，12歲的我在心里也毫無選擇，只有眼睜睜地挨受懲罰。see through常用的義項(xiàng)有:①“看破；看穿，識破”，如：I have already see through your design.我已經(jīng)看穿了你的鬼把戲。②“幫助…渡過難關(guān)”，如：We’ll see you through until you finish your college education.我們會幫助你直到你大學(xué)畢業(yè)。在這句話中，see through與go through同義，意為“經(jīng)歷；經(jīng)受”。

4．And, Heaven forbid, if she ever told my father he would have instantly been on the warpath in my defense. （Para. 7）：老天！要是母親再告訴父親的話，他立馬會大發(fā)雷霆，沖到學(xué)校來保護(hù)我。on the warpath“準(zhǔn)備作戰(zhàn)；正在作戰(zhàn)；盛怒；大發(fā)雷霆”，如：The two countries are on the warpath again. 這兩個(gè)國家又在準(zhǔn)備作戰(zhàn)了。Barry is on the warpath looking for the person who let down the tyres on his bicycle. 巴里正怒氣沖沖地尋找那個(gè)把他自行車輪胎氣放掉的人算帳。

5．I was beside myself with excitement. （Para. 8）: 我為此興奮不已。beside oneself意為“極度興奮；發(fā)狂”，如：The boy is beside himself with excitement. 這個(gè)男孩有點(diǎn)兒興奮過度。

6．At assembly I didn’t bother to wait for the command but trudged up to the stage of my own accord to endure the sniggers of the other girls and the beady eyes of the deputy head. （Para. 10）: 集合的時(shí)候，我沒等人下命令就慢步走上臺去，去承受其他女生的竊笑和副校長那尖刻的眼神。of one’s own accord為固定短語，意為“自愿地，主動地”，如：The reactionaries will never, of their own accord, step down from the stage of history. 反動派決不會自行退出歷史舞臺。

7．Tears of frustration threatened to break free... （Para. 11）: 沮喪的淚水幾欲奪眶而出。break free通常意為“打破；沖破藩籬；推翻”，如：This helps you break free of familiar patterns of thought.這樣可以幫助你打破慣有的思維模式。在這句話中，break free引申為“淚水奪眶而出”的意思。

8．The block of ice that was my young heart thawed instantly and my shoulders rose back to their full height. （Para. 16）: 我幼小心靈中的那塊堅(jiān)冰瞬間消融了，我也不禁挺直了肩膀。rise to one’s full height為常用搭配，意為“挺直身子”，如：He rose to his full height.他昂然挺立。還可以有如下搭配：drew oneself up to one’s full height/ erected oneself to full height，都表示“挺直身子；昂首挺立”的意思。

Text II

1．We hold ourselves back and we push people away. （Para. 3）：We refrian from expressing love first and we shy away from others. 我們克制著自己不向他人首先表達(dá)友愛，并且會回避他人的友善。hold back為固定詞組，意為“隱瞞；退縮；抑制；阻止”，如：No force on earth can hold back the progress of the society. 沒有任何力量能夠阻止社會的進(jìn)步。She kept trying to hold back her tears. 她一直在試圖忍住不掉眼淚。