「《纽约客》精读 」选取The New Yorker杂志的片段，介绍文章背景、精讲单词、词组和句式。这是一个固定栏目，更新频率为每周两次。
本期选段来自6月8号《纽约客》评论Burning Cities。评论作者Jelani Cobb任教于哥大新闻院，也是《纽约客》的记者，主要写种族、政治、历史话题。看标题就知道，文章谈论的是最近美国各地的示威游行，作者认为新冠肺在美国的大流行、失业潮、George Floyd之死、各地出现的打砸抢烧都不是孤立事件，它们在发生前已有预兆，而川普不仅未能从预兆中看到危机、快速反应，其执政甚至导致各类问题恶化。文章结尾处，Jelani Cobb认为作为领导者，不必未卜先知，但需要智商在线，而川普说要出动军队对付平民纯属不智。
A Presidential threat to have the United States military shoot civilians is the opposite of leadership, the antithesis of wisdom—a comment as ill-advised and as detrimental to the public well-being as recommending injecting disinfectant or self-prescribing hydroxychloroquine.
Our problems generally do not stem from treacherous unknowns; they’re the result of a failure to make good use of what is known already. In July, 1967, after a brutal police raid at an after-hours bar in Detroit, that city exploded in retaliatory violence. A month later, Martin Luther King, Jr., gave a speech to the American Psychological Association, in which he described riots as “durable social phenomena” that arise in conjunction with discernible conditions—acts of lawlessness that mirror the excesses of those charged with upholding the law. Leaders cannot predict the future, but they can be cognizant of the immediate past, and the possible dangers it suggests.They cannot be clairvoyant. They need only be intelligent.
Words
1. the antithesis of wisdom
antithesis n. 反面
a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else
从antithesis构词方式就能猜测词意。
anti- 反面的，反对的词根
thesis，立场；来自希腊语, 是to place的意思
the antithesis of 与前面的the opposite of 对应
2. an after-hours bar in Detroit
after-hours adj. 法定时间外经营的
engaged in or operating after a legal or conventional closing time
1967年，底特律警察突击搜查了一家法定时间外经营的酒吧，逮捕了80多名非裔美国人，由此引发黑人运动。5天的暴乱，导致43人死亡。
3. stem from treacherous unknowns
treacherous adj. 有潜在危险的，变幻莫测的
presenting hidden or unpredictable dangers
treacherous unknowns 变幻莫测的未知事物
treacherous driving conditions 有危险的驾驶环境
4. retaliatory violence
retaliatory adj. 报复性的
characterized by a desire for revenge
e.g. retaliatory tariffs 报复性关税
5. discernible conditions
discernible adj. 可被察觉的，看得出来的
able to be discerned; perceptible
discernible conditions 可察觉的情况
discernible differences 可辨的不同
6. be cognizant of the immediate past
cognizant adj. 知晓的，了解的
having knowledge or awareness
这个词很正式，常用结构be cognizant of sth.
e.g. We are cognizant of the problem.
我们意识到了这个问题。
7. clairvoyant
adj. 通灵的
having a supernatural ability to perceive events in the future or beyond normal sensory contact
Phrases
1. a comment as ill-advised and as detrimental to the public well-being as recommending injecting disinfectant or self-prescribing hydroxychloroquine
这个条不智且伤害公众幸福的评论，就如（川普）推荐注射消毒剂或是不遵医嘱，自行服用羟氯喹一样
ill-advised adj. 不明智的，不审慎的
not sensible, wise, or prudent
as ill-advised and as detrimental to...as recommending....
这个评论(a comment)与推荐注射消毒剂或自行服用羟氯喹，在ill-advised和detrimental to the public well-being上的等级一致
disinfectant n. 消毒剂
dis-infect-ant
self-prescribe v. 自行开药
hydroxychloroquine n. 羟氯喹
2. “durable social phenomena” that arise in conjunction with discernible conditions
与可察觉的情况一同出现的「长期社会现象」
arise v. 起源
come into being, originate
in conjunction with: together with, 一起、一同
3. acts of lawlessness that mirror the excesses of those charged with upholding the law
非法行为反映了执法之人的过分行为
lawlessness
lawless adj. 缺乏法律的，不法的
characterized by a lack of civic order
mirror v. 反映、倒影
show a reflection of
excesses n. 过分的行为
outrageous or immoderate behaviour
charge v. 赋予职责
entrust (someone) with a task as a duty
charge这个词意思很多，起诉、收费、充电等，
这里是「赋予职责」之意
e.g. The committee was charged with reshaping the educational system.
委员会被赋予了重塑教育系统的职责。
uphold v. 维护、支持
confirm, support, maintain
e.g. uphold a tradition 维持一种传统
Sentences
1. Our problems generally do not stem from treacherous unknowns; they’re the result of a failure to make good use of what is known already.
2. Leaders cannot predict the future, but they can be cognizant of the immediate past, and the possible dangers it suggests.They cannot be clairvoyant. They need only be intelligent.
两个句子都不难，但内容上都堪称「金句」，送给川普再合适不过。
第一句，可以吸纳这样的结构，Problems do not stem from....; they're the result of...
第二句，不仅针对leaders，普通人同样适用。
其实，Don't try to be clairvoyant. Just be intelligent.
感谢阅读！有任何建议欢迎留言~ 获取更多文章，关注公众号：WordsWordsWords
欢迎扫码关注WordsWordsWords
网友评论