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19 Advice to a Young Man

Robert Jones Burdette

Remember, my son, you have to work. Whether you handle a pick or a pen, a wheelbarrow or a set of books, you must work. If you look around, you will see the men who are the most able to live the rest of their days without work are the men who work the hardest.

Don't be afraid of killing yourself with overwork. It is beyond your power to do that on the sunny side of thirty. They die sometimes, but it is because they quit work at six in the evening, and do not go home until two in the morning. It is the interval that kills, my son. The work gives you an appetite for your meals; it lends solidity to your slumbers ; it gives you a perfect and grateful appreciation of a holiday.

There are young men who do not work, but the world is not proud of them. It does not know their names, even. Nobody likes them; the great, busy world does not know that they are there. So find out what you want to be and do, and take off your coat and make a dust in the world. The busier you are, the less harm you will be apt to get into, the sweeter will be your sleep, the brighter and happier your holidays, and the better satisfied will the world be with you.

难词释义

wheelbarrow [ˈwiːlbærəʊ] n. 手推车

interval [ˈɪntərvl] n. (时间上的)间隔,间隙

solidity [səˈlɪdəti] n. 坚固性;可靠性

slumber [ˈslʌmbər] n. 睡眠

给年轻人的忠告

罗伯特·琼斯·伯德特

谨记,年轻人,你必须工作。不管你是用锄头还是用笔,用手推车还是一叠书本,你都必须有一份工作,并为之努力奋斗。如果仔细观察周围的人,你就会发现,那些最有可能安享晚年而无须去工作的人就是那些工作最努力的人。

不要害怕超负荷的工作会缩短你的寿命,三十岁出头的年龄,你的承受能力还远不止如此。如果说真的有人过早送命,那完全是因为他们在晚上六点结束工作,却要在外流连到凌晨两点才归家。年轻人,正是晚上六点到凌晨两点这段时间的生活让人丧命。工作会增加你的食欲,使你安然入睡,使你心满意足地享受假日。

有的年轻人不工作,但世界并不会因他们而自豪。它甚至不知道他们的姓名。没有人喜欢他们;伟大、繁忙的世界不知道他们在那里。因此,思考你想成为什么样的人,找出你想做的事,脱下你的外衣,开始忙碌起来吧。越是繁忙,你就越是远离不益之事,你的睡眠就越香甜,你的假期就越光明和幸福,世界也会对你更加满意。 RsWqo04CEYU35/08BNWqNFhgHPH+R21JlyNtrQQ9IOKSxL88o2lIKVDjH4D8k3JH



20 Choosing an Occupation

T. H. Huxley

Dear sir,

I am very sorry that the pressure of other occupations has prevented me from sending an earlier reply to your letter.

In my opinion a man's first duty is to find a way of supporting himself, thereby relieving other people of the necessity of supporting him. Moreover, the learning to do work of practical value in the world, in an exact and careful manner, is of itself a very important education, the effects of which make themselves felt in all other pursuits. The habit of doing that which you do not care about when you would much rather be doing something else, is invaluable. It would have saved me a frightful waste of time if I had ever had it drilled into me in youth.

Success in any scientific career requires an unusual equipment of capacity, industry , and energy. If you possess that equipment, you will find leisure enough after your daily commercial work is over, to make an opening in the scientific ranks for yourself. If you don't, you had better stick to commerce. Nothing is less to be desired than the fate of a young man who, as the Scotch proverb says, in “trying to make a spoon spoils a horn,” and becomes a mere hanger-on in literature or in science, when he might have been a useful and a valuable member of society in other occupations.

I think that your father ought to see this letter.

Yours faithfully,
T. H. Huxley

难词释义

relieve [rɪˈliːv] v. 减轻,缓和(不快或痛苦)

frightful [ˈfraɪtfl] adj. 极坏的;很糟的

drill [drɪl] n./v. 培训;训练;练习

drill sth. into sb. 反复训练某人;向某人反复灌输

industry [ˈɪndəstri] n. 勤奋;勤劳

hanger-on [ˌhæŋərˈɑːn] n. 逢迎者;攀附权贵者

选择职业

T.H.赫胥黎

亲爱的先生:

近来忙于各种事务,未能及早复信,深感抱歉。

依我看来,一个人的首要职责是设法自立,以免除别人对他生活的负担。此外,学会严谨而审慎地从事社会上有实际价值的工作,其本身就是一种非常重要的教育,其效果必将体现在所有别的事业上。在你更愿做其他事情的时候,却仍能够从事你不感兴趣的工作,这种习惯是十分可贵的。要是我在年轻时养成了这种习惯,就可以避免时间上惊人的浪费。

任何科学事业上的成就,都需要具有不寻常的才能、勤勉和精力。你若具有上述资质,你在日常商业工作之余,将有足够的闲暇为自己在科学界觅得立足之地。你若不具有那种资质,还是一心经商为宜。天下最不足取的事情,莫过于一个年轻人如同苏格兰谚语所说的那样,“匙子没做成,倒毁了羊角”,成为在文学或科学领域里滥竽充数的食客。要是去从事其他工作的话,他或许会成为社会上有用和有价值的一员。

我认为此信应请你父亲一阅。

你的忠实的,
T. H. 赫胥黎

T. H. 赫胥黎

(T. H. Huxley,1825 — 1895),英国著名博物学家、教育家。达尔文进化论最坚定的支持者。代表作品有《人类在自然界的位置》《脊椎动物解剖学手册》《进化论和伦理学》等。 RsWqo04CEYU35/08BNWqNFhgHPH+R21JlyNtrQQ9IOKSxL88o2lIKVDjH4D8k3JH

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