首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Harsh Reality of the American Dream — by Humphrey Hawksley
Harsh Reality of the American Dream — by Humphrey Hawksley
admin
2010-04-12
19
问题
Harsh Reality of the American Dream
— by Humphrey Hawksley
(BBC News, United States)
It was a brilliant, hot day on the Seattle waterfront, with unspoilt views across the bay to outlying islands.
Just beyond a stretch of grass where people lay with books and lovers, came the melody of live unaccompanied singing. It turned out to be four men outside a cafe singing a love song about Cupid, each with different voice ranges, and a deep, swaying crowd, clapping along.
The Starbucks logo of the cafe struck me as a little old-fashioned until someone mentioned that this was the first Starbucks ever opened anywhere in the world.
I had come to Seattle because of a recent survey by the Centre for Economic Performance in London, on how easy or difficult it was to get rich in different parts of the world —or if not rich, at least move out of poverty.
"If you are born into poverty in the US," said one of its authors, "you are actually more likely to remain in poverty than in other countries in Europe, the Nordic countries, even Canada, which you would think would not be that different."
Possibilities
The Study, together with general anti-American sentiment (情绪) which has become more prevalent since the Iraq war, raised for me a question about the American dream —the idea that the United States is a place where anything is possible.
I had chosen Seattle not only because Starbucks was created there, but also because Microsoft and Amazon Books and Boeing airliners all come from this small city. Dreams, if you want, which began small but are now global brands.
"Great day, isn’t it?" I turned to see the lined, and drawn face of a man I will call Dave. "Are you getting what you want?"
We had met a couple of days earlier when he was having breakfast at a charity for the broke and homeless, and I had asked him if he believed in the American dream.
"The American dream." Dave said, eating a muffin and wiping his lips with a paper napkin.
"Well, it comes and goes. It will come again."
Winners and losers
In a low-ceilinged eating hall, maybe 100 men sat side by side along trestle tables. They had queued up since five, registered in case there was any work, then ate while security guards watched over them in case there was trouble.
In Europe or just across the border in Canada, they would be more likely to get social security, but this was America, where society is harshly divided into winners and losers.
Strangely, though, there seemed to be little resentment or blame of government. American culture is about self-reliance and the individual fighting a way through.
"The American dream," said one of the men, his eyes dartingly alive, his nose so skewed it must have been broken many times in different fights.
"I guess you are talking about a home, wife, children and all that."
"Do you have it?" I said.
"No. No. I don’t. I had my opportunities, but I lost."
Control
Just up the road in a small print shop, a fit, thoughtful former air force officer, Bobby Ray Forbes, was slotting calendars into envelopes.
His life collapsed when his marriage went wrong. He had ended up on the street, but recently had managed to get a job and keep it.
"Oh sure, I have had the house, picket fence, two cars." he said.
"But I put myself in a position where the government could take control. Right now I am happy just being back in control.You see, what a lot of people do not know is that the key is not getting the American dream. It is holding onto it."
In Europe, the government is entwined with a lot of what we do, yet in America, I felt a sentiment that the more say the government has over you, the more you carry a sense of failure.
Yet millions still yearn to come and take up the challenge.
A million a year settle to start the process of becoming American citizens. Half a million actually take the oath.
Flag waving
At the landscaped Seattle centre, using cards and newspapers to shield themselves from the sun, rows and rows of immigrants at a naturalisation (入籍) ceremony listened to local officials speak about various aspects of the American dream.
They came from everywhere: Britain, France, Iran, Iraq —the name of every country read out, to cheers, as if we were at the Oscars and, of course, the waving of American flags.
"Why do you want to live here and not in Europe?" I asked a young woman from Ethiopia, who tipped back her Seattle Mariners baseball cap and looked at me as if I were completely mad.
"Europe." she said disdainfully (轻蔑地).
"What do they ever hope for in Europe? Here they have a law that you can dream to be happy."
Recently Humphrey Hawksley, a BBC news reporter, came to Seattle to carry out a survey, enquiring whether that once universal idea of the American dream still exists.
选项
A、Y
B、N
C、NG
答案
A
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/xdk7777K
0
大学英语四级
相关试题推荐
A、Theywanttostayhomeanddothehousework.B、Theyhavetoomuchworkandnotmuchfreetime.C、Theydon’thaveenoughmoney.
A、Nobodywouldtakecareofthecity.B、Therewouldbenoprotectionfromcrime.C、Therewouldbenoschools.D、Peoplewouldbe
A、Themanshouldbuyamealticketeverymonth.B、Individualspaydifferentlyforthesamemeal.C、Buyingthemealticketwon’t
A、ReasonsforPeople’sSleeping.B、FourStagesofSleep.C、Reasonsforsleepwalking.D、ASleepExperiment.BWhat’sthetopicof
Whatdoesthepassagemainlydiscuss?Accordingtotheauthor,thedistortionsofreality______.
A、Hecan’tseethingsclearly.B、Hiseyedoesn’thurtverymuch.C、He’sfeelingunderweather.D、Hiseyehealsveryquickly.C女士
A、Sheneededthenoteslastweek.B、Themancanreturnhernotesaftertheexam.C、She’llhaveenoughtimetopreparefortheex
Whichofthefollowingismentionedasaresultofseveredesertification?Whatcanwelearnaboutthepolicychoiceinthelas
A、Fiveminutes.B、15hours~C、Fivehours.D、15minutes~C根据“Ittookthemfivehours”,可知答案是C
Sleepispartofaperson’sdailyactivitycycle.Thereareseveraldifferentstagesofsleep,andtheytoo【B1】______incycles.
随机试题
患者,男,40岁,无外伤史。下颌第一磨牙根尖片示牙齿无龋坏,近中牙槽突垂直吸收,近中牙根纵向折断。应诊断为
同时履行抗辩权的成立要件是( )。
某重力式码头主体工程施工分3个流水段进行,段间、段内施工工艺互无干扰。抛石基床(包括挖泥、抛石、整平)、沉箱安放(包括预制、出运、安装、箱内填料)、上部结构(包括沉箱封顶混凝土、胸墙及面层混凝土浇筑)分项工程各只有一个专业施工队施工。各分项工程所需工时如下
营运能力影响着借款人的偿债能力和盈利能力。从一方面看,借款人资产周转速度越快,就表明其()越强;从另一方面看,资产运用效率越高,资产周转速度就越快,借款人所取得的收入和盈利就越(),那么借款人就会有足够的资金还本付息,因而其偿债能力就越强。
北京市某非房地产开发企业2015年11月转让一块位于市区的土地使用权,签订了产权转移书据,取得收入560万元。年初取得该土地使用权时支付地价款420万元,取得土地使用权时发生相关费用6万元。则该企业转让土地使用权应纳土地增值税()万元。
一个由4个部件组成的串联系统,4个部件的故障率分别是:λ1=0.0002/h,λ2=0.0008/h,λ3=0.0004/h,λ4=0.0006/h。假设系统的故障发生服从指数分布,请回答下列问题。若某部件的故障率没有办法降低,而又需要提高该部件的可
决定教育领导权的因素是()
[A]Whycan’tthishappenmoreoften?ItisnoaccidentthatWorthenandsomanyothersaredrawntoateacherwhoisnotalifel
能够得到下面信息的DOS命令是
Celebrate.Celebrate.PhysiciansaredelightedwithaFoodandDrugAdministration(FDA)advisorypanel’srecommendationearlier
最新回复
(
0
)