"911”悲剧纪实

62 "911”悲剧纪实

IN THE NEWS - September 15, 2001: Explaining TragedyBy George Grow

     (start at 1'06") This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program, IN THE NEWS.
     Few people (1)escaped from seeing or hearing about the (2)terrorist¹ attacks in the United States Tuesday morning. Two (3)hijacked² airplanes struck the World Trade Center in New York City. A short time later, another hijacked plane hit the headquarters³ of the United States Defense⁴ Department, near Washington. A fourth hijacked plane (4)crashed in the eastern state of Pennsylvania.
     All two-hundred-sixty-six people on the four planes were killed. Hundreds of other people are known to have died. Thousands of others are missing⁵, and feared dead. The President (5)declared Friday a day to honor⁶ the memories of the many (6)victims of the attacks.
     When a terrorist attack happens, many people feel very frightened and worried. They experience the same feelings during a war, (7)earthquake, (8)flooding or other major event that is out of control.
     Mental health experts are (9)concerned about children who experience a tragic⁷ event before they are eleven years of age. They say such children are three times more likely to develop emotional⁸ problems than those who experience their first (10)tragedy later in life.
     Experts say children are better able to deal with a tragedy if parents, friends and other adults help them understand the experience. They say help should start as soon as possible after the event. Experts offer a number of suggestions about how to explain a tragedy to children. They say how adults react to a child's feelings and questions is important to helping⁹ a child feel safe again.
     First, experts say parents should (11)attempt to control their reaction to the tragedy. Parents should remain as calm as possible. They say children will react to what they see.
     Next, adults should help children feel secure¹⁰. Listen to the worries children express, without judging them. Parents should talk to their children. Tell children repeatedly¹¹ that they and other loved ones are safe. Also, family members need to gather in one area and spend more time together.
     Explaining a tragic event is difficult. The kind of (12)explanation has to be based on the child's age and level of thinking. For a young child, a tragedy must be explained in simple terms. A terrorist attack can be explained as some people did something very bad.
    Some experts (13)urge adults to limit their time with radio or television when children are present. They say adults should not let their desire to be informed about events affect a child's (14)mental health. Experts also urge parents to return to their normal activities as soon as possible. They say people of all ages like to have an established way of doing things.
    This VOA Special English program, IN THE NEWS, was written by George Grow. This is Steve Ember.

 

(1) escape[ is5keip ]n.逃, 逃亡, 溢出设备, 出口, 逃跑, [植]野生vi.逃脱, 避开, 溜走vt.逃避, 避免, 被忘掉
(2) terrorist[5terErIst]n.恐怖分子
(3) hijack[ 5haidVAk ]vt.抢劫, 劫持, 劫机, 揩油
(4) crash[ krAF ]n.碰撞, 坠落, 坠毁, 撞击声, 爆裂声v.碰撞, 坠落, 坠毁, (指商业公司, 政府等)破产, 垮台
(5) declare[ di5klZE ]vt.断言, 宣称, 宣布, 宣告, 声明, (向海关)中报进口应纳税之货物
(6) victim[ 5viktim ]n.受害人, 牺牲者, 牺牲品
(7) earthquake[ 5E:Wkweik ]n.地震, [喻]在震荡, 在变动
(8) flood[ flQd ]n.洪水, 水灾, (因雨)涨潮, [诗]水vt.淹没, 使泛滥, 注满, 充满vi.被水淹, 溢出, 涌进, 喷出, 涌出
(9) concern[ kEn5sE:n ]vt.涉及, 关系到n.(利害)关系, 关心, 关注, 关注, 所关心的是
(10) tragedy[ 5trAdVidi ]n.悲剧, 惨案, 悲惨, 灾难
(11) attempt[ E5tempt ]n.努力, 尝试, 企图vt.尝试, 企图
(12) explanation[ 7eksplE5neiFEn ]n.解释, 解说, 说明, 辩解, 互相讲明
(13) urge[ E:dV ]vt.催促, 力劝n.强烈欲望, 迫切要求v.促进
(14) mental[ 5mentl ]adj.精神的, 智力的

 

1 terrorist   

n.恐怖主义者，恐怖分子

参考例句：

• Without the gun,I'm a sitting duck for any terrorist.没有这支枪，我就成了恐怖分子下手的目标了。
• The district was put on red alert during a terrorist's bomb scare.这个地区在得到恐怖分子炸弹恐吓后作了应急准备。

2 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

3 headquarters   

n.司令部，指挥部；总部，总店

参考例句：

• Several great guns from the headquarters are coming to see us today.总部的几个大人物今天要来看我们。
• The bank has its headquarters in Pairs.这家银行的总行在巴黎。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 missing   

adj.遗失的，缺少的，失踪的

参考例句：

• Check the tools and see if anything is missing.检点一下工具，看有无丢失。
• All the others are here;he's the only one missing.别人都来了，就短他一个。

6 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

7 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

8 emotional   

adj.令人动情的；易动感情的；感情(上)的

参考例句：

• Emotional people don't stop to calculate.感情容易冲动的人做事往往不加考虑。
• This is an emotional scene in the play.这是剧中动人的一幕。

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 secure   

adj.无虑的，安心的，安全的；adj.牢靠的，稳妥的；vt.固定，获得，使...安全；vi.(海上工作人员)停止工；vi.(船)抛锚，停泊

参考例句：

• He found a secure foothold and pulled himself up.他找到了一个稳固的踏脚处并爬了上去。
• Extra men are needed to secure the camp against attack.需要增加兵力以保护军营免受攻击。

11 repeatedly   

adv.重复地，再三地

参考例句：

• The loudspeakers blared the speech repeatedly.扬声器里反复大声地播送那篇演讲。
• He repeatedly beat his foot upon the floor.他反复用脚敲着地板。