VOA标准英语2009年-Obama Prepares to Accept Nobel Peace P

 

...I will accept this award - as a call to action, a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century,' said Mr. Obama

Paula Wolfson | Washington 09 December 2009
 

Pedestrians¹ wait at a trolley² stop in Oslo, Norway in front of a sign of Nobel Peace laureate Barack Obama, 09 Dec 2009

 

"To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who have been honored by this prize," said President Obama
Less than one year after he took office, U.S. President Barack Obama is preparing to go to Norway to accept the Nobel Peace Prize.  He says he is humbled³ by the award and not sure he has done enough to warrant such a high honor. 

The announcement by the chairman of the Nobel Committee took the world by surprise.

"The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided⁴ that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 is to be awarded to President Barack Obama," announced Thorbjoen Jagland.

Even the president was stunned⁵.

"To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who have been honored by this prize," he said.

A new public opinion poll shows that Americans overwhelmingly agree.

Peter Brown is head of the Quinnipiac University Poll, which surveyed roughly 2,300 Americans about the award.

"Twenty-six percent of Americans think that he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize - obviously not a very large number," said Brown.

Support was extremely low among Republicans and independent voters.  And Brown notes that even among members of the president's own Democratic Party, only 49 percent of voters say the Nobel Committee made the right choice.

"Eight percent of Republicans think he deserves the award.  That is a fairly low number," said Peter Brown.  "And, interestingly, 19 percent of Independents think he deserves the award.  Clearly, Democrats⁶ to a much larger degree than anyone else - but still, not even a majority of Democrats - think he deserves the award."

The president has admitted as much, saying that sometimes the Nobel Prize is awarded not to honor a specific achievement, but to give momentum⁷ to a set of causes.

"And that is why I will accept this award - as a call to action, a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century," said Mr. Obama.

The White House says Mr. Obama's Nobel lecture in Oslo will build on those themes.  But Spokesman Robert Gibbs says he will also talk about the reality of being a Nobel peace laureate who is leading a nation at war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"We'll address directly the notion, I think, that many have wondered [about], which is the juxtaposition⁸ of the timing⁹ for the Nobel Peace Prize and his commitment to add more troops into Afghanistan," said Gibbs.

The conflicts weigh on President Obama as he prepares to join the ranks of Nobel Peace Prize recipients¹⁰ - men and women like Nelson Mandela; Martin Luther King, Jr.; and Aung San Suu Kyi.  He acknowledges his accomplishments¹¹ pale by comparison, and suggests that his award might be more about hope than accomplishments. 

 

1 pedestrians   

n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Several pedestrians had come to grief on the icy pavement. 几个行人在结冰的人行道上滑倒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Pedestrians keep to the sidewalk [footpath]! 行人走便道。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 trolley   

n.手推车，台车；无轨电车；有轨电车

参考例句：

• The waiter had brought the sweet trolley.侍者已经推来了甜食推车。
• In a library,books are moved on a trolley.在图书馆，书籍是放在台车上搬动的。

3 humbled   

adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低

参考例句：

• The examination results humbled him. 考试成绩挫了他的傲气。
• I am sure millions of viewers were humbled by this story. 我相信数百万观众看了这个故事后都会感到自己的渺小。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

8 juxtaposition   

n.毗邻，并置，并列

参考例句：

• The juxtaposition of these two remarks was startling.这两句话连在一起使人听了震惊。
• It is the result of the juxtaposition of contrasting colors.这是并列对比色的结果。

9 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

10 recipients   

adj.接受的；受领的；容纳的；愿意接受的n.收件人；接受者；受领者；接受器

参考例句：

• The recipients of the prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者的姓名登在报上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The recipients of prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者名单登在报上。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 accomplishments   

n.造诣；完成( accomplishment的名词复数 )；技能；成绩；成就

参考例句：

• It was one of the President's greatest accomplishments. 那是总统最伟大的成就之一。
• Among her accomplishments were sewing,cooking,playing the piano and dancing. 她的才能包括缝纫、烹调、弹钢琴和跳舞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》