VOA标准英语2010年-Pulitzer Prize Winner Looks at Life of

A new biography by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Stacy Schiff tackles the life, death and legacy¹ of Cleopatra. Schiff's work challenges some of the assumptions long held about Egypt's last queen.
It has been said that history is written by the victors. Nowhere is that sentiment more clearly illustrated² than when exploring the reign³ of Cleopatra. Most of what we know of her was written by her enemies - the Roman historians Plutarch, Dio and Appian. Cicero didn't even mention her name when he said I despise the queen. But now Schiff is attempting to separate fact from propaganda in her new book Cleopatra: A Life.
Schiff said the popular image of Cleopatra is far from the truth. In fact, the last queen of Egypt was a highly-educated, multilingual, shrewd ruler who was the equal of any monarch⁴ of her time.
"She would have had precisely⁵ the education that someone like Caesar or Cicero had," said Schiff. "Homer was the Bible of the day. She certainly would have been able to recite large parts of the Iliad. She would have known her Aeschylus, her Euripides, and her Sophocles. She would have done child grammar lessons using Aesop's fables⁶. And it's a very consistent curriculum across the Greek world at that point. And she and the well-born men with whom she allies herself later would have all hailed from the same background."Schiff makes the point that Cleopatra is often not mentioned unless there's a Roman in the room. Her book, however, portrays⁷ the monarch as everything from Egypt's richest citizen, to its leading general, to its high priestess. But Cleopatra found herself in a careful balancing act with Rome and its dictator Julius Caesar, whom she eventually married and bore one son. Schiff said the relationship between Caesar and Cleopatra was not necessarily a romantic one - it was politically necessary.
"Rome needs Egypt's wealth, it needs Egypt's grain," said Schiff. "Cleopatra cannot continue without a benefactor⁸ in Rome. The two of them very quickly have a child together and Cleopatra will follow Caesar to Rome for reasons which may have been romantic, but my guess were probably have been more political. Whether all of this cloaks some kind of romance I really leave to the reader to decide. We're talking about two very shrewd, very straight-thinking strategic people."Schiff's biography follows Cleopatra through Caesar's assassination⁹, her relationship with Mark Antony, their fateful battle at Actium with Octavian - known later as Caesar Augustus - and their suicides.
The book concludes with the argument that Cleopatra used poison to commit suicide, rather than a snake bite as is commonly believed. The author has exhaustively researched her subject, and makes strong arguments for reconsidering the history.
The author said that Cleopatra's life and legacy have several lessons for modern readers - including as a model for independent women.
"Obviously she is born to rule or to be one of several prospective¹⁰ rulers at a time when women are taken seriously and women have really extraordinary legal rights," said Schiff. "And she doesn't really seem to look around and notice 'I'm the only woman in the room.' And I just think that's a lesson that we would be very well off incorporating today, as is her sense of confidence and clear sightedness."Schiff's biography of Cleopatra is available at her website and at booksellers worldwide.

1 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

2 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

3 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

4 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

5 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

6 fables   

n.寓言( fable的名词复数 )；神话，传说

参考例句：

• Some of Aesop's Fables are satires. 《伊索寓言》中有一些是讽刺作品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Little Mexican boys also breathe the American fables. 墨西哥族的小孩子对美国神话也都耳濡目染。 来自辞典例句

7 portrays   

v.画像( portray的第三人称单数 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The museum collection vividly portrays the heritage of 200 years of canals. 博物馆的藏品让运河200 年的历史再现眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The film portrays Gandhi as a kind of superman. 这部电影把甘地描绘成一个超人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 benefactor   

n. 恩人，行善的人，捐助人

参考例句：

• The chieftain of that country is disguised as a benefactor this time. 那个国家的首领这一次伪装出一副施恩者的姿态。
• The first thing I did, was to recompense my original benefactor, my good old captain. 我所做的第一件事, 就是报答我那最初的恩人, 那位好心的老船长。

9 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

10 prospective   

adj.预期的，未来的，前瞻性的

参考例句：

• The story should act as a warning to other prospective buyers.这篇报道应该对其他潜在的购买者起到警示作用。
• They have all these great activities for prospective freshmen.这会举办各种各样的活动来招待未来的新人。