VOA标准英语2011--Visitors Admire Martin Luther King Memor

Visitors Admire Martin Luther King Memorial

At the age of 34, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. captivated a nation with his “I have a Dream” speech. At 35, he became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Four years later, he was assassinated¹. But his legacy² will live on as the nation’s capital gets ready to officially dedicate a memorial to him on the National Mall. On Sunday, the nation dedicates that memorial, more than a month after a hurricane forced its delay. Mariama Diallo has more.

This visitor is talking about the newest monument on Washington’s national mall. The 9-meter tall statue is a tribute to the late civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The memorial includes a granite³ wall engraved⁴ with quotes from King’s various speeches and writings. Patrice Moore is from Ohio. She brought her mother, Virginia Allen, to Washington for her mom's 80th birthday.

“It’s so intense," said Patrice Moore. "It just reflects who he is. The size of it speaks of the size of the man. He actually passed away on my birthday, my 10th birthday. I thought he was a king. As I grew older and learned more about him, I would still think of him as a king.”

“I think it’s just fabulous⁵, said Virginia Allen. "The wording and everything. It couldn’t be a better tribute to him.”

People come from all over the country to see the memorial.

“I started thinking about where my family came from and how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go," said Arthur Garner⁶ from Michigan. "Making sure we continue to live his dream."

“It’s just awesome⁷ to look at," said rita Durst from Kentucky. "If you go, you can stand and look up. It just reminds you what an amazing man MLK was.”

Dr. King is the first non-president to have a memorial on the Mall. Emmanual Cleaver⁸, the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus⁹, says that speaks to his stature¹⁰ in American History.

“Martin Luther King joined a group of Americans who are held in the greatest esteem¹¹ for their contributions to the country: from Abraham Lincoln to George Washington, to Jefferson," said Cleaver. "And that says something about where a nation has travelled over the past 40 or 50 years.”

Though the overall reviews have been positive, the monument has also created controversy¹². Critics - among them well-known author and poet Maya Angelou - say that one of King's quotes has been shortened in a way that some feel presents it out of context.

Some visitors feel it makes little difference, but others say there is room for correction.

“Yeah it could’ve been several lines longer but it still has the same meaning and maybe it’ll give people an opportunity to go seek out the entire quote as well," said Moore.

“I think there is room in the monument to address that," said Chris Wilson.

The U.S. Interior Department says it will address the issue after the official dedication¹³ on Sunday.

1 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

2 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。

3 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

4 engraved   

v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中）

参考例句：

• The silver cup was engraved with his name. 银杯上刻有他的名字。
• It was prettily engraved with flowers on the back. 此件雕刻精美，背面有花饰图案。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 fabulous   

adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的

参考例句：

• We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。
• This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。

6 garner   

v.收藏；取得

参考例句：

• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals.他的提议得到了广泛的支持。
• Squirrels garner nuts for the winter.松鼠为过冬储存松果。

7 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

8 cleaver   

n.切肉刀

参考例句：

• In fact,a cleaver is a class of ax.实际上，切肉刀也是斧子的一种。
• The cleaver is ground to a very sharp edge.刀磨得飞快。

9 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

10 stature   

n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材

参考例句：

• He is five feet five inches in stature.他身高5英尺5英寸。
• The dress models are tall of stature.时装模特儿的身材都较高。

11 esteem   

n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• The veteran worker ranks high in public love and esteem.那位老工人深受大伙的爱戴。

12 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

13 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。