昨天,又有一位大师离开了我们。世界著名建筑师贝聿铭先生逝世,享年102岁。
从18岁赴美留学的富家子弟,到世界知名的建筑师,贝聿铭的一生不仅演绎了一个有传奇色彩的故事,还给我们带来了那些美轮美奂的建筑。
今天,纽约时报发表讣告,回顾了这位建筑设计天才的传奇一生。
Zoe(CATTI 2、TEM 8)截取此篇讣告的前几段做了简单解读,一起来学习~~
I. M. Pei, who began his long career designing buildings for a New York real estate developer and ended it as one of the most revered architects in the world, died early Thursday at his home in Manhattan. He was 102.
句子主干是Pei died early Thursday at his home in Manhattan.中间who...插入结构都是修饰贝聿铭的定语从句。
begin one"s (long/great, etc.) career doing/as... 这个句式意思为,某人以(做某事或某种身份)开启了他(漫长/辉煌……的)职业生涯。比如开始了我的律师生涯begin my career as a lawyer
相对应地,后面end it(his career) as one of the most revered architects in the world,最后成为世界上最受尊崇的一位建筑设计师,revered形容词,受尊敬的。
Best known for designing the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington and theglass pyramid at the entrance to the Louvrein Paris, Mr. Pei was one of the few architects who were equally attractive to real estate developers, corporate chieftains and art museum boards (the third group, of course, often made up of members of the first two).
best known for...状语,逻辑主语是句子的主语,也就是Mr. Pei。这种句式常见于对人物的描写中,best known for ...(描写对象最为人熟知的某个特征), sb. ...(与前述特征相关的某个行为) 比如下面对杰奎琳的一句描写:
Bestknownforherladylikepillboxhatsandskirtsuits,shechosepale colours that would look goodinblack-and-whiteandwasn"t afraid to take risks inpreppy cropped pants.杰奎琳服装中最知名的是她端庄贤淑的小礼帽和西装裙,在当时黑白电视背景下,她明智地选择了浅色衣服,而且她也敢于穿私校式样的短裤。
equally attractive to...受到甲乙丙各方同等青睐的,equally表示同等地同样地,比如
Diet and exercise are equally important.饮食和锻炼同样重要。
And all of his work — from his commercial skyscrapers to his art museums — represented a careful balance of the cutting edge and the conservative.
from... to...我们平时接触得比较多的意思是从A点到B点,它也可以表示对范围的列举,比如你想形容一家超市商品齐全,从袜子到奶酪什么都能买到:a supermarket where you can buy anything from socks to cheese
represent此处更多偏向于“表现、展现”之意,取这个词义的时候,主语通常是绘画、建筑、雕塑等,比如表现宗教主题的绘画作品Paintings representing religious themes
此句中All of his work represented a careful balance of the cutting edge and the conservative 他的所有作品都展现了现代与保守之间的微妙平衡,正好呼应上一句be equally attractive to ...
Mr. Pei’s addition to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, known as the East Building, is made from massive blocks of Tennessee marble arranged around a triangular courtyard. It was a rare example of a modernist structure that appeared so permanent and well crafted that even lovers of traditional architecture were smitten.
addition一词在建筑领域的意思是扩建部分,比如他们在房子后面加盖了一间大屋子。They built a big addition onto the back of the house.
be a (adj.) example of...是……的范例,比如这是这位艺术家早期作品的范例。This is a good example of the artist"s early work.
在表达“典范、最典型的”的含义时,也可以用这个句型,比如最典型的中世纪城堡aperfect exampleof a medieval castle。人们经常举例把日本作为现代工业国家的典范。Japan is often quoted as theprime exampleof a modern industrial nation.
修饰词通常选classic, prime, perfect。
突然爱上,可以用这个词smitten, be smitten with/by, 后面跟的如果是某种情绪,也可以表示突然产生某种情感,比如顿时悔恨不已be smitten with remorse。
At a time when most of his Harvard classmates considered themselves fortunate to get to design a single-family house or two, Mr. Pei quickly found himself engaged in the design of high-rise buildings, and he used that experience as a springboard to establish his own firm, I. M. Pei & Associates, which he set up in 1955 with Henry Cobb and Eason Leonard, the team he had assembled at Webb & Knapp.
在表达两类人或两类事物的行为对比时,可以适当套用这个句式At a time when A..., B... 比如:
Atatimewhentoomanyofourinstitutionshaveletusdown,theyexceedallexpectations.在许多机构都让人失望之时,他们的作为超出了所有人的期望。
此处也是一例,将贝聿铭和他在哈佛的同窗毕业后的成就做对比。
摩天大厦,之前的段落用的skycraper,这里用了高层建筑high-rise buildings。
springboard本意是跳水用的跳板,引申为助推因素,也就是中文里说的“跳板”,A is the springboard for B, A 推动了B的形成或发生。比如1981年的预算造就了一场经济奇迹。The 1981 budget was the springboard for an economic miracle.
能表达类似意思的名词还有catalyst,本意是催化剂,引申为导致重大变化的事物或人,比如他们希望他的当选会成为改革的催化剂。They hope his election willact as a catalystfor reform.
The firm became fully independent from Webb & Knapp in 1960, by which time Mr. Pei, a cultivated man whose understated manner and easy charm masked an intense, competitive ambition, was winning commissions for major projects that had nothing to do with Zeckendorf.
这个句子很长,但主句很明确,就是The firm became fully independent from Webb & Knapp in 1960,后面by which time...跟的是定语从句,表示在1960年这个时间点以前,定语从句的主干是Mr.Pei was winning commissions for major projects,其中Mr.Pei后面有个同位语,是对贝聿铭的描述,commissions后面也跟了一个定语从句。
commission意思是对艺术家、设计师或音乐家的创作委托,比如学院要求制作一尊新雕塑的委托a commission from the Academy for a new sculpture
我们再来看贝聿铭的同位语,a cultivated man whose understated manner and easy charm masked an intense, competitive ambition
cultivated有修养的,understated可以表示朴素淡雅不惹眼的,这里修饰他的行为处事风格是很低调的;mask及物动词,掩盖,比如男人常常用幽默来掩饰他们真实的情感。Men often mask their true feelings with humour.
这种人在我们身边其实很常见,表面上与世无争,内心里奋发向上one whose understated manner masked an intense, competitive ambition。
His museum oeuvre would culminate in the call todesign the Museum of Islamic Art, in Doha, Qatar, in , a challenge Mr. Pei accepted with relish. A longtime collector of Western Abstract Expressionist art, he admitted to knowing little about Islamic art.
oeuvre意味艺术家的全部作品,culminate in/with sth.以……告终,比如明年的莎士比亚戏剧节将为师生们的一系列活动画上句号。A series of events for teachers and students will culminate in a Shakespeare festival next year.
a challenge是the call的同位语,with relish表示一种很享受的状态,relish=great enjoyment,比如吃得津津有味eat with relish。
这篇讣告先拆到这里。别忘了右下方点“在看”哦~~