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Moderator: Hello, Ladies and Gentleman, it gives me great pleasure to introduce our keynote speaker for today's session, Dr. Howard Miller. (16) Dr. Miller, Professor of Sociology at Washington University, has written numerous articles and books on the issues facing older Americans in our graying society for the past 15 years. Dr. Miller.
Dr. Miller: Thank you for that introduction. Today, I'd like to preface my remarks with a story from my own life which I feel highlights the common concerns that bring us here together. Several years ago when my grandparents were well into their eighties, they were faced with the reality of no longer being able to adequately care for themselves. (17) My grandfather spoke of his greatest fear, that of leaving the only home they had known for the past 60 years. Fighting back the tears, he spoke proudly of the fact that he had built their home from the ground up, and that he had pounded every nail and laid every brick in the process. The prospect of having to sell their home and give up their independence, and move into a retirement home was an extremely painful experience for them. It was, in my grandfather's own words, like having a limb cut off. He exclaimed in a forceful manner that he felt he wasn't important anymore.
For them and some older Americans, (18) their so-called "golden years" are at times not so pleasant, for this period can mean the decline of not only one's health but the loss of identity and self-worth. In many societies, this self-identity is closely related with our social status, occupation, material possessions, or independence. Furthermore, we often live in societies that value what is "new" or in fashion, and our own usage of words in the English language is often a sign of bad news for older Americans. I mean how would your family react if you came home tonight exclaiming, "Hey, come to the living room and see the OLD black and white TV I brought!" Unfortunately, the word "old" calls to mind images of the need to replace or discard.
Now, many of the lectures given at this conference have focused on the issues of pension reform, medical care, and the development of public facilities for senior citizens. And while these are vital issues that must be addressed, (19) I'd like to focus my comments on an important issue that will affect the overall success of the other programs mentioned. This has to do with changing our perspectives on what it means to be a part of this group, and finding meaningful roles the elderly can play and should play in our societies.
First of all, I'd like to talk about...
16. What does the introduction say about Dr. Howard Miller's articles and books?
17. What is the greatest fear of Dr. Miller's grandfather?
18. What does Dr. Miller say the "golden years" can often mean?
19. What is the focus of Dr. Miller's speech?
女士们先生们，大家好。本期节目我很荣幸地请来了今天的主讲嘉宾，霍华德·米勒博士。米勒博士是华盛顿大学的社会学教授。他在过去的15年里撰写了许多的文章和书籍，讨论了在我们这个老龄化社会中年迈的美国人所面临的一些问题。米勒博士。
谢谢你刚才的介绍。在对发表我的评论之前，我想先讲一个我自己生活中的故事。我认为这个故事凸显出的一个普遍关注的问题，它也是我们大家今天聚在这里的原因。几年前我的祖父母已经八十好几，他们面临的一个现实情况是自己已经没有能力照顾自己。祖父说他最害怕的事情就是离开自己60年中唯一生活过的房子。强忍着泪水，祖父说道，他亲手将自己现在的家平地造起，自己钉的每一颗钉子，砌的每一块瓦。想到必须卖掉这所房子，放弃独立生活，搬进一所养老院祖父感到十分痛苦。用祖父自己的话说，那就“像是接受截肢手术。”他深深地感叹已经感觉不到自己的的重要性了。
对于他们以及一些年纪更大的美国人来说，所谓的“黄金年代”有时并不是那么令人愉悦，因为这段时期可能不仅意味着一个人身体状况的恶化，而且还意味着身份和自尊的缺失。在很多国家，一个人的身份与他的社会地位、职业、物质财产以及独立情况紧密联系在一起。而且，我们生存的社会往往重视“新潮的”或者“时尚的”。有时甚至我们使用的一些词汇对于一些年长的美国人来说都是一个不安的信号。比如，如果今天晚上回家对家人说，“嘿，来客厅看我带回来的旧式的黑白电视！”很不幸，“旧式”这个词使人联想到的是应该被替代或者丢弃。
这次会议上其他的演讲都将重点放在了针对老年人的养老制度的改革、医疗保健、以及发展公共设施上面。尽管这些都是至关重要的需要被解决的问题，但是我的评论将围绕一个会影响上述其他项目整体成败的重要问题展开。这涉及改变我们对于‘何为群体一部分’的认识，还涉及找到在我们这个社会里老年人所能扮演和应该扮演的有意义的角色”。
首先，我想谈的是……
问题16 主持人介绍霍华德·米勒博士的文章和书籍时说了什么？
问题17 米勒博士祖父最害怕的是什么？
问题18 米勒博士说“黄金时代”通常意味着什么？
问题19 米勒博士演讲的重点内容是什么？
译文属可可原创，仅供学习和交流使用，未经允许不得转载
