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Passage One
文章一
One of the most popular myths about the United States in the nineteenth century was that of the free and simple life of the farmer.
19世纪的美国最流行的故事之一就是关于农民自由简单生活的故事。
It was said that farmers worked hard on their own land to produce whatever their families needed.
据说，农民在他们自己的土地上辛勤工作，种植家庭所需的作物。
They might sometimes trade with neighbors;
他们有时还会与邻居进行交易，
but in general they could get along just fine by relying on themselves, not on commercial ties with others.
但通常他们都能靠自己过活，不用与他人交易。
This is how Thomas Jefferson idealized the farmer at the beginning of the nineteenth century,
这就是19世纪初托马斯·杰斐逊所认为的理想的农民生活，
and, at that time, this may have been close to the truth—especially on the frontier.
在那个时候，这一设想与事实相差不远，尤其是边境地区的农民。
But by mid-century, sweeping changes in agriculture were well under way
但是到了19世纪中期，农业领域掀起了巨大变革，
as farmers began to specialize in the raising of crops such as cotton or corn or wheat.
农民开始专注于种植棉花、玉米或小麦这样的作物。
By late in the century, revolutionary advances in farm machinery had vastly increased production of specialized crops.
到了19世纪晚期，农业机械的革命性进步则大大提高了专一农作物的产量。
And the extensive network of railroads had linked farmers throughout the country to markets in the East and even overseas.
而且呈网状分布的铁路将全国的农民连接起来，他们能够到达东部甚至是沿海地区的市场。
By raising and selling specialized crops,
通过种植和销售专一作物，
farmers could afford more and finer goods and achieve a much higher standard of living, but at a price.
农民能够消费起更多更精细的商品，生活水平也逐渐提高，但这需要付出一定的代价。
Now, farmers were no longer dependent just on the weather and their own efforts.
现在美国农民不再依赖于天气和自身劳作，
Their lives were increasingly controlled by banks,
他们的生活越来越受到银行的制约，
which had power to grant or deny loans for new machinery,
因为银行有权利批准或拒绝贷款给农民购买机器，
and by the railroads, which set the rates for shipping their crops to market.
同时，他们也受铁路制约，因为铁路规定了运输作物的费用。
As businessmen, farmers now had to worry about national economic depressions and the influence of world supply and demand on,
作为商人，农民们开始担心全国的经济萧条及世界供需对农作物价格的影响，
for example, the price of wheat in Kansas.
例如，堪萨斯州小麦的价格。
And so, by the end of the nineteenth century, the era of Jefferson's independent farmer had come to a close.
因此，19世纪末，关于杰斐逊总统独立农民理念的时代已经结束了。
Questions 9 to 12 are based on the passage you have just heard.
问题9至问题12是基于你刚刚听到的这篇短文的
Questions 9.What's the main feature of American farmers' life in the 19th century?
问题9 19世纪美国农民生活的主要特征是什么?
Questions 10.What changes had taken place in the 19th century?
问题10 19世纪发生了哪些重大的变革？
Questions 11.What is the American farmers' life like in the modern time?
问题11 当今社会美国农民的生活方式如何？
Questions 12.Which of the following statements is incorrect?
问题12 下列哪一句的描述是错误的？
译文属可可原创，仅供学习和交流使用，未经允许不得转载
