本文摘選自英國(guó)作家?jiàn)W爾德斯·赫胥黎的Selected Snobberies，討論世上種種勢(shì)利現(xiàn)象。作者最為世人所知的代表作是《美麗新世界》。
All men are snobs about something. One is almost tempted to add : There is nothing about which men cannot feel snobbish.
1. snob n.勢(shì)利小人，勢(shì)利眼
相關(guān)信息：舊時(shí)在英國(guó)大學(xué)的學(xué)生名冊(cè)中，貴族學(xué)生姓名后面標(biāo)有NOB字樣，是nobility（貴族）的簡(jiǎn)略形式；出身平民的普通學(xué)生姓名后標(biāo)以s.nob.，是拉丁語(yǔ)sine nobilitate（非高貴出身）的縮略，這可能是snob的詞源；如此snob的含義與“高貴”相反，從而是低賤的“勢(shì)利小人”。
同根詞
snob n.勢(shì)利小人，勢(shì)利眼（指人）
snobbery n. 勢(shì)利，諂上欺下；擺紳士架子；勢(shì)利的行為或語(yǔ)言（指行為）
snobbish adj. 勢(shì)利眼的, 諂上傲下的, 恃才傲物的（相當(dāng)于snobby)
snobbishness n.勢(shì)利
snobbism n.勢(shì)利
2. 這里的about相當(dāng)于on，表示“對(duì)于，關(guān)于”
3. 整句翻譯：人人都有勢(shì)利之處。人們幾乎很想加一句：任何東西都可引起人們的勢(shì)利感。
But this would doubtless be an exaggeration. There are certain disfiguring and mortal diseases about which there has probably never been any snobbery. I cannot imagine, for example, that there are any leprosy-snobs（麻風(fēng)病勢(shì)利者）.
4. exaggeration n. 夸張；夸大之詞；夸張的手法
同根詞
exaggerate vt. 使擴(kuò)大；使增大 vi. 夸大；夸張
exaggerated adj. 夸大的,言過(guò)其實(shí)的,夸張的
exaggeratedly adv.夸張地
5. disfigure vt. 使變丑；損毀…的外形；使大為減色
6. mortal adj. 凡人的；致命的；終有一死的；不共戴天的
此處意為“致命的”，意同deadly，fatal，lethal
deadly?指能致命或?qū)嶋H已致命的事物，也可指企圖致死他人的人。
fatal?正式用詞，強(qiáng)調(diào)死亡的不可避免性，多用于指?jìng)蚣膊〉取?/p>
mortal?語(yǔ)氣強(qiáng)，指導(dǎo)致死亡的直接原因。
lethal?指由于某物本身具有致命的性能。
7. 整句翻譯：不過(guò)這一點(diǎn)無(wú)疑會(huì)是一種夸張。也許對(duì)某些毀容或致命的疾病從來(lái)沒(méi)有使人感到勢(shì)利，例如我無(wú)法想像會(huì)有麻風(fēng)病勢(shì)利者。
More picturesque diseases, even when they are dangerous, and less dangerous diseases, particularly when they are the diseases of the rich, can be and very frequently are a source of snobbish self-importance.
8. picturesque adj. 獨(dú)特的；生動(dòng)的；別致的；圖畫(huà)般的
9. 主語(yǔ)①M(fèi)ore picturesque diseases,?even when they （指more picturesque diseases) are dangerous,?and 主語(yǔ)②less dangerous diseases, particularly when they （指less dangerous diseases） are the diseases of the rich,?can be and very frequently are a source of snobbish self-importance.?并列主語(yǔ)①②
10. 整句翻譯：一些縱使有危險(xiǎn)但較為別致的疾病，以及不太危險(xiǎn)的病，特別是富人愛(ài)得的病，能夠并常常是使人感到勢(shì)利、自以為了不起的根源。
I have met several adolescent consumption-snobs（肺結(jié)核勢(shì)利者）, who thought that it would be romantic to fade away in the flower of youth, like Keats or Marie Bashkirtseff. Alas, the final stages of the consumptive fading are generally a good deal less romantic than these ingenuous young tubercle-snobs（結(jié)核勢(shì)利者） seem to imagine.
11. adolescent?adj. 青春期的；未成熟的 n. 青少年
同根詞
adolescence n.青春期
adolesce vi.進(jìn)入青春期；如青春期少年般行事
senescent adj. 衰老的；變老的；老化的
senescence n. 衰老
12. Ingenuous adj. 天真的；坦白的；正直的；樸實(shí)的
disingenuous adj. 虛偽的；不誠(chéng)實(shí)的；不老實(shí)的；狡猾的
13. a good deal此處相當(dāng)于much,作為副詞形容less romantic。
14. 整句翻譯：我遇見(jiàn)過(guò)好幾位因患肺結(jié)核而有勢(shì)利感的年輕人，他們覺(jué)得很像濟(jì)慈或瑪麗?巴什基爾采夫那樣在青春妙齡時(shí)死去是很浪漫的一件事。哎呀，結(jié)核病晚期通常遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不像這些天真的年輕結(jié)核勢(shì)利者想像得那么浪漫。
To anyone who has actually witnessed these final stages, the complacent poeticizings of these adolescents must seem as exasperating as they are profoundly pathetic. In the case of those commoner disease-snobs, whose claim to distinction is that they suffer from one of the maladies of the rich, exasperation is not tempered by very much sympathy.
15. complacent adj. 自滿(mǎn)的；得意的；滿(mǎn)足的
16. poeticize vt. 賦予詩(shī)意 （e發(fā)音/e/）
poet n. 詩(shī)人 （e發(fā)音/i/）
poetic adj. 詩(shī)的，詩(shī)歌的；詩(shī)意的；詩(shī)人的 n. 詩(shī)學(xué)，詩(shī)論 （e發(fā)音/e/）
poetry n. 詩(shī)；詩(shī)意，詩(shī)情；詩(shī)歌藝術(shù) （e發(fā)音/i/）
17. exasperate vt. 惡化；使惱怒；激怒
exasperation n. 惱怒；惡化；惹人惱怒的事
18. pathetic adj. 可憐的，悲哀的；感傷的；乏味的
19.madaly n. 弊??；疾病
20. (the complacent poeticizings of形容these adolescents)?these adolescents must seem as?exasperating as?they are profoundly?pathetic.
21. whose claim to distinction?is that they suffer from one of the maladies of the rich
22. 整句翻譯：對(duì)任何一個(gè)親眼目睹過(guò)晚期狀態(tài)的人，這些少年的自我滿(mǎn)足的浪漫詩(shī)情必定會(huì)顯得既令人惱怒又深覺(jué)可憐。至于那些較常見(jiàn)疾病的勢(shì)利者，由于得的是有錢(qián)人易得的病而自稱(chēng)與眾不同，對(duì)他便沒(méi)有多少同情來(lái)減少惱怒了。
People who possess sufficient leisure, sufficient wealth, not to mention sufficient health, to go travelling from spa to spa from doctor to fashionable doctor, in search of cures from problematical diseases (which, in so far as they exist at all. probably have their source in overeating) cannot expect us to be very lavish in our solicitude and pity.
23. lavish adj. 浪費(fèi)的；豐富的；大方的
24. solicitude n. 焦慮；渴望；擔(dān)心
25. problematical adj. 有疑問(wèn)的；成問(wèn)題的
26. 整句翻譯：擁有充足的閑暇，充足的財(cái)富，更別說(shuō)充足的健康的人們從一個(gè)礦泉療養(yǎng)地旅行到又一個(gè)礦泉療養(yǎng)地，從一個(gè)醫(yī)生那里到又一個(gè)時(shí)髦的醫(yī)生處去尋求對(duì)那些很難說(shuō)是否存在的疾病的治療（如果真有什么病的話(huà)，可能病因是吃得太多了），他們不可能指望我們會(huì)對(duì)他們慷慨地表示關(guān)懷和同情。
