America's Presidents - Herbert Hoover 美國(guó)總統(tǒng) - 赫伯特·胡佛

VOA Learning English presents America’s Presidents.
美國(guó)之音慢速英語(yǔ)介紹美國(guó)總統(tǒng)欄目。

Today we are talking about Herbert Hoover. He took office in 1929.
今天，我們談?wù)摰氖呛詹亍ず?，他?929年就任總統(tǒng)。

Herbert Hoover 赫伯特·胡佛

Hoover was president for the early years of what Americans call the Great Depression. During those years, the United States economy slid into a severe recession.
胡佛就任總統(tǒng)時(shí)正值美國(guó)大蕭條開始的幾年。在那幾年里，美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)遭遇了嚴(yán)重衰退。

Many banks and businesses failed. At times, nearly one in four people in the U.S. workforce were unemployed. Millions of people lost their homes and savings.
許多銀行和商業(yè)倒閉。有時(shí)，美國(guó)有近四分之一的勞動(dòng)力處于失業(yè)狀態(tài)。數(shù)百萬(wàn)人失去家園和儲(chǔ)蓄。

Hoover did not cause the depression. The conditions had been in place before he took office.
胡佛并沒(méi)有導(dǎo)致經(jīng)濟(jì)蕭條，他上任之前就已經(jīng)這樣了。

But many Americans blamed Hoover for their suffering. They believed he permitted the economic crisis to continue – and even deepen – during his time in office.
但許多美國(guó)人將他們的遭遇歸咎于胡佛。他們認(rèn)為在胡佛就任期間經(jīng)濟(jì)危機(jī)一直持續(xù)，甚至加重了。

Early life 早年經(jīng)歷

Herbert Hoover was born in a small house in the state of Iowa. His parents were Quakers. Their religion valued simplicity, hard work, equality among people, and peaceful resolution of conflict.
赫伯特·胡佛出生于愛(ài)荷華州的一間小房子里，他的父母是貴格會(huì)信徒，信仰樸素，勤奮，人人平等，以及和平解決沖突。

Hoover and his brother and sister were influenced by these beliefs, even after their parents died.
胡佛和兄弟姐妹深受影響，甚至于父母過(guò)世后。

By the time young Herbert Hoover was nine, he was an orphan^[1]. He moved to the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest, and lived with an uncle.
赫伯特·胡佛9歲時(shí)成了孤兒。他搬到了太平洋西北部的俄勒岡州，和叔叔一起生活。

Herbert Hoover in 1917 1917年時(shí)的赫伯特·胡佛

Hoover did not thrive^[2] in that situation. Reports say that he usually kept to himself. And he did not do particularly well in school.
胡佛在那種情況下并沒(méi)有茁壯成長(zhǎng)。據(jù)報(bào)道說(shuō)他通常很閉塞自己，在學(xué)校也沒(méi)有什么特別之處。

Yet one official from Stanford University liked what he saw in the young man – hard work and a desire to learn new things. At the time, Stanford University was just getting established. It admitted Hoover into its first class.
然而，斯坦福大學(xué)的一位官員喜歡這個(gè)年輕人身上所閃現(xiàn)的東西 —— 勤奮和對(duì)新事物的渴望。當(dāng)時(shí)，斯坦福大學(xué)剛剛成立，胡佛是第一屆學(xué)生。

Hoover had to work hard at Stanford, both in class and to earn money to pay tuition. But the experience brought many benefits^[3].
胡佛在斯坦福必須刻苦用功，包括在課堂上以及賺取學(xué)費(fèi)上。這段經(jīng)歷讓他終身受益。

Hoover studied geology, and went on to work as a mining engineer. The job led to positions in Australia, China and other parts of the world. He became an internationally-known expert on mining. He also wrote a leading textbook on mining.
胡佛攻讀了地質(zhì)學(xué)，然后做了一份采礦工程師的工作。由于工作原因，他去了澳大利亞，中國(guó)和其他一些地方。他成了一名國(guó)際知名的采礦專家，還寫了一部關(guān)于采礦的重要教材。

These experiences, along with good business investments, led to great wealth for Hoover.
這些經(jīng)歷加上很好的商業(yè)投資，胡佛變得很富有。

Lou Henry Hoover had a gift for languages. She learned as many as eight – including Mandarin – during her travels with her husband. 盧·亨利·胡佛擁有語(yǔ)言天賦。同丈夫的旅游期間，她至少學(xué)會(huì)了8種語(yǔ)言，其中包括漢語(yǔ)。

At Stanford, he also met the woman who would become his wife. Her name was Lou Henry. She was the first woman from Stanford to complete a study program with a degree in geology.
在斯坦福，胡佛也遇到了后來(lái)成為他妻子的女人。她的名字叫盧·亨利，是第一位在斯坦福完成學(xué)業(yè)并獲得地質(zhì)學(xué)學(xué)位的女性學(xué)生。

The Hoovers went on to have two sons.
胡佛夫婦后來(lái)生了兩個(gè)兒子。

Humanitarian work 人道主義工作

During World War I, the Hoovers’ lives changed dramatically. The family was living in London when the war began. U.S. government officials asked Hoover to organize an evacuation effort for American tourists who were in Europe. In only a few weeks, Hoover’s committee succeeded.
一戰(zhàn)期間，胡佛一家的生活發(fā)生了戲劇性的變化。戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)開始時(shí)，他們一家住在倫敦。美國(guó)政府官員要求胡佛組織疏散在歐洲的美國(guó)游客。僅僅幾周時(shí)間，胡佛成立的委員會(huì)就成功了。

Later, he helped get food and supplies to people in Belgium.
后來(lái)，他幫助了在比利時(shí)的美國(guó)人獲取食物和供給。

As a result, Hoover earned a public image as a smart, skilled humanitarian.
因此，胡佛贏得了作為一個(gè)聰明、有才能的人道主義者的公眾形象。

When the United States entered World War I, President Woodrow Wilson asked Hoover to lead the government’s Food Administration.
當(dāng)美國(guó)參與一戰(zhàn)時(shí)，伍德羅·威爾遜總統(tǒng)命令胡佛領(lǐng)導(dǎo)美國(guó)糧食管理局。

In that position, Hoover led an effort to change Americans’ behavior in order to support the war effort. He asked them to limit the kinds of food they ate and goods they bought.
在糧食管理局，胡佛改變了美國(guó)人的飲食習(xí)慣，以此來(lái)支持戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)。他要求人們限制食物的種類以及購(gòu)買的物品。

The effort was, for the most part, successful. Americans called their moves to limit their consumption^[4] “to Hooverize.”
極大程度上來(lái)講，這樣的努力成功了。美國(guó)人把他們限制消費(fèi)的舉動(dòng)稱為“胡佛化”。

Hoover went on to organize programs to aid other countries, including Russia. He also helped parts of the U.S. recover after terrible flooding.
胡佛繼續(xù)組織計(jì)劃協(xié)助其他國(guó)家，包括俄羅斯。他還協(xié)助美國(guó)部分嚴(yán)重洪澇地區(qū)的災(zāi)后重建。

And, as secretary of commerce, he pushed businesses, researchers, and government officials to work together. Hoover aimed to reduce “boom and bust^[5]” cycles and keep the U.S. economy healthy.
而且，作為商務(wù)部長(zhǎng)，他還推動(dòng)了商業(yè)、研究人員以及政府官員的協(xié)同工作。胡佛致力于減少經(jīng)濟(jì)繁榮與蕭條的交替循環(huán)，維持美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)繁榮健康。

In all his efforts, Hoover urged Americans to choose to participate. He did not believe in using government requirements to force cooperation.
在胡佛的努力之下，他力勸美國(guó)人選擇參與。他不相信運(yùn)用政府力量強(qiáng)制合作。

Herbert Hoover around 1928 with his pet Belgian Shepherd dog, King Tut. 赫伯特·胡佛1928年左右和他的寵物比利時(shí)牧羊犬，圖坦·卡蒙。

Instead, he supported “individualism” – the idea that Americans must protect the qualities of creativity, equal opportunity^[6], and service to others.
相反，他支持個(gè)人主義 — 即美國(guó)人必須保護(hù)創(chuàng)造力品質(zhì)，平等機(jī)會(huì)，和為他人服務(wù)的思想。

Hoover’s beliefs were popular with many Americans at the time – and with many Americans today.
胡佛的思想在當(dāng)時(shí)很受美國(guó)人歡迎，并且在時(shí)下的許多美國(guó)人當(dāng)中依然受歡迎。

In the election of 1928, Hoover easily won the presidency. He promised to continue leading the country down the path of prosperity^[7].
1928年大選，胡佛輕松贏得了總統(tǒng)職位。他承諾繼續(xù)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)美國(guó)走繁榮路線。

Presidency 總統(tǒng)任期

When Hoover took office in 1929, he said, “I have no fears for the future of our country. It is bright with hope.”
胡佛1929年上任時(shí)說(shuō)，“我不擔(dān)心美國(guó)的未來(lái)，因?yàn)樗饷鞑⒊錆M希望。”

That was in March.
當(dāng)時(shí)是三月。

In October, the U.S. stock market crashed. Thousands of investors lost their savings.
十月時(shí)，美國(guó)股市崩盤，數(shù)千投資人失去了積蓄。

The event was part of a sharp downturn in the economies of the United States and of many other countries.
這是美國(guó)以及其他國(guó)家經(jīng)濟(jì)急劇下滑的影響。

At first, Hoover believed the downturn would pass. But as time went on, the situation grew worse. Businesses could not expand their workforce. Farmers could not afford to harvest their crops. Everyday people had too little money to pay for housing costs and, in some cases, food. And then banks across the country began to fail.
起初，胡佛相信經(jīng)濟(jì)下滑會(huì)過(guò)去，但隨著時(shí)間的流逝，情況變得更加糟糕。企業(yè)無(wú)法擴(kuò)大勞動(dòng)力，農(nóng)民無(wú)法收割莊稼。人們無(wú)法支付每天的房租甚至于食物，隨之而來(lái)的是全國(guó)的銀行開始倒閉。

President Herbert Hoover 赫伯特·胡佛總統(tǒng)

President Hoover worked hard to fix the problems. He tried many approaches: creating government agencies, urging private and public groups to cooperate, and working to balance the federal budget.
胡佛總統(tǒng)努力解決著這些問(wèn)題，他嘗試了諸多方法：建立政府機(jī)構(gòu)，要求個(gè)人和公共團(tuán)體相互合作，以及平衡聯(lián)邦預(yù)算。

But Hoover did not want to use federal money to provide direct aid to Americans. He worried that such actions would make people dependent on the government, and reduce people’s individual power and morale^[8].
但胡佛不想動(dòng)用聯(lián)邦資金向美國(guó)人提供直接援助，他擔(dān)心這樣會(huì)使民眾依賴政府，并削弱民眾個(gè)人力量及斗志。

Nor did he want to use the federal government to try to control the economy. Government intervention, he said, would lead to socialism, and eventually destroy the country’s founding beliefs.
他也不想運(yùn)用聯(lián)邦政府去嘗試經(jīng)濟(jì)調(diào)控。他說(shuō)，政府干預(yù)會(huì)導(dǎo)致社會(huì)主義化，并最終摧毀美國(guó)的建國(guó)信仰。

Instead, Hoover tried to support states and businesses indirectly and urged people to find ways to help one another.
相反，胡佛嘗試間接支持各州和商業(yè)并要求人們尋找方法來(lái)互助。

Yet many lawmakers and members of the public rejected Hoover’s measures as insufficient^[9], and even cruel.
然而，許多議員和公共人物拒絕胡佛的方式，因?yàn)樗鼰o(wú)效甚至是殘酷的。

A Hooverville along the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon 俄勒岡波特蘭市威拉米特河沿岸的胡佛村。

Some used his name differently than they had before he took office. Now, they called the dirty shelters where hungry and homeless people lived “Hoovervilles.”
一些人提及他的名字時(shí)已不同于他上任之前?，F(xiàn)如今，人們將饑餓和無(wú)家可歸的人所住的骯臟避難所稱之為“胡佛村”。

And they called men’s empty pockets “Hoover flags.”
稱男人的空口袋為“胡佛旗”。

Although Hoover tried to persuade Americans that he was protecting their interests in the long run, voters refused to elect him for a second term.
盡管胡佛試圖說(shuō)服美國(guó)人他是在保護(hù)人們的長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)利益，但選民拒絕讓他連任。

Instead, they overwhelming chose a president who promised an activist federal government and a hopeful “new deal” for Americans.
相反，他們以壓倒性優(yōu)勢(shì)選舉了一位承諾建立積極聯(lián)邦政府并為美國(guó)人帶來(lái)希望的“新政”的總統(tǒng)。

Legacy 遺產(chǎn)

After they left the White House, the Hoovers retired to their home in Palo Alto, California.
胡佛離開白宮后，一家人退休回到了他們加州帕洛阿爾托的家。

First Lady Lou Henry Hoover designed the couple’s home in California. It is now where the president of Stanford University lives. 第一夫人盧·亨利·胡佛設(shè)計(jì)了他們加州的房子?，F(xiàn)如今，這所房子居住著斯坦福大學(xué)的校長(zhǎng)。

Lou Henry Hoover died in 1944. But Hoover lived 20 more years, many of them working for the public good. He helped international relief efforts, advised the U.S. government, and led committees to reform the presidency.
盧·亨利·胡佛于1944年逝世，胡佛比她多活了20年，他們中的許多人都是為公共事業(yè)而工作。他幫助國(guó)際救援工作，為美國(guó)政府出謀獻(xiàn)策，并領(lǐng)導(dǎo)總統(tǒng)改革委員會(huì)。

Hoover also commented on later presidents and their policy decisions. He was especially critical of government programs set up to provide aid and intervention in Americans’ lives.
胡佛也評(píng)論他的繼任總統(tǒng)及政策決定，尤其批評(píng)政府提供幫助和干預(yù)美國(guó)民眾生活的計(jì)劃。

Until his death from cancer at the age of 90, Hoover remained committed to his beliefs. He spoke for limiting the power of the federal government and for supporting freedom of opportunity for individuals.
直到胡佛90歲死于癌癥之時(shí)，他仍然堅(jiān)持著自己的信仰。他呼吁限制聯(lián)邦政府的權(quán)力，支持個(gè)體的機(jī)會(huì)自由。

But in the eyes of many Americans, Hoover is linked to the failure of the federal government to lessen the Great Depression.
但在大多數(shù)美國(guó)人眼中，胡佛與聯(lián)邦政府未能減輕美國(guó)大蕭條有關(guān)。

原文鏈接

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/americas-presidents-herbert-hoover/4037382.html

1. orphan - n. a child whose parents are dead - 孤兒 ?

2. thrive - v. to grow or develop successfully : to flourish or succeed - 繁榮，興旺 ?

3. benefit - n. a good or helpful result or effect - 益處 ?

4. consumption - n. the use of something - 消耗；消費(fèi) ?

5. boom and bust - n. a rapid increase in growth or economic success, followed by sudden economic losses - 繁榮與蕭條 ?

6. opportunity - n. an amount of time or a situation in which something can be done - 機(jī)會(huì) ?

7. prosperity - n. the state of being successful usually by making a lot of money - 成功（通常由于賺很多錢），繁榮 ?

8. morale - n. the feelings of enthusiasm and loyalty that a person or group has about a task or job - 士氣，斗志 ?

9. insufficient - adj. not having or providing enough of what is needed : not sufficient - 不足的 ?