重拾经典 Back to the Classics

 

Although the computer is becoming the medium of both communication and entertainment in the modern era, there is something to be said about the value of reading great books, specifically the classics. Not only have these books withstood the test of time, but also the critiques of countless readers over the years.[1] To read such a piece of writing is to enter an ongoing conversation about the human experience with some of the greatest minds that ever lived. Whether that is through serious novels or lighthearted stories, reading great books embodies[2] the art of questioning by presenting audiences with insights into what it means to be human.

I espouse so much about the virtue of reading great books that it seems ironic that not so long ago,[3] I did not even know what it even meant. To my 14-year old impressionable self, a great book was one that exhaled a fragrance full of imagination and adventure as I cracked it open.[4] It would plunge me into worlds of dragons and magic that would allow me to escape the real world and all of its crushing truths for just a few precious hours.[5] Most of these books were pop fiction, written all in the last five years or so. I avoided the classics like the plague: those books were boring, not to mention enormous.[6] It was not until I chanced upon a copy of Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, which I found abandoned in a classroom desk, did I decide on a whim to give classic books a try.[7]

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[1]. withstand: 经受，承受；critique: 批评。

[2]. embody: 体现。

[3]. espouse: 支持，赞成；virtue: 优点。

[4]. 14岁的我正值敏感的时期，对于我来说，一本好书就是当我打开它时，它会散发出充满想象力和奇遇的馨香。impressionable: 敏感的，易受影响的；exhale: 发散；crack: 打开。

[5]. plunge sb. into: 使某人陷入；crushing: 毁灭性的。

[6]. 我曾经像躲避瘟疫一样排斥这些经典文学作品：这些书不仅乏味，还都是大部头。plague: 瘟疫，灾祸。

[7]. Brave New World: 小说《美丽新世界》，英国作家阿道司·赫胥黎所著，是二十世纪最经典的反乌托邦文学之一。这部作品主要刻画了机械文明下的未来社会中，人的“人”性被机械剥夺殆尽，接受种种安于现状的教育，热爱机械化的工作与生活方式；abandoned: 被遗弃的；on a whim: 一时兴起。