内容概述
泰勒斯晚年来了一位显赫的访客——希腊大立法者梭伦。两人夜谈时，梭伦问泰勒斯既已拥有财富、影响、健康、安逸、声誉、尊敬、知识和智慧，几乎一个男人渴望的一切，为何却不结婚？泰勒斯让他等到第二天早晨再作答。翌晨，梭伦还未吃完葡萄，就收到一封报丧信：说他最心爱的儿子坠马身亡。梭伦悲痛欲绝，准备立刻启程回家。泰勒斯这才安慰他坐下，说那封信是假的，整个事件都是他策划的——目的只是想告诉梭伦他为何不结婚。
中文正文
26° 为什么泰勒斯不结婚？
在泰勒斯更富有的晚年，朋友梭伦（希腊的伟大立法者）来看他。一天晚上，梭伦问他："现在你几乎拥有了男人渴望的一切——财富、影响、健康、安逸、声誉、尊敬、知识和智慧——却没有妻子。告诉我，朋友，你为什么不结婚？" "那真是个问题，"泰勒斯回答，"不过现在天太晚了，我想最好是明天早晨告诉你。"于是，主人和客人去休息了。第二天早晨，他们共进早餐。还没来得及吃碗里的葡萄，一个气喘吁吁的人跑进来，给梭伦送来一封信。梭伦读过信，悲伤地站起来，呜咽着说："泰勒斯，我必须立刻回去。信上说我最心爱的儿子从马上摔下来死了。" "别难过，亲爱的梭伦，"泰勒斯安慰说，"坐下来静静。信是假的，整个事情都是我策划的。我只是想告诉你我为什么不结婚。"
英文正文
26° Why Thales never married. In his later and more affluent period of life, Thales was visited by his friend Solon, the great Greek lawgiver. As the two men sat discoursing one evening, Solon queried, "Here you are in possession of almost everything a man might desire—wealth and influence, health and comfort, fame and respect, knowledge and wisdom—but no wife. Tell me, my friend, why have you never married?" "That is quite a question," replied Thales, "and since the hour is so late, I believe I can better tell you in the morning." So the host and his guest retired for the night. In the morning they assembled for breakfast, but they had scarcely begun to eat their bowls of grapes when in raced a breathless runner with a message for Solon. Solon read the message and rose grief-stricken to his feet. "Thales," he hoarsely said, "I must leave at once for home. This message informs me that my favorite son has fallen from his horse and been killed." "There, there, my dear Solon," replied Thales soothingly, "please be seated and calm yourself. The message is a fictitious one, and I have contrived this whole event. I merely wanted to tell you why I never married."
英语学习拓展
常用词汇
affluent音标/ˈæfluənt/
富裕的。
原文用法：In his later and more affluent period of life…
lawgiver音标/ˈlɔːɡɪvə(r)/
立法者。
原文用法：Solon, the great Greek lawgiver.
discoursing音标/dɪsˈkɔːsɪŋ/
交谈，论述。
原文用法：As the two men sat discoursing one evening…
query音标/ˈkwɪəri/
询问。
原文用法：Solon queried, "Here you are in possession of…"
fictitious音标/fɪkˈtɪʃəs/
虚构的。
原文用法：The message is a fictitious one…
contrived音标/kənˈtraɪvd/
人为策划的。
原文用法：I have contrived this whole event.
breathless音标/ˈbreθləs/
气喘吁吁的。
原文用法：a breathless runner.
grief-stricken音标/ˈɡriːf strɪkən/
悲痛欲绝的。
原文用法：Solon … rose grief-stricken to his feet.
hoarsely音标/ˈhɔːsli/
声音沙哑地。
原文用法："Thales," he hoarsely said…
soothingly音标/ˈsuːðɪŋli/
安慰地。
原文用法："There, there, my dear Solon," replied Thales soothingly…
同义词与近义词
对应核心词汇：affluent
对应核心词汇：affluent。
辨析：affluent 偏书面，强调持续富裕的状态；wealthy 强调拥有大量财富；rich 口语常用，含义最广。
对应核心词汇：query
对应核心词汇：query。
辨析：query 偏正式、文雅；ask 最常用；inquire 强调"调查、深入询问"。
对应核心词汇：fictitious
对应核心词汇：fictitious。
辨析：fictitious 强调"不真实的、编造的"；invented 偏中性，可指真实发明或虚构；made-up 偏口语，意为"捏造的"。
常用短语与固定搭配
- in possession of：拥有。原文用法：in possession of almost everything a man might desire.
- retire for the night：就寝。原文用法：So the host and his guest retired for the night.
- assemble for breakfast：聚在一起吃早餐。原文用法：In the morning they assembled for breakfast…
- scarcely … when …：刚……就……。原文用法：they had scarcely begun to eat their bowls of grapes when in raced a breathless runner…
- fall from one's horse：从马上摔下。原文用法：my favorite son has fallen from his horse and been killed.
- calm yourself：使自己平静。原文用法：please be seated and calm yourself.
常用句式
- Pattern: Here you are in possession of X — Y, but Z.：列出对方所拥有的若干事物，结尾用 but 转折提出反问。原文例句："Here you are in possession of almost everything a man might desire—wealth and influence, health and comfort, fame and respect, knowledge and wisdom—but no wife."
- Pattern: I have + 过去分词 + …："我做了……"。原文例句："I have contrived this whole event."
- Pattern: That is quite a question.：那真是个（棘手的）问题。原文例句："That is quite a question," replied Thales.
长难句解析
In the morning they assembled for breakfast, but they had scarcely begun to eat their bowls of grapes when in raced a breathless runner with a message for Solon.
- 主干：they assembled for breakfast, but they had scarcely begun to eat their bowls of grapes when in raced a breathless runner.
- 修饰与从句：
- In the morning 为时间状语； - with a message for Solon 为后置定语，修饰 a breathless runner； - when 引导时间状语从句，与 scarcely … when … 搭配，构成"刚……就……"结构； - in raced 是文学性倒装，正常语序为 a breathless runner raced in，副词 in 提前以制造紧迫感。
- 逻辑关系：but 前后是时间与转折的结合——早上聚在一起吃早餐，但几乎还没开始吃，就有人冲进来送信，情节陡然紧张。
语言使用特点
- 大量直接引语刻画人物：梭伦的疑问、泰勒斯的从容、报信人的急促形成节奏对比；
- 用破折号插入同位语或补充说明（"—wealth and influence, health and comfort…"），既列举又造成气势；
- 结尾的安慰话 "There, there, my dear Solon," 用叠词和亲昵称呼拉近距离，缓和紧张氛围。
迁移练习
- 用 "scarcely … when …" 写一个表示"刚……就……"的英文句子。
- 翻译："他现在几乎拥有一个男人渴望的一切——财富、声誉和健康——却没有知心朋友。"
- 用 "retire for the night" 造句，描述一个睡前场景。
点击展开参考答案
- （示例）I had scarcely sat down when the doorbell rang.
- He is now in possession of almost everything a man might desire—wealth, fame, and health—but no close friend.
- （示例）After saying goodnight to the guests, the old couple retired for the night.