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Unit Three

　

　

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Jefferson died long ago, but many of his

ideas are still of great interest to us.

　

　

LESSONS FROM JEFFERSON

　

Bruce Bliven



Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States,
may be less famous than George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, but
most people remember at least one fact about him: he wrote the
Declaration of Independence.

Although Jefferson lived more than 200 years ago, there is much
that we can learn from him today. Many of his ideas are especially in-
teresting to modern youth. Here are some of the things he said and wrote:

Go and see. Jefferson believed
that a free man obtains knowledge from many sources besides books and
that personal investigation is important. When still a young man, he was
appointed to a committee to find out whether the South Branch of the
James River was deep enough to be used by large boats. While the other
members of the committee sat in the state capitol and studied papers on
the subject, Jefferson got into a canoe and made on-the-spot observations.

You can learn from everyone. By birth and by education Jefferson be-
longed to the highest social class. Yet, in a day when few noble persons
ever spoke to those of humble origins except to give an order, Jefferson
went out of his way to talk with gardeners, servants, and waiters. Jefferson
once said to the French nobleman, Lafayette, "You must go into the
people's homes as I have done, look into their cooking pots and eat their
bread. If you will only do this, you may find out why people are
dissatisfied and understand the revolution that is threatening France. "

Judge for yourself. Jefferson refused to accept other people's opinions
without careful thought. "Neither believe nor reject anything," he wrote to
his nephew, "because any other person has rejected or believed it. Heaven
has given you a mind for judging truth and error. Use it. "
　

Jefferson felt that the people "may safely be trusted to hear everything
true and false, and to form a correct judgment. Were it left to me to
decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newsp-
apers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the
latter. "
　

Do what you believe is right. In a free country there will always be
conflicting ideas, and this is a source of strength. It is conflict and not
unquestioning agreement that keeps freedom alive. Though Jefferson was for
many years the object of strong criticism, he never answered his critics.
He expressed his philosophy in letters to a friend, " There are two sides
to every question. If you take one side with decision and act on it with
effect, those who take the other side will of course resent your actions."

Trust the future; trust the young. Jefferson felt that the present
should never be chained to customs which have lost their usefulness. " No
society," he said, "can make a perpetual constitution, or even a perpetual
law. The earth belongs to the living generation. " He did not fear new
ideas, nor did he fear the future. " How much pain, " he remarked, "has
been caused by evils which have never happened! I expect the best, not the
worst. I steer my ship with hope, leaving fear behind. "

Jefferson's courage and idealism were based on knowledge. He proba-
bly knew more than any other man of his age. He was an expert in agricul-
ture, archeology; and medicine. He practiced crop rotation and soil conser-
vation a century before these became standard practice, and he invented a
plow superior to any other in existence. He influenced architecture
throughout America, and he was constantly producing devices for making
the tasks of ordinary life easier to perform.

Of all Jefferson's many talents, one is central. He was above all a good
and tireless writer. His complete works, now being published for the first
time, will fill more than fifty volumes. His talent as an author was soon
discovered, and when the time came to write the Declaration of Independence
at Philadelphia in 1776, the task of writing it was his. Millions have
thrilled to his words: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal. . . "

When Jefferson died on July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of American
independence, he left his countrymen a rich legacy of ideas and examples.
American education owes a great debt to Thomas Jefferson, who believed
that only a nation of educated people could remain free.
　

　

　

　

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New Words



declaration n.
document containing an open public announce-


ment 宣言

independence n.
freedom from the control of others 独立

obtain vt.
get through effort 获得

source n.
place from which sth. comes; place where a


river starts ( 来 )源 ; 源头

personal a.
done in person; belonging to a person 亲自的;


个人的

investigation n.
detailed or careful examination 调查

investigate vt.


appoint vt.
put (sb. ) in a position 任命

appointment n.
　

committee n.
a group of people chosen for special duties


委员会

capitol n.
(美国)州议会大厦

canoe n.
light boat moved by a paddle 独木舟

on-the-spot a.
at the place of the action 现场的

humble a.
low in position 地位低下的

origin n.
parentage; birth; beginning 血统;出身; 起源

gardener n.
person who works in a garden either for pay


or as a hobby 园丁

waiter n.
person who serves food to the tables in a


restaurant (男 )侍者

nobleman.
贵族

dissatisfy vt.
fail to satisfy; displease 使不满

threaten vt.
hang over dangerously; utter a threat


against 威胁

threat n.
　

reject vt.
refuse to take, believe, use or consider 拒绝

rejection n.
　

nephew n.
the son of one's brother or sister

error n.
mistake; sth. done wrongly

false a.
not true or .correct

judgment n.
opinion 判断 , 看法

hesitate vi.
feel doubtful; be undecided 犹豫, 迟疑不决

hesitation n.
　

prefer vt.
like better; choose (one thing) rather than (another) 更喜欢;宁愿

preference n.

latter a.
nearer to the end 后面的 ; 后半的

n.
the second of two persons or things just

　
spoken of 后者

conflict vi.
be opposed; clash 冲突

n.
disagreement; clash; fight

unquestioning a.
given or done without question or doubt

agreement n.
having the same opinion ( s ) ; thinking in


the same way 同意 ; 一致

criticism n.
unfavourable remarks or judgments 批评

critic n.
person who makes judgments about the good


and bad qualities of sth.; person who points


out mistakes 评论家; 批评者

criticize vt.


philosophy n.
哲学

resent vt.
feel angry or bitter at 对"'忿恨;对"'不满

action n.
the process of doing things; sth. done 行动


过程；行动

custom n.
习惯，风俗

perpetual a.
never-ending; going on for a long time or


without stopping 永恒的; 连续不断的

constitution n.
宪法；章程

living a.
alive now 活(着)的

remark vt.
say; comment 说; 评论说

n.
话语 ; 评论

evil n.
sth. bad; sin 邪恶 , 罪恶

a.
very bad 邪恶的 , 坏的

idealism n.
理想主义；唯心主义

arch(a)eology n.
study of ancient things, esp. remains of prehis-


toric times 考古学

rotation n.
轮作；旋转

rotate v.


conservation n.
protecting from loss or from being use


保护；保存

conserve vt.

superior a.
good or better in quality or value 较好的; 优的

superiority n.

existence n.
the state of existing 存在

influence vt.
have an effect on 影响

architecture n.
art and science of building 建筑术;建筑学

constantly ad.
continuously; frequently 不断地;经常地

constant a.

perform vt.
do, carry out 做 , 履行

talent n.
special natural ability 才能;天资

central a.
chief ; main; most important 主要的

tireless a.
never or rarely getting tired

writer n.
a person who writes esp.as a way of earning


money 作家

publish vt.
have ( a book, etc. ) printed and put on


sale 出版

volume n.
book, esp. one of a set of books 卷;册

thrill vi.
have a very exciting feeling 非常激动

self evident a.
clear without proof 不言而喻的

create vt.
make (sth. that has not been made before)


创造

creation n.

anniversary n.
the yearly return of a special date 周年纪念日

countryman n.
a person from one's own country 同胞

legacy n.
sth. that one person leaves to another when


he dies 遗产

owe vt.
欠 (债等); 应把…归公于(to)

debt n.
something owed to someone else 债( 务 )

educate vt.
train; teach how to read, write, think, etc.


　
　

Phrases & Expressions

　

go out of one's way (to do
take particular trouble; make a special

sth. )
effort 特地

leave. . . to
leave sb. in charge of 交托, 委托

act on
act according to 按照…行事

leave behind
abandon; fail to take or bring 丢弃;留下,忘带

in existence
existing 存在

above all
most important of all 首先, 尤其是


　

Proper Names

Bruce Bliven
布鲁斯•布利文

Thomas Jefferson
托马斯•杰斐逊

George Washington
乔治•华盛顿

Abraham Lincoln
亚伯拉罕•林肯

the Declaration of
《独立宣言》

Independence


the James River
詹姆斯河

Lafayette
拉斐特

France
法国

Heaven
上帝；天堂

Philadelphia
费城 (美国港市)


　

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