From the ancient times till now, all accomplished men treat their lives very seriously. As long as they are living, they always work and study as hard as possible, unwilling to dream their life away, let alone waste even a single minute of their lives.
All through the years he led a simple life without worldly desires.
Though fond of many acquaintances, I desire an intimacy only with a few. The Man in Black, whom I have often mentioned, is one whose friendship I could wish to acquire, because he possesses my esteem. His manners, it is true, are tinctured with some strange inconsistencies, and he may be justly termed a humorist in a nation of humorists. Though he is generous even to profusion, he affects to be thought a prodigy of parsimony and prudence; though his conversation be replete with the most sordid and selfish maxims, his heart is dilated with the most unbounded love. I have known him profess himself a man-hater, while his cheek was glowing with compassion; and, while his looks were softened into pity, I have heard him use the language of the most unbounded illnature. Some affect humanity and tenderness, others boast of having such dispositions from Nature; but he is the only man I ever knew who seemed ashamed of his natural benevolence. He takes as much pains to hide his feelings, as any hypocrite would to conceal his indifference; but on every unguarded moment the mask drops off, and reveals him to the most superficial observer.
第二段第一句是个长句，内容复杂，可以采 用断句法，分成“古来…对待自己的生命” 和“当他…浪费掉。”两个句子进行翻译， 同时考虑用非谓语结构使句子简单化。
“当他活着一天…”含有“只要…就…”之意， 采用as long as结构较好。
“虚度”的译法可以比较灵活 dream away或 spend time in vain
古来一切有成就的人，都很严肃地对待自己的生命， 当他活着一天，总要尽量多工作、多学习，不肯虚度 年华，不让时间白白地浪费掉。
From then on, all men with great accomplishment treated their lives seriously. As he lived, he would work and study as much as possible, rather than existing meaninglessly or wasting time unworthly.
To put on a false show of; simulate:
Though fond of many acquaintances, I desire an intimacy only with a few.
一个人的生命究竟有多大意义，这有什么标准可以衡 量吗？
【分析】此句不难理解，但表达有一定困难。现实生 活中没有这样一个标准来衡量一个人生命的意义，因 此这句话要用虚拟语气才能准确表示含义。句中动词 “衡量”的宾语是“生命的意义”，较为抽象，考虑 用动词evaluate.
Evaluate和measure的区别：
Most Chinese are righteous and peace-loving, simple and honest, enjoying a simple life, and much more self-contented than Westerners.
中正：just fair unbiased 淡泊：not seek fame and wealth 他一生淡泊，生活简朴。
奥里弗•哥尔斯密斯（1728-1774），十八世纪中叶的著名英国 作家。本文节选自其短文《黑衣人》。
The Man in Black:这篇文章是《世界公民》 “Letters from a Citizen of the World”中的第二十六封信，原有标题： The Character of the Man in Black; With Some Instances of His Inconsistent Conduct(黑衣人的性格；他言行矛盾的若干事 例)。
Certainly, it is quite difficult to bring forward such an absolute standard. However, if we, on the whole, could find out whether his attitude towards his life is serious or not and what are his attitude towards his life and work, it would not be that difficult to make an appropriate evaluation of the meaning of one’s life.
我国历代的劳动人民以及大政治家、大思想 家等等都莫不如是。
None of the labored people, great statesmen, or great thinkers and so on in our history is unlike that kind.
Such examples have been set a lot by Chinese laboring people, great statesmen and thinkers of past dynasties.
中国民族多数是性情中正平和、淡泊、朴实，比西方人容易满 足。
The Chinese people almost have the characters of probity, peace, unaggressiveness, and reservence, and are more easily satisfied than western people.
提出一个绝对的标准当然很困难，但是，大体上看一 个人对待生命的态度是否严肃认真，看他对待工作、 生活的态度如何，也就不难对这个人的存在意义做出 适当的估计了。
It’s definitely difficult to give an absolute standard; however, it is not hard to make appropriate assumption of a person’s sense of being generally from whether his attitude towards life is serious and careful, and also from his opinion about work and daily life.
专八模考翻译部分讲评
1，把握专八翻译部分的评分 标准和考察重点 2，掌握应考时的基本技巧
一个人的生命究竟有多大意义，这有什么标准可以衡 量吗？提出一个绝对的标准当然很困难，但是，大体 上看一个人对待生命的态度是否严肃认真，看他对待 工作、生活的态度如何，也就不难对这个人的存在意 义做出适当的估计了。
Measure：To ascertain the dimensions, quantity, or capacity of:
Evaluate：To ascertain or fix the value or ？
Is there any standard to measure the sense of a person’s life?
古来一切有成就的人，都很严肃地对待自己的生命， 当他活着一天，总要尽量多工作、多学习，不肯虚度 年华，不让时间白白地浪费掉。我国历代的劳动人民 以及大政治家、大思想家等等都莫不如是。中国民族 多数是性情中正平和、淡泊、朴实，比西方人容易满 足。
注释：
1，这段材料选自邓拓的《生命的三分 之一》，是2005年专八考题。
Tinctured 着色于,染 profusion慷慨 prodigy 奇迹,奇事;奇观 parsimony 吝啬;过于俭省 replete 充满的,装满的 sordid 肮脏的,污秽的 benevolence 仁慈,善心 hypocrite伪善者,伪君子