59.The Audacity of Hope 有希望则无所畏惧1. On behalf of the great state of Illinois, crossroad s of a nation, Land of Lincoln, let me express my deepest gratitude for the privilege of addressing this convention. Tonight is a particular honor for me because, let's face it, my presence on this stage is pretty unlikely. My father was a foreign student, born and raised in a small village in Kenya. He grew up herding goats, went to school in a tin-roof shack. His father-my grandfather-was a cook,a domestic servant to the British.1.今晚我将在这里代表（on behalf of）伟大的伊利诺伊州来向大会发表演讲，为此我感到无上荣幸(privilege)。
众所周知，伊利诺伊州是全国的交通枢纽(crossroads)，林肯总统的发祥地(ladn)。
另外，我能够站在讲台上向全党的代表发言实在是有点受宠若惊，(particular honor)因为坦率地讲，这对我而言几乎是做梦都想不到的事情。
请允许我先从我的出身讲起，我的父亲是个外国留学生，他土生土长在肯尼亚的一个小村庄，他从小在那里放羊，在简陋的铁皮顶小屋里上学。
他的父亲，也就是我的爷爷，是一位为别人做饭的家庭佣工(domestic servant)。
2. But my grandfather had larger dreams for his son. Through hard work and perseverance my father got a scholarship to study in a magical place, America, that shone as a beacon of freedom and opportunity to so many who had come before. While studying here, my father met my mother. She was born in a town on the other side of the world, in Kansas. Her father worked on oil rigs and farms through most of the Depression. The day after Pearl Harbor my grandfather signed up for duty; joined Patton's army, marched across Europe. Back home, my grandmother raised a baby and went to work on a bomber assembly line. After the war, they studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through F.H.A., and later moved west all the way to Hawaii in search of opportunity.2.但是我爷爷不想让我父亲步其后尘，他对我的父亲有着更大的期许和梦想。
艰辛的努力和顽强的毅力(perseverance)使我父亲拿到了到美国留学的奖学金(scholarship)。
于是我父亲漂洋过海，来到了美国这片神奇的国土。
美国是自由的灯塔，她给予了早年来这里闯世界的人大量的机会。
在留学期间，我父亲遇到了我母亲。
我母亲出生在堪萨斯的一个小镇上，这里和肯尼亚分属地球的两端。
我的外祖父在大萧条时期(through most of the Depression)为了养家糊口，不是在石油钻井架下打工，就是在农场务农。
珍珠港事件后他自愿入伍(sign up for duty)，进入巴顿将军的部队，曾在整个欧洲大陆辗转作战。
在后方家中，外祖母养育着他们的孩子，并在一条轰炸机流水线上工作。
战后，他们研究了《退伍军人权利法案bill》，通过联邦住宅管理局提供的贷款买了一套房子，并移居到美国西部的夏威夷，以寻找更好的发展机会。
3. And they, too, had big dreams for their daughter. A common dream, born of two continents. My parents shared not only an improbable love, they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. They would give me an African name, Barack, or "blessed," believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagine d me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren't rich, because in a generous America you don't have to be rich to achieve your potential. They're both passed away now. And yet, I know that on this night they look down on me with great pride.3.他们对我的母亲也有着同样的期许和梦想。
这是一个来自两个大洲的共同梦想。
我的父母不但共同享受着来自父母们无以复加(improbable)的爱，他们也笃信(an abiding faithi不变的信念)在美国这个国家一切皆有可能（possibility）。
他们赐予我一个非洲名字，巴拉克，意为“受神福佑的(blessed)”。
他们相信在宽容大度的美国(a tolerant America)，一个人的名字不是通向成功的障碍(barrier)。
尽管生活并不富裕，但他们还是想让我去最好的学校接受最好的教育，因为在慷慨大方的美国(a generous America)，一个人即使不富裕也能淋漓尽致地发挥他的潜能(potential)。
现在他们都过世了。
不过我知道，在这个夜晚，他们正满怀骄傲(with great pride)自天堂注视着我(look down on me)。
4. They stand here and I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my parents' dreams live on in my two precious daughters. I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came before me, and that, in no other country on earth, is my story even possible. Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation, not because of the height of our skyscraper s, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago," We hold these truth s to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."4.今天他们站在这里，我站在这里，为我血液里流淌着多样遗传基因而满怀感激，我知道我父母的梦想正在我的两个宝贝(precious)女儿身上延续(live on)。
我站在这里，知道我的故事是更宏大的美国故事集里的一部分，也知道我应该感激那些在我之前来到这里的先辈们，更知道我的故事在这个世界的任何其他地方都不可能发生。
今晚，我们欢聚一堂，更加坚定地相信我们国家的伟大，这个伟大并不在于(不是因为)我们的摩天大楼(skyscraper)有多高，也不在于我们的军备（military）实力有多强，更不在于我们的经济规模有多大。
我们对这个伟大的国家的自豪感建筑在一个相当简单的前提(premise)之上，用两百多年前先辈们写就的《独立宣言》里的话概括起来(sum up)就是：“我们坚信以下真理(truth)不言而喻(self-evident)：人人生而平等。
造物主赋予(endow)他们某些不可剥夺的(inalienable)权利，包括生命权、自由权和追求幸福的权利。
”5.That is the true genius of America, a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles; that we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm; that we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door; that we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe; that we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution, and that our vote s will be counted-at least most of the time. 5.这就是美国的本质(genius)之所在：我们对简单梦想的无比信任，我们对生命中小小奇迹(miracle)的执着追求。