another virtue americans respect is perseverance. remember aesop's fable about the turtle and the rabbit that had a race？ the rabbit thought he could win easily， so he took a nap. but the turtle finally won because he did not give up. another story tells of a little train that had to climb a steep hill. the hill was so steep that the little train had a hard time trying to get over it. but the train just kept pulling， all the while saying， “i think i can， i think i can.” at last， the train was over the top of the hill. “i thought i could， i thought i could，” chugged the happy little train.
另外一個(gè)為美國(guó)人所尊崇的美德為堅(jiān)忍。記得再龜兔賽跑這則伊索寓言嗎？兔子以為牠可以贏的很輕松，便睡了個(gè)午覺(jué)，但是烏龜再最后終因不放棄而贏了這場(chǎng)比賽。另一個(gè)故事談到一個(gè)必須爬過(guò)陡峭山頭的小火車(chē)，山頭是這么陡，以至于小火車(chē)很難爬上去，但是它仍不斷地爬，并不停地說(shuō)：「我想我能做到，我能做到?！棺詈?，火車(chē)終于爬過(guò)了山頭，「我就知道我可以。」這個(gè)快樂(lè)的小火車(chē)?yán)^續(xù)往前去。
compassion may be the queen of american virtues. the story of “the good samaritan” from the bible describes a man who showed compassion. on his way to a certain city， a samaritan man found a poor traveler lying on the road. the traveler had been beaten and robbed. the kind samaritan， instead of just passing by， stopped to help this person in need. compassion can even turn into a positive cycle. in fall 1992， people in iowa sent truckloads of water to help floridians hit by a hurricane. the next summer， during the midwest flooding， florida returned the favor. in less dramatic ways， millions of americans are quietly passing along the kindnesses shown to them.
同情心，可能是美國(guó)的道德之最了。圣經(jīng)中的「好撒瑪利亞人」的故事，描述一個(gè)流露同情心的人。在這個(gè)撒瑪利亞人出發(fā)去某城市的途中，看到一個(gè)可憐的旅客躺在路旁。這旅客被鞭打、搶劫，這位仁慈的撒瑪利亞人非但沒(méi)有視而不見(jiàn)，反而停下來(lái)幫助這位有需要的人。同情心還可以變成一個(gè)正面循環(huán)，在一九九二年的秋天，愛(ài)荷華州的居民將好幾輛卡車(chē)的水送到受颶風(fēng)侵襲的佛羅里達(dá)州；而就在第二年夏天，當(dāng)中西部鬧水災(zāi)的時(shí)候，佛州人便投挑報(bào)李。數(shù)以百萬(wàn)計(jì)的美國(guó)人民正用較不醒目的方式回報(bào)人們向他們表達(dá)的善意。
in no way can this brief description cover all the moral values honored by americans. courage， responsibility， loyalty， gratitude and many others could be discussed. in fact， bennett's bestseller-over 800 pages-highlights just 10 virtues. even bennett admits that he has only scratched the surface. but no matter how long or short the list， moral values are invaluable. they are the foundation of american culture-and any culture.
在這么一篇短短的文章里，無(wú)論如何也不能將美國(guó)人所尊崇的道德述盡。勇氣、責(zé)任心、忠誠(chéng)、感激之心還有許多其它可以討論的。事實(shí)上，班奈特最暢銷(xiāo)的書(shū)──超過(guò)八百頁(yè)──只談到了十種美德。即使班奈特也承認(rèn)他只談到了皮毛而已。但是不論這張道德表是多長(zhǎng)或短，道德價(jià)值都是無(wú)價(jià)的。他們是美國(guó)文化──和任何其它國(guó)家的文化之基礎(chǔ)。
另外一個(gè)為美國(guó)人所尊崇的美德為堅(jiān)忍。記得再龜兔賽跑這則伊索寓言嗎？兔子以為牠可以贏的很輕松，便睡了個(gè)午覺(jué)，但是烏龜再最后終因不放棄而贏了這場(chǎng)比賽。另一個(gè)故事談到一個(gè)必須爬過(guò)陡峭山頭的小火車(chē)，山頭是這么陡，以至于小火車(chē)很難爬上去，但是它仍不斷地爬，并不停地說(shuō)：「我想我能做到，我能做到?！棺詈?，火車(chē)終于爬過(guò)了山頭，「我就知道我可以。」這個(gè)快樂(lè)的小火車(chē)?yán)^續(xù)往前去。
compassion may be the queen of american virtues. the story of “the good samaritan” from the bible describes a man who showed compassion. on his way to a certain city， a samaritan man found a poor traveler lying on the road. the traveler had been beaten and robbed. the kind samaritan， instead of just passing by， stopped to help this person in need. compassion can even turn into a positive cycle. in fall 1992， people in iowa sent truckloads of water to help floridians hit by a hurricane. the next summer， during the midwest flooding， florida returned the favor. in less dramatic ways， millions of americans are quietly passing along the kindnesses shown to them.
同情心，可能是美國(guó)的道德之最了。圣經(jīng)中的「好撒瑪利亞人」的故事，描述一個(gè)流露同情心的人。在這個(gè)撒瑪利亞人出發(fā)去某城市的途中，看到一個(gè)可憐的旅客躺在路旁。這旅客被鞭打、搶劫，這位仁慈的撒瑪利亞人非但沒(méi)有視而不見(jiàn)，反而停下來(lái)幫助這位有需要的人。同情心還可以變成一個(gè)正面循環(huán)，在一九九二年的秋天，愛(ài)荷華州的居民將好幾輛卡車(chē)的水送到受颶風(fēng)侵襲的佛羅里達(dá)州；而就在第二年夏天，當(dāng)中西部鬧水災(zāi)的時(shí)候，佛州人便投挑報(bào)李。數(shù)以百萬(wàn)計(jì)的美國(guó)人民正用較不醒目的方式回報(bào)人們向他們表達(dá)的善意。
in no way can this brief description cover all the moral values honored by americans. courage， responsibility， loyalty， gratitude and many others could be discussed. in fact， bennett's bestseller-over 800 pages-highlights just 10 virtues. even bennett admits that he has only scratched the surface. but no matter how long or short the list， moral values are invaluable. they are the foundation of american culture-and any culture.
在這么一篇短短的文章里，無(wú)論如何也不能將美國(guó)人所尊崇的道德述盡。勇氣、責(zé)任心、忠誠(chéng)、感激之心還有許多其它可以討論的。事實(shí)上，班奈特最暢銷(xiāo)的書(shū)──超過(guò)八百頁(yè)──只談到了十種美德。即使班奈特也承認(rèn)他只談到了皮毛而已。但是不論這張道德表是多長(zhǎng)或短，道德價(jià)值都是無(wú)價(jià)的。他們是美國(guó)文化──和任何其它國(guó)家的文化之基礎(chǔ)。