英美概况笔记对英语专业有用.docx

1、英美概况笔记对英语专业有用第一章 Land and People英国的国土与人民I. Different Names for Britain and its Parts英国的不同名称及其各组成部分 1.Geographical names: the British Isles, Great Britain and England.地理名称:不列颠群岛，大不列颠和英格兰。2.Official name: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.官方正式名称:大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国。3.The British Isles

2、 are made up of two large islands-Great Britain (the larger one) and Ireland, and hundreds of small ones.不列颠群岛由两个大岛大不列颠岛（较大的一个）和爱尔兰岛，及成千上万个小岛组成。4.Three political divisions on the island of Great Britain: England, Scotland and Wales.大不列颠岛上有三个政治区:英格兰、苏格兰和威尔士。(1) England is in the southern part of Grea

3、t Britain. It is the largest, most populous section.英格兰位于大不列颠岛南部，是最大，人口最稠密的地区。(2) Scotland is in the north of Great Britain. It has three natural zones (the Highlands in the north; the Central lowlands; the south Uplands) Capital: Edinburgh苏格兰位于大不列颠的北部。它有三大自然区:北部高地，中部低地及南部山陵。首府:爱丁堡。(3) Wales is in t

4、he west of Great Britain. Capital: Cardiff威尔士位于大不列颠的西部。首府:加的夫(4) Northern Ireland is the fourth region of the UK. Capital: Belfast.北爱尔兰是英国第四个区域。首府:贝尔法斯特。5.The Commonwealth (of nations) is a free association of independent countries that were once colonies of Britain. It was founded in 1931, and has

5、50 member countries until 1991.英联邦是曾为英国殖民地的、但现已独立国家所构成的自由联合体。它成立于1931年，至1990年止已有50个成员国。 II. Geographical Features 英国的地理特征 1.Geographical position of Britain:英国的地理位置:Britain is an island country surrounded by the sea. It lies in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north coast of Europe. It is separated

6、from the rest of Europe by the English Channel in the south and the North Sea in the east. 英国是一个岛国。它位于大西洋北部，与欧洲大陆的北海岸隔海相望。南面的英吉利海峡和东面的北海将它与欧洲其它部分隔开。 2.The north and west of Britain are mainly highlands; and the east and southeast are mostly lowlands.英国的西部和北部主要是高地，东部和东南部主要是低地。 III. Rivers and Lakes 河

7、流与湖泊 Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in Britain (1,343m).本尼维斯山为英国最高峰，海拔1,343米。Severn River is the longest river in Britain (338km).塞文河是英国最长的河流。全长338公里。Thames River is the second longest and most important river in Britain. (336km).泰晤士河是英国第二大河，也是英国最重要的河。全长336公里。Lough Neagh is the largest lake in Br

8、itain which is located in Northern Ireland. (396 square kilometres).讷湖（内伊湖）是英国最大的湖，位于北爱尔兰。面积为396平方公里。River Clyde is the most important river in Scotland.克莱德河是苏格兰最重要的河流。Snowdonia is the highest mountain in Wales.（1,085m）斯诺多尼亚是威尔士的最高点，海拔1,085米。IV. Climate 气候 1. Britains favorable climate 英国有利的气候条件:Bri

9、tain has a maritime climate-winters are not too cold and summers are not too hot. It has a steady reliable rainfall throughout the whole year. The temperature varies within a small range. 英国属于海洋性气候:冬季不过于寒冷，夏季不过于炎热。全年有稳定可靠的降雨量，气温变化幅度小。 2.The factors influence the climate in Britain:影响英国气候的因素:1）The su

10、rrounding waters tend to balance the seasonal differences by heating up the land in winter and cooling it off in summer;环绕四周的海水。冬天，海水可使岛内气温升高，夏天则使气温降低，从而起到平衡季节温差的作用；2)The prevailing south-west winds or the Westerlies blow over the country all the year round bringing warm and wet air in winter and ke

11、eping the temperatures moderate;一年四季盛行的西南风和西风在冬季从大西洋带来温暖、潮湿的空气，使气温适宜；3）The North Atlantic Drift passes the western coast of the British Isles and warms them.北大西洋暖流经不列颠群岛西海岸，使气候变暖。 3.Rainfall 降雨量: Britain has a steady reliable rainfall throughout the whole year. The average annual rainfall in Britain

12、 is over 1,000mm. There is a water surplus in the north and west, and a water deficit in the south and east.英国全年降雨量稳定，平均降雨量超过1000毫米。 英国北部、西部雨量过多，但是南部、东部有所缺乏。 III.The origins of the English Parliament 英国议会的起源The Great Council is known to be the prototype of the current British Parliament. In 1265, Si

13、mon de Montfort summoned the Great Council, together with two knights from each county and two citizens from each town. It later developed into the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Its main role was to offer advice. There were no elections or parties. And the most important part of Parliamen

14、t was the House of Lords.大议会是当今英国议会的原型。1265年，西门德孟福尔召开大议会，各县有两名骑士，各镇有两名市民参加。大议会发展到后来演变成议会，分为上议院和下议院。其作用是咨询而非决定；也没有选举和政党。议会的最重要的部分是上议院。 I. Whigs and Tories 辉格党人和托利党人These two party names originated with the Glorious Revolution (1688).这两个政党名称皆起源于1688年的光荣革命。The Whig were those who opposed absolute monar

15、chy and supported the right to religious freedom for Nonconformists. The Whig were to form a coalition with dissident Tories in the mid-19th century and become the Liberal Party.辉格党人是指那些反对绝对王权，支持新教徒宗教自由权利的人。辉格党人在19世纪中叶与持不同意见的托利党人组盟组成自由党。The Tories were those who supported hereditary monarchy and wer

16、e reluctant to remove kings. The Tories were the forerunners of the Conservative Party.托利党人是指那些支持世袭王权、不愿去除国王的人。托利党是保守党的前身。I. Trade Unions and the Labour Party 工会和工党1. The Trade Union Act of 1871 legalized the trade unions and gave financial security.1871年通过的工会法使工会合法化并给其财政保障。2. The Labor Party had it

17、s origin in the Independent Labor Party(ILP), which was formed in January, 1893. In 1900, representatives of trade unions, the ILP, and a number of small socialist societies set up the Labor Representation Committee (LRC). The LRC changed its name to the Labor Party for the general election called f

18、or in 1906.工党起源于独立工党，于1893年1月成立。1900年，工会代表，独立工党和许多小型社会主义社团一起成立了工人代表委员会。1906年的大选迫使工人代表委员会及时更名为工党。 The Economy 英国经济 I. The Evolution of the British Economy since the War The evolution of the British economy since WWII falls into three periods:二战后英国经济发展可分为三个阶段:(1) Steady development in the 50s and 60s:

19、 The British economy in this period is characterized by slow but steady growth, low unemployment and great material prosperity with rising standards of consumption.（1）战后50-60年代平稳发展时期。其主要特点是经济缓慢而持续增长，失业率低，物质丰富，人民消费水平不断增长。(2) Economic recession in the 70s: In the 1970s among the developed countries, B

20、ritain maintained the lowest growth rate and the highest inflation rate, and the high record of trade deficits. （2）70年代经济滞胀。在70年代，英国在所有的发达资本主义国家中，始终保持最低经济增长率，最高的通货膨胀率，和最高的贸易赤字纪录。(3) Economic recovery in the 80s: An outstanding feature of the economic recovery in the 80s was its length, lasting seven

21、 years. Another was the improved financial position of the government, with stronger current account of the balance of payments.（3）80年代经济复苏。一个显著特点是时间长，复苏持续了7年。另一个特点是国际收支大大盈余，政府金融地位最高。Measures taken by Mrs. Thatchers government to improve the economyMrs. Thatchers government took numerous measures to

22、 improve the efficiency of the economy during the past decade, using both macroeconomic and microeconomic policies.撒切尔政府运用宏观经济政策和微观经济政策，采取许多措施提高经济效益。(1) Macroeconomic measures were directed towards bringing down the rate of inflation and achieving price stability.宏观经济政策直接针对降低通货膨胀率和维持物价稳定。(2) Microec

23、onomic policies were aimed at working with the grain of market forces by encouraging enterprise, efficiency and flexibility.微观经济政策旨在通过鼓励实业，效率和灵活性共同努力提高市场竞争力。Reasons for the British coal mining is called a “sick” industry today. Reasons for the British coal mining is called a “sick” industry today.英国

24、煤矿被称为“生病”工业的原因。Today the coal industry in Britain is on the decline，the number of miners, collieries and the total output have been falling.如今的英国煤矿业衰退，从而导致矿工、煤矿的数量和总产量都大大下降。The reasons for the decline are as follows: exhaustion of old mines, costly operations of extraction, poor old equipment, littl

25、e investment, fall in demand due to imports of cleaner, cheaper and more efficient fuels, etc.煤工业衰退的原因包括:老煤矿的枯竭，昂贵的提炼费用，破旧的设备，极少的投资，由于进口更干净、更便宜、更高效的燃料导致的需求下降等等。Britains oil and natural gas英国的石油和天然气Natural gas was discovered in 1965 and oil in 1970 under the North Sea. Today Britain is not only self-

26、sufficient in oil but also has a surplus for export. The transport and domestic heating systems mostly depend on oil. So does the food supply, because most agriculture is highly mechanized. Modern farming requires things which are all oil-based.在1965年及1970年在北海发现天然气和石油。今天英国的石油不仅能自给自足，还有盈余供出口。交通和家庭供热系

27、统主要依靠石油，因为大部分农业的高度机械化，食品供应也靠石油。Main problems associated with Britains iron and steel industry today.The main textile producing regions of Britain are the East Midlands, Yorkshire, Humberside, and Northern Ireland.New IndustriesNew industries include microprocessors and computers, biotechnology and o

28、ther high-tech industries. There are three areas in Britain which have seen some high-tech industrial growth: (1).the area between London and South Wales, (2).the Cambridge area of East Anglia and (3).the area between Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland. The third area is the most spectacular of the t

29、hree and is now often referred to as the “Silicon Glen”. By the end of 1985 half of Britains microchip output was estimated to have come from Scotland.英国主要纺织基地是现在的中东部，约克郡和汉伯塞德郡及北爱尔兰。第七章 Government and Administration英国政府机构 The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy, the head of state is a king o

30、r a queen. The United Kingdom is governed, in the name of the Sovereign by His or Her Majestys Government. The System of parliamentary government is not based on a written constitution, the British constitution is not set out in any single document. It is made up of statute law, common law and conve

31、ntions. The Judiciary determines common law and interprets statutes.联合王国是君主立宪制国家,国家的首脑是国王或女王。联合王国以君的名义,由国王或女王陛下政府治理。英国的议会制度并不是基于成文宪法,英国宪法不由单一文件构成,而由成文法,习惯法和惯例组成。司法部门裁定习惯法或解释成文法。 I.The Monarchy君主制1.Elizabeth II, her title in the United Kingdom is “Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the Unit

32、ed Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Her Other Realms and Territories, Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith.伊莉莎白二世，她的全称是“上帝神佑，大布列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国以及她的其他领土和领地的女王，英联邦元首，国教保护者伊莉莎白二世。” 2.The Queen is the symbol of the whole nation. In law, She is head of the executive, an integral part of the legislature, head of the judiciary, the commander-in-chief of all the armed forces and the “supreme governor” of the Church of England. She gives Royal A