《撒切尔夫人》回忆铁娘子的一生.docx

1、撒切尔夫人回忆铁娘子的一生BBC讣文撒切尔夫人：回忆“铁娘子”的一生Obituary: Margaret Thatcher讣文：玛格丽特撒切尔Margaret Thatcher, who has died following a stroke, was one of the most influential political figures of the 20th Century.撒切尔夫人，20世纪最有影响力的政治人物之一，在2013年4月8日，因中风不幸逝世。Her legacy had a profound effect upon the policies of her success

2、ors, both Conservative and Labour, while her radical and sometimes confrontational approach defined her 11-year period at No 10.她深深影响了她之后的包括保守党和工党在内的历届英国首相。这样一位激进的，有时甚至带有攻击性的“铁娘子”担任了长达11年之久的英国首相。Her term in office saw thousands of ordinary voters gaining a stake in society, buying their council hous

3、es and eagerly snapping up shares in the newly privatised industries such as British Gas and BT.她在任职期间推动社会改革，成千上万的英国普通选民购买了政府公屋，抢购了诸如英国天然气和英国电信等新近私有化行业的股份。But her rejection of consensus politics made her a divisive figure and opposition to her policies and her style of government led eventually to r

4、ebellion inside her party and unrest on the streets.但她对舆论政治的排斥使她备受争议，同时她的政策也招致反对。最终她所领导的政党内部反声一片，社会也混乱不堪。Fathers influence父亲的影响Margaret Hilda Thatcher was born on 13 October 1925 in Grantham, Lincolnshire, the daughter of Alfred Roberts, a grocer, and his wife, Beatrice.玛格丽特希尔达撒切尔，1925年10月13日生于林肯郡的格

5、兰瑟姆。她的父亲阿尔弗雷德罗伯茨是一个杂货商，她的母亲叫比阿特丽斯。Margaret Hilda Thatcher was born on 13 October 1925 in Grantham, Lincolnshire, the daughter of Alfred Roberts, a grocer, and his wife, Beatrice.她的父亲是卫理公会的世俗布道者，同时也是当地的议员。撒切尔在她之后的生活和政治上深受其父亲的影响。Her father, a Methodist lay preacher and local councillor, had an immense

6、 influence on her life and the policies she would adopt.她的父亲是卫理公会的世俗布道者，同时也是当地的议员。撒切尔在她之后的生活和政治上深受其父亲的影响。Well, of course, I just owe almost everything to my own father. I really do, she said later. He brought me up to believe all the things that I do believe.“当然了，我几乎可以把一切都归功于我父亲，的确如此。”撒切尔说道。“他把我养大，让

7、我坚信我认定的东西。”She studied chemistry at Somerville College, Oxford, and became only the third female president of the Oxford University Conservative Association.她曾在牛津大学的萨默维尔学院学习自然科学。她还是牛津大学保守党协会的第三位女性主席。After graduating she moved to Colchester where she worked for a plastics company and became involved

8、with the local Conservative Party organisation.毕业后，她搬到了科尔切斯特，在当地一家塑料公司工作，随后加入了当地保守党组织。In 1949, she was adopted as the prospective Conservative candidate for the seat of Dartford in Kent which she fought, unsuccessfully, in the 1950 and 1951 general elections.1949年，她被定为未来肯特郡达特福德区的保守党候选人。然而，在1950年和195

9、1的两次大选中均不幸败北。However, she made a significant dent in the Labour majority and, as the then youngest ever Conservative candidate, attracted a lot of media attention.但是她却大大撼动了工党主体。同时作为当时有史以来最年轻的保守党候选人，她也吸引了众多媒体的关注。In 1951 she married a divorced businessman, Denis Thatcher, and began studying for the Ba

10、r exams. She qualified as a barrister in 1953, the year in which her twins Mark and Carol were born.1951年，她嫁给了一个离过婚的商人，丹尼斯撒切尔。同时她还投考律师公会，并于1953年成功取得讼务律师的资格。同年，夫妇俩诞下了一对孪生兄妹，分别取名为马克和卡洛儿。She tried, unsuccessfully, to gain selection as a candidate in 1955, but finally entered Parliament for the safe Con

11、servative seat of Finchley at the 1959 general election.1955年她再次竞选保守党候选人，却未能如愿，最终在1959年的大选中成功当选芬奇利议会成员。Within two years she had been appointed as a junior minister and, following the Conservative defeat in 1964, was promoted to the shadow cabinet.不到两年，她就被任命为初级部长。1964年保守党落选后，她又被晋升为影子内阁.Milk snatcher“

12、牛奶掠夺者”When Sir Alec Douglas-Home stood down as Conservative leader, Mrs Thatcher voted for Ted Heath in the 1965 leadership election and was rewarded with a post as spokeswoman on housing and land.亚历克道格拉斯-霍姆爵士辞任保守党党魁以后，撒切尔在1965年党魁选举中把选票投给了特德希思，作为回报，她成为了住房和土地事务的发言人。She campaigned vigorously for the r

13、ight of council tenants to buy their houses and was a constant critic of Labours policy of high taxation.她积极推动社会福利房住户获得购房置业的权利，并成为工党高税收政策的坚决批判者。When Ted Heath entered Downing Street in 1970, she was promoted to the cabinet as education secretary with a brief to implement spending cuts in her departm

14、ent.当特德希思1970年入主唐宁街后，她被提升为教育及科学大臣，随后她下令削减教育开支。One of these resulted in the withdrawal of free school milk for children aged between seven and 11 which led to bitter attacks from Labour and a press campaign which dubbed her Margaret Thatcher, milk snatcher.削减开支的一个结果就是取消了给7岁至11岁儿童免费供应牛奶的政策，这导致工党对其发动了猛

15、烈的攻击，媒体抗议运动也将她戏称为“玛格利特撒切尔，牛奶掠夺者”。She herself had argued in cabinet against the removal of free milk. She later wrote: I learned a valuable lesson.I had incurred the maximum of political odium for the minimum of political benefit.她自己也曾在内阁为反对取消免费牛奶而争吵。她之后写道：“我学到了宝贵的一课。我为了最小的政治利益而招致了最大的政治憎恨。”As one of

16、the few high-flying women in politics there was, inevitably, talk of the possibility that she might, oneday, become prime minister. Similar press speculation surrounded the Labour minister Shirley Williams.作为政界少有的有野心的女性，她不可避免地会被人谈及：或许某一天，她会成为首相。工党大臣谢莉威廉姆斯身边也围绕着类似的媒体猜测。Margaret Thatcher dismissed the

17、 idea. In a TV interview she said she did not believe that there would be a woman prime minister in her lifetime.玛格利特撒切尔驳斥了这种想法。在一个电视采访中，她说她不相信在她有生之年会产生一个女首相。The Heath government was not to last. Battered by the 1973 oil crisis, forced to impose a three-day working week and facing a miners strike, E

18、dward Heaths administration finally collapsed in February 1974.希思政府注定不会长久。在遭受1973年石油危机的打击，被迫强制实行三日工作周，并面临新一轮矿工罢工后，爱德华希思政府终于在1974年2月垮台了。Housewife-politician是政治家也是家庭主妇Thatcher became shadow environment secretary but, angered by what she saw as Heaths U-turns on Conservative economic policy, stood agai

19、nst him for the Tory leadership in 1975.撒切尔夫人随后出任影子内阁环境事务大臣。出于对希思的保守经济政策大转弯的不满，1975年她向希思的保守党领袖地位发起挑战。When she went into Heaths office to tell him her decision, he did not even bother to look up. Youll lose, he said. Good day to you.当她走进希思办公室告诉他她的决定时，希思甚至连头都没抬。“你肯定会输，”希思说。“祝你好运。”To everyones surprise

20、, she defeated Heath on the first ballot, forcing his resignation, and she saw off Willie Whitelaw on the second ballot to become the first woman to lead a major British political party.出乎所有人的意料，她在第一轮中就击败了希思，希思被迫辞职。她又在第二轮投票中压倒了威廉怀特劳，成为英国主要政党的第一位女性领袖。She quickly began to make her mark. A 1976 speech

21、criticising the repressive policies of the Soviet Union led to a Russian newspaper dubbing her the Iron Lady, a title which gave her much personal pleasure.她很快就出了名。1976年，撒切尔夫人在一次演讲中批评苏联的压制性政策，一家俄文报纸给她起了个“铁娘子”的称号，这一称号给撒切尔本人带来不少欢乐。Adopting the persona of a housewife-politician who knew what inflation

22、meant to ordinary families, she challenged the power of the trades unions whose almost constant industrial action peaked in the so-called winter of discontent in 1979.兼具家庭主妇和政治家角色的撒切尔夫人，很清楚通货膨胀对普通家庭意味着什么，她向工会的权力提出了挑战。而在1979年，工会持续的罢工行动在所谓的“不满的冬天”达到了高潮。As the Callaghan government tottered, the Conserv

23、atives rolled out a poster campaign showing a queue of supposedly unemployed people under the slogan Labour Isnt Working.卡拉汉政府举步维艰，保守党趁机展开一场海报宣传活动，让一群貌似失业的工人打出“工党不行了”的口号。Jim Callaghan lost a vote of confidence on 28 March 1979. Mrs Thatchers no-nonsense views struck a chord with many voters and the

24、Conservatives won the ensuing general election.1979年3月28日，詹姆斯卡拉汉因一票之差未通过不信任动议。而撒切尔夫人的实用论引起了很多投票者的共鸣，保守党最终赢得了接下来的大选。Monetary policies货币政策As prime minister, she was determined to repair the countrys finances by reducing the role of the state and boosting the free market.作为首相，撒切尔夫人决心通过弱化国家作用和提升市场自由度来修复

25、国家财政。Cutting inflation was central to the governments purpose and it soon introduced a radical budget of tax and spending cuts.当时政府的主要目标是降低通胀，因此，很快就出台了激进的税收预算并缩减开支。Bills were introduced to curb union militancy, privatise state industries and allow council home owners to buy their houses.接着，一系列遏制工会争斗

26、、推行国有企业私有化、住房私有化的议案也陆续出台。Millions of people who previously had little or no stake in the economy found themselves being able to own their houses and buy shares in the former state-owned businesses.数以百万的人发现，他们不再与国家经济绝缘，他们可以拥有自己的住房，甚至购买国有企业的股份。New monetary policies made the City of London one of the m

27、ost vibrant and successful financial centres in the world.新的货币政策使伦敦一跃成为全世界最具活力和成功的金融中心。Old-style manufacturing, which critics complained was creating an industrial wasteland, was run down in the quest for a competitive new Britain. Unemployment rose above three million.旧式制造业饱受诟病，规模逐渐缩减。人们追求建造一个具有竞争力

28、的新英国。与此同时，失业人口超过了三百万。There was considerable unrest among the so called wets on the Conservative back benches and that, coupled with riots in some inner city areas, saw pressure on Margaret Thatcher to modify her policies.这在保守党后座的所谓“湿派”中引起了不小的骚动。而一些内陆城市爆发的骚乱，也让撒切尔感受到了改变政策的压力。But the prime minister re

29、fused to crumble. She told the 1980 party conference: To those waiting with bated breath for that favourite media catch phrase, the U-turn, I have only one thing to say. You turn if you want to. the ladys not for turning.然而，首相拒绝就此妥协。在1980年的保守党会议上，撒切尔说道：“我要对那些正屏气凝神，等待着传媒所讲的180度掉头成真的人说：如果你要掉头便由你，但本小姐绝

30、不掉头。”Falklands War福岛战争By late 1981 her approval rating had fallen to 25%, the lowest recorded for any prime minister until that time, but the economic corner had been turned.1981年底，撒切尔的支持率跌至25%。这是有史以来英国首相的最低支持率。然而，英国的经济却呈现出截然相反的趋势。In early 1982 the economy began to recover and, with it, the prime mi

31、nisters standing among the electorate.1982年初，英国经济开始复苏。撒切尔在选民心中的地位也随之上升。Her popularity received its biggest boost in April 1982 with her decisive response to the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands.1982年4月，撒切尔对阿根廷进入福克兰群岛做出了决定性回应，因此声望空前。The prime minister immediately despatched a naval task for

32、ce and the islands were retaken on 14 June when the Argentine forces surrendered.撒切尔立即向福岛派出了海军部队。6月14日，阿根廷投降，英国重新控制了福克兰群岛。Victory in the Falklands, together with disarray in the Labour Party, now led by Michael Foot, ensured a Conservative landslide in the 1983 election.当时的工党在迈克尔富特的领导下混乱不堪，加上福岛战争的胜利，使保守党在1983年的大选中获得了压倒性的大胜。The following spring the National Union of Mineworkers called a nationwide strike, despite the failure of their fi