General Mac Arthur's Prayer for His Son
[导读]本段文字对比用到了很多对比。本段动词变化也很多，注意动词和宾语的搭配。中国学生学习英语在3个大方面掌握的不是很好：分词结构，情态动词（含虚拟语气）和动词搭配。

Build me a son, Lord, who will be strong enough to know when he is weak, and brave enough to have himself when he is afraid：One who will be proud and unbending in honest defeat, and humble and gentle in victory.
Build me son whose wishes will not take the place of deeds: a son who will know Thee -- and that to know himself is the foundation stone of knowledge.

Lead him, I pray, not in the path of ease and comfort, but under the stress and spur of difficulties and challenge. Here let him learn to stand up in the storm; here let him learn compassion for those who fail.
Build me a son whose heart will be clear, whose goal will be high; a son who will master himself before he seeks to master other men; one who will reach into the future, yet never forget the past.

And after all these things are his, add, I pray, enough of a sense of humor, so that he may always be serious, yet never take himself too seriously. Give him humility, so that he may always remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, and the meekness of true strength.

Then I, his father, will dare to whisper, "I have not live in vain."

[注释]
unbending: 不曲的, 坚决的, 不屈的
humble: 卑下的, 微贱的, 谦逊的
Thee: pron. <古> (thou的宾格) 你
foundation: 基础, 根本
compassion: 同情,怜悯
humility: 谦卑
meekness: 温顺, 柔和
[参考译文]
请塑造我儿，使他在软弱中能够坚强，在惧怕中勇敢面对，在失败中能不去不扰，在成功时能谦卑。使他务实而不虚幻，使他认识你以及他自己--知识的根基。
我求你别让我儿在安逸的小径中，请用艰难和挑来磨练他，让他学会在风雨中挺立不移，对失败者给予同情。
请陶冶我儿，使他心清志高，在管别人之前知道先管自己，知道期许未来忘记背后。
最后我祈求你再加一点：添增他足够的幽默感。使他虽严谨持守却不苛待自己。给他谦逊以便知道真正的伟大在平时，真正的智慧在于心胸开阔，真正的力量在于柔弱。
然后我敢说，我没白活。

Spring Song
[导读] 布莱克（William Blake,1757-1827），英国诗人，著有诗集《Songs of Innocence》(1789)（《天真与经验之歌》）、《先知书》、《伐拉，或四天神》。等。布莱克的诗读起来朗朗上口，有音乐的美感，充满感性，喜欢的人很多。
Spring is coming, spring is coming,
Birdies, build your nest;
Weave together straw and feather,
Doing each your best.

Spring is coming, spring is coming,
Flowers are coming too:
Pansies, lilies, daffodillies
Now are coming through.

Spring is coming, spring is coming,
All around is fair,
Shimmer and quiver on the river,
Joy is everywhere.

[注释]
straw: 稻草, 麦杆
Pansies, lilies, daffodillies: 三色紫罗兰, 百合花, 喇叭水仙花
Shimmer: 微光
quiver: 颤抖, 振动

[参考译文]
春歌
春天来了,春天来了:
野鸟们,筑巢罢,
以稻草和羽毛
尽力的筑巢罢!

春天来了,春天来了:
百合,紫罗兰,
以及水仙,
都把头探出来了!

春天来了，春天来了:
一切都如意了,
河面上闪亮着黄金,
啊，到处都是欢欣。

Thrift
[导读]本文论述了节俭这一美德的重要。文章围绕论点展开，层次分明。
Thrift is the foundation of all greatness. It is applied not only to money matters, but to everything else in life--the wise use of one's time, ability, and energy. In short, thrift is the scientific management of one's money, of one's time, of one's affairs, and of one's self.

Thrift is the best word for us. It makes fortune. It uplifts character. It improves the quality of the individual. The exercise of thrift has a very healthful reaction upon all the other faculties. The habit of thrift denotes self-control. It is a proof that a man is not a hopeless victim of his weakness. It is a proof that he is the master of himself as well as of his finances.

Thrift is an educator. A thrifty man thinks and plans. He has a programme. He has a certain amount of independence. If you have cultivated thrift, it means that you have the ability to control your desires and that you are developing some of the grandest human qualities—self-reliance, independence, prudence, and foresight.

We know that all great nations are founded on thrift. The ancient Roman Empire degenerated and came to an end when it ceased to be thrifty. Yet thrift does not require superior courage. It needs no fervent resolution, but only a little patient self-denial. And BEGIN is its device!

[注释]
thrift: n. economy; frugality. 节俭；俭约
greatness: n. quality of being great. 伟大
fortune: n. a great deal of money or property. 钱财
uplift v.: imporve. 提高
individual: n. a single person. 个人
exercise: practice. 实行
healthful reaction: helpful reaction. 有助的反应
faculty: n. ability. 能力
self-control: control exercised over one’s self. 克己
victim: n. person sacrificed. 牺牲者
finances: n. money; private income. 钱财；个人所得
educator: n. teacher. 教师
thrifty: adj. economical; frugal. 节俭的
programme: n. plan of what is to be done. 计划
independence: n. freedom from the support, control or influence of others. 独立；自主
grandest human qualities: noblest character. 最高尚的品德
self-reliance: n. reliance on one’s own power. 自恃
prudence: n. caution. 谨慎
foresight: n. power to see or realize beforehand. 先见
founded: built up; established. 建立
degenerate: v. decline. 衰颓
came to an end: fell. 灭亡
fervent resolution: intense determination. 非常的决心
self-denial: n. self-control. 克己
device n.: method. 方策。

A Girl
[导读]庞德 （Ezra Pound:1885-1972），美国诗人。参与发动“意象主义”运动，提倡以鲜明、准确、含蓄、凝练的意象表现具体事物。庞德说过：“最古典的也就是最现代的。” 庞德是英美现代诗坛一位巨将。他谙熟古今，善于旁搜博采，撷取各国文明之长以为己用。他的诗作突出地体现出古希腊、古意大利、古英诗以及法国中世纪普罗旺斯诗歌传统的影响。 曾将整个西方的视野扩展到远东（翻译过中国古诗）。]这是一首意象派诗歌。它所以耐人寻味，原因在于它给读者提供了广阔的想象空间。诗既不是对客观现象的机械反映，也不会直接将主观感情溢于字面，正因为诗具有“描写心灵”的特点，所以要求欣赏者运用想象、联想等方法，调动自己的情感去理解、感受、体味，从而产生强烈共鸣，这样即是对诗歌的“再创造”。


The tree has entered my hands,
The sap has ascended my arms,
The tree has grown in my breast --
Downward,
The branches grow out of me, like arms.

Tre you are,
Moss you are,
You are violets with wind above them.
A child - so high - you are,
And all this is folly to the world.

[注释]
sap: 树液
ascend: 进入, 上升
Moss: 苔, 藓
violet: 紫罗兰
folly: 荒唐

Advice To A Young Man
[导读]罗伯特•伯德特 （Robert Jones Burdette）的作品逻辑严密，层层推进，富有感染力。

Remember, my son, you have to work. Whether you handle a pick or a pen, a wheel-barrow or a set of books, digging ditches or editing a paper, ringing an auction bell or writing funny things, you must work. If you look around you will see the men who are the most able to live the rest of their days without work are the men who work the hardest. Don't be afraid of killing yourself with overwork. It is beyond your power to do that on the sunny side of thirty. They die sometimes, but it is because they quit work at six in the evening, and do not go home until two in the morning. It’s the interval that kills, my son. The work gives you an appetite for your meals; it lends solidity to your slumbers, it gives you a perfect and grateful appreciation of a holiday.

There are young men who do not work, but the world is not proud of them. It does not know their names, even it simply speaks of them as “old So-and-So’s boy”. Nobody likes them; the great, busy world doesn’t know that they are there. So find out what you want to be and do, and take off your coat and make a dust in the world. The busier you are, the less harm you will be apt to get into, the sweeter will be your sleep, the brighter and happier your holidays, and the better satisfied will the world be with you.


[注释]
son: young man. 年轻人
pick n: a sharp-pointed iron tool used in digging. 锄头
wheel-barrow n: a small vehicle with one wheel and two handles, used for moving small loads. 手推车
a set of books: a set of accounts. 一套帐簿
ditch n: a channel dug in the ground. 沟
paper: newspaper. 报纸
auction n: a public sale in which goods are sold to the highest bidder. 拍卖
overwork n: too much work. 工作过劳
on the sunny side of thirty: below thirty years of age. 三十岁以内
quit v: stop. 停止
interval n: the time between events. 间隔时间
The work gives you an appetite for you meals: The work sharpens your desire for food. 工作会增加你的食欲
it lends solidity to your slumbers: the work makes you sleep soundly. 工作会使你安然入睡
it gives you a perfect and grateful appreciation of a holiday: the work makes you have a good enjoyment of a holiday with much satisfaction. 工作会使你心满意足地享受假日
the world is not proud of them: the world dose not feel itself greatly honored by them 这世界并不以有他们为荣
So-and-So: a certain person. 某人
find out: think clearly; understand. 想清楚; 明了
take off your coat: keep up your spirits. 脱下你的外衣，意即提起你的精神
make a dust in the world: become prominent in the world. 扬名于世
the…the…: by how much….by so much. 愈…. 愈….
apt to get into: liable to suffer. 易于遭受

I Have a Dream
[导读] 马丁•路德•金(Martin Luther King 1929—1968)，美国黑人解放运动的著名领袖，1968年被种族主义者刺杀。1963年8月28日，美国首都华盛顿举行大规模的黑人集会，为黑人争取自由平等和就业。马丁•路德•金在会上发表本篇演说。
I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into a situation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.
This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
[注释]
Alabama: 阿拉巴马州(美国的一个州)
drip: (使)滴下
interposition: n. 异议
nullification: 无效
exalt: 升高
crooked: 弯曲的
glory: 荣誉, 光荣
reveal: 显示,透露
jangling: 刺耳的
discord：意见不合, 嘈杂声
symphony：交响乐, 交响曲
brotherhood：手足情谊
[参考译文] 我有一个梦
我梦想有一天，我的四个小女儿将生活在一个不是以皮肤的颜色，而是以品格的优劣作为评判标准的国家里。
我今天怀有一个梦。
我梦想有一天，亚拉巴马州会有所改变——尽管该州州长现在仍滔滔不绝地说什么要对联邦法令提出异议和拒绝执行——在那里，黑人儿童能够和白人儿童兄弟姐妹般地携手并行。
我今天怀有一个梦。
我梦想有一天，深谷弥合，高山夷平，歧路化坦途，曲径成通衢，上帝的光华再现，普天下生灵共谒。
这是我们的希望。这是我将带回南方去的信念。有了这个信念，我们就能从绝望之山开采出希望之石。有了这个信念，我们就能把这个国家的嘈杂刺耳的争吵声，变为充满手足之情的悦耳交响曲。有了这个信念，我们就能一同工作，一同祈祷，一同斗争，一同入狱，一同维护自由，因为我们知道，我们终有一天会获得自由。

Three Days to See
[导读]马克`吐温曾说：“19世纪有两个奇人，一个是拿破伦，一个是海伦•凯勒。” 下面几段摘选自海伦•凯勒(Helen Keller)的自传《假如给我三天光明》，海伦虽然从小失明，但一个生活在黑暗中却是给人类带来光明的女性。 试想一个幽闭的盲聋哑世界里的人，竟然毕业于哈佛大学德克利夫学院，撰写了14部著作，并用生命的全部力量处处奔走，筹建慈善机构，为残疾人造福，被美国《时代周刊》评选为20世纪美国十大英雄偶像。在经历了种种的艰辛与磨难之后，她开始跨越了自己，挣脱出小我的圈子，她的心情逐渐开朗，“我要把别人眼睛所看见的光明当作我的太阳，别人的耳朵听见的音乐当作我的乐曲，别人嘴角的微笑当作我的快乐。”她接受了生命的挑战，她觉得自己获得了自由，内心深处的自由，她不仅仅是为了自己而活，她希望自己能奉献的不仅是几片绿叶，她要给世界整个春天。我们为之感动的不仅是文字本身的优美与真情，你的眼睛渐渐湿润了，因为你感受到的是伟大的心灵。
　　
Most of us, however, take life for granted. We know that one day we must die, but usually we picture that day as far in the future. When we are in buoyant health, death is all but unimaginable. We seldom think of it. The days stretch out in an endless vista. So we go about our petty tasks, hardly aware of our listless attitude toward life.
…
I have often thought it would be a blessing if each human being were stricken blind and deaf for a few days at some time during his early adult life. Darkness would make him more appreciative of sight; silence would teach him the joys of sound.

Now and then I have tested my seeing friends to discover what they see. Recently I was visited by a very good friend who had just returned from a long walk in the woods, and I asked her what she had observed.. "Nothing in particular,” she replied. I might have been incredulous had I not been accustomed to such reposes, for long ago I became convinced that the seeing see little.

How was it possible, I asked myself, to walk for an hour through the woods and see nothing worthy of note? I who cannot see find hundreds of things to interest me through mere touch. I feel the delicate symmetry of a leaf. I pass my hands lovingly about the smooth skin of a silver birch, or the rough, shaggy bark of a pine. In the spring I touch the branches of trees hopefully in search of a bud the first sign of awakening Nature after her winter's sleep. I feel the delightful, velvety texture of a flower, and discover its remarkable convolutions; and something of the miracle of Nature is revealed to me. Occasionally, if I am very fortunate, I place my hand gently on a small tree and feel the happy quiver of a bird in full song. I am delighted to have the cool waters of a brook rush through my open finger. To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug. To me the pageant of seasons is a thrilling and unending drama, the action of which streams through my finger tips.
Helen Keller: Three Days to See

[注释]
take life for granted: 把生命想当然
buoyant: 有浮力的, 轻快的
unimaginable: 想不到的, 不可思议的
vista: 展望, 回想
listless：倦怠的, 冷漠的，情绪低落的
incredulous：怀疑的, 不轻信的
accustom：使习惯于
symmetry：[] n. 对称, 匀称
silver birch：白桦树
shaggy：表面粗糙的
delightful：令人愉快的, 可喜的
velvety：象天鹅绒的, 柔软的
remarkable：adj.不平常的, 非凡的, 值得注意的, 显著的
convolutions：[] n. 回旋, 盘旋, 卷绕
brook：小溪
lush: 青葱的, 豪华的
luxurious: [] adj. 奢侈的, 豪华的
pageant: 壮观
thrilling: adj.毛骨悚然的, 颤动的, 发抖的，令人振奋的

[参考译文]
但是，我们大多数人把生活认为是理所当然的。我们知道，某一天我们一定会死，但通常我们把那天想象在遥远的将来。当我们心宽体健时，死亡几乎是不可想象的，我们很少想到它。时日在无穷的展望中延展着，于是我们干着琐碎的事情，几乎意识不到我们对生活的倦怠态度。
……
我常常想，如果每个人在他成年的早期有一段时间致瞎致聋，那会是一种幸事，黑暗会使他更珍惜视力，寂静会教导他享受声音。
　　我不时地询问过我的能看见东西的朋友们，以了解他们看到什么。最近，我的一个很好的朋友来看我，她刚从一片森林里散步许久回来，我问她看到了什么，她答道：“没什么特别的。”如果我不是习惯了听到这种回答，我都可能不相信，因为很久以来我已确信这个情况：能看得见的人却看不到什么。
　　我独自一人，在林子里散步一小时之久而没有看到任何值得注意的东西，那怎么可能呢？我自己，一个不能看见东西的人，仅仅通过触觉，都发现许许多多令我有兴趣的东西。我感触到一片树叶的完美的对称性。我用手喜爱地抚摸过一株白桦那光潮的树皮，或一棵松树的粗糙树皮。春天，我摸着树干的枝条满怀希望地搜索着嫩芽，那是严冬的沉睡后，大自然苏醒的第一个迹象。我抚摸过花朵那令人愉快的天鹅绒般的质地，感觉到它那奇妙的卷绕，一些大自然奇迹向我展现了。有时，如果我很幸运，我把手轻轻地放在一棵小树上，还能感受到一只高声歌唱的小鸟的愉快颤抖，我十分快乐地让小溪涧的凉水穿过我张开的手指流淌过去。对我来说，一片茂密的地毯式的松针叶或松软而富弹性的草地比最豪华的波斯地毯更受欢迎。对我来说四季的壮观而华丽的展示是一部令人激动的、无穷尽的戏剧。这部戏剧的表演，通过我的手指尖端涌淌出来。

TO DAFFODILS
[导读]罗伯特•哈里克(Robert Herrick 1591-1674)，英国诗人.
Fair Daffodils, we weep to see
You haste away so soon;
As yet the early-rising sun
Has not attain'd his noon. attain'd：＝attained

Stay, stay,
Until the hasting day
Has run
But to the even-song;
And, having pray'd together, we
Will go with you along.

We have short time to stay, as you;
We have as short a spring;
As quick a growth to meet decay,
As you, or anything.
We die,
As your hours do, and dry
Away
Like to the summer's rain,
Or as the pearls of morning's dew,
Ne'er to be found again.
咏黄水仙花
优美的黄水仙，凋谢的太快，
我们感觉着悲哀；
连早晨出来的太阳
都还没有上升到天盖。
停下来,停下来，
等匆忙的日脚
跑进
黄昏的木暮霭；
在那时共同祈祷着，
在回家的路上徘徊。

我们也只有短暂的停留，
青春的易逝堪忧；
我们方生也就方死，
和你们一样，
一切都要罢休。
你们谢了，
我们也要去了，
如同夏雨之骤，
或如早上的露珠，
永无痕迹可求。

Samuel Smiles
[导读]塞缪尔•斯迈尔斯（Samuel Smiles）英国作家，以道德教诲的作品“自助” (Self-Help，1859)最为有名。“书香轻拂沁心灵，诗行轻滑渗血液。青春时所读之书，垂暮时依然会回想，仿佛就在身边发生。书籍价廉物美，我们就在书香中呼吸。” 人们常常因同爱一本书而精神共鸣——正如两个人有时因共同仰慕另外一人而彼此成为朋友。古谚云“爱屋及乌”，而“爱其人，也爱其珍爱之书”这句话里却含有更多的哲理。书是更忠诚更高尚的情感纽带。人们可以通过共同喜爱的作者而相知相契，息息相通。他们的思想与作者的思想水乳交融，密不可分。

A man may usually be known by the books he reads, as well as by the company he keeps; for there is a companionship of books as well as of men; and one should always live in the best company, whether it be of books or of men.

A good book may be among the best of friends. It is the same today that it always was, and it will never change. It is the most patient and cheerful of companions. It does not turn its back upon us in times of adversity or distress. It always receives us with the same kindness; amusing and instructing us in youth, and comforting and consoling us in age.

Men often discover their affinity to each other by the mutual love they have for a book--just as two persons sometimes discover a friend by the admiration which both entertain for a third. There is an old proverb, "Love me, love my dog." But there is more wisdom in this: "Love me, love my book." The book is a truer and higher bond of union. Men can think, feel, and sympathise with each other through their favourite author. They live in him together, and he in them.

A good book is often the best urn of a life, enshrining the best thoughts of which that life was capable; for the world of a man's life is, for the most part, but the world of his thoughts. Thus the best books are treasuries of good words and golden thoughts, which, remembered and cherished, become our abiding companions and comforters. "They are never alone," said Sir Philip Sidney, "that are accompanied by noble thoughts." The good and true thought may in time of temptation be as an angel of mercy purifying and guarding the soul. It also enshrines the germs of action, for good words almost invariably inspire to good works.

[注释]
company: 陪伴
adversity: 不幸, 逆境
distress: 悲痛, 穷困
console : vt. 安慰
affinity: 吸引力, 亲合力
bond: 结合, 粘结
sympathise: 同情, 共鸣, 同感
urn: 壶。这一句的意思是：好书常如最精美的宝器，珍藏着人的一生思想的精华。
enshrine: 铭记
abiding: adj.持久的
Sir Philip Sidney: 菲利普•悉尼爵士 (1554-1586) 英国作家。
angel: 天使
mercy: 仁慈, 宽恕
purify: 净化
[参考译文] 书为友
观其友而知其人，同样，察一个人读些什么书就可知他的为人，只因书与人一样，也能做人之友。无论是书还是人，我们都应该择其最佳者为友。
一本好书可以成为人的挚友，古往今来，恒久不变。所有朋友中，书本最为耐心而又令人愉悦。我们身处逆境灰心沮丧时，书本并不变脸抛弃我们，始终如一，友爱接纳。我们年轻时，书本给我们以欢娱和陶冶；我们老迈时，又予我们以慰藉和鼓励。
黑兹利特曾说：“书香轻拂沁心灵，诗行轻滑渗血液。青春时所读之书，垂暮时依然会回想，仿佛就在身边发生。书籍价廉物美，我们就在书香中呼吸。”
一本好书往往就是作者的人生结晶，里面蕴藏着他穷其一生的求索成果。因为人一生的世界大多就是其思想的世界，故而最优秀的书籍也就是至理名言和辉煌思想的富藏。这些思想若能铭记在心，就成为我们永久的朋友和永恒的慰藉。菲利普•悉尼爵士说得好：“与高尚思想为伴的人永不寂寞。”
在我们受诱惑时，美好纯真的思想如同仁慈的天使，净化卫护着我们的灵魂，并蕴含着我们行动的萌芽，因为金玉良言总能激励我们美好的行为。

Two Ways of Thinking of History
[导读] 罗劳斯（A.L. Rowse 1903-1997），是当代英国首屈一指的文史学者，著作丰硕，纵横文学与史学两大领域。其史学作品有文学旨趣，而其文学著作又有史家见识，尤其擅长用传记来构筑断代史，为著名之伊利莎白王朝学者，他的英国伊利莎白社会历史三部曲（1950-1971）著作更是有口皆碑，但他也写了好几部丘吉尔家族传，所以他的史学情怀可说贯通今古。他毕生大部分的光阴都花在牛津大学诸圣学院（All Souls College）内，并为该院的研究员（fellow）。下面的引文片段，采自罗劳斯的《历史的用处》The Use of History (1946)。写这书时，已是他多年教学心得所汇编的结果。

There are two ways of thinking of history. There is, first, history regarded as a way of looking at other things, really the temporal aspect of anything, from the universe to this nib with I am writing. Everything has its history. There is the history of the universe, if only we knew it—and we know something of it, if we do not know much. Nor is the contrast so great, when you come to think of it, between the universe and this pen-nib. A mere pen-nib has quite a considerable history. There is, to begin with, what has been written with it, and that might be something quite important. After all it was probably only one quill-pen or a couple that wrote Hamlet. Whatever has been written with the pen-nib is part of its History. In addition to that there is the history of its manufacture: this particular nib is a ‘Relief’ nib, No. 314, made by R. Esterbrook and Co. in England, who supply the Midland Bank with pen-nibs, from whom I got it---a gift, I may say. But behind this nib there is the whole process of manufacture. . . . In fact a pen nib implies of universe, and the history of it implies its history. We may regard this way of looking at it—history as the time-aspect of all things: a pen-nib, the universe, the fiddled before me as I write, as a relative conception of history. There is, secondly, what we mat call a substantive conception of history, what we usually mean by it, history proper as a subject of study in itself. (Part I)

[注释]
temporal：当时的, 暂时的, 现世的
nib：鹅管笔的尖端, 钢笔尖
considerable：worthy of consideration; significant 重要的值得考虑的；有重大意义的
Midland Bank：米特兰银行
the fiddled：不重要的事
substantive：实质的，实在的
[参考译文] 历史的面貌
历史的思考方式有两种。其一，历史作为审视其它事物是一种，其实仅为所有事物暂时的面貌，从整个宇宙到有正在书写的笔端。每一样事物都有它的历史。宇宙也有它的历史，要是我们知道的话──虽然我们所知有限，总算知道一些；仔细想一下，宇宙和这笔端，其间的差异也不是那么大。但即使仅是这笔端也有一段历史。首先，透过它便有写出来的东西，而这些可能相当重要。毕竟莎剧（哈姆莱特）也只靠一支鹅毛笔或二支便完成了。通过笔端所写出来的变成了它自身的历史。此外，还有制造过程的历史：我这支笔尖其实是英国艾斯塔布禒克（Esterbrook）厂牌３１４号凸版型产品，专门供应米特兰银行用品，我是从那儿取得的───或许应该说是银行的赠品。在这笔尖的北后有一连串的制造过程……。故此，这笔尖蕴含了一个宇宙，而它的历史也蕴含了它自身的历史。

我们可以把这种审视的方式看作──历史就是所有事务的时间之面貌：一支笔尖、宇宙、眼前我写作的领域……作为历史的相对观念。
其二，则为我们称作实质观念的历史，就是我们通常所说的，历史本身作为一个研究的科目。