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1、1To a great extent, of course, it is just a matter of taste. I am a highbrow for the same reason that I am an eater of strawberries. I enjoy the eating of strawberries and I enjoy the processes and experiences which are commonly qualified by the name of “highbrow“. 2Conversely, I am not a lowbrow*,
2、because I do not enjoy lowbrow processes and experiences. Thus I derive a great deal less pleasure from jazz and thrillers* than from the music, let us say, of Beethoven or the novels, for example, of Dostoevsky;1. lowbrow n. person having or showing little taste for or interest in intellectual thin
3、gs平民, 俗民, 庸俗的人 2. thriller n. one that thrills, especially a sensational or suspenseful book, story, play or movie惊险读物and the sex appeal of the girls on the covers of magazines seems to me less thrilling than the more complicated appeal to a great variety of feelings made by a Rubens, an EI Greco, a
4、 Constable, a Seurat.3Again, I find the watching of horse racing or football matches less agreeable as an occupation than the acquisition* and co-ordination* of knowledge. Reading seems to me more entertaining than bridge or cross-word puzzles*. 1. acquisition n. the act of acquiring or getting获得 2.
5、 co-ordination n. state of being brought or put into proper relation协调, 调和 3. cross-word puzzles puzzles in which words have to be written纵横字谜(一种填字游戏)And the slaughtering* of animals for fun is a pastime that leaves me either cold with disgust or hot with indignation.1.slaughter vt. to kill cruelly
6、or wrongly残杀, 屠杀4There is no disputing, says the proverb*, about taste - though, in fact, human beings spend at least half their leisure doing nothing else - and if highbrowism and lowbrowism were exclusively (as it is certain that they are in great part) matters of individual taste, there would be
7、no more to say about them than what I have said in the preceding lines.1.proverb n. a short well-known saying in popular language格言, 谚语5But more than mere taste is at stake; and, realizing this, the supporters of either party have rationalized* their preferences in terms of arguments that involve an
8、 appeal to more objective standards than those of a simple personal preference.1. rationalisze v. treat or explain in a rational manner使合理 ；使合理化6Thus lowbrows are never weary* of condemning highbrows for their “inhumanity*“, nor of admiring themselves for being so admirably* “human“.1. weary adj. (o
9、f)疲倦的, 劳累的 2. inhumanity n. harming other human beings残酷, 暴虐 3. admirable adj. very good; excellent极好的;可敬佩的At the same time they argue that they must be in the right because they are so much more numerous than the highbrows. To the attacks of the lowbrows (attacks which have grown increasingly vocal
10、* and violent in the course of the last few years) the highbrows generally reply in a tone of patronizing* contempt.1. vocal adj. with or using the voice有声音的 2. patronisze v. be condescending toward; act as patron towards对摆出屈尊俯就的样子；光顾, 赞助7They start, like the Pharisee in the parable*, by thanking Go
11、d that they are not as other men are, and proceed to paint a picture of those other men, hardly more flattering than that which Swift painted of the Yahoos.1. parable n. a short simple story which teaches a moral or religious lesson寓言Then explicitly* or implicitly*, they associate their highbrowism
12、with virtue, and speak of their own learned refinements* as good and of their adversaries ignorance and crudity* as bad.1. explicit adj. clear and fully expressed明确的 2. implicit adj. meant though not plainly expressed含蓄的 3. refinement n. the quality of being refined优雅，文雅 4. crudity n. the state or q
13、uality of being crude粗鲁, 粗野8Each partys arguments seem to me equally futile* and each partys emotional attitude equally deplorable*. Thus the lowbrows appeal to numbers cuts no ice at all. In 1600 the earth was not the center of the universe because the majority then supposed it was; nor, because sh
14、e had more readers, was Ella Wheeler Wilcox a better poet than Father Hopkins. 1. futile adj. useless无用的 2. deplorable adj. very bad可悲的, 不幸的9As for the lowbrows claim to be specially “human“, I for one have never been able to understand why it should be “inhuman“ to use the faculties that distinguis
15、h us from pigs and geese and “human“ to use those which we share with the lower animals.10The highbrows reverse the numerical argument and imply that, because they are so few, they must therefore be right. But where they chiefly offend is in their pharisaical* self- congratulation and contempt for o
16、thers. In the past, the highbrows were alone in expressing a feeling of superiority; the lowbrows humbly accepted the position assigned to them.1. pharisaic(al) adj. making a show of being good and religious(贬义)伪装虔诚的, 伪善的11Recently, however, there has been a change, and lowbrows now adopt towards highbrows exactly the same attitude as highbrows have always adopted to
