2012年北外高翻译考试试题（包括复语）及参考译文_第5页

我认识一位从中国来美国的暑期交换学生，她告诉我一件她觉得奇怪的事情。她寄宿在一个美国人的家里。这家夫妇俩都是律师，有4个从上高中到小学的男孩。那个人家房子很大，有游艇（恐怕不止一只）和私人飞机，非常富有的样子，生活却很简单。有一次，父母两人出外度假，临走前在家里的大冰箱里为留在家里的4个孩子放好一模一样大小的4份食品，不分大小，每人一份。而且，还给他们每人分配一份工作，修整草地、洗游泳池、清理厨房、厕所等等。这4个孩子，大的食品不够吃，小的吃不了。大的向小的要，小的就以代做自己那一份家事为条件，把吃不了的分一些给大的。

这确实是一个典型的美国家庭，说它典型，不是说它拥有的财产（这个家庭显然要比许多其他美国家庭富有），而是说它的价值观。

I know a Chinese student who came to the United States on a summer exchange program. She told me about the things she found hard to understand about the American family where she had her home stay'. The couple were both lawyers and had four children, all boys but in various stages of schooling from primary to senior high. They had a large house, a yacht and a private jet. Despite the trappings of great wealth, their lifestyle was surprisingly straightforward. For example, the parents went on vacation once. Before their departure, they left in the freezer four equal portions of food for the kids and assigned them specific house chores, mowing the lawn, scrubbing the pool and sprucing up the kitchen or the bathroom. The older boys who found their rations insufficient would have to trade with their younger siblings who could use their surplus supply as bargaining chips to reduce their share of the burden to keep the house proper and clean. I actually think this is a typical American family, but certainly not in the financial sense for its material possessions went way beyond an average household. It is typical because of the underlying social values it represents.