翻譯專業(yè)資格一級筆譯模擬試題（七）

It's an odd paradox thanks to cell phones, PDAs and the Internet, we've never before been in touch and within reach of so many people. And yet, we've never been so lonely, either.

Which is to say, our loneliness is largely something we've inflicted on ourselves through countless lifestyle choices, many of them good, some even critical. But in the end, is it all worth it

What is lost when we have e-mail pals on the other side of the world, but don't know our own neighbors Are bigger salaries, bigger cars, bigger homes worth the price of smaller social circles and diminished relationships

Our loneliness has costs crime goes up when neighbors don't look out for each other. The burden on public services increases when we're not helping each other out. And the din of an iPod is no substitute for genuine connection with another human being.

There's no easy way out of our collective loneliness, and no solutions that come without trade-offs. But some of those trade-offs are worth reconsidering, lest we consume our lives with the things that matter least, at the expense of those that matter most.

(摘自 Only the Lonely)

參考譯文

這是一個奇怪的悖論由于手機、掌上電腦和因特網的出現，我們從未像今天這樣能接觸到這么多人。然而，我們也從未如此孤獨過。

這就是說，我們的孤獨感很大程度上是由我們選擇的諸多生活方式造成的。其中很多方式給我們帶來了便利，甚至是必不可少的。但說到底，這些值得嗎

我們可以通過電子郵件結識遠在世界另一端的朋友，但卻不認識身邊的鄰居，此時我們失去了什么我們的工資高了、車子豪華了、房子寬敞了，但社交圈卻變窄了、保持聯系的人卻少了，這種代價值得嗎

孤獨讓我們付出了代價當鄰居們不再互相關照，犯罪增加了;當我們不再彼此幫忙，公共服務機構的負擔增加了;整天聽iPOd喧鬧的音樂無法代替與他人面對面的交流。

沒有什么簡單的方法能幫助我們擺脫集體的孤獨，所有的解決辦法都要付出代價。但是為了避免我們錯過最重要的事情，而把一生都耗費在極其瑣碎的事情上，付出一定的代價還是值得考慮的。