感恩节在美国

2011-08-28华中师范大学外国语学院李丹供稿

中学生英语 2011年33期

华中师范大学外国语学院李丹供稿

Thanksgiving Day is a traditional festival in Canada and the United States.On that day,people get together and expressgratitude(感激)for other’s kindness.Although religious in origin,Thanksgiving Day isidentified(确定)by the public as a legal holiday.In America,the date of celebration falls on the fourth Thursday in November.The writer,O.Henry,called Thanksgiving Day the one day that is purely American.Truly of all the national holidays,Thanksgiving Day is the most American one because itoriginated (起源于)in the year 1620 when the settlers first stepped onto that continent.

感恩节是美国和加拿大的传统节日。在那一天，人们欢聚一堂，对他人的关照表达谢意。感恩节最初是宗教性质的，但是现在早已成为法定假日。在美国，感恩节是每年十一月的第四个星期四。美国作家欧·亨利称感恩节是属于美国人的节日。的确，在所有的节日中，感恩节是最为纯正的美国节日。因为感恩节源于1620年，那一年美洲大陆迎来了它后来的主人。

Due to religious reasons the Pilgrims travelled by the Mayflower from Europe to America in order to seek religious freedom.When the Pilgrims stepped feet on Plymouth Rock on December 11th,1620,they found the winter days in this new continent was rather cold to endure.Besides the harsh weather,another problem for them was that they could not get food for theirsurvival(生存).Luckily,the Pilgrims had the Native American to help them.With the help of the Native American,the pilgrims settled down and gained abountiful(丰富的)harvest.In order to express their gratitude to those friendly and helpful Native Americans,the settlers invited the native people to a feast.This is the origin of Thanksgiving Day.

为了躲避宗教迫害寻求宗教自由，清教徒乘坐五月花号从欧洲辗转来到美洲大陆。清教徒在1620年12月11日踏上了普利茅斯岩，然而他们发现美洲的冬季十分寒冷难耐。另一个问题是他们无法获得生存所需的食物。幸运的是，美洲的土著居民印第安人帮助了那些无助的人们。在印第安人的帮助下，他们得以在当地定居下来，还喜获丰收。为了向土著印第安人表达谢意，新教徒们以盛宴款待了印第安人。这就是感恩节的来源。

For American people,Thanksgiving Day provides an opportunity for family reunion.And because of the fast pace of life,Thanksgiving becomes the only time when all members of a family can gather for many American people.Many people will travel long distances to get together with their families.Usually they will have a big dinner as the main part of the celebration.Turkey is almost a must in the traditional meal on that day.Other traditional Thanksgiving foods served together with turkey are sweet potatoes,cranberries and pumpkin pie and so on.Many people eat more food at Thanksgiving than at any other time of the year.When asked about their favorite festival, they may say“Thanksgiving is the best holiday of the year.Do you want to know why?I love food,so I love Thanksgiving！”

对美国人来说，感恩节提供了一个家人团聚的机会。由于平时生活节奏很快，美国人只能在感恩节举行家庭聚会。许多人长途跋涉只为与家人团圆。通常大吃一顿对于庆祝节日是必不可少的。火鸡是不能不吃的感恩节传统食物。甜土豆、酸果、南瓜饼也是在感恩节当天一定要吃的食物。很多人在这一天吃的比平时都多。如果你问美国人最喜欢什么节日，很多人会告诉你“感恩节是最棒的节日。想知道为什么吗？我爱食物，所以我爱感恩节！”