New Year resolutions

原文

The New Year is a time for resolutions. Mentally, at least, most of us could compile formidable lists of 'dos' and 'don'ts'. The same old favorites recur year in year out with monotonous regularity. We resolve to get up earlier each morning, eat less, find more time to play with the children, do a thousand and one jobs about the house, be nice to people we don't' like, drive carefully, and take the dog for a walk every day. Past experience has taught us that certain accomplishments are beyond attainment. If we remain inveterate smokers, it is only because we have so often experienced the frustration that results from failure. Most of us fail in our efforts at self-improvement because our schemes are too ambitious and we never have time to carry them out. We also make the fundamental error of announcing our resolutions to everybody so that we look even more foolish when we slip back into our bad old ways. Aware of these pitfalls, this year I attempted to keep my resolutions to myself. I limited myself to two modest ambitions: to do physical exercise every morning and to read more of an evening. An all-night party on New Year's Eve provided me with a good excuse for not carrying out either of these new resolutions on the first day of the year, but on the second, I applied myself assiduously to the task.

The daily exercises lasted only eleven minutes and I proposed to do them early in the morning before anyone had got up. The self-discipline required to drag myself out of bed eleven minutes earlier than usual was considerable. Nevertheless, I managed to creep down into the living room for two days before anyone found me out. After jumping about on the carpet and twisting the human frame into uncomfortable positions, I sat down at the breakfast table in an exhausted condition. It was this that betrayed me. The next morning the whole family trooped in to watch the performance. That was really unsettling, but I fended off the taunts and jibes of the family good-humouredly and soon everybody got used to the idea. However, my enthusiasm waned. The time I spent at exercises gradually diminished. Little by little the eleven minutes fell to zero. By January 10th, I was back to where I had started from. I argued that if I spent less time exhausting myself at exercises in the morning, I would keep my mind fresh for reading when I got home formwork Resisting the hypnotizing effect of television, I sat in my room for a few evenings with my eyes glued to book. One night, however, feeling cold and lonely, I went downstairs and sat in front of the television pretending to read. That proved to be my undoing, for I soon got back to my old bad habit of dozing off in front of the screen. I still haven't given up my resolution to do more reading. In fact, I have just bought a book entitled How to Read a Thousand Words a Minute. Perhaps it will solve my problem, but I just haven't had time to read it!

译文

新年是一个立志的时候。至少在精神上，我们大多数人都能拟出一份令人生畏的“要做”和“不该做”的清单。这些老一套的愿望年复一年地重复出现，单调得令人生厌。我们决心每天早早起床，少吃些东西，多花时间和孩子们玩耍，料理家中的琐碎杂事，对不喜欢的人和颜悦色，小心开车，每天带狗出去散步。过去的经验告诉我们，有些成就确实是难以企及的。如果我们仍然是老烟枪，那仅仅是因为我们屡屡经历过失败带来的挫败感。我们大多数人在自我完善的努力中失败，原因在于我们的计划过于雄心勃勃，而且从未有时间去实施。我们还犯了一个根本性的错误：把决心告诉每一个人，以致当我们又滑回到那些坏习惯中时，看起来更加可笑。意识到这些陷阱，今年我试图把我的决心保密。我只限于两个谦虚的目标：每天早晨做身体锻炼和晚上多读点书。除夕之夜的通宵派对为我在元旦那天不执行这两个新决心提供了绝好的借口，但第二天，我便专心致志地开始执行了。

每天的锻炼只持续十一分钟，我计划在清晨大家还没起床时做这些事。要比平时早十一分钟爬下床，需要相当的自律。不过，我还是设法偷偷溜进起居室坚持了两天，才被发现。在地毯上蹦蹦跳跳，把身体扭曲成各种不舒服的姿势后，我精疲力竭地坐到早餐桌旁。这件事泄露了我的秘密。第二天早上，全家人鱼贯而入观看这出“表演”。这真叫人尴尬，但我好脾性地挡住了家人的嘲笑和挖苦，不久大家就习惯了这个主意。然而，我的热情渐渐消退。我花在锻炼上的时间慢慢减少。十一分钟一点点缩减到零。到了一月十日，我又回到了原点。我辩解说，如果早晨少花时间折腾自己，我就能在下班回家后保持头脑清醒来阅读。抵抗着电视的催眠作用，我在房间里坐了几个晚上，两眼死盯着书本。然而，有一晚，我感到寒冷而孤独，便下楼坐在电视机前假装阅读。这成了我的致命弱点，因为我很快又回到了老毛病——在屏幕前打盹。我还没有放弃多读些书的决心。事实上，我刚买了一本题为《如何一分钟读一千字》的书。或许它能解决我的问题，但我就是没有时间读它！

词汇表

resolutions

名词

英:/ˌrɛzəˈluːʃənz/

美:/ˌrɛzəˈluːʃənz/

定义

1. 决心 - Firm decisions to do or not do something, often made at the start of a new year.

例子: I make New Year's resolutions every January to improve my habits.

例子: Her resolutions include eating healthier and exercising daily.

近义词

determinations: 强调更强烈的意志力和承诺，通常用于正式语境，而 resolutions 更常见于个人或年度目标。

commitments: 侧重于对某事的长期责任，区别在于 resolutions 可能更临时性，而 commitments 更具约束力。

pledges: 常用于正式或公共承诺，如政治誓言，相比之下 resolutions 更私人化。

反义词:

indecisions, hesitations, abandonments

用法

常用于新年或个人发展语境中，常见搭配如 'make resolutions' 或 'break resolutions'，文化背景中，新年 resolutions 是西方传统。

形式:

复数: resolutions, 动词形式: resolve (动词，意思是下决心)

关键句型 "to + infinitive"

定义

"to + infinitive" 是一种常见的句型，用于表达目的、意图或后续动作，通常以动词不定式形式出现。结构为：to + infinitive verb（动词原形）。例如，在文章中如 "to do physical exercise every morning"，它表示具体的目标或计划。根据《剑桥英语语法指南》，这种句型是英语中表达意图的核心方式，常用于描述想要实现的事项，帮助学习者清晰地连接主句与后续行为。

它是一种灵活的表达，能使句子更简洁和流畅，尤其在讨论决心或目标时。

用法

这个句型主要用于表示目的、意图或结果，例如在文章的 "I limited myself to two modest ambitions: to do physical exercise..." 中，它解释了作者的计划。在语法体系中，to + infinitive 常作为动词的补语、目的状语或名词的修饰语，与其他句型如 "in order to + infinitive" 相关联，但后者更正式。

横向比较：与 gerund (-ing form) 相比，例如 "doing exercise" 用于持续动作，而 to + infinitive 强调未来的意图（例如，"I plan to do it" vs. "I enjoy doing it"）；与 "that clause" 相比，如 "that I do exercise"，to + infinitive 更简短适合口语。跨语法点联系：它常与动词如 want、try 或 decide 结合（如 "I decided to read more"），帮助学生过渡到更复杂的句子结构，如条件句或情态动词。

在实际应用中，这个句型适合日常对话、写作计划或表达新年决心场景。

注意事项

学生容易犯的错误包括：忽略 to 而直接用动词原形，导致句子不完整（如 "I want do it" 应为 "I want to do it"）；或混淆与 bare infinitive 的使用，例如在情态动词后直接用原形（如 "I can do it"），但在目的句中必须加 to。纠正建议：多练习基本动词搭配，并注意语境区分。

另一个常见偏误是时态不一致，如 "I tried to did it" 错误，应保持为 "to do"。提供例句：

错误示例：I plan exercise every day.  （缺少 to，句子不完整）
正确示例：I plan to exercise every day.  （完整表达意图）

记住，通过口头练习，可以避免这些错误。

练习

一个原创例子：假设你在新年设定目标，可以说 "I aim to learn a new language this year." 学生可以替换关键词，例如将 "learn a new language" 换成 "visit a new country" 或 "start a healthy diet"，并在实际场景中使用，如写一份个人计划："I hope to finish my homework early tonight."

这种替换能让学生在日常生活中应用句型，增强记忆和自信。

额外内容

背景知识："to + infinitive" 起源于古英语的动词形式，现代英语中它已成为表达个人意图的标准方式，常见于英美文化的新年决心文化中。对比分析：与其他语言如中文的 "要做某事" 类似，但英语更注重结构精确；在法语中，类似结构是 "pour + infinitive"，强调目的，与英语有平行联系。这能帮助学生理解英语的逻辑性，促进跨语言学习。

关键句型 "If + clause"

定义

"If + clause" 是一种条件句型，用于表达条件和结果的逻辑关系，通常以 if 引导从句，后跟主句。结构为：If + subject + verb（从句）+ main clause。例如，文章中的 "If we remain inveterate smokers, it is only because..." 表示假设情况的后果。根据《牛津现代英语语法》，这属于第一类条件句，主要讨论现实或可能的条件，帮助学习者处理假设场景。

它在英语中非常常见，用于预测或解释因果关系。

用法

这个句型广泛用于描述可能发生的事务、建议或警告，在文章中如 "If we remain..." 解释失败的原因。在语法体系中，它是条件句的核心，与时间状语从句或结果状语相关联，常用于真实条件。

横向比较：与第二类条件句 "If + past tense, would + verb" 相比（如 "If I had money, I would travel"），If + clause（第一类）使用现在时讨论现实可能性，更直接；与 "unless" 句型相比，if 表达正面条件，而 "unless" 表示负面（例如，"If you study, you succeed" vs. "Unless you study, you won't succeed"）。跨语法点联系：它常与现在完成时或将来时结合（如 "If I have finished, I will go"），帮助学生构建更复杂的句子，并与连词如 because 进行对比，以突出因果 vs. 条件。

在实际场景中，如新年决心讨论中，它能表达潜在风险或益处。

注意事项

学生常犯错误包括：时态混淆，例如用过去时在从句中（如 "If I went to the gym" 而非 "If I go"，后者用于现实条件）；或主句和从句不一致，导致逻辑错误（如 "If I eat less, I eats healthy"）。纠正建议：始终确保从句用现在时（除非是其他条件类型），并练习简单例句。

另一个问题是忽略逗号或其他连接词，影响可读性。提供例句：

错误示例：If I exercise I will feel better.  （缺少逗号，阅读不顺）
正确示例：If I exercise, I will feel better.  （正确使用逗号）

通过反复朗读，可以改善这些问题。

练习

一个原创例子：基于文章主题，你可以说 "If I stick to my resolutions, I will achieve my goals." 学生可以替换关键词，例如将 "stick to my resolutions" 换成 "eat healthier"，并扩展到个人生活："If I wake up early, I will have more time for reading."

这种练习能让学生在模拟对话中应用句型，逐步掌握条件逻辑。

额外内容

背景知识："If + clause" 源于古英语的假设表达，在现代英语中反映了逻辑推理的文化传统，尤其在英美文学中常见。对比分析：与中国语的 "如果...就..." 相似，但英语更依赖特定时态；在西班牙语中，类似 "Si + verb"，结构简单，与英语有共通点。这有助于学生欣赏英语的精确性，并扩展到更高级的假设句型。