[新概念英语] 新概念英语：Do it yourself

看见的幸福

　　为了方便同学们的学习，下面为大家整理了新概念英语第三册Lesson46：Do it yourself。新概念英语以其全新的教学理念，有趣的课文内容和全面的技能训练，深受广大英语学习者的欢迎和喜爱。希望以下内容能够为大家的新概念英语学习提供帮助！更多知识点也可关注下北京新东方的新概念课程，相信可以帮助到大家。

　　Lesson 46 Do it yourself

　　Listen to the tape then answer the questionbelow.

　　听录音，然后回答以下问题。

　　Did the writer repair his lawn mower in theend？ Why/Why not？

　　So great is our passion for doing things forourselves， that we are becoming increasingly lessdependent on specialized labour. No one can plead ignorance of a subject anylonger， for these are countless do-it-yourselfpublications. Armed with the right tools and materials，newlyweds gaily embark on the task of decorating their own homes. Men， particularly， spend hours of their leisuretime installing their own fireplaces， laying out theirown gardens； building garages and making furniture.Some really keen enthusiasts go so far as to build their own computers. Shopscater for the do-it-yourself craze not only by running special advisoryservices for novices， but by offering consumers bitsand pieces which they can assemble at home. Such things provide an excellentoutlet for pent up creative energy， but unfortunatelynot all of us are born handymen.

　　Some wives tend to believe that theirhusbands are infinitely resourceful and can fix anything. Even men who canhardly drive a nail in straight are supposed to be born electricians， carpenters， plumbers and mechanics. Whenlights fuse， furniture gets rickety， pipes get clogged， or vacuum cleaners failto operate， some woman assume that their husbands willsomehow put things right. The worst thing about the do-it-yourself game is thatsometimes even men live under the delusion that they can do anything， even when they have repeatedly been proved wrong. It is a questionof pride as much as anything else.

　　Last spring my wife suggested that I call ina man to look at our lawn mower. It had broken down the previous summer， and though I promised to repair it， I hadnever got round to it. I would not hear of the suggestion and said that I wouldfix it myself. One Saturday afternoon， I hauled themachine into the garden and had a close look at it. As far as I could see， it needed only a minor adjustment： a turnof a screw here， a little tightening up there， a drop of oil and it would be as good as new. Inevitably the repairjob was not quite so simple. The mower firmly refused to mow， so I decided to dismantle it. The garden was soon littered withchunks of metal which had once made up a lawn mower. But I was extremelypleased with myself. I had traced the cause of the trouble. One of links in thechain that drives the wheels had snapped. After buying a new chain I was facedwith the insurmountable task of putting the confusing jigsaw puzzle togetheragain. I was not surprised to find that the machine still refused to work afterI had reassembled it， for the simple reason that I wasleft with several curiously shaped bits of metal which did not seem to fitanywhere. I gave up in despair. The weeks passed and the grass grew. When mywife nagged me to do something about it， I told herthat either I would have to buy a new mower or let the grass grow. Needless tosay our house is now surrounded by a jungle. Buried somewhere in deep grassthere is a rusting lawn mower which I have promised to repair one day.

　　New words and expressions 生词和短语

　　plead

　　v. 找(借口)，辩解

　　ignorance

　　n. 无知，不懂

　　publication

　　n. 出版物

　　newlyweds

　　n. 新婚夫妇

　　gaily

　　adv. 愉快地，高兴地

　　leisure

　　n. 空闲

　　keen

　　adj. 热心的，渴望的

　　advisory

　　adj. 咨询的

　　novice

　　n. 新手

　　consumer

　　n. 消费者，顾客

　　assemble

　　v. 装配，组装

　　outlet

　　n. 出路

　　creative

　　adj. 创造性的

　　handyman

　　n. 手巧的人，能工巧匠

　　resourceful

　　adj. 足智多谋的

　　fuse

　　v. 由于烧断保险丝而短路

　　rickety

　　adj. 要散架的，晃动的

　　clog

　　v. 堵塞

　　delusion

　　n. 错觉

　　lawn mower

　　割草机

　　adjustment

　　n. 调整

　　screw

　　n. 螺丝钉

　　dismantle

　　v. 拆卸

　　chunk

　　n. (厚)块

　　snap

　　v. 绷断

　　insurmountable

　　adj. 不能克服的，难以对付的

　　jigsaw

　　n. 线锯

　　nag

　　v. 唠叨不休

　　rust

　　v. 生锈

　　参考译文

　　现在我们自己动手做事的热情很高，结果对于专业工人的依赖越来越少了。由于出版了不计其数的教人自己动手做事的书报杂志，没有人再能说对某事一无所知。新婚夫妇找来合适的工具和材料，喜气洋洋地开始布置新房。特别是男人，常利用空闲时间安装壁炉、布置花园、建造车库、制作家具。有些热衷于自己动手的人甚至自己组装电脑。为了满足自己动手热的需要，商店不仅为初学者提供专门的咨询服务，而且为顾客准备了各种零件，供他们买回家去安装。这些东西为人们潜在的创造力提供了一个绝妙的用武之地。但不幸的是，我们并非人人都是能工巧匠。

　　妻子常常认为她们的丈夫无比聪明能干。甚至那些连一枚钉子都钉不直的男人都被认为是天生的电工、木匠、水管工和机械师。每当电灯保险丝烧断、家具榫头松动、管道堵塞、吸尘器不动时，有些妻子认为丈夫总有办法。自己动手的例子中最糟糕的是，有时甚至是男人尽管接连失败却还误以为自己什么都行，原因就是要面子。

　　今年春天，妻子让我请人检查一下我家的割草机。那台割草机去年夏天就坏了，尽管我答应修，但一直没抽出时间，我不愿听妻子的建议，说我自己会修。一个星期六的下午，我把割草机拉到了花园里，仔细检查了一番。在我看来，只需稍加调整即可。这儿紧紧螺丝，那儿固定一下，再加几滴油，就会像新的一样了。事实上，修理工作远不是那么简单。修完后割草机还是纹丝不动。于是，我决定把它拆开。一会儿工夫，割草机便被拆成一个个金属零件，乱七八糟地堆在花园里。但我却非常高兴，因为我找到了毛病所在。驱动轮子的链条断了一节。我买来一根新链条后，面临的就是如何把这些令人眼花缭乱的拼板重新组装起来。等我装完后，那台割草机仍然一动不动，对此我倒并不感到吃惊。原因很简单，因为还剩下几个形状奇特的零件似乎哪里也装不上去。我无可奈何，只好罢休。几个星期过去了，草长了起来。妻子喋喋不休让我想点办法。我告诉她，要么买一台新割草机，要么让草长下去。不用说，我家现在已被丛林包围。深草丛中的某个地方有一台正在生锈的割草机，那就是我曾答应某日要修理的割草机。