玛格丽特·希尔达·撒切尔，英国历史上第一位女首相，也是欧洲历史上第一位女首相，雄踞政坛11年，首相任职期间政绩卓著。然而她的众多政策褒贬不一，因此不能说广得人心，所以并不是所有的英国人都喜欢撒切尔夫人。

而近期她的一座雕像同样引发了很大的争议，这座青铜雕塑身高略高于20英尺，本拟竖立在威斯敏斯特议会广场上，然而近日威斯敏斯特行政会一致否决了竖立雕像的提议。同时，由于害怕一些民众对雕塑进行破坏，这座雕塑将矗立在一个10英尺高的基座上，安置在撒切尔夫人的家乡格兰瑟姆。

该地区的少数工党成员在市政厅外抗议，而一位赞成者则说道：“格兰瑟姆应该因撒切尔夫人而感到自豪。”

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/05/margaret-thatcher-bronze-statue-to-be-erected-in-grantham

Maggie Goes Home After London Says 'No, Thank You'

① Rejected by London because of fears about disorder, a controversial £300,000 statue of Margaret Thatcher will be put up in her home town of Grantham.

② Standing at just over 20ft high, the bronze sculpture was originally supposed to be placed in Parliament Square in Westminster.

③ But now the tribute to the former prime minister, which will still stand on a 10ft plinth because of fears of vandalism, will be placed on St Peter’s Hill in the Lincolnshire town of her birth.

④ Currently, the only memorial of the Iron Lady in the town is a plaque on the corner of the street where she was born.

⑤ Her statue will be situated beside the existing statue of Sir Isaac Newton. Newton is not from Thatcher’s hometown but he spent most of his school life there.

⑥  A small number of Labour Party members from the area protested outside the town hall, displaying banners such as Grantham Residents Against Maggie.

⑦ Those in favour questioned why it had taken so long for the statue to be brought to the town with many supporters commenting on the potential enhancement to Grantham’s local tourism.

⑧ “Very few towns can claim a prime minister,” one supporter said, adding: “Grantham should be proud of Maggie.”

▍生词好句

bronze /brɒnz, brɑːnz/: adj. 青铜色的；青铜制的

sculpture /ˈskʌlptʃə, ˈskʌlptʃər/: n. 雕塑；雕刻

tribute /ˈtrɪbjuːt/: n. 致敬；颂词

plinth /plɪnθ/: n. 柱基；底座

vandalism /ˈvændəl-ɪzəm/: n. 故意毁坏文物的行为；破坏他人财产的行为

plaque /plɑ:k, plæk/: n. 匾

banner /ˈbænə ˈbænər/: n. 旗帜；横幅；标语

▍词汇拓展

1. controversial: if something is controversial, people disagree about this thing. It causes disagreement.

highly controversial: very controversial

Nuclear power is a highly controversial issue.

核能是一个极具争议性的话题。

The new law is highly controversial.

这项新法律极具争议性。

It is a highly controversial theory.

这是一个极具争议的理论。

2. originally supposed to be

be supposed to be: be intended/planned to be

These batteries are supposed to last for a year. (maybe they will / maybe they won’t)

这些电池应该能用一年。

We are supposed to get the exam results today.

我们今天应该能拿到考试成绩。

originally supposed to be: the first intention/plan has changed to another plan

The factory was originally supposed to open last year but it will now open next year. 

这家工厂原计划去年开业，但现在将于明年开业。

I was originally supposed to go on holiday in January but I've changed my trip to March.

我原计划在一月份去度假，但我把旅行改到了三月。

At first the statue was originally supposed to be put up in London but the plan has changed.

起初这座雕像应该建在伦敦的。

3. the tribute: something which shows your respect and admiration for someone

plinth: a tall block of stone (similar to 'a column')

vandalism: the crime of intentionally damaging public property or property belonging to other people

Graffiti is a controversial issue. Some people say it's street art; others say it's just vandalism.

涂鸦是一个有争议的行为。有些人说这是街头艺术，另一些人则说这就是故意破坏。

4. a memorial: an object made in order to honour a person or an event (usually a statue)

The statue is a memorial to those who died in the war.

这座雕像是为了纪念在战争中牺牲的人。

a plaque: a small metal sign used to honour a person

5. existing: something that is used now or is seen at the present time

The new design will replace all existing versions.

新的设计将取代所有现有的版本。

Existing methods of energy production are expensive and inefficient.

现有的能源生产方法既昂贵又低效。

6. those in favour: the people who support an idea

All those in favour please raise your hands.

所有赞成的请举手。

There will be a televised debate between those in favour of the controversial plan and those who are against it.

赞成和反对这一富有争议的计划的人将进行一场电视辩论。

7. some facts about Margaret Thatcher:

a. She was born in an apartment above her father's grocery store.

The small apartment didn't have running water, central heating and even an indoor toilet. Thatcher originally came from a very, very humble background.

b. Before entering politics, Thatcher worked as a food scientist.

Although she planned to pursue a political career, Thatcher graduated from Oxford University in 1947 with a chemistry degree. Thatcher was actually part of a team who developed the first soft ice cream and that brand is still sold and enjoyed by children today.

c. Margaret Thatcher was thought to have survived on just four hours of sleep every night. A Russian journalist originally gave her the nickname the 'Iron Lady,' also for her quite tough and aggressive style of politics.

d. She is into fashion. She would spend hours reading Vogue and trying on different outfits to choose the most appropriate one for each occasion. Clinique was her favorite brand of skin care products.

She enjoyed a glass of whiskey and soda to relax after a long day at work.

e. Her voice didn't come easy.

Her voice may be memorable, but it wasn't exactly natural. She had to take speech lessons. So she employed a speech teacher and she worked with a voice coach from the National Theatre to help create this voice.

f. At home she always cooked for herself and her family. She never employed a cook or chef. She always insisted on cooking for herself and for her family.