黯然离场的首相大人

脱欧问题困扰英国良久，前后两人首相，卡梅伦和特蕾莎·梅都因为这个议题而被迫辞职。梅首相是撒切尔夫人以来英国的第二位女性首相。她虽然费尽心力试图最终达成脱欧方案，但由于脱欧方案牵涉多方利益，始终未能达成理想后果。她最终决定辞职，寄希望于继任者解决这一难题。她的辞职演讲文辞隽永、优雅，堪称英语写作的的典范。下面我们一起来欣赏一下。

Ever since I first stepped through the door behind me as Prime Minister, I have striven to make the UK a country that works not just for a privileged few but for everyone, and to honour the result of the EU referendum.

词汇知识：

strive to: 为某事而努力，相比于 try to, 更正式； 同义词 endeavour to

a privileged few:固定搭配，享有特权的少数人

referendum: 全民公决，在民主国家，许多重大事件经常通过全民公决的方式进行。

知识拓展：国际法与全民公决

现代民主国家基本采用的是代议制民主体制，也就是说人民群众并不直接参与国家事务的决策，而是由民选的议员代表他们进行决策。而全民公决是一种典型的直接民主形式。它起源于古希腊的公民大会 （ecclesia）.

Back in2016, we gave the British people a choice. Against all predictions, the British people voted to leave the European Union.I feel as certain today as I did three years ago that in a democracy, if you give people a choice you have a duty to implement what they decide. I have done my best to do that.

I negotiated the terms of our exit, and a new relationship with our closest neighbours, that protects jobs, our security and our union. I have done everything I can to convince MPs to back that deal. Sadly, I have not been able to do so.

词汇：

implement: 这个词是一个非常典型的powerful words. 在正式的演讲与写作中，当我们要表达执行了、从事了之类的意思的时候，我们往往会使用这个词。特别有用的是，在简历中，这个词也非常有用。当你想表达自己在某公司从事了什么局提供工作的时候，再也不要用do了，用implement吧。

语法：

have not been able to do so: 这个地方，梅姨用了现在完成时。当然你也可以使用一般过去时，因为她想表达的意思是我并未做到。但是如果使用现在完成时，代表了一种持续性的努力，这表现了一种过去的事情还在对现在发生影响。这个地方，梅姨这么用，显然代表了一种她对没有能够达成脱欧共识的遗憾，这种遗憾到现在还在发生。

I tried three times. I believe it was right to persevere. Even when the odds against success seemed high. But it is now clear to me that it is in the best interests of the country for a new prime minister to lead that effort. 

So I am today announcing that I will resign as leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party on Friday 7th of June. So that a successor can be chosen. I have agreed with the party chairman and with the chairman of the 1922 committee, that the process for electing a new leader should begin in the following week. I have kept Her Majesty the Queen fully informed of my intentions, and I will continue to serve as her Prime Minister until the process has concluded.

词汇：

presevere: 又一个powerfule word, 下一次记得在你想说insist的时候，试试这个词。

lead the effort: 非常有用的词组，领导这项努力。当你想说带领我们共同努力的时候，不要再说“lead us to work together diligently”这类累赘奇怪的表达了。直接用lead the effort吧。记住，英语之美，首在于简洁。

the process for electing a new leader should begin：注意这句句子的主语。很多写作者在表达同样的意思的时候，可能会选择说“we will begin the the process”.这是典型地受到了中文思维的影响。因为中文是一种以人为中心的语言，相当多的句子都是以人做主语的，但英语更多的是一种以事务为中心的语言，所以试着让事务成为你句子的主语，这样会显得更地道。

keep sb fully informed of sth: 这又是一个非常地道的表达。特别在商务邮件中使用很多。比如你想向领导汇报工作，你想说工作正在稳步推进， 并且会即使向他汇报，你就可以使用这个表达。

the process has conclued: 意思是直到新首相产生。但是conclude这个词用得非常好，意味着process 最后产生了结论。非地道的表达可能会是灾难式的：“until we got the new PM”. 注意，英文是以事为中心的，这种表达又一次依赖人称代词为主语，显得很不地道。或者“until the process ended and new PM is elected” 这样的表达又很累赘，都远不如原文的巧妙。

It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit. It will be for my successor to seek a way forward that honours the result of the referendum. To succeed, he or she will have to find consensus in Parliament where I have not.

Such a consensus can only be reached if those on all sides of the debate are willing to compromise. For many years the great humanitarian,Sir Nicholas Winton, who saved the lives of hundreds of children, by arranging their evacuation from Nazi-occupied Czecheslovakia through the Kindertransport, was my constituent in Maidenhead. At another time of political controversy a few years before his death.

He took me to one side at a local event, and gave me a piece of advice. He said: 'Never forget that compromise is not a dirty word. Life depends on compromise.' He was right. As we strive to find the compromises we need in our politics, whether to deliver Brexit or to restore devolved government in Northern Ireland, we must remember what brought us here.

词汇：

deliver: 有一个非常powerful的词语，这个地方是兑现诺言的意思。此外deliver 还可以表达传送传达的意思。这一用法在学术写作中非常有用。学术写作中一般有一部分要表达论文的贡献，你就可以使用deliver some new insights into sth (某个学术问题）。 当然这个表达一般是很自信的写作者了。一般的写作者可能会说 advance our understandings in sth.

知识：

Sir Nicholas Winton: Sir 是被女王授勋的人才能在名字前面使用的称呼。而一旦被授勋，一般情况下这个sir都会一直跟着这个人名。比如某位教授，我们称呼他一般是 Professor Sir xx. Sir Nicholas Winto是一位伟大的人道主义者，被称之为英国的辛德勒，在二战时期，他帮助了600多位捷克犹太人儿童逃脱纳粹的屠杀。他的事迹具体可以参见纪录片 Children Saved from the Nazis: The Story of Sir Nicholas Winton

Because the referendum was not just a call to leave the EU, but  for profound change in our country, a call to make the United Kingdom a country that truly works for everyone. I'm proud of the progress we have made over the last three years. We have completed the work that David Cameron and George Osborne started. The deficit is almost eliminated. Our national debt is falling and we are bringing an end to austerity.

My focus has been on ensuring that the good jobs of the future, will be created in communities across the whole country, not just in London and the South East, through our modern industrial strategy. We have helped more people than ever enjoy the security of a job. We are building more homes, and helping first-time buyers onto the housing ladder, so young people can enjoy the opportunities their parents did.

词汇：

over the last three years: 这个地方梅姨使用over 作为时间前面的介词，那么over 和during 有什么区别呢？ 这个区别是很微妙的，从语法意义上说，此处使用during 也完全没有问题，但是over有一种强调这段时间一直在进行的意思。显然为了强调一直在进步，使用over更合适一点。

bringing an end to austerity： bring an end to sth, 意思是终结了某事。这是一个很powerful的表达，当你想表达你成功达成了一些成就的时候，就可以使用这个表达。

helping first-time buyers onto the housing ladder： 这个地方特别注意ladder 一词的用法。英文是一种非常形象化的语言，她有时候会用形象的方法来表达抽象的意涵。比如此处想表达的是能够让更多的首次购房者能够负担得起房产。此外，ladder 一词也经常与social ladder连用，climb the social ladder, 意思大会相当于中文的出人头地。爬社会的梯子，是不是很形象。

And we are protecting the environment, eliminating plastic waste, tackling climate change and improving air quality. This is what a decent, moderate and patriotic Conservative government on the common ground of British politics can achieve, even as we tackle the biggest peacetime challenge any government has faced. I know that the Conservative Party can renew itself in the years ahead, that we can deliver Brexit, and serve the British people with policies inspired by our values.

Security, freedom and opportunity. Those values have guided me throughout my career. But the unique privilege of this office, is to use this platform to give a voice to the voiceless. To fight the burning injustices that still scar our society.

词汇：

tackling climate change： tackle 做应对意思讲的时候，被广泛的用于政治性演讲。此外，英文中表达应对还有很多词汇,deal with, cope with, confront 等。

burning injustices that still scar our society：用burning 修士不公正，前面讲过，英文是一种非常形象的语言。像火烧一样的不公正，所以下次形容某种现象非常严重，也可以试着使用burning;

That is why I put proper funding for mental health at the heart of our  NHS long term plan. It's why I'm ending the postcode lottery for victims of domestic abuse. It is why the race disparity audit and gender pay reporting are shining a light on inequality so it has nowhere to hide. And it is why I set up the independent inquiry into the tragedy at Grenfell Tower, to search for the truth. So nothing like it can ever happen again, and so the people who lost their lives that night are never forgotten.

Because this country is a union. Not just a family of four nations, but a union of people, all of us. Whatever our background, the colour of our skin, or who we love, we stand together, and together we have a great future. Our politics may be under strain but there is so much that is good about this country, so much to be proud of, so much to be optimistic about.

知识：

NHS： 英国国家医疗服务体系。我们知道，英国是全民医保的。就算是留学生，在英国看病也是不需要回复诊疗费用的。全民医保在全世界很多国家都实行，但英国的成功之处在于，通过合理的政策设计，英国成功的让小部分医疗资源覆盖了大部分医疗需求。所以不像澳洲，看病要等上十天半个月，英国的治疗还是非常及时的。这有赖于英国有着世界上最优秀的卫生经济学者群体。

Grenfell Tower：2017年在伦敦发发生的火灾，70多人在这场灾难中丧生。

词汇：

are shining a light on inequality： 这个词组的意思是阐述清楚某些问题。

在学术写作中，我们也经常使用一个语义相近的词语，shed some light on;

一般我们在评论一些先行研究的时候，经常用到，比如说我们引用某份研究，会说这个研究shed some light on，也可以说 shine a

light on, 但是对有的问题阐述不足，然后我们就可以以这个为基础，开始阐述我们的研究想法。

under strain: 表示在压力之下，在挑战之下，下次可以用这个词组代替under pressure哦。

修辞：

there is so much that is good about this country, so much to be proud of, so much to be optimistic about： 这个地方使用了英文中的一个常见修辞，其实中文里也有，就是排比。比如马丁路德金的著名的I have a dream that---系列排比句。

I will shortly leave the job that it has been the honour of my life to hold. The second female prime minister, but certainly not the last.

I do so with no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude, to have had the opportunity, to serve the country I love.

词汇：

honour of my life to hold：注意这个地方的honour的拼写方法是英式拼写。一般来说，使用哪一种拼法并不重要，但需要保持一致性。就是文章中不要一会美式一会英式。不过在更正规的国际场合，比如联合国公文，更多的使用英式拼写。

with enormous and enduring gratitude：这也是一个很有用的表达，当在承担新职位，表示何德何能诚惶诚恐，或者离开旧职位，表达感谢长久以来的信任的时候，都可以使用这个表达。enduring 表达持久、不间断的意思。

建议大家有机会去听一下这段演讲的原声，全程梅姨还是充满激情的，但是讲到最后几句的时候，声音明显出现了哽咽。毕竟， 她没有在任内完成脱欧重任，有点壮志未酬的遗憾吧。

说到脱欧，根据我的观察，英国脱欧其实无非三个原因：

1. 控制风险。长期以来英国受制于欧盟的多项政策，比如难民问题，导致英国的风险敞口也在加大。

2. 提升英国的视野和野心：大英帝国虽然已经是昨日的幻光，但毕竟还是五常之一。而在欧盟，法德长期占据主要领导地位，德国连五常都不是，英国无法取得主导权，也是他们日渐不满的原因之一。

3. 加强与英联邦的关系。 英国并不是完全孤立，大英帝国的殖民统治分崩离析，但是common wealth却保留下来了。这些英联邦国家与英国的依然有着十分紧密的联系，但是在欧盟的约束下，英国与他们的之间的联系却被削弱了。脱欧也有助于重建英联邦的紧密关系。

至于这个决定是否正确，我也说不准。不够纵观历史，大英帝国在重大事件中从不站错队，我想这次也错不了。

好了，梅姨卸任，这幅重担交到了有着英国特朗普之城的强森身上。我们下期一起研究下这位疯狂首相的就职演说，看看这位强烈支持脱欧的首相有什么具体的展望和计划吧。

大家下期见。