1. He lived alone by choice, because he felt overwhelmed by the stupidity of people and the ugliness of his surroundings. (Para 1)

Meaning: He chose to live alone to avoid stupid people and ugly surroundings.

by choice: if you do something by choice, you do it because you want to and not because you have to自愿地

E. g. He said that he lived in the countryside by choice.他说他是自愿住在乡下的。

2. For George, the city was like an over-familiar elderly lady, who in the right light reminded him of her past beauty, but who had lately become rather tiresome. (Para 1)

Meaning: This means that under some circumstances or in certain moods, George was reminded that London was once a beautiful place, although he didn't find London beautiful any more in a bad/new/different/right etc light: used for talking about people's opinion of a

particular person or thing(用于谈及对某人或某物的看法)从不利的/新的/不同的/适当的

角度看

Eg. After attending his lecture, I began to see him in a new light.

听了他的讲座后，我对他有了新的看法。

If you look at the situation in the right light，it is not so bad.

如果从适当的角度看，情况并没那么槽糕。

remind sb of: to make someone remember something that happened in the past 使某人记起

Eg. His story reminded me of the life/ spent in the countryside.

他的故事让我想起了我在乡下的生活。

3.His lifestyle was modest and his financial circumstances allowed him to spend his days... reading great works of literature. (Para 2)

Meaning: George didn't spend very much, and had enough money to read literature all day(he did not need to work).

4 .. so that from the deep warmth of his armchair, he could travel in his mind to the farthest reaches of the world. (Para 2)

Meaning: George didn't need to go travelling to see the outside world. He could stay in his armchair and travel to even the farthest places in the world by reading works of travel writing and using his imagination.

5. It was home to painters such as.(Para 4)

be home to: to be the city or country where you live是的故乡;是…的家园

Eg. China is home to tea.中国是茶的故乡。

6. Unable to contain his curiosity, he got dressed and went to a travel agency.(Para 5)

Meaning: George couldn’t control his curiosity and went to the travel agency to find travel

information.

contain your curiosity: to keep your curiosity within limits and to not act on it

7. Such was his astonishment that a journey, so rich in ideas, colours and impressions, could be made with such little effort, a train ride of a mere six hours, that he went straight to the station, bought a ticket and booked a seat. (Para 6)

Meaning: He was astonished that such a great and meaningful journey could be done so easily: He could make it with only a six-hour train ride. So he went to the station, bought a ticket, booked a seat, and was ready for the journey

8. It was early, and George had time to spare before the train left.(Para 7)

time/ money/ room etc to spare: more than enough time/ money/ room etc绰绰有余的

时间/钱/空间等

Eg. We had time to spare and visited some of the shops at the airport.

我们的时间绰绰有余，就到机场的商店逛了逛。

9....and fruit and vegetables coloured with the sun.(Para 7)

Meaning: ...and fruit and vegetables which are red, yellow or orange

10 .. and ordered a meal the like of which he would have found in the old Port of Marseille

 (Para 7)

Meaning: He ordered a meal. It was the kind of meal that he would have found in the Port of Marseille.

the like(s)of:(fm) used for referring to a particular type of person or thing…样的人(或物

Eg. This will be a show the like of which has never been seen before.

这将会是一个前所未有的节目。

11. And when he arrived, he would have to find a hotel, sleep in an unfamiliar bed, and look for the sights, sounds and smells which his dreams had already been so effective in describing to him. (Para 8)

Meaning: Before travelling to the south of France. George had read about it, vividly imagining what it would be like. He thought he had already known what it was like from his reading, so he began questioning whether it was worth the trouble of the journey. This sentence marks a turn in Georges decision to make a journey to Provence.

12. In his imagination, wasn't he already there?(Para 8)

Meaning: He thought he was already there. In his imagination, he already knew what it was like. The questions at the end of the paragraph suggest that George was hesitating and trying to find reasons tor persuading himself to cancel the journey.

13. George was suddenly struck by the realization that as a stranger, he would never experience the warmth and colours of his mind.(Para 9)

Meaning: George thought he had already fully experienced the local sights and culture in his mind. If he made a journey there, he, as a stranger, would not be able to experience them in the same way as he did in his imagination.

14. Perhaps the Provence of Pagnol, like elsewhere in the world, might be the reality. (Para 9)

Meaning: This raises the interesting question of the nature of reality: Is it what we imagine from reading novels(perhaps like Pagnol's novels about rural life), or is it what we might actually see as visitors or tourists? George concluded that it was not worthwhile to travel. It was too much trouble because he had already seen the places in his imagination through reading.