The humanities should constitute the core of any university worth the name. 

                             — Terry Eagleton  (British literary critic,writer)         

人文学科应该构成任何一所名副其实大学的核心。 

Ideally, we all want an integrated life. Your goal should be to find a way to do what you love, and make your education support that.

                              — Bruce B. Janz   (American philosopher)

理想情况下，我们都想要一个完整的人生。你的目标应该是找到一种方法去做你喜欢的事，并且让你的教育支持这一点。

世界是在人类各种文明的交流交融中走到今天的。人类社会越发展，越要加强文明交流互鉴，增进相互了解，促进民心相通。应对日益突出的全球性挑战，迈向人类更加美好的未来，既需要经济科技力量，也需要文化文明力量。

——《新时代的中国与世界》白皮书（国务院新闻办公室2019年发布）

The world has become what it is today through communication and fusion among different civilizations. Further human development entails stronger exchanges and mutual learning among cultures and deeper mutual understanding among the peoples of different countries and closer people-to-people ties. Cultural progress is just as important as economic and technological development in addressing the increasingly pressing challenges we face and in moving humanity towards a better future.

大学阶段，“恰同学少年，风华正茂”，有老师指点，有同学切磋，有浩瀚的书籍引路，可以心无旁骛求知问学。此时不努力，更待何时？要勤于学习、敏于求知，注重把所学知识内化于心，形成自己的见解，既要专攻博览，又要关心国家、关心人民、关心世界，学会担当社会责任。

——习近平2014年五四青年节在北京大学师生座谈会上的讲话

In college days, “Young we were, schoolmates, at life’s full flowering.” One can totally throw oneself into seeking knowledge without any distractions, learning from teachers, exchanging views with classmates and rummaging through piles of books. So there is no reason not to study hard. Work hard, acquire more knowledge and turn what you have learned into your own views and ideas. I hope that you will not only concentrate on book knowledge but also care about the people, the country and the world, and assume your responsibility for society.

观乎天文，以察时变；观乎人文，以化成天下。

                                                                            ——《周易•彖上》

By observing heavenly patterns, we can learn about the change of times; by observing human cultural patterns, we can educate the people and build athriving, prosperous, and refined society.

Structure of the text

Part I  (Paras. 1- 5)

Part I provides the background information of the argument. By moving away from the humanities and taking some“hard-skill” courses instead, students think it would improve their chance of finding a job. Because of the economic downturn, this trend is likely to persist and even accelerate. However, the humanities play as ignificant role in people's lives and can't be ignored.

Part II  (Paras. 6 - 9)

Part II presents the author's argument to stand up for the true value of the humanities: studying the humanities can improve our ability to read and write, invest us with great insight and self-awareness, thereby releasing our creative energy and talent, and provide the scope of possibilities that are widely open to us. It also suggests that inner insight, combined with technical knowledge, is ideal for the establishment of a good career.

Part III (Para. 10)

Part III summaries the main ideas stated in the argument: The humanities help to create well-rounded human beings with inner insight and understanding of the passions, hopes and dreams common to all humanity.

Summary of the text

Retell the text according to the following tips.

(Part I) When the job market worsens, many students calculate ... Probably, the humanities will continue …. Once …, the humanities now …

(Part II) Here, please allow me to … that the humanities add to people’s lives. Studyingthe humanities improves… Most importantly, studying the humanities invests us with …, thereby… Perhaps the best argument in favor of the humanities is… Infact, increasingly… is seen as the ideal in…

(PartIII) In summary, the humanities help to create …, teach us to … and… It makes sense to …, our outstanding and remarkable …

Translation Skill

定语从句的翻译——前置翻译法：

一般来说，限制性定语从句，尤其是比较短的定语从句，可采用前置翻译法，即将定语从句翻译成带“的”句子，放在先行词的前面，修饰先行词。

例1 … they have defected from the study of the humanities and toward applied science and “hard” skills that they bet will lead to employment. (Para. 2)

译文：…他们已从学习人文学科转向他们相信有益于将来就业的应用科学和“硬”技能。

例2 Here, please allow me to stand up for and promote the true value that the humanities add to people’s lives. (Para. 4)

译文：在这儿，请允许我为人文学科给人们的生活所增添的真实价值进行支持和宣传。

拓展：汉语中做定语的修饰成分，可译作英语的定语从句。

1）黄河是中国赖以生存的几条河流之一。

分析：“中国赖以生存的”做定语，其中蕴含主谓关系，可译作英语的定语从句。

译文： The Yellow River is one of the rivers that China depends on for her existence.

2）筷子和饺子是外国人熟悉的中国饮食文化的象征。

译文：Chopsticks and Jiaozi, which are familiar to foreigners, have become symbols of Chinese dining culture.

3）红包是农历春节时长辈给晚辈用红纸包裹的钱。

译文：The red packet refers to the money wrapped in red paper that an elder gives a young man during the lunar-year Spring Festival.

I. Learn the structure of an advantage / disadvantage essay.

Generally speaking, the outline of writing an advantage / disadvantage essay falls in one of these three formats: 1) advantages and disadvantages; 2) advantages only; 3) disadvantages only. When you write such an essay, remember that you are giving information, a method that is called exposition or expository writing.

Begin your essay by introducing your topic and explaining that you are exploring the advantages or disadvantages of the topic. Mention in your thesis statement the advantages or disadvantages you will discuss in the essay. Use transitions to make your ideas flow smoothly. The following transitional words are very common when writing an advantage / disadvantage essay:

Close your essay with the summary of the advantages and / or disadvantages. Even though you are not persuading your readers when you write this type of writing, you are required to add your opinion at the end as your final comment on the topic. For example, if you're talking about the advantages of taking courses of the humanities, you may say in your conclusion:

To sum up, by taking courses in the humanities, students gain more analytical ability, acquire more critical thinking skills, and deal with things more rationally. Students should be aware of the significance of taking these courses.

You can always choose a position when you write about an advantage / disadvantage essay. For instance, you don't have to talk about both advantages and disadvantages of taking natural science courses. Instead, you can only focus on one, the advantages of taking these courses or the disadvantages of doing that.

Now, examine how this method of writing is reflected in Text A, specifically Paragraphs 4-10:

From what is listed in the chart, we can see that writing an essay about the advantages or disadvantages of an issue requires supporting points. If your essay focuses on advantages of studying the humanities, then several advantages should be provided to support your point.

II. Writing parctice

Write an essay of no less than 150 words on the topic "Advantages of taking physical education (P.E.) courses". You can follow the outline given below.

Outline                            

I. Please read Paragraphs 6-7, then discuss with your classmates about the importance of humanities.

Para. 6 Studying the humanities improves our ability to read and write. …

Para. 7 Studying the humanities makes us familiar with the language of emotion and the creative process. …

The development of humanities is an inevitable requirement to enhance the soft power of national culture. China has made remarkable achievements in economic development and become an important economic power in the world. China’s social sciences should keep pace with the development of humanities, so as to meet the needs of this age and the development of the country and the nation. With regard to the function and role of the humanities in the development of a country and a nation, we should not only focus on short-term benefits, but also take a long-term perspective and see their great benefits to the development of a country and a nation.

发展人文学科，是提升国家文化软实力的必然要求。现在，中国经济发展已经取得举世瞩目的成就，成为国际上举足轻重的经济大国。中国的社会科学要跟上，人文学科也要加快发展，以适应时代的需要、国家和民族发展的需要。关于人文学科对国家和民族发展的功能和作用，我们同样不能只看短期效益，而要有长远眼光，看到其对国家和民族发展的“大用”。

——《大家手笔：人文学科有“大用”》（2018年12月刊载于《人民日报》）

II. Please read the sentences from Paragraph 8, then watch the video and complete the following task.

Para. 8 Perhaps the best argument in favor of the humanities is the scope of possibilities that are widely open to us. … If we include studying the humanities, we can make breakthroughs on many barriers and are limited only by our effort and imagination.

III. Please read the sentences from Paragraph 10 and answer the question that the author puts forward in the title: the humanities, out of date?

Para. 10 In summary, the humanities help to create well-rounded human beings with insight and understanding of the passions, hopes and dreams common to all humanity. …They are as useful and relevant in our modern age as they have always been. …

要推动中华文明创造性转化、创新性发展，激活其生命力，让中华文明同各国人民创造的多彩文明一道，为人类提供正确精神指引。要围绕我国和世界发展面临的重大问题，着力提出能够体现中国立场、中国智慧、中国价值的理念、主张、方案。我们不仅要让世界知道“舌尖上的中国”，还要让世界知道“学术中的中国”、“理论中的中国”、“哲学社会科学中的中国”，让世界知道“发展中的中国”、“开放中的中国”、“为人类文明作贡献的中国”。

——习近平2016年5月在哲学社会科学工作座谈会上的讲话

We should push forward the innovative transformation and creative evolution of China’s civilization to boost its vitality, so that it can provide proper guidance to humanity together with other splendid civilizations. We should put forward concepts, proposals and programs about major issues facing China and the rest of the world that give expression to the Chinese stance, Chinese wisdom and Chinese values. In addition to Chinese delicacies(美味佳肴) as shown in the well-received documentary A Bite of China, we should also introduce to the rest of the world China’s academia, theories, and philosophy and social sciences, projecting(树立) the image of a China in progress, an open China, and a China making a constant contribution to human civilization.