The universities are schools of education, and schools of research. But the primary reason for their existence is not to be found either in the mere knowledge conveyed to the students or in the mere opportunities for research afforded to the members of the faculty.

Language points:

Ø primary adj. [usually before noun] main; most important; basic 主要的；最重要的；基本的

e.g. The primary aim of this course is to improve your spoken English.

       这门课的主要目的是提高英语会话能力。

       Our primary concern must be the children.

       我们首先要关心的必须是儿童。

       Good health care is of primary importance.

       良好的医疗保健是重中之重。

Ø convey v. ~ sth (to sb) to make ideas, feelings, etc. known to sb 表达，传递（思想、感情等）

e.g. [动词+名词短语] Colours like red convey a sense of energy and strength.

                                红色之类的颜色可给人以充满活力与力量的感觉。

      (formal)Please convey my apologies to your wife.

                  请向你的妻子转达我的歉意。

      [动词+疑问词引出的从句] He tried desperately to convey how urgent the situation was.

                                             他不顾一切地试图说明情况是多么紧急。

      [动词+that从句] She did not wish to convey that they were all at fault.

                                她不愿表现出他们人人都有错。

Ø afford v. usually used with can, could or be able to, especially in negative sentences or questions; to have enough money or time to be able to buy or to do sth 

通常与can、could或be able to连用，尤用于否定句或疑问句买得起；（有时间）做，能做

e.g. Can we afford a new car?

       我们买得起一辆新车吗？

      She felt she couldn't afford any more time off work.

       她觉得再也抽不出时间歇班了。

      [动词+带to的不定式] We can't afford to go abroad this summer.

                                       今年夏天我们没有足够的钱去国外。

      [动词+名词短语+带to的不定式] He couldn't afford the money to go on the trip.

                                                       他不够钱去进行这次旅行。

Ø faculty n. 

① A faculty is a group of related departments in some universities, or the people who work in them.

   (大学的)院系; (大学院系的)教职工

e.g. the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences

          社会政治系

② A faculty is all the teaching staff of a university or college, or of one department.

   (大学、学院或院系的)全体教员

e.g. The faculty agreed on a change in the requirements.

       全体教师一致同意修改规定。

Ø Sentence pattern: ... is not to be found either in A or in B 

                                 (在A和B中都找不到......；......既不存在于A中又不存在于B中）

1. The justification for a university is that it preserves the connection between knowledge and the zest of life, by uniting the young and the old in the imaginative consideration of learning.

   Language points:
   

   Ø justification n. a good reason why sth exists or is done 正当理由

   e.g. I can see no possible justification for any further tax increases.

          我看不出还能提出什么理由来进一步加税了。

          He was getting angry─and with some justification.

          他生气了——而且不是没有道理的。

   Ø preserve v.  to keep a particular quality, feature, etc.; to make sure that sth is kept

                         保护；维护；保留

   e.g. People are gradually realizing the importance of preserving national heritage.

         人们正逐渐意识到保护民族遗产的重要性。
   

2. The university imparts information, but it imparts it imaginatively. At least, this is the function which it should perform for society. A university which fails in this respect has no reason for existence.

   Language points:
   

   Ø impart v. ~ sth (to sb) to pass information, knowledge, etc. to other people 通知；透露；传授

   e.g. Teachers enrich their knowledge while imparting knowledge to their students.

          教师在把知识传授给学生的同时又丰富了自己的知识。

3. This atmosphere of excitement, arising from imaginative consideration, transforms knowledge.

   Language points:
   

   Ø atmosphere n. the feeling or mood that you have in a particular place or situation; a feeling between two people or in a group of people 气氛；氛围

   e.g. a party atmosphere   聚会的气氛

   Ø transform v. 

   to completely change the appearance or character of sth, especially so that it is better

   使改变外观（或性质）；使改观

   e.g. A new colour scheme will transform your bedroom.

         新的色彩调配将使你的卧室焕然一新。
   

4. A fact is no longer a bare fact: it is invested with all its possibilities.

   Language points:

   Ø be invested with: to have a particular quality or character; to be officially given power to do sth 被赋予......，被授予......

   e.g. The military governor has been invested with full authority. 

          The old ruins were invested with romance.

          In his poems, everyday reality is invested with a sense of wonder and delight.  

5. It is no longer a burden on the memory: it is energizing as the poet of our dreams, and as the architect of our purposes.

   Language points:
   

   Ø burden n. the ~ (of sth) | a ~ (on/to sb)

          a duty, responsibility, etc. that causes worry, difficulty or hard work（义务、责任等的）重担，负担

   e.g. the heavy tax burden on working people  加在劳动者头上的重税

   
   

It works by eliciting the general principles which apply to the facts, as they exist, and then by an intellectual survey of alternative possibilities which are consistent with those principles.

Language points:

Ø elicit sth (from sb) [formal] to get information or a reaction from sb, often with difficulty 

e.g. I could elicit no response from him. 我从他那里得不到回应。

       Her tears elicited great sympathy from her audience. 她的泪水引起了观众们极大的同情。

Ø be consistent with in agreement with sth; not contradicting sth

e.g. The results are entirely consistent with our earlier research. 结果与我们早前的研究完全一致。

1. Youth is imaginative, and if the imagination be strengthened by discipline this energy of imagination can in great measure be preserved through life. 

句法分析:

在这个句子中，使用了"if"引导的条件句，但采用了一种较为正式和略显古老的语法结构，即省略了助动词的用法。通常情况下，条件句中可能会使用"should"、“would”、"could"等助动词来表达假设或条件，但在这个例子中，直接使用了"be"来形成条件句的谓语。

此外，句子中的"be strengthened"和"can be preserved"使用了被动语态，强调的是动作的接受者（imagination），而不是动作的执行者。这种用法在正式或学术性文本中较为常见，有助于聚焦于被讨论的主题或概念本身，而非行动的主体。

因此，这个例子展示了如何通过省略助动词和使用被动语态来构建一个条件句，使得句子显得更加正式和书面化。

2. Fools act on imagination without knowledge; pedants act on knowledge without imagination.  

Critical Thinking Question:

How does the author’s description of knowledge as "energizing as the poet of our dreams" relate to your own learning experiences? Can you think of a subject or concept that became more meaningful when approached imaginatively?