双语：为何不要孩子？这个问题怎么答？
双语：为何不要孩子？这个问题怎么答？
本文例句都取自《柯林斯大词典》和《21世纪英汉大词典》，译文取自纽约时报官方译文，批判地看，如果要看正确的译文，请点击右边蓝色字加入我们的资料班 冲刺资料班继续招生：希望带你们踏实进步，不自夸自然有人夸！
Whatto Say When People Ask Why You Aren’t Having Children
为何不要孩子？这个问题怎么答
原文：Nothing could have prepared me for the invasivenessI face about myfertilityplans as a married woman in my late 30s.
官方译文：作为一名将近40岁的已婚妇女，我在生育计划上面临着的侵扰是完全无法预防的。
单词：
invasivenessn. 侵袭性；[医] 侵入力
fertility n.生育能力
原文：What was once an occasionaltopic of conversation five years ago when I first dated Mike, now my husband, has become a full-blown speculativecrisis since we tied the knotin April.
官方译文：五年前，当我第一次和迈克约会时，这只是一个偶然提起的话题，今年4月我们结了婚，自那之后，这件事就成了一场关于推测的全面危机。
单词：
occasional adj. 偶然的；临时的；特殊场合的
E.g:I've had occasional mild headaches all my life.
我此生一直有偶尔的轻微头疼。
full-blownadj. 成熟的；（花）盛开的；（帆等）张满的
E.g:Before becoming a full-blown director, he worked as the film editor on Citizen Kane.
在成为一名完全成熟的导演之前，他曾担任影片《公民凯恩》的剪辑师。
speculativeadj. 投机的；推测的；思索性的
E.g:The papers ran speculative stories about the mysterious disappearance of Eddie Donagan.
各报刊登了有关埃迪•多纳根神秘失踪的猜测性报道。
词汇：
tie the knot 结婚
原文：I understand the concern. In our youth, many of us were taught, “First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in the baby carriage.” There’s noasteriskafter the ditty clarifying“these milestonesmight never be accomplished in this order, or at all.”
官方译文：我知道这件事的重要性。在我们小时候，很多人都被教导说，“先是陷入爱河，然后就会结婚，然后婴儿车上就会有小宝宝。”在这种顺口溜后面，不会加上星号来说明“可能顺序不会是这样，也可能某个阶段永远无法达成”。
单词：
asteriskn. 星号；星号键
dittyn. 小曲；小调
clarifyvt. 澄清；阐明
E.g:Thank you for writing and allowing me to clarify the present position.
谢谢你来信并允许我澄清目前的状况。
milestonen. 里程碑，划时代的事件
原文：Well-meaning relatives touch my arm and ask when we’ll start a family. I bristleat the suggestion, as if me, my sweet fella and our delightful cat aren’t already a complete family. Their faces drop when I break the news that we plan to be child-free.
官方译文：亲戚拉着我的胳膊，好心地问我们什么时候成家。这种暗示让我很恼怒，好像我和我的帅小伙，以及我们可爱的猫咪不能算是组成了一个完整的家庭似的。当我宣告了不生小孩的消息之后，他们的面色沉了下来。
原文：“What a shame,” they say. “You’d make such a great mom.”
官方译文：“太遗憾了，”他们说。“你是一个当好妈妈的材料。”
单词：
bristlevi. 发怒；竖起
fellan. 伙伴，伙计；小伙子
child-free 不生小孩
原文：Acquaintances are moreblunt: When are you going to pop out a kid? “Two minutes after never,” I reply, which sucks the air out of the room. I pretend I don’t notice them exchanging worried looks. Even my primary care physicianhas an opinion on the matter, advising me last year to “keep an open mind” about having kids.
官方译文：熟人就比较直白了：你什么时候打算要小孩？“永远不会，”我回答说，房间里顿时就沉默下来。我假装没有注意到他们担忧地互相交换眼神。即使我的初级保健医生对此也有意见，去年他建议我对生孩子一事“保持开放心态”。
单词：
acquaintancen. 熟人；相识；了解；知道
E.g:He exchanged a few words with the proprietor, an old acquaintance of his.
他跟一位业主，他的一位老相识交谈了几句。
bluntadj. 钝的，不锋利的；生硬的；直率的
E.g:She is blunt about her personal life.
她对自己的私生活直言不讳。
suckvt. 吸吮；吸取
E.g:He sucked on his cigarette.
他吸了吸他的香烟。
词汇：
primary care physician 初级保健医生
原文：I was never sure what to say when people put me on the spot.Afteralternatingbetween arguing, brooding and stewing, I now realize I don’t have to react in such a negative way. So when I want to keep my friendships (and my doctor), I take a breath and try to keep the following five things in mind:
官方译文：当人们把我置于这种处境时，我从来都不知道该说什么。在争论、生闷气和冒火交替发生之后，现在我意识到，我没有必要通过这种消极的方式作出反应。所以，如果我想保住友谊（和医生）时，我就先做个深呼吸，试图记住以下五点。
单词：
alternate vt. 使交替；使轮流
E.g:Her aggressive moods alternated with gentle or more cooperative states.
她的挑衅情绪与温和或更为合作的情绪互相交替。
broodingadj. 令人担忧的; 令人有些恐惧的;adj. 沉思的；徘徊不去的
E.g:The same heavy, brooding silence descended on them.
同样沉重、阴森的寂静笼罩着他们。
stewn. 炖；蒸煮
E.g:She served him a bowl of beef stew.
她给他端了一碗炖牛肉。
词汇:
put sbon the spot 让某人处于尴尬境地
原文：Don’t get defensive
官方译文：不要太自我防御
原文：Most of my closest friends — all city-dwellingcreative types — don’t havebiologicalchildren. In fact, we rarely discuss our reasons for why we chose our child-free lifestyles.
官方译文：我最好的朋友都属于很有创造力的城市一族，在他们中，大部分没有亲生子女。事实上，我们很少讨论为什么选择不生孩子。
单词：
city-dwelling 居住在城市的
biologicaladj. 生物的；生物学的;与生命过程和状态有关的
E.g:The living organisms somehow concentrated the minerals by biological processes.
活的有机物以某种方式随其生命过程聚集了矿物质。
原文：I assumeit’s for some of the same reasons as me, which range fromthe inaneto the intense: We cherish our flexible lifestyles, children are time-consumingand expensive, child care costs are prohibitive, and we all have varying degrees of anxiety about our future. Why take the leap when so many aspects of parenthood feel so risky?
官方译文：我猜有些原因和我的一样，有的无关紧要，有的至关重要：我们珍惜自己灵活的生活方式、养孩子耗时且费用昂贵、照顾孩子的成本令人望而却步，以及我们对未来都有不同程度的焦虑。在为人父母的很多方面都给人感觉风险很高的情况下，为什么还要跨出这一步？
单词：
assume vi. 假定；设想；承担；采取
E.g:If mistakes occurred, they were assumed to be the fault of the commander on the spot.
如果出现了错误，它们就被以为是现场指挥官的错。
inane adj. 空洞的，空虚的；愚蠢的
E.g:He lurched through the bar, smiling inanely.
他傻乎乎地微笑着，踉踉跄跄地穿过了那个酒吧间。
intense adj. 强烈的；紧张的；非常的；热情的
E.g:Stevens's murder was the result of a deep-seated and intense hatred.
史蒂文斯凶杀案源于深仇大恨。
time-consuming adj. 耗时的；旷日持久的
E.g:It's just very time consuming to get such a large quantity of data.
要收集这么多的数据就是非常耗时。
prohibitive 高得负担不起的
E.g:The cost of private treatment can be prohibitive.
私人治疗的费用会高得负担不起。
原文：I’m lucky to be surrounded by so many like-mindedwomen. If I still lived in my hometown, a tiny suburboutside of Albany, I’m not sure I’d have the same support. Imoved awaythe summer before eighth grade and haven’t been back since. A quickscrollthrough my Facebook feed shows all my childhood friends with little ones in tow. I imagine the pressure to have children would’ve been much stronger if I’d stayed.
官方译文：幸运的是，我身边有这么多志同道合的女性。如果还生活在家乡奥尔巴尼郊区的那个小地方，我不确定自己能不能得到同样的支持。我在上八年级之前的那个夏天离开了那里，之后再未回去过。快速滚动我的Facebook推送会发现，我童年时期的所有朋友都有孩子了。我想，如果还留在那里，生孩子的压力会大得多。
单词：
like-minded adj. 志趣相投的；具有相似意向或目的的
scroll n. 卷轴，画卷；名册；卷形物；v.滚动
E.g:I scrolled down to find "United States of America."
我向下滚动以寻找。
词汇：
move away 搬家
in tow 在身边；在一起；跟在后面
原文：But when strangers ask about my plans for a child-free life, it can come offas if they’re really asking what kind of person I am.
官方译文：但陌生人问我对不生孩子的生活的安排时，可能会让我觉得他们其实是在问我是一个什么样的人。
词汇：
come off 举行，成功；表现；脱离
原文：It takes effort to keep my cool. After a few deep breaths, I run throughmy usual answers in a measured tone: Yes, I love children, but I don’t feel an urgent needto have my own. No, it’s not because I’m a selfish jerk.
官方译文：这让保持冷静颇为不易。深呼吸几下后，我会慎重地说出自己常备的答案：是的，我喜欢孩子，只是觉得不用着急生孩子。不，不是因为我是个自私鬼。
词汇：
run through跑着穿过；浏览；刺；挥霍
a measured tone 恰如其分的口气
an urgent need 急切的需要
原文：I then politely assertthat my husband and I are making decisions based on what’s right for us as a couple. I don’t elaboratemore than that if I don’t want to.
官方译文：然后，我会礼貌地表示我和丈夫是根据什么适合我们夫妻做决定的。如果没心情的话，我不会再多做解释。
单词：
assert vt. 维护，坚持；断言；主张；声称
E.g:Mr. Helm plans to assert that the bill violates the First Amendment.
赫尔姆先生计划坚定地陈述该法案有违《第一修正案》。
elaboratev.. 周密制定; 周密发展
E.g:A spokesman declined to elaborate on a statement released late yesterday.
发言人拒绝对昨天晚些时候发表的一份声明作出更多说明。
原文：For some, staying childlesscontradictstheir worldview
官方译文：不生孩子抵触了有些人的世界观
原文：When people push backabout it, they seem to be more upset at having their sense of order questioned. Sometimes that can lead to interactionsthat feel hostile.
官方译文：当人们忍不住提出异议时，他们似乎对自己的秩序感受到质疑感到更加生气。有时候，这可能会引发给人感觉不友善的对话。
单词：
contradictv.与…矛盾
E.g:Her version contradicted her daughter's.
她的说法与她女儿的说法相矛盾。
worldviewn. 世界观
hostileadj. 敌对的，敌方的；怀敌意的
E.g:Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.
许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。
词汇：
push back 提出异议
lead to 导致
原文：Many people assume that having children after marriage is the naturalprogressionof life. They may even see my reluctanceto have kids as a personal affront, as if I’m criticizing their choices.
官方译文：很多人以为，结婚后生孩子是自然而然的生活节奏。他们甚至会把我不愿生孩子看作是对他们个人的侮辱，好像我在批评他们的选择似的。
单词：
progressionn. 前进；连续
E.g:Both drugs slow the progression of HIV, but neither cures the disease.
两种药都能减缓艾滋病病毒的发展，但都不能治愈艾滋病。
reluctancen. [电磁] 磁阻；勉强；不情愿
affrontn. 轻蔑；公开侮辱
E.g:It's an affront to human dignity to keep someone alive like this.
让一个人如此活着是对人类尊严的一种侮辱。
原文：Not only is it exasperatingto justifymyself to people whohave no stake inthe process, but people have rarely been enthusiasticabout my decision unless they’ve decided to be child-free too.
官方译文：不仅是向无关紧要的人解释令人恼火，而且人们很少对我的决定做出积极回应，除非他们也决定不要孩子。
单词：
exasperatingadj. 激怒人的；气死人的
E.g:Herrera could be exasperating to his colleagues.
赫雷拉对他的同事来说可以是恼人的。
justifyvt. 证明…是正当的；替…辩护
E.g:No argument can justify a war.
没有任何理由能证明一个战争有理。
enthusiasticadj. 热情的；热心的；狂热的
E.g:Tom was very enthusiastic about the place.
汤姆曾非常热衷于那个地方。
词汇：
have stake in 与…利害攸关
原文：“Sometimes one needs to remove oneself from situations where this is likely to come up,” said Dr. Maureen Kelly, medical director of Society Hill Reproductive Medicine. “So many patients over the years have told me that they avoid certain family gatherings because they are sure someone will ask dreaded questions.”
官方译文：“有时候，需要摆脱可能会出现这种情况的环境，”希尔生殖医学会(Society Hill Reproductive Medicine)的医学主任莫琳·凯利(Maureen Kelly)说。“这些年来，很多患者对我说，他们避免参加某些家庭聚会就是因为他们知道，肯定会有人问起令自己不安的问题。”
单词：
dreaded adj. 令人畏惧的，可怕的
E.g:No one knew how to treat this dreaded disease.
没人知道如何治疗这种可怕的疾病。
词汇：
belikely to 很可能
原文：Trends are changing
官方译文：趋势正在改变
原文：It gives me comfort to know more women than ever are choosing the same course as me.
官方译文：知道越来越多的女性选择和我一样的道路，让我感到安慰。
原文：According to the latest data by the National Center for Health Statistics, the American fertility rate has fallen to 62 births per 1,000 women between the ages of 15 to 44. Living in a society that offers few safety nets for mothers (and considerable economic penalties), it’s becoming more common to either delayhaving children until your 30s or avoid having them altogether.
官方译文：国家卫生统计中心(National Center for Health Statistics)公布的最新数据显示，美国15至44岁的人群中生育率已跌至每1000名女性生育62个孩子。处在一个针对母亲的福利保障少之又少（并且经济上的不利之处相当严重）的社会，推迟到30多岁生育或根本不生孩子的现象越来越普遍。
单词：
delayV. 推迟
E.g:For sentimental reasons I wanted to delay my departure until June 1980.
由于感情上的原因，我想把启程时间推迟到1980年6月。
词汇：
fertility rate 生育率
原文：And while I feel compelledto articulatemy reasons more than my husband does to other people, to be clear, this is a decision we arrived attogether.
官方译文：尽管我比丈夫更觉得必须向其他人解释原因，但要明确的一点是，这是我们共同做出的决定。
单词：
compelvt. 强迫，迫使；强使发生
E.g:Dickens felt compelled to return to the stage for a final goodbye.
狄更斯感到必须返回舞台作最后的告别。
articulatevt. 清晰地发（音）；明确有力地表达；用关节连接；使相互连贯
E.g:The president has been accused of failing to articulate an overall vision in foreign affairs.
总统被指责没能清楚地表述对外交事务的总体设想。
词汇：
arrived at 到达；得出结论
原文：Fertility is asensitivesubject, for everyone
官方译文：生育是每个人的敏感话题
原文：“People should not ask women about their fertility choices,” Dr. Kelly said. “This includes mothers, sisters, close friends, acquaintances and other family members. This is a highly personal topic and should be considered off limitsunless someonebrings it up.”
官方译文：“人们不应该询问女性的生育选择，”凯利说。“这里包括母亲、姐妹、密友、点头之交和其他家庭成员。这是一个非常私人的话题，应该被当作禁忌，除非有人主动提起。”
单词：
sensitive adj. 敏感的；感觉的
E.g:Young people are very sensitive about their appearance.
年轻人对自己的外貌很敏感。
词汇：
off limits 范围外；限度外
bring up 提出
原文：In light ofthe subject’s sensitive nature, Dr. Kelly recommendsfollowing the lead of the individual: “If she wants to discuss, do so on her terms and remain highlysupportiveand free of judgment.”
官方译文：鉴于这个话题的敏感性质，凯利建议跟随当事人的脚步：“如果她想聊，就按照她的说话方式聊并保持高度支持，不做评价。”
单词：
recommendvt. 推荐，介绍；劝告；使受欢迎；托付
E.g:I just spent a holiday there and would recommend it to anyone.
我刚在那儿度过一个假期，愿意向任何人推荐那里。
supportiveadj. 支持的；支援的；赞助的
E.g:They were always supportive of each other.
他们总是互相帮助。
词汇：
In light of 鉴于
free of judgment 不做评价
原文：“If someone does confide” in you, she said, “do not bring up how easy it was for you or compare that individual’s strugglesor decisions to yourself or anyone else.”
官方译文：“如果有人向你吐露心声，”她说。“不要提起当初这个问题对你来说多么容易，也不要把对方的斗争或决定和你或其他任何人比较。”
单词：
confidevt. 吐露 (秘密等)
E.g: I knew she had some fundamental problems in her marriage because she had confided in me a year earlier.
我知道她的婚姻存在一些根本问题，因为她一年前曾向我吐露过。
strugglesn. 努力，奋斗；竞争
E.g:Life became a struggle for survival.
生活变成了一场争取生存的斗争。
原文：Having these painful discussions hasheightenedmy sympathyfor my loved ones struggling with their own fertility issues. I do my best to offer unconditional support for whateveroutcomethey are hoping for.
官方译文：进行这些痛苦的讨论增加了我对那些同自己的生育问题作斗争的至亲的同情。不管他们希望得到什么结果，我都会尽全力提供无条件的支持。
单词：
heightenvt. 提高；增高；加强；使更显著
E.g:The move has heightened tension in the state.
这一举动加剧了该州的紧张局势。
sympathyn. 同情；慰问；赞同
E.g:We expressed our sympathy for her loss.
我们对她的损失表示了同情。
unconditionaladj. 无条件的；绝对的；无限制的
E.g:Children need unconditional love from their parents.
孩子们需要父母无条件的爱。
outcomen. 结果，结局；成果
E.g:Mr. Singh said he was pleased with the outcome.
西恩先生说他对此结果感到满意。
原文：Honorthe path take
官方译文：尊重人生道路的选择
原文：Sometimes I pictureanother versionof me with children living in a parallel universe. She jugglesplay dates, organizes nap schedulesand indulgesrequests to screen “Moana” several times in a row.
官方译文：有时候，我会想象另一个自己和孩子们生活在一个平行宇宙里。她要兼顾玩乐约会、安排小睡时间并满足连续放几遍《海洋奇缘》(Moana)的请求。
iugglevt. 尽量兼顾
E.g:The management team meets several times a week to juggle budgets and resources.
管理团队一周开几次会，力图兼顾预算和资源。
picturevt. 画；想像；描写
E.g:He pictured her with long black braided hair.
他想像她扎着长长的黑麻花辫。
versionn. 版本；译文
E.g:...an updated version of his bestselling book.
…他这本畅销书的一个最新版本。
indulgevt. 满足；纵容；使高兴；使沉迷于…
E.g:Only rarely will she indulge in a glass of wine.
她只是偶尔才会喝上杯葡萄酒。
词汇：
a parallel universe 平行宇宙
in a row 连续
原文：I imagine this woman in a quiet moment wonderingwhat her life would’ve been like if she’d never had kids.
官方译文：我会想象她在四周安静下来时，好奇如果不生孩子的话，自己的生活会是什么样子。
原文：I would tell her as fulfilledas she is being a parent, I’m as satisfied with the child-free path I’ve chosen too.
官方译文：我会告诉她，和为人父母带给她满足感一样，我对自己选择的不生孩子的道路也感到很满意。
单词：
wondervt. 怀疑；惊奇；对…感到惊讶
E.g:I wondered what that noise was.
我想知道那噪音是什么。
fulfilvt. 履行；完成；实践；满足
E.g:President Kaunda fulfilled his promise of announcing a date for the referendum.
卡翁达总统实现了他的关于宣布投票公决日期的诺言。
词汇：
besatisfied with 对…满意
