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雙語:爲什麼我們會制定新年計劃?

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Why Do We Make New Year's Resolutions

雙語:爲什麼我們會制定新年計劃?

爲什麼我們會制定新年計劃


Every time a new year rolls around, people set out to better themselves. They promise they will lose weight, find a new job, or maybe even take that vacation they've always talked about. But why do we make these promises to ourselves, and where did this tradition come from? And why does this tradition live on when so many people fail to keep the resolutions they make? Well, we can start by blaming the ancient Babylonians.


每當新的一年來臨之際,人們都會決定改變自己。他們會決心減肥,找到一份新工作,甚至可能會過一個討論已久的假期。但我們爲什麼要對自己定下這些目標呢?這個傳統又從何而來呢?爲什麼很多人最終都沒能實現新年目標,但這個傳統依舊延續呢?我們可以從古巴比倫人開始談起。


Around 4000 years ago in Babylon, the earliest recorded celebration honoring the coming of a new year was held. Calendars weren’t as they are today, so the Babylonians kicked things off in late March during the first new moon after the Spring Equinox. The collective ceremonial events were known as the Akitu festival, which lasted 11 days. The festivities were dedicated to the rebirth of the sun god Marduk, but the Babylonians made promises in order to get on the right side of all of their gods. They felt this would help them start the new year off on the right foot.


有記載的最早的慶祝新年的活動是在約4000年前的古巴比倫進行的。當時的曆法和如今不同,所以巴比倫人在3月下旬春分後的第一個新月期間迎來新的一年。集體的慶祝儀式被稱爲阿基圖節,這一節日會持續11天。雖然這一慶祝活動是爲了紀念太陽神馬杜克的重生,但巴比倫人爲了被衆神庇護,會做出承諾,他們覺得這將幫助他們開啓新年的開門紅。


Resolutions continued on with the Romans. When the early Roman calendar no longer synced up with the sun, Julius Caesar decided to make a change. He consulted with the best astronomers and mathematicians of the time and introduced the Julian calendar, which more closely represents the modern calendar we use today. Caesar declared January 1 the first day of the year to honor the god of new beginnings, Janus. The Romans celebrated the New Year by offering sacrifices to Janus.


羅馬人延續了這種做出承諾的做法。當早期的羅馬日曆不再與太陽同步時,凱撒大帝決定做出改變。他請教了當時最好的天文學家和數學家,並引入了儒略曆,它更接近於我們今天使用的現代曆法。凱撒大帝宣佈1月1日爲新年的第一天,以紀念善始善終之神雅努斯。羅馬人通過向雅努斯獻祭來慶祝新年。


To this day, the traditions of the ancient Babylonians and Romans continue on around the world. So much so that Google launched a Resolution Map in 2012 where people could add resolutions and see others adding theirs in real time. However, no matter how many people participated in Google’s project, the numbers are bleak when it comes to the amount of people who maintain their resolutions; only 9.2 percent of people are successful in sticking them out.


直到今天,古巴比倫人和羅馬人的傳統仍在世界各地延續,以至於谷歌在2012年推出了一個“決心地圖”,人們可以添加自己的目標,並看到其他人實時添加的目標。然而,無論有多少人蔘加了谷歌的項目,當涉及到堅持實現目標的人數時,數字很慘淡:只有9.2%的人能堅持到底。


The most popular resolutions:


最常見的新年目標:


Lose weight/eat healthier

    

減肥/健康飲食


Get organized


有計劃有條理


Save more money


存錢


Quit smoking


戒菸


Enjoy life


享受生活


Spend more quality time with close friends and family members


多花些時間在親密朋友和家人身上


Get—and stay—healthy


變得健康並保持健康


Learn something new


學些新東西


Help others pursue their goals


幫助他人追求目標


Find love


找到真愛


If those failed resolutions above look familiar and remind you that the whole concept is a bust, or if they inspire you to create your own list of promises for 2020, just remember that this tradition is destined to live on. We have 4000 years worth of history telling us so, and that's a statistic that's hard to argue with.


如果以上這些失敗的目標看起來很熟悉,並且這提醒你立flag註定會失敗,或者如果它們激勵你計劃自己的2020年目標,一定要記住這個傳統註定是會繼續下去的。4000年的歷史向我們展現了這一點,而且不容置疑。


翻譯:MS小冰晶