The Virgin Queen 女王未出嫁

民仔

by Matthew Brown
Like many historical figures that keep people fascinated, Elizabeth I remains somewhat enigmatic. No one knows the whole truth about the personal aspects of Elizabeth's story. Of course, these things are difficult to know from a historical distance, but even in her own time, her success, power, and mystery were legendary.
Elizabeth became Queen of England when she was only 25 years old. Probably the most talked about aspect of her rule remains her romantic life. Elizabeth was an effective and impressive young queen, but she never married. Much has been made of this fact, and even today, people speculate and disagree about her reasons for remaining "The Virgin Queen." This is so partly because she never offered a complete explanation herself and partly because she displayed an intriguing mix of intelligence and reserve that still keeps people wondering what she was thinking.
Elizabeth undoubtedly had accomplishments outside of her private life which have cemented her place in history. One of the most significant is her role in the establishment of the Protestant Church in England. For reasons both personal and political, she sided with the general feelings of the people and moved to separate the Church in England from the authority of the Pope. Elizabeth is seen as having led England into a "golden age," a time that saw England rise to a place of unprecedented global importance.
It was a time when England produced renowned playwrights, most notably Shakespeare, and several famous adventurers. As we can see from the recent release of the Hollywood movie on the subject, the story of Elizabeth I has not lost its appeal.
1. Which of the following is TRUE of Elizabeth I?
(A) She established the Church of England when she was only 25.
(B) She was intelligent and said whatever was on her mind.
(C) She was credited with contributing to a very prosperous time for England.
(D) She had Shakespeare produce many plays for her.
2. According to the article, what can we infer about Elizabeth's love life?
(A) It was more important than the rest of the things she did.
(B) It is not clear why she never married, and this keeps people interested.
(C) While she was successful as a queen, she was a failure with men.
(D) It's the main reason why she wanted to abolish the Church.
3. The people of England probably _____.
(A) had no interest in religion at all
(B) thought the Church should be led by the Pope
(C) didn't care about Elizabeth's religious preference
(D) were pleased with Elizabeth's decision about the Church

單字小舖

1. virgin a. 處女的 & n. 未婚女子，處女
2. historical a. 歷史上的；（有關）歷史的
historic a. 歷史性的；有歷史意義的
3. enigmatic a. 如謎一般的；費解的
enigma n. 謎；難以理解的事物
4. aspect n. 方面
5. legendary a. 傳奇的；傳說的
6. romantic a. 浪漫的；多情的
romance n. 愛情故事
7. impressive a. 令人印象深刻的
8. intriguing a. 令人感興趣的
9. reserve n. 寡言；含蓄
10. accomplishment n. 成就
11. significant a. 重大的；有意義的
12. establishment n. 建立，創立
13. Protestant a. 新教徒的 & n. 新教徒
14. authority n. 權力，權威
15. Pope n. 羅馬教皇
16. unprecedented a. 空前的
17. playwright n. 劇作家
18. notably adv. 顯著地；尤其是
19. release n. 發行，發表
20. prosperous a. 繁榮的
21. infer vt. 推斷
22. abolish vt. 廢除

片語小舖

1. from a historical distance　　從長久的歷史來看
2. outside of...　　在……之外；除了……
3. be seen as...　　被視為……
= be viewed/regarded as...
= be looked upon/thought of as...
4. be on one's mind　　某人心中想著（某事）
5. contribute to + N/V-ing　　對……作出貢獻

精解字詞片語

1. fascinate vt. 使著迷
be fascinated by/with...　　 為……所著迷
= be enthralled by...
例: I am fascinated by Medieval European history.
（我對中古世紀的歐洲歷史深感著迷。）
2. somewhat adv. 有點，稍微
注意:
somewhat 使用時，通常置於形容詞或副詞之前修飾。
例: Willy acted somewhat distressed after receiving his report card.
（威利接到成績單後顯得有些沮喪。）
3. effectivea.（人）有能力的；有效的
efficient a. 效率高的
注意:
effective 是指能夠迅速地產生某種期待的效果或結果，如：effective medicine（有效的藥物）。
efficient 則指有能力達成工作目的而不浪費時間與精力，如：an efficient worker（有效率的員工）。
例: The new drug is effective in the treatment of liver diseases.
（這種新藥對治療肝臟疾病很有效。）
例: This new machine is more efficient than that old one.
（這部新機器比那部舊的有效率。）
4. speculate vi. 猜測，臆測（與介詞 about 或 on 並用）
speculate about/on...　　猜測……，臆測……
例: Everyone is speculating on who will be elected the US president.
（每個人都在猜測誰會當選美國總統。）
5. partly because (of)...and partly because (of)...
部分因為……，部分因為……
例: Partly because I overslept and partly because the traffic was heavy, I was late for school this morning.
（部分因睡過頭，部分因為塞車，我今早上學遲到了。）
6. undoubtedly adv. 毫無疑問地
= doubtless(ly)
= no doubt
= without (a) doubt
例: Stan is no doubt the nicest neighbor we have.
（史丹無疑是我們碰過最和善的鄰居了。）
7. cement vt. 鞏固 & n. 水泥
例: His visit cemented our friendship.
（他的來訪鞏固了我們之間的友誼。）
8. side with...　　支持……，站在……那一邊
= take sides with...
例: We sided with the home team even though their opponents were from our hometown.
（雖然客隊來自我們的家鄉，我們仍支持地主隊。）
9. separate A from B　　把 A 與 B 分開
例: The teacher separated John from other boys because of his misbehavior.
（因為行為不端，老師將約翰和其他男孩隔離。）
10. renowned a. 有名的
be renowned/famous for sth　　以……（事物）聞名
be renowned/famous as + 身分　　以某身分為人所知
例: Simon is renowned for his ability to write touching speeches.
（賽門最廣為人知的是他撰寫動人演講稿的功力。）
例: He is renowned as a talented singer.
（他是位才華洋溢的知名歌手。)
11. appeal n. 吸引力 & vi. 吸引
appeal to sb　　受某人歡迎；吸引某人
例: Rap and hip-hop music appeal to many young people.
（繞舌樂及嘻哈音樂受到許多年輕人歡迎。）
12. be credited with...　　具有……的功勞（某事是某人做的）
be credited to sb　　歸功於某人
例: Thomas Edison is credited with the invention of the light bulb.
（電燈泡是愛迪生發明的。）
例: The discovery of this plant was credited to Prof. Stevenson.
（發現這種植物要歸功於史蒂文森教授。）
13. preference n. 偏好
have a preference for...　　偏好……
例: Mike has a preference for Mexican food.
（麥克偏好墨西哥菜。）
14. be pleased with...　　對……感到滿意
= be satisfied with...
例: The track coach was not satisfied with the performance of his team.
（那位田徑教練對全隊的表現不滿意。）

中文翻譯

和許多歷史人物一樣，帶點神祕感的伊莉莎白一世讓世人著迷。沒有人真正了解伊莉莎白女王的私人世界。當然，因為年代久遠使我們很難了解這些事情，但即使在她的年代，她的成就、權力和神秘都具有傳奇性。
　　
伊莉莎白 25 歲時繼位成為英國女王。談到她的統治，或許最為人津津樂道的就是她的感情生活。伊莉莎白是個有能力又令人印象深刻的年輕女王，但她卻終身未嫁。關於這點曾有諸多說法，即使到今天，世人仍在猜測與爭論她成為『童貞女王』的原因。部分是因為她自己從未完整交代為何保持單身，部分則是因為她擁有結合聰穎慧黠與內斂的迷人特質，不讓人知道她內心的想法。
　　
毫無疑問，伊莉莎白在私人生活以外的領域成就非凡，鞏固了她在歷史上的地位。她最重大的成就之一是在英國建立新教教會。基於個人和政治上的因素，她支持一般大眾的想法，進而帶領英國教會脫離教皇的管轄。一般認為伊莉莎白帶領英國進入『黃金年代』，讓英國在國際站上前所未有的重要地位。英國在這段時期出現許多著名的劇作家，其中最有名的就是莎士比亞，還有許多著名的冒險家。我們可從最近發行的好萊塢電影中發現，伊莉莎白一世的魅力仍絲毫不減。
1. 關於伊莉莎白一世的敘述下列何者正確？
(A) 她建立英國國教時年僅 25 歲。
(B) 她很聰明，而且有話直說。
(C) 她對英國的興盛繁榮居功厥偉。
(D) 她讓莎士比亞為她寫了許多戲劇。
題解: 根據本文第三段，一般認為伊莉莎白帶領英國進入『黃金年代』，讓英國在國際站上前所未有的重要地位，與 (C) 選項相近，故選之。
2. 根據本文，我們可推論伊莉莎白的感情生活為何？
(A) 她的感情生活遠比其他作為來得重要。
(B) 她未婚的理由並不清楚，這使得人們很感興趣。
(C) 她是個稱職的女王，但是和男人的關係卻很糟。
(D) 這是她要廢除教會的原因。
題解: 根據本文第二段，伊莉莎白女王最為人津津樂道的就是她的感情生活，她終身未嫁，即使到今天，世人仍在猜測與爭論她成為『童貞女王』的原因，故選 (B)。
3. 英國人民也許 _____。
(A) 對宗教毫無興趣
(B) 認為教會應該由教皇來領導
(C) 不在乎伊莉莎白的宗教偏好
(D) 很滿意伊莉莎白對教會的決策
題解: 根據本文第三段，女王支持一般大眾的想法，進而帶領英國教會脫離教皇的管轄，故選 (D)。
標準答案: 1. (C)　2. (B)　3. (D)

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