簡單的英語短篇美文閱讀
英語閱讀既是重要的語言技能，也是重要的學習技能，是發展其他語言技能的基礎和前提。下面是本站小編帶來的簡單的英語短篇美文，歡迎閱讀!
Wanted: a large biscuit tin
No one can avoid being influenced by advertisements. Much as we may pride ourselves on our good taste, we are no longer free to choose the things we want, for advertising exerts a subtle influence on us. In their efforts to persuade us to buy this or that product, advertisers have made a close study of human nature and have classified all our little weaknesses. Advertisers discovered years ago that all of us love to get something for nothing. An advertisement which begins with the
magic word FREE can rarely go wrong. These days, advertisers not only offer free samples but free cars, free houses, and free trips round the world as well. They devise hundreds of competitions which will enable us to win huge sums of money. Radio and television have made it possible for advertisers to capture the attention of millions of people in this way. During a radio programme, a company of biscuit manufacturers once asked listeners to bake biscuits and send them to their factory. They offered to pay $2 a pound for the biggest biscuit baked by a listener. The response to this competition was tremendous. Before long, biscuits of all shapes and sizes began arriving at the factory. One lady brought in a biscuit on a wheelbarrow. It weighed nearly 500 pounds. A little later, a man came along with a biscuit which occupied the whole boot of his car. All the biscuits that were sent were carefully weighed. The largest was 713 pounds. It seemed certain that this would win the prize. But just before the competition closed, a lorry arrived at the factory with a truly colossal biscuit which weighed 2400 pounds. It had been baked by a college student who had used over 1000 pounds of flour, 800 pounds of sugar, 200 pounds of fat, and 400 pounds of various other ingredients. It was so heavy that a crane had to be used to remove it from the lorry. The manufacturers had to pay more money than they had anticipated, for they bought the biscuit from the student for $4800.
沒有人能避免受廣告的影響。儘管我們可以自誇自己的鑑賞力如何敏銳，但我們已經無法獨立自主地選購自己所需的東西了。這是因爲廣告在我們身上施加着一種潛移默化的影響。做廣告的人在力圖勸說我們買下這種產品或那種產品之前，已經仔細地研究了人的本性，並把人的弱點進行了分類。
做廣告的人們多年前就發現我們大家都喜歡免費得到東西。凡是用“免費”這個神奇的詞開頭的廣告很少會失敗的。目前，做廣告的人不僅提供免費樣品，而且還提供免費汽車，免費住房，免費周遊世界。他們設計數以百計的競賽，競賽中有人可贏得鉅額獎金。電臺、電視使做廣告的人可以用這種手段吸引成百萬人的注意力。
有一次，在電臺播放的節目裏，一個生產餅乾的公司請聽衆烘製餅乾送到他們的工廠去。他們願意以每磅10美元的價錢買下由聽衆烘製的最大的餅乾。這次競賽在聽衆中引起極其熱烈的反響。不久，形狀各異，大小不一的餅乾陸續送到工廠。一位女士用手推車運來一個餅乾，重達500磅左右。相隔不一會兒，一個男子也帶來一個大餅乾，那個餅乾把汽車的行李箱擠得滿滿的。凡送來的餅乾都仔細地稱量。最重的一個達713磅，看來這個餅乾獲獎無疑了。但就在競賽截止時間將到之際，一輛卡車駛進了工廠，運來了一個特大無比、重達2,400磅的餅乾。它是由一個大學生烘製的，用去1,000多磅的麪粉、800磅食糖、200磅動物脂肪及400磅其他各種原料。餅乾份量太重了，用了一臺起重機才把它從卡車上卸下。餅乾公司不得不付出比他們預計多得多的錢，因爲爲買下那學生烘製的餅乾他們支付了24,000美元。
簡單的英語短篇美文篇二Nothing to sell and nothing to buy
It has been said that everyone lives by selling something. In the light of this statement, teachers live by selling knowledge, philosophers by selling wisdom and priests by selling spiritual comfort.
Though it may be possible to measure the value of material goods in terms of money, it is extremely difficult to estimate the true value of the services which people perform for us. There are times when we would willingly give everything we possess to save our lives, yet we might
grudge paying a surgeon a high fee for offering us precisely this service. The conditions of society are such that skills have to be paid for in the same way that goods are paid for at a shop. Everyone has something to sell.
Tramps seem to be the only exception to this general rule. Beggars almost sell themselves as human beings to arouse the pity of passers-by. But real tramps are not beggars. They have nothing to sell and require nothing from others. In seeking independence, they do not sacrifice their human dignity. A tramp may ask you for money, but he will never ask you to feel sorry for him. He has deliberately chosen to lead the life he leads and is fully aware of the consequences He, may never be sure where the next meal is coming from, but he is free from the thousands of anxieties which afflict other people. His few material possession make it possible for him to move from place to place with ease- By having to sleep in the open, he gets far closer to the world of nature than most of us ever do. He may hunt, beg, or steal occasionally to keep himself alive; he may even in times of real need, do a little work; but he will never sacrifice his freedom. We often speak of tramps with contempt and put them in the same class as beggars, but how many of us can honestly say that we have not felt a little envious of their simple way of life and their freedom from care?
據說每個人都靠出售某種東西來維持生活。根據這種說法，教師靠賣知識爲生，哲學家靠賣智慧爲生，牧師靠賣精神安慰爲生。雖然物質產品的價值可以用金錢來衡量，但要估算別人爲我們爲所提供的服務的價值卻是極其困難的。有時，我們爲了挽救生命，願意付出我們所佔有的一切。但就在外科大夫給我們提供了這種服務後，我們卻可能爲所支付的昂貴的費用而抱怨。社會上的情況就是如此，技術是必須付錢去買的，就像在商店裏要花錢買商品一樣。人人都有東西可以出售。
在這條普遍的規律前面，好像只有流浪漢是個例外，乞丐出售的幾乎是他本人，以引起過路人的憐憫。但真正的流浪並不是乞丐。他們既不出售任何東西，也不需要從別人那兒得到任何東西，在追求獨立自由的同時，他們並不犧牲爲人的尊嚴。遊浪漢可能會向你討錢，但他從來不要你可憐他。他是故意在選擇過那種生活的，並完全清楚以這種方式生活的後果。他可能從不知道下頓飯有無着落，但他不像有人那樣被千萬樁愁事所折磨。他幾乎沒有什麼財產，這使他能夠輕鬆自如地在各地奔波。由於被迫在露天睡覺，他比我們中許多人都離大自然近得多。爲了生存，他可能會去打獵、乞討，偶爾偷上一兩回;確實需要的時候，他甚至可能幹一點兒活，但他決不會犧牲自由。說起流浪漢，我們常常帶有輕蔑並把他們與乞丐歸爲一類。但是，我們中有多少人能夠坦率地說我們對流浪漢的簡樸生活與無憂無慮的境況不感到有些羨慕呢?
簡單的英語短篇美文篇三Five pounds too dear
Small boats loaded with wares sped to the great liner as she was entering the harbour. Before she had anchored, the men from the boats had climbed on board and the decks were soon covered with colourful rugs from Persia, silks from India, copper coffee pots, and beautiful hand-made silver-ware. It was difficult not to be tempted. Many of the tourists on board had begun bargaining with the tradesmen, but I decided not to buy anything until I had disembarked. I had no sooner got off the ship than I was assailed by a man who wanted to sell me a diamond ring. I had no intention of buying one, but I could not conceal the fact that I was impressed by the size of the diamonds. Some of them were as big as marbles. The man went to great lengths to prove that the diamonds were real. As we were walking past a shop, he held a diamond firmly against the window and made a deep impression in the glass. It took me over half an hour to get rid of him.
The next man to approach me was selling expensive pens and watches. I examined one of the pens closely. It certainly looked genuine. At the base of the gold cap, the words 'made in the U.S.A.' had been neatly inscribed. The man said that the pen was worth &10, but as a special favour, he would let me have it for &8. I shook my head and held up a finger indicating that I was willing to
pay a pound. Gesticulating wildly, the man acted as if he found my offer outrageous, but he eventually reduced the price to &3. Shrugging my shoulders, I began to walk away when, a moment later, he ran after me and thrust the pen into my hands. Though he kept throwing up his arms in despair, he readily accepted the pound I gave him. I felt especially pleased with my wonderful bargain--until I got back to the ship. No matter how hard I tried, it was impossible to fill this beautiful pen with ink and to this day it has never written a single word !
當一艘大型班船進港的時候，許多小船載着各種雜貨快速向客輪駛來。大船還未下錨。小船上的人就紛紛爬上客輪。一會兒工夫，甲板上就擺滿了色彩斑斕的波斯地毯。印度絲綢。銅咖啡壺以及手工製作的漂亮的銀器。要想不爲這些東西所動心是很困難的。船上許多遊客開始同商販討價還價起來，但我打定主意上岸之前什麼也不買。
我剛下船，就被一個人截住，他向我兜售一枚鑽石戒指。我根本不想買，但我不能掩飾這樣一個事實：其鑽石之大給我留下了深刻的印象。有的鑽石像玻璃球那麼大。那人竭力想證明那鑽石是真貨。我們路過一家商店時，他將一顆鑽石使勁地往櫥窗上一按，在玻璃上留下一道深痕。我花了半個多小時才擺脫了他的糾纏。
向我兜售的第二個人是賣名貴鋼筆和手錶的。我仔細察看了一枝鋼筆，那看上去確實不假，金筆帽下方整齊地刻有“美國製造”字樣。那人說那支筆值50英鎊，作爲特別優惠，他願意讓我出30英鎊成交。我搖搖頭，伸出5根手指表示我只願出5鎊錢。那人激動地打着手勢，彷彿我的出價使他不能容忍。但他終於把價錢降到了10英鎊。我聳聳肩膀掉頭走開了。一會兒，他突然從後追了上來，把筆塞到我手裏。雖然他絕望地舉起雙手，但他毫不遲疑地收下了我付給他的5鎊錢。在回到船上之前，我一直爲我的絕妙的討價還價而洋洋得意。然而不管我如何擺弄，那枝漂亮的鋼筆就是吸不進墨水來。直到今天，那枝筆連一個字也沒寫過!
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