048 美国梦

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The Second World War was very hard on the people of Italy

第二次世界大战让意大利人民的生活十分艰难。

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By the end of the war, some parts of Italy had been nearly destroyed from years of warfare

战争结束时，意大利的一些地区因连年战火几乎被摧毁。

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Many people, especially the poor, could not see a future there for their families

许多人，尤其是穷人，看不到在那里为家人创造未来的希望。

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One of these people was a young man named Luigi

其中就有个年轻人，名叫路易吉。

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Luigi was twenty years old, and he wanted to work, and buy a house for his family

路易吉二十岁，他想工作，为家人买一所房子。

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But jobs were scarce, and many homes around Italy had been demolished

但工作机会稀缺，意大利各地的许多房屋也已被毁。

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One day Luigi read an advertisement in the newspaper that told him about the American Dream

一天，路易吉在报纸上看到一则广告，讲述了“美国梦”。

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" Come to America and you will find a job and a house," he read

他看到上面写着：“来美国吧，你会找到工作和房子。”

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" In America everyone's dreams come true."

“在美国，每个人的梦想都能成真。”

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So Luigi packed his bags and kissed his wife and small baby boy good-bye

于是，路易吉收拾好行李，吻别了妻子和年幼的儿子。

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" I will go to America and get a job

“我要去美国找份工作。

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Then you two can join me and we will buy a house and live a happy life," he said as he boarded the boat." We will achieve the American Dream!"

然后你们俩可以过来找我，我们一起买栋房子，过上幸福的生活，”他一边上船一边说。“我们会实现美国梦的！”

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When Luigi arrived in New York City, there were thousands of other men seeking the American Dream

当路易吉抵达纽约市时，那里有成千上万的人也在追寻美国梦。

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Luigi traveled from factory to factory, and construction site to construction site, looking for work

路易吉奔波于一家又一家工厂、一处又一处建筑工地，四处寻找工作。

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But again and again employers rejected him

但雇主们一次又一次地拒绝了他。

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Sometimes people were polite and apologized." Sorry, no jobs today."

有时候人们很礼貌，道歉说：“对不起，今天没有工作。”

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But other people treated him very rudely and shouted," Scram, you dirty immigrant!

但也有些人对他非常粗鲁，大吼道：“滚开，你这个肮脏的移民！

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Go back to where you came from. We don't need immigrants around here."

滚回你来的地方去。我们这儿不需要移民。”

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Hungry, lonely, and depressed, Luigi took whatever jobs he could to make money

又饿又孤独又沮丧的路易吉，只要能赚钱，什么活都干。

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For a few weeks, he shined shoes and worked as a sewer cleaner

有几个星期，他擦过皮鞋，也当过下水道清洁工。

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But these jobs didn't pay enough to bring over his wife and child, and the jobs were certainly not Luigi's idea of the American Dream

但这些工作的收入不够他把妻儿接过来，而且这肯定不是路易吉心目中的美国梦。

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Then Luigi heard about a small city with plenty of jobs and opportunities

后来，路易吉听说有个小城市，那里工作机会很多。

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The city was Niagara Falls, and it was located about 11 hours from New York City

那个城市就是尼亚加拉瀑布城，离纽约市大约11个小时的路程。

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So, with just a few pennies in his hand, Luigi boarded a train and headed north

于是，手里只有几个便士的路易吉，登上了北上的火车。

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When he arrived in Niagara Falls, Luigi was amazed at how clean and beautiful it was

到达尼亚加拉瀑布城时，路易吉惊叹于这里的干净和美丽。

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" This is where I will find my American Dream," he declared

“我要在这里找到我的美国梦。”他宣告说。

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Luigi began searching for a construction job

路易吉开始找建筑工地的工作。

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But once again, everywhere he went, there were no jobs for immigrants

但再一次，他所到之处，都没有给移民的工作。

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Luigi grew desperate. He had absolutely no money, no friends, and no job

路易吉越来越绝望。他身无分文，无亲无故，也没有工作。

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Would he ever find the American Dream?

他还能找到他的美国梦吗？

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One morning he went to yet another construction site and asked for a job. The foreman said," Sorry, nothing today."

一天早上，他又去了一个建筑工地找活儿干。工头说：“抱歉，今天没活儿。”

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Luigi became very angry and shouted," I need a job, and I'm not leaving until I get one!"

路易吉非常生气，大喊：“我需要工作，找不到工作我就不走了！”

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With that, Luigi grabbed a shovel and started to work

说着，路易吉抓起一把铲子，开始干起活来。

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He began helping the construction workers dig a long and deep trench

他开始帮建筑工人挖一条又长又深的沟。

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The astonished foreman watched in disbelief." What are you doing?" he demanded

工头目瞪口呆地看着，不敢相信。“你在干什么？”他质问道。

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" I'm working," replied Luigi." If you don't like my work, you don't have to pay me

“我在干活，”路易吉回答，“要是你不喜欢我干的活儿，不用付我钱。”

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But I'm working here today."

但今天，我就在这儿干了。”

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Luigi worked harder than any other man all day long

整整一天，路易吉比任何人都干得起劲。

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At the end of the day, Luigi approached the foreman," So do you like my work?"

收工时，路易吉走到工头跟前问：“怎么样，我的活儿还满意吗？”

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" Yes, you do good work." The foreman acknowledged

“嗯，你活儿干得不错。”工头认可道。

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" Then I will come back tomorrow, and you will pay me," said Luigi

“那我明天还来，你再付我工钱。”路易吉说。

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At that all the other workmen started laughing

听了这话，其他工人都笑了起来。

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They had never witnessed anything like this before

他们以前从没见过这样的事。

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" You are very bold," remarked one of the men

“你胆子可真大。”一个工人说。

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" I'm not bold," retorted Luigi." I'm just hungry."

“我不是胆子大，”路易吉回敬道，“我只是饿了。”

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The foreman smiled and said," Okay, Luigi, you have a job. Come back tomorrow."

工头笑了笑，说：“行，路易吉，你被雇用了。明天再来。”

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Then he reached into this pocket and pulled out some money

接着，他把手伸进口袋，掏出些钱。

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" Here is your money for today. Go and get something to eat, and buy a new pair of boots."

“这是你今天的工钱。去吃点东西，再买双新靴子。”

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After that Luigi worked every day. He was the first to arrive at the construction site in the morning and the last to leave at night

从那以后，路易吉天天干活。每天早上他第一个到工地，晚上最后一个离开。

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Before long he had enough money for his wife and baby to come to America and join him

没多久，他就攒够了钱，让妻子和宝宝来美国团聚。

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Their house was located in an attractive Italian neighborhood in Niagara Falls

他们的房子在尼亚加拉瀑布城一个宜人的意大利人社区。

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Luigi and his wife eventually had more children

后来，路易吉和妻子又生了几个孩子。

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After a few years, Luigi's family bought a new house that was bigger and very well constructed

几年后，路易吉一家买了栋更大、建造精良的新房子。

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Their neighborhood was near good shops, safe schools, and a new church, which Luigi had helped to build

他们家附近就有好店铺、安全的学校，还有一座路易吉参与修建的新教堂。

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His children attended school every day and grew up well

孩子们每天上学，健康成长。

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Many years later Luigi went to the university to attend the graduation ceremony of his youngest son

多年后，路易吉去大学参加小儿子的毕业典礼。

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During the graduation ceremony, Luigi began to cry

毕业典礼上，路易吉哭了起来。

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His wife looked at him in surprise." Why are you crying?" she asked

妻子惊讶地看着他。“怎么哭了？”她问。

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" They are tears of happiness," Luigi said

“这是高兴的眼泪，”路易吉说。

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" Today I have truly achieved the American Dream!"

“今天，我终于实现了美国梦！”