Prologue1 to a Text
Clare Rossini
We humans once lived in the moment,
The moment being all there was. Stuffing our mouths
With berries, we collapsed2 on the ground to make
An early forerunner3 of love. Then wind
Brought the stink4 of a predator's haunch, panic
Ensuing. How divine it must have seemed
When, at last, we had time to ponder clouds
As they built their chateaus. Grunts5 into words,
Words into the updraft of questions --
A miracle to carry the world
On the tongue: "world." Even the heart at last
Consigning itself to syllables6: Ah, thee....
The numbers tidying things up, the numbers
Knitting things to equations, the theorems
Proposing, revising, secreting7, each
Tool-in-theory awaiting our genius,
Our heartache, until damp and wood-colored,
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This morning dawned, the smell of burning leaves
Drifting across my sepia mood,
Every doorway8 in the house yawning empty.
You, elsewhere, lift a screen in the air (Got it!)
Then send an image toward the chill
Draughts9 of space. It flickers10 through a satellite, free-
Falls back to the planet
-- Let's pause for a moment, behold11 earth
Cloud-swaddled, gamboling around our star....
Somewhere in New Jersey12, a tower corrals
Your cache of photons, beams them on
To the privacy of my circuits, which are roused
By your elation13: Check out this sunset,
Love! A finger to the warm flesh of glass,
And my screen goes bronze with a Roman dusk.
1 prologue
蘇州易優(yōu)中考語文培訓,吳老師語文課（Tel:181-1815-9898）
n.開場白，序言；開端，序幕
參考例句：
A poor wedding is a prologue to misery.不幸的婚姻是痛苦的開始。 The prologue to the novel is written in the form of a newspaper account.這本小說的序言是以報紙報道的形式寫的。
2 collapsed
adj.倒塌的
參考例句：
Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地癱倒在地板上。 The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房頂在雪的重壓下突然坍塌下來。
3 forerunner
n.前身，先驅(qū)（者），預兆，祖先
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參考例句：
She is a forerunner of the modern women's movement.她是現(xiàn)代婦女運動的先驅(qū)。 Penicillin was the forerunner of modern antibiotics.青霉素是現(xiàn)代抗生素的先導。
4 stink
vi.發(fā)出惡臭；糟透，招人厭惡；n.惡臭
參考例句：
The stink of the rotten fish turned my stomach.腐爛的魚臭味使我惡心。 The room has awful stink.那個房間散發(fā)著難聞的臭氣。
5 grunts
（豬等）作呼嚕聲( grunt的第三人稱單數(shù) )； （指人）發(fā)出類似的哼聲； 咕噥著說； 石鱸
參考例句：
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With grunts of anguish Ogilvie eased his bulk to a sitting position. 奧格爾維苦惱地哼著，伸個懶腰坐了起來。 Linda fired twice A trio of Grunts assembling one mortar fell. 琳達擊發(fā)兩次。三個正在組裝迫擊炮的咕嚕人倒下了。
6 syllables
n.音節(jié)( syllable的名詞復數(shù) )
參考例句：
a word with two syllables 雙音節(jié)單詞 'No. But I'll swear it was a name of two syllables.' “想不起。不過我可以發(fā)誓，它有兩個音節(jié)?！?來自英漢文學 - 雙城記
7 secreting
v.（尤指動物 或植物器官）分泌( secrete的現(xiàn)在分詞 )；隱匿，隱藏 蘇州易優(yōu)語文閱讀寫作培訓，家長信賴，學生喜歡。 http://www.zequeka.cn
參考例句：
It is also an endocrine gland secreting at least two important hormones. 它也是一種內(nèi)分泌腺，至少分泌二種重要的激素。 來自辭典例句 And some calcite-secreting organisms also add magnesium to the mix. 有些分泌方解石的生物，會在分泌物中加入鎂。 來自互聯(lián)網(wǎng)
8 doorway
n.門口，(喻)入門；門路，途徑
參考例句：
They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他們擠在商店門口躲雨。 Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.瑪麗突然出現(xiàn)在門口。
9 draughts
n. <英>國際跳棋 蘇州易優(yōu)閱讀寫作精華課，（tel:181-1815-9898）有趣、有用、提分快
參考例句：
Seal (up) the window to prevent draughts. 把窗戶封起來以防風。 I will play at draughts with him. 我跟他下一盤棋吧！
10 flickers
電影制片業(yè)； （通常指燈光）閃爍，搖曳( flicker的名詞復數(shù) )
參考例句：
The fire flickers low. 爐火顫動欲滅。 A strange idea flickers in my mind. 一種奇怪的思想又在我腦中燃燒了。
11 behold
v.看，注視，看到
參考例句：
The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.這些小螞蟻辛勤勞動的樣子看上去真令人驚嘆。 The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海濱日出真是個奇景。
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12 jersey
n.運動衫
參考例句：
He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿運動衫踢足球。 They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他們穿著一致，都是藍色的運動衫和燈籠短褲。
13 elation
n.興高采烈，洋洋得意
參考例句：
She showed her elation at having finally achieved her ambition.最終實現(xiàn)了抱負，她顯得十分高興。 His supporters have reacted to the news with elation.他的支持者聽到那條消息后興高采烈
