英语四级美文：The English Character

　　To other Europeans, the best known quality of the British,and in particular of the English, is “reserved”.A reserved person is one who does not talk very much to strangers,does not show much emotion, and seldom gets excited.It is difficult to get to know a reserved person:he never tells you anything about himself,and you may work with him for years without ever knowing where he lives,how many children he has, and what his interests are.English people tend to be like that.Closely related to English reserve is English modesty.Within their hearts, the English are perhaps no less conceited than anybody else,but in their relations with others they value at least a show of modesty.Self-praise is felt to be impolite.If a person is, let us say,very good at tennis and someone asks him if he is a good player,he will seldom reply “Yes,”because people will think him conceited.He will probably give an answer like,“Im not bad,” or “I think Im very good,” or “Well, Im very keen on tennis.”Even if he had managed to reach the finals in last years local championships,he would say it in such a way as to suggest that it was only due to a piece of good luck.Since reserve and modesty are part of his own nature,the typical English tends to expect them in others.He secretly looks down on more excitable nations,and likes to think of himself as more reliable than they are.He doesnt trust big promises and open shows of feelings,especially if they are expressed in flowery language.He doesnt trust self-praise of any kind.This applies not only to what other people may tell him about themselves orally,but to the letters they may write to him.To those who are fond of flowery expressions,the Englishman may appear uncomfortably cold.

　　2021年下半年大学英语四级美文100篇汇总

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作文地带知识拓展:

• 英语（English）属于印欧语系日耳曼语族西日耳曼语支，最早被中世纪的英国使用，并因其广阔的殖民地而成为世界使用面积最广的语言。英国人的祖先盎格鲁部落是后来迁移到大不列颠岛地区的日耳曼部落之一，称为英格兰。这两个名字都来自波罗地海半岛的Anglia。该语言与弗里斯兰语和下撒克森语密切相关，其词汇受到其他日耳曼语族语言的影响，尤其是北欧语（北日耳曼语），并在很大程度上由拉丁文和法文撰写。

  英语的英文释义：

  English 名词 uk  /ˈɪŋ.ɡlɪʃ/ us  /ˈɪŋ.ɡlɪʃ/

  the language that is spoken in the UK, the US, and in many other countries

  英语

  American/British English

  美式／英式英语

  Do you speak English?

  你会说英语吗？

  English   形容词 adjective   uk  /ˈɪŋ.ɡlɪʃ/ us  /ˈɪŋ.ɡlɪʃ/

  in or relating to the English language

  英语的

  an English teacher

  英语老师

  relating to or from England

  英格兰的;英国的

  English films/food/people

  英国电影／食品／人

  English law

  英格兰法律