景一

Presidents Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated every year on the third Monday of February to honor George Washington， Abraham Lincoln and also all the Presidents of the country.

總統(tǒng)日是美國的一個聯(lián)邦節(jié)日，在每年二月的第三個星期一慶祝，以紀(jì)念喬治·華盛頓、亞伯拉罕·林肯以及所有的美國總統(tǒng)。

Until 1971 both 12th February and 22nd February were celebrated as public holidays to honor the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. In 1971， President Richard Nixon declared the Presidents Day as one federal public holiday to honor all the Presidents of the United States.

在1971年之前，人們把每年的2月12日和2月22日作為公眾假日來分別慶祝亞伯拉罕·林肯和喬治·華盛頓的誕辰。1971年，理查德·尼克松總統(tǒng)宣布總統(tǒng)日為聯(lián)邦公共假日，以紀(jì)念美國所有的總統(tǒng)。

Presidents Day never falls on the actual birthday of any American president. Four presidents—George Washington， William Henry Harrison， Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan—were born in February， but their birthdays all come either too early or late to coincide with Presidents Day， which is always celebrated on the third Monday of the month.

總統(tǒng)日從來沒落在任何美國總統(tǒng)的生日那天。四位總統(tǒng)——喬治·華盛頓、威廉·亨利·哈里森、亞伯拉罕·林肯和羅納德·威爾遜·里根都在二月出生，但他們的生日要么在總統(tǒng)日之前，要么在總統(tǒng)日之后，而總統(tǒng)日總是在該月的第三個星期一慶祝。

Like Independence Day， Presidents Day is traditionally viewed as a time of patriotic5 celebration and remembrance6. In its original incarnation7 as Washingtons Birthday， the holiday gained special meaning during the difficulties of the Great Depression， when portraits of George Washington often graced the front pages of newspapers and magazines every February 22. In 1932 the date was used to reinstate8 the Purple Heart， a military9 decoration10 originally created by George Washington to honor soldiers killed or wounded while serving in the armed forces. Patriotic groups and the Boy Scouts11 of America also held celebrations on the day， and in 1938， some 5，000 people attended mass at Saint Patricks Cathedral in New York City in honor of Washington.

同美國獨立日一樣，總統(tǒng)日在傳統(tǒng)中被當(dāng)作是一個愛國性質(zhì)的慶祝日和紀(jì)念日。在最初作為華盛頓誕辰的年代，該節(jié)日對經(jīng)濟(jì)大蕭條的困難時期有著特殊的意義。當(dāng)時喬治·華盛頓的畫像在每年的2月22日經(jīng)常登上報紙和雜志的頭版頭條。在1932年的這個日子，美國恢復(fù)了頒發(fā)紫心勛章。該勛章最初是喬治·華盛頓為紀(jì)念在軍隊服役期間犧牲或受傷的士兵而頒發(fā)的軍事勛章。美國的愛國團(tuán)體和童子軍也在這一天舉行慶?；顒?。1938年約有5000人參加了在紐約的圣帕特里克大教堂舉行的紀(jì)念華盛頓的活動。

In its modern form， Presidents Day is used by many patriotic and historical groups as a date for staging celebrations， reenactments12 and other events. A number of states also require that their public schools spend the days leading up to Presidents Day teaching students about the accomplishments13 of the presidents， often with a focus on the lives of Washington and Lincoln.

在現(xiàn)代，總統(tǒng)日是許多愛國團(tuán)體和傳統(tǒng)團(tuán)體舉辦慶典、重溫歷史和舉行其他活動的日子。有些州還要求公立學(xué)校在總統(tǒng)日之前的那幾天，向?qū)W生講授總統(tǒng)的成就，通常把重點放在了華盛頓和林肯的生平上。

Marketers jump at the opportunity to play up the three-day weekend with sales， and “Presidents Day” bargains were advertised at stores around the country.

市場營銷人員抓住這個機(jī)會，為為期三天的周末促銷造勢。在全國各地的商店里都有“總統(tǒng)日”特價的廣告。

Notes：

1. federal adj. 聯(lián)邦的

2. veteran n. 老兵

3. recipient n. 容器，接受者；容納者

4. annual adj. 年度的；每年的

5. patriotic adj. 愛國的

6. remembrance n. 回想，回憶；紀(jì)念

7. incarnation n. 特殊階段；化身

8. reinstate vt. 使恢復(fù)；使復(fù)原

9. military adj. 軍事的；軍人的

10. decoration n. 獎?wù)?/p>

11. scout n. 偵察兵；童子軍

12. reenactment n. 再制定；再扮演

13. accomplishment n. 成就