三民學習網－英語資訊網/新聞宅急通

Vol. 128,
January 30, 2012

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‧音標字型下載　
‧音標字型安裝說明

資料來源：三民英語資訊網
(有著作權，請勿隨意引用)

supreme adj. 最高的，至高無上的
◆ The Emperor in ancient China, or "Son of Heaven," is regarded as the supreme authority.

as a result of 由於
◆ As a result of the railroad accident, most of trains had been delayed or cancelled for hours.

exhaustion n. 精疲力竭、疲憊不堪
◆ The marathon runner collapsed in heat exhaustion and dropped at the halfway point of the race.

spark vt . 引發
◆ The tax reform policy sparked a series of debates and widespread protests around the country.

succeed vi . 接替、繼任
◆ Queen Elizabeth II succeeded to the throne upon the King George VI ' s death in 1952.

secluded adj. 與世隔絕的
◆ Bhutan, a small and secluded nation in the Himalayas , is regarded as one of the happiest lands on Earth.

possess vt . 擁有
◆ Mr. Wang is a landlord who possesses several acres of land in this town.

strained adj. 緊張的，不友好的
◆ After a party crusher showed up, the atmosphere became strained throughout the party.

successor n. [C] 繼任人
◆ The Queen has named her successor to be the next leader of this country.

appoint vt . 任命
◆ Mr. Krugman was appointed to the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers.

be blamed for
◆ Global warming is blamed for the abnormal weather these years.

famine n . [ C ] 飢荒
◆ It is estimated that millions of people in Africa are facing famine because of the drought.

approximately adv. 大約、接近
◆ Pyongyang , the capital of North Korea , has a population of approximately 3.2 million.

reign n . [ C ] 當政時期
◆ The bloody revolution put an end to the military dictator ' s reign of terror .

portray vt . 將…描寫成
◆ The mass media portrayed the old man as being witness to dramatic changes of this small village.

fiercely adv . 猛烈地，激烈地
◆ Online advertising has become fiercely competitive as the social network sites are getting popular.

mourning n . [U] 悼念儀式
◆ The worldwide mourning for Steve Jobs had continued for few months since his death last October.

landmark n . [ C ] 地標
◆ The Tokyo Sky Tree will be not only a new landmark in Tokyo but the tallest tower in the world in May, 2012.

grief n . [U] 悲痛，悲傷
◆ Though years have passed, Beatrice is still struggling with the grief from losing her husband.

demonstration n. 公開集會
◆ The Farmers Unions managed to organize a peaceful demonstration in front of the Presidential Office.

wail v . 嚎啕大哭
◆ Millions of people in Pyongyang stood along the streets, weeping and wailing for their dead Great Comrade.

observer n . [ C ] 觀察員、評論家
◆ More than 50 independent observer s around the world came to Nigeria and monitored the election.

funeral n. 喪禮
◆ On October 7, 2011, a private funeral was held for the co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs.

stage v . 發起、舉辦
◆ To protest against the unfair policy, the labor union is going to stage a strike next Friday.

altered adj . 改變的
◆ It is believed that "Snow White" is an altered story from European traditional fairy tales.

impact n. 衝擊，影響
◆ The ECFA (Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement) had great impact s on the agriculture and industry in Taiwan.

Power Change in North Korea

(by Jason W. Crockett, special correspondent)

North Korea's supreme leader, Kim Jong-il, died of a heart attack on December 17, 2011. The North Korean government did not formally announce Kim's death until two days later, saying that he died as a result of extreme exhaustion and stress. Kim's death sparked concern around the world about who would succeed him as leader of the secluded communist country, which possesses nuclear weapons and has a strained relationship with its neighbor, South Korea. Kim Jong-il's youngest son, Kim Jong-un, was immediately named as his father's successor and was officially appointed leader of the country's ruling party, military, and government within two weeks after his father's death.

Kim Jong-il was born in 1941 and became the supreme leader of North Korea in 1994 after the death of his father, Kim Il-sung. Although Kim's economic policies are blamed for a severe famine in North Korea that killed approximately one million people in the 1990s, the country developed and successfully tested nuclear weapons during his reign , which was viewed as a sign of strength in dealings with South Korea and the United States. Kim continued to promote the cult of personality that his father began in North Korea , which portrays the ruling family as gods and fiercely punishes dissent.

After Kim Jong-il's death, the country began a period of official mourning that lasted 11 days. Upon hearing news that Kim had died, people gathered at official landmarks to show their grief with public demonstrations of crying and wailing. Outside observers noted that North Korean government punished people for not mourning enough after the death of Kim Il-sung, and that such displays were likely driven by self-preservation rather than actual grief. Kim's official funeral offered similar scenes of controlled sorrow, as the government staged a large parade and altered photographs to maximize the impact of his death on the nation.

Reading Comprehension Test

1.	Which of the following would be another suitable title for this article? (A) The Official Mourning for North Korea 's Leader. (B) Strained Relationships between North and South Korea. (C) The Sudden Death of Supreme Comrade of North Korea. (D) Nuclear Weapons Test Again in North Korea.
2.	What is mainly the second paragraph of this article about? (A) The death and official funeral of Kim Il-sung in 1994. (B) How Kim Jong-un succeeded his father as supreme leader of North Korea. (C) The public demonstration in the capital of North Korea. (D) What Kim Jong-il had done to North Korea during his reign.
3.	The phrase "be blamed for" in the second paragraph means "__________." (A) to think that someone or something should be responsible for something bad (B) to say that something is not fair and should be treated justly (C) to believe that someone deserves what he or she has done (D) to describe that someone or something is not guilty of doing something wrong
4.	Which of the following statements about Kim Jong-un is NOT true? (A) He was officially named leader of North Korea within two weeks after his father's death. (B) His father died as a result of extreme stress, exhaustion, and a heart attack in late 2011. (C) He is the youngest son of Kim Il-sung and became the supreme leader in 1994. (D) His father's policies led to a great famine in North Korea in the 1990s.
5.	The word "stage" in the last paragraph may refer to "__________." (A) succeed (B) happen (C) hold (D) perform

Words for Recognition

Kim Jong-il n. 金正日 (1941-2011)
◆ 已故朝鮮民主人民共和國 ( 北韓 ) 領導人，為創建人金日成之子。於 1994 年金日成逝世後，接任朝鮮勞動黨總書記及各項重要黨政軍要職至到 2011 年底，朝鮮官方媒體以「偉大領導者金正日同志」稱呼之。

communist adj. 共產主義的
◆ communist dictatorship / ideology / regime / system / world 共產專政 / 意識形態 / 政權 / 制度 / 世界

Kim Jong-un n. 金正恩 (1983-)
◆ 現任朝鮮民主人民共和國 ( 北韓 ) 的最高領導人，為金正日三子。金正恩在 2010 年開始在金正日的規劃下為接班做準備， 2011 年 12 月 17 日金正日死訊傳出後，為穩定北韓政局及金式家族的領導中心地位，在數天內正式為第三代國家領導人。

Kim Il-sung n. 金日成 (1912-1994)
◆ 出生於日本殖民時期的朝鮮平壤。在蘇聯共黨的扶植下，二次大戰後，創建朝鮮民主主義人民共和國。自 1948 年創建起至 1994 年過世前都是該國最高領導人。即是在過世後， 1998 年修改的憲法中仍稱其為「共和國永遠的主席」，另有「大元帥」的稱號。

cult n. [ C ] 狂熱崇拜
◆ personality cult 個人崇拜 cult figure / following 崇拜人物 / 擁護者

dissent n . [U] 異議
◆ arouse / express / suppress dissent 引起 / 表達 / 鎮壓異議

self-preservation n . [U] 自我保護
◆ instinct / sense of self-preservation 自我保護的直覺 / 意識

maximize vt. 增加到最大限度
◆ maximize efficiency / profits 提高效率 / 增加利潤

中譯

北韓權力交替

北韓的最高領導人金正日 2011 年 12 月 17 日死於心肌梗塞。北韓政府直到兩天後才正式公布其死訊，聲稱他因極度的勞累與壓力而過世。金正日之死引起全球關切誰會接替他，成為這個擁有核武、與鄰國南韓關係緊繃的封閉共產國家領導人。金正日的么子金正恩迅速被點名成為接班人，在金正日過世後兩週內，金正恩就被正式任命為該國執政黨、軍隊及政府領導人。

金正日生於 1941 年， 1994 年在父親金日成過世後成為北韓最高領導人。雖然金正日的經濟政策被批評造成 1990 年代北韓將近一百萬人死於嚴重的飢荒，但該國在其統治下發展核武並測試成功，核武被視為象徵對付南韓及美國的軍事實力。金正日繼續推動從他父親開始的個人崇拜，也就是將統治家族描寫成神一般，並嚴懲異議份子。

金正日過世後北韓開始了持續 11 天的官方追悼儀式。一聽到金正日的死訊，人們就聚集到官方地標建築去表達悲痛並公開嚎啕慟哭。外部觀察人士指出，北韓當局曾經懲罰過在金日成過世後不夠哀慟的人們，所以這樣的表現可能是出於自保而非發自內心的悲痛情緒。金正日的國葬典禮也提供了類似做作的悲傷場景，政府安排大型的送葬隊伍，還修改照片以放大金正日之死對北韓的影響力。

閱讀測驗解答：1. C　2. D　3. A　4. B　5. C