博客小伙伴待命
世傲命的技术观测站 PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY OBSERVATORY

每日英语口语练习 2026-09-05

2026-09-05 · 每日英语口语练习

← 返回学习工作台 打开原始材料 ↗
VIDEO STUDY ← / → 前后调整 5 秒 · Esc 退出小窗

每日英语口语练习 2026-09-05（星期六）

📖 原文（来源：John F. Kennedy「Inaugural Address」1961-01-20，JFK 官方图书馆档案全文）

Vice President Johnson, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman, Reverend Clergy, fellow citizens:

We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom—symbolizing an end as well as a beginning—signifying renewal as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago.

The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe—the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God.

We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans—born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage—and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.

This much we pledge—and more.

To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins we share, we pledge the loyalty of faithful friends. United, there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided, there is little we can do—for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder.

To those new states whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be replaced by a far more iron tyranny. We shall not always expect to find them supporting our view. But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom—and to remember that, in the past, those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.

To those peoples in the huts and villages across the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help themselves, for whatever period is required—not because the communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right. If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.

To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge—to convert our good words into good deeds—in a new alliance for progress—to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty. But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers. Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas. And let every other power know that this Hemisphere intends to remain the master of its own house.

To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Nations, our last best hope in an age where the instruments of war have far outpaced the instruments of peace, we renew our pledge of support—to prevent it from becoming merely a forum for invective—to strengthen its shield of the new and the weak—and to enlarge the area in which its writ may run.

Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace, before the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or accidental self-destruction.

We dare not tempt them with weakness. For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed.

But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our present course—both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind’s final war.

So let us begin anew—remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.

Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.

Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals for the inspection and control of arms—and bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations.

Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce.

Let both sides unite to heed in all corners of the earth the command of Isaiah—to “undo the heavy burdens … and to let the oppressed go free.”

And if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor, not a new balance of power, but a new world of law, where the strong are just and the weak secure and the peace preserved.

All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.

In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than in mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course. Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty. The graves of young Americans who answered the call to service surround the globe.

Now the trumpet summons us again—not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need—not as a call to battle, though embattled we are—but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, “rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation”—a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.

Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?

In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility—I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it—and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of sacrifice and self-commitment that we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God’s work must truly be our own.

🎬 视频/音频资源

📝 重点词汇（10 个）

💬 跟读练习建议

  1. 第一遍·盲听抓骨（C-SPAN 版，约 14 分钟可只听前 5 分钟）：不看文本，只抓每段开头信号词——“We observe / The world is / We dare not / Let every nation know”，感受「宣言体」的段首节奏。
  2. 第二遍·逐句影子跟读：重点跟读三段金句骨架：
    • “Let every nation know… pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe”——五连排比，逐项渐强，“liberty” 重落。
    • “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.”——两句镜像倒装，重音落在 fear / negotiate 交替处。
    • “And so, my fellow Americans: ask not…”——练倒装问句的断句：ask not ↑ / what your country can do for you ↓ / ask ↑ / what you can do for your country ↓↓。
  3. 第三遍·分段配音：把原文当台词，用「宣誓腔」朗读第 5–8 段（Let every nation know 到 it cannot save the few who are rich），录音回听对比原声。
  4. 加分项：JFK 语速约 110 词/分钟、波士顿口音偏「非 r 化」（如 forebears 的 r 弱化），跟读时不必模仿口音，但学他的停顿——每个排比项之间都敢停半拍。

🔄 即兴口语练习（每题先说 60–90 秒，再对照参考要点）

  1. “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.” 这句话在今天还适用吗？换成职场/家庭语境怎么说？ 参考要点：先表态（适用/需限定）→ 给一个转写版本（如 “Ask not what your team can do for you—ask what you can do for your team”）→ 举一个自己的具体例子 → 收尾用一句对偶句。
  2. Kennedy 说 “If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” 你在生活中见过哪种「个体与共同体」互相成就或互相拖累的例子？ 参考要点：定义你理解的共同体（团队/社区/行业）→ 一正一反两个例子 → 说明机制（为什么帮别人其实是在保护自己）→ 用 “helping X is the best way to save Y” 句式收尾。
  3. “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.” 你经历过哪次「硬着头皮也要谈」的时刻（谈判/加薪/道歉）？ 参考要点：STAR 简版——情境与对方立场 → 你的恐惧是什么 → 你如何开口（引用哪句话术）→ 结果与反思；注意用过去时叙事 + 现在时总结。

📋 发音技巧提示

  1. 倒装问句的对比重音（本次核心）：“ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country”——chiasmus 交叉结构里，country 与 you 两个词互换位置，朗读时重音也要跟着互换，第二半句稍慢、稍降，制造「落地感」。
  2. 五连排比的「清单语调」：“pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe”——前四项用升调（表示未完待续），最后一项 “any foe” 用降调收束；每项之间停顿半拍，不要赶。
  3. 弱读与连读：let us 在演讲中读 /let əs/（us 弱读成 /əs/）；“bear any” 连读成 /ˈbereni/；“support any” 同理 /səˈpɔːrteni/——any 永远弱读、粘在前一个动词尾部。

🗣 今日金句

“Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.” 不要问国家能为你做什么——要问你能为国家做什么。

（本句是英语修辞学教科书级案例：chiasmus 交叉对偶 + antithesis 对比 + 平行倒装，背熟这一句，等于同时拿下演讲、写作、面试三大场景的开场武器。）