梦想与责任---奥巴马对美国学生的全国讲话 中英演讲稿大全

第一篇：梦想与责任---奥巴马对美国学生的全国讲话 中英演讲稿大全

名人名校励志演讲：梦想与责任---奥巴马对美国学生的全国讲话 中英演讲稿

国总统奥巴马2009年9月8日开学演讲 英文全文 For Immediate Release September 8, 2009

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT IN A NATIONAL ADDRESS TO AMERICA'S SCHOOLCHILDREN

Wakefield High School Arlington, Virginia

THE PRESIDENT: Hello, everybody!Thank you.Thank you.Thank you, everybody.All right, everybody go ahead and have a seat.How is everybody doing today?(Applause.)How about Tim Spicer?(Applause.)I am here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia.And we’ve got students tuning in from all across America, from kindergarten through 12th grade.And I am just so glad that all could join us today.And I want to thank Wakefield for being such an outstanding host.Give yourselves a big round of applause.(Applause.)大家好！谢谢你们。谢谢你们。谢谢你们大家。好，大家请就坐。你们今天都好吗？（掌声）蒂姆•斯派塞（Tim Spicer）好吗？（掌声）我现在与弗吉尼亚州阿灵顿郡韦克菲尔德高中的学生们在一起。美国各地从小学预备班到中学12年级的学生正在收听收看。我很高兴大家今天都能参与。我还要感谢韦克菲尔德高中出色的组织安排。请为你们自己热烈鼓掌。（掌声）

I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school.And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous.I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now--(applause)--with just one more year to go.And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little bit longer this morning.我知道，今天是你们很多人开学的日子。对于进入小学预备班、初中或高中的学生，今天是你们来到新学校的第一天，心里可能有点紧张，这是可以理解的。我能想象有些毕业班学生现在感觉很不错——（掌声）——还有一年就毕业了。不论在哪个年级，你们有些人可能希望暑假更长一点，今天早上还能多睡一小会儿。

I know that feeling.When I was young, my family lived overseas.I lived in Indonesia for a few years.And my mother, she didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school, but she thought it was important for me to keep up with an American education.So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday.But because she had to go to work, the only time she could do it was at 4:30 in the morning.我了解这种感觉。我小时候，我们家生活在海外。我在印度尼西亚住了几年。我妈妈没有钱送我上其他美国孩子上的学校，但她认为必须让我接受美式教育。因此，她决定从周一到周五自己给我补课。不过她还要上班，所以只能在清晨四点半给我上课。

Now, as you might imagine, I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early.And a lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table.But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and she’d say, “This is no picnic for me either, buster.”(Laughter.)

你们可以想见，我不太情愿那么早起床。有很多次，我趴在餐桌上就睡着了。但每当我抱怨的时候，我妈妈都会那样地看我一眼，然后说：“小子，这对我也并不轻松。”（笑声）So I know that some of you are still adjusting to being back at school.But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you.I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.我知道你们有些人还在适应开学后的生活。但我今天来到这里是因为有重要的事情要和你们说。我来这里是要和你们谈谈你们的教育问题，以及在这个新学年对你们所有人的期望。Now, I’ve given a lot of speeches about education.And I’ve talked about responsibility a lot.我做过很多次有关教育问题的演讲。我多次谈到过责任问题。

I’ve talked about teachers’ responsibility for inspiring students and pushing you to learn.我谈到过教师激励学生并督促他们学习的责任。

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and you get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with the Xbox.我谈到过家长的责任，要确保你们走正路，完成家庭作业，不要整天坐在电视前或玩Xbox游戏。I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, and supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working, where students aren’t getting the opportunities that they deserve.我多次谈到过政府的责任，要制定高标准，支持教师和校长的工作，彻底改善不能为学生提供应有机会的、教育质量差的学校。

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, the best schools in the world--and none of it will make a difference, none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities, unless you show up to those schools, unless you pay attention to those teachers, unless you listen to your parents and grandparents and other adults and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.That’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education.然而，即使我们拥有最敬业的教师，最尽力的家长和全世界最好的学校——如果你们大家不履行你们的责任，不到校上课，不专心听讲，不听家长、祖父祖母和其他大人的话，不付出取得成功所必须的勤奋努力，那么这一切都毫无用处，都无关紧要。这就是我今天讲话的重点：你们每个人对自己的教育应尽的责任。

I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.Every single one of you has something that you’re good at.Every single one of you has something to offer.And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is.That’s the opportunity an education can provide.我首先要讲讲你们对自己应尽的责任。你们每个人都有自己的长处。你们每个人都能做出自己的贡献。你们对自己应尽的责任是发现自己的能力所在。而教育能够提供这样的机会。

Maybe you could be a great writer--maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper--but you might not know it until you write that English paper--that English class paper that’s assigned to you.Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor--maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or the new medicine or vaccine--but you might not know it until you do your project for your science class.Maybe you could be a mayor or a senator or a Supreme Court justice--but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.你或许能成为一名出色的作家——甚至可能写书或在报纸上发表文章——但你可能要在完成那篇英文课的作文后才会发现自己的才华。你或许能成为一名创新者或发明家——甚至可能设计出新一代iPhone或研制出新型药物或疫苗——但你可能要在完成科学课的实验后才会发现自己的才华。你或许能成为一名市长或参议员或最高法院的大法官——但你可能要在参加学生会的工作或辩论队后才会发现自己的才华。

And no matter what you want to do with your life, I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it.You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers.You cannot drop out of school and just drop into a good job.You’ve got to train for it and work for it and learn for it.不论你的生活志向是什么，我敢肯定你必须上学读书才能实现它。你想当医生、教师或警官吗？你想当护士、建筑师、律师或军人吗？你必须接受良好的教育，才能从事上述任何一种职业。你不能指望辍学后能碰上个好工作。你必须接受培训，为之努力，为之学习。And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future.What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country.The future of America depends on you.What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.这并非只对你个人的人生和未来意义重大。可以毫不夸大地说，教育给你带来的益处将决定这个国家的未来。美国的未来取决于你们。你们今日在校学习的知识将决定我们作为一个国家是否能够迎接我们未来所面临的最严峻挑战。

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment.You’ll need the insights and critical-thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free.You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.你们将需要利用你们通过自然科学和数学课程所学到的知识和解决问题的能力来治愈癌症、艾滋病及其他疾病，开发新的能源技术和保护我们的环境。你们将需要利用你们在历史学和社会学课堂上所获得的知识和独立思考能力来抗击贫困和解决无家可归问题，打击犯罪和消除歧视，使我们的国家更公平、更自由。你们将需要利用你们在所有课堂上培养的创造力和智慧来创办新公司，增加就业机会，振兴我们的经济。

We need every single one of you to develop your talents and your skills and your intellect so you can help us old folks solve our most difficult problems.If you don’t do that--if you quit on school--you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.我们需要你们每个人发挥你们的聪明才智和技能，以便帮助老一辈人解决我们面临的最棘手问题。如果你们不这样做，如果你们辍学，你们不仅仅是自暴自弃，也是抛弃自己的国家。Now, I know it’s not always easy to do well in school.I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.我自然知道要做到学业优秀并非总是易事。我知道你们许多人在生活中面临挑战，难以集中精力从事学业。

I get it.I know what it’s like.My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mom who had to work and who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us the things that other kids had.There were times when I missed having a father in my life.There were times when I was lonely and I felt like I didn’t fit in.我明白这一点。我有亲身感受。两岁时，我父亲离家而去，我是由一位单亲母亲抚养成人的，母亲不得不工作，并时常为支付生活费用而苦苦挣扎，但有时仍无法为我们提供其他孩子享有的东西。有时，我渴望生活中能有一位父亲。有时我感到孤独，感到自己不适应社会。So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been on school, and I did some things I’m not proud of, and I got in more trouble than I should have.And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.我并非总是像我应该做到的那样专心学习，我也曾做过我如今不能引以为豪的一些事情，我曾惹过不应该惹的麻烦。我的人生原本会轻易陷入更糟糕的境地。

But I was--I was lucky.I got a lot of second chances, and I had the opportunity to go to college and law school and follow my dreams.My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, she has a similar story.Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have a lot of money.But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.但是，我当年际遇不错。我有过许多第二次机会，我有幸能上大学，上法学院，追求自己的理想。我的妻子，我们的第一夫人米歇尔•奥巴马，也有着类似的经历。她的父母都未曾上过大学，家里很穷。但他们非常勤奋，她也是如此，因此她得以进入一些美国最好的学校。Some of you might not have those advantages.Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need.Maybe someone in your family has lost their job and there’s not enough money to go around.Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.你们中有一些人可能没有那些有利条件。或许你们生活中没有成年人为你们提供你们所需要的支持。或许你们家中有人失业，经济非常拮据。或许你们生活在使你们感觉不安全的社区，或有朋友逼迫你们去做你们知道不对的事情。

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life--what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home--none of that is an excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude in school.That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school.There is no excuse for not trying.然而说到底，你们生活的环境、你们的肤色、你们的原籍、你们的经济收入、你们家中的境况等等，这一切都不能成为你们不用功或不努力的理由。你们没有理由不服从你们的老师、逃学、或辍学。没有理由不付出努力。

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up.No one’s written your destiny for you, because here in America, you write your own destiny.You make your own future.你们目前的状况并不决定着你们的未来。没有人决定你们的命运，在美国，你们决定自己的命运。你们掌握自己的未来。That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.这就是像你们这样的年轻人每天都在做的事情，全美各地都是如此。

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas.Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school.Neither of her parents had gone to college.But she worked hard, earned good grades, and got a scholarship to Brown University--is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to becoming Dr.Jazmin Perez.来自得州罗马城的贾兹敏•佩雷斯（Jazmin Perez）就是一个例证，她刚开始上学时并不会说英文。她的父母都没有上过大学。然而，她非常勤奋，成绩优秀，获得了布朗大学的奖学金，她如今正在读研究生，攻读公共卫生专业，不久将成为贾兹敏•佩雷斯博士。I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three.He’s had to endure all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer--hundreds of extra hours--to do his schoolwork.But he never fell behind.He’s headed to college this fall.我想起了加州洛斯阿尔托斯城的安多尼•舒尔茨（Andoni Schultz），他从三岁开始就一直与脑癌进行抗争，他不得不忍受各类治疗和手术带来的痛苦，其中一项手术曾影响了他的记忆，因此他花在功课上的时间比一般人长得多，要多出数百个小时。然而，他从未落后。他今年秋季将迈进大学。And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois.Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods in the city, she managed to get a job at a local health care center, start a program to keep young people out of gangs, and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.我还想起家乡伊利诺伊州芝加哥市的尚特尔•史蒂夫（Shantell Steve）。她曾在芝加哥最困难的社区生活，寄养于多个不同的家庭，但她最终在一家地方医疗中心找到工作，并开始了一项帮助年轻人远离流氓团伙的计划，她即将以优异成绩从中学毕业，紧接着将上大学。And Jazmin, Andoni, and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you.They face challenges in their lives just like you do.In some cases they’ve got it a lot worse off than many of you.But they refused to give up.They chose to take responsibility for their lives, for their education, and set goals for themselves.And I expect all of you to do the same.贾兹敏、安多尼和尚特尔与你们中间的每个人没什么两样。跟你们一样，他们在生活中面临种种挑战。在某些情况下，他们的处境比起你们许多人更差。但他们拒绝放弃。他们决定要为自己的一生、自己的教育负起责任，为自己设定各项奋斗目标。我期待你们大家都会这样做。

That’s why today I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education--and do everything you can to meet them.Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending some time each day reading a book.Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community.Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all young people deserve a safe environment to study and learn.Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn.And along those lines, by the way, I hope all of you are washing your hands a lot, and that you stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.因此，我今天呼吁你们每一个人为自己的教育设定目标，并尽自己的最大努力来实现这些目标。你的目标可以是一件十分简单的事情，例如完成家庭作业、上课专心听讲、或每天花一点时间读一本书。也许你会决定要参加课外活动或在你的社区提供志愿服务。也许你会决定挺身而出保护那些因为身份或长相而受人戏弄或欺负的孩子，原因是你和我一样认为所有的年轻人都应该享有一个适合读书和学习的安全环境。也许你会决定更好地照料自己，以便有更充沛的精力来学习。顺便提一下，除了这些事情外，我希望大家要勤洗手，身体感到不舒服的时候要呆在家里不去上学，这样我们能防止人们在今年秋冬季节染上流感。But whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it.I want you to really work at it.但无论你决定做什么，我希望你保证去做。我希望你脚踏实地地去做。

I know that sometimes you get that sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work--that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star.Chances are you’re not going to be any of those things.我知道有时候你会从电视上得到这样的印象：你不用做任何艰苦的工作就能发财致富并取得成功，唱小调、打篮球或成为真人秀明星是走向成功的途径。但实际情况是：你可能不会成为其中的一员。

The truth is, being successful is hard.You won’t love every subject that you study.You won’t click with every teacher that you have.Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right at this minute.And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.事实上，取得成功不是轻而易举的事情。你不会喜欢你学习的每一门课目。你不会与你的每一位老师都很投契。不是所有的家庭作业似乎都与你眼前的生活完全有关。你第一次尝试做每件事的时候，不一定成功。

That’s okay.Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures.J.K.Rowling’s--who wrote Harry Potter--her first Harry Potter book was rejected 12 times before it was finally published.Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team.He lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career.But he once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life.And that’s why I succeed.” 这些都没关系。世界上最成功的人士中有一些是遭遇失败最多的人。作者J•K•罗琳（J.K.Rowling）所写的系列小说《哈利•波特》（Harry Potter）第一部在获得出版之前被退稿12次。迈克尔•乔丹（Michael Jordan）曾被他的高中篮球队除名。在乔丹的篮球生涯中，他输过数百场比赛，有成千上万个球没有投中。但他曾说过：“在我的一生中，我失败了一次又一次、一次又一次。这就是我成功的原因。”

These people succeeded because they understood that you can’t let your failures define you--you have to let your failures teach you.You have to let them show you what to do differently the next time.So if you get into trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to act right.If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.这些人士获得成功，因为他们懂得：你不能让失败来限制你，而必须让失败来开导你。你必须让失败向你展示下次如何以不同的方式去做这件事情。因此，如果你遇到麻烦，那并不表示你是麻烦的制造者，而意味着你需要更加努力去把它做对。如果你有一门课分数低，那不表示你比别人笨，而只表示你需要花更多的时间学习。

No one’s born being good at all things.You become good at things through hard work.You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport.You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song.You’ve got to practice.The same principle applies to your schoolwork.You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right.You might have to read something a few times before you understand it.You definitely have to do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.没有一个人天生擅长做各种事情。你通过勤奋而变得擅长于各种事情。第一次从事新的体育项目时，你不可能是一位主力队员。第一次唱一首歌曲时，你不可能唱准每个音。你必须练习。同样的道理适用于你的学业。你可能要把一道数学题做几次才把它做对。你可能要把一些材料阅读几遍才能理解。在交出一篇优美的作文之前，你肯定需要打几遍草稿。Don’t be afraid to ask questions.Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.I do that every day.Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength because it shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and that then allows you to learn something new.So find an adult that you trust--a parent, a grandparent or teacher, a coach or a counselor--and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.不要害怕提问。不要在需要帮助时害怕请求别人帮助。我天天请求别人的帮助。请求帮助不是软弱的表现，它是力量的标志，因为它表明你有勇气承认自己对某些事情不懂，这样做会使你学到新的东西。因此，请确定一位你信任的成年人，例如家长、祖父母或老师、教练或辅导员，请他们帮助你遵循既定计划实现你的目标。

And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you, don’t ever give up on yourself, because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.即使当你苦苦挣扎、灰心丧气、感到其他人对你不抱希望时，也不要对你自己丧失信心，因为当你自暴自弃时，你也抛弃了自己的国家。

The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough.It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.书写美国历史的不是在困难时刻退缩的人，而是坚持不懈、加倍努力的人，他们对国家的爱促使他们全力以赴。

It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and they founded this nation.Young people.Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war;who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon.Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google and Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.书写美国历史的是250年前坐在你们的位置上的学生，他们后来进行了独立战争并创建了这个国家。还有75年前坐在你们的位置上的年轻人和学生，他们走出了大萧条并打赢了一场世界大战；他们为民权而奋斗并把宇航员送上了月球。至于20年前坐在你们的位置上的学生，他们创办了谷歌（Google）、叽喳网（Twitter）和脸谱网（Facebook），改变了我们交流沟通的方式。

So today, I want to ask all of you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a President who comes here in 20 or 50 or 100 years say about what all of you did for this country? 而今天，我要问问你们大家，你们将做出什么贡献？你们将解决什么问题？你们将有什么发现？20年、50年或100年后来到这里讲话的总统将会怎样评价你们大家为这个国家所做的一切？

Now, your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions.I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books and the equipment and the computers you need to learn.But you’ve got to do your part, too.So I expect all of you to get serious this year.I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do.I expect great things from each of you.So don’t let us down.Don’t let your family down or your country down.Most of all, don’t let yourself down.Make us all proud.你们的家人、你们的老师和我正在竭尽全力保证你们接受必要的教育，以便回答上述问题。我正在努力工作，以便你们的教室得到修缮，你们能够得到学习所需的课本、设备和电脑。但你们也必须尽自己的努力。因此，我希望你们大家从今年起认真对待这个问题。我希望你们尽最大努力做好每一件事。我希望你们每个人都有出色的表现。不要让我们失望。不要让你们的家人或你们的国家失望。而最重要的是，不要辜负你们自己，而要让我们都能[为你们]感到骄傲。Thank you very much, everybody.God bless you.God bless America.Thank you.(Applause.)非常感谢你们大家。愿主保佑你们。愿主保佑美国。谢谢你们。（掌声）

第二篇：奥巴马对美国学生的中英演讲稿

奥巴马对美国学生的全国讲话 中英演讲稿

“没有什么是你们无法实现的，只要你们胸怀大志，只要你们愿意努力，只要你们专注于学习，” know that for many of you, today is the first day of school.And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous.I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now--(applause)--with just one more year to go.我知道，今天是你们很多人开学的日子。对于进入小学预备班、初中或高中的学生，今天是你们来到新学校的第一天，心里可能有点紧张，这是可以理解的。我能想象有些毕业班学生现在感觉很不错——（掌声）——还有一年就毕业了。

I know that feeling.When I was young, my family lived overseas.I lived in Indonesia for a few years.And my mother, she didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school, but she thought it was important for me to keep up with an American education.So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday.我了解这种感觉。我小时候，我们家生活在海外。我在印度尼西亚住了几年。我妈妈没有钱送我上其他美国孩子上的学校，但她认为必须让我接受美式教育。

Now, as you might imagine, I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early.And a lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table.But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and she’d say

你们可以想见，我不太情愿那么早起床。有很多次，我趴在餐桌上就睡着了。但每当我抱怨的时候，我妈妈都会那样地看我一眼

So I know that some of you are still adjusting to being back at school.But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you.我知道你们有些人还在适应开学后的生活。但我今天来到这里是因为有重要的事情要和你们说。我来这里是要和你们谈谈你们的教育问题，以及在这个新学年对你们所有人的期望。

Now, I’ve given a lot of speeches about education.And I’ve talked about responsibility a lot.我做过很多次有关教育问题的演讲。我多次谈到过责任问题。

I’ve talked about teachers’ responsibility for inspiring students and pushing you to learn.我谈到过教师激励学生并督促他们学习的责任。

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and you get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with the Xbox.我谈到过家长的责任，要确保你们走正路，完成家庭作业，不要整天坐在电视前或玩Xbox游戏。I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, and supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working, where students aren’t getting the opportunities that they deserve.我多次谈到过政府的责任，要制定高标准，支持教师和校长的工作，彻底改善不能为学生提供应有机会的、教育质量差的学校。

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, the best schools in the world--and none of it will make a difference, none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities, unless you show up to those schools, unless you pay attention to those teachers, unless you listen to your parents and grandparents and other adults and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.That’s what I want to focus on today

然而，即使我们拥有最敬业的教师，最尽力的家长和全世界最好的学校——如果你们大家不履行你们的责任，不到校上课，不专心听讲，不听家长、祖父祖母和其他大人的话，不付出取得成功所必须的勤奋努力，那么这一切都毫无用处，都无关紧要。这就是我今天讲话的重点

I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.Every single one of you has something that you’re good at.Every single one of you has something to offer.我首先要讲讲你们对自己应尽的责任。你们每个人都有自己的长处。

Maybe you could be a great writer--maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper--but you might not know it until you write that English paper--that English class paper that’s assigned to you.Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor--maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or the new medicine or vaccine

你或许能成为一名出色的作家——甚至可能写书或在报纸上发表文章——但你可能要在完成那篇英文课的作文后才会发现自己的才华。你或许能成为一名创新者或发明家——甚至可能设计出新一代iPhone或研制出新型药物或疫苗——但你可能要在完成科学课的实验后才会发现自己的才华。你或许能成为一名市长或参议员或最高法院的大法官——但你可能要在参加学生会的工作或辩论队后才会发现自己的才华。And no matter what you want to do with your life, I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it.You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers.You cannot drop out of school and just drop into a good job.You’ve got to train for it and work for it and learn for it.不论你的生活志向是什么，我敢肯定你必须上学读书才能实现它。你想当医生、教师或警官吗？你想当护士、建筑师、律师或军人吗？你必须接受良好的教育，才能从事上述任何一种职业。你不能指望辍学后能碰上个好工作。你必须接受培训，为之努力，为之学习。

And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future.What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country.The future of America depends on you.What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.这并非只对你个人的人生和未来意义重大。可以毫不夸大地说，教育给你带来的益处将决定这个国家的未来。美国的未来取决于你们。你们今日在校学习的知识将决定我们作为一个国家是否能够迎接我们未来所面临的最严峻挑战。

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment.You’ll need the insights and critical-thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessne and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free.You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.你们将需要利用你们通过自然科学和数学课程所学到的知识和解决问题的能力来治愈癌症、艾滋病及其他疾病，开发新的能源技术和保护我们的环境。你们将需要利用你们在历史学和社会学课堂上所获得的知识和独立思考能力来抗击贫困和解决无家可归问题，打击犯罪和消除歧视，使我们的国家更公平、更自由。你们将需要利用你们在所有课堂上培养的创造力和智慧来创办新公司，增加就业机会，振兴我们的经济。We need every single one of you to develop your talents and your skills and your intellect so you can help us old folks solve our most difficult problems.If you don’t do that--if you quit on school--you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.我们需要你们每个人发挥你们的聪明才智和技能，以便帮助老一辈人解决我们面临的最棘手问题。如果你们不这样做，如果你们辍学，你们不仅仅是自暴自弃，也是抛弃自己的国家。

Now, I know it’s not always easy to do well in school.I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.我自然知道要做到学业优秀并非总是易事。我知道你们许多人在生活中面临挑战，难以集中精力从事学业。I get it.I know what it’s like.My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mom who had to work and who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us the things that other kids had.There were times when I missed having a father in my life.There were times when I was lonely and I felt like I didn’t fit in.我明白这一点。我有亲身感受。两岁时，我父亲离家而去，我是由一位单亲母亲抚养成人的，母亲不得不工作，并时常为支付生活费用而苦苦挣扎，但有时仍无法为我们提供其他孩子享有的东西。有时，我渴望生活中能有一位父亲。有时我感到孤独，感到自己不适应社会。

So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been on school, and I did some things I’m not proud of, and I got in more trouble than I should have.And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.我并非总是像我应该做到的那样专心学习，我也曾做过我如今不能引以为豪的一些事情，我曾惹过不应该惹的麻烦。我的人生原本会轻易陷入更糟糕的境地。

But I was--I was lucky.I got a lot of second chances, and I had the opportu, she has a similar story.Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have a lot of money.But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.但是，我当年际遇不错。我有过许多第二次机会，我有幸能上大学，上法学院，追求自己的理想。我的妻子，我们的第一夫人米歇尔•奥巴马，也有着类似的经历。她的父母都过大学，家里很穷。但他们非常勤奋，她也是如此，因此她得以进入一些美国最好的学校。

Some of you might not have those advantages.Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need.Maybe someone in your family has lor job and there’s not enough money to go around.Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.你们中有一些人可能没有那些有利条件。或许你们生活中没有成年人为你们提供你们所需要的支持。或许你们家中有人失业，经济非常拮据。或许你们生活在使你们感觉不安全的社区，或有朋友逼迫你们去做你们知道不对的事情。

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life--what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home--none of that is an excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude in school.That’s no e for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school.There is no excuse for not trying.然而说到底，你们生活的环境、你们的肤色、你们的原籍、你们的经济收入、你们家中的境况等等，这一切都不能成为你们不用功或不努力的理由。你们没有理从你们的老师、逃学、或辍学。没有理由不付出努力。

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up.No one’s written your destiny for you, because here in America, you write your own destiny.You make your own future.你们目前的状况并不决定着你们的未来。没有人决定你们的命运，在美国，你们决定自己的命运。你们掌握自己的未来。

That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.这就是像你们这样的年轻人每天都在做的事情，全美各地都是如此。

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas.Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school.Neither of her parents had gone to college.But she worked hard, earned good grades, and got a scholarship to Brown University--is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to becoming Dr.Jazmin Perez.来自得州罗马城的贾兹敏•佩雷斯（Jazmin Perez）就是一个例证，她刚开始上学时并不会说英文。她的父母都没有上过大学。然而，她非常勤奋，成绩优秀，获得了布朗大学的奖学金，她如今正在读研究生，攻读公共卫生专业，不久将成为贾兹敏•佩雷斯博士。

I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three.He’s had to endure all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer--hundreds of extra hours--to do his schoolwork.But he never fell behind.He’s headed to college this fall.我想起了加州洛斯阿尔托斯城的安多尼•舒尔茨（Andoni Schultz），他从三岁开始就一直与脑癌进行抗争，他不得不忍受各类治疗和手术带来的痛苦，其中一项手术曾影响了他的记忆，因此他花在功课上的时间比一般人长得多，要多出数百个小时。然而，他从未落后。他今年秋季将迈进大学。

And Jazmin, Andoni, and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you.They face challenges in their lives just like you do.In some cases they’ve got it a lot worse off than many of you.But they refused to give up.They chose to take responsibility for their lives, for their education, and set goals for themselves.And I expect all of you to do the same.贾兹敏、安多尼和尚特尔与你们中间的每个人没什么两样。跟你们一样，他们在生活中面临种种挑战。在某些情况下，他们的处境比起你们许多人更差。但他们拒绝放弃。他们决定要为自己的一生、自己的教育负起责任，为自己设定各项奋斗目标。我期待你们大家都会这样做。That’s why today I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education--and do everything you can to meet them.Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending some time each day reading a book.Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurri because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all young people deserve a safe environment to study and learn.Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn.And along those lines, by the way, I hope all of you are washing your hands a lot, and that you stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.因此，我今天呼吁你们每一个人为自己的教育设定目标，并尽自己的最大努力来实现这些目标。你的目标可以是一件十分简单的事情，例如完成家庭作业、上课专心听讲、或每天花一点时间读一本书。也许你会决定要参加课外活动或在你的有的年轻人都应该享有一个适合读书和学习的安全环境。也许你会决定更好地照料自己，以便有更充沛的精力来学习。顺便提一下，除了这些事情外，我希望大家要勤洗手，身体感到不舒服的时候要呆在家里不去上学，这样我们能防止人们在今年秋冬季节染上流感。

But whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it.I want you to really work at it.但无论你决定做什么，我希望你保证去做。我希望你脚踏实地地去做。

I know that sometimes you get that sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work--that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star.Chances are you’re not going to The truth is, being successful is hard.You won’t love every subject that you study.You won’t click with every teacher that you have.Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right at this minute.And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.事实上，取得成功不是轻而易举的事情。你不会喜欢你学习的每一门课目。你不会与你的每一位老师都很投契。不是所有的家庭作业似乎都与你眼前的生活完全有关。你第一次尝试做每件事的时候，不一定成功。That’s okay.Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures.J.K.Rowling’s--who wrote Harry Potter--her first Harry Potter book was rejected 12 times before it was finally published.这些都没关系。世界上最成功的人士中有一些是遭遇失败最多的人。作者J•K•罗琳（J.K.Rowling）所写的系列小说《哈利•波特》（Harry Potter）第一部在获得出版之前被退稿12次。迈克尔•乔丹（Michael Jordan）曾被他的高中篮球队除名。在乔丹的篮球生涯中，他输过数百场比赛，有成千上万个球没有投中。但他曾说过：“在我的一生中，我失败了一次又一次、一次又一次。这就是我成功的原因。”

Don’t be afraid to ask questions.Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.I do that every day.Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strenge it shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and that then allows you to learn something new.So find an adult that you trust--a parent, a grandparent or teacher, a coach or a counselor--and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.不要害怕提问。不要在需要帮助时害怕请求别人帮助。我天天请求别人的帮助。请求帮助不是软弱的表现，它是力量的标志，因为它表明你有勇气承认自己对某些事情不懂，这样做会使你学到新的东西。因此，请确定一位你信任的成年人，例如家长、祖父母或老师、教练或辅导员，请他们帮助你遵循既定计划实现你的目标。

And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you, don’t ever give up on yourself, because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and they founded this nation.Young people.Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war;who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon.Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google and Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.书写美国历史的是250年前坐在你们的位置上的学生，他们后来进行了独立战争并创建了这个国家。还有75年前坐在你们的位置上的年轻人和学生，他们走出了大萧条并打赢了一场世界大战；他们为民权而奋斗并把宇航员送上了月球。至于20年前坐在你

So today, I want to ask all of you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a President who comes here in 20 or 50 or 100 years say about what all of you did for this country? 而今天，我要问问你们大家，你们将做出什么贡献？你们将解决什么问题？你们将有什么发现？20年、50年或100年后来到这里讲话的总统将会怎样评价你们大家为

Now, your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions.I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books and the equipment and the compeed to learn.But you’ve got to do your part, too.So I expect all of you to get serious this year.I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do.I expect great things from each of you.So don’t let us down.Don’t let your family down or your country down.Most of all, don’t let yourself down.Make us all proud.你们的家人、你们的老师和我正在竭尽全力保证你们接受必要的教育，以便回答上述问题。我正在努力工作，以便你们的教室得到修缮，你们能够得到学习所需的课本、设备和电脑。但你们也必须尽自己的努力。因此，我希望你们大家从今年起认真对待这个问题。我希望你们尽最大努力做好每一件事。我希望你们每个人都有出色的表现。不要让我们失望。不人或你们的国家失望。而最重要的是，不要辜负你们自己，而要让我们都能[为你们]感到骄傲。

Thank you very much, everybody.God bless you.God bless America.Thank you.(Applause.)非常感谢你们大家。愿主保佑你们。愿主保佑美国。谢谢你们。（掌声）

第三篇：名人名校励志演讲：梦想与责任---奥巴马对美国学生的全国讲话 中英演讲稿

名人名校励志演讲：梦想与责任---奥巴马对美国学生的全国讲话 中英演讲稿 “没有什么是你们无法实现的，只要你们胸怀大志，只要你们愿意努力，只要你们专注于学习，”奥巴马以“过来人”的姿态向美国的青少年发出这样的呼吁。

know that for many of you, today is the first day of school.And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous.I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now--(applause)--with just one more year to go.And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little bit longer this morning.我知道，今天是你们很多人开学的日子。对于进入小学预备班、初中或高中的学生，今天是你们来到新学校的第一天，心里可能有点紧张，这是可以理解的。我能想象有些毕业班学生现在感觉很不错——（掌声）——还有一年就毕业了。不论在哪个年级，你们有些人可能希望暑假更长一点，今天早上还能多睡一小会儿。

I know that feeling.When I was young, my family lived overseas.I lived in Indonesia for a few years.And my mother, she didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school, but she thought it was important for me to keep up with an American education.So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday.But because she had to go to work, the only time she could do it was at 4:30 in the morning.我了解这种感觉。我小时候，我们家生活在海外。我在印度尼西亚住了几年。我妈妈没有钱送我上其他美国孩子上的学校，但她认为必须让我接受美式教育。因此，她决定从周一到周五自己给我补课。不过她还要上班，所以只能在清晨四点半给我上课。

Now, as you might imagine, I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early.And a lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table.But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and she’d say, “This is no picnic for me either, buster.”(Laughter.)

你们可以想见，我不太情愿那么早起床。有很多次，我趴在餐桌上就睡着了。但每当我抱怨的时候，我妈妈都会那样地看我一眼，然后说：“小子，这对我也并不轻松。”（笑声）

So I know that some of you are still adjusting to being back at school.But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you.I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.我知道你们有些人还在适应开学后的生活。但我今天来到这里是因为有重要的事情要和你们说。我来这里是要和你们谈谈你们的教育问题，以及在这个新学年对你们所有人的期望。

Now, I’ve given a lot of speeches about education.And I’ve talked about responsibility a lot.我做过很多次有关教育问题的演讲。我多次谈到过责任问题。

I’ve talked about teachers’ responsibility for inspiring students and pushing you to learn.我谈到过教师激励学生并督促他们学习的责任。

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and you get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with the Xbox.我谈到过家长的责任，要确保你们走正路，完成家庭作业，不要整天坐在电视前或玩Xbox游戏。I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, and supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working, where students aren’t getting the opportunities that they deserve.我多次谈到过政府的责任，要制定高标准，支持教师和校长的工作，彻底改善不能为学生提供应有机会的、教育质量差的学校。

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, the best schools in the world--and none of it will make a difference, none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities, unless you show up to those schools, unless you pay attention to those

teachers, unless you listen to your parents and grandparents and other adults and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.That’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education.然而，即使我们拥有最敬业的教师，最尽力的家长和全世界最好的学校——如果你们大家不履行你们的责任，不到校上课，不专心听讲，不听家长、祖父祖母和其他大人的话，不付出取得成功所必须的勤奋努力，那么这一切都毫无用处，都无关紧要。这就是我今天讲话的重点：你们每个人对自己的教育应尽的责任。

I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.Every single one of you has something that you’re good at.Every single one of you has something to offer.And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is.That’s the opportunity an education can provide.我首先要讲讲你们对自己应尽的责任。你们每个人都有自己的长处。你们每个人都能做出自己的贡献。你们对自己应尽的责任是发现自己的能力所在。而教育能够提供这样的机会。

Maybe you could be a great writer--maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper--but you might not know it until you write that English paper--that English class paper that’s assigned to you.Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor--maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or the new medicine or vaccine--but you might not know it until you do your project for your science class.Maybe you could be a mayor or a senator or a Supreme Court justice--but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.你或许能成为一名出色的作家——甚至可能写书或在报纸上发表文章——但你可能要在完成那篇英文课的作文后才会发现自己的才华。你或许能成为一名创新者或发明家——甚至可能设计出新一代iPhone或研制出新型药物或疫苗——但你可能要在完成科学课的实验后才会发现自己的才华。你或许能成为一名市长或参议员或最高法院的大法官——但你可能要在参加学生会的工作或辩论队后才会发现自己的才华。And no matter what you want to do with your life, I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it.You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers.You cannot drop out of school and just drop into a good job.You’ve got to train for it and work for it and learn for it.不论你的生活志向是什么，我敢肯定你必须上学读书才能实现它。你想当医生、教师或警官吗？你想当护士、建筑师、律师或军人吗？你必须接受良好的教育，才能从事上述任何一种职业。你不能指望辍学后能碰上个好工作。你必须接受培训，为之努力，为之学习。

And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future.What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country.The future of America depends on you.What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.这并非只对你个人的人生和未来意义重大。可以毫不夸大地说，教育给你带来的益处将决定这个国家的未来。美国的未来取决于你们。你们今日在校学习的知识将决定我们作为一个国家是否能够迎接我们未来所面临的最严峻挑战。

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment.You’ll need the insights and critical-thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and

homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free.You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.你们将需要利用你们通过自然科学和数学课程所学到的知识和解决问题的能力来治愈癌症、艾滋病及其他疾病，开发新的能源技术和保护我们的环境。你们将需要利用你们在历史学和社会学课堂上所获得的知识和独立思考能力来抗击贫困和解决无家可归问题，打击犯罪和消除歧视，使我们的国家更公平、更自由。你们将需要利用你们在所有课堂上培养的创造力和智慧来创办新公司，增加就业机会，振兴我们的经济。We need every single one of you to develop your talents and your skills and your intellect so you can help us old folks solve our most difficult problems.If you don’t do that--if you quit on school--you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.我们需要你们每个人发挥你们的聪明才智和技能，以便帮助老一辈人解决我们面临的最棘手问题。如果你们不这样做，如果你们辍学，你们不仅仅是自暴自弃，也是抛弃自己的国家。

Now, I know it’s not always easy to do well in school.I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.我自然知道要做到学业优秀并非总是易事。我知道你们许多人在生活中面临挑战，难以集中精力从事学业。I get it.I know what it’s like.My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mom who had to work and who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us the things that other kids had.There were times when I missed having a father in my life.There were times when I was lonely and I felt like I didn’t fit in.我明白这一点。我有亲身感受。两岁时，我父亲离家而去，我是由一位单亲母亲抚养成人的，母亲不得不工作，并时常为支付生活费用而苦苦挣扎，但有时仍无法为我们提供其他孩子享有的东西。有时，我渴望生活中能有一位父亲。有时我感到孤独，感到自己不适应社会。

So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been on school, and I did some things I’m not proud of, and I got in more trouble than I should have.And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.我并非总是像我应该做到的那样专心学习，我也曾做过我如今不能引以为豪的一些事情，我曾惹过不应该惹的麻烦。我的人生原本会轻易陷入更糟糕的境地。

But I was--I was lucky.I got a lot of second chances, and I had the opportunity to go to college and law school and follow my dreams.My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, she has a similar story.Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have a lot of money.But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.但是，我当年际遇不错。我有过许多第二次机会，我有幸能上大学，上法学院，追求自己的理想。我的妻子，我们的第一夫人米歇尔•奥巴马，也有着类似的经历。她的父母都未曾上过大学，家里很穷。但他们非常勤奋，她也是如此，因此她得以进入一些美国最好的学校。

Some of you might not have those advantages.Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need.Maybe someone in your family has lost their job and there’s not enough money to go around.Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.你们中有一些人可能没有那些有利条件。或许你们生活中没有成年人为你们提供你们所需要的支持。或许

你们家中有人失业，经济非常拮据。或许你们生活在使你们感觉不安全的社区，或有朋友逼迫你们去做你们知道不对的事情。

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life--what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home--none of that is an excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude in school.That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school.There is no excuse for not trying.然而说到底，你们生活的环境、你们的肤色、你们的原籍、你们的经济收入、你们家中的境况等等，这一切都不能成为你们不用功或不努力的理由。你们没有理由不服从你们的老师、逃学、或辍学。没有理由不付出努力。

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up.No one’s written your destiny for you, because here in America, you write your own destiny.You make your own future.你们目前的状况并不决定着你们的未来。没有人决定你们的命运，在美国，你们决定自己的命运。你们掌握自己的未来。

That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.这就是像你们这样的年轻人每天都在做的事情，全美各地都是如此。

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas.Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school.Neither of her parents had gone to college.But she worked hard, earned good grades, and got a scholarship to Brown University--is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to becoming Dr.Jazmin Perez.来自得州罗马城的贾兹敏•佩雷斯（Jazmin Perez）就是一个例证，她刚开始上学时并不会说英文。她的父母都没有上过大学。然而，她非常勤奋，成绩优秀，获得了布朗大学的奖学金，她如今正在读研究生，攻读公共卫生专业，不久将成为贾兹敏•佩雷斯博士。

I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three.He’s had to endure all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer--hundreds of extra hours--to do his schoolwork.But he never fell behind.He’s headed to college this fall.我想起了加州洛斯阿尔托斯城的安多尼•舒尔茨（Andoni Schultz），他从三岁开始就一直与脑癌进行抗争，他不得不忍受各类治疗和手术带来的痛苦，其中一项手术曾影响了他的记忆，因此他花在功课上的时间比一般人长得多，要多出数百个小时。然而，他从未落后。他今年秋季将迈进大学。And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois.Even when bouncing from

foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods in the city, she managed to get a job at a local health care center, start a program to keep young people out of gangs, and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.我还想起家乡伊利诺伊州芝加哥市的尚特尔•史蒂夫（Shantell Steve）。她曾在芝加哥最困难的社区生活，寄养于多个不同的家庭，但她最终在一家地方医疗中心找到工作，并开始了一项帮助年轻人远离流氓团伙的计划，她即将以优异成绩从中学毕业，紧接着将上大学。

And Jazmin, Andoni, and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you.They face challenges in their lives just like you do.In some cases they’ve got it a lot worse off than many of you.But they refused to give up.They chose to take responsibility for their lives, for their education, and set goals for themselves.And I expect all of you to do the same.贾兹敏、安多尼和尚特尔与你们中间的每个人没什么两样。跟你们一样，他们在生活中面临种种挑战。在某些情况下，他们的处境比起你们许多人更差。但他们拒绝放弃。他们决定要为自己的一生、自己的教育负起责任，为自己设定各项奋斗目标。我期待你们大家都会这样做。

That’s why today I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education--and do everything you can to meet them.Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying

attention in class, or spending some time each day reading a book.Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community.Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all young people deserve a safe environment to study and learn.Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn.And along those lines, by the way, I hope all of you are washing your hands a lot, and that you stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.因此，我今天呼吁你们每一个人为自己的教育设定目标，并尽自己的最大努力来实现这些目标。你的目标可以是一件十分简单的事情，例如完成家庭作业、上课专心听讲、或每天花一点时间读一本书。也许你会决定要参加课外活动或在你的社区提供志愿服务。也许你会决定挺身而出保护那些因为身份或长相而受人戏弄或欺负的孩子，原因是你和我一样认为所有的年轻人都应该享有一个适合读书和学习的安全环境。也许你会决定更好地照料自己，以便有更充沛的精力来学习。顺便提一下，除了这些事情外，我希望大家要勤洗手，身体感到不舒服的时候要呆在家里不去上学，这样我们能防止人们在今年秋冬季节染上流感。But whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it.I want you to really work at it.但无论你决定做什么，我希望你保证去做。我希望你脚踏实地地去做。

I know that sometimes you get that sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work--that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star.Chances are you’re not going to be any of those things.我知道有时候你会从电视上得到这样的印象：你不用做任何艰苦的工作就能发财致富并取得成功，唱小调、打篮球或成为真人秀明星是走向成功的途径。但实际情况是：你可能不会成为其中的一员。

The truth is, being successful is hard.You won’t love every subject that you study.You won’t click with every teacher that you have.Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right at this minute.And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.事实上，取得成功不是轻而易举的事情。你不会喜欢你学习的每一门课目。你不会与你的每一位老师都很投契。不是所有的家庭作业似乎都与你眼前的生活完全有关。你第一次尝试做每件事的时候，不一定成功。That’s okay.Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures.J.K.Rowling’s--who wrote Harry Potter--her first Harry Potter book was rejected 12 times before it was finally published.Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team.He lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career.But he once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life.And that’s why I succeed.”

这些都没关系。世界上最成功的人士中有一些是遭遇失败最多的人。作者J•K•罗琳（J.K.Rowling）所写的系列小说《哈利•波特》（Harry Potter）第一部在获得出版之前被退稿12次。迈克尔•乔丹（Michael Jordan）曾被他的高中篮球队除名。在乔丹的篮球生涯中，他输过数百场比赛，有成千上万个球没有投中。但他曾说过：“在我的一生中，我失败了一次又一次、一次又一次。这就是我成功的原因。”

These people succeeded because they understood that you can’t let your failures define you--you have to let your failures teach you.You have to let them show you what to do differently the next time.So if you get into trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to act right.If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.这些人士获得成功，因为他们懂得：你不能让失败来限制你，而必须让失败来开导你。你必须让失败向你展示下次如何以不同的方式去做这件事情。因此，如果你遇到麻烦，那并不表示你是麻烦的制造者，而意

味着你需要更加努力去把它做对。如果你有一门课分数低，那不表示你比别人笨，而只表示你需要花更多的时间学习。

No one’s born being good at all things.You become good at things through hard work.You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport.You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song.You’ve got to practice.The same principle applies to your schoolwork.You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right.You might have to read something a few times before you understand it.You definitely have to do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.没有一个人天生擅长做各种事情。你通过勤奋而变得擅长于各种事情。第一次从事新的体育项目时，你不可能是一位主力队员。第一次唱一首歌曲时，你不可能唱准每个音。你必须练习。同样的道理适用于你的学业。你可能要把一道数学题做几次才把它做对。你可能要把一些材料阅读几遍才能理解。在交出一篇优美的作文之前，你肯定需要打几遍草稿。

Don’t be afraid to ask questions.Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.I do that every day.Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength because it shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and that then allows you to learn something new.So find an adult that you trust--a parent, a grandparent or teacher, a coach or a counselor--and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.不要害怕提问。不要在需要帮助时害怕请求别人帮助。我天天请求别人的帮助。请求帮助不是软弱的表现，它是力量的标志，因为它表明你有勇气承认自己对某些事情不懂，这样做会使你学到新的东西。因此，请确定一位你信任的成年人，例如家长、祖父母或老师、教练或辅导员，请他们帮助你遵循既定计划实现你的目标。

And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you, don’t ever give up on yourself, because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.即使当你苦苦挣扎、灰心丧气、感到其他人对你不抱希望时，也不要对你自己丧失信心，因为当你自暴自弃时，你也抛弃了自己的国家。

The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough.It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.书写美国历史的不是在困难时刻退缩的人，而是坚持不懈、加倍努力的人，他们对国家的爱促使他们全力以赴。

It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and they founded this nation.Young people.Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war;who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon.Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google and Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.书写美国历史的是250年前坐在你们的位置上的学生，他们后来进行了独立战争并创建了这个国家。还有75年前坐在你们的位置上的年轻人和学生，他们走出了大萧条并打赢了一场世界大战；他们为民权而奋斗并把宇航员送上了月球。至于20年前坐在你们的位置上的学生，他们创办了谷歌（Google）、叽喳网（Twitter）和脸谱网（Facebook），改变了我们交流沟通的方式。

So today, I want to ask all of you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a President who comes here in 20 or 50 or 100 years say about what all of you did for this country?

而今天，我要问问你们大家，你们将做出什么贡献？你们将解决什么问题？你们将有什么发现？20年、50年或100年后来到这里讲话的总统将会怎样评价你们大家为这个国家所做的一切？

Now, your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the

education you need to answer these questions.I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books and the equipment and the computers you need to learn.But you’ve got to do your part, too.So I expect all of you to get serious this year.I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do.I expect great things from each of you.So don’t let us down.Don’t let your family down or your country down.Most of all, don’t let yourself down.Make us all proud.你们的家人、你们的老师和我正在竭尽全力保证你们接受必要的教育，以便回答上述问题。我正在努力工作，以便你们的教室得到修缮，你们能够得到学习所需的课本、设备和电脑。但你们也必须尽自己的努力。因此，我希望你们大家从今年起认真对待这个问题。我希望你们尽最大努力做好每一件事。我希望你们每个人都有出色的表现。不要让我们失望。不要让你们的家人或你们的国家失望。而最重要的是，不要辜负你们自己，而要让我们都能[为你们]感到骄傲。

Thank you very much, everybody.God bless you.God bless America.Thank you.(Applause.)非常感谢你们大家。愿主保佑你们。愿主保佑美国。谢谢你们。（掌声）

第四篇：奥巴马总统对美国学生的全国讲话

奥巴马总统对美国学生的全国讲话

嗨，大家好！谢谢，谢谢大家！你们今天过得怎样？蒂姆·斯派塞好吗？ 我现在与弗吉尼亚州阿灵顿郡韦克菲尔德高中的学生们在一起，全国各地也有从幼儿园到高三的众多的学生们通过电视关注这里。我很高兴你们能共同分享这一时刻。我还要感谢韦克菲尔德高中出色的组织安排，请为你们自己热烈鼓掌！我知道，对你们中的许多人来说，今天是开学的第一天，对于刚进幼儿园或升上初中高中的学生，今天是你们来的新学校的第一天。一次，假如你们感到有些紧张那也是正常的。我想也会有许多毕业班的学生们正自信满满，还有一年就毕业了。不论在哪个年级，许多人打心底里希望现在还在放暑假，今天早上还能多睡一小会儿，我可以理解这份心情。

小时候，我们家生活在海外，我在印度尼西亚住了几年，我妈妈没有钱送我上其他美国孩子上的学校，但她认为必须让我接受美式教育。因此，她决定从周一到周五自己给我补课，不过她还要上班。所以只能在清晨四点半给我上课。你们可以想象，我不太情愿那么早起床。有很多次，我趴在餐桌上酒睡着了。每当我埋怨的时候，我妈妈总会用同一副表情看着我说：小鬼，你以为教你我很轻松？所以我能理解你们有些人还在适应开学后的生活。但今天我站在这里，是为了和你们谈一些重要的事情。

我要和你们谈一谈你们每个人的教育，以及在这个新学年对你们所有人的期望。我做过许多关于教育的讲话，也常常用到“责任”这个词，我谈到过教师们有责任激励你们，督促你们学习，我谈到过家长们有责任确保你们走正道，完成家庭作业，不要成天只会看电视或打游戏机。我也多次谈到过政府有责任制定高标准，协助老师和校长们的工作，改变在有些学校学生得不到应有学习机会的现状。但哪怕这一切都达到最好，哪怕我们拥有最敬业的教师，最尽力的家长和全世界最好的学校，家人你们不去履行自己的责任的话，那么这一切努力都会白费。除非你每天准时去上学，除非你认真地听老师讲课，除非你把父母、长辈和其他大人们的话放在心上，除非你肯付出成功所必需的努力，否则这一切都会失去意义。而这是我今天讲话的重点。你们每个人对自己的教育应尽的责任。我首先要讲讲你们对自己应尽的责任。你们每个人都有自己的长处，你们每个人都是有用之才，你们对自己应尽的责任是发现自己的才能所在，而教育能够提供这样的机会。

或许你能写出优美的文字，甚至有一天能让那些文字出现在书籍或报刊上。但假如不在英语课上经常练习写作，你不会发现自己有这样的才能；

或许你能成为一名创新者或发明家，甚至可能设计出新一代iPhone，或研制出新型药物与疫苗。但假如不在自然科学课堂上做上几次实验，你不会发现自己有这样的才能； 或许你能成为一名市长或参议员，或最高法院的大法官。但假如你不去假如学生会或参加几次辩论赛，你不会发现自己有这样的才能。

不论你生活的志向是什么？我敢肯定你都需要相应的教育。你想当医生、教师或警官吗？你想当护士、建筑师、律师或军人吗？你必需接受教育才能从事上述任何一种职业。你不能指望辍学后能碰上个好工作，你必须接受培训，为之努力，为之学习。这并非只对你个人的人生和未来意义重大，教育给你带来的益处将决定这个国家的未来。美国的未来取决于你们！

今天你们在学校中学习的内容将会决定我们整个国家在未来迎接重大挑战时的表现。你们需要在数理科学课程上学习的知识和技能，去治疗癌症、艾滋那样的疾病，开发新的能源技术，保护我们的环境。你们需要历史社科课程上获得的工程里与判断力来抗击贫困和解决无家可归问题，打击罪犯和消除歧视，让这个国家变得更加公平和自由。你们需要在各类课程中逐渐培养的创造力和智慧去创办新公司，制造就业机会和推动经济增长。我们需要你们每个人都发挥天赋、技能和才智，帮助老一辈人解决我们面临的最棘手问题。如果你们不这样做，如果你们辍学，那么你们不仅仅是放弃了自己，也是放弃了国家。

我当然明白读好书并不总是件容易的事，我知道你们中的许多人在生活中面临着各种问题，很难把精力集中在专心读书上。我明白这一点，我有亲身感受。我父亲在我两岁时就离开了家庭，是我母亲一人将我拉扯大。母亲不得不工作，并时常为支付生活费用而苦苦挣扎。但有时仍无法为我们提供其他孩子享有的东西。有时我渴望生活中能有一位父亲，有时我会感到孤独无助，感觉与周围的环境格格不入。我并非总是像我应该做到的那样专心学习，我做过许多自己觉得丢脸的事情，也惹出过许多不该惹的麻烦，我的生活岌岌可危，随时可能急转直下。但我很幸运，我在许多事上都得到了重来的机会。我有幸上大学，上法学院，追求自己的理想。我的妻子，我们的第一夫人米歇尔·奥巴马也有相似的人生故事。她的父母都没读过大学，也没什么财产，打他们都非常勤奋，她也是如此，一次她得以进入一些美国最好的学校。你们中有些人可能没有那些有利条件，或许你的生活中没有能为你提供帮助的长辈，或许你们家中有人失业，经济非常拮据，或许你住的市区不那么安全，或许你认识一些对你产生不良影响的朋友。但归根结底，你的生活状况、你的长相、出身、经济条件、家庭氛围都不是疏忽学业和态度恶劣的借口。这些不是你去跟老师顶嘴、逃课或辍学的借口，这些不是你不好好读书的借口。

你们目前的状况并不决定着你们的未来，没有人为你编排好你的命运。在美国，你的命运由你自己书写，你的未来由你自己掌握。这就是像你们这样的年轻人每天都在做的事情，全美各地都是如此。例如德克萨斯州罗马市的贾思敏·佩雷兹，她刚进学校时不会说英语，她的父母都没有上过大学。然而，她非常勤奋，成绩优异，获得了布朗大学的奖学金，如今正攻读公共卫生专业的研究生，不久将成为贾思敏·佩雷兹博士。我还想起了加州洛斯拉图斯市的安多尼·舒尔兹，他从三岁起就开始与脑癌病魔作斗争。他熬过了一次次治疗与手术，其中一项手术曾影响力他的记忆，一次他得比常人多花几百小时来完成作业，但他从不曾落下自己的功课。这个秋天，他要开始在大学读书了。我还想起家乡伊利诺伊州芝加哥市的一名孤儿香特尔·史蒂夫，她曾寄养于多个不同的家庭，从小在治安很差的地区长大。但她通过努力在一家地方医疗中心找到工作，发起了一个让青少年远离犯罪团伙的项目，他即将以优异成绩从中学毕业去大学深造。贾思敏、安多尼和香特尔与你们并没有什么不同，和你们一样，他们也在生活中遭遇各种问题。在在某些情况下，他们的处境比起你们许多人更差，但他们拒绝放弃！他们决定要为自己的人生、自己的教育负起责任，给自己定下奋斗目标。我希望你们中的每一个人都能做到这些。

因此，我今天号召你们每一个人为自己的教育设定目标，并尽自己最大努力来实现这些目标。你的目标可以很简单，像是完成作业、认真听讲或每天阅读，或许你打算参加一些课外活动，或在你的社区提供志愿服务，或许你会挺身而出保护那些因身份或长相而受人欺负的孩子。原因是你和我一样认为，每个孩子都应该享有适合读书和学习的安全环境。或许你决定该学着更好地照顾自己，为将来的学习做准备。除此之外，顺便提一下，我希望大家要勤洗手，感到身体不舒服的时候要多在家休息，免得大家在秋冬感冒高发季节都得流感。

但无论你决定做什么我都希望你能坚持到底，我希望你脚踏实地去做。我知道有时候你会从电视上得到这样的印象：不需要付出多大的努力就能腰缠万贯、功成名就。只要会rap、会打篮球或参加真人秀节目就能坐享其成。但现实是，你几乎没有可能走上其中任何一条道路。事实上，取得成功不是轻而易举的事情。你不可能对要读的每门课程都兴趣盎然，你不可能和每名带课老师都相处顺利，不是所有的家庭作业都与你眼前的生活完全有关，并不是每件事情，你都能在头一次尝试时获得成功。但那没关系！世界上最成功的人士中有一些是遭遇失败最多的。J.k.罗琳，《哈利·波特》的作者，她的《哈利·波特》第一部在出版前被退稿12次；迈克尔·乔丹上高中时被校篮球队刷了下来，在他的职业生涯里，他输了几百场球，投失过几千次射篮，但她曾说过：我一生不停地失败、失败再失败，这就是我成功的原因！

他们的成功，源于他们明白不能让失败左右自己，而是要从中吸取教训，从失败中，你能明白下一次可以做出怎样的改变。假如你惹了什么麻烦，那并不说明你就是个捣蛋鬼，而意味着你需要更加努力去把它做好。假如你考了个低分，那不表示你比别人笨，而只表示你需要花更多的时间学习。没有一个人天生擅长做什么事情，只有努力才能培养出技能。第一次接触新的体育项目时，你不可能是一位主力队员，第一次唱一首歌时，你不可能唱准每个音。一切都是熟能生巧的！对于学业也是一样，你或许要反复运算才能正确解出一道数学题，你或许需要反复读一段文字才能理解它的意思，你或许得把论文改上好几次才能符合提交的标准。不要害怕提问，不要不敢向他人求助，我每天都在这么做。求助并不是软弱的表现，它是力量的标志！因为它表明你有勇气承认自己的不足，这样做会使你学到新的东西。请确定一位你信任的成年人，例如家长、祖父母或老师、教练或辅导员，请他们帮助你遵循既定计划实现你的目标。

即使你苦苦挣扎，即使当你灰心丧气，你觉得身边的人都已经放弃了你，永远不要自己放弃自己！因为当你放弃自己的时候，你也放弃了自己的国家。书写美国历史的不是在困难时刻退缩的人，而是坚持不懈、加倍努力的人。他们对国家的爱促使他们全力以赴。书写美国历史的是250年前和你们一样的学生，他们之后用一场革命最终造就了这个国家；75年前，有一群和你们一样的学生，他们之后战胜了大萧条、赢得了二战，他们为民权而奋斗并把宇航员送上月球；就在20年前，有一群和你们一样的学生，他们后来创立了Google、Twitter和Facebook，改变了我们之间交流沟通的方式。

因此，今天我要问问你们大家，你们会做什么样的贡献？你们将解决什么样的难题？你们能发现什么样的事物？20年、50年或100年后，假如那时的美国总统也来做一次开学演讲的话，他会怎样描述你们对这个国家所做的一切？你们的家长、你们的老师和我正在竭尽全力确保你们都能等到应有的教育以便回答上述问题。我正在努力为你们提供更安全的教室、更多的书籍、更先进的设施与计算机。但你们也要担起自己的责任！因此我要求你们在今年能够认真起来，我要求你们尽心地去做自己着手的每一件事，我要求你们每一个人都有所成就！请不要让我们失望！不要让你们的家人或你们的国家失望！而最重要的是不要辜负你们自己！你们要成为我们的骄傲！

非常感谢你们大家！

第五篇：奥巴马对叙利亚白宫讲话(中英全文)

Remarks by the President in Address to the Nation on Syria

奥巴马总统就叙利亚问题向全国发表讲话

East Room, Washington, D.C.东厅，华盛顿哥伦比亚特区

September 10, 2012013年9月10日

My fellow Americans, tonight I want to talk to you about Syria--why it matters, and where we go from here.我的美国同胞们，今晚我想对你们谈谈叙利亚问题--为什么此事很重要，从现在开始我们将做些什么。

Over the past two years, what began as a series of peaceful protests against the repressive regime of Bashar al-Assad has turned into a brutal civil war.Over 100,000 people have been killed.Millions have fled the country.In that time, America has worked with allies to provide humanitarian support, to help the moderate opposition, and to shape a political settlement.But I have resisted calls for military action, because we cannot resolve someone else’s civil war through force, particularly after a decade of war in Iraq and Afghanistan.过去两年来，最初为反对巴沙尔阿萨德专制政权举行的一系列和平示威演变成一场残酷的内战。有100,000多人被杀害。数百万人逃离这个国家。在此期间，美国与各盟国一起提供人道主义援助，帮助温和的反对派，并努力促成政治解决。但是我拒绝了关于采取军事行动的要求，因为我们无法通过武力解决别国的内战问题，特别是在伊拉克和阿富汗经过了10年战争之后。

The situation profoundly changed, though, on August 21st, when Assad’s government gassed to death over a thousand people, including hundreds of children.The images from this massacre are sickening: Men, women, children lying in rows, killed by poison gas.Others foaming at the mouth, gasping for breath.A father clutching his dead children, imploring them to get up and walk.On that terrible night, the world saw in gruesome detail the terrible nature of chemical weapons, and why the overwhelming majority of humanity has declared them off-limits--a crime against humanity, and a violation of the laws of war.8月21日，局势出现了巨大的变化。当时，阿萨德政府使用毒气杀害了一千多民众，其中包括数百名儿童。这场大屠杀的情景令人惨不忍睹：男子、妇女、儿童横尸遍地，都是因为中毒身亡。另一些人口吐白沫，呼吸窒息。一位父亲搂着死去的孩子们，还在哀求他们站起来走走。在那个可怕的夜晚，全世界通过惨绝人寰的详尽画面亲眼目睹化学武器的恐怖性质。这也说明为什么人类绝大多数宣布禁止使用这类武器——使用这类武器属于反人类的罪行，也违反了战争法。

This was not always the case.In World War I, American GIs were among the many thousands killed by deadly gas in the trenches of Europe.In World War II, the Nazis used gas to inflict the horror of the Holocaust.Because these weapons can kill on a mass scale, with no distinction between soldier and infant, the civilized world has spent a century working to ban them.And in 1997, the United States Senate overwhelmingly approved an international agreement prohibiting the use of chemical weapons, now joined by 189 governments that represent 98 percent of humanity.事情往往没有那么简单。在第一次世界大战期间，数以千万计的人在欧洲的战壕中被致命的毒气杀害，美国士兵也在其中。在第二次世界大战期间，纳粹使用毒气制造了大屠杀的惨剧。由于这类武器可以大规模杀人害命，不论他们是士兵还是婴儿，文明世界花了一个世纪的时间努力禁止这类武器。1997年，美国参议院以压倒多数批准禁止使用化学武器的国际公约，现已有代表全人类98%的189个政府参加这项国际公约。

On August 21st, these basic rules were violated, along with our sense of common humanity.No one disputes that chemical weapons were used in Syria.The world saw thousands of videos, cell phone pictures, and social media accounts from the attack, and humanitarian organizations told stories of hospitals packed with people who had symptoms of poison gas.8月21日，这些基本准则受到破坏，我们关于共同人性的信念被践踏。对于化学武器在叙利亚已经被使用一事，已没有人提出质疑。全世界从数千份视频、手机摄像和社会媒体条目上都看到这次袭击事件的情景。人道主义组织也提供了有关报道，指出一些医院人满为患，患者出现毒气中毒的症状。

Moreover, we know the Assad regime was responsible.In the days leading up to August 21st, we know that Assad’s chemical weapons personnel prepared for an attack near an area where they mix sarin gas.They distributed gasmasks to their troops.Then they fired rockets from a regime-controlled area into 11 neighborhoods that the regime has been trying to wipe clear of opposition forces.Shortly after those rockets landed, the gas spread, and hospitals filled with the dying and the wounded.We know senior figures in Assad’s military machine reviewed the results of the attack, and the regime increased their shelling of the same neighborhoods in the days that followed.We’ve also studied samples of blood and hair from people at the site that tested positive for sarin.此外，我们知道阿萨德政权应为此负责。在8月21日前的几天，我们知道阿萨德的化学武器人员为了准备发动袭击，在邻近地区配制沙林毒气。他们向自己的军队发放了防毒面具。然后他们从该政权控制的地区向附近的11个小区发射火箭，该政权正企图在这些地区清除反对派武装。火箭落地后不久，毒气就开始蔓延，医院里到处都是死伤的人员。我们知道阿萨德军事机器的高级要员察看了袭击的结果，此后几天该政权加强了对这些小区进行炮击的火力。我们还检验了从现场人员身上取得的血液和毛发样品，结果发现呈沙林阳性。When dictators commit atrocities, they depend upon the world to look the other way until those horrifying pictures fade from memory.But these things happened.The facts cannot be denied.The question now is what the United States of America, and the international community, is prepared to do about it.Because what happened to those people--to those children--is not only a violation of international law, it’s also a danger to our security.当独裁者采取罪恶行动时，他们期待全世界对此不闻不问，直到这些惨无人道的景象从记忆中渐渐消失。但这些情况千真万确。事实不可否认。现在的问题是，美利坚合众国和国际社会准备对此采取什么行动。因为这些民众—这些儿童—的遭遇不仅仅涉及违反国际法的行为，而且也对我国安全造成威胁。

Let me explain why.If we fail to act, the Assad regime will see no reason to stop using chemical weapons.As the ban against these weapons erodes, other tyrants will have no reason to think twice about acquiring poison gas, and using them.Over time, our troops would again face the prospect of chemical warfare on the battlefield.And it could be easier for terrorist organizations to obtain these weapons, and to use them to attack civilians.请让我说明这是为什么。如果我们不采取行动，阿萨德政权就会认为没有理由停止使用化学武器。一旦禁止使用这类武器的禁令受到侵蚀，其他专制暴君也会毫不犹豫地获得毒气并投入使用。长此以往，我国军队在战场上将再次面临化学战的局面。恐怖主义组织也更容易获得这类武器并使用这些武器袭击平民。

If fighting spills beyond Syria’s borders, these weapons could threaten allies like Turkey, Jordan, and Israel.And a failure to stand against the use of chemical weapons would weaken prohibitions against other weapons of mass destruction, and embolden Assad’s ally, Iran--which must decide whether to ignore international law by building a nuclear weapon, or to take a more peaceful path.如果战火蔓延到叙利亚边境之外，这些武器会对土耳其、约旦和以色列等盟国造成威胁。如果不制止使用化学武器的行为，对其他大规模毁灭性武器的禁令也会被削弱，使阿萨德的盟国伊朗更胆大妄为--伊朗必须作出抉择，是以制造核武器对抗国际法，还是走上更和平的道路。

This is not a world we should accept.This is what’s at stake.And that is why, after careful deliberation, I determined that it is in the national security interests of the United States to respond to the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons through a targeted military strike.The purpose of this strike would be to deter Assad from using chemical weapons, to degrade his regime’s ability to use them, and to make clear to the world that we will not tolerate their use.这不是我们应接受的世界。这是利害攸关所在。正因为如此，在经过审慎研究后，我断定，以有针对性的军事打击回应阿萨德政权动用化学武器的行径符合美国国家安全利益。打击是为了制止阿萨德使用化学武器，削弱该政权使用化学武器的能力，并向世界表明，我们决不容使用化学武器。

That’s my judgment as Commander-in-Chief.But I’m also the President of the world’s oldest constitutional democracy.So even though I possess the authority to order military strikes, I believed it was right, in the absence of a direct or imminent threat to our security, to take this debate to Congress.I believe our democracy is stronger when the President acts with the support of Congress.And I believe that America acts more effectively abroad when we stand together.这是我作为全军统帅的判断。然而我也是世界最悠久的宪政民主国家的总统。因此，虽然我有权下令进行军事打击，但我认为，在我们的安全没有受到直接和紧迫威胁的情况下，应该将此提交国会辩论。我认为，总统的行动得到国会支持会使我们的民主制更有力。我认为，我们的团结一致会使美国能够更有效地在海外展开行动。

This is especially true after a decade that put more and more war-making power in the hands of the President, and more and more burdens on the shoulders of our troops, while sidelining the people’s representatives from the critical decisions about when we use force.由于十年来总统的战争决定权越来越大，我们军队的负担越来越多，而在事关我们何时动武的重大决定中人民代表作用旁落，这一点尤其如此。

Now, I know that after the terrible toll of Iraq and Afghanistan, the idea of any military action, no matter how limited, is not going to be popular.After all, I’ve spent four and a half years working to end wars, not to start them.Our troops are out of Iraq.Our troops are coming home from Afghanistan.And I know Americans want all of us in Washington--especially me--to concentrate on the task of building our nation here at home: putting people back to work, educating our kids, growing our middle class.我知道，在付出伊拉克和阿富汗的沉重代价后，任何有关军事行动的设想，无论多么有限，都不会受欢迎。毕竟，我已经用了四年半的时间努力结束战争，而不是开始战争。我们的军队现在已经撤出伊拉克。我们的军队正在从阿富汗返回家园。而且我知道，美国人民希望我们在华盛顿的所有人——特别是我——集中精力进行国内建设：让人们重返工作岗位，让我们的孩子受教育，壮大我们的中产阶层。

It’s no wonder, then, that you’re asking hard questions.So let me answer some of the most important questions that I’ve heard from members of Congress, and that I’ve read in letters that you’ve sent to me.所以，毫不奇怪，你们提出了尖锐的问题。那么就让我来回答一些我从国会议员那里听到和从你们给我的来信中读到的最重要的问题。

First, many of you have asked, won’t this put us on a slippery slope to another war? One man wrote to me that we are “still recovering from our involvement in Iraq.” A veteran put it more bluntly: “This nation is sick and tired of war.”

首先，你们许多人问，这样做不是将导致我们跌入另一场战争吗？一位给我来信的人写道，我们“还在从对伊拉克的介入的恢复中”。一位退伍军人更直截了当地写道：“这个国家厌倦战争。”

My answer is simple: I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria.I will not pursue an open-ended action like Iraq or Afghanistan.I will not pursue a prolonged air campaign like Libya or Kosovo.This would be a targeted strike to achieve a clear objective: deterring the use of chemical weapons, and degrading Assad’s capabilities.我的回答简单明了：我不会向叙利亚派遣美国地面军队。我不会开展像在伊拉克或阿富汗的那种无限期行动。我不会进行像在利比亚或科索沃那样的长期空中行动。这将是为达到一个明确目标而进行的有针对性的打击：防止使用化学武器，削弱阿萨德的能力。

Others have asked whether it’s worth acting if we don’t take out Assad.As some members of Congress have said, there’s no point in simply doing a “pinprick” strike in Syria.还有些人质疑，如果我们不推翻阿萨德，这种行动是否值得。正像一些国会成员所说，对叙利亚给予“轻扎”的一击毫无意义。

Let me make something clear: The United States military doesn’t do pinpricks.Even a limited strike will send a message to Assad that no other nation can deliver.I don’t think we should remove another dictator with force--we learned from Iraq that doing so makes us responsible for all that comes next.But a targeted strike can make Assad, or any other dictator, think twice before using chemical weapons.请让我明确一点：美国军队不作轻扎之举。即使是有限打击也将对阿萨德传递任何其他国家都无法传递的信息。我不认为我们应该用武力再去推翻一个独裁者——我们从伊拉克懂得，这样做意味着我们要承担随后的所有一切。但是，有限的打击能够让阿萨德，或任何其他独裁者，在动用化学武器前三思。

Other questions involve the dangers of retaliation.We don’t dismiss any threats, but the Assad regime does not have the ability to seriously threaten our military.Any other retaliation they might seek is in line with threats that we face every day.Neither Assad nor his allies have any interest in escalation that would lead to his demise.And our ally, Israel, can defend itself with overwhelming force, as well as the unshakeable support of the United States of America.其他一些提问涉及报复的危险。我们不排除任何威胁，但是阿萨德政权没有能力对我们的军队构成严重威胁。他们有可能图谋的任何报复手段与我们每天面临的威胁并无两样。阿萨德和他的同伙都不会希望加剧导致自身灭亡。我们的盟友以色列能够依靠其压倒性的军事力量和美利坚合众国坚定不移的支持实现自卫。

Many of you have asked a broader question: Why should we get involved at all in a place that’s so complicated, and where--as one person wrote to me--“those who come after Assad may be enemies of human rights?”

你们许多人提出了一个更宏观的问题：我们到底为什么要介入一个如此复杂的地方，在那里——就像一位人士写给我的——“接替阿萨德的人也许与人权为敌？”

It’s true that some of Assad’s opponents are extremists.But al Qaeda will only draw strength in a more chaotic Syria if people there see the world doing nothing to prevent innocent civilians from being gassed to death.The majority of the Syrian people--and the Syrian opposition we work with--just want to live in peace, with dignity and freedom.And the day after any military action, we would redouble our efforts to achieve a political solution that strengthens those who reject the forces of tyranny and extremism.确实，在阿萨德的反对派中有些是极端主义分子。但是，如果人们看到世界对防止无辜平民遭毒气杀害无动于衷，那只会使“基地”组织（al Qaeda）在变得更加混乱的叙利亚得势。大多数叙利亚人——以及我们与之合作的叙利亚反对派——仅希望过和平、有尊严和自由的生活。在任何军事行动过后，我们都将加倍努力实现政治解决，增强那些抵制暴政与极端主义的力量。

Finally, many of you have asked: Why not leave this to other countries, or seek solutions short of force? As several people wrote to me, “We should not be the world’s policeman.”

最后，你们很多人都问道：为什么不把这个问题留给其他国家，为什么不寻求不使用武力的解决方式？有些人致信给我时写道：“我们不应充当世界警察。”

I agree, and I have a deeply held preference for peaceful solutions.Over the last two years, my administration has tried diplomacy and sanctions, warning and negotiations--but chemical weapons were still used by the Assad regime.我对此表示赞同，而且我深信应优先考虑和平解决。两年来，本届政府采用过外交方式、实施过制裁、发出过警告并进行过谈判——但阿萨德政权却依然使用了化学武器。

However, over the last few days, we’ve seen some encouraging signs.In part because of the credible threat of U.S.military action, as well as constructive talks that I had with President Putin, the Russian government has indicated a willingness to join with the international community in pushing Assad to give up his chemical weapons.The Assad regime has now admitted that it has these weapons, and even said they’d join the Chemical Weapons Convention, which prohibits their use.不过，我们在最近几天看到了一些积极迹象。在一定程度上由于美国要采取军事行动的有力威慑，以及我与普京总统进行的建设性会谈，俄罗斯政府已表示愿意加入国际社会的行列，迫使阿萨德放弃其化学武器。阿萨德政权现已承认拥有这类武器，甚至表示要加入禁止使用这类武器的《禁止化学武器公约》。

It’s too early to tell whether this offer will succeed, and any agreement must verify that the Assad regime keeps its commitments.But this initiative has the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons without the use of force, particularly because Russia is one of Assad’s strongest allies.确定这个方案是否可行现在还为时过早，而且任何一项协议都必须核实阿萨德政权遵守承诺的情况。但这项提案有可能在不使用武力的情况下消除化学武器的威胁，尤其是因为俄罗斯是阿萨德最牢靠的盟友之一。

I have, therefore, asked the leaders of Congress to postpone a vote to authorize the use of force while we pursue this diplomatic path.I’m sending Secretary of State John Kerry to meet his Russian counterpart on Thursday, and I will continue my own discussions with President Putin.I’ve spoken to the leaders of two of our closest allies, France and the United Kingdom, and we will work together in consultation with Russia and China to put forward a resolution at the U.N.Security Council requiring Assad to give up his chemical weapons, and to ultimately destroy them under international control.We’ll also give U.N.inspectors the opportunity to report their findings about what happened on August 21st.And we will continue to rally support from allies from Europe to the Americas--from Asia to the Middle East--who agree on the need for action.因此，在我们探求这个外交途径的同时，我已要求国会领袖推迟就授权使用武力进行投票。我将派国务卿约翰·克里于本周四同俄罗斯外长见面，我也将继续同普京总统进行商谈。我已同我们最亲密的两个盟国——法国和英国——的领导人交谈过，我们将与俄罗斯和中国磋商，共同努力在联合国安理会提出一项决议，要求阿萨德必须放弃化学武器，并在国际监控下最终销毁它们。我们还将让联合国核查人员有机会报告他们对8月21日所发生的一切的调查结果。我们也将继续争取同样认为有必要采取行动的盟友的支持——从欧洲到美洲、从亚洲到中东。

Meanwhile, I’ve ordered our military to maintain their current posture to keep the pressure on Assad, and to be in a position to respond if diplomacy fails.And tonight, I give thanks again to our military and their families for their incredible strength and sacrifices.与此同时，我已命令我军保持他们目前的态势，以便继续向阿萨德施压，并在外交失效的情况下能够作出应对。今晚，我再次感谢我军军人及其家属的无比坚强以及他们付出的巨大牺牲。

My fellow Americans, for nearly seven decades, the United States has been the anchor of global security.This has meant doing more than forging international agreements--it has meant enforcing them.The burdens of leadership are often heavy, but the world is a better place because we have borne them.我的美国同胞们，近70年来，美国一直是全球安全的支柱。这不仅意味着缔结国际协定——而且意味着严格执行国际协定。发挥领导作用的担子往往是沉重的，但正因为我们已承担起这个重担，这个世界才变得更加美好。

And so, to my friends on the right, I ask you to reconcile your commitment to America’s military might with a failure to act when a cause is so plainly just.To my friends on the left, I ask you to reconcile your belief in freedom and dignity for all people with those images of children writhing in pain, and going still on a cold hospital floor.For sometimes resolutions and statements of condemnation are simply not enough.因此，我要请右翼的朋友们想一想，以你们对美国强大军力的承诺，能否容许不为如此显而易见的正义事业采取行动。我要请左翼的朋友们想一想，以你们对所有人民的自由和尊严的信念，能否对那些痛苦挣扎的儿童在医院冰冷的地板上奄奄一息的画面无动于衷。有时仅仅拿出决议及发表谴责声明是远远不够的。

Indeed, I’d ask every member of Congress, and those of you watching at home tonight, to view those videos of the attack, and then ask: What kind of world will we live in if the United States of America sees a dictator brazenly violate international law with poison gas, and we choose to look the other way?

是的，我要请每一位国会议员以及今晚在家中收看讲话的每一个人都去看一看有关那次袭击的视频并扪心自问：如果美国看到一名独裁者动用毒气肆无忌惮地践踏国际法却视而不见，那我们的这个世界会变成什么样子？

Franklin Roosevelt once said, “Our national determination to keep free of foreign wars and foreign entanglements cannot prevent us from feeling deep concern when ideals and principles that we have cherished are challenged.” Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security, are at stake in Syria, along with our leadership of a world where we seek to ensure that the worst weapons will never be used.富兰克林·罗斯福曾说：“我国不介入国外战争和国外纠葛的决心不能阻止我们在我们所珍视的理念和原则受到挑战的时候深深地感到关切。” 我们的理念和原则，以及我们的国家安全，都在叙利亚问题上面临利害攸关的时刻，此外还有我们在全世界为确保最残酷的武器绝不被使用而发挥的领导作用。

America is not the world’s policeman.Terrible things happen across the globe, and it is beyond our means to right every wrong.But when, with modest effort and risk, we can stop children from being gassed to death, and thereby make our own children safer over the long run, I believe we should act.That’s what makes America different.That’s what makes us exceptional.With humility, but with resolve, let us never lose sight of that essential truth.美国不是世界警察。全球到处都有可怕的事情发生，我们没有能力去纠正每一桩恶行。但当我们付出适度的努力并承担适度的风险就能阻止用毒气杀害儿童的行径，并从长远来看能以此进一步保障我们本国儿童的安全，我便坚信我们应当采取行动。正是这一点让美国独树一帜。正是这一点让我们出类拔萃。让我们以谦和为怀，同时下定决心，永远牢记这个至关重要的真理。

Thank you.God bless you.And God bless the United States of America.谢谢你们。愿上帝保佑你们。愿上帝保佑美利坚合众国。