2026年考研英语二阅读 Text 1 原文翻译及答案解析

Ask people about public libraries and a certain image springs to mind: dusty, old-fashioned, the sort of place you enjoyed as a child but, rather like a British seaside town, would you go there now? And anyway — aren't they all closing?

提到公共图书馆，人们脑海中往往会浮现这样一种形象：尘土飞扬、老式陈旧，就像你童年时喜欢的那种地方，但就像英国海滨小镇一样，你现在还会去吗？而且——它们不是都在关闭吗？

The reality is startlingly different, as I discovered when the culture department commissioned me to conduct an independent review of English public libraries, published yesterday. As I visited libraries up and down the country, I was surprised to learn there are more than twice the number of libraries (2,892) as there are branches of McDonald's.

现实情况截然不同，正如我在文化部门委托我对英格兰公共图书馆进行独立评审时所发现的，该评审于昨日发布。当我走访全国各地的图书馆时，我惊讶地得知图书馆的数量（2,892家）是麦当劳分店的两倍多。

Enter any one of them and you will find a hive of activity. While books are, and should always be, at the heart of any library, a multitude of other services are offered: employment advice, language classes or digital access and support.

走进任何一家图书馆，你都会发现一片繁忙的景象。虽然书籍是、也应该是任何图书馆的核心，但图书馆还提供众多其他服务：就业建议、语言课程或数字接入与支持。

There are libraries with business and intellectual property centres, which can help business owners and entrepreneurs. Many have nurses on site to carry out basic health checks, with a link to the GP's surgery. There are libraries where young people can borrow a FIFA-standard football boot.

有些图书馆设有商业和知识产权中心，可以为业主和企业家提供帮助。许多图书馆现场有护士进行基本健康检查，并与全科医生诊所相连。有些图书馆允许年轻人借阅符合FIFA标准的足球鞋。

In return for all of this, you'll be asked for precisely nothing. There will be no charge and you will never be asked to justify yourself; you will simply be welcomed in, offered help if you need it, and left alone if you do not. There is no other institution, public or private, that can say the same. Yet still our libraries are often overlooked and underappreciated. There is an overall decline in visits and many are struggling as local authorities come under continued financial pressure.

作为所有这些的回报，你不需要付出任何代价。没有收费，你也永远不会被要求证明自己的合理性；你只是被欢迎进来，如果需要帮助会得到提供，如果不需要则会被独处。没有其他机构，无论是公立还是私立，能这样说。然而，我们的图书馆常常被忽视和低估。整体参观人数有所下降，许多图书馆在地方当局持续财政压力下挣扎求存。

The number of libraries that have closed since 2010 is disputed. An annual survey by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy puts it at nearly 800 across the UK; official statistics held by the Arts Council record 230 in England. It is, of course, 230 libraries too many. So if we are to protect our libraries for future generations, we must raise awareness of them and the work they do.

自2010年以来关闭的图书馆数量存在争议。英国特许公共财政与会计协会的一项年度调查显示，全英国有近800家；而艺术委员会掌握的官方统计数据显示英格兰有230家。当然，230家图书馆也太多了。因此，如果我们想为子孙后代保护图书馆，就必须提高人们对它们及其所做工作的认识。

The review recommends a national branding campaign to give libraries a stronger physical presence, the reintroduction of a scheme to enable mobile members to use their card in any library in the country, and automatic memberships for children. If we don't use them, we will end up losing them. And for those who haven't been to a library for some time, they may be surprised by what they find.

评审建议开展全国品牌宣传活动，以增强图书馆的实体存在感；重新引入一项计划，使流动会员能够在全国任何图书馆使用其借书卡；并为儿童提供自动会员资格。如果我们不使用它们，我们最终将失去它们。对于那些已经有一段时间没去图书馆的人来说，他们可能会对所发现的事物感到惊讶。