Learn English with American Primary School Textbooks

Chapter 24 History History Humanities (1)
01 The Different Ages of Man

In the Age of Gold, the world was first furnished with inhabitants. This was an age of innocence and happiness. Truth and right prevailed, thought not enforced by law, no was there any in authority to threaten or to punish. The earth brought forth all things necessary for man, without his labor in plowing or sowing. perpetual spring reigned, flowers sprang up without seed, the rivers flowed with milk and wine, and yellow honey distilled from the oaks.
The Silver Age came next, inferior to the golden. Jupiter shortened the spring, and divided the year into seasons. Then, first, men suffered the extremes of heat and cold, and houses became necessary. Crops would no longer grow without planting. was a race of manly men, but insolent and impious.
Next to the Age of Silver came that of brass, more savage of temper and reader for the strife of arms, yet not altogether wicked.
Last came the hardest age and worst, of iron. Crime burst in like a flood; modesty, truth, and honor fled. The gifts of the earth were put only to nefarious uses. Fraud, violence, war at home and abroad were rife.
Jupiter, observing the condition of things, burned with anger, He summoned the gods to council. Jupiter set forth to the assembly the frightful condition of the earth, and announced his intention of destroying its inhabitants, and providing a new race, unlike the present , which should be worthier of life and more reverent toward the gods. Fearing lest a conflagration might set Heaven itself on fire, he proceeded to drown the world. Speedily the race of mean and their possessions, were swept away by the deluge.
Parnassus alone, of the mountains, overtopped the waves, and there Deucalion, son the Prometheus, and his wife Pyrrha, daughter of Epimetheus, found refuge—he a just man and she a faithful worshiper of the gods. Jupiter, remembering the harmless lives and pious demeanor of this pair, caused the waters to recede. Then Deucalion and Pyrrha, entering a temple defaced with slime, approached the enkindled altar and, falling prostate, prayed for guidance and aid. The oracle answered, “Depart from the temple with head veiled and garments unbound, and cast behind you the bones of your mother.” They heard the words with astonishment. Pyrrha first broke silence: “We cannot obey; we dare not profane the remains of our parents.” They sought the woods. and involved the oracle in their minds. At last Deucalion spoke: “Either my wit fails me or the command is one we may obey without impiety. The earth is the great parent of all; the stones are her bones; these we may cast behind us; this, I think, t he oracle means.” They veiled their faces, unbound their garments, and, picking up stones, cast them behind them. The stones began to grow soft and to assume shape. By degrees they put on a rude resemblance to the human form. Those thrown by Deucalion became men; those by Pyrrha, women.
Vocabulary
inhabitant [in"h? bit? nt] n. resident, occupant

Innocence ["in? s? ns] n. Innocence, innocence, innocence
authority [? : "θ? r? ti] n. Authority, power, authority
perpetual [p? "pet? u? l, -tju-] adj. permanent, perennial, continuous, indefinite

inferior [in"fi? ri?] adj. inferior, poor;

n. Defective product, inferior

Insolent ["ins? l? nt] adj. rude, rude, arrogant, shameless
Summon ["s? m? n] vt. Summon, drum up, cheer up
Deluge ["delju: d?] n. Flood, flood;
vt. to flood, overwhelm

demeanor [di"mi:n?] n. demeanor, behavior, behavior
oracle["?r?kl,"? :-] n. oracle, oracle, prophecy, saint

Practice
How many Ages does human experienced?

Translation
During the Golden Age, the Earth was first inhabited.It was an age of innocence and happiness.Truth and justice dominate everything, but they are not bound by laws, nor are they threatened or punished by powerful people.People don't need to cultivate, all life needs can be given to the earth.The spring is everlasting, and the field grows flowers without seeds; and the rivers flow milk and wine, and yellow honey distilled from the oak.

Then came the Silver Age, which was inferior to the Golden Age.Jupiter shortened the spring and divided the year into four seasons.So people first tasted the bitterness of the scorching heat and severe cold, and had to find a shelter.To eat grain you have to till it.Human beings at this time were majestic and resolute, but arrogant and ungodly.

After the Silver Age came the Bronze Age.People's nature is more rough, ready to fight, but not to the point of heinous.

Finally came the trickiest and worst age - the Iron Age.Sin ran like a flood, modesty, truth, and dignity fled, and all the gifts of the earth were used to commit iniquity.Fraud, violence, internal and external wars are rampant.

Jupiter was furious when he saw this.He summoned the gods to discuss countermeasures.At the Assembly of the Gods, Jupiter stated the intolerable situation on the earth, and announced his intention to destroy the current inhabitants of the earth, saying that he would replace the new people.This kind of new people is different from the existing people, they will have more survival value, and they will have more respect for the gods.Jupiter, fearing that he would endanger the heavenly palace itself by burning it, decided to flood the earth with floods, and in an instant the flood swept away the people and their belongings on the earth.

Of all the mountains, only Parnassus was not overwhelmed by the waves of the flood, and Deucalion, the only son of Prometheus, and his wife Pyrrha, daughter of Epimetheus, Hide on this mountain.Deucalion was a man of integrity, his wife was devout.Jupiter took pity on the innocence and good conduct of their husband and wife, so he ordered the flood to recede.At this time Deucalion and Pyrrha walked into a mud-splashed temple. Before the unburned altar, they bent down and prayed for the guidance and help of the gods.The oracle pointed out: "Wrap your heads, loosen your clothes, and go out of the temple, leaving your mother's bones behind you all the way." This made them astonished.Pyrrha broke the silence first: "We cannot act according to this oracle; we dare not desecrate the bones of our parents." They hid in the woods, thinking hard about the meaning of the oracle.At last Deucalion said: "Either I have lost my mind, or we can execute the oracle without committing disobedience. The earth is the mother of all things, and the stone is her bones. We can throw stones behind us, and we will be able to carry out the oracle. I think that’s what the oracle said.” They covered their faces, loosened their belts, picked up the stone and threw it behind them.These stones began to soften and take shape, gradually taking on a slightly human-like appearance.The stone thrown by Deucalion became a man, and the stone thrown by Pyrrha became a woman.

Exercise
How many ages have humans passed through?
Four, there are The Golden Age, The Silver Age,

The Brass Age, The Iron Age.

02 The Trojan War

At a wedding party Eris, the goddess of discord, threw a golden apple bearing the words “For the fairest!” Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, each wanting to get it for herself, were sent to Paris for judgment. A shepherd on Mt Ida , Paris gave the apple to Aphrodite because she had promised to obtain for him the love of the most beautiful woman in the world.
Paris was the son of Priam, the king of Troy. At his birth his mother Queen Hecuba dreamed of holding a piece of burning wood. So he was regarded as likely to bring destruction on the city, and was by chance exposed to the sun, wind and rain on MtIda. He was finally saved and brought up by the herdsmen there. Now acting on the instruction of Aphrodite, he went down the mountain to take part in the game held in Troy, and there so famous did he become that King Priam and Queen Hecuba received him joyfully back into the royal palace.
Soon he was sent to Greece at the head of a great team of boats. He went to Sparta, where, as Aphrodite had told him, the most beautiful woman of the time, Helen, lived. King Menelaus, Helen's husband, generously received him but Paris returned his host's kindness with no thanks. In the king's absence he persuaded Helen to elope with him to Troy. To payback, Greek took up arms. The Trojan War broke out.
As the Greek ships gathered at the port of Aulis, no favoring wind blew up. A prophet told the commander of the expedition, Agamemnon, that he had to offer his daughter Iphigenia as a sacrifice to Artemis. Iphigenia was placed before the goddess' altar but Artemis took her away at the last minute, putting a red deer in her place. Agamemnon's wife Clytemnestra was greatly enraged at her husband's cruelty.
(End of this chapter)