Anne Sullivan was born in 1866 in Massachusetts, US. Sadly for Sullivan,her childhood was not an easy one. When she was five, she contracted an illness called trachoma.This horrible eye disease causes a lot of pain and, over time, results in severe vision loss. To make matters worse, when Sullivan was just eight years old, her mother died of tuberculosis.Sullivan’s father, who was an alcoholic, was unable to raise a family alone. So,he sent Sullivan and her brother to live in a poorhouse.
Conditions at the poorhouse were awful, and many people there died. Tragically,Sullivan’s brother was one of those. However, things became much better for Sullivan later. She had several operations on her eyes that improved her sight. She also learned about a special school for blind people—the Perkins School for the Blind. In 1880, Sullivan approached a group of inspectors at the poorhouse and expressed her desire to learn. Later that year, Sullivan entered Perkins and began the next stage of her life.
安．苏利文 1866 年出生于美国的麻萨诸塞州。令人遗憾的是，苏利文的童年并不轻松。当她五岁时，她感染了一种叫做砂眼的疾病。这种可怕的眼睛疾病会带来很大痛苦，并随着时间导致严重的视力损失。更糟糕的是，当苏利文只有八岁时，她的母亲死于肺结核。苏利文的父亲是一名酗酒者，无法独自抚养家庭。因此，他送苏利文和她的弟弟去一所济贫院生活。
济贫院的生活条件非常糟糕，在那里有很多人死去。不幸的是，苏利文的弟弟就是其中之一。然而，苏利文之后的生活好了很多。她的眼睛接受了几次手术，改善了她的视力。她还得知有一所专门为盲人设立的特殊学校 ── 柏金斯盲校。1880 年，苏利文向济贫院的一群督察员表示了她想学习的渴望。那年不久之后，苏利文进入了柏金斯盲校，开始了她生活的下一阶段。
1. contract (v.)感染（疾病）
Tim contracted an illness while he was on vacation,but luckily, he feels much better now.
2. vision (n.)视力
Owen’s vision was damaged in a car accident, and he hasn’t been able to see clearly ever since.
3. conditions (n. pl.)（生活或工作的）环境，状况，条件
In the 20th century, people fought to improve working conditions in places like mines and factories.
4. awful (adj.)极坏的；糟糕的
We didn’t go out yesterday because the weather was awful. It was cold and rainy all day!
5. operation (n.)手术
operation on sth 在…（身体某部位）动手术
The doctor told the patient that the operation had been a complete success.
6. inspector (n.)督察员；视察者
The restaurant was forced to close after a health inspector caught it serving rotten food.
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