听演讲学英文可以提高听力、练习口语、还可以阅读演讲原稿（附有中英文对照）学习原汁原味地道的英语材料，提高英语阅读能力。
Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I Have aDream"
I am happy to join with you today in whatwill go down in history as the greatest demonstration3 forfreedom in the history of our nation.
Five score years ago, a great American, inwhose symbolic4 shadowwe stand today, signed the Emancipation5 Proclamation.This momentous6 decreecame as a greatbeacon7 lightof hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames ofwithering8 injustice9.It came as a joyous10 daybreakto end the long night of their captivity11.
But one hundred years later, the Negrostill is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is stillsadly crippled by the manacles of segregation12 andthe chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on alonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.One hundred years later, the Negro is stilllanguished13 inthe corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. Andso we've come here today to dramatize a shameful14 condition.
In a sense we've come to our nation'scapital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote themagnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, theywere signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. Thisnote was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would beguaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and thepursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America has defaulted onthis promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Insteadof honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check,a check which has come back marked "insufficient15 funds."
But we refuse to believe that the bank ofjustice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds inthe great vaults16 ofopportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check thatwill give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
We have also come to this hallowed spot toremind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in theluxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now isthe time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise fromthe dark and desolate17 valleyof segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to liftour nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood18.Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
It would be fatal for the nation tooverlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate19 discontentwill not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality.Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope thatthe Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have arude awakening20 ifthe nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nortranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship21 rights.The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nationuntil the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to mypeople, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice:In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongfuldeeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from thecup of bitterness and hatred22.We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline.We must not allow our creative protest todegenerate23 intophysical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic24heightsof meeting physical force with soul force.
The marvelous new militancy25 whichhas engulfed26 theNegro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many ofour white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come torealize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come torealize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledgethat we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devoteesof civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never besatisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors ofpolicebrutality27.We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue28oftravel, cannot gain lodging29 inthe motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. *We cannot besatisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility30 isfrom a smallerghetto31 toa larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped oftheir self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For WhitesOnly."* We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannotvote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no,we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rollsdown like waters, and righteousness like a mighty32stream."¹
I am not unmindful that some of you havecome here out of great trials andtribulations33.Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have comefrom areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered34 bythe storms of persecution35 andstaggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans ofcreative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering isredemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina,go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos ofour northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will bechanged.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair,I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficultiesof today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in theAmerican dream.
I have a dream that one day this nationwill rise up and live out the true meaning of itscreed36:"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are createdequal."
I have a dream that one day on the redhills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave ownerswill be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the stateof Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering withthe heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis37 offreedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little childrenwill one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color oftheir skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down inAlabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips drippingwith the words of "interposition" and "nullification" --one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be ableto join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valleyshall be exalted38,and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be madeplain, and the crooked39 placeswill be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed andall flesh shall see it together."²
This is our hope, and this is the faiththat I go back to the South with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew40 outof the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able totransform the jangling discords41 ofour nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we willbe able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jailtogether, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free oneday.
And this will be the day -- this will bethe day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My country 'tis of thee, sweet land ofliberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of thePilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
And if America is to be a great nation,this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious42 hilltopsof New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of
Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout43 Mountainof Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allowfreedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, fromevery state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all ofGod's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants andCatholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negrospiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty44,we are free at last!³
a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的
参考例句：
Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。
（用不同的录音手段）转录( transcribe的过去式和过去分词 )； 改编（乐曲）（以适应他种乐器或声部）； 抄写； 用音标标出（声音）
参考例句：
He transcribed two paragraphs from the book into his notebook. 他把书中的两段抄在笔记本上。
Every telephone conversation will be recorded and transcribed. 所有电话交谈都将被录音并作全文转写。
n.表明，示范，论证，示威
参考例句：
His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。
4 symbolic
adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的
参考例句：
It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。
n.（从束缚、支配下）解放
参考例句：
We must arouse them to fight for their own emancipation. 我们必须唤起他们为其自身的解放而斗争。 来自《简明英汉词典》
They rejoiced over their own emancipation. 他们为自己的解放感到欢欣鼓舞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
adj.重要的，重大的
参考例句：
I am deeply honoured to be invited to this momentous occasion.能应邀出席如此重要的场合，我深感荣幸。
The momentous news was that war had begun.重大的新闻是战争已经开始。
7 beacon
n.烽火，（警告用的）闪火灯，灯塔
参考例句：
The blink of beacon could be seen for miles.灯塔的光亮在数英里之外都能看见。
The only light over the deep black sea was the blink shone from the beacon.黑黢黢的海面上唯一的光明就只有灯塔上闪现的亮光了。
使人畏缩的，使人害羞的，使人难堪的
参考例句：
She gave him a withering look. 她极其蔑视地看了他一眼。
The grass is gradually dried-up and withering and pallen leaves. 草渐渐干枯、枯萎并落叶。
n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利
参考例句：
They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。
10 joyous
adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的
参考例句：
The lively dance heightened the joyous atmosphere of the scene.轻快的舞蹈给这场戏渲染了欢乐气氛。
They conveyed the joyous news to us soon.他们把这一佳音很快地传递给我们。
11 captivity
n.囚禁；被俘；束缚
参考例句：
A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。
12 segregation
n.隔离，种族隔离
参考例句：
Many school boards found segregation a hot potato in the early 1960s.在60年代初，许多学校部门都觉得按水平分班是一个棘手的问题。
They were tired to death of segregation and of being kicked around.他们十分厌恶种族隔离和总是被人踢来踢去。
13 languished
长期受苦( languish的过去式和过去分词 )； 受折磨； 变得（越来越）衰弱； 因渴望而变得憔悴或闷闷不乐
参考例句：
Our project languished during the holidays. 我们的计划在假期间推动得松懈了。
He languished after his dog died. 他狗死之后，人憔悴了。
14 shameful
adj.可耻的，不道德的
参考例句：
It is very shameful of him to show off.他向人炫耀自己，真不害臊。
We must expose this shameful activity to the newspapers.我们一定要向报社揭露这一无耻行径。
15 insufficient
adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的
参考例句：
There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代，科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。
16 vaults
n.拱顶( vault的名词复数 )；地下室；撑物跳高；墓穴
参考例句：
It was deposited in the vaults of a bank. 它存在一家银行的保险库里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
They think of viruses that infect an organization from the outside.They envision hackers breaking into their information vaults. 他们考虑来自外部的感染公司的病毒，他们设想黑客侵入到信息宝库中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 desolate
adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂
参考例句：
The city was burned into a desolate waste.那座城市被烧成一片废墟。
We all felt absolutely desolate when she left.她走后，我们都觉得万分孤寂。
18 brotherhood
n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊
参考例句：
They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。
19 legitimate
adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法
参考例句：
Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。
20 awakening
n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的
参考例句：
the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。
21 citizenship
n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)
参考例句：
He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。
22 hatred
n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨
参考例句：
He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。
23 degenerate
v.退步，堕落；adj.退步的，堕落的；n.堕落者
参考例句：
He didn't let riches and luxury make him degenerate.他不因财富和奢华而自甘堕落。
Will too much freedom make them degenerate?太多的自由会令他们堕落吗？
24 majestic
adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的
参考例句：
In the distance rose the majestic Alps.远处耸立着雄伟的阿尔卑斯山。
He looks majestic in uniform.他穿上军装显得很威风。
25 militancy
n.warlike behavior or tendency
参考例句：
Full of militancy and revolutionary ardour, the people of all nationalities in the country are working hard for the realization of the four modernizations. 全国各族人民意气风发， 斗志昂扬，为实现四个现代化而奋战。
The seniority system is another factor that leads to union militancy. 排资论辈制度也是导致工会好斗争的另一因素。
26 engulfed
v.吞没，包住( engulf的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He was engulfed by a crowd of reporters. 他被一群记者团团围住。
The little boat was engulfed by the waves. 小船被波浪吞没了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
27 brutality
n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮
参考例句：
The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军
28 fatigue
n.疲劳，劳累
参考例句：
The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。
29 lodging
n.寄宿，住所；(大学生的)校外宿舍
参考例句：
The bill is inclusive of the food and lodging. 账单包括吃、住费用。
Where can you find lodging for the night? 你今晚在哪里借宿?
30 mobility
n.可动性，变动性，情感不定
参考例句：
The difference in regional house prices acts as an obstacle to mobility of labour.不同地区房价的差异阻碍了劳动力的流动。
Mobility is very important in guerrilla warfare.机动性在游击战中至关重要。
31 ghetto
n.少数民族聚居区，贫民区
参考例句：
Racism and crime still flourish in the ghetto.城市贫民区的种族主义和犯罪仍然十分猖獗。
I saw that achievement as a possible pattern for the entire ghetto.我把获得的成就看作整个黑人区可以仿效的榜样。
32 mighty
adj.强有力的；巨大的
参考例句：
A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
33 tribulations
n.苦难( tribulation的名词复数 )；艰难；苦难的缘由；痛苦
参考例句：
the tribulations of modern life 现代生活的苦恼
The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence. 这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。 来自《简明英汉词典》
34 battered
adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损
参考例句：
He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。
35 persecution
n. 迫害,烦扰
参考例句：
He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。
36 creed
n.信条；信念，纲领
参考例句：
They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。
37 oasis
n.（沙漠中的）绿洲，宜人的地方
参考例句：
They stopped for the night at an oasis.他们在沙漠中的绿洲停下来过夜。
The town was an oasis of prosperity in a desert of poverty.该镇是贫穷荒漠中的一块繁荣的“绿洲”。
38 exalted
adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的
参考例句：
Their loveliness and holiness in accordance with their exalted station.他们的美丽和圣洁也与他们的崇高地位相称。
He received respect because he was a person of exalted rank.他因为是个地位崇高的人而受到尊敬。
39 crooked
adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的
参考例句：
He crooked a finger to tell us to go over to him.他弯了弯手指，示意我们到他那儿去。
You have to drive slowly on these crooked country roads.在这些弯弯曲曲的乡间小路上你得慢慢开车。
40 hew
v.砍；伐；削
参考例句：
Hew a path through the underbrush.在灌木丛中砍出一条小路。
Plant a sapling as tall as yourself and hew it off when it is two times high of you.种一棵与自己身高一样的树苗，长到比自己高两倍时砍掉它。
41 discords
不和（discord的复数形式）
参考例句：
There are many discords in this family. 在这个家庭里有许多争吵。
The speaker's opinion discords with the principles of this society. 演讲者的意见与本会的原则不符。
42 prodigious
adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的
参考例句：
This business generates cash in prodigious amounts.这种业务收益丰厚。
He impressed all who met him with his prodigious memory.他惊人的记忆力让所有见过他的人都印象深刻。
43 lookout
n.注意，前途，瞭望台
参考例句：
You can see everything around from the lookout.从了望台上你可以看清周围的一切。
It's a bad lookout for the company if interest rates don't come down.如果利率降不下来，公司的前景可就不妙了。
44 almighty
adj.全能的，万能的；很大的，很强的
参考例句：
Those rebels did not really challenge Gods almighty power.这些叛徒没有对上帝的全能力量表示怀疑。
It's almighty cold outside.外面冷得要命。
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