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Inaugural Address
約翰·F·肯尼迪第四次就職演說
(January 20, 1961)
(1961年1月20日)
John F. Kennedy
約翰·F·肯尼迪
We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom, symbolizing an end as well as a beginning, signifying renewal as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three-quarters ago.
我們今天舉行的不是一個政黨的祝捷大會，而是一次自由的慶典。這是一個承先啟后、繼往開來的大事件。因為剛才我已依照我們的先輩在將近一又四分之三個世紀(jì)以前擬好的誓言在諸位和全能的上帝面前莊嚴(yán)宣誓。
The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary belief for which our forebears fought is still at issue around the globe, the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God.
當(dāng)今的世界已與往昔大不相同了。人類手中已掌握的力量，既足以消除一切形式的人類貧困，也足以結(jié)束一切形式的人類生活。然而，我們的先輩曾為之奮斗的革命信念至今仍未能為舉世所公認(rèn)。這信念就是認(rèn)定人權(quán)出自上帝所賜而非得自政府的恩典。
We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans, born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of these human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.
我們今天仍未敢忘記我們是第一次革命戰(zhàn)爭的接班人。此時此地我謹(jǐn)向我們的朋友，同時也向我們的敵人宣告：火炬已傳到我們新一代美國人手中。這一代人在本世紀(jì)成長起來，經(jīng)受過戰(zhàn)火的鍛煉，經(jīng)歷過冷峻的和平的考驗，以珍視古老的傳統(tǒng)而自豪，又決不愿坐視或容許人權(quán)逐漸遭到踐踏。美國對這些人權(quán)一向負(fù)有責(zé)任，今天我們也正在本國及全世界范圍內(nèi)為之奮斗。
