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They performed these miracles in little villages that covered less ground than four or five modern city blocks.
令人驚嘆的是，他們創(chuàng)造了奇跡的場所，盡管是些相當(dāng)于現(xiàn)代城市四、五個街區(qū)大小的小村莊。
And look, what finally happened!
看看最后發(fā)生了什么吧！
In the fourth century before our era, Alexander of Macedonia conquered the world. As soon as he had done with fighting, Alexander decided that he must bestow the benefits of the true Greek genius upon all mankind. He took it away from the little cities and the little villages and tried to make it blossom and bear fruit amidst the vast royal residences of his newly acquired Empire. But the Greeks, removed from the familiar sight of their own temples, removed from the well-known sounds and smells of their own crooked streets, at once lost the cheerful joy and the marvellous sense of moderation which had inspired the work of their hands and brains while they laboured for the glory of their old city-states. They became cheap artisans, content with second-rate work. The day the little city-states of old Hellas lost their independence and were forced to become part of a big nation, the old Greek spirit died. And it has been dead ever since.
公元前4世紀，馬其頓的亞歷山大大帝征服了全世界。一俟戰(zhàn)事完畢，亞歷山大就決意將真正的希臘精神傳播給全人類。他將希臘精神從那些小村莊、小城市里帶出來，努力讓它們在自己新建立的遼闊帝國里開花結(jié)果。可一旦遠離朝夕相處的熟悉廟宇，聞不到故鄉(xiāng)彎曲的小巷里的親切聲響與味道，希臘人似乎一夜 之間便喪失了激發(fā)他們創(chuàng)造出偉大作品的生氣勃勃的歡樂與良好的均衡感。他們的手和腦子失去了靈氣，淪為廉價的藝匠，僅僅滿足于二流的拙劣品。從古希臘的小城邦喪失獨立；被迫成為一個偉大帝國的屬地那天開始，古老的希臘精神即隨之死去了。它永遠地死去，再未曾復(fù)活過來。
