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Abraham Lincoln is the most celebrated figure in American history.
亞伯拉罕·林肯是美國歷史上最為與世聞名的人物
His assassination almost 150 years ago transformed him from a mere politician into America's national saint.
發生在約150年前有關他的暗殺案 將這樣一位單純的政客升華成為美國的國家圣人
It's the original martyrdom. It's Lincoln dying for the nation's sins.
這是一場原始的殉難 林肯殉難于這個國家的罪孽
He dies in the moment of his triumph on Good Friday in a Christian country.
他死在自己輝煌的勝利時刻 死在耶穌受難日里 在這個基督教盛行之國
I mean, God, who wrote that script?
我想說 天啊 是誰編下如此巧合的劇本
To most Americans, he is the president who saved the Union,
對于大部分美國民眾來說 他是拯救了整個聯邦的總統先生
an everyman from the Kentucky backwoods who rose from poverty to become president,
是一位來自肯塔基州的邊遠蠻荒之地 一位從一貧如洗奮斗成為美國總統的普通人
living out the American dream.
他的人生就是美國夢的代表
He is all that Americans think the nation should be,
他的形象就是這個國家的模范
and so consequently we've become infatuated with him.
而且正因如此 我們美國民眾才如此尊崇熱愛他
To African Americans, Lincoln will always be the Great Emancipator,
對于非裔美國人來說 林肯永遠都可被稱為是偉大的解放者
the man who freed the slaves,
是解放了黑人奴隸的救星
thereby placing equality alongside liberty as one of those truths
也是從那時起 他讓平等觀念變得與自由同樣重要
that Americans hold as self-evident.
讓美國人把它們看作是不言而喻的真理
And for almost all Americans, particularly those in the North,
而對于絕大多數的美國人 尤其對于那些生活在北部地區的人們來說
he is the leader who guided the nation through the trauma of the Civil War,
是他 領導了整個國家走過了南北戰爭中的創傷苦難
perhaps the central event in the country's history.
也許這可以算是美國國家歷史上的核心事件
But today, as America marks the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's presidency,
但是如今 當美國人開始紀念前總統林肯就職150周年時
an historic battle is being waged for the reputation of America's 16th president.
一場史學爭論拉開了對美國第16任總統名譽質疑的序幕
