L: Are you interested in politics, Thomas?
L:你对政治感兴趣吗，托马斯？
T: Yes, I think so.
T:是的，我很感兴趣。
L: Why? It’s so complicated and far from us. I always thought that most people are not very politically aware. They often don’ t understand the issues completely.
L:为什么？我觉得政治很复杂，离我们的生舌又远。我一直以为大多数人都不 关心政治，不能完全理解政治的含义。
T: That’s true. But it’s a little strange because the media often reports on political events. You can read about them in the newspaper or hear them on TV. And for me, paying attention to politics is a way to pay attention to my country. For instance, we vote for the party, which we believe in, to make our country better.
T:这倒是真的。不过奋怪的是媒体对政治的报道很多，你在报纸和电视上常常 都能看到政治新闻。我认为，关心政治就是关心国家，比如说，我们投票给 自己信任的政党，希望他们把国家治理得更好。
L: Well, I agree with you in that point. Have you ever belonged to a political party?
L：恩，我同意你的观点。你加入过某个政党吗？
T: No, I haven’ t， but I'm thinking about joining the Conservative Party. Have you ever heard of this party?
T:设有，不过我正在考虑加入保守党，你听说过这个党吗？
L: Yes, of course. The Iron Lady, Ms. Thatcher is a household name in our country.
L:当然听说过。"铁娘子”撒切尔在中国是一个家喻户晓的名字。
T: Really? But this is not surprising, because she is so great. Margaret Thatcher was the United Kingdom’s first woman prime minister, and she held the office of prime minister for longer than anyone in the twentieth century. She served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990.
T：真的吗？不过这也不奋怪，她的确是一个伟人。撒切尔不保是英国历史上的第一位女首相，同时也是英国 20世纪执政时间最长的首相。她在 1979年至 1990年期间担任英国首相。
L： How marvelous! I also heard that she graduated from Oxford University. What did she major in?
L:真了不起！我还听说她就是从牛津大学毕业的。她当时学的是什么专业？
T： She went to Somerville College， Oxford in 1943 and studied Natural Sciences, specializing in Chemistry. However, during her life in Oxford, she was very interested in politics and even took part in the University Conservative Association. She became President of the Oxford University Conservative Association in 1946， the third woman to hold the post.
T：撒切尔 1943年进入牛津大学萨默维尔学院学习自然科学，主修化学。不过， 她在牛津期间对政治很感兴趣，并且加人了学校的保守党协会。 1946车，撒切尔成为了牛津大学保守党协会的主席，同时也是该协会成立以来的第三位女主席。
L: That is why she devoted to politics in her later years. It seemed that she knew very well what she was going to do after graduation.
L:怪不得撒切尔毕业后那么热衷于政治活动。看来在上大学的时候她就很明确 自己今后要走什么路了。
T: Maybe. Yet you wouldn’ t put it that way if you had read her autobiography.
T:也许吧。不过，如果你看过她的自传，也许就不这么认为了。
L: Really? What makes you think so?
L:是吗？何以见得？ '
T: I remembered some sentences in her autobiography,“ In the first semester, I missed my family very much, which, according to me, resulted from the brand new environment around me.”“ My life in Oxford could be more varied and colorful. But I was poor then. If it was not for my helpful supervisor, the chemist Dorothy Hodgkin, who always recommended me to get some scholarships, I even could not make ends meet. Besides, I was also supported financially by some educational funds. Therefore, most of my time was spent in learning.”“ As soon as I entered Oxford, I took part in the Conservative Association, which was founded in the 1920 s. Soon the activities in the association turned to be the center of my life. I made many friends there, among which there were some who held opposite political stands from me, but I always treasured those precious friendships.”
T:我记得撒切尔自传里有这样一些话：“第一个学期里我很想家，在我看来，这是因为周围崭新的环境把我弄懵了。“我的牛津生涯本来可以更丰富多彩 些，但那时我手头不富裕，若不是我的导师——乐于助人的化学家多萝西霍 奋金总是向学校建议让我获得一些奖学金，我将入不敷出。此外，我还得到 了一些教育基金的资助。基于这些情况，我的大部分时间都在啃书本。"“牛津入学初始，我就加入了牛津大学保守党协会，该协会成立于 20世纪 20年代。 不久，保守党协会的各种活动就成为了我生活的核心。在这里我结识了很多 朋友，其中不乏与我持相左政治观点的人，但尽管如此，我仍然珍惜这些珍 贵的友谊。”
L: Well, it can be said that the experience in Oxford laid foundation for Thatcher's later political life.
L:嗯，可以说，在牛津读书的经历为撒切尔日后的政治生涯奠定了基础。
T: Yeah. If she hadn’ t taken part in the Conservative Association, she wouldn’ t know that she was interested in politics.
T：是的。如果她没有加入学校保守党协会，就不会知道自己真正的兴趣在于政治。
L: Yes, I think so. One of our missions in college is to figure out what our real interest is.
L:恩，我也这么认为，我们在大学期间的任务之一就是发现我们真正的兴趣所在。
T: So let’s join in more clubs, shall we?
T:那我们就多参加几个社团，怎么样？
L: Good idea!
L:好主意。
