GRE作文范文 Issue-5

"Because of television and worldwide computer connections, people can now become familiar with a great many places that they have never visited. As a result, tourism will soon become obsolete."

嘉文博譯Sample Essay

Anything that makes a country's government more transparent is certainly a good thing, at least in democratic countries. These societies have a great deal to gain by being able to watch their elected government officials in action. But to broadly state that the more government proceedings that are televised, the more society will benefit is to ignore the fact that sometimes, less is more. Some types of proceedings can even be adversely affected if televised, making society worse off rather than giving it a benefit. Some types of governmental proceedings should receive more televised coverage, but there are some that should probably receive less to ensure that they are properly conducted.

One example of the possible negative effects of televising all governmental proceedings was the trial in the United States of accused murderer and former National Football League superstar O.J. Simpson. The trial was televised and became a huge media spectacle, captivating the nation's attention during the entire trial. Attorneys were well aware that the proceedings were being televised and almost behaved as if they were acting in a movie. The spotlight was so unrelenting that the circus atmosphere affected even the judge. The presence of television cameras and the effect of the intense media coverage led to a trial like no other, and adversely affected the natural progression of the trial. The participants played to the cameras rather than focusing on the task at hand. Largely because of television, many people would argue that justice was not served during this particular trial.

On the other hand, television of the day-to-day workings of government in action provides direct insight into how a government actually works. Because the television cameras are there everyday, the governmental officials become accustomed to them and are no longer greatly affected by their presence. In this way, society benefits because they are able to see what is happening as it happens. The government in action is no longer hidden behind such a veil of secrecy so that no one knows the mysterious ways of their elected officials.

One of the problems with stating that the more governmental proceedings that are televised, the better of a society is, is that people might come to believe that they are seeing everything when in fact, a television camera can only see part of what is happening no matter how many cameras there are. Much of what happens in government takes place "behind the scenes", not necessarily in full view of the cameras in the meeting place. While to an extent "seeing is believing", quite often it is what you don't see that makes the difference. Merely televising governmental proceedings certainly enhances understanding, but to fully understand the process a person would actually have to actively participate in that process.

Another problem with the statement that the more televised governmental proceedings, the better, is that it assumes that people actually watch the proceedings when they are broadcast. There is a television channel in the United States that broadcasts Congressional proceedings every day, but few people watch it. Only when some big issue comes up for a debate or for a vote does a significant number of people tune in. To merely televise governmental proceedings will not affect society unless society watches these events.

Society can certainly benefit from the television coverage of certain governmental proceedings. To actually see the elected officials in action can bring an extra element of understanding into the inner workings of a government. Politicians can be held accountable for their actions while they are being "watched" by the television cameras. No longer can they hide in anonymity while they are conducting the business of the people. But not all governmental proceedings should be televised. There are times when secrecy is an absolute requirement for making sure that the correct decisions are made.

(684 words)

參考譯文

由于電視和全球性的電腦聯(lián)網(wǎng)，人們現(xiàn)在可以了解從前沒有見到的眾多地方，其結(jié)果是旅游業(yè)會很快變得蕭條

在任何一個社會里，總有一些人天生愛旅游，也有一些戀家的人喜歡他們所在的地方，根本沒有到別處去游山玩水的愿望。大多數(shù)人們可能處于兩個極端之間。由于電視頻道更多了，電腦聯(lián)絡(luò)更快更方便了，普通人所能掌握的信息比歷史上任何時候都多。但是，網(wǎng)絡(luò)和電視不僅不會使旅游業(yè)蕭條，反而會促使更多的人到更多的地方旅游。假如沒有網(wǎng)絡(luò)和電視，他們會永遠都不知道這些地方。

在過去的年代里，人們能在報紙和雜志上了解到不同的地方，或者可能從收音機里聽說一些。在電視發(fā)展的早期，電視設(shè)備不能被運到世界上某些更偏遠的地區(qū)，這使得人們無從了解許多地方。即使當(dāng)一個國家或某個大陸被描述或在電視上播放時，它似乎還是那些堅強的、敢于冒險的旅行者以外的人們所無法接近的遙遠而又神秘的地方。飛機更是被看作一種新奇的事物或者只是為國內(nèi)旅行所用。輪船能把人們帶到遙遠的地方，但要到達目的地，還需要幾周或幾個月的時間。普通人沒有時間和金錢用于這樣的境外旅游。

交通工具的令人難以置信的改進使得旅行不僅安全快捷，也更加舒適。歐洲和日本的一些地區(qū)的高速磁懸浮火車能以每小時高達三百公里的速度安全運送旅客;協(xié)和客機能在不到四小時的時間內(nèi)把人們極其舒服地由紐約送到倫敦;能遠航到幾乎所有海港的大型巡游船已經(jīng)被建設(shè)得能和世界上任意一處的五星級陸地酒店相媲美;甚至還有一些宇宙空間游客到外層的國際空間站旅行并安全返回地球。不僅是交通工具本身被大大地改善，這些工具所利用的高速公路和鐵路也被大幅度地改進。迅速而可靠的交通工具使得人們可以到達前所未有的更多地方。

信息技術(shù)時代很可能也會因為普通人的可用信息的迅速增長而促使更多的人去旅游。了解一個國家正如同接近一臺個人桌面電腦那樣容易，一個人所熟悉的國家和地區(qū)越多，他或她發(fā)現(xiàn)一個自己想親自旅游的地方的可能性就越大。以前所不為人知的島上樂園和國家現(xiàn)在正通過電視和互聯(lián)網(wǎng)使自己揚名并試圖從每年消費于旅游的數(shù)十億美元中贏得利潤。全球的收入也增加了，這使得更多的人能夠支付假期旅游的費用。

雖然可能會有一些人通過電視或電腦進行"虛擬"旅行，但也同樣有可能在沒有這樣大量的信息可用的情況下，他們還是哪也不去。在美國的大峽谷游玩或在澳大利亞的大堡礁周圍戴水肺跳水和在電視上或網(wǎng)絡(luò)上觀看并不是一回事;在阿爾卑斯山滑雪或是在蘇格蘭高地上呼吸新鮮空氣必定是親身經(jīng)歷的快樂;到一個中國本地的村民家中與他握手或品嘗亞馬遜河岸邊友好的部落成員的烹調(diào)手藝都離不開旅行。技術(shù)只是增加了容易獲取的知識;它并不能打消那些愛好旅行的人們的熱情。