"In 1964, I was a little girl sitting on the floor of my mother's house in Milwaukee, watching Anne Bancroft present the Oscar for best actor at the 36th Academy Awards. She opened the envelope and uttered five words that made history: 'The winner is Sidney Poitier.'" These words were part of the acceptance speech made by Oprah Winfrey on receiving the lifetime achievement award at the 2018 Golden Globes. The "history" she cited was the fact that Poitier was the first African-American to win the best actor prize. It was a moment that helped motivate the little girl to break free from the limitations set by her race and gender, as well as from the adversity that marred her early life.
「1964 年，我還是一個小女孩，坐在母親位於密爾沃基的房子地板上，看著 Anne Bancroft 在第 36 屆奧斯卡金像獎頒獎典禮上頒發奧斯卡最佳男主角。她打開信封，說了五個創造歷史的字：『得獎者是 Sidney Poitier。』」這句話是 Oprah Winfrey 在 2018 年金球獎獲得終身成就獎時得獎感言的一部分。她提到的「歷史」是 Poiteir 成為第一個獲得最佳男演員獎的非裔美國人的事實。這是激起小女孩動機的一刻，鼓舞她擺脫她種族、性別所設下的限制，也擺脫毀掉她早年生活的困境。
Born in rural Mississippi in 1954, Oprah Winfrey's early years were spent being shunted back and forth between her mother, her grandmother, and her father. As a child, she was once dressed in potato sacks because her poverty-stricken family could not afford to buy clothes for her. Today, mercifully, her life could not be more different. She is a world-renowned talk show host, entrepreneur, actress, and philanthropist, as well as America's first ever black female billionaire. So how was she able to make such great strides from such humble beginnings?
1954 年出生於密西西比州的鄉村地區，Oprah Winfrey 早年在母親、祖母和父親之間被丟來丟去。小時候，她曾因為她家裡太窮買不起衣服給她而身穿馬鈴薯麻布袋。現在，幸運的是，她的生活截然不同。她是舉世聞名的脫口秀主持人、企業家、女演員和慈善家，也是美國有史以來首位黑人女性億萬富翁。那麼，她如何能夠從如此卑微的起點變得如此飛黃騰達呢？
For most poor black girls in the American South of the 1960s, the door to fame and wealth must have seemed permanently closed. Oprah's early life took place on a small farm with her grandmother, whose aspirations for the girl extended no further than her becoming a domestic worker in a white household. Oprah was beaten regularly and often felt isolated. When her grandmother fell ill, the six-year-old girl was sent to live with her mother. The following years were the grimmest of her life. She suffered sexual abuse from her cousin and other relatives, and ran away from home when she was thirteen.
對於 1960 年代美國南方大多數貧窮的黑人女孩來說，成名和財富之門似乎永遠緊閉。Oprah 的早年生活是與祖母生活在一個小農場裡，祖母對這個女孩的期待，不過就是希望她成為白人家庭幫傭。Oprah 經常遭到毆打，常常感到寂寞。當祖母病倒時，這名六歲的女孩被送去和母親同住。接下來的幾年是她一生中最黑暗的時期。她被表哥和其他親戚性虐待，而在 13 歲那年離家出走。
Later, she moved in with her father in Tennessee. It was the first time Oprah could enjoy a stable life. Her father made her education a high priority. As she once said in an interview, "My father turned my life around by demanding that I be more than I was." She thrived at high school, and won a full scholarship to Tennessee State University. Her media career started soon afterwards. In the beginning, she had to contend with the disadvantages of being a young black woman in an industry where old white men made and enforced all the rules. Nevertheless, Oprah's determination and courage eventually carried her to the top of her profession.
後來，她搬去田納西州與父親住。這是 Oprah 第一次能享受穩定的生活。她的父親非常重視她的學業。如同她曾經在一次訪談中說的那樣：「我父親改變了我的生活，藉由要求我突破自我。」她在高中時表現出色，並獲得田納西州立大學的全額獎學金。她的媒體事業不久後便起步。一開始，她必須面對身為一名年輕黑人女性的劣勢，而且是身處在所有規則都是由年長白人男性來制定和執行的行業中。然而，Oprah 的決心和勇氣最終帶領她走向事業的巔峰。
Now, Oprah Winfrey has a lifestyle that she could only have dreamed of in childhood. She attributes her record-breaking achievements to the character traits she developed as a result of her childhood ordeal. Among these is the resilience which comes from facing severe difficulties, as well as an ability to think positively—something that Oprah always promoted in her popular talk show. Another quality that viewers found appealing was the empathy she always showed to her guests during the show's twenty-five-year run. Having suffered so much in her past, she found it easy to relate to people who were opening up about their problems.
現在，Oprah Winfrey 擁有她小時候只能做夢才有的生活方式。她將自己創紀錄的成就歸因於她從童年苦難中所發展出的性格特徵。其中包括面對嚴峻困難所產生的韌性，以及正向思考的能力－－這是 Oprah 一直在她受歡迎的脫口秀中提倡的。另一個讓觀眾覺得吸引人的特質是她在脫口秀播出的 25 年間一直對來賓表現出的同理心。過去經歷了如此多的痛苦後，她發現自己可以輕鬆地與那些吐露自己問題的人建立連結。
As is true of many people who have overcome major barriers in their lives, Oprah found a way to use what she learned from her childhood abuse and traumas to become successful in her adult life. She always encourages others to make the most of their own experiences. She is fully aware that she is a source of inspiration to many and urges people to try their best. As she once told viewers of the TV network she owns, "Turn your wounds into wisdom."
正如許多克服了人生重大困境的人一樣，Oprah 找到了一個方法，可以利用她從童年遭受的虐待和創傷中所學到的東西讓自己在成年後功成名就。她總是鼓勵其他人充分利用自己的經驗。她完全意識到許多人從她身上得到鼓舞，因此激勵人們盡力而為。正如她曾經對自己擁有的電視台的觀眾所說︰「將傷痛蛻變為智慧。」
- utter [ˋʌtɚ] v.
說，講
The magician uttered some special words and the piece of paper in the hat changed into a white rabbit. - utterance [ˋʌtərəns] n.
發聲，表達
Celebrities have to be careful about what they say, because every utterance they make is closely examined by the media. - cite [saɪt] v.
舉例，引證
The statistics you have cited in your report are useful, but they are not complete. - citation [saɪˋteʃən] n.
引語，引文
Including citations and source references is very important when you are writing a report. - gender [ˋdʒɛndɚ] n.
性別
Nowadays, there are more and more gender neutral restrooms in the school. - adversity [ədˋvɝsətɪ] n.
逆境，不幸
Soldiers who wish to join the special forces must prove themselves very good at overcoming adversity. - adverse [ædˋvɝs] adj.
不利的
Adverse weather conditions forced the sailboat captain to return to harbor. - mar [mɑr] v.
傷害，破壞
The show was marred by the rude behavior of some people in the audience. - rural [ˋrʊrəl] adj.
農村的
Monica grew up in a rural environment surrounded by the beauty of the natural world. - stricken [ˋstrɪkən] adj.
遭受重創的
The stricken vessel was gradually smashed to pieces against the rocks. - renowned [rɪˋnaʊnd] adj.
著名的
This store is renowned for the high quality and high prices of its cosmetic products. - entrepreneur [͵ɑntrəprəˋnɝ] n.
企業家，創業者
Simon is an online entrepreneur who is currently trying to develop a new social network. - enterprise [ˋɛntɚ͵praɪz] n.
公司，企業
This part of the old city has changed a lot, with many new stores and commercial enterprises. - stride [straɪd] n.
進展，進步
Alice struggled in her first year of high school, but this year she has made great strides in every subject. - permanently [ˋpɝmənəntlɪ] adv.
永久地
An immigrant is someone who goes to live permanently in another country. - permanent [ˋpɝmənənt] adj.
永久的
Only a small number of countries are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. - aspiration [͵æspəˋreʃən] n.
志向，抱負
The theme of this novel is the lives and aspirations of young people just after the First World War ended. - aspire [əˋspaɪr] v.
追求，渴望
All through his difficult childhood, Peter aspired to a better life, and now he has everything he ever wanted. - isolated [ˋaɪs!͵etɪd] adj.
落寞的，孤獨的
Despite being in a wheelchair, Jake has made many friends and has never felt isolated. - grim [grɪm] adj.
令人沮喪的
Unless they get a lot of help, the future looks grim for the survivors of the earthquake. - abuse [əˋbjus] n.
虐待，傷害
Maxine endured years of mental and physical abuse before she finally got away from her cruel husband. - abuse [əˋbjus] v.
虐待，傷害
Cora was upset after being abused and called names by some rude teenagers on the bus. - thrive [θraɪv] v.
茁壯成長
Since the Thompsons moved out of the city, their young son has thrived and his health has improved. - thriving [θraɪvɪŋ] adj.
茁壯成長的，興盛的
Two hundred years ago there was nothing here but desert, and now there is a thriving city. - enforce [ɪnˋfors] v.
實施，執行
Because of the disaster, the authorities enforced travel restrictions on the area. - enforcement [ɪnˋforsmənt] n.
強制實施
Traffic laws are useless unless there are effective enforcement measures as well. - attribute [əˋtrɪbjʊt] v.
把...歸因於
Mark spoke to his doctor, who attributed his headaches to overwork. - attribution [͵ætrəˋbjuʃən] n.
歸因
The attribution of the outcome to bad luck was Jeremy's way of avoiding personal responsibility. - trait [tret] n.
特徵
Judith is popular because she has so many positive traits, including kindness and patience. - ordeal [ɔrˋdiəl] n.
磨難，苦難
It was a miracle that the children survived the terrible ordeal of being lost in the desert for a week. - resilience [rɪˋzɪlɪəns] n.
耐挫力，韌性
I admire Martha's resilience, as she always keeps going when most people would just give up. - resilient [rɪˋzɪlɪənt] adj.
迅速恢復精力的
Dave was upset when his girlfriend left him, but he is a resilient guy and his disappointment didn't last long. - empathy [ˋɛmpəθɪ] n.
同理心
Having grown up without parents, Julie had empathy for the child who just lost her parents. - urge [ɝdʒ] v.
激勵
Carrie urged her father to adopt the puppy, but he was very reluctant to do so. - urge [ɝdʒ] n.
衝動
On a beautiful morning like this one, I always feel a strong urge to take a long walk. - break free/loose from
脫離
Theresa was happy to finally break free from the restrictions of her low-paid job. - back and forth to and from
來來回回地
The twins were in the living room, hitting a balloon back and forth between them. - turn one's life around
翻轉某人的人生
Tony succeeded in overcoming his drug addiction and turning his life around. - contend with
必須應對（困境或不愉快的事）
If you want to succeed in business, there are many obstacles you must contend with. - make the most of
充分利用
Let's make the most of the long weekend and go camping.
