When Oscar Pistorius was convicted of murder, the presiding judge described the case as a "human tragedy of Shakespearean propor

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问题    When Oscar Pistorius was convicted of murder, the presiding judge described the case as a "human tragedy of Shakespearean proportions". 【F1】The Paralymyic (残奥会的) athlete’s fall from grace had followed a narrative arc that made this comparison appropriate: overcoming severe disability to reach "Olympian heights", falling in love with a beautiful model, and, in a coincidence that wouldn’t be out of place in one of Shakespeare’s plays, taking her life on Valentine’s Day. Mr. Pistorius’s tragic flaw manifested itself in an enthusiasm for guns.
   Mr. Pistorius’s case is, indeed, peculiarly Shakespearean. 【F2】But Justice Eric Leach, who delivered the judgment, is but one of a vast crowd who have turned to the playwright in times of legal need. Four years ago, Britain’s High Court evoked "King Lear" in a trial regarding a "menacing" joke on Twitter— they eventually overturned a conviction on the grounds that social-media users "are free to speak not what they ought to say, but what they feel". These examples illuminate and beautify, and make court proceedings user-friendly.
   【F3】Lawyers’ love of Shakespeare is appropriate given that more of his lines are devoted to discussing law than any other profession. (Some think his knowledge of the law was so detailed that the "real" Shakespeare must have been a lawyer.) The words of Shakespeare are likely to echo around courtrooms for decades to come. There are sensible reasons behind this; the University of Southampton, in line with recent studies, states that it offers the opportunity to study law through a literary perspective in order to "help law students to become more ethically shrewd practitioners". 【F4】A study argues that reading literary fiction makes people show empathy, challenge preconceptions, and be more flexible in their decisionmaking—all of which are, presumably, desirable in practitioners of the law. A literary sensibility enables lawyers to present clear, structured opinions and briefs.
   But what is it about the work of Shakespeare, in particular, that lends itself to legal quotation and reflection? One answer lies in Shakespeare’s status as an embodiment of high culture; citing him seeks to invest the judgment with credibility and invoke a sense of history. Another option is Shakespeare’s universality—everyone has either read, or claims to have read, plays like "Hamlet". 【F5】Either way, 400 years after the playwright’s death, Ben Jonson’s assessment is as true as ever Shakespeare’s plays and wisdom are "not of an age, but for all time".
【F5】

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答案无论怎样,在这位剧作家去世400年以后,本-琼森对他的评价仍无比准确:莎士比亚的戏剧和智慧“不是属于一个时期,而是属于永远”。

解析 ①本句为两个并列的简单句,两个分句都是主系表结构。②句首Either way为连词,意为“不管怎样;无论哪种方式”;400 years after the playwright’s death是分句1的时间状语,表示“莎士比亚去世400年以后的今天”。分句1表语as true as ever表示同级比较,意为“像以往一样准确”。③冒号后面的句子起补充说明的作用,指出本-琼森所作出的评价;not of an age,but for all time由连接词not…but…构成,并列介词短语是of an age和for all time。
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