研英长难句翻译真题词汇详解：（12）

长难句：pushed by science,or what claims to be science,society is reclassifying what once were considered character flaws or moral failings as personality disorders akin to physical disabilities.

重点词汇：flaws，failings，physical disability，akin

■答案■

1、长难句：在科学或所谓的科学的驱动下，社会正对曾被视为性格缺陷或道德缺失的东西重新进行归类，认为是类似于身体残疾的性格失衡。

分析： 句子的主干结构是society is reclassifying，宾语是what…moral failings，后面的成分（as personality disorders akin to physical disabilities）是宾语补足语。被动分词结构（pushed by science,or what claims to be science）作全句的状语。

2、flaws意为“缺点；裂纹；瑕疵”，character flaws指“性格缺陷”。 they share the character flaw of arrogance.（他们都有傲慢的缺点。） failings意为“缺点，缺陷”。 physical disability意为“身体残疾或缺陷”，这里的physical意为“身体的，生理的”。 akin意为“同类的，类似的”。i should teach my students that science is akin to common sense.（我要教导学生，让他们了解科学类似于常识。）the situation there is akin to that of the west before the rise of the ready-to-wear industry in the early 1900s.（这种情形与20世纪初成衣工业出现前的西方相仿。）