­　　亲贤臣，远小人，此先汉所以兴隆也；亲小人，远贤臣，此后汉所以倾颓也。

­　　The emperors of the Western Han chose their courtiers wisely, and their dynasty flourished. The emperors of the Eastern Han chose poorly, and they doomed the empire to ruin.

­　　（6） flourish 本意指“植物等茁壮成长”，后引申为“to develop well and be successful”“发展良好或取得成功”，也就是我们常说的“兴盛，繁荣”。

­　　The economy is booming and small businesses are flourishing.

­　　经济开始兴盛，小企业也开始繁荣起来。

­　　（7） doom,“to make someone or something certain to fail, die, be destroyed etc.”“使某人或某事注定失败、死亡或被毁灭”。常用搭配为be doomed to do sth.“注定要做……”

­　　We are all doomed to die in the end.

­　　我们最终注定要死亡。

­　　先帝在时，每与臣论此事，未尝不叹息痛恨于桓、灵也。

­　　Whenever the late Emperor discussed this problem with me, he lamented the failings of Emperors Huan and Ling.

­　　（8） lament “to express feelings of great sadness about something”，“对……感到悲痛”。

­　　The nation lamented the death of its great leader.

­　　整个国家都在为伟大领袖的逝世感到悲痛。

­　　……

­　　臣本布衣，躬耕于南阳，苟全性命于乱世，不求闻达于诸侯。

­　　I began as a common man, farming in my fields in Nanyang, doing what I could to survive in an age of chaos. I never had any interest in making a name for myself as a noble.

­　　（9）make a name,“If you make a name for yourself or make your name as something, you become well-known for that thing.”指“（因……）而出名”。

­　　He made his name with several collections of short stories.

­　　他因几本短篇故事集而名声大噪。

­　　先帝不以臣卑鄙，猥自枉屈，三顾臣于草庐之中，咨臣以当世之事，由是感激，遂许先帝以驱驰。

­　　The late Emperor was not ashamed to visit my cottage and seek my advice. Grateful for his regard, I responded to his appeal and threw myself into his service.

­　　……

­　　先帝知臣谨慎，故临崩寄臣以大事也。

­　　The late Emperor always appreciated my caution and, in his final days, entrusted me with his cause.

­　　（10） entrust，“to make someone responsible for doing something important, or for taking care of someone”，“让某人负责做某件重要的事或负责照顾某人”，即“把某人或某事托付给……”。

­　　When managers entrust employees with important decisions, they signal their respect for those employees.

­　　当经理让员工负责做一些重要决定时，是在表达对他们的尊重。