每日英语阅读和每日英语听力

2022-03-21 06:55:14 文档大全网 [ 字体：小中大 ] [ 阅读： ]

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每日,英语,英语听力,阅读
每日英语阅读听力——密西西比河

The Mississippi River.

The Mississippi River is the longest river within the United States, and the forth longest river in the world.

This river holds a special place in American history and literature and in the imagination of ordinary Americans.

The Mississippi River begins in the hills of northern Minnesota near the Canadian border, and flows southward, about 3700 kilometers through ten states, before draining（v.排水） its water and silt into the Gulf（n.海湾） of Mexico. Traditionally, the river is

viewed as a natural boundary between the eastern and western halves（n.二等分） of the United States.

Until the year 1803, the areas to the west of the Mississippi River and the areas around the mouth（n.河口；入海口）of the river were claimed by Spain and by France.

In that year, the French Emperor Napoleon（拿破仑） decided to sell this land to the United States of America.

This sale, which is called the Louisiana （路易斯安那）

Purchase, was very important for the United States. By controlling the Mississippi River, the Americans would be able to use it for transporting goods and people in this rapidly developing area.

For many years, river boats were the main method of long distance transportation for people living near the Mississippi. Steam powered boats with large paddle（n.船桨） wheels that pushed the boat forward were very popular in the time before cars and airplanes .

One of the famous cities along the Mississippi River is St. Louis. (圣路易斯)This city is known as the gateway to the West.

During the nineteenth century. St. Louis was the last large town that people would pass through on their way to a new farmland farther west. Today, ST. Louis is famous for the Gateway Arch（n.拱门）, a tall monument（n.纪念碑） that welcomes people to the West.ST.Louis is also known as the city where the music known as" the blues"(蓝调音乐) began.

Near the mouth of the Mississippi River is another famous

city，New Orleans(新奥尔良). in terms of the styles of buildings，New Orleans is said to be the most unusual American city, because it is influenced so strongly by Spanish and French Traditions.Even today, their traditional festival of “Mardi Gras”（狂欢节） is celebrated in New Orleans each year.

New Orleans and the surrounding areas of the state of Louisiana are famous for spicy cajun food(卡津食物).

This style of cooking was developed by the French speaking settlers of Louisiana.

The Mississippi River is famous in many stories of American

literature. For example, the Adventures of Tom Sawyer（汤姆索亚历险记） and Huckleberry Finn（哈克贝利-费恩历险

记）, which were written by the author Mark Twain（马克吐温）, are both set along the Mississippi River.

Today, the federal and state governments of the United States are working to preserve the natural environment along the Mississippi River.People recognize the importance of keeping this river healthy and clean.