A recent study reveals that people especially young people are reading far less literature – novels, plays, and poems – than they used to. This is troubling because the trend has unfortunate effects for the reading public, for culture in general, and for the future of literature itself.

　　最近的研究显示人们，尤其是年轻人不再像以前那样爱读想小说、喜剧或者诗歌这类文学作品了。这个现象是令人担忧的。这是因为这对广大读者受众、对广义文化以及对于文学本身未来的发展都是非常不幸的。

　　While there has been a decline in book reading generally, the decline has been especially sharp for literature. This is unfortunate because nothing else provides the intellectual stimulation that literature does. Literature encourages us to exercise our imaginations, empathize with others, and expand our understanding of language. So, by reading less literature, the reading public is missing out on important benefits.

　　在书籍阅读量下降的大气候下，文学类书籍阅读量下降更为明显。这是令人遗憾的，因为在启迪心智方面，没有什么可以替代文学作品的作用。文学让我们发挥我们的想象力;让我们同他人心灵相通;让我们体味语言的魅力。文学阅读量的下降，让很多公众错失了这些文学的益处。

　　Unfortunately, missing out on the benefits of literature is not the only problem. What are people reading instead? Consider the prevalence of self-help books on lists of best seller. These are usually superficial poorly written, and intellectually undemanding. Additionally, instead of sitting down with a challenging novel, many persons are now more likely to turn on the television, watch a music video, or read a Web page. Clearly, diverting time previously spent in reading literature to trivial forms of entertainment has lowered the level of culture in general.

　　不幸的是，公众失去的不仅仅是文学本身的益处。人们用什么取代阅读呢?想想畅销书排行榜上那些颇为流行的自主类图书吧。这些书往往是内容肤浅、文笔粗糙的。而且，相对于坐在那里饶有兴趣地看一部小说，现在的很多人都倾向于看电视节目、音乐录影带或者上网看看网页。显然，把那些本该用在阅读文学作品的时间消耗在琐碎的娱乐将降低大众的文化水平。

　　The trend of reading less literature is all the more regrettable because it is taking place during a period when good literature is being written. There are many talented writers today, but they lack an audience. This fact is bound to lead publishers to invest less in literature and so support fewer serious writers. Thus, the writing as well as the reading of literature is likely to decline because of the poor standards of today’s readers.

　　当想到这是一个不乏好作品的时候，文学作品阅读量的减少更显得令人遗憾了。有很多天才的作家，但是他们却鲜有读者。这会导致出版商不再投资于文学作品，而转而支持那些不够严谨的作家。因而，当今读者的水平不高导致了文学作品的创作跟阅读量同时下降。

　　阅读部分需要提取的观点是：

　　- Main point: 文学作品阅读量的减少对于读者、文化和文学的发展都是有害的

　　- Sub point 1: 文学作品阅读量减少对于读者是有害的

　　- Sub point 2: 文学作品阅读量降低文化水平

　　- Sub point 3: 文学作品阅读量减少导致文学创作减少