文书点评：赫罗西•阿尔杰的英雄

When I was six years old, I discovered a box of old books in my grandmother’s attic. She let me take them home, and I read every one of them from cover to cover. I was with the protagonist as he rose to meet challenges, made sacrifices, summoned up the strength to persevere, and ultimately exceeded his own expectations. It was several years before I understood Horatio Alger’s role in the context of American literary figures, but in my own life, the example of the Algerian hero gave me indefinite strength when my world changed dramatically, time and time again.

I am not the only person whose parents divorced when he was young, whose father disappeared in every way that mattered, and whose mother worked too much for too little. I am not the only young person who assumed adult worries and burdens. I could have been one of many who chose to settle for something less, but instead I took another road, one that was winding, steep -- and uphill.

My mother’s choice of a second husband proved to be a poor one, so I moved out of our house at sixteen. I commuted 45 minutes to school, worked part-time, played sports, and tried to keep up with my schoolwork. Although I did not realize it at the time, my early experiences working and competing without a safety net at such a young age provided me with a valuable skill set: an unshakable belief in myself and my abilities. I learned to set goals on my own and to prioritize my assignments. I didn’t realize how important these skills would be in the next phase of my journey.

Although I had become entirely independent, my younger brother was still living at home. For that reason, I chose not to accept an athletic scholarship to an out-of-state school and instead attended the local state college. I pursued a joint degree in English and secondary education, worked as a counselor at a residential high school for court-appointed youth, and taught the children of migrant workers during the summers. After traveling for a time in Europe, I attended graduate school at night, worked as a substitute teacher in an inner-city school during the day, and soon landed a full-time position teaching high school English and coaching football in a rural school district. During my second year of teaching, I became engaged to my high school girlfriend and was positioned to live a quiet, predictable life.

Sometimes, the road less traveled provides flashy, unmistakable neon signs. My sign came in the form of a retired coach who visited my football practice one fall afternoon. In that visit, that day, and that man, I saw all the way to the end of my next forty years. In literally one minute, I realized that I needed more, that in forty years, I wanted to be exhausted by my accomplishments and efforts. I realized that I was about to accept a compromise: a life that would provide comfort and stability, but no passion. At the end of the school year, I quit my job, broke up with my fiancée, sold my car, and moved to New York City. I had no contacts and little money, only a burning need to forge a new life for myself.

New York City, while unfamiliar, rough, and strange, quickly validated my notions of ambition. Though my first year was uncomfortable, it was also full of reinvention and self-discovery. I had a knack for communicating with people and motivating them to reach a common objective. At the end of my first year, I was making more money than my father, and that was just the beginning. A year later, a headhunter placed me with a national company as an operations analyst. Within six months, I was promoted to head a large division in Manhattan, and within another year I was overseeing all of the business units in NYC, encompassing 800 employees and $25 million per year in revenue. After a year, I left my job to help build an Internet company with a national presence. As the vice president of operations, I managed all aspects of 50,000-square-foot sites in New York, Boston, Toronto, and San Francisco. At the end of the dot-com whirlwind, I took a project-specific position with Morgan Stanley and the Rockefeller Group, managing and mingling the corporate expectations of two vastly different companies. While I found all of these professional experiences satisfying on many levels, I knew, deep down, that business was not my passion.

As a teacher, I had enjoyed my relationships with students, but my job had provided me with little potential for personal growth; in the business world, I felt that my work was not worthwhile. As I struggled to find the career path that would challenge me the most, I received a letter from a former student, a college graduate working for an advertising agency in Florida. Seven years ago, he had been a diminutive tenth grader, bright and creative, yet insecure and withdrawn. His father was an ex-marine who drank too much and insistent that he should join the Marines right out of high school. I had encouraged him to consider other options, telling him about college programs that might interest him and urging him to listen to his instincts.
When I received his letter nine months ago, I remembered that I had been the boy’s supporter and friend. That is what I would like to be for families and children in distress: a resource and an advocate. Along with my experience working with children, I have a great empathy for people in need. I was lucky enough to make it to college, but not all children are able to find that path without some guidance. In many ways, I have grown up and left the Horatio Alger stories behind me. While they describe fictional events and idealized worlds, my own life experiences have not been nearly so easy. However, the spirit of Alger’s heroes has never left me; I hope to pass it on to other children and teenagers through the legal system.

点评：

这是一篇按照时间顺序写的散文式PS，作者在这篇类似于流水账的文章中把自己的成长经历与读者分享了一下。文章以赫罗西•阿尔杰的英雄精神为主线，把自己在这种精神指引下艰苦奋斗并最终取得成功的过程一一展现出来。整篇文章大概可以分为五个阶段：

一.幼年读书，阿尔杰精神开始影响
二.青年求学历程
三.毕业后第一份工作
四.放弃做老师之后的纽约寻梦
五.成功之后的反思

这篇文章是很耐人寻味的，很具有启发性，从作者平凡的文字和不平凡的经历中，我们可以感受到阿尔杰精神对于作者的影响。从开始接受那种精神到一步步走向成功，作者透露出一种坚持和努力。读者也可以从这些启发性的文字当中感到作者对于教育的那份热情。

总体来说，这是一篇比较优秀的文章，但是美中不足的是作者在描写放弃第一份作为老师的工作时候写得太过决绝了，为了追求心中的激情，居然可以卖掉汽车，抛弃未婚妻，孤身一人去到纽约。但是到功成名就之后又怀念起教育事业，关心起下一代的成长了。弯转得太急了，让人有点觉得不可思议。

译文：

赫罗西•阿尔杰的英雄

当我六岁的时候，我在奶奶的阁楼里发现了一箱子旧书。奶奶让我把那些书带回家，我从头到尾把每一本书都看完了。我那时看得很入迷，与书中的主人公一起面对挑战，作出牺牲，为生存而抗争，最后超越自己的期望。我在几年之前才明白赫罗西•阿尔杰在美国文学作品中的地位，但是在我自己的生活之中，当我的世界一次又一次的发生戏剧性改变时，阿尔杰式的英雄给了我莫名的力量。

我不是唯一一个年轻时父母就离异的人，父亲消失得无影无踪，母亲为了养家糊口过度操劳。我也不是唯一一个年轻时就承受到成年人的烦恼和负担的人。我本可以像许多人一样选择知足常乐，但是我选择另外一条路，一条充满风雨，险峻和向上的路。

我妈妈选择的第二个丈夫是一个穷困潦倒的人，所以我16岁时就搬出去了。我坐45分钟的车去上学，做兼职，运动而且努力做好学校功课。虽然我那时没有意识这些年轻时期没有保障的工作和竞争的经验给我提供了宝贵的技能基础：对于我自己和能力坚定不移的信念。我学会自己制定目标并且优化安排各项任务。我不知道这些技能对于我人生旅途的下一篇章是如何的重要。虽然我已经独立了，但是家里还有年幼的弟弟。因此我放弃州外一间大学的运动奖学金而选择在本地的一间大学。我攻读英语和中等教育双学位，暑假的时候就在地区高中为青少年做顾问以及教移民个人的子女。在一次欧洲旅游之后，我参加一个研究生夜校，白天就在市内的一间学校做代课老师，很快我我就得到在一间高中做全职英语教师的机会并且在一所郊区学校做足球教练。在我教师生涯的第二年，我与女友订婚并且开始了安逸平淡的生活。

有些时候，一些很少人走过的路会有一些浮华清晰的霓虹灯。我的指示灯来源于一位在一个秋天下午参观我足球练习的退休教练。从那天那个男人的拜访中，我看到了我接下来的四十年的路。在短短一分钟里，我意识到在四十年里我需要更多。我愿意为自己的成功而奋斗。我意识到我准备妥协：一种舒服稳定却没有激情的生活。那个学年结束之后，我辞掉工作，与未婚妻分手，卖掉汽车，搬到纽约城去。我孤身一人而且身无分文，有的只是对于建立新生活的强热愿望。

陌生粗糙和光怪陆离的纽约很快就激发了我的雄心壮志。我在那的第一年虽然不是很舒服，但是充满了新的起跑线和自我发现。我有与人沟通，激发他们为共同目标奋斗的窍门。在第一年的年底，我赚的钱比我爸爸多了，而且才刚刚开始。一年之后，一个猎头把我挖到一个国家级公司作为一个业务分析员。在六个月之内，我就被提升到位于曼哈顿一个大的分支部门作为领导。在这之后一年，我又被提升为公司在整个纽约地区的总管，手下有800名员工，公司年收入有2500万美元。再一年过后，我离开这份工作去建一个全国性的网络公司。作为副执行总裁，我管理着在纽约，波士顿，多伦多和旧金山一共5万平方尺办公室的所有事务。在网络经济泡沫即将破灭之时，我在摩根斯坦利和洛克菲勒公司得到一个项目方面的职位，要处理和协调两家差别很大的公司的不同期望。但当我发现这些工作经验在很多层面上都满足了我，我深刻认识到商业不是我的激情所在。

作为一个老师，我满意和学生们的关系，但是我的工作没有很多潜力来关注人的成长。在商业世界里，我感到我的工作没有什么价值。当我正在努力寻找一份可以给我最大挑战的职位时，我收到了以前学生的一封来信，他是一个大学毕业生，现在佛罗里达一间广告公司工作。7年以前，他曾经是一个小小的十年级学生，聪明而且有创造力，但是不可靠和内向。他的爸爸是一个经常酗酒的海军退役士兵，并坚持让他高中一毕业就参加海军。我鼓励他考虑其他的选择，告诉他也许会对大学课程感兴趣并激励他顺从自己的意愿。

9个月前收到他的来信的时候，我记起我曾经是这个男孩的支持者和朋友。这就是我想给那些困境中的家庭和孩子的：资助和鼓励。在我与孩子们的工作经历中，我很同情那些有需要的人们。我很幸运的可以上完大学，但是不是所有的小孩都可以没有一些指导就能顺利走上这条道路。从很多方面来说我已经成长并且遗弃了赫罗西•阿尔杰的故事。别人描述我经历中戏剧般的事件和理想世界的时候，我自己的生活经历却从不那么简单。但是，阿尔杰式英雄的精神没有离开我，我希望通过法定的体系把它传授给其他小孩和青少年。