Passage 1 Pygm alion Adap ted From Greek and Rom a...
Pygmalion sought perfection both in his artistic creation and his personal life.His desire for excellence kept him working on a single work of art formonths.He would not stop until he felt itwas perfect.The beauty and themagic of his paintings attractedmany visitors.Pygmalion painted flowers so natural that people tried to smell them.He painted fruits which looked so real that people wanted to eat them.
Pygmalion alsomade pieces of sculpture outofwood or stone.Heworked long and hard to make his statues as real as possible.Often visitors who came to see his work couldn't help talking to the statue he had created.They were even more surprised when they realized that they were talking to a statue.
Throughout his life Pygmalion was looking for someone perfect to be his wife.When he was a youngman，he loved a woman he thoughtwas“perfect”.Unfortunately，this woman refused him.So he gave up his search for the“perfect”woman and sought perfection in his own art.
Once Pygmalion began working on a large piece of stone.He spent hours on every detail.Finally，he turned the stone into the figure of a lovely woman.He looked at the statue and couldn't believe what he saw.He had made the statue so beautiful and perfect that it seemed alive.“How Iwish you were real！”Pygmalion sighed and fell into sadness again.
Then one day，as Pygmalion was looking at the statue with a sad feeling，amysterious woman appeared in his shop.She asked him why he was so sad，and he explained.The mysterious woman said softly，“Perhaps you should kiss the statue，your wish might be fulfilled.”Hesitating for amoment，Pygmalion walked up to the statue.He held the statue's hand and slowly kissed the hard，cold stone.
Suddenly，the hand he was holding became soft and warm，and the color of the gray stone changed into the color of a beautifulwoman.And to his surprise and joy，the face smiled and kissed him in return！
注释：
1.皮格马利翁（Pygmalion）在希腊神话中是塞浦路斯的国王，善雕刻。他用神奇的技艺完成了一座美丽的少女石雕，并为此全力倾注了他的精力、热情和爱恋。在爱神阿芙乐狄忒（Aphrodite）的相助下，石雕被赋予了生命，并与皮格马利翁结为夫妻。这个故事引申出“皮格马利翁效应（Pygmalion Effect）”，其意为：一个人只要对艺术对象有着执著的追求精神，最终会发生艺术感应的结果。
2.在故事短文中，perfection和excellence是同义词，都意指“完美”。(https://www.daowen.com)
3.“How Iwish you were real！”是表达愿望的虚拟语态，意为：“你要是真人真身该有多好啊！”
参考译文：
无论是艺术创作还是在个人生活中，皮格马利翁都追求完美。他对完美的执念让他对每一件艺术作品的创作都要倾注数月时间。不至完美他绝不罢休。他的绘画作品让许多观赏者为之倾倒。花卉在他的画笔下栩栩如生，以致让许多参观者禁不住用鼻子去嗅闻芳香；水果在他的画笔下如此逼真，以致许多人都禁不住想亲口一尝。
皮格马利翁还用木料和石料创作雕塑。为了让雕塑作品达到逼真的效果，他常常为之倾注大量的时间和精力。前来观赏皮格马利翁的作品的人们常常情不自禁地与他的雕塑作品交谈起来，而当他们意识到自己是在对雕塑说话时，都会为此感到不可思议。
皮格马利翁终身都在寻找一位完美的女士成为自己的妻子。当他年轻的时候爱上了一位他以为“完美”的女士，然而，这位女士却拒绝了他。于是，皮格马利翁放弃了对“完美女士”的寻求，转而在自己的艺术创作世界里追求完美。
一次，皮格马利翁开始对一大块石料进行创作。在每一个细节上他都要倾注数小时的时间。终于，他把这块石料雕刻成了一位可爱的女士的形象。当他注视着自己创作出来的石雕时，简直不敢相信自己的眼睛。他已经把这位女士雕琢得如此完美动人，看上去仿佛就是一个鲜活的丽人。“你要是个美丽真身那该有多好啊！”皮格马利翁如此感叹，随后陷入了哀伤。
之后某一天，正当皮格马利翁哀伤地凝视着他的石雕丽人时，一个神秘的女人走进了他的工作室。当她询问皮格马利翁为何如此忧伤时，皮格马利翁向她倾诉了忧伤的原委。于是，那位神秘的女人悄声说道：“或许你应该亲吻这座雕塑，也许你的愿望会实现的。”听到这话，皮格马利翁犹豫了一下，随后，他便走到雕塑面前，抚摸着雕塑的手亲吻了坚硬而冰冷的石雕。
突然，他抚摸着的手变得柔和而又温暖，石雕的灰色变成了一位丽人的肤色。更让他惊奇而又欢快的是，石雕的脸泛起微笑还回赠了他一个香吻！