备考英语四级听力是备战考试中的一大挑战，有效的练习提升听力理解和题型应付能力至关要紧。新东方在线英语四级听力频道为考生提供“2024年12月大学习英语四级听力美文:Versatile Man”，帮助获得更好成绩。
2024年12月大学习英语四级听力美文:Versatile Man
It is, perhaps, no accident that many of the outstanding figures of the past wereexceptionally versatile men. Right up until comparatively recent times, it was possible foran intelligent person to acquaint himself with almost every branch of knowledge. Thus, menof genius likeLeonardo da Vinci or Sir Philip Sydney, engaged in many careers at once as amatter of course. Da Vinci was so busy with his numerous inventions, that he barely found thetime to complete his paintings; Sydney, who died in battle when he was only thirty-two yearsold, was not only a great soldier, but a brilliant scholar and poet as well. Both these men camevery near to fulfilling the Renaissance ideal of the universal man, the man who wasproficient at everything.
Today, we rarely, if ever, hear that a musician has just invented a new type of submarine. Knowledge has become divided and sub-divided into countless, narrowly-definedcompartments. The specialist is venerated; the versatile person, far from being admired, ismore often regarded with suspicion. The modern world is a world of highly-skilled expertswho have had to devote the greater part of their lives to a very limited field of study in order tocompete with their fellows.
With this high degree of specialization, the frontiers of knowledge are steadily being pushedback more rapidly than ever before. But this has not achieved without considerable cosplayt. Thescientist, who outside his own particular subject is little more than a moron, is a modernphenomenon; as is the man of letters who is barely aware of the tremendous strides that havebeen made in technology. Similarly, specialization has inderectly affected quite ordinarypeople in every walk of life. Many activities which were once pursued for their own sakes, areoften given up in despair: they require techniques, the experts tell us, which take a life-time tomaster. Why learn to play the piano, when you can listen to the worlds greatest pianists in yourown drawing-room?
以上是新东方在线记者带来“2024年12月大学习英语四级听力美文:Versatile Man”，期望考生们都能获得出色的成绩。
