ON THE 24th was fought the battle before the redoubt of Shevardino; on the 25th not a shot was fired on either side; on the 26th was fought the battle of Borodino.

How and with what object were the battles of Shevardino and Borodino fought? Why was the battle of Borodino fought? There was not the slightest sense in it, either for the French or for the Russians. The immediate¹ result of it was, and was bound to be, for the Russians, that we were brought nearer to the destruction of Moscow (the very thing we dreaded² above everything in the world); and for the French, that they were brought nearer to the destruction of their army (which they, too, dreaded above everything in the world). That result was at the time perfectly³ obvious, and yet Napoleon offered battle, and Kutuzov accepted it.

If military leaders were guided by reasonable considerations only, it would seem that it must have been clear to Napoleon that in advancing two thousand versts into the heart of the country and giving battle, with the probable contingency⁴ of losing a quarter of his men, he was going to certain destruction; and that it must have been equally clear to Kutuzov that in accepting that battle and risking the loss of a fourth of his army, he would infallibly lose Moscow. For Kutuzov this was mathematically clear, as clear as it is at chess, that if I have one piece less than my adversary⁵ and I exchange pieces, I am certain to be a loser by it, and therefore must avoid exchanging pieces. When my adversary has sixteen pieces and I have fourteen, I am only one-eighth weaker than he; but when we have exchanged thirteen pieces, he is three times as strong as I am.

Up to the battle of Borodino our forces were approximately five-sixths of the French, but after that battle they were only one-half—that is, before the battle a hundred thousand against a hundred and twenty thousand, and after the battle fifty thousand against a hundred thousand. And yet the shrewd and experienced Kutuzov fought the battle. Napoleon, a military genius, as he is called, gave battle, losing a fourth of his army and drawing his line of communications out further than ever. If we are told that he expected the taking of Moscow to complete the campaign, as the taking of Vienna had done, we may say that there are many evidences to the contrary. Napoleon's historians themselves tell us that he wanted to halt as soon as he reached Smolensk; that he knew the danger of his extended line, and that he knew that the taking of Moscow would not be the end of the campaign, because from Smolensk he had learned in what condition the towns were left when abandoned to him, and he had not received a single reply to his

点击收听单词发音  

1 immediate
adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的
参考例句：
His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。 We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

2 dreaded
adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词)
参考例句：
The dreaded moment had finally arrived. 可怕的时刻终于来到了。 He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他害怕非得在医院过圣诞节不可。 来自《用法词典》

3 perfectly
adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地
参考例句：
The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。 Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

4 contingency
n.意外事件，可能性
参考例句：
We should be prepared for any contingency.我们应该对任何应急情况有所准备。 A fire in our warehouse was a contingency that we had not expected.库房的一场大火是我们始料未及的。

5 adversary
adj.敌手，对手
参考例句：
He saw her as his main adversary within the company.他将她视为公司中主要的对手。 They will do anything to undermine their adversary's reputation.他们会不择手段地去损害对手的名誉。

6 reiterated
反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
"Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹 Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

7 negotiations
协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过
参考例句：
negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判 Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

8 accomplished
adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的
参考例句：
Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。 Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

9 foresight
n.先见之明，深谋远虑
参考例句：
The failure is the result of our lack of foresight.这次失败是由于我们缺乏远虑而造成的。 It required a statesman's foresight and sagacity to make the decision.作出这个决定需要政治家的远见卓识。

10 epic
n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的
参考例句：
I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。 They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

11 accustom
vt.使适应，使习惯
参考例句：
It took him a while to accustom himself to the idea.他过了一段时间才习惯这个想法。 It'shouldn't take long to accustom your students to working in groups.你的学生应该很快就会习惯分组学习的。

12 utterly
adv.完全地，绝对地
参考例句：
Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。 I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

13 fortified
adj. 加强的
参考例句：
He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。 The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

14 militia
n.民兵，民兵组织
参考例句：
First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。 There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

15 countless
adj.无数的，多得不计其数的
参考例句：
In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。 I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

16 remains
n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹
参考例句：
He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。 The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

17 secondly
adv.第二，其次
参考例句：
Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。 Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

18 exhausted
adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的
参考例句：
It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。 Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

19 picket
n.纠察队；警戒哨；v.设置纠察线；布置警卫
参考例句：
They marched to the factory and formed a picket.他们向工厂前进,并组成了纠察队。 Some of the union members did not want to picket.工会的一些会员不想担任罢工纠察员。

20 confluence
n.汇合，聚集
参考例句：
They built the city at the confluence of two rivers.他们建造了城市的汇合两条河流。 The whole DV movements actually was a confluence of several trends.整个当时的DV运动，实际上是几股潮流的同谋。

21 favourable
adj.赞成的，称赞的，有利的，良好的，顺利的
参考例句：
The company will lend you money on very favourable terms.这家公司将以非常优惠的条件借钱给你。 We found that most people are favourable to the idea.我们发现大多数人同意这个意见。

22 obstinately
ad.固执地，顽固地
参考例句：
He obstinately asserted that he had done the right thing. 他硬说他做得对。 Unemployment figures are remaining obstinately high. 失业数字仍然顽固地居高不下。

23 inevitably
adv.不可避免地；必然发生地
参考例句：
In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。 Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。

24 fortify
v.强化防御，为…设防；加强，强化
参考例句：
This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。 This treaty forbade the United States to fortify the canal.此条约禁止美国对运河设防。

25 aggravated
使恶化( aggravate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使更严重； 激怒； 使恼火
参考例句：
If he aggravated me any more I shall hit him. 假如他再激怒我，我就要揍他。 Far from relieving my cough, the medicine aggravated it. 这药非但不镇咳，反而使我咳嗽得更厉害。

26 fully
adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地
参考例句：
The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。 They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

27 drawn
v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的
参考例句：
All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。 Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

28 rout
n.溃退，溃败；v.击溃，打垮
参考例句：
The enemy was put to rout all along the line.敌人已全线崩溃。 The people's army put all to rout wherever they went.人民军队所向披靡。