[14]在冰岛，忍耐并不是一句空话。冰岛话中“愚蠢”的同义词是“乡巴佬””或“心胸狭隘”。冰岛人认为只有傻瓜才不考虑别人的利益。以此观点，冰岛人可能会发现美国某些提交政府讨论的东西是非常愚蠢的。

　　[15]Most Icelanders travel out into the world as young adults. They learn that theirs is not the only way of doing things. Yet this doesn’t translate into contempt『蔑视;轻视』for their own land and its history.

　　[15]大多数冰岛人年轻时都要到国外去旅行。于是，他们知道自己的生活方式并非是唯一的，但是，并不会因此看不起自己的国家和历史。

　　[16]The 12th-century Icelandic sagas『英雄传说』, studied at universities the world over, are revered『尊重;崇拜』at home. Turn on the radio and at the top of the charts『节目播出单;节目安排表』is Bubbi Morthens, a troubadour『吟游诗人』.

　　[16]在世界上各大学中讲授的冰岛12世纪的传说在国内颇受重视。广播中到处都是吟游诗人巴比·莫森斯的节目。

　　[17]Last summer in the lava 『火山熔岩』fields of Iceland’s interior 『内地;内陆』, accountant Sigmar Bjornsson pointed out to me a cave where thieves had hidden. He showed me where they stored their weapons, where the villagers attacked, told me how one of the thieves, who had only one leg, walked on his hands to the glacier on the horizon『地平线;水平线』.

　　[17]去年夏天，在岛内溶岩区，一个叫乔恩森的会计师指给我看一个岩洞，告诉我这岩洞曾是小偷的住所，指给我看他们藏匿武器、伏击村民的地方，并讲述了一个独腿贼是怎样以手代脚爬到地平线上的冰川去的。

　　[18]“When did they hole up『躲藏;藏匿』here?” I asked.

　　[18]“他们何时藏身于此?”我问。

　　[19] “About 900 years ago” was the answer. Nearly a millennium『1000年』, and the myth is still alive『存在;保留』.