TED Talk >> Malcolm Gladwell: The unheard story of David and Goliath
So I wanted to tell a story that really obsessed me when I was writing my new book, and it's a story of something that happened 3,000 years ago, when the Kingdom of Israel was in its infancy. And it takes place in an area called the Shephelah in what is now Israel. And the reason the story obsessed me is that I thought I understood it, and then I went back over it and I realized that I didn't understand it at all.
我给大家讲个故事，在我写新书的时候，这个故事一直让我很疑惑。它发生在3000年前，那时以色列才在建国初期。这个故事发生在一个叫示非拉的地方，就是现在的以色列。这个故事让我疑惑的原因是，以前我以为我读懂了它，但当我再回顾时，我发现我一点也没了解。
Ancient Palestine had a -- along its eastern border, there's a mountain range. Still same is true of Israel today. And in the mountain range are all of the ancient cities of that region, so Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Hebron. And then there's a coastal plain along the Mediterranean, where Tel Aviv is now. And connecting the mountain range with the coastal plain is an area called the Shephelah, which is a series of valleys and ridges that run east to west, and you can follow the Shephelah, go through the Shephelah to get from the coastal plain to the mountains. And the Shephelah, if you've been to Israel, you'll know it's just about the most beautiful part of Israel. It's gorgeous, with forests of oak and wheat fields and vineyards.
在古代巴勒斯坦有——沿着它的东部边界，有一条山脉。今天的以色列也还有这条山脉。在这片区域有许多古城市，比如耶路撒冷，伯利恒，希伯伦。那里还有一个海岸平原，沿着地中海，就是现在的特拉维夫市。连接这条山脉和海岸平原的地方，就叫做示非拉，它由自东向西的山谷与山脊组成。你可以穿过示非拉，从海岸平原到山里去。如果你去过以色列，你就会知道，示非拉算是以色列最美的地方了。它十分漂亮，有橡树林，有麦田，还有葡萄园。
But more importantly, though, in the history of that region, it's served, it's had a real strategic function, and that is, it is the means by which hostile armies on the coastal plain find their way, get up into the mountains and threaten those living in the mountains.
更重要的是，这片区域在历史上起着战略性的作用。也就是说，示非拉是位于海岸平原上的敌对的敌人，通往山区，进而威胁山里的居民的必经之路。
And 3,000 years ago, that's exactly what happens. The Philistines, who are the biggest of enemies of the Kingdom of Israel, are living in the coastal plain. They're originally from Crete. They're a seafaring people. And they may start to make their way through one of the valleys of the Shephelah up into the mountains, because what they want to do is occupy the highland area right by Bethlehem and split the Kingdom of Israel in two. And the Kingdom of Israel, which is headed by King Saul, obviously catches wind of this, and Saul brings his army down from the mountains and he confronts the Philistines in the Valley of Elah, one of the most beautiful of the valleys of the Shephelah. And the Israelites dig in along the northern ridge, and the Philistines dig in along the southern ridge, and the two armies just sit there for weeks and stare at each other, because they're deadlocked. Neither can attack the other, because to attack the other side you've got to come down the mountain into the valley and then up the other side, and you're completely exposed.
而在3000年前，确实发生了这种事。腓力斯人，是以色列王国的头号敌人，他们就住在海岸平原上。他们最初是来自克里特岛，是航海的民族。他们通过示非拉的一条山谷，进入到山里，因为他们想占领伯利恒旁边那片高原地区，将以色列王国一分为二。当时以色列王国的国王是索尔，他已经提前收到风声。所以索尔带着他的军队下山，在示非拉最美的山谷之一——以拉谷，遭遇腓力斯人。以色列人沿着北边的山挖掘战壕，而腓力斯人则守在南边的山脊山挖掘战壕。双方就这样僵持了数周，大眼瞪小眼，因为他们都陷入僵局了。他们谁都无法攻击到对方，因为如果要攻击对方，就得先从山脊下到山谷里来，然后再上到对方那里去，这样就完全暴露了自己。
Question
- What best describes the landscape of the Shephelah?
> It's covered by forests and farmland. - Why did the Philistines want to move up to the mountains?
> They want to attach the Kingdom of Israel. - If something is in its infancy, it is
> very new and still developing.
