The Achievement of Brazilian Independence

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In contrast to the political anarchy, economic dislocation, and military destruction in Spanish America, Brazil’s drive toward independence from Portugal proceeded as a relatively bloodless transition between 1808 and 1822. The idea of Brazilian independence first arose in the late eighteenth century as a Brazilian reaction to the Portuguese policy of tightening political and economic control over the colony in the interests of the mother country. The first significant conspiracy against Portuguese rule was organized from 1788–1799 in the province of Minas Gerais, where rigid governmental control over the production and prices of gold and diamonds, as well as heavy taxes, caused much discontent. But this conspiracy never went beyond the stage of discussion and was easily discovered and crushed. Other conspiracies in the late eighteenth century as well as a brief revolt in 1817 reflected the influence of republican ideas over sections of the elite and even the lower strata of urban society. All proved abortive or were soon crushed. Were it not for an accident of European history, the independence of Brazil might have been long delayed.

S - 1

In contrast to the political anarchy, economic dislocation, and military destruction in Spanish America, Brazil’s drive toward independence from Portugal proceeded as a relatively bloodless transition between 1808 and 1822.

• 重点单词解析：
  • contrast：名词，意为“对比；对照”，常用搭配“in contrast to”表示“与……形成对比”，在此处用于引出与巴西情况形成对照的西班牙美洲的状况，帮助读者更清晰地理解巴西独立过程的特点。
  • anarchy：名词，指“无政府状态；混乱”，描述了西班牙美洲在政治方面呈现出的无序、缺乏有效管理的状态，例如“A state of anarchy often leads to social instability.”（无政府状态往往会导致社会不稳定。）
  • dislocation：名词，意思是“混乱；脱位；打乱”，在这里着重体现经济方面的紊乱、失调，比如“The economic dislocation caused by the war took years to recover from.”（战争导致的经济混乱花了数年时间才恢复过来。）
  • proceeded：动词，是“proceed”的过去式，有“继续进行；接着做；前进”等含义，在此句中表示巴西走向独立的进程持续推进、按一定方式发展，例如“The project proceeded smoothly according to the plan.”（项目按照计划顺利进行。）
  • bloodless：形容词，“不流血的；和平的”，修饰“transition”，强调巴西从葡萄牙获取独立的这个过渡阶段相对而言没有发生大规模的血腥冲突，像“A bloodless coup brought about political changes in the country.”（一场不流血的政变给该国带来了政治变革。）
• 语法分析：
  • 句子开头“In contrast to the political anarchy, economic dislocation, and military destruction in Spanish America”是一个较长的介词短语作状语，用于对比参照，其中“the political anarchy, economic dislocation, and military destruction”是并列的名词短语，共同构成“in contrast to”的宾语，描述西班牙美洲的多方面糟糕状况。
  • “Brazil’s drive toward independence from Portugal”是句子的主语，“drive”在这里是名词，意为“努力；运动；趋势”，“toward independence from Portugal”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“drive”，明确是朝着从葡萄牙独立的方向的努力。
  • “proceeded”为谓语动词，使用一般过去时，符合描述过去发生之事的语境，表明巴西独立的进程是过去发生的动作。
  • “as a relatively bloodless transition between 1808 and 1822”是方式状语，说明巴西走向独立是以一种在1808到1822年间相对和平的过渡方式来进行的，解释了其独立进程的性质特点。

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The idea of Brazilian independence first arose in the late eighteenth century as a Brazilian reaction to the Portuguese policy of tightening political and economic control over the colony in the interests of the mother country.

• 重点单词解析：
  • arose：动词“arise”的过去式，意思是“出现；产生；兴起”，通常用于描述抽象事物开始存在或被人们意识到，此处表示巴西独立的想法开始浮现出来，例如“Many problems arose during the construction process.”（在建设过程中出现了许多问题。）
  • reaction：名词，“反应；回应”，常与“to”搭配，构成“reaction to”短语，用来表明针对某事物所做出的反应，这里就是指巴西方面针对葡萄牙相关政策的回应，比如“What’s his reaction to the news?”（他对这个消息有什么反应？）
  • tightening：动词“tighten”的动名词形式，“tighten”意为“加强；使变紧；收紧”，此处表示葡萄牙加强对殖民地各方面的控制，在句中作“policy”的定语，说明政策的具体内容是加强控制，例如“The government is tightening security measures recently.”（政府最近正在加强安保措施。）
• 语法分析：
  • “The idea of Brazilian independence”是主语，“of Brazilian independence”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“idea”，明确是关于巴西独立的想法。
  • “first arose”是谓语部分，用一般过去时，表明巴西独立想法首次出现这一动作发生在过去。
  • “in the late eighteenth century”是时间状语，具体指出该想法出现的时间范围。
  • “as a Brazilian reaction to the Portuguese policy of tightening political and economic control over the colony in the interests of the mother country”是方式状语，“as”引导方式状语从句的省略形式（完整形式可以是“as it was a Brazilian reaction…”），“to the Portuguese policy of tightening…”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“reaction”，进一步说明是对葡萄牙何种政策的反应；“of tightening political and economic control over the colony”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“policy”，详细阐述政策内容是加强对殖民地政治和经济的控制；“in the interests of the mother country”是介词短语作目的状语，表明葡萄牙采取该政策是出于母国的利益考虑。

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The first significant conspiracy against Portuguese rule was organized from 1788–1799 in the province of Minas Gerais, where rigid governmental control over the production and prices of gold and diamonds, as well as heavy taxes, caused much discontent.

• 重点单词解析：
  • conspiracy：名词，“阴谋；密谋”，强调多人暗中策划、企图达成某种不利于现有秩序等的计划，在这里指针对葡萄牙统治的秘密策划活动，例如“They were involved in a conspiracy to overthrow the government.”（他们参与了一个推翻政府的阴谋。）
  • organized：动词“organize”的过去分词，用于构成被动语态“was organized”，意思是“组织；策划；安排”，说明这个阴谋是被人有计划地筹备起来的，例如“The party was well organized by a professional team.”（这个派对由一个专业团队精心组织。）
  • rigid：形容词，“严格的；僵硬的；刻板的”，用来修饰“governmental control”，突出政府对相关事务控制的严格程度，比如“The school has rigid rules for students.”（学校对学生有严格的规定。）
  • discontent：名词，“不满；不满足”，常用来描述人们内心因各种不如意的情况而产生的负面情绪，此处表明严格控制与重税等因素导致了民众的不满情绪，例如“There was growing discontent among the workers about the low wages.”（工人们对低工资越来越不满。）
• 语法分析：
  • “The first significant conspiracy against Portuguese rule”是主语，“against Portuguese rule”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“conspiracy”，明确是针对葡萄牙统治的阴谋。
  • “was organized”是谓语动词，采用一般过去时的被动语态，意味着动作的执行者未在句中明确指出，只强调阴谋被组织这一情况，以及动作发生在过去。
  • “from 1788–1799”是时间状语，指出阴谋被组织的时间跨度。
  • “in the province of Minas Gerais”是地点状语，说明阴谋发生的具体地点。
  • “where rigid governmental control over the production and prices of gold and diamonds, as well as heavy taxes, caused much discontent”是定语从句，修饰先行词“the province of Minas Gerais”，在从句中“where”相当于“in the province of Minas Gerais”作地点状语；“rigid governmental control over the production and prices of gold and diamonds, as well as heavy taxes”是主语部分，其中“over the production and prices of gold and diamonds”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“control”，“as well as heavy taxes”是并列成分，与前面的“rigid governmental control…”共同构成主语；“caused”是谓语动词，用一般过去时，“much discontent”是宾语，整个从句解释了在该地由于相关因素导致民众不满的情况。

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But this conspiracy never went beyond the stage of discussion and was easily discovered and crushed.

• 重点单词解析：
  • beyond：介词，此处意为“超出；超过”，常用来表示在范围、程度等方面越过某个界限，“went beyond”这个短语表达该阴谋没有突破讨论阶段这一界限，例如“Don’t go beyond the limits set by the teacher.”（不要超出老师设定的界限。）
  • discovered：动词“discover”的过去分词，用于构成被动语态“was discovered”，意思是“发现；发觉”，表示这个阴谋被他人察觉到，例如“The mistake was discovered after careful examination.”（经过仔细检查后发现了这个错误。）
  • crushed：动词“crush”的过去分词，用于构成被动语态“was crushed”，意为“镇压；粉碎；压垮”，说明阴谋最终被挫败、制止，例如“The rebellion was crushed by the powerful army.”（叛乱被强大的军队镇压了。）
• 语法分析：
  • “But”是转折连词，起到承上启下的作用，引出与前文不同的情况。
  • “this conspiracy”是主语，指代前文提到的那个阴谋。
  • “never went beyond the stage of discussion”是谓语部分，其中“went beyond”是一个常用短语，“the stage of discussion”是宾语，整体表示该阴谋一直没有超出讨论的阶段，即没有进一步付诸实践。
  • “and was easily discovered and crushed”是并列的谓语部分，与前面的谓语部分用“and”连接，“was easily discovered”和“was crushed”都是一般过去时的被动语态，分别说明这个阴谋很容易就被发现以及随后被镇压了，体现了其最终的失败结局。

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Other conspiracies in the late eighteenth century as well as a brief revolt in 1817 reflected the influence of republican ideas over sections of the elite and even the lower strata of urban society.

• 重点单词解析：
  • revolt：名词，“叛乱；反抗；起义”，描述一种公开的、带有对抗性的群体行为，通常是为了反抗现有的统治或秩序，此处说明1817年发生的一次短暂的反抗活动，例如“The peasants launched a revolt against the landlord.”（农民们发动了一场反抗地主的叛乱。）
  • reflected：动词，“反映；显示；体现”，表示其他阴谋和这次短暂叛乱能够展现出某种思想的影响力，例如“His words reflected his true feelings.”（他的话反映了他的真实感情。）
  • strata：名词“stratum”的复数形式，意为“阶层；层”，“the lower strata of urban society”指城市社会的下层阶层，用于划分社会结构，比如“The different strata of society have different living standards.”（社会的不同阶层有不同的生活标准。）
• 语法分析：
  • “Other conspiracies in the late eighteenth century as well as a brief revolt in 1817”是主语部分，其中“Other conspiracies in the late eighteenth century”和“a brief revolt in 1817”是并列成分，共同构成主语，表明是这些不同的活动作为主体。
  • “reflected”是谓语动词，用一般过去时，描述过去发生的动作，即它们体现影响力这一行为是过去发生的。
  • “the influence of republican ideas over sections of the elite and even the lower strata of urban society”是宾语部分，其中“of republican ideas”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“influence”，明确是共和主义思想的影响；“over sections of the elite and even the lower strata of urban society”是介词短语作后置定语，修饰“influence”，进一步说明这种思想影响的范围是精英阶层的部分群体以及城市社会的下层阶层。

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All proved abortive or were soon crushed.

• 重点单词解析：
  • abortive：形容词，“失败的；夭折的；无结果的”，用来描述之前提到的那些阴谋、叛乱等活动最终没有取得成功，以失败告终，例如“His attempt was abortive due to lack of preparation.”（由于缺乏准备，他的尝试失败了。）
  • crushed：动词“crush”的过去分词，用于构成被动语态“were crushed”，意为“镇压；粉碎；压垮”，在这里表示这些活动最终被打压下去了，同前文出现的该词用法一致，比如“The uprising was crushed by the authorities.”（起义被当局镇压了。）
• 语法分析：
  • “All”在这里指代前面提到的所有阴谋、叛乱等情况，作主语，起到总括的作用。
  • “proved abortive”是谓语部分，其中“proved”在这里是系动词，相当于“turned out”，“abortive”是表语，整体说明所有这些情况结果都是失败的。
  • “or were soon crushed”是并列的谓语部分，与前面的谓语部分用“or”连接，“were soon crushed”是一般过去时的被动语态，表示或者很快就被镇压了，体现了这些活动最终要么失败要么被镇压的两种结局。

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Were it not for an accident of European history, the independence of Brazil might have been long delayed.

• 重点单词解析：
  • accident：名词，“意外事件；偶然因素；事故”，在这里指欧洲历史上的一个偶然发生的情况，说明巴西独立进程受到了外部偶然因素的影响，例如“It was just an accident that he met her there.”（他在那里遇见她只是一个偶然。）
• 语法分析：
  • 这是一个虚拟语气的倒装句。正常语序应该是“If it were not for an accident of European history, the independence of Brazil might have been long delayed.”。“Were it not for…”是一个固定的虚拟语气表达，相当于“If it were not for…”，用于假设一种与实际情况相反的条件，在这里假设如果没有欧洲历史上的那个偶然事件，体现出该偶然事件对巴西独立起到了关键推动作用。
  • “the independence of Brazil”是主语，明确所描述的对象是巴西的独立这件事。
  • “might have been long delayed”是谓语部分，用“might + have been + 过去分词”的形式，是虚拟语气在非真实条件句中的用法，表示与过去事实相反的假设下可能会发生的情况，即意味着在假设没有那个偶然事件的情况下，巴西的独立可能会被长期拖延，说明那个偶然事件在客观上促进了巴西较早地实现独立。

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The French invasion of Portugal in 1807 followed by the flight of the Portuguese court (sovereign and government officers) to Rio de Janeiro brought large benefits to Brazil. Indeed, the transfer of the court in effect signified achievement of Brazilian independence. The Portuguese prince and future King João VI opened Brazil’s ports to the trade of friendly nations, permitted the rise of local industries, and founded the Bank of Brazil. In 1815 he elevated Brazil to the legal status of a kingdom coequal with Portugal. In one sense, however, Brazil’s new status signified the substitution of one dependence for another. Freed from Portuguese control, Brazil came under the economic dominance of England, which obtained major tariff concessions and other privileges by the Strangford Treaty of 1810 between Portugal and Great Britain. The treaty provided for the importation of British manufactures into Brazil and the export of Brazilian agricultural produce to Great Britain. One result was an influx of cheap machine-made goods that swamped the handicrafts industry of the country.

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Brazilian elites took satisfaction in Brazil’s new role and the growth of educational, cultural, and economic opportunities for their class. But the feeling was mixed with resentment toward the thousands of Portuguese courtiers (officials) and hangers-on who came with the court and who competed with Brazilians for jobs and favors. Thus, the change in the status of Brazil sharpened the conflict between Portuguese elites born in Brazil and elites born in Portugal and loyal to the Portuguese crown.

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The event that precipitated the break with the mother country was the revolution of 1820 in Portugal. The Portuguese revolutionaries framed a liberal constitution for the kingdom, but they were conservative or reactionary in relation to Brazil. They demanded the immediate return of King João to Lisbon, an end to the system of dual monarchy that he had devised, and the restoration of the Portuguese commercial monopoly. Timid and vacillating, King João did not know which way to turn. Under the pressure of his courtiers, who hungered to return to Portugal and their lost estates, he finally approved the new constitution and sailed for Portugal. He left behind him, however, his son and heir, Pedro, and in a private letter advised him that in the event the Brazilians should demand independence, he should assume leadership of the movement and set the crown of Brazil on his head.

P - 5

Soon it became clear that the Portuguese parliament intended to set the clock back by abrogating all the liberties and concessions won by Brazil since 1808. One of its decrees insisted on the immediate return of Pedro from Brazil. The pace of events moved more rapidly in 1822. On January 9, urged on by Brazilian advisers who perceived a golden opportunity to make an orderly transition to independence without the intervention of the masses, Pedro refused an order from the parliament to return to Portugal, saying famously, “I remain.” On September 7, regarded by all Brazilians as Independence Day, he issued the even more celebrated proclamation, “Independence or death!” In December 1822, having overcome slight resistance by Portuguese troops, Dom Pedro was formally proclaimed constitutional Emperor of Brazil.