VOA常速英语:U.S. Institutions - The Constitution

Certain aspects of the United States government are unique, none more so that the law of the land, the United States Constitution. Drafted in 1787 and ratified in 1789, it is the oldest such written document in continual use, and one that has influenced legal thinking and other constitutions around the globe.
美国政府的某些方面是独一无二的，在这片土地上没有什么法律比美国宪法更加重要。美国宪法起草于1787年、并于1789年通过，这是仍然在使用着的最古老的书面文件，影响了世界各地的法律思想和其他宪法。

The Constitution’s preamble, or introduction, begins with the words “We the People,” indicating that although the document was written to establish a national government, the government itself was set up to serve the people, and derives its power from them.
这部宪法的前言（或引言）从“我们人民”一词开始，表明这部文件虽然是为了建立一个国家政府，但是政府本身是为人民服务的，并且从人民手中获得权力。

The body of the Document sets out the balance and separation of power among the three branches of the Government: the Legislative, or law-making branch that is the U.S. Congress, the Executive branch which is headed by the President,and the Judiciary, which interprets the law at every level and settles legal disputes regarding the meaning and the application of the law.
这部文件的主体阐述了政府三大分支的平衡和分权：美国国会代表立法（或立法分支），行政部门由总统领导，而司法部门则负责解释每一层级的法律、并在遵照法律原则和法律适用的情况下解决法律纠纷。

Having just won a war to rid themselves of an authoritarian government, the Framers of the Constitution were above all careful to create a national government that would not, could not wield absolute power,but at the same time, could not be superseded by individual states.
当时美国刚刚赢得了一场战争、摆脱了一个独裁政府，宪法的制定者们首先要小心谨慎地建立一个不会、也不能拥有绝对权力的国家政府，但同时也不能被个别州所取代。

So, the Constitution defines the states’ relationship to the federal government, as well as the rights and responsibilities of state governments. And to ensure the document is flexible enough to stand the test of time, the framers made provisions that allowed for it to be changed, or amended, to reflect changes within society itself.
因此，宪法定义了各州和联邦政府的关系，以及州政府的权利和责任。而为了确保这一文件足够灵活能够经得起时间的考验，制定者们又作出规定，允许修订宪法来反映社会本身的变化。

Ironically, this helped the Constitution to overcome its first major hurdle—ratification by the thirteen states that made up the United States of the time.
具有讽刺意味的是，这帮助宪法克服了遇到的第一个主要障碍——被当时组成美国的13个州批准认可。

That’s because the populace, which had just freed itself from shackles imposed on it by one government, was loath to agree to empowering another such body. Many saw a strong central government as a threat to individual rights. So, to obtain ratification in the several vacillating states, ten Amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were added.
这是因为当时美国民众刚刚摆脱了一个政府强加给他们的束缚，因此他们很不情愿同意授权另外一个这样的机构。许多人都认为一个强大的中央政府是对个人权利的一种威胁。因此，为获得几个摇摆州的批准，增加了十条宪法修正案，统称为《权利法案》。

In the words of James Madison, who is considered to be the Father of the Constitution, “The people are the only legitimate fountain of power,and it is from them that the constitutional charter, under which the several branches of government hold their power, is derived.”
用美国宪法之父詹姆斯·麦迪逊的话来说，“人民是唯一合法的权力源泉，而正是源于他们，这部宪章、以及其下掌握权力的几个政府部门才得以派生而出。”