第3段

In New Jersey, I never had to shiver by a fire that wouldn't draw, or go without canned food . America made me develop new appetites in order to make proper use of the supermarket. A character in Evelyn Waugh's Put out More Flags said that the difference between prewar and postwar life was that, prewar, if one thing went wrong the day was ruined(毀滅了); postwar, if one thing went right the day would be made. America is a prewar country, psychologically(心理上的) unprepared for one thing to go wrong. Hence the neurosis, despair, the Kafka feeling that the whole marvelous fabric of American life is coming apart at the seams. 

第1句：

In New Jersey, I never had to shiver by a fire that wouldn't draw, or go without canned food . 

在新泽西州，我从来不坐在通风不良的炉前发抖。或吃不上罐头。 

go without：没有；单独，忍受没有……之苦

 The poor boy often had to go without supper.这个穷孩子常常吃不到晚饭。

One in seven people in the UK are skipping meals or going without food, according to new polling data released by the Trades Union Congress (TUC). 英国工会大会发布的最新民调显示，七分之一的英国人为了省钱而选择少吃几顿饭甚至不吃饭。

注意表达通风类似说法，英语有：

Let’;s open the windows to let some air in. 咱们把窗户开开通通风。

I know it’s cold, but we need to open the window to get some fresh air.

我知道很冷，但是咱们得开窗进点新鲜空气。

Open the window and air the room.打开窗子，然后给房间通通风。 

Open the windows to air it out.   打开窗户通通风。

注意本段这句与上一段The northern wind blows viciously today, and there's no central heating to turn on, but it will be pleasant when the wind drops. 对比。表达了：there's  central heating to turn on,  it is pleasant.

第2句：

America made me develop new appetites in order to make proper use of the supermarket. 为了很好利用超市，美国使我培养起了新的胃口。

这句说明了。美国物资丰富，商品琳琅满目，选择多，作者没有直接说，而是幽默表达了这个意思，与上一段中写意大利生活对比：Manifold consumption isn't important here. The quality of life has nothing to do with the quantity of brand names. 在这儿多样化的消费并不重要，生活的质量与商标名称的数量无关

make proper use of：使用，类似的“使用”表达有make use of，make the most of…，take advantage of...， make little use of

利用较少 ，make better use of更好的利用 ，

第3句：

A character in Evelyn Waugh's Put out More Flags said that the difference between prewar and postwar life was that, prewar, if one thing went wrong the day was ruined; postwar, if one thing went right the day would be made. 

在伊夫林•沃的《升起更多的旗》一书中一个人物谈了战前生活与战后生活的区别：战前如一天中有一件事不对头，你觉得这一天就全毁了；战后如果一天中有一件事很顺利，你觉得这一天真痛快。

 went wrong：出问题，出差错，失败，扯拐。

I know only too well that plans can easily go wrong . 计划很容易出岔子，我太清楚这点了。

If you just follow the signs to the park, you can’t go wrong.如果你按照指示牌去公园，就不会出岔子。

But clearly, things could still go wrong in his 

marriage to May. 不过很明显，他和梅的婚姻仍然有可能出问题，

课文中one thing went wrong用英语解释大致就是one thing  wasn't right有一件事不对头

ruin：破坏；毁坏：

If you don’t give up the computer games you’ll ruin yourself.

如果再不戒掉电脑游戏，你会毁了自己的。

the day was ruined： everyting of the day did not go well这一天啥子都不顺利。

the day would be made: everyting of the day went well

第4,5句：

America is a prewar country, psychologically unprepared for one thing to go wrong. Hence the neurosis, despair, the Kafka feeling that the whole marvelous fabric of American life is coming apart at the seams. 

美国是属于战前状态的国家，没有心理准备承受出现的任何问题。因此就出现了神经质、绝望，感到卡夫卡式的忧虑，整个美妙的美国生活模式正在分崩离析。

come apart at the seams: 原指衣服的线缝开裂, 难过已极，虚弱，情况很糟, 崩溃:

I almost came apart at the seams when I saw the taxicab hit my car.当我看到计程车撞到我的车时，我几乎要崩溃了。

There’;s no need to come apart at the seams. Things will get better.

不要情绪失控。情况会好转的。

is coming apart at the seams:is crashing, breaking down

fabric: 社会、机构等的）结构

第4段：

Let us stay for a while on this subject of consumption. American individualism, on the face of it an admirable philosophy, wishes to manifest itself in independence of the community. You don't share things in common; you have your own things. A family's strength is signalized by its possessions. Herein lies a paradox. For the desire for possessions must eventually mean dependence on possessions. Freedom is slavery. Once let the acquisitive instinct burgeon, and there are ruggedly individual forces only too ready to make it come to full and monstrous (巨大的)blossom. New appetites are invented; what to the European are bizarre luxuries become, to the American, plain necessities. 

1． Let us stay for a while on this subject of consumption. 让我们在消费这个题目上再稍微多说几句

Paraphrase:I want to need more words consumption.

2. American individualism, on the face of it an admirable philosophy, wishes to manifest itself in independence of the community. 美国式的个人主义在表面看来是很值得钦佩的一种哲学，它希望独立于社区之外表现自己

on the face of it：从表面看；乍看起来：

2.On the face of it, what you said is completely correct, but you will find that it is wrong if you analyse it carefully.从表面上看，你说的完全正确，但是如果你仔细分析的话，它错了。

on the face of it an admirable philosophy：Outwa‎rdly，American individualism seems to be a great‎ philosophy.

Manifest: manifest itself = to appear or to become easy to see 显现，显露,：

His illness began to manifest itself at around this time. 他的病到这时开始显现出来。

 

这个词还有一个意思： (of an ailment)become apparent through the appearance of symptoms (指疾病)通过症状的出现变得明显,作者用这个字表达了他的观点美国式的个人主义是一种病态。

Izzy manifested signs of severe depression.莉齐显出严重抑郁症的迹象。

 in independence of the community：Americans are separate, with their own things

A family's strength is signalized by its possessions. 一个家庭的力量体现在它拥有的财产上。

signalize: mark or indicate (something), especially in a striking or conspicuous manner（尤指用显著或明显的方式）显示，表明:

People seek to change their name to signalize a change in status that has taken place.人们通过改名来表明他们身份的改变。

A little flower with not much to signalize it.一朵不太显眼的小花。

A family's strength is signalized by its possessions.

Paraphrase: Nothing could express a family's strength more than its possessions.

3.For the desire for possessions must eventually mean dependence on possessions. 用为对财产的渴望最终必然意味着对财产的依赖。

Paraphrase: .For they want money and this finally relysgreatly on possessions,otherwise, the lack of interest in money meant that they would probably be poor for ever,

4.Once let the acquisitive instinct burgeon, and there are ruggedly individual forces only too ready to make it come to full and monstrous blossom. 你一旦允许占有的本能发芽生长，便有粗暴的个别力量迫不及待地要使它盛开出巨大的花朵。

burgeon:  a verb that means to grow or develop rapidly(迅速发展). 

Other examples:

China’s burgeoning electric-vehicle and renewable energy industries are reminders of its capacity to dominate markets.中国蓬勃发展的电动汽车和可再生能源产业提醒人们，中国有能力主导市场。

By 1700 trade had replaced farming as the mainstay of a burgeoning market economy.

到1700年，贸易已经取代农业，成为蓬勃发展的市场经济的支柱。

Plants burgeon from every available space.只要有一点空隙，植物就会生根发芽。

“burgeon”is used figuratively,mening begins to grow.

only too:very,完全;

 

The afternoon and evening passed only too quickly, and the next day Elizabeth and the other travellers set off again.下午和晚上过得太快了，第二天，伊丽莎白和另外两位旅行者又上路了。

They were only too ready to give up going home.他们完全准备放弃回家。

only too ready: impatient, could hardly wait to do sth. 

ruggedly: roughly

Here the author  criticised the "outrageous greed" of ruggedly individual forces（作者批评粗暴的个别力量"贪婪无耻"。）He thinks it is a bit much for ruggedly individual forces to devlop it fully.作者认为粗暴的个别力量充分发展占有的本能是太不像话了。

5. New appetites are invented; what to the European are bizarre luxuries become, to the American, plain necessities. 新的欲望产生了，对欧洲人来说是希奇古怪的奢侈品，对美国人来说却成了普通的必需品。

what to the European are bizarre luxuries become, to the American, plain necessities.：what is bizarre luxuries to the European becomes plain necessities to the American

Paraphrase: plain necessities to the American are considered a luxury to the European ,