例250　During the past generation, the American middle-class family that once could count on hard work and fair play to keep itself financially secure has been transformed by economic risk and new realities.

【结构分析】这句话是个典型的定语从句，句子开头是个介词短语做状语，也就是During the past generation，句子的主语是the American middle-class family，后面加上定语从句that once could count on hard work and fair play to keep itself financially secure，该定语从句是个并列句，动词是has been transformed by，动词是被动语态，宾语是economic risk and new realities。

【亮点回放】此句话的亮点在于很长的并列定语从句，而且主干是被动语态，很经典。

【核心词汇】

count on　依靠

fair play　公平竞争

financially secure　财政收支安全

economic risk　经济危机

new realities　新的现实

【参考译文】在过去的20多年时间里，那些曾经依靠辛勤工作和公平竞争就可以保证自己财政收支安全的美国中产阶级家庭已经被经济风险和新的现实所改变。（用定语从句前置的翻译方法来处理这个句子）