中美第一夫人是如何炼成的

Peng Liyuan, China's first lady, who has accompanied her husband to the United States this week, is no stranger to being in the spotlight.

中国第一夫人彭丽媛本周陪同丈夫访美，她也已经不止一次公开亮相。

She has been praised by both mainland and international media for her fashion sense on earlier state visits.

在此前的国事访问中，她的时尚品味就受到中国大陆和国际媒体的赞赏。

Her stylish outfits have led to her being compared with two other fashion icons– US first lady Michelle Obama and Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, who is the wife of Britain’s Prince William.

她时尚优雅的穿衣风格也让人们将她与其他两位时尚偶像进行对比，她们分别是美国第一夫人米歇尔•奥巴马和英国威廉王子的妻子、剑桥公爵夫人凯特王妃。

Yet Peng, originally from the eastern province of Shandong, was already a nationally recognised singer on the mainland before she met Xi in 1986, and their marriage in 1987.

彭丽媛是山东人，1986年她认识了习近平，在此之前她就已经是享誉全国的歌唱家。1987年，两人正式结婚。

Following her arrival in the US, she is set for a much-anticipated fashion face-off with her fellow first lady later this week.

她抵达美国后，将于本周上演的中美第一夫人的时尚对决也广受人们期待。

Here we take a look at five key differences between the two fashion icons.

下面，我们来看看这两位时尚先锋的五个不同之处。

Background 背景

Peng Liyuan 彭丽媛

Peng, a Yuncheng county, Shandong native, joined the People’s Liberation Army when she was 18. She was one of the first people on the mainland to obtain a master’s degree in ethnic music at the China Conservatory of Music.

Her vocal talents catapulted her to stardom as an army soprano, and she has given many singing performances across China and abroad.

彭丽媛出生于山东省郓城，18岁加入人民解放军。她是大陆首批在中央音乐学院获得民乐硕士学位的人。

她的歌唱天赋将她送上星途，她作为一名军队中的女高音歌唱家，在国内外举办了多场演出。

Michelle Obama 米歇尔•奥巴马

Obama grew up with her older brother, Craig, in Chicago. Her father was a water plant operator, and her mother was a full-time housewife until her daughter went to high school.

She went to state school, and later graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor's degree in sociology. She then attended Harvard Law School in 1988, where she earned a doctorate in law.

米歇尔和她的哥哥克雷格在芝加哥长大。她的父亲是一名水管工，在她读高中之前，她的母亲一直是一名全职家庭主妇。

她在公立学校念书，之后在普林斯顿大学获得社会学学士学位。1988年，她被哈佛大学法学院录取，并获得了法学博士学位。

Profession 职业

Peng Liyuan 彭丽媛

Aside from being the first lady of China and a singer, Peng is also the president of the People’s Liberation Army’s Academy of Art.

She has since stepped down from public performances, but continues with her charity work.

除了第一夫人和歌唱家的身份，彭丽媛还担任解放军艺术学院院长。

虽然渐渐从公众演出中隐退，但她对慈善事业的投入丝毫未减。

Michelle Obama 米歇尔•奥巴马

After working as a lawyer, Obama began to work in public service and was associate dean at the University of Chicago.

She then became vice-president for community and external affairs at the University of Chicago Medical Centre before her husband’s inauguration.

米歇尔在律师这行工作了一段时间，之后投身公共服务事业，并在芝加哥大学担任副处长。

在她丈夫就职总统前，她就已经是芝加哥大学医疗中心社区及对外事务副董事长。

Family 家庭

Peng Liyuan 彭丽媛

Peng met her future husband, Xi Jinping, through a friend in 1986, and they were married in 1987.

They have a daughter named Xi Mingze, who was born in 1992, and has now returned to China after studying at Harvard University.

1986年，彭丽媛经一位朋友介绍认识了习近平。两人于1987年结婚。

1992年，彭丽媛诞下女儿习明泽。习明泽曾在哈佛大学读书，现已回到中国。

Michelle Obama 米歇尔•奥巴马

Obama met her husband, Barack Obama in 1989, while she was an associate at a law firm.

They married in 1992; their daughters, Malia, born in 1998, and Sasha, in 2001, attend the same private school where former US presidents Bill Clinton and Richard Nixon sent their daughters.

1989年，当米歇尔在一家律师事务所做助理时认识了她现在的丈夫，贝拉克•奥巴马。

两人于1992年结婚，大女儿玛丽亚于1998年出生，小女儿萨莎于2001年出生，她们就读的私立学校也是前美国总统比尔•克林顿和理查德•尼克松的女儿就读的学校。

Campaigns 宣传活动

Peng Liyuan 彭丽媛

The World Health Organisation appointed Peng as a goodwill ambassador in its campaign against tuberculosis and HIV/Aids in 2012.

In 2014, Unesco named her as a special envoy to promote education for girls and women.

She has also joined Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, in promoting World No Tobacco Day.

世界卫生组织于2012年任命彭丽媛为“抗击结核病和艾滋病亲善大使。

2014年，联合国教科文组织授予她“促进女童和妇女教育特使荣誉称号。

她还和微软创始人之一比尔•盖茨一起推广世界无烟日。

Michelle Obama 米歇尔•奥巴马

Obama launched the “Let’s Move! campaign in 2010 to fight against childhood obesity.

She has raised awareness for the need for higher education, and also spoken about empowering young women worldwide through a government-initiative called “Let Girls Learn.

2010年，米歇尔发起了一场名为“动起来的健康计划，号召公众共同关注儿童肥胖。

她唤起了公众对高等教育的关注，并谈到要通过一场政府发起的名为“让女孩上学的倡议，让全球的年轻女性更能掌握自己的命运。

Style 风格

Peng Liyuan 彭丽媛

China’s first lady tends to wear tailored clothing, with clean lines on formal occasions. Internet users have praised her “elegant ensembles and graceful outfits.

The 52-year-old supports home-grown Chinese designers, such as Ma Ke, one of the founders of Exception de Mixmind, a largely unknown fashion brand until she sparked global headlines by wearing a sophisticated black overcoat and handbag on her first trip with Xi to Moscow in 2013.

中国的第一夫人经常在正式场合穿着剪裁精良、线条简洁的服装。网民也称赞她穿搭优雅得体。

52岁的彭丽媛非常支持中国本土设计师，比如“例外品牌的创始人马可。2013年，她首次陪同习近平出访莫斯科，以一件优雅的黑色大衣和手包的得体搭配占据了全球各大媒体头条，让人眼前一亮。在此之前，这个品牌并不为人所知。

Michelle Obama 米歇尔•奥巴马

Her American counterpart is more experimental with her style – her clothes ranges from casual flirty dresses to off-the-shoulder ball gowns, and tailored trouser suits.

The 51-year-old wears clothing mostly made by American designers, which include more affordable fashion retailers, such as J. Crew and Target, and the renowned designer Alexander McQueen.

相比之下，美国第一夫人在穿着风格上更具多样性，从休闲款的性感裙装、露肩舞会礼服到剪裁精良的裤装，她都曾经尝试过。

51岁的米歇尔穿着服装大多来自于美国设计师，其中包括平价服装零售商J. Crew和Target，以及久负盛名的设计师亚历山大•麦昆。

Vocabulary

face-off: 对峙

catapult: 使突然上升

soprano: 女高音