Clinton’s Early Life
Bill Clinton was born in Hope, Arkansas, in 1946. His mother named him William Jefferson Blythe III after his father. Bill’s father died in a car accident before his birth. When Bill was four years old, his mother left him in her parents’ care while she trained as a nurse.
When Bill was eight, his mother married Roger Clinton. The family moved to Hot Springs, Arkansas. There they lived in a small house with no heating system. Bill’s stepfather (继父) was a drunk, and the family life was frequently disturbed by domestic (家庭的) violence.
When he was fifteen, Bill warned his stepfather never to hit his mother or half-brother again. Despite his difficult relationship with his stepfather, Bill changed his last name to Clinton as a teenager.
When Clinton was seventeen, he met then President John F. Kennedy. As a result, Clinton decided that he wanted to enter politics. He entered Georgetown University in 1964. As a college student, he was committed to the movement against the Vietnam War.
Clinton graduated from Georgetown in 1968 with a degree in international affairs. He was awarded a scholarship. This allowed him to spend the next two years continuing his studies at Oxford University. In 1970 he entered law school at Yale University. After graduation, Clinton went into private practice as a lawyer in Arkansas. He also began teaching at the University of Arkansas Law School.
6.At seventeen, Clinton wanted to be a politician in the future.