文化面面觀:Seminar
考考你:小試牛刀
本片段劇情:絕望的Carl來到了Yes!宣講會,沒想到很快就成了主講人Terrence的目標。在Terrence的言辭轟炸和聽眾的狂熱慫恿下,Carl被迫訂立了一個契約,也就是對今后碰到的一切,不管是什么,都說Yes……
影片對白:
Terrence: Before we begin today, I'd like to welcome our new members. Who among you is new?
Nick: He is. This guy right here. He's new. Over here.
Carl: Please don't. Jesus.
Terrence: Come on up, future yes man.
Carl: That's okay, I'm just auditing.
Terrence: You can't audit life, my friend. Now get on up here.
Carl: No, thanks. I'm cool.
Terrence: I'm sorry? What was that you said?
Carl: I said, I'm cool.
Terrence: Before that.
Carl: Thank you.
Terrence: Back up just a little bit more.
Carl: No.
Crowd: No man. No man. No man. No man. No man. No man. No man...
Terrence: Okay. If the molehill won't come to Terrence, Terrence will come to the molehill. What's your name?
Carl: Carl.
Terrence: Let me guess, Carl. Someone talked you into coming here today, didn't they?
Carl: Yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Terrence: And you're not sure about this, are you?
Carl: No.
Crowd: No man. No man. No man. No man.
Terrence: You're dead, Carl. You say no to life, and therefore you're not living. You make up excuses to the people around you and to yourself. You're stuck in the same dead-end job you have been for years. You don't have a girlfriend. You don't have anything close to a girlfriend. And you lost the love of your life because she couldn't be with someone who didn't live theirs. And on most nights you're so bored and filled with ennui you can't even summon the enthusiasm necessary to masturbate. Am I right, Carl?
Carl: I have had some trouble.
Terrence: We're gonna make a covenant, Carl. Do you want to make a covenant?
Carl: Ugh...
Terrence: The word is "yes", Carl.
Crowd: Yes!
Carl: Yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Carl: Yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Terrence: Once you leave this building, every time an opportunity presents itself, no matter what it is, you will say yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Carl: Yes!
Crowd: Yes!
Carl: Yes!
Crowd: Yes!
Carl: Yes. What if I...say...the other word?
Terrence: You'll be making a promise to yourself. And when you break a promise to yourself, things can get a little dicey. What do you say, Carl? Are you ready to make a covenant?
Carl: Yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Carl: Yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Terrence: Again.
Carl: Yes.
Crowd: Yes!
Terrence: Say it again.
Carl: Yes!
Terrence: Make me believe it.
Carl: Yes, yes, yes.
Terrence: Yes!
妙語佳句 活學活用
1. audit: 旁聽。請看例子:
On her lunch hour she audited classes.(她利用午飯時間去旁聽課程。)
2. I'm cool: 我很好。Carl的意思是他不需要Terrence的“特別關照”。cool在日常生活中是很常見的口語,意思是“好的”,用于表示接受或同意某事。
3. molehill: 鼴鼠丘,鼴鼠洞;小障礙。make a mountain out of a molehill就是“小題大做”。Terrence把Carl稱為molehill,是因為Carl在他眼中就是阻礙他宣揚Yes哲學的一個微不足道的小障礙物。
4. talk sb. into doing sth.: 說服某人做某事。看一下例子:
They talked me into going swimming with them.(他們說服我和他們一起去游泳。)
5. dead-end job: 沒有發展前景的工作。dead-end還可以表示“不會有結果的,行不通的”,例如:a dead-end conference(毫無結果的會談);a dead-end plan(行不通的計劃)。此外,dead-end還有“盡頭的”和“貧民窟的”的意思。看一下例子:a dead-end street(死胡同);a dead-end kid(貧民窟的小流氓)。
6. ennui: 厭倦,無聊。請看例子:
The endless lecture produced an unbearable ennui.
那沒完沒了的演講使人產生難以忍受的厭倦之感。
7. summon: 在影片中是“喚起,使呈現出來”的意思。此外,summon還表示“鼓起(勇氣),使出,振作(精神)”等意思。例如:summon (up) the nerve to do sth.(鼓起勇氣做某事);summon (up) all one's strength(使出全身力氣)。
8. covenant: 契約。請看例子:
They have made their covenant with death.(他們已難逃一死。)
9. dicey: 危險的,不可預知的。例如:a dicey peace(岌岌可危的和平)。Terrence的意思是Carl如果不遵守諾言,情況就會變得不妙。
文化面面觀:Seminar
考考你:小試牛刀