2013年5月25日 星期六

Uncle Sam and the Rest of the Gang  山姆、約翰、瑪麗安,還有……‏

by Matthew Brown

Many countries have recognizable figures that symbolize what that country is.
許多國家都有一個公認象徵該國的人物。

  At the height of. World War I in 1916, an illustrator named James Montgomery Flagg created a drawing for the cover of a weekly magazine. It was meant to show US citizens that they had to be prepared to help with the war effort in any way they could. Flagg came up with a picture of an elderly man with a white goatee. The man is pointing his finger directly at the viewer and looks very serious. On his head is a tall, white top hat with stars on the band. In addition, he is wearing a big, red bow tie and a blue jacket. Together, his patriotic clothing looks like various parts of the US flag.
1916 年,正當第一次世界大戰打得如火如荼之際,一位名為詹姆士‧蒙哥馬利‧弗萊格的插畫家為一本週刊的封面畫了一幅畫。這幅畫的目的是要告訴美國公民,他們必須準備用任何他們可以做到的方法來支援這場戰事。弗萊格畫的是一位留著白色山羊鬍的老先生。這位老先生的手指直指著觀看者,神情嚴肅。他的頭上戴著一頂白色的高禮帽,帽帶滾著星星的圖案。此外,他還打了一個又大又紅的蝴蝶結,身上穿著藍色外套。綜合起來,他這身愛國服裝看起來就像是一幅美國國旗各部分的組合。
  The image was striking, and soon a poster was made using Flagg's drawing. Between 1917 and 1918, over four million copies of the poster of Uncle Sam were printed. According to its creator, this poster soon became the most famous in the world. It certainly created one of the world's most famous national personifications—an image that is meant to stand for a country or its government.
這個形象很引人注目,很快地,弗萊格的畫被製成了海報。在 1917 年至 1918 年間,這幅『山姆大叔』海報印了 4 百萬份以上。根據海報的製作人說,它很快就成為世界上最出名的海報。這幅海報也確實創造出世界上最著名的國家擬人∕物化形象(用來代表國家或政府的一個形象)之一。
  Later, the poster became useful again when the US government decided to use Uncle Sam during World War II. Flagg had the chance to meet President Roosevelt and mentioned that he hadn't hired a model for the drawing. Instead, to save money, Flagg modeled Uncle Sam after his own image. President Roosevelt replied that this seemed like a smart way to save money and that this reminded him of something early US citizens would have done. Now, Uncle Sam is known around the globe as the one character that represents the United States.
後來,美國政府決定在二次世界大戰中使用山姆大叔的形象時,這幅海報再度派上用場。有一回,弗萊格有機會和羅斯福總統會面,他提到自己畫這幅畫時沒有雇用模特兒。為了省錢的緣故,他依照自己的形象畫出山姆大叔。羅斯福總統回應說,這是個省錢的好方法,這也使他想到早期美國公民的作風。今日,山姆大叔是全世界公認代表美國的人物。
單字小舖 
1. illustrator n. 插圖畫家
2. elderly a. 年長的
3. goatee n. 山羊鬍
4. top hat n.(男子的)大禮帽
5. band n. 帽帶(= hatband,指帽邊上的一圈絲帶、皮革帶等裝飾帶)
6. bow tie n. 蝴蝶形領結
7. poster n. 海報
8. personification n. 擬人∕物化
9. character n. 人物;角色
Grammar Tips 
On his head is a tall, white top hat with stars on the band.
注意:
地方副詞(there、here、downstairs)或地方副詞片語(at the station、in the room、by the window 等)置於

句首時,可形成倒裝句,此類倒裝句全按動詞的性質作變化,句型有三種:
a. 主詞 + 不及物動詞 + 地方副詞(片語)
→ 地方副詞(片語) + 不及物動詞 + 主詞
例: On the bed rested the tired little girl.
(那疲憊的小女孩躺在床上休息。)
b. 主詞 + be 動詞 + 過去分詞 + 地方副詞(片語)
→ 地方副詞(片語)+ be 動詞 + 過去分詞 + 主詞
例: Behind the door was locked a man.
(門後鎖著一個人。)
c. 主詞 + be 動詞 + 現在分詞 + 地方副詞(片語)
→ 現在分詞 + 地方副詞(片語)+ be 動詞 + 主詞
例: Standing in front of the gate were Danny and Mary.
(站在大門前的是丹尼和瑪莉。)

精解字詞片語 
1. at the height of...  在……的顛峰;在……的全盛時期
例: At the height of the storm, nobody was out on the streets.
(在暴風雨最強烈的時候,街上一個行人也沒有。)
2. help (sb) with + N 幫忙(某人)從事……
例: I am glad to help you with the project.
(我很樂意協助你執行這項企劃。)
3. come up with...  想出……,提出……
例: John has to come up with a plan for financing his new business.
(約翰必須想出一個計劃來為他的新事業籌措資金。)
4. point A at B  用 A 指著 B
例: I was scared for my life when the criminal pointed his gun at my head.
(當那名歹徒用槍指著我的腦袋時,我很擔心小命不保。)
5. directly adv. 筆直地;直接地
例: This path leads directly to the garden.
(這條小路一直通到那座花園。)
例: I will go to the party directly after work.
(下班後我會直接去派對。)
6. In addition, S + V  此外∕而且,……
例: We all worked late last week. In addition, we worked on Saturday.
(上星期我們都工作到很晚;此外,連星期六也來加班。)
7. patriotic a. 愛國的
patriot n. 愛國者
patriotism n. 愛國心;愛國主義
例: That patriotic man will defend his country at any cost.
(那名愛國男子會不計一切代價來保衛國家。)
8. various a. 各式各樣的,許多不同的
例: This vacuum cleaner comes with various cleaning attachments.
(這個吸塵器附有許多不同的清潔配件。)
9. striking a. 惹人注目的;突出的
例: The lady was wearing a striking hat.
(這位女士戴著一頂醒目的帽子。)
10. stand for...  象徵……,代表……
= represent vt.
例: Joanne gave Mark a red rose, which stood for her undying love.
(喬安送馬克一朵紅色的玫瑰,代表她永誌不渝的愛。)
11. instead adv.(反)而
例: Tom didn't do his homework. Instead, he chatted on the Internet.
(湯姆沒寫功課,反而上網聊天。)
12. model A after B  以 B 的形象塑造 A
model oneself after sb  以某人為榜樣;效法某人
例: The designer decided to model the new museum after a pyramid.
(該設計師決定以金字塔為範本來設計這座新博物館。)
例: I've decided to model myself after my father and become a teacher.
(我決定效法我父親去當老師。)
13. reply vt. & vi. 回答,回覆
注意:
reply 作及物動詞時可用 that 子句或直接引句作受詞,而不可直接以名詞作受詞。而 reply 作不及物動詞時,接
介詞 to 之後,方可接名詞作受詞。
reply + that 子句  回答……
reply to...  回覆∕回應……
例: When I asked Mary to go to the movies with me, she replied that she was too busy to go.
(當我找瑪麗和我一起去看電影時,她回答說她太忙了,沒辦法去。)
例: The boss told the secretary to reply to the customer at once.
(老闆叫祕書立刻回覆那位客戶。)
14. remind sb of...  令某人想到……
例: Kent reminds me of my brother when he was young.
(肯特使我想起我哥哥年輕時。)
15. be known as + 身分∕稱號  以……身分∕稱號而為人所知;被稱為……
be known for sth  因某事物而聞名
例: Amy is known as a very talented writer.
(眾人皆知艾咪是一個很有才華的作家。)
例: The band's songs are known for their unusual lyrics.
(該樂團的歌曲以其與眾不同的歌詞出名。)

沒有留言:

張貼留言