电影推荐 |《为奴十二年》：我愿意用一生去追求自由身。

这次我们分享的电影是 《为奴十二年》

豆瓣评分：8.2

电影 · 剧情

影片主要讲述了这样一个故事：所罗门本来是一个自由人，以演奏小提琴为生，拥有一个美满的家庭。然而，所罗门被骗成为黑奴，原本幸福的生活戛然而止，自此开始了长达十二年的黑暗生活，但他内心始终保有重回自由人的希望。

电影 · 看点

本片的优点在于真实，用平实的摄像机语言记述所发生的一切，在无声中揭露黑奴制的黑暗。那些鞭子好像是抽在观众的身上，令人心颤。

所罗门本是一个生活在纽约的自由的黑人

以演奏小提琴为生

有一个美丽的妻子和两个聪明伶俐的孩子

一家四口生活幸福美满

一天，妻子带孩子出远门后

所罗门碰到两个白人

他们以给他提供一个在马戏团伴奏表演

的机会为由

把所罗门灌醉

一觉醒来，他发现自己成了黑奴

起初他被卖给了福特 先生

在庄园里当奴隶

因为他想了很多办法帮福特先生提高了运输效率

被白人头子嫉恨差点折磨致死

福特先生为救他

不得不将他卖给了素有“黑奴终结者”之称的艾普斯

他在种植园里日复一日地采摘棉花、收割甘蔗

也目睹了许多黑奴的悲剧

12年过去了

他始终没有放弃重回自由人的希望

终于有一天碰到了呼吁平权思想的木匠巴斯先生

结束了他身为奴隶的命运

影片展现了奴隶制度下

他人和社会对黑人奴隶所带来的的创伤

这种创伤不仅是个人 的，也是群体 的，更是文化 的

对于在这种创伤之上仍有人

奋力抗争，追求自由 的精神的赞扬是本影片的主题

当然看完电影不能忘记学习英语

我从其中挑选了7个地道英文表达

让我们一起来看看本期的内容吧~

1.nigger

n.黑人;黑鬼

英英释义：

Nigger is an extremely offensive word for a black person.

例句：

①I was just going to say Katherine Burke looked almost like a nigger.

我当时差点要说出凯瑟琳·伯克看上去活像个黑鬼。

②They reiterated that they were house niggers , not field hands.

他们反复强调自己是干家务的黑人，不是干田间活的。

拓展：

除了“nigger”，这里再补充两个常见的表述“黑鬼”的词

①coon 黑人;黑鬼

【Coon is an extremely offensive word for a black person.】

例如：

Gave our entire operation over to the coons .

他把我们的业务交给了黑鬼。

②spade 黑鬼 【熟词生义】

【a very offensive word for a black person】

2.cast down

使沮丧;使伤心;使忧愁

固定搭配

英英释义：

If someone is cast down by something, they are sad or worried because of it.

例句：

①I am not cast down by it because I believe in the fundamental strength of the business.

这件事并没有使我灰心，因为我相信企业的深厚根基。

②I'd expect you to be wreathed in smiles but, instead, you seem rather cast down .

你应该笑容满面才是，可你似乎情绪低落。

拓展：

我们之前还讲过一个单词“crestfallen”【If you look crestfallen, you look sad and disappointed about something.】

例如：

When he heard that he had failed the exam, he hung his head looking crestfallen .

听说自己没考及格，他耷拉下脑袋，蔫巴了。

还有一个短语 on a downer 也可以表示“沮丧”

【If you are on a downer, you are feeling depressed and without hope.】

例如：

We've been on a bit of a downer since the Liverpool game.

自从利物浦比赛以来，我们一直有点沮丧。

3.be overcome by

（感情上）受到极大影响，承受不起

英英释义：

If you are overcome by a feeling or event, it is so strong or has such a strong effect that you cannot think clearly.

例句：

①The night before the test I was overcome by fear and despair.

考试前的晚上，恐惧和绝望让我内心无比惊慌。

②A dizziness overcame him, blurring his vision.

他感到一阵眩晕，眼前发黑。

拓展：

be overcome by 也可以表示 （烟、毒气等）熏倒，使受不了【If you are overcome by smoke or a poisonous gas, you become very ill or die from breathing it in.】

例如：

The residents were trying to escape from the fire but were overcome by smoke.

居民试图逃离火场，却被浓烟熏倒了。

4.premises

n.(企业的)房屋建筑及附属场地,营业场所

阅读词汇

英英释义：

The building and land near to it that a business owns or uses.

例句：

①No alcohol may be consumed on the premises.

场区内禁止饮酒。

②Police were called to escort her off the premises .

召来警察护送她离场。

常见搭配：

business / commercial / industrial premises

事务所；商业/工业用房屋场地

注意，这个单词一般是用复数 噢~

5.pantomime

n.闹剧；（行为的）滑稽愚蠢

阅读词汇

音标：

/'pæntəmaɪm/

英英释义：

An annoying confused situation in which people are not behaving in a sensible way.

例句：

①They were made welcome with the usual pantomime of exaggerated smiles and gestures.

他们受到了一如往常的欢迎，夸张的笑容和姿态如同一场闹剧。

②The rights of every American to good government have been damaged by the pantomime on Capitol Hill.

每一位美国人享受良政的权利被国会山的闹剧损害殆尽。

6.rags and tatters

衣衫褴褛；一团糟

固定搭配

英英释义：

Clothes that are worn many times and look untidy.

例句：

They are not like our children. Any picture books they are given are reduced to rags and tatters within a week.

他们不像我们的孩子。不管什么故事书，一经给了他们，不出一星期就变成了一堆破。

拓展：

除了“rags and tatters”,也可以只用【in tatters 】表示“衣服破烂 ”【in very bad condition】

例如：

Their clothes were in tatters .

但是，in tatters还有另外一个意思，表示【被毁坏的；破败的；坍塌的 】【ruined or badly damaged】

例如：

Her reputation was in tatters .

她已名誉扫地。

The government's education policy lies in tatters.

政府的教育政策彻底破产了

7.soft-soap

v.(为使某人做某事而)奉承，讨好，拍…马屁

英英释义：

If you soft-soap someone, you flatter them or tell them what you think they want to hear in order to try and persuade them to do something.

例句：

The government is not soft-soaping the voters here.

政府并非在讨好这里的选民。

同义拓展：

我们之前讲过短语butter up sb 讨好、巴结某人【Try to give flattery to someone for some special purpose.】

例如：

Harry is working hard to butter up the boss to get that promotion. The funny thing is if he worked as hard at his job as he does at buttering up people, he'd have a better chance to get what he's after.
哈里为了被提升，正在想方设法地对老板拍马奉承。有趣的是，要是他干活也能像他溜须拍马那样下功夫的话，他想得到提升的机会就会更多。

还讲过短语 apple polisher 拍马屁的人【This idiom is used to describe someone who likes to boost other's behaviour to gain personal benefits.】

例如：

Mary is an apple polisher ; she can even handle illegal documents for the boss.

玛丽是个马屁精，她甚至可以为老板处理非法文件。

还有一个单词 obsequious adj.谄媚的，阿谀奉承的，奴颜婢膝的【If you describe someone as obsequious, you are criticizing them because they are too eager to help or agree with someone more important than them.】

例如：

You must guard against those who fawn upon you and bow obsequiously before you.

你一定要警惕那些阿谀奉承，点头哈腰的人。