摘要:Jem and I were born. The Radleys, welcome anywhere in town, kept to themselves, a predilection unforgivable in Maycomb. They did n
Jem and I were born. The Radleys, welcome anywhere in town, kept to themselves, a predilection unforgivable in Maycomb. They did not go to church, Maycomb’s principal recreation, but worshiped at home; Mrs. Radley seldom if ever crossed the street for a mid-morning coffee break with her neighbors, and certainly never joined a missionary circle. Mr. Radley walked to town at eleven-thirty every morning and came back promptly at twelve, sometimes carrying a brown paper bag that the neighborhood assumed contained the family groceries. I never knew how old Mr. Radley made his living—Jem said he bought cotton, a polite term for doing nothing—but Mr. Radley and his wife had lived there with their two sons as long as anybody could remember.
1. kept to themselves
- 释义:深居简出;不与人交往(指刻意保持独处,避免社交)。
- 语境:拉德利一家“本受欢迎却自我封闭”,与小镇的社交传统(如去教堂、邻里咖啡会)形成冲突,暗示其“异类”身份的根源。
2. predilection /ˌpredəˈlekʃn/
- 音标:/ˌpredəˈlekʃn/
- 释义:偏好,嗜好(尤指个人特有的、异于他人的习惯)。
- 语境:用“predilection”而非“habit”,强调自我封闭是拉德利家主动的选择,而非被迫,加剧小镇对其“不合群”的负面评判(“unforgivable”)。
3. unforgivable /ˌʌnfərˈɡɪvəbl/
- 音标:/ˌʌnfərˈɡɪvəbl/
- 释义:不可饶恕的(在小镇价值观中,“拒绝社交”被视为严重冒犯)。
4. church /tʃɜːrtʃ/
- 音标:/tʃɜːrtʃ/
- 释义:教堂(文中指宗教场所,也是小镇核心社交空间)。
- 象征:“Maycomb’s principal recreation”表明教堂不仅是信仰中心,更是社交枢纽,拉德利家“不去教堂”等于主动切断与社群的连接
5. principal /ˈprɪnsəpəl/
- 音标:/ˈprɪnsəpəl/
- 释义:主要的(强调教堂在小镇生活中的核心地位)。
- 对比:与“worshiped at home”对比,突显拉德利家“背离主流”的姿态,暗示其信仰方式不被认可。
6. recreation /ˌriːkriˈeɪʃn/
- 音标:/ˌriːkriˈeɪʃn/
- 释义:娱乐活动(将“去教堂”定义为“消遣”,揭示小镇宗教的世俗化功能——社交大于精神追求)。
7. worshiped /ˈwɜːrʃɪpt/
- 音标:/ˈwɜːrʃɪpt/
- 释义:礼拜(宗教性的敬拜行为)。
- 隐含矛盾:小镇将“去教堂”视为“recreation”,而拉德利家“worshiped at home”更贴近宗教
8. if ever crossed the street
- 结构:“seldom if ever”意为“几乎从不”(强调频率极低)。
- 场景细节:“crossed the street for coffee break”本是日常邻里互动,拉德利太太拒绝参与,被视为“不友好”
9. break with
- 搭配:coffee break(咖啡休息时间),“break with neighbors”指与邻居共度休闲时光。
- 文化背景:20世纪中叶美国南方小镇的邻里习俗,通过共享咖啡、闲聊巩固社群关系
10. missionary /ˈmɪʃəneri/
- 音标:/ˈmɪʃəneri/
- 释义:传教士(文中指小镇女性参与的宗教慈善团体)。
- 象征:“missionary circle”是小镇女性的重要社交圈层
11. promptly /ˈprɑːmptli/
- 音标:/ˈprɑːmptli/
- 释义:准时地(精确到分钟的作息)。
- 人物刻画:拉德利先生的“规律性”行为(如11:30去镇里,12:00返回)看似自律,实则透露机械性
12. brown paper bag
- 意象:牛皮纸袋(普通、日常的购物袋)。
- 悬念感:“neighborhood assumed”(邻居猜测)内容物,实则未知,用日常物品制造神秘感
13. groceries /ˈɡroʊsəriz/
- 音标:/ˈɡroʊsəriz/
- 释义:食品杂货(生活必需品)。
14. cotton /ˈkɑːtn/
- 音标:/ˈkɑːtn/
- 释义:棉花(美国南方传统经济作物,与种植园历史相关)。
- 双关:“bought cotton”表面指农产品交易,实则是“doing nothing”的委婉说法
15. polite term
- 释义:委婉说法(用体面词汇掩盖真实含义)。
来源:欧米阿卡