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摘自77届奥斯卡热门影片《杯酒人生》(Sideways)中Maya与Miles的一段对话。—— Miles热衷品酒,在这里他评论Pinot Noir的几句感悟准确、精到,堪称艺术英语的典范。影片英文原名“Sideways”,也暗指以酒为喻、别开他途的人生理解。
Maya: Why are you so into Pinot Noir? I mean, it´s like a thing with you.
Miles: I don´t know, um, it´s a hard grape to grow, as you know, right? It´s
thin-skinned,
temperamental, ripens early, you know. It´s not a survivor like
Cabernet, which can just grow anywhere and thrive even when it´s neglected. No, Pinot Noir needs constant care and attention. In fact, it can grow only in these really specific
tucked-away corners of the world. And only the most patient and nurturing of growers can do it, really. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot Noir´s potential can then
coax it into its full expression. And then, I mean, oh, its flavors. They´re just the most
haunting and
brilliant and
thrilling and
subtle and
ancient on the planet. No, I mean you know, cabernets can be
powerful and
exalting too,
but they seem
prosaic to me, by comparison. What about you?
重点讲解 Pinot Noir是一种黑葡萄酒,下面提到的
Cabernet则是一种味道普通的红葡萄酒。Miles是说,与Cabernet的生长不同,Pinot Noir需要不断的爱护与关注,它精致却娇嫩,就像空谷幽兰;只有肯花时间去了解它的人才有可能领悟、发掘它的潜质。
be into相当于be interested in,be fond of,意思是喜欢,对某事感兴趣。thing是指特别着迷于某事。
一些描述这种葡萄特性的形容词:薄皮的(
thin-skinned)、敏感的(
temperamental)、生于隐蔽角落的(in
tucked-away corner)。其中,tuck本意是折起来、叠起来,tucked-away就用来形容不易被发现的、隐蔽的地方。
之后Miles又用了一组形容词描述这种葡萄酒的味道:绵长(
haunting)、夺目(
brilliant)、震撼(
thrilling)、精致(
subtle)、古老(
ancient)。其中,haunt本意是神出鬼没、徘徊不去,变为形容词的haunting常常用来形容在记忆中挥之不去、难以忘怀的事物。
最后,在与红葡萄酒的比较中又用了三个词,说Cabernet虽然劲很大(
powerful)、喝起来飘飘欲仙(
exalting),但和Pinot Noir比,就显得有些平庸(
prosaic)了。prosaic总是与poetic相对出现,前者的意思是散文化的、平淡的;后者的意思是诗意的、有味道的。
再特别讲讲其中的一个表达。Miles说只有园丁最大的耐心与培育才能让Pinot Noir生长,才能
coax it into its full expression。coax本意是哄、耐心地使,这里是说,就像使尽心思哄女孩子开心、使她展现出各种各样的风情,只有那些用心去发现、去感受的人,才能体味到Pinot Noir的丰厚内涵。