美語情景對話 第1342期:Guns, Cars and Kisses 槍支,汽車和親吻(1)

Todd: So I'm here with Shantel and we're talking about stereotypes or about images people have about Americans. We're both teachers in Japan and it's interesting what people think about Americans. So I want to bring up a touchy topic, guns.

託德：今天我和香黛兒要談談人們對美國的刻板印象或印象。我們都在日本做老師，人們對美國的看法非常有意思。我想提一個敏感話題——槍支。

Shantel: Guns in America.

香黛兒：美國的槍支問題。

Todd: Yeah, so I have to admit that my students also are shocked when I tell them that pretty much everybody that I know has shot a gun.

託德：對，我不得不承認，當我告訴學生們基本上我認識的每個人都開過槍時，他們非常震驚。

Shantel: Yes.

香黛兒：對。

Todd: (laughs) And every family I know has a gun and it's really shocking when people hear that, but it's kind of true, I think.

託德：（笑）我認識的每個家庭都有槍，人們聽到這件事時非常震驚，不過我認爲那基本上是事實。

Shantel: Yeah, I think especially since you and I both are from rural towns.

香黛兒：對，尤其是你和我都來自鄉村小鎮。

Todd: Rural areas, yeah.

託德：鄉村地區，沒錯。

Shantel: But I grew up in a household that had several guns because my father is a hunter, so I think this is a little bit rare, the hunting at least, but I grew up and learned how to hunt along with my brother, and so for me it was, it was really normal to shoot a gun, to know how to be safe with a gun, to know when you can use it, how to clean it, things like this, and I think a lot of people in my town knew, a lot of, a lot of my friends and family members knew how to do it but in Japan, it's ... I if I tell someone that I have a gun in my home in America, the, the look on their face is-

香黛兒：我在一個有很多槍支的家裏長大，因爲我父親是獵人，我認爲這可能有點罕見，至少打獵不太常見，而我和哥哥在成長過程中學會了如何打獵，所以對我來說開槍、瞭解如何安全用槍、知道何時可以用槍、如何清潔槍支這類事情很平常，我認爲我家鄉的許多人、我的許多朋友和他們的家人都知道如何用槍，不過在日本……如果我告訴別人我在美國的家裏有槍，他們臉上的表情是……

Todd: Yeah.

託德：對。

Shantel: ... like horror, scared-

香黛兒：充滿震驚，感到害怕。

Todd: Yeah.

託德：對。

Shantel: ... very confused, why would anyone have a gun? And, I think I can understand because in Japan that is just not the case, guns are not as common or as readily available to the public in general.

香黛兒：他們會很困惑，爲什麼有人會持有槍支？我認爲我可以理解，因爲日本並非如此，槍支並不常見，而且普通民衆也不容易獲得槍支。

Todd: Yeah, and I have to admit like I grew up on a farm and we had, you know, rifles and shotguns and we had them for either hunting or we actually had them for, to protect livestock like animals on the farm, but we never really used them. Well, actually I shouldn't say that, we could use them for target practice and we would, if we were bored, sometimes we would go out in the field and have, you know, try to hit tin cans or something. That was kind of how we would pass the time. But I have to admit, I was always freaked out when I saw handguns. I didn't like handguns, I never did.

託德：對，我必須承認我喜歡在農場上長大，我們有步槍和獵槍，我們用這些槍來打獵，或是保護農場的家畜，不過我從來沒有真正的使用過這些槍支。實際上我不應該說這個，我們可以用槍支來練習射擊，如果我們感到無聊，有時我們會去田地，試圖擊中錫罐之類的東西。那是我們消磨時間的方法。不過我得承認，我看到手槍時總是會感到害怕。我不喜歡手槍，從來沒喜歡過手槍。

Shantel: Oh, aha.

香黛兒：哦，啊哈。

Todd: I don't know why, it just was like, you know, you'd see somebody would have one on a shelf or something like that and I thought, "Oh, wow, that's kind of weird." But the rifles and shotguns never bothered me at all.

託德：我也不知道原因，看到有人架子上放着一把手槍，我會想“哇哦，那有點兒奇怪”。不過步槍和獵槍完全不會令我感到困擾。

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重點講解：
1. bring up 提出；
例句：If you try to bring up the matter again, you will be very foolish.
如果你想再提出這件事，那你就太傻了。
2. grow up 長大成人；成熟；
例句：You know, I didn't grow up in a real museum culture in Burbank.
在伯班克長大的日子裏，我沒有接觸過真正的博物館文化。
3. in general 總的來說；總體上來看；大體上；
例句：In general, I agree to what you said.
總的說來，我同意你的講話。
4. freak out (使)吃驚；(使)不安；(使)惱怒；(使)困惑；
例句：As a lifelong worrier, I felt proud of that moment. It was a choice not to freak out about what might be coming.
作爲一個終身焦慮者，我對那刻的自己感到驕傲，我選擇不再緊張害怕未來將會發生什麼。