美語情景對話 第376期:Canucks and Yanks 加拿大人和美國人

Todd: OK, Mike, I was wondering, you're from Canada, and you have lived in America, and we work together, and in our company everybody is American but you, so how would you say Canadians are different than Americans?

託德：邁克，我在想，你來自加拿大，而且你在美國生活過，現在我們一起工作，在我們公司除了你都是美國人，你覺得加拿大人和美國人有什麼不同呢？

Mike: Well, first of all, I'll just, to be honest, just to start, I'll say that Canadians and Americans I think share a lot more similar qualities than they do differences, I mean, I think Canadians have a lot more in common with Americans than they do with even with English people who are like from Britain who were the original sort of Canadians, I suppose, a few hundred years ago, so in that way I think that like again, just to preempt it by saying we're very similar, however, there's definitely some differences I think between Americans and Canadians. First of all, I think Canadians in general are maybe a little bit more humble. Not to put this in a negative way, but they just, they're not as willing to engage in an argument, or to argue over a point, I think, as you know, as most, at least, most of my American friends, who’ll want to debate and get to the bottom of a topic. Canadians would rather just sort of back off and say, you know, "That's, you're right. That's fine. Great" but again, and I can't speak for all Canadians because it depends on your personality too, but just to generalize, that's one difference. Also, I would say that Americans in general tend to be a lot more businesslike and maybe even a little more conservative in, just in the way they, in the way that they, I guess, view, relations, or view discussions with people, but Canadians tend to be a little bit more liberal, a little bit more free and easy-going, again, I'll preempt that by saying all of the Americans that I work with I think are quite liberal and not conservative thinking at all, but if you want to generalize, yeah, culturally, then I think those are probably a couple of differences between the two cultures, or people in the cultures.

邁克：嗯，首先，說實話，相比於不同點，我覺得加拿大人和美國人有很多相似的特質，我的意思是我認爲加拿大人和美國人有很多共同點，我想大概是幾百年前，英國人原來是加拿大人的一部分，所以首先我們非常相似，不過美國人和加拿大人之間當然有一些不同點。首先，總的來說，加拿大人可能要更謙卑一些。不要用消極的方式來理解，加拿大人不太願意牽涉進爭論中，或者是不願意就某一觀點進行爭論。我想，正如你知道的那樣，至少我的大部分美國朋友想參與到爭論中，他們想弄清論題的真相。加拿大更願意避讓，他們會說“嗯，你是對的。那很好。很棒。”不過，我不能代表所有加拿大人，因爲這也要取決於你的個性，不過總的來說，這是一個不同點。而且，我認爲美男人一般來說效率更高，而且他們和別人的關係以及在和別人進行討論方面要更保守，而加拿大人則更開放，更自由，更隨和，而和我一起工作的美國人，我認爲他們的想法很開放，一點也不保守，不過如果從總體來說，從文化上來說，我想兩種文化或者說受這些文化影響的人們有一些不同點。

Todd: Yeah, anything else, any other differences?

託德：沒錯，那有嗎，還有其他不同點嗎？

Mike: Well, I think, one thing that Americans tend to point to with Canadians, and it is true to some extent, other than our love of hockey, is sense of humor. I think Canadians in general tend to have a, I wouldn't say unique, but they just tend to look at I guess, look at things with a little bit more of, a bit of humor, too it, and I think the main reason for that is cause it's so bloody cold in Canada.

邁克：我想，美國人和加拿大人其中一個需要指出的不同點是，除了我們對冰球的喜愛，從某種程度上來說應該是不同的幽默感。我認爲總體來說，我不認爲他們的幽默感很獨特，不過加拿大人以更幽默的方式來看待事物，我想主要原因是加拿大太冷了。

Todd: Fair enough. Thanks Mike.

託德：有道理。謝謝你，邁克。

重點講解：
1. first of all
第一；首先；
eg. First of all, answer these questions.
首先，回答這些問題。
eg. First of all, could I begin with an apology for a mistake I made last week?
首先，請允許我爲上週犯下的錯誤道歉。
2. to be honest
老實說；說實在的；
eg. To be honest, I've got a better offer.
老實說，我有一個更好的工作機會。
eg. To be honest with you, it does not seem to me that you are a management guy.
誠實地說，在我看來你不是個做管理的人。
3. in general
總的來說；總體上來看；大體上；
eg. In general, that's going to generate negative emotions. "
一般而言，這往往會觸發負面情緒。
eg. In general, employers do little to help the single working mother.
一般而言，僱主很少爲工作的單親媽媽提供幫助。
4. in common
共有的；相同的；
eg. They had little in common culturally with us.
他們在文化方面跟我們很少有共同之處。
eg. No matter what type of the reason it was, there was one thing in common: carelessness.
不管是哪種類型的原因，它們都有一個共同點：粗心。
5. be willing to do sth.
樂意的；願意的；
eg. In the current economic environment there are few companies willing to invest in such a costly project.
在目前的經濟環境下，很少有公司願意投資成本這麼高的項目。
eg. To get one of these uncommon stamps, some collectors are willing to pay a great deal of money.
爲了能得到這些不同尋常的郵票，他們往往願意花大價錢去購買。
6. engage in
參與；從事；
eg. Those who are non-smokers are often convinced by smokers to engage in this activity.
那些不吸菸的孩子們也會受到吸菸者的影響，加入這項活動中。
eg. Faculty who engage in research seem to have more knowledge to pass on to their students.
從事研究工作的教師似乎有更多的學識可以傳授給學生。
7. get to the bottom of
找到…的真正起因；查尋到…的根源；
eg. I have to get to the bottom of this mess.
我必須查清造成這一混亂局面的真正原因。
eg. We need to get to the bottom of the problem between you and me.
我們要徹底搞清楚我們之間的問題。
8. depend on
取決（於）；有賴（於）；
eg. How much can you get depend on how much you pay.
你能得到多少取決於你付出了多少。
eg. At many companies, raises depend on a mix of your performance and how much you make compared with others doing the same job.
在很多公司裏，加薪是由你的綜合表現以及和別人做同樣的工作你的貢獻有多少決定的。
9. back off
（爲避免問題或衝突而）後退，避讓，退縮；
eg. EFF lawyer Jennifer Granick sent Texas Instruments a letter telling the firm to back off.
電子邊界基金會的律師詹妮弗·格拉尼克給德州儀器發出一封信，要求該公司不介入此事。
eg. They backed off in horror.
他們心懷恐懼地退縮了。
10. speak for
代表…講話；充當…的代言人；
eg. What others think I do not know; I can only speak for myself .
別人怎麼想我不知道，我只能代表我自己講話。
eg. Obviously I can't speak for other people, but certainly no one I know would entertain the idea.
我顯然不能代表其他人的意見，可是我認識的人當中肯定沒有人會有這樣的想法。
11. other than
（用於否定陳述後）除了…以外；
eg. But other than that he's a great guy.
但是除此之外他還是個不錯的人。
eg. We have no alternative other than to follow the sense of our own experience.
除了根據我們的經驗以外，沒有其他辦法。
12. to some extent
在某種程度上；
eg. To some extent this was the truth.
在某種程度上，這是事實。
eg. These problems are to some extent being acknowledged and addressed.
這些問題在一定程度上正得到承認和解決。