名師丁雪明：2010年考研基礎(chǔ)詞匯備考札記

　　There is a limit to the amount of creative talent available in the world. Every day, television consumes vast quantities of creative work. That is why most of the programs are so bad; it is impossible to keep pace with the demand and maintain high standards as well. When millions watch the same programs, the whole world becomes a village, and society is reduced to the conditions which obtain in pre-literate communities. We become utterly dependent on the two most primitive media of communication: pictures and the spoken word。

　　Television encourages passive enjoyment. We become content with second-hand experiences. It is so easy to sit in our armchairs watching others working. Little by little, television cuts us off from the real world. We get so lazy, we choose to spend a fine day in semi-darkness, glued to our sets, rather than go out into the world itself. Television may be a splendid medium of communication, but it prevents us from communicating with each other. We only become aware how totally irrelevant television is to real living when we spend a holiday by the sea or in the mountains, far away from civilization. In quiet, natural surroundings, we quickly discover how little we miss the hypnotic tyranny of King Telly。

　　中文

　　電視正在造成無法補(bǔ)救的損害

　　我們經(jīng)常聽到這樣的感慨：“的確如此。不過，電視出現(xiàn)以前我們又在做什么呢？”我們與電視為伴的時(shí)間并不長，可是，我們已經(jīng)逐漸忘記了沒有電視的世界是個(gè)什么模樣了。在我們把這個(gè)獨(dú)眼怪物請進(jìn)家門之前，我們從來都不覺得打發(fā)業(yè)余時(shí)間是什么難事。難事，那時(shí)，我們享受著種種優(yōu)雅的樂趣。比如，我們有自己的業(yè)余愛好；我們在家里款待客人或者在朋友家里接受款待；我們?nèi)�劇院、電影院、餐館和體育館競賽現(xiàn)場娛樂消遣。我們也時(shí)常讀讀書，聽聽音樂和廣播。但是，所有這一切都成為明日黃花了。如今我們所有的余暇都被電視這個(gè)“凸匣子”主宰著。我們心急燎火地趕回家，三口兩口扒完飯，就為了趕上這個(gè)或那個(gè)節(jié)目。過去我們常常圍坐在餐桌前，一邊悠閑地用餐，一邊交換著日間的所見所聞。我們現(xiàn)在連這個(gè)也放棄了。一個(gè)三明治、一杯啤酒，也就夠了——管它是什么呢，只要不影響電視就行。而且，這個(gè)怪物還要求(并且也得到了)絕對的安靜和注意力。要是某個(gè)家庭成員膽敢在播放電視節(jié)目的時(shí)候開口說話，大家一定會(huì)立即叫他閉嘴。

　　一代又一代人在對電視的迷戀中長大了，長成了電視迷。他們飯不吃，家庭作業(yè)不做，覺也不睡。電視成了萬能的撫慰者�，F(xiàn)在，為了讓孩子們保持安靜，母親們的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)做法就是：把他們關(guān)在起居室里，然后打開電視。孩子們也許會(huì)看無聊的商業(yè)廣告或是暴力和性虐待等場面，但是這些都無關(guān)緊要——只要他們規(guī)規(guī)矩矩呆著就行。

　　人類的創(chuàng)造才能是有限的，而電視每天都需要投入大量的創(chuàng)造性工作。這就是為什么多數(shù)電視節(jié)目如此糟糕的原因：電視節(jié)目不可能既保持高標(biāo)準(zhǔn)又滿足觀眾的需求。當(dāng)千千萬萬人觀看同一個(gè)節(jié)目時(shí)，整個(gè)世界變成了一個(gè)村落，而人類社會(huì)也就退回到自己的蒙昧狀態(tài)了。結(jié)果，我們的交流變得完全依賴于兩種最原始的交流媒介——圖畫與話語。

　　電視還鼓勵(lì)消極娛樂。我們越來越滿足于間接經(jīng)驗(yàn)。坐在帶扶手的椅子里看著別人干活，這真是太愜意了！慢慢地，電視把我們和真實(shí)的世界隔絕開來。我們變得如此懶惰，寧愿在陽光明媚的日子里呆在灰暗的房間里，守著我們的電視機(jī)，也不愿走出去、走進(jìn)真實(shí)的世界�；蛟S電視的確是一種了不起的傳播媒介，但是它阻止了我們相互之間的交流。只有當(dāng)我們?nèi)ミh(yuǎn)離人類文明的海邊或者山中度過一個(gè)假期的時(shí)候，我們才意識到電視和真實(shí)生活是多么風(fēng)馬牛不相及。在靜謐的自然環(huán)境里，我們很快就會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)，我們并不懷念“電視王”專橫的催眠曲。

　　2.       ‘New fashions in clothing are created solely for the commercial exploitation of women’

　　Whenever you see an old film, even one made as little as ten years ago, you cannot help being struck by the appearance of the women taking part. Their hair-styles and make-up look dated; their skirts look either too long or too short; their general appearance is, in fact, slightly ludicrous. The men taking part in the film, on the other hand, are clearly recognizable. There is nothing about their appearance to suggest that they belong to an entirely different age。

　　This illusion is created by changing fashions. Over the years, the great majority of men have successfully resisted all attempts to make them change their style of dress. The same cannot by said for women. Each year a few so-called ‘top designers’ in Paris or London lay down the law and women the whole world over rush to obey. The decrees of the designers are unpredictable and dictatorial. This year, they decide in their arbitrary fashion, skirts will be short and waists will be high; zips are in and buttons are out. Next year the law is reversed and far from taking exception, no one is even mildly surprised。

　　If women are mercilessly exploited year after year, they have only themselves to blame. Because they shudder at the thought of being seen in public in clothes that are out of fashion, they are annually blackmailed by the designers and the big stores. Clothes which have been worn only a few times have to be discarded because of the dictates of fashion. When you come to think of it, only a woman is capable of standing in front of a wardrobe packed full of clothes and announcing sadly that she has nothing to wear。

　　Changing fashions are nothing more than the deliberate creation of waste. Many women squander vast sums of money each year to replace clothes that have hardy been worn. Women who cannot afford to discard clothing in this way, waste hours of their time altering the dresses they have. Hem-lines are taken up or let down; waist-lines are taken in or let out; neck-lines are lowered or raised, and so on。

　　No one can claim that the fashion industry contributes anything really important to society. Fashion designers are rarely concerned with vital things like warmth, comfort and durability. They are only interested in out ward appearance and they take advantage of the fact that women will put up with any amount of discomfort, providing they look right. There are hardly be a man who hasn’t at some time in his life smiled at the sight of a woman shivering in a flimsy dress on a wintry day, or delicately picking her way through deep snow in dainty shoes。

　　When comparing men and women in the matter of fashion, the conclusions to by drawn are obvious. Do the constantly changing fashions of women’s clothes, one wonders, reflect basic qualities of fickleness and instability? Men are too sensible to let themselves be bullied by fashion designers. Do their unchanging styles of dress reflect basic qualities of stability and reliability? That is for you to decide。