Colin Stokes

∷木沐 選 段會香 注

每年的7月4日是美國獨立日，是一個紀(jì)念美國自大不列顛王國宣告獨立的日子。在7月4日這一天，美國會舉辦許多活動，其中最重要的一項就是敲響位于費城的自由鐘。在各地也會舉辦各種慶祝活動，如放煙火、花車游行、燒烤、野餐、舉辦音樂會、棒球賽以及家庭聚會等。而英國人在這一天會干些什么呢？

1. All British expats bring a jug of water from Boston Harbor on the flight home1. expat: 移居國外者，僑民；jug: 一大罐（壺）的容量；Boston Harbor: 波士頓港，位于美國波士頓。

Although it means an extra layover in Boston, this traditional practice has helped the British tea industry recover gradually since the disastrous Tea Party incident, in 1773.2. 雖然這意味著要在波士頓中轉(zhuǎn)一下，但這種傳統(tǒng)做法已經(jīng)幫助英國茶業(yè)從1773年災(zāi)難性的波士頓傾茶事件中慢慢地恢復(fù)了。layover: 中途（臨時）停留；Tea Party incident: 波士頓傾茶事件，是發(fā)生在1773年12月16日的政治示威。因北美殖民地人民不滿英國的統(tǒng)治，當(dāng)?shù)鼐用窕瘖y成印第安人潛入商船，把船上價值約1.5萬英鎊的342箱茶葉全部倒入大海，以此對抗英國國會，最終引發(fā)美國獨立戰(zhàn)爭。The water is filtered for the remains of the destroyed tea cargo and served at Buckingham Palace on the Fourth.3. filter: 過濾；remains: 殘余（物），剩余（物）；cargo: （輪船、飛機所裝載的）貨物；Buckingham Palace: 白金漢宮（英國王宮）。

2. Cricket4. cricket: 板球（運動）。 matches in the park

While many Americans gather with their families,perhaps enjoying a friendly game of “toss the pigskin” or a round of wif fle ball,5. toss: 扔，拋，擲；pigskin: 〈美俚〉橄欖球；wif fle ball: 威浮球，此球類運動規(guī)則與傳統(tǒng)棒球相似，球上有各種孔洞，可以借助空氣摩擦的力量，在飛行過程中做出各種曲線變化。British people meet with strangers in a large park and hit a hard ball at each other. This symbolizes a rejection of the family cheer that is practiced across America on the Fourth of July.6. symbolize: 象征；rejection: 拒絕，不接受。The red ball, white uniform and blue bruises serve as a mixed visual code of patriotism (red,white, and blue in the Union Jack) as well as an acknowledgement of failure (red,white, and blue in the American flag).7. 紅球、白衣和淤青既是愛國主義的外在表現(xiàn)（正如英國國旗中的紅、白、藍），也是對過去失敗的承認（正如美國國旗中的紅、白、藍）。bruise: 淤青；visual: 視覺的，可見的；code: 信號，標(biāo)記；patriotism: 愛國主義；the Union Jack: 英國國旗。

3. Reverse fireworks8. reverse: 相反的，顛倒的； firework: 焰火，煙花。

Crowds of people dress in red coats and gather under large scaffolds, which are extensively rigged with explosive fireworks.9. 成群的人們穿著紅色外套，聚集在巨大的絞刑架下面，這些絞刑架是臨時用大量易爆炸的煙花搭成的。scaffold:絞刑架；rig: 用臨時替代材料迅速搭起；explosive: 爆炸性的，易爆炸的。At an agreed-upon time across the country, the fuses are lit and the fireworks shoot downward, into the throng that has gathered underneath.10. fuse: 保險絲，導(dǎo)火線；lit: 點火，light的過去分詞；throng:人群；underneath: 在下面。This serves to remind the British people of the pain and suffering that came from the defeat endured by the King’s Army, and to prepare younger generations of English men for the eventuality of a second battle in which the Crown retakes what is rightfully British land.11. endure: 忍耐，容忍；eventuality: 可能發(fā)生的事情（尤指壞事情），不測事件；the Crown: 王室；retake: 收復(fù)，奪回（戰(zhàn)爭中的失地）；rightfully: 正當(dāng)?shù)亍?/p>

4. Dental-hygiene-product bon fire12. dental-hygiene: 口腔衛(wèi)生；bon fire: 篝火。

After the reverse fireworks, those who are not substantially injured build an enormous bon fire of toothbrushes, mouth wash, and dental floss, and children wear large fake teeth made of plastic.13. substantially: 非常地，巨大地；mouth wash: 漱口水；dental floss: 牙線；fake: 假的。This tradition serves to embrace the American stereotype that British people have bad teeth, and to ridicule the ideal of complete, blanched uniformity in the American mouth.14. 這個傳統(tǒng)既是接受了美國人認為英國人牙齒都不好的這一成見，也嘲笑了美國人牙齒整齊潔白的完美典范。serve to: 用來，有助于；embrace: （欣然）接受；stereotype: 成見，刻板印象；ridicule: 嘲笑，嘲弄；blanched: 使變白的；uniformity: 統(tǒng)一（性），一致（性）。

5. B.B.B.Q. (British BBQ)

After the communal portion of the celebration is finished,15. communal: 群體的，集體的；portion: 部分。British people return to their homes to eat. A charcoal grill,much like the one used in the American B.B.Q., is set up,and various English dishes, like bangers and mash, fish and chips, bubble and squeak, and spotted dick, are set on the grate.16. charcoal: 木炭；grill: 烤架；set up: 建立，準(zhǔn)備；bangers and mash: 香腸薯泥；bubble and squeak: 卷心菜煎土豆；spotted dick: 葡萄干布??；grate: 爐柵，爐格。No British dish that has the word “and” in its name or that sounds like an egregious17. egregious: 極壞的。disease is left off the grill.Eventually, all the food drips into the charcoal bed, and it is then scooped onto serving platters and eaten.18. drip: 滴下；bed: 層；scoop: （用勺子等）舀，盛；platter:大淺盤。After this,there is a sustained19. sustained: 持久的，持續(xù)的。period in which people regret having participated in the dental-hygiene-product bon fire.ELL