大家對漫威(Marvel)漫畫應(yīng)該并不陌生,其創(chuàng)作的復(fù)仇者聯(lián)盟(The Avengers)、銀河護衛(wèi)隊(Guardians of the Galaxy)等英雄團隊以及鋼鐵俠(Iron Man)、美國隊長(Captain America)和雷神(Thor)等英雄形象受到了眾多粉絲的喜愛。取材于漫威漫畫的漫威電影將許多英雄和他們的故事搬上了大熒幕,給無數(shù)觀眾留下了深刻的印象。這一次,由漫威出品的電影《奇異博士》(Doctor Strange)又成功地塑造了一位英雄的形象。不過,不同于漫威以往的科幻片,該片試圖將東西方元素相結(jié)合,讓科技與魔法并存。
Stephen Strange是一位醫(yī)術(shù)精湛的醫(yī)學(xué)博士,在神經(jīng)外科手術(shù)方面頗有造詣。然而,因為一場意外的車禍,Strange身受重傷,雖然經(jīng)過一番搶救保住了性命,但雙手卻嚴重致殘,無法再次拿起手術(shù)刀。為了挽救自己的事業(yè),Strange做出了許多努力,進行了無數(shù)次康復(fù)訓(xùn)練,卻依舊效果甚微。
就在他日漸消沉時,Strange偶然聽說曾被自己診斷為無法康復(fù)的癱瘓病人Pangborn如今竟然恢復(fù)得很好。Strange迫不及待地找到了對方,得知他的病是由Kamar-Taj的一位圣人治好的。于是,Strange變賣了自己的所有家產(chǎn),抱著最后一絲希望只身來到了尼泊爾的加德滿都,四處尋找這個名為Kamar-Taj的地方。然而,當?shù)厝烁揪筒恢繩amar-Taj是什么。太陽快要落山時,Strange依舊一無所獲,還被人打劫了。危急時刻,暗中跟蹤他的Kamar-Taj法師Mordo出手相救,打跑了劫匪,還將他帶到了Kamar-Taj。Strange如愿以償見到了精通神秘魔法(Mystic Arts)的至尊法師(Sorcerer Supreme) Ancient One并受到了熱情的接待,他開門見山地詢問對方是如何醫(yī)治好Pangborn的,法師表示自己是通過調(diào)整精神來治愈身體疾病的,這令Strange感到匪夷所思。面對有些自負的Strange,Ancient One向他施展了法術(shù),讓他意識到自己在龐大的宇宙中有多么渺小。Strange被Ancient One強大的法力深深折服,決定留下來潛心修煉法術(shù)。
在圖書館中,Strange發(fā)現(xiàn)了一本研究時間的書《卡里奧斯特羅之書》(Book of Cagliostro),并注意到這本書缺了兩頁。管理員Wong告訴他,它們是被曾在這里修行過的另一位法師Kaecilius偷走的。在黑暗維度(Dark Dimension)中,時間是不存在的,萬事萬物都可以獲得永生。為奪得召喚黑暗維度統(tǒng)治者Dormammu的儀式咒語,Kaecilius便和追隨自己的狂熱信徒們殺害了圖書館前管理員,撕掉并帶走了記載著儀式咒語的書頁。盡管Ancient One竭力追捕他們,卻還是以失敗告終。
在Ancient One、Mordo以及Wong的指導(dǎo)和幫助下,Strange對魔法的興趣日漸濃厚,法術(shù)也日益精湛。一日,Strange在好奇心的驅(qū)使下偷偷啟動能操縱時間的阿戈摩托之眼(The Eye of Agamotto),找回了當年被Kaecilius偷走的書頁。Mordo和Wong發(fā)現(xiàn)之后立即呵止了Strange,并向他警告了濫用阿戈摩托之眼的嚴重后果。兩位師兄還告訴Strange,神秘魔法的創(chuàng)始人Agamotto曾經(jīng)在紐約、倫敦和香港這三個城市建立了三座圣殿,它們會在地球周圍形成一層屏障,以保護地球不受異次元生物的入侵。正在這時,倫敦圣殿遭到了Kaecilius的襲擊并淪陷,守護法師也慘遭殺害。在魔浮斗篷(The Cloak of Levitation)的幫助下,Strange在紐約圣殿成功擊退了敵人。事后,他受到了Ancient One的嘉獎并被委以保護地球的重任,可他卻打算退出。就在這時,Kaecilius帶著自己的信徒卷土重來。為保護圣殿和徒弟,Ancient One受了重傷。在垂死之際,她的靈體告訴Strange,自己在他身上看到了無限的潛力。在Ancient One的說服和鼓勵下,Strange決心肩負起守護世界的重任。在隨后的香港圣殿之戰(zhàn),Strange憑借著強大的法力、過人的智慧與膽識戰(zhàn)勝了Kaecilius,主線故事也在他歸還阿戈摩托之眼后接近尾聲。
海明威曾說過:“人可以被毀滅,但不可以被打敗。(A man can be destroyed but not defeated.)”從天才醫(yī)生變成一無所有的凡人,再成長為可以肩負重任的至尊法師,Strange的經(jīng)歷很好地詮釋了這句話。人類就是在不斷的挑戰(zhàn)自我和超越自我中創(chuàng)造著一個又一個的奇跡。沒有超越,原始人便無法直立行走;沒有超越,人類便還過著刀耕火種的生活;沒有超越,飛機便不會在藍天中翱翔;沒有超越,地球便不會成為村落。
世間萬物都像影片中萬花筒般的異度空間那樣難以預(yù)料,當你武斷地否定成功的可能,并把失敗的原因歸結(jié)于種種外在因素時,你可曾想過這是不是因為你沒有努力地去超越自己?倘若我們鼓起勇氣去突破,奇跡終究會出現(xiàn),就像影片開頭Strange駁回了其他醫(yī)生對一位患者的死亡宣判并成功將其搶救回來那樣。也許曾經(jīng)的你光鮮亮麗,也許曾經(jīng)的你落魄不堪,但當你將自己清零,靜下心來感受人生的音符,你就會對自己有一個全新的認識并在此基礎(chǔ)上不斷地超越極限、超越自我。
醫(yī)術(shù)高明的神經(jīng)外科醫(yī)生Strange因為一場車禍導(dǎo)致雙手神經(jīng)嚴重受損,在接受了手術(shù)及多次康復(fù)訓(xùn)練之后仍然沒有任何好轉(zhuǎn),東京的醫(yī)學(xué)專家看過他的檔案之后也表示無能為力。一想到自己可能無法再拿起手術(shù)刀,無法繼續(xù)在醫(yī)學(xué)界叱咤風云,曾經(jīng)有些自以為是的他受到了極大的打擊,情緒瀕臨崩潰的邊緣。這時,同事兼好友Christine來到他的身邊安慰他。
Christine: Hey ... He (指東京的醫(yī)學(xué)專家) won't do it.
Strange: [搖了搖頭] He's a hack (醫(yī)術(shù)不高的人). There's a new procedure1 in Tokyo. They culture2 donors' stem cells (干細胞), and then harvest them and 3D-print a scaffold (支架). If I could get a loan together ... just ...
Christine: Stephen, Stephen ...
Strange: A small loan, 200,000.
Christine: You've always spent money as fast as you could make it. But now you're spending money you don't even have. Maybe it's time to consider stopping.
Strange: No, no. It is exactly the time not to stop. Because, you see, I'm not getting any better!
Christine: But this isn't medicine anymore. This is mania (躁狂癥). Some things just can't be fixed.
Strange: Life without my work ...
Christine: Is still life. This isn't the end. There are other things that can give your life meaning.
Tips for Learning
1
對于procedure這個單詞,大家可能更為熟悉它作為“程序,手續(xù),步驟”的含義,比如follow normal/standard/accepted procedure (遵循正常的/標準的/慣用的步驟)、court/legal/parliamentary procedure (法庭/司法/議會程序)等。在這里,procedure當然指的不是這層含義了,結(jié)合語境我們應(yīng)該可以猜到,它指的其實是“a medical treatment or operation”,即“治療;手術(shù)”,比如我們可以說perform a routine surgical procedure (做一個常規(guī)的外科手術(shù))。
2
Culture同學(xué)們應(yīng)該都認識吧?它的意思是“文化,文明”,這種文化既可以是某個國家或群體的風俗、信仰、生活方式及社會組織,也可以是藝術(shù)、音樂、文學(xué)等的統(tǒng)稱,其內(nèi)涵非常豐富。比如European/African/Chinese culture (歐洲/非洲/中國文化)、corporate/modern/popular/consumer culture (企業(yè)/現(xiàn)代/大眾/消費文化);又如:Venice is a beautiful city full of culture and history. (威尼斯是一座具有深厚文化和歷史底蘊的美麗城市。)除了這層含義之外,culture作名詞時還可以指“種植;栽培;養(yǎng)殖;培育”,其對象既可以是植物、動物,也可以是細胞、細菌,比如the culture of silkworms (桑蠶養(yǎng)殖)、an expert on bee culture (養(yǎng)蜂專家),又如:Yogurt is made from active cultures. (酸奶是由活性培養(yǎng)菌制成的。)在上面的臺詞中,culture指的就是這層含義,只不過是用作了動詞。
沒有事業(yè)的人生依舊有意義
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娛樂頻道
Strange歷經(jīng)千辛萬苦終于見到了Ancient One,迫不及待地詢問她如何才能治好自己的雙手。Ancient One卻只說“I know how to reorient the spirit to better heal the body (我知道如何調(diào)整精神,從而更好地治愈身體)”,這令Strange感到難以置信。
Ancient One: You're a man looking at the world through a keyhole, and you spent your whole life trying to widen that keyhole. To see more, to know more. And now, on hearing that it can be widened in ways you can't imagine, you reject the possibility?
Strange: No, I reject it because I do not believe in fairy tales about chakras1, or energy, or the power of belief. There is no such thing as spirit! We are made of matter, and nothing more. We're just another tiny, momentary speck2 within an indifferent3 universe.
Ancient One: You think too little of yourself.
Strange: Oh, you think you see through me, do you? Well, you don't. But I see through you!
Tips for Learning
1
Chakra指的是“輪,輪穴”,是瑜伽和傳統(tǒng)印度醫(yī)學(xué)中所劃分的七個人體能量中心之一,相當于中醫(yī)經(jīng)絡(luò)學(xué)中的穴位。七輪的理論后來流傳至西藏,被藏傳佛教所吸收,進而流傳至西方國家,并廣泛應(yīng)用于各類身心靈(Body-Mind-Spirit)的理論之中。按照它們在人體所處的部位,七輪由下而上分別稱為根輪、腹輪、臍輪、心輪、喉輪、額輪和頂輪。
2
Speck這個單詞同學(xué)們可能不大熟悉,它可以指“斑點;污點;缺點;瑕疵”,比如a reputation without a speck (清白無瑕的名譽);又如:There was a speck or two of blood on his shirt. (他的襯衣上有一兩滴血跡。)此外,它還可以指“微粒;一點點;微小的東西”,在上面的臺詞中指的即是這層含義,如speck of dust (塵埃);再比如:He has not a speck of humor. (他沒有一點兒幽默感。)
3
大家可能知道indifferent一詞有“不感興趣的;漠不關(guān)心的;不在乎的;冷漠的”之意,比如:I am absolutely indifferent to this talk. (我對這番講話完全不感興趣。)在上面的臺詞中,indifferent所表示的這層含義不太常見,它指的是“不重要的,無關(guān)緊要的”,比如:We chatted upon indifferent subjects. (我們扯了些無關(guān)緊要的話題。)
用精神治愈身體
Strange憑借著魔浮斗篷擊退了Kaecilius和他的信徒們,成功守護了紐約圣殿。看到Strange有這么出色的表現(xiàn),Ancient One決定讓他肩負起守護地球的重任,可他卻打算退出,因為他覺得作為一位救死扶傷的醫(yī)生,他的使命是救人,而不是反過來去結(jié)束他人的性命。
Ancient One: The London Sanctum (圣殿) has fallen. Only New York and Hong Kong remain now to shield us from the Dark Dimension1. You defended the New York Sanctum from attack. With its Master gone, it needs another, Master Strange.
Strange: No. It is Dr. Strange. Not Master Strange, not Mr. Strange. Doctor Strange! When I became a doctor, I swore an oath to do no harm. And I have just killed a man! I'm not doing that again. I became a doctor to save lives, not take them.
Ancient One: You became a doctor to save one life above all others. Your own.
Strange: Still seeing through me, are you?
Ancient One: I see what I've always seen. Your overinflated (過度膨脹的) ego. You want to go back to the delusion that you can control anything, even death, which no one can control. Not even the great doctor Stephen Strange.
Strange: Not even Dormammu? He offers immortality (永生;不朽).
Ancient One: It's our fear of death that gives Dormammu life. He feeds off2 it.
Strange: Like you feed on2 him? You talk to me about controlling death. Well, I know how you do it. I've seen the missing rituals from the Book of Cagliostro.
Ancient One: Measure3 your next words very carefully, doctor.
Tips for Learning
1
指黑暗維度,是漫威多元宇宙(Multiverse)中的一個維度,通過不斷侵略、吞噬其他維度來使自身壯大。在這里,時間是不存在的,萬事萬物都可以獲得永生。其統(tǒng)治者是Dormammu,他是Doctor Strange最強勁的宿敵。在電影中,Dormammu與Kaecilius取得了聯(lián)系,并說服他去摧毀保護地球的三座圣殿,以期讓黑暗維度進入地球,從而將地球吞噬。
2
詞組feed off和feed on同義,都指的是“以……為食;因……而壯大,從……中得到滋養(yǎng)”,比如:Sheep feeds mostly off/on grass. (羊主要以草為食。)又如:The public feeds off/on these periodicals. (公眾以這些雜志為精神食糧。)
3
同學(xué)們應(yīng)該都比較熟悉measure作為“測量;度量”“估量,判定(重要性、價值或影響等)”的含義,比如measure a piece of land/the distance/the speed of a car (測量一塊土地/測量距離/測定車速)、measure the importance of an issue (權(quán)衡問題的重要性)。而在上面的臺詞中,measure指的是“斟酌,權(quán)衡”,比如measure one's words (斟酌詞句)。
放下恐懼方能改變命運
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為了守護圣殿、保護徒弟,Ancient One身負重傷、奄奄一息。在垂死之際,她的靈體飄到了一座大廈的窗前,時間就此定格,唯有一片片雪花在飄落。Strange緊隨其后,想要挽留Ancient One。在彌留之際,法師跟他說了這樣一番話。
Ancient One: You wonder what I see in your future?
Strange: No. [沉默了片刻] Yes.
Ancient One: I never saw your future. Only its possibilities. You have such a capacity for goodness. You always excelled1, but not because you crave success, but because of your fear of failure.
Strange: It's what made me a great doctor.
Ancient One: It's precisely what kept you from greatness. Arrogance and fear still keep you from learning the simplest and most significant lesson of all.
Strange: Which is?
Ancient One: It's not about you. When you first came to me, you asked me how I was able to heal Jonathan Pangborn. I didn't. He channels2 dimensional energy directly into his own body.
Strange: He uses magic to walk.
Ancient One: Constantly. He had a choice, to return to his own life or to serve something greater than himself.
Strange: So, I could have my hands back again? My old life?
Ancient One: You could. And the world would be all the lesser for it. I've hated drawing power from the Dark Dimension. But as you well know, sometimes one must break the rules in order to serve the greater good.
Tips for Learning
1
看到excel這個詞,大家有沒有覺得很熟悉?對了,Office辦公軟件中用于表格制作、數(shù)據(jù)處理和分析等功能的那款軟件就叫Excel。在上面的臺詞中,excel作動詞,它指的是“突出;勝過他人”,既可以作及物動詞,也可以接介詞in或at作不及物動詞,比如:He excelled all other poets of his day. (他勝過同時代的其他所有詩人。)又如excel in chemistry/in foreign languages/at chess (擅長化學(xué)/外語出類拔萃/棋藝精湛)。關(guān)于excel還有一個固定搭配,那就是excel yourself,英文釋義是“to do extremely well and even better than you usually do”,形容“做得非常出色,甚至勝過平時的表現(xiàn)”,比如:Rick's cooking was always good but this time he really excelled himself. (里克的烹飪技術(shù)一直不錯,但這次簡直是好上加好。)
2
Channel可以指“海峽;水道,航道”,比如著名的英吉利海峽用英文說就是“the English Channel”。作名詞時,channel還有一層常見的含義是“頻道”,比如a movie/sports channel (電影/體育頻道)、to change/switch channels (換臺)。進一步引申,該詞還可以指“渠道;途徑”,比如through diplomatic/legal channels (通過外交/法律途徑)、the channels of communication between teachers and parents (老師和家長之間溝通的渠道)。在上面的臺詞中,channel作動詞,它指的是“引導(dǎo);(通過某種渠道)輸送,傳送”,比如:He channeled the information to us. (他給我們傳遞了信息。)再比如:He channels his aggression into sport. (他把自己的好斗勁兒傾注于體育比賽之中。)
超越小我,成就大我
正如著名游戲《英雄聯(lián)盟》的廣告詞所說的那樣,“英雄,去超越”,不管你是誰,希望你都能走出自己角色的光環(huán),去努力重塑自我、超越自我。因為,突破就在此刻;因為,超越自己,你就是英雄。