烈日下英国人爱干啥?干疯狗干的事儿呗!英国人告诉你关于 mad dogs and Englishmen 那些事儿
“夏之歌”系列是我们的最后一辑“摇篮英语”。一直陪伴我们的读者也许都记得我们的“摇篮英语”栏目。“摇篮英语”是英国文化园公众号之独创:我们根据脑神经科学和语言学理论为婴幼儿和胎儿设计了这一系列童声地道英音语言材料。新读者可以阅读这篇介绍文章:“英国文化园”送给小朋友的儿童节礼物 —— 独一无二的“摇篮英语”
这些语言材料是可燊在刚满6岁时录制的,内容均为经过精心挑选的韵律英语诗歌。光阴似箭,日月如梭,一眨眼就一年了。这一年中,我们分期刊登了“睡宝宝系列”“泰迪熊系列”“狗儿系列”“猫咪系列”和“四季系列”中的秋、冬、春三个季节,共42首小诗。夏季来临,我们将分两期刊登“夏之歌”中的六首小诗。
孩子转眼就长大了。公众号中的录音和录像却为我们留下了童韵与童趣,对于我们的家人弥足珍贵。我们也非常感激读者们这一年多来对我们的支持和鼓励。我们将会把所有刊登过的“摇篮英语”诗歌整理结集,对此感兴趣的读者可以将其存放于手机或USB移动硬盘中随时播放。“摇篮英语”可陪伴孩子入睡,也可用于旅途中减压解闷。
可燊不再制作“摇篮英语”并不代表她不再为大家朗诵。随着阅读水平的提高,娃儿将会为大家送上新的伴睡朗诵,敬请留意我们的新栏目。
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3.
The summer sun in the sky
Shining, shining up so high
Makes it warm for outside fun
To play at the park and run
To swim and hike and fish
And to go on a picnic if you wish
这首小诗给我们带来了夏日的阳光,那我们就来讲讲英国人的夏日与阳光文化吧。
在英国的第一个夏季,我漫步于阳光明媚的诺丁汉大学校园中,眼前的景象几乎让我的眼珠子都快掉出来了!
(图片来自网络)校园那些偌大的草坪上,横七竖八地躺满了在享受日光浴的学生们!男生们光着膀子,女孩儿们身上也没挂几根布条儿,跟咱们晒咸鱼白菜差不离。我心里不禁叹道:咱广州的女孩对夏天的烈日是能避则避,不能避也打个阳伞才出门;而这些英国女孩儿几乎是赤条条往烈日下冲,不晒出一身酱紫和满脸雀斑决不罢休的势头。这里是学校草坪,还不是沙滩呢!我算是大开眼界了。
(图片来自网络)后来我在英国呆久了,跟英国人聊多了才逐渐理解英国人对阳光的狂热。阳光是英国的稀有品。英国人一年到头少见阳光,因此对阳光趋之若骛。英国医疗机构称15个英国居民中就有1人患有“冬季抑郁症”,而自称在冬季感到情绪不良的英国人更达到57%。阳光是治疗“冬季抑郁症”的最佳方法。这就是为何一出太阳,英国人就往阳光最猛烈的地方奔。
(图片来自网络)风趣幽默的英国人毫不介意对这种疯狂行为进行自嘲。如果你跟他们谈日光浴,他们会乐呵呵地告诉你“Only mad dogs and Englishmen do that!”。这个“疯狗与英国人晒太阳”的说法在英国几乎人所共知。这一说法来自30年代一位极具才华的歌手 Noël Coward 写的一首歌 Mad Dogs and Englishmen 中的一句歌词:Mad dogs and Englishmengo out in the midday sun。感兴趣的读者可以看看以下歌词,绝对让你捧腹。
Mad dogs and Englishmen
In tropical climes there are certain times of day
When all the citizens retire
To tear their clothes off and perspire
It's one of those rules that the greatest fools obey
Because the sun is much too sultry
And one must avoid its ultra violet ray
Papalaka papalaka papalaka boo
Papalaka papalaka papalaka boo
Digariga digariga digariga doo
Digariga digariga digariga doo
The native grieve when the white
Men leave their huts, because
They're obviously definitely nuts!
Mad dogs and Englishmen
Go out in the midday sun
The Japanese don't care to
The Chinese wouldn't dare to
Hindoos and Argentines sleep
Firmly from twelve to one
But Englishmen detest a siesta
In the Philippines
There are lovely screens
To protect you from the glare
In the Malay States
There are hats like plates
Which the Britishers won't wear
At twelve noon the natives swoon
And no further work is done
But mad dogs and Englishmen
Go out in the midday sun
It's such a surprise for the Eastern eyes to see
That though the English are effete
They're quite impervious to heat
When the white man rides every native hides in glee
Because the simple creatures hope he
Will impale his solar topee on a tree
Bolyboly bolyboly bolyboly baa
Bolyboly bolyboly bolyboly baa
Habaninny habaninny habaninny haa
Habaninny habaninny habaninny haa
It seems such a shame
When the English claim
The earth that they give rise to
Such hilarity and mirth
Mad dogs and Englishmen
Go out in the midday sun.
The toughest Burmese bandit
Can never understand it
In Rangoon the heat of noon
Is just what the natives shun
They put their Scotch or Rye down
And lie down in a jungle town
Where the sun beats down
To the rage of man and beast
The English garb
Of the English sahib
Merely gets a bit more creased
In Bangkok
At twelve o'clock
They foam at the mouth and run
Slut mad dogs and Englishmen
Go out in the midday sun
Mad dogs and Englishmen
Go out in the midday sun.
The smallest Malay rabbit
Deplores this stupid habit in Hong Kong
They strike a gong and
Fire off a noonday gun
To reprimand each inmate
Who's in late
In the mangrove swamps
Where the python romps
There is peace from twelve till two
Even caribous
Lie around and snooze
For there's nothing else
To do in Bengal to move
At all is seldom, if ever done
But mad dogs and Englishmen
Go out in the midday sun
(来自“英国文化园”公众号)
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