在當(dāng)今這個(gè)社交網(wǎng)站滿天飛,所有人都忙著更新狀態(tài)的時(shí)代,我朋友Laurie卻全然不為所動(dòng),絕不隨大流。這也讓我想起一個(gè)可以跟大家分享的習(xí)慣用語,叫:swim against the tide.
大家都知道,swim意思是游泳;tide意思是潮流。To swim against the tide, 顧名思義,就是逆著潮流而行。
我朋友Laurie就是這個(gè)習(xí)慣用語的化身。別人都在忙于上網(wǎng)社交的時(shí)候,她卻我行我素,she is swimming against the tide. 逆著潮流而行。
在下面的例子里,一些部門經(jīng)理開會(huì)不拿手提電腦,而是返樸歸真,重新拿起筆記本。我們一起聽。
例句-1:There's no shortage of laptops at business meetings. But more than a few of us are starting to swim against the tide. We're using old-fashioned notebooks instead. Not only are they easier to access, but they also don't require batteries.
這段話是說:商業(yè)會(huì)議上,到處都是手提電腦,但是也有象我這樣的一些人卻反潮流而進(jìn),回去使用老式的筆記本。筆記本不僅更加方便攜帶,而且還不需要電池。
我也聽人說起過現(xiàn)在的這種趨勢(shì)。這些商業(yè)管理人員其實(shí)不并是反對(duì)科技進(jìn)步,但是他們意識(shí)到,其實(shí)筆記本真的要比手提電腦更好用。
在英語里,有一個(gè)詞,專門用來形容反對(duì)科技進(jìn)步的人,叫l(wèi)uddite. 1811年到1816年期間,一群英國(guó)工人發(fā)生暴動(dòng),搗毀了很多紡織機(jī)器,因?yàn)樗麄冇X得,機(jī)械進(jìn)步會(huì)減少就業(yè)機(jī)會(huì)。Luddite這個(gè)詞后來專門用來指反對(duì)技術(shù)進(jìn)步的人。
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美國(guó)前幾年房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)火爆,很多新開發(fā)的房子都屬于豪宅一類。有人覺得,這種房子其實(shí)并不實(shí)用。讓我們聽聽下面例子里這個(gè)人是怎么說的:
例句-2:My friends have all bought bigger homes featuring master bedroom suites, gourmet kitchens, formal dining rooms, and lots of bathrooms. My wife and I would rather have a modest house that doesn't cost a lot to furnish and maintain. We realize we're swimming against the tide and that's fine with us.
這個(gè)人說:我朋友買的都是大房子,里面有主臥室,講究的廚房,正式餐廳,還有好多洗手間。我和妻子更愿意要一個(gè)簡(jiǎn)單得多的房子,不需要太多錢去裝修和保養(yǎng)。我們知道,這么做是在逆潮流而動(dòng),不過我們覺得這挺好。
跟swim against the tide相反的,是swim with the tide意思是隨大流,順著潮流而進(jìn)。就我個(gè)人而言,我大多數(shù)時(shí)候都是swim with the tide, 不過有時(shí)候,如果是我認(rèn)準(zhǔn)了的事情,我也一定會(huì)堅(jiān)持自己的立場(chǎng)swim against the tide。