VOA慢速英语:Brainwash: Not as Clean as You Think

Hello and welcome to another Words and Their Stories.
欢迎收听新一期词汇掌故节目。
Today we are talking about expressions to describe people who are not in their right minds. People who are not in their right minds are not thinking in a normal, healthy way.
今天我们讨论一些描述头脑不清醒者的词汇。头脑不清醒者无法用正确、健康的方式思考。

You might say they are brainwashed.
你可以说他们被洗脑了。

***部分省略***

Now, that is a dark story on several levels. But don't worry. You can use the word "brainwash" without starting an international incident. In fact, few people even know the origin of the word. Today, "brainwash" is used in both informal and formal situations.
现在，这是几个层面上的黑暗故事。但是不要担心，你使用洗脑这个单词无需以一起国际事件作为开始。实际上，很少有人知道这个单词的由来。如今，洗脑被用在各种正式和非正式场合。

For example, let's say your friend takes a college course with a very charismatic professor. He uses his good looks, powerful personality and persuasive arguments to convince the class of mostly women that he knows best and is always right.
例如，假设你的朋友选修了一位非常有魅力的教授的大学课程。他用帅气的外表、强悍的个性以及有说服力的论据使课堂上的大多数女性确认他懂得最多并且永远是正确的。

Your friend becomes obsessed with him. She begins to repeat his words all the time and she has changed her opinions to go along with his. You could say, she is brainwashed.
你的朋友痴迷于他。她开始一直重复他的说法，并且改变了自己的观点赞同他。你就可以说，她被洗脑了。

To gaslight someone is also a type of brainwashing.
心理操控某人（To gaslight someone）是另一种洗脑。

A gaslight is a light powered by gas. They were common before electricity was wired into people homes and neighborhoods.
煤气灯是一种由煤气点亮的灯。在电力进入百姓家庭之前，煤气灯非常普遍。

So, why is gaslight a type of brainwashing?
那么，为什么心理操控是一种洗脑？

This expression comes from the film "Gaslight" starring the actress Ingrid Bergman. Bergman marries a man who wants to convince her that she is crazy. He does this by dimming the gaslights in their London home. And then he pretends he doesn't notice.
这个词汇出自《煤气灯下》这部电影，由英格丽·褒曼（Ingrid Bergman）担任女主角。褒曼同一名男子结婚，这名男子想要让鲍曼相信自己疯了。他通过调暗他们在伦敦的家里的煤气灯来实现这点。然后他假装自己没有注意到。

The husband also plays other tricks on his wife that make her doubt her memory and her sanity.
这名丈夫还对妻子搞其它花招，让她怀疑自己的记性和神智。

To gaslight someone is a form of psychological abuse. It is when false information is given to a person in the hopes of making them doubt their own memory or perception of an event. It can even be used, as in the movie, to make a person think they are going insane.
心理操控某人是一种心理虐待。它向某人提供虚假信息，希望让他们怀疑自己对某起事件的记忆或感觉。正如电影中这样，它甚至能用于让某人觉得自己要疯了。

"Gaslighting" is most common in very close relationships.
心理操控多用于亲密的关系中。

For example, let's say your best friend is dating a really bad guy. You don't like him or trust him. In fact, you have caught him lying to your friend several times. Once on her birthday, he claimed he was home sick in bed. However, you saw him that later that night in a restaurant with another woman!
例如，假设你最好的朋友正在和一个大坏蛋约会。你不喜欢他或是不信任他。实际上，你已经抓到他好几次对你的朋友撒谎。有一次你朋友生日，他声称自己卧病在床。然而，你那天晚上看到他和另一个女人在餐馆吃饭。

You tell your friend and she confronts him about the lie. He uses clever excuses to explain himself. He says he was never out and accuses your friend of being jealous.
你告诉你的朋友，她找他对质。他用巧妙的借口给自己解释。他说自己从未出门，并且指责你的朋友是被人妒忌。

Your friend leaves the conversation feeling bad about herself for accusing her boyfriend and mad at you for making her doubt him. You could say to her, "You are so foolishly in love with this guy, that you can't see that he is gaslighting you! Wake up!!
你的朋友结束谈话，觉得自己指责男朋友做得不对，并且对你让她怀疑男友非常生气。你可以这样跟她说，“你如此愚蠢地爱上了这个家伙，看不出他是在心理操控你，醒醒吧！”

You can also say to someone who you think is trying to play mind games with you, "Look, don't try to gaslight me. I am on to you!!"
如果你觉得某人在跟你玩心理游戏，你也可以对他说，“你看，别想对我心理操控，我很了解你。”

But we usually the term when talking about other people. If you are a victim of brainwashing or gaslighting you probably won't know it.
但是我们经常使用这个术语谈论其他人。如果你是洗脑或心理操控的受害者，你可能不会知道这点。

That is, after all, the whole point.
毕竟这才是重点。