Sex and the City《欲望城市》（精讲十四）

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影片对白 

Carrie: That night, I took Susan Sharon to meet the new male in Charlotte's life. True to form, he was already falling far short of her high expectations.

Charlotte: He did it a minute ago. 

Carrie: He was inconsistent... 

Charlotte: Get the ball, Henry. 

Carrie: ...selfishly stubborn, and hopelessly codependent. 

Charlotte: Isn't he smart? 

Susan: We shouldn't stay long. I want to be back at your apartment if Richard calls. 

Carrie: Really? Aren't you leaving him? 

Susan: I am. But if he calls, I want to be there and tell him I won't talk to him. 

Charlotte: That's really passive aggressive. You should only speak to him if you have something specific to say. 

Susan: Do you believe I married a prick? 

Carrie: You didn't know he was a prick. 

Susan: I just can't believe that prick hasn't called. Although, he does have this sweet side. You know, you just don't know him very well. Do you think I do the right thing, Henry? Or should I give him another chance-- 

Charlotte: He's a dog, not an oracle. 

Carrie: The next morning, I woke up to an unsettling birthday surprise. Coming. Oh.  

Man: Sign here. 

Carrie: Thank you.  

Carrie: My God.  

Samantha: "Best wishes on your birthday."  

Carrie: It's from Big. 

Samantha: What kind of flowers? 

Carrie: Roses, red. Big. Expensive. What do you think it means? 

Miranda: It means rip up the card. 

Samantha: And watch out for the thorns. 

Charlotte: No, no, no, this is the grand gesture. 

Miranda: The grand gesture? 

Charlotte: Yeah. You know, if you break up with someone, and he just disappears from your life altogether, although it wasn't meant to be. But if they make a powerful declaration of their love, then you really have to reconsider. 

Miranda: You think a dozen roses and a card that says "Best wishes" qualifies as a grand gesture? 

Charlotte: Well, yeah, you know men. They can never say, "I was wrong." They just send flowers. 

Miranda: Yeah, well, sometimes a rose is just a rose. 

Samantha: And jewelry, that's another story. 

Charlotte: Henry, no. Henry, no, not the purse. 

Carrie: You know, I really don't need this on my birthday. Really, what does this mean, the ball's in my court or something? I don't want to play games. 

Charlotte: This is not the grand gesture. This is the vague gesture which is truly worse than no gesture at all. 

Carrie: I realized that just because we were no longer together didn't mean I couldn’t be polite.  

Big: Yeah.  

Carrie: Hey, it's me. Carrie. 

Big: Hey, how are you doing? 

Carrie: Great. Great. Listen, I just wanted to call and thank you for the flowers. That was thoughtful of you. 

Big: Oh, yeah, yeah. Well, you know, my, my secretary had it on her calendar, so I, you know... 

Carrie: Oh, so your secretary sent them? 

Big: Oh, I sent the flowers, my secretary alerted me to the day. 

Carrie: That was very thoughtful of her and you for sending them. 

Big: So you're welcome. What are you doing on the big day? 

Carrie: Oh, well, er, Stanford's arranged this party down at Layla, you know that Moroccan restaurant. You should come. The instant the words popped out of my mouth, I regretted them. 

Big: Er, well, I, I made some plan already. 

Carrie: Or not. I mean, just forget it. 

Big: I could, maybe stop by later. 

Carrie: Oh. Fine. I mean, whatever. 

Big: Ah, I may bring someone. 

Carrie: Well, yeah. Ah, come and, and bring that person and maybe I'll see you later, and thank you again for the thoughtful flowers. I couldn't believe it. I had just invited my ex and his date to my birthday party. As if getting older wasn't traumatic enough. 

妙语佳句，活学活用 

1. Fall short of 

这个片语的意思是“不足，达不到，不符合”，例如：His skills fell short of the required standard.  

片段中的fall far short of 则是指“远远达不到”。 

2. The ball's in my court 

When the ball is in your court, it means the situation is your responsibility, that you are the one who has to make the next move. 意思就是“下一步怎么做由你决断”。 

3. Play games 

Play games 的本意是“敷衍塞责，欺骗”，例如：Don't play games with me--I want an honest answer. 

在这个片段中，play games 是字面上的意思，Carrie 的意思是“我不想玩游戏”。 

4. Big day 

The “big day” can refer to any day which is important to you personally. 比如生日啦，结婚纪念日啦，等等。 

文化面面观 

美国的宠物文化 

即便早已适应了封闭在钢铁丛林中的都市生活，我们多少还是在内心留有一份对自然的渴望。不能近距离接触野生动物，不能远离现代科技带来的舒适生活，内心的渴望又无法压抑，于是，宠物成了人类最好的精神寄托，猫和狗——这些毛茸茸的小型哺乳动物，在抚慰孤独心灵的同时，也是存在于人类与大自然之间最后一座感性的桥梁。没有什么景象比人和动物其乐融融地相处更为感人了，在现代社会，也没有什么事物比宠物更能温暖慰藉人类的心灵了。

美国是名副其实的宠物大国，据统计，62％的美国家庭拥有至少一种宠物。虽然多数爱宠物的人士都把宠物视为家庭成员或孩子，但是能够花费大量人力物力在物质方面为宠物创造“享受的极致”，讲创意、讲贴心、讲“人性”——在这点上没哪个国家的人比得上美国人。  

衣：不管宠物是否愿意，它们的美国主人是非常乐意为它们穿衣打扮的。这些服装除了能在宠物店里买到之外，更有专门的宠物裁缝店为宠物量身定做，毛衣、棉衣、牛仔衣、连衣裙，甚至还有一本正经的文胸！把自己的猫狗宝贝打扮得“人模人样”，美国人对此乐此不疲。  

食：美国的宠物食品琳琅满目，主食有各种品牌的宠物饲料、处方粮、肉干，还有给宠物专用的休闲零嘴。  

用品：美国宠物有自己的食具、饮具、寝具和活动房屋，还有专用的牙刷牙膏。专门用来供猫咪方便的猫沙有无数种。养护用品五花八门，修剪指甲，有功能各不相同的钳子、剪子、锉刀；驱除寄生虫有数不胜数的药品；洗澡有去污、除蚤、滋养毛发的各类香波；宠物玩具更是让人眼花，绒毛玩具、电动玩具、橡胶玩具、麻绳玩具，设计之可爱，让人也想拿来玩玩。

服务：与宠物相关的服务门类繁多。美容服务包括冲凉、洗耳、剪脚底毛等。如果想宠物美上加美，可以为它做整容手术。宠物医院和人的医院一样分科就诊。医院硬件条件之优越让人咋舌——手术室、无影灯、内窥镜、B超仪、各种型号的X光机和心电图仪器应有尽有。宠物的婚嫁由专门的宠物婚介所操办，主人可为宠物找到情侣。有的酒店还能为出差或旅游的主人照管宠物，酒店里分普通房和豪华房，一日三餐按宠物口味喂食，专业兽医护理，全天候保姆照顾。全美最大的宠物连锁店推出的宠物旅馆服务更为周到，房间里装有锁定动物表演频道的电视，特制的通风系统，让狗和猫不会闻到彼此的气味。狗住一晚的费用是21美元，猫只要13美元，如果是包含额外游戏时间和喂食的套房，每晚要价可能高达40美元。有的宠物旅馆还设立了骨头状电话亭，离家在外的主人可以打电话给宠物，和它们通话。网络服务也逐渐兴起，主人可以上网看到宠物的实况。（节选自《译文》） 

经典语录 

Telling a friend to leave her husband is something you just don't do. If she does break up with him, it's your fault. If she doesn't break up with him, she knows that you think she should and therefore, can't speak to you again. Other way, you're screwed. 

Practically all the relationships I know are based on a foundation of lies and mutually except delusion. 

考考你 

用今日所学将下面的对话译成汉语。 

Miranda: You think a dozen roses and a card that says "Best wishes" qualifies as a grand gesture?

Charlotte: Well, yeah, you know men. They can never say, "I was wrong." They just send flowers.

Miranda: Yeah, well, sometimes a rose is just a rose.

Samantha: And jewelry, that's another story.