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Tattoos Make a Lasting Impression 刺青史话

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课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

The tattoo was first introduced to Western society by eighteenth century sailors returning from exploratory journeys to Polynesia. Little could these seafarers have known that by bring back unique souvenirs of their travels, they were beginning a practice that would flourish to the point where tattoos would be seen on the bodies of some of the world’s most beautiful women.

刺青最早是在十八世纪从玻里尼西亚探险回来的水手引进西方社会的。这些水手们没想到由于他们从旅行中带回来的奇特纪念品，后来竟开启了一股让世界上一些最美的女人在身上刺青的盛大风潮。

From sailors, tattoos spread to the services, lower-class males and, during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, to members of royalty and the aristocracy. Both Britain’s King George V and Russia’s Tsar Nicholas II were heavily tattooed. And Winston Churchill’s mother, Jennie was but one of a number of society ladies with tattoos. In fact, disrobing after a country-estate dinner to show off one’s body art and detail its history was frequently part of an aristocratic evening’s entertainment.

刺青从水手传到士兵、下层阶级的男人，以及在十九世纪与二十世纪初期，传到皇室成员及贵族。英王乔治五世和俄国沙皇尼古拉二世都有很多的刺青。而温斯顿丘吉尔的母亲珍妮也只是许多身上有刺青的社交名媛中的一位。事实上，在国宴之后脱去身上的衣服，展示身上的艺术和细说这些艺术的来龙去脉，经常是贵族们的夜间娱乐之一。

Today, it has become recognized that getting a permanent symbol tattooed on one’s body carries a deeper meaning than the design itself actually suggests. The tattoo’s meaning is often intensely personal, rather than social. As such, with its social stigma diminishing after an almost century-long absence from the mainstream, the tattoo is now more popular than at any time in its long and colorful history.

今日，刺青已经得到认同，在身上刺上永久的刺青所蕴含的意义比图案本身所显示的更深。刺青通常带有强烈的个人色彩，而非社交上的意义。因此，刺青在离开主流将近一世纪之后，随着它在社会上所背负的污名逐渐消失，它现在流行的程度，胜过在长远又富色彩的历史中的任何时期。

Vocabulary

单词发音

tattoo [tæˋtu] n. 刺青

exploratory [ɪkˋsplorə͵torɪ] adj. 探索的﹐探险的

Polynesia [͵pɑləˋniʒə] n. 玻里尼西亚（中太平洋的岛群）

seafarer [ˋsi͵fɛrɚ] n. 船员；航海家

souvenir [ˋsuvə͵nɪr] n. 纪念品﹐纪念物

the services 海陆空三军; 军队; 部队

aristocracy [͵ærəsˋtɑkrəsɪ] n.（总称）贵族

tsar [tsɑr] n.〔1917年以前统治俄国的〕沙皇

but [bʌt] adv. 不过； 只是

disrobe [dɪsˋrob] v.【正式或幽默】宽衣; 脱衣服

estate [ɪsˋtet] n. 身分，地位

recognize [ˋrɛkəg͵naɪzd] v. 正式承认；认可，认定

stigma [ˋstɪgmə] n. 耻辱，污名

Sentence of the Day

More than just skin-deep.

有更深一层的意义。

skin-deep 肤浅的﹐ 表面的

課文講解

Mark is at his friend Karen’s apartment watching TV:  马克在他朋友凯伦的公寓里看电视：

M: Check out Angelina Jolie. I didn’t know she had tattoos.

嘿，来看看安吉利娜裘丽，我不知道她有刺青嗳！

K: Yeah. Tattoos have really come into vogue recently.

是啊，刺青最近真的变成一股时尚了。

M: Maybe it’s not all that surprising when you consider that tattoos have been entrenched in various cultures for thousands of years.

或许当妳想想刺青已经深入不同的文化数千年时，就不会大惊小怪了。

K: You’re right; the Maoris of New Zealand, the Polynesians, the Japanese, Chinese ethnic minorities like the Drung and the Dai– even the Atayal people here in Taiwan.

你说的对；包括纽西兰的毛利人、玻里尼西亚人、日本人、中国的少数民族，例如壮族和傣族──甚至还有台湾的泰雅族。

M: And often, the reasons behind tattoos extend beyond aestheticism.

而且通常刺青不只是基于美感的理由。

K: True. There are Buddhist monks in Thailand who tattoo people. Their tattoos are like amulets supposed to bring good luck and provide protection against sickness and misfortune.

的确，在泰国有和尚帮人刺青。他们的刺青就像是平安符，用以纳福和消灾解厄。

M: The Drung women in China used to tattoo their faces to make themselves less attractive.

中国的壮族妇女过去在脸上刺青，好让自己变得较不吸引人。

K: I read they did that so that if they were captured by people from other ethnic groups they would be less likely to be raped.

我读过，她们这样做是预防万一被外族人掳走，比较不会遭到强暴。

M: That’s right. But Maori women got their chins and lips tattooed mainly to enhance their beauty. For Maori men, in addition to emphasizing masculinity, tattoos were an indicator of rank or status.

没错，但毛利族的妇女在下巴及嘴唇上刺青，主要是为了让自己更漂亮。对毛利族的男人而言，刺青除了凸显阳刚之外，也是阶级或社会地位的象征。

K: Well, with people from all walks of life getting tattoos, they certainly don’t indicate a person’s social position anymore.

嗯，由于社会各阶层的人都刺青，所以刺青本身当然不再代表一个人的社会地位了。

－by Colin Gread

Vocabulary

单词发音

vogue [vog] n. 流邢；风行；时髦

entrench [ɪnˋtrɛntʃ] v. 使（权力、习俗、观念等）根深蒂固

Maori [ˋmaʊrɪ] n. 毛利人

minority [maɪˋnɔrətɪ] n. 少数派；少数群；少数民族

aestheticism [ɛsˋθɛtəsɪzm] n. 审美感；爱美性

amulet [ˋæmjəlɪt] n. 护身符；避邪物

chin [tʃɪn] n. 颏，下巴

masculinity [͵mæskjəˋlɪnətɪ] n. 男子气；刚毅

all walks of life [法] 各行各业； 各界

Sentence of the Day

She made her mark.

她出名了。

make one’s mark  出名; 成功