常春藤生活英語：Island Folk Tales 臺灣民間故事

Have you ever heard old stories about heroes or magic? Most likely you have, either as a young child or as you got older. These stories are known as folk tales1 and are a part of every culture. Some folk tales from Taiwan are about how famous places were named, shaped, or transformed. Alishan and Sun Moon Lake are the centers of some of the best known stories. Other folk tales are about historical heroes and the good things they did.

The purpose of folk tales is to hand down cultural information, which could be about social rules, life lessons, or people's experiences. For example, Little Frog in the Well teaches us to have a broader view of the world around us. Another story, The Tigress2 Witch3, is about how being clever helped one girl deal with danger and save her own life.

Books and websites about Taiwanese folk tales are popping up everywhere. Houston Taiwanese School of Languages and Culture created the book Folk Stories of Taiwan. It is a part of their Taiwanese Tradition Series, which also includes a book about festivals in Taiwan. It provides English translations4 of folk tales by people who want to share their cultural heritage5.

It is often said that if you want to understand a culture, you should listen to their folk tales. Don't be fooled into thinking they are outdated. There is always something new to learn or discover through Taiwanese folk tales.

您曾聽過關(guān)于英雄或魔法的古老故事嗎?您很有可能聽過，不是在您還小就是當您長大一些時。這些故事被稱為民間故事，更是每個文化中的一部分。臺灣民間故事有一些是描述某些著名地點是如何得名、成形、或是改變的。阿里山和日月潭是一些最知名傳說的故事中心。其它民間故事則關(guān)于歷史英雄和他們的偉大事跡。

民間故事的目的是傳承有關(guān)社會規(guī)范、生活教訓、或個人經(jīng)驗等文化訊息。例如《井底之蛙》教導我們要以更開闊的視野看待我們周遭的世界。另一個故事《虎姑婆》，是關(guān)于一位女孩是如何運用機智來幫助自己應(yīng)付危機，并且還救了自己一命。

有關(guān)臺灣民間故事的書籍和網(wǎng)站在各地如雨后春筍般出現(xiàn)。《臺灣民間故事》這本書是由休斯敦臺灣語文學校所創(chuàng)作。這是他們臺灣傳統(tǒng)系列書籍的一部分，其中也包含一本關(guān)于臺灣節(jié)慶的書。這本書刊載了民間故事的英文譯本，是由那些想與他人分享其文化遺產(chǎn)的人所譯成。

常聽人說，假如您想了解某個文化，您就應(yīng)該聆聽他們的民間故事。不要被騙，以為它們早已過時。透過臺灣民間故事，您總能學習或發(fā)現(xiàn)一些新的事物。

Building Your Vocabulary

1.transform　vt. 改變;轉(zhuǎn)化

I transformed the kitchen into a study.

我把廚房改造成書房。

2.broad　a. 廣大的;廣泛的

Kelly has a broad range of interests.

凱莉的興趣非常廣泛。

Phrases for Learning

1.hand down.../hand...down　將……流傳下去

My grandmother handed her pearl necklace down to me.

我奶奶將她的珍珠項鏈傳給了我。

2.deal with...　應(yīng)付∕處理……

Helen should learn to deal with stress better.

海倫應(yīng)該學著要更妥善地應(yīng)付壓力。

3.pop up　突然出現(xiàn)，冒出來

Many ideas just popped up in my head.

很多想法突然浮現(xiàn)在我腦海中。

4.fool+人+into+動名詞　騙某人做……

There's no way you can fool me into accepting this bad deal.

你是絕對無法騙我接受這筆賠錢交易的。

< 參考字詞 >

1.folk tale　n. 民間故事

2.tigress　a. 雌老虎

3.witch　n. 巫婆

4.translation　n. 翻譯

5.heritage　n. 遺產(chǎn)，傳統(tǒng)

TIPS IN USE

Most likely you have, either as a young child or as you got older.

(您很有可能聽過，不是在您還小就是當您長大一些時。)

句中有兩個 as，不過兩者意思、詞性皆不同，前者為介詞，表『當作……』;后者為連接詞，表『當……時』，相當于 when 之意。例：

As a student, you need to study hard.

(你身為一位學生，必須用功讀書。)

As I was young, I was quite happy.=When I was young, I was quite happy.

(我年輕時很快樂。)