常春藤解析英語 60 Monsters！有怪獸！

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Monsters!　有怪獸!

by Kevin Lustig

From time to time, animals are born with mutations like extra limbs, strange deformities, or even additional heads. In ancient Rome, this frightful event was believed to be an omen that bad things were on the horizon. The Romans used the word monere, which means "to warn," to give these creatures the name monstrum, or monsters. The meaning has changed since then, but "monster" remains a word to describe something terrifying.

The concept of monsters has evolved to include many scary creatures, most of which are simply literary inventions. However, monsters are more than just a way to terrify ourselves. In fact, they play an important cultural role. We often use them as a way to deal with our concerns and anxieties about other real-life topics. For example, in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, a scientist named Dr. Frankenstein creates a horrific creature from parts of dead bodies. The creature　escapes from the lab and roams the countryside on a killing spree. Frankenstein may seem to be just a good monster tale, but in fact, it examines serious human concerns about science. When Shelley wrote Frankenstein, the world was going through a great period of scientific discovery. This produced a lot of anxiety as scientists began to discover powerful natural forces that they didn't fully understand. In a way, Frankenstein's monster helped people focus on and confront their fears.

Many monsters, from the Big Bad Wolf in children's books to ghouls in ghost stories, help humans deal with their real fears about life and death. In this way, monsters are good for more than just a good scare.

單字小鋪

1. monster n. 怪物

2. mutation n. 變種，突變

3. limb n. 肢;臂

4. deformity n. 畸形

5. frightful a. 可怕的

6. omen n. 預(yù)兆

7. terrifying a. 令人害怕的

8. scary a. 嚇人的

9. anxiety n. 焦慮，不安

10. horrific a. 可怕的

11. roam vt. 漫步

12. examine vt. 檢查

13. fully adv. 完全地

14. ghoul n. 食尸鬼

詞組小鋪

1. deal with...　　處理∕應(yīng)付……

2. focus on...　　將焦點放在……

難句分析

The concept of monsters has evolved to include many scary creatures, most of which are simply literary inventions.

= The concept of monsters has evolved to include many scary creatures most of the creatures are simply literary inventions.

(怪物的概念幾經(jīng)演變，如今包括許多嚇人的生物，其中有些只是文學(xué)產(chǎn)物。)

精解字詞詞組

1. from time to time　有時候，偶爾

= (every) now and then

例: If you clean out your closet from time to time, you'll have room for new clothes.

(如果你偶爾整理一下你的衣柜，就有空間放新衣服了。)

2. be on the horizon　即將到來

= be near at hand

= be around the corner

例: Economists believe that there might be trouble on the horizon for the US economy.

(經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家相信美國的經(jīng)濟(jì)可能即將發(fā)生問題。)

3. evolve vi.　進(jìn)化

evolve into...　進(jìn)化成……

例: Can you believe that apes evolved into human beings?

(你相信猿類進(jìn)化成人類嗎?)

4. play an important role (in...)　(在……方面)扮演重要的角色

例: Cell phones play an important role in today's society.

(手機(jī)在現(xiàn)今社會中扮演重要的角色。)

5. escape from...　逃離……

例: Luckily, we were able to escape from the burning building.

(我們很幸運能逃離那棟著火的房子。)

6.spree n.　無節(jié)制的狂熱行為

a shopping spree　瘋狂購物

例: After I won the lottery, I went on a shopping spree.

(中了彩券后，我開始瘋狂血拼。)

7.go through...　經(jīng)歷……

例: Mary went through a difficult time after being laid off.

(瑪莉被裁員之后經(jīng)歷了一段苦日子。)

8.confront vt.　面對;遭遇

be confronted with...　　面對……;遭遇……

例: We were confronted with many problems before the project was completed.

(在這件企劃完成前，我們遭遇許多困難。)

中文翻譯

偶爾，動物出生時會有突變，像是多出四肢、奇怪的畸形或甚至多出幾顆頭。古羅馬時期，這種可怕的事?lián)攀且环N預(yù)告，代表壞事即將發(fā)生。羅馬人用 monere 這個意指『警告』的字，將這種生物命名為 monstrum，也就是 monsters(怪物)。從那時起，這個字的意思雖已改變，monster 仍用來形容可怕的事物。

怪物的概念幾經(jīng)演變，如今涵蓋許多嚇人的生物，而其中大部分只是文學(xué)產(chǎn)物。然而，怪物不只是我們嚇自己的一種方式而已。事實上，牠們扮演了一個重要的文化角色。我們通常利用怪物來處理對現(xiàn)實生活議題的關(guān)心與焦慮。舉例來說，在瑪莉.雪萊的《科學(xué)怪人》中，一位名叫弗蘭肯斯坦的科學(xué)家拼湊死人的身體，創(chuàng)造出一個可怕的生物。這只生物從實驗室逃走后，在鄉(xiāng)間到處橫行，大開殺戒。《科學(xué)怪人》也許看起來只不過是個很棒的怪物故事，但它其實檢視了人類對科學(xué)的嚴(yán)肅關(guān)切。當(dāng)瑪莉?雪萊撰寫《科學(xué)怪人》時，世界正經(jīng)歷一段偉大的科學(xué)發(fā)現(xiàn)時期。這也引發(fā)了許多焦慮，因為科學(xué)家開始發(fā)現(xiàn)自己無法全然了解強(qiáng)大的自然力量。就某種方面來說，弗蘭肯斯坦醫(yī)生的怪物幫助人們專注并面對自身的恐懼。

從童話書里的大野狼到鬼故事里的食尸鬼，許多怪物幫助人類處理面對生死的真實恐懼。如此一來，怪物的作用不僅僅是讓你嚇破膽而已。