This aspect of speech “vocal 3)vitality” makes all the difference in how much people are going to be attracted to the sound of your voice.
Teachers and 4)announcers, lawyers, salespersons, they’re all keenly aware of the importance of vocal vitality. But I think everybody wants to sound lively and interesting. This vocal vitality is related to energy level. If a person has too much energy in their speech, it may be spoken very rapidly. There will be an 5)explosive quality to their speech, as if SOME WORDS were 6)PUNCHED OUT. I’d like you to hear a woman who’s a radio 7)personality:
“They 8)consulted, especially because I almost died this last time. I mean it was so, and to have someone that... doctors can’t stand it because they can’t stand it to have somebody who’s clearly that ill...”
All right, did you notice how rapidly her words poured out? Certain words were over emphasized. This is what gives it a punchy quality. And did you notice the many false starts in her sentences? As if she’s starting to talk before she knows what it is she wants to say. This makes her speech sound 9)choppy. So while we all agree that liveliness and warmth are good things, it’s also possible to have too much of these good things and end up with an 10)aggressive kind of speaking style. Now compare that voice with this one:
“My mother ... is ... very ... typical mother ... She worked ... For after I got into say junior high school...”
Here is a 11)constricted measured voice, not musical, no variety, no expression. He sounds depressed. While the first speaker 12)assaulted you with too much energy, the second sounds as if he might be sick, but it ain’t necessarily so. It can be a speaking habit that a person can learn to change.
Both of the people you’ve just listened to are very successful and 13)accomplished in their 14)respective fields. You may have made other judgements about their personalities based on their vocal vitality. Energy is one of the most vivid features of your voice image, and you should be concerned about this sense of vitality because it adds markedly to your image as a 15)responsive healthy and interested person. And while too much energy can be 16)overwhelming to some people, too little bores everybody.
让你的声音生动起来
记不记得闷人的老师最让人觉得闷的是什么？是不是那把单调低沉又毫无生气、缺乏热情的声音呢？想想你喜爱的老师。你很可能一点也记不起他讲课的具体内容了，但我猜你一定记得那个老师的风趣和活力。
说话时的这一特点--声音的生动性，会不同地影响到别人是否喜欢你的声音。
教师、播音员、律师、销售人员，他们异常清楚声音生动性的重要。但我觉得，每个人都想让自己的声音听起来生动有趣。这种声音的生动性是与精力充沛程度相关的。如果一个人说话时精力充沛，就可能会说得飞快。这种人说起话来就会出现爆发式效果，有些词就好像是下班打卡那样“啪啪啪”地打出来的。我想请大家听听一段电台女声：
“他们展开讨论，特别是因为上次我差点就死了。我说真的是那样的，有人那样子……医生们可受不了，因为他们受不了看到有人那么明显地病成那样子……”
好了，你有没有注意到她的话一古脑儿地倒出来有多快呢？有些词还被过分强调了。这就是造成爆发式效果的原因。你又有没有留意到她说的许多句子是胡乱开头的？就好像还没想好要说什么，她就开始发话了。这样就使得她的话听起来断断续续、起伏不定了。所以当我们都说生动和热情是好东西时，同时也有可能好东西太多，却导致最后以一种盛气凌人的语言风格收场。现在将这个声音与刚才的作个对比：
“我的母亲……是……非常……典型的母亲……；她干活……因为我上，呃，就是高中的时候……”
这是一把内敛又迟疑的声音，没有音乐感，没有变化，没腔没调的。他显得很沮丧。如果第一个说话人的力气太多使你吃惊，那么后者就让人觉得他好像病了--但那倒不一定。那可能只是一个语言习惯，完全可以通过学习来改变。
你刚才听过的两个人在各自的领域中都成就不小，非常成功。你可能已根据他们声音的生动性对他们的性格特征做出别的评价了。精神与否是你声音形象的最鲜明特点之一，你应该关注这份生动感，因为它对让你塑造一个让人感觉健康、有吸引力的形象十分有利。不过太声若洪钟，有些人会受不了；太柔声细气了，又会把人闷倒。
注释:
1) drone v. 单调低沉地说
2) enthusiasm n. 热情，热心
3) vitality n. 活力，生动性
4) announcer n. 电（视）台播音员
5) explosive a. 爆发的，爆炸性的
6) punch v. 用力推进
7) personality n. 人物，名人，个性
8) consult v. 交换意见，商讨
9) choppy a. 不连贯的，猛地一动一停的
10) aggressive a. 挑衅的，进攻性的
11) constricted a. 受约束的，抑制的
12) assault v. 攻击，袭击
13) accomplished a. 有造诣的，有才艺的
14) respective a. 分别的，各自的
15) responsive a. 响应的，作出回应的
16) overwhelming a. 压倒性的，无法抵挡的
★★《2003年09月号-第42期-Disc02-10》★★
School Crisis: Girls Dominate
Remarks:
Remember when girls became nurses and not doctors, 1)stenographers not C.E.O.s, teachers not 2)principals? Well, that’s not the way it is anymore. Today, school 3)districts report that boys are 4)withdrawing from the life of schools and girls are taking over, and we wanted to find out why.
Viewpoints:
Girls don’t necessary get 5)teased as much if they do well.
I think that boys are more, you know, expected to be the star athletes, you know, to bring home the football title.
I think maybe girls are a little more 6)goal-orientated where guys in general are more apt to go with the flow. Like, well, if I do well in high school, that’s great; if I don’t, OK, that’s fine.
I mean, I do think there will be a problem if it continues this way, ‘cause the boys just keep 7)sliding further and further back.
All the 8)rhetoric in the 9)gender 10)equity movement is about how schools 11)short-changed girls. There was almost nothing about how we could reach out to boys. In order to advance girls, they 12)exaggerated how 13)vulnerable girls were and they 14)understated the needs of boys. They 15)depicted boys as usual privileged 16)beneficiaries of a 17)patriarchal society.
I can’t say that boys are more short-changed. I can say that boys and girls are being short-changed in our schools today. I am not in favor of saying that girls are to get anything over boys. Most people understand that gender equity is about making sure that both boys and girls have equal 18)access to educational 19)opportunities. I think, yes, you can say that both boys and girls still have a way to go.
I do not think that 20)feminism has ruined the lives of boys. Where are the men? Why aren’t men 21)advocating for boys? Boys are 22)demigods, but not for their 23)academic work.
Girls Are Taking Over!
A: Girls are 1)taking over? Well, I think that this news will make many of our Crazy English female fans very happy...
B: I agree. But also, this has been happening for a while. Girl students are 2)outshining the boys: learning faster, studying harder. This is true even in the math and sciences.
A: Maybe girls are studying harder, yes. But learning faster? I don’t know... However, to study harder does mean that someone will remember more and will likely get higher scores on examination. Studying is just so important.
B: Yes, I know. 3)No pain, no gain. These girls know -- as do many boys -- that their hard work and efforts now will 4)pay off in the future... For example, good job, more money...
A: But, people are different. Life is more important than school...
B: ...
A: ...
B: ...
美国女生独领校园风骚
(总述)
还记得以前女生只能当护士而非医生，速记员而非执行董事，教师而非校长吗？现在情形一去不返了。现在，多个学区纷纷表示男生正逐渐淡出学校生活，学校成了女生的天下，我们想知道这究竟是为什么。
(论点发挥)
女生成绩好就不会常常被人取笑。
我觉得人们对男生的期望是成为体育明星，拿足球奖座回家。
我认为女生可能有较强的目标取向性，而男生大体上都较喜欢随大流。呵，如果我的高中成绩好，那当然好；成绩不好，也没什么大不了的。
我想，如果情况继续这么下去的话，一定会成为大问题，因为男生的成绩在不断下降。
所有男女平等运动采用的说法都是有关学校如何忽视女生的。关于怎样伸手协助男生的计划几乎没有。为提升女孩子的地位，人们夸大了女孩子有多脆弱，同时对男孩子的需要轻描淡写，把男孩子描绘成男权社会的特权分子。
我看男生并没有更受到忽视。我可以说现今学校里是男女生都被忽视。我不赞成女性事事要超越男性的说法。大多数人明白男女平等就是要确保男孩子女孩子都能享有平等的教育机会。我觉得，是该让男女生都有机会。
我不认为女权主义危及男生的生活。男人们上哪去了？为何男性不为男生争取利益？男生受人追崇的，并不在学业方面罢了。
注释:
1) stenographer n. 速记员
2) principal n. 校长
3) district n. 区域，地方
4) withdraw v. 撤退，离开
5) tease v. 取笑，奚落
6) goal-orientated a. 目标定向
7) slide v. 滑动，滑行
8) rhetoric n. 言语，巧辩
9) gender n. 性，性别
10) equity n. 公平，公正
11) short-change v. 忽略，忽视
12) exaggerate v. 夸张，夸大
13) vulnerable a. 脆弱的，易受伤害的
14) understate v. 打着折扣地说，有意轻描淡写
15) depict v. 描写，描绘
16) beneficiary n. 受惠者，受益人
17) patriarchal a. 男人统治下的
18) access n. 通路，进入之路径或权利
19) opportunity n. 机会，时机
20) feminism n. 男女平等主义，女权运动
21) advocate v. 主张，提倡
22) demigod n. 受崇拜的人，小神
Girls are talking over!
1) take over 取而代之，取得主导地位
2) outshine v. 比……更亮，胜过
3) No pain, no gain. 一份耕耘，一份收获。（谚语）
4) pay off 得到好结果，取得成功
★★《2003年09月号-第42期-Disc02-11》★★
I'm With You
I’m standing on a bridge
I’m waiting in the dark
I thought that you’d be here by now
There’s nothing but the rain
No footsteps on the ground
I’m listening but there’s no sound
Isn’t anyone trying to find me?
Won’t somebody come take me home
It’s a damn cold night
Trying to figure out this life
Won’t you take me by the hand
Take me somewhere new
I don’t know who you are but I
I’m with you
I’m with you
I’m looking for a place
I’m searching for a face
Is anybody here I know
‘Cause nothing’s going right
And everything’s a mess
And no one likes to be alone
Isn’t anyone trying to find me
Won’t somebody come take me home
It’s a damn cold night
Trying to figure out this life
Won’t you take me by the hand
Take me somewhere new
I don’t know who you are but I
I’m with you
I’m with you
Why is everything so confusing
Maybe I’m just out of my mind
Yeah yeah ...
和你在一起
我伫立在桥上
在黑暗中等待
我以为此刻你应该已到来
但我身边只有大雨滂沱
没有任何脚步声传来
我一直在聆听/但没有声音
难道没有人在寻找我
没有人肯带我回家
在这寒冷的夜里
我试着理清我的生活
你能否牵着我的手
带我到一个崭新的世界
我并不知道你是谁, 但我
和你在一起
和你在一起
我在寻找一个地点
我在找寻一张面孔
这里是否有我认识的人
只因一切都似乎出错
变得如此混乱不堪
没有人喜欢孤独
难道没有人在寻找我
没有人肯带我回家
在这寒冷的夜里
我试着理清我的生活
你能否牵着我的手
带我到一个崭新的世界
我并不知道你是谁,但我
和你在一起
和你在一起
为什么这一切让我困惑
也许我只是一时头脑不清
★★《2003年11月号-第43期-Disc01-02》★★
Decoding The Matrix
Carrie-Anne Moss (“Trinity”): It’s very rare that you actually get to 1)merge what you do with what you believe in. The Matrix: we had a life changing experience making it and when you have that kind of experience, we had to come back.
Now and Then
Keanu Reeves ("Neo"): The first Matrix, we went out in Burbank in a kind of, I don’t even know what it was, an empty 2)warehouse?
Carrie-Anne Moss: And we didn’t have anything there, we didn’t have a coffee maker there or we certainly didn’t have any 3)trailers or anywhere where we could sit and change, there was like one bathroom.
Hugo Weaving (“Agent Smith”): Well, I remember I mean it was a big accomplishment to get a drawing board just to get them to write a check at that time, early on for a drafting table was a 4)commitment that they weren’t willing to make. And now we have this, you know, really wonderful facility, it’s really a dream come true.
Carrie-Anne Moss: We know how hard it’s going to be, so it’s... we know the challenges we have ahead of us.
Keanu Reeves: Well, the thing about it and it’s true the first one as well is that, you know, I love the material, I love the character and I love who I ended up working with, so that is something that regardless of what has to happen, it is just the, that’s the thing that kind of gets me through it.
Philosophies of The Matrix
Owen Paterson (Production Design): When I first read The Matrix, there was a great deal about that, I don’t know, the Eastern influence, that comic book influence that had been meshed into kind of Western philosophy.
Keanu Reeves: A 5)synthesis from literature, from the exposure they had in the cinema, from their lives, from what they’re interested in, from what they find funny, from what they find cool.
The Wachowski Brothers (Directors): We like the Kung Fu movies, we like Japan 6)animation, Japanimation. We like John Wu movies, and books, you know, that are science fiction and about the nature of reality.
Joel Silver (Producer): They really have a grasp of philosophy, of all types of philosophy, of Eastern philosophy, of you know European philosophy.
Keanu Reeves: Larry and Andrew said, “OK, we’d like you to play Thomas Anderson, Neo.” I had to read 7)Baudrillard; I had to read Out Of Control, which is about systems, evolution and robots. And then there was another book, which was Evolutionary Psychology. Those were three books that they wanted me to read before I even opened up the 8)script.
Owen Paterson: Baudrillard’s ideas of 9)Simulacra 10)Simulation is an important point within the film, and that what we see in the film as a real object is in-fact 11)optical simulation.
The Screenplay
Lorenzo Bonaventura (Exec. V.P. of Warner Bros.): I read the Matrix script and really 12)flipped out for it. Thought it was fantastic, thought that as a script the first 40-50 pages were the best 40-50 pages I’d ever read. And then I got very confused.
Bill Pope (Director of Photography): I have to say that I didn’t understand the script. I mean, I understood the script well, obviously I liked it. But every time I re-read it and every time we got closer, I understood more and more and more and more. I had questions forever and would constantly try to change the plot and they were “Now, Bill, Bill, Bill, you just don’t understand!”
Laurence Fishburne (“Morpheus”): I have no idea why people who’ve read this script for the first Matrix found it confusing -- I don’t get that at all!
John Gaeta (Visual Effect): Upon reading the script and seeing the 13)conceptuals, you know, at the same time, you know, the immediate reaction is umm... there is no chance in hell this movie will be made. There is a whole 14)slew of these scenes I see being 15)chopped out or left on the floor, there is just too unlike a large studio to take a chance on something that seems very alternative.
Carrie-Anne Moss: It took me a lot of readings, a lot of conversations with everybody to fully understand the script. But I just remember thinking, I mean, they don’t really think I’m going to do this stuff like running, like jumping from one building to another. It’s like, well, no, of course nothing bad and like running sideways along the wall, cos everything was really specifically put in the script.
The “Look” of The Matrix
Owen Paterson: What we had to do really in the film was to establish I think 16)visually the difference between the matrix and the real world.
Bill Pope: In the matrix everything was slightly 17)decayed, I think it was slightly 18)monolithic and grid-like, like a machine would make it. You notice some things about the interrogation room or the government’s office. There are 19)grids on the walls, there’s grids on the floor, there’s even grids in the ceiling. So that’s why we’re hoping that that will 20)convey a feeling of 21)artificial control, if you like.
Kym Barrett (Costume Design): Owen and I 22)collaborated a lot on the strength of the tones of green in the matrix. Also we talked with Bill about, you know, when the light hits a certain 23)fabric or a certain leather, or how I could make it pick up green or how I could make it pick up different colours.
John Gaeta: In the lab, we wanted to be much more about the human beings, and so we used longer lenses and sort of the backgrounds get all sort of soft and have the humans stand out more.
