访谈录 2013-02-04&02-06 利亚姆·尼森家乡演讲

 　　They cued from dawn for a glimpse of their most famous son. Liam Neeson has done rather well for a forklift truck driver from Ballymena.

　　And the word. How many?

　　Oscar-nominated for his role in Schindler's List, the man from a small town in Northern Ireland went on to become a star of the big screen.

　　George, fire!

　　He’s never forgotten his humble¹ beginnings, describing himself as 99% a Ballymena man. But what exactly does that mean?

　　Well, I’m a late-hearted way for tearless, albeit² it doesn’t exist without tears. I don’t know; I think sort of on a very fundamental way, it’s, it’s, I have got a work ethic³, that I got from Ballymena, and from Ballymena people, and my teachers and P.J. and sort of, and I think it’s, I’m very, very proud of that.

　　Twelve years ago plans to honour him split the kind, so remarks he had made about growing up as a Chatholic in a Protestant time angered some.

　　Things have changed tonight. They invited him to sign the book and accept the honour conferred by the mayor, his former factory boss.

　　Ballymena … the great thanks to be, whoever … and we just recover from that … because we look onto the future, and project in a future for everyone in the borough⁴.

　　Former first minister Ian Paceley made a rare public appear on such a event. This was his constituency; and he, too, is a Flee-man of the borough.

　　So what do you get with the keys of the borough? Well, Freedom used to earn you the right to drive here sheep through the time, unpedigreed. Not anymore. High disappointing.

　　Liam Neeson.

　　He didn’t get to herd⁵ any sheep, but he did get to tread the boards once more on the very stage where this Hollywood great made his debut⁶.

　　David Glevence, Sky News, in Ballymena.

1 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

2 albeit   

conj.即使；纵使；虽然

参考例句：

• Albeit fictional,she seemed to have resolved the problem.虽然是虚构的，但是在她看来好象是解决了问题。
• Albeit he has failed twice,he is not discouraged.虽然失败了两次，但他并没有气馁。

3 ethic   

n.道德标准，行为准则

参考例句：

• They instilled the work ethic into their children.他们在孩子们的心中注入了职业道德的理念。
• The connotation of education ethic is rooted in human nature's mobility.教育伦理的内涵根源于人本性的变动性。

4 borough   

n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇

参考例句：

• He was slated for borough president.他被提名做自治区主席。
• That's what happened to Harry Barritt of London's Bromley borough.住在伦敦的布罗姆利自治市的哈里.巴里特就经历了此事。

5 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

6 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。