英国卫报:群众的力量(14)

And a reasonable argument is often made by organisers of cultural festivals that sponsors pay for these things,

文化节的组织者经常会提出合理的理由，认为赞助商会为这些活动买单，

and pay for events such as Notting Hill Carnival¹, Pride and Mela to stay free, and accessible to all.

为诺丁山狂欢节、同志游行等活动出钱，人们就能免费参加，而且所有人都可以参加。

But it's hard not to wonder if something is being lost along the way,

但是很难不去想是否有些东西正在丢失，

in an era when venture capital-backed music video platform Boiler² Room receives Arts Council funding

在这个时代，风投支持的音乐视频平台Boiler Room获得了艺术委员会的资助，

to broker³ Notting Hill Carnival sponsorship deals and live-stream its intimate hedonism to the world;

促成诺丁山狂欢节的赞助协议，并向全世界直播其私密的享乐主义；

or popular, long-standing free community festivals such as south London's Lambeth Country Show suddenly have a heavy security presence, prompting outrage⁴ and boycotts⁵.

或者，存在已久的自由社区节日，比如伦敦南部的兰贝斯乡村音乐节，突然间部署了大量的安保人员，引发了人们的愤怒和抵制。

Perhaps this is too pessimistic. The 21st-century domestication⁶ of the crowd does not in itself snuff out its power.

也许这太悲观了。21世纪对人群的驯化本身并没有消灭人群的力量。

The experience of being part of a crowd can still change us in all manner of unexpected ways.

成为人群中的一员的经历仍能以各种意想不到的方式改变我们。

If one thing should be retained from academics' debunking⁷ of the myth of the crowd as a single beast with one brain and a thousand limbs,

学者们揭穿了大众是一只拥有一个大脑和一千只四肢的单个野兽的真相，如果有一件事需要保留，

it is precisely⁸ that the diversity of the individuals within the crowd is what makes it so vital.

正是群体中个体的多样性使其如此重要。

Far from behaving as one, everyone has different cooperation thresholds for participation⁹,

远不是作为一个人那样行动，每个人都有不同的参与合作门槛，

and there are some who by their nature will always be the first in the pool.

有些人天生就永远是池子里的第一个。

For better or worse, crowds empower more shy or conservative people to do what they might not have done otherwise:

无论是好是坏，人群让那些比较害羞或保守的人能够做他们在别的情况下不会做的事：

to pronounce their political beliefs or proclaim their sexual orientation¹⁰ in public,

公开宣布他们的政治信仰或性取向，

to sing about their heartfelt feelings for Sergio Aguero, to occupy a bank, to throw a brick,

歌唱他们对塞尔吉奥·阿奎罗的深情，占领银行，扔砖头，

to fight with strangers, to dance to Abba in the concourse of a major intercity railway station.

和陌生人打架，在一个主要的城际火车站的大厅里伴着Abba跳舞。

Being a crowd member is not a muscle that will atrophy¹¹ through lack of use –

作为一名群众成员，不是肌肉缺乏使用就会萎缩——

our knack¹² for it, and need for it, has a much longer history than the months we will be required to keep our physical distance.

我们的集会诀窍和集会需求的历史，要比我们需要保持物理距离的几个月时间长得多。

The desire to be part of the crowd is a part of who we are, and it will not be dispersed¹³ so easily.

渴望成为大众的一部分是我们自身的一部分，它不会那么容易被驱散。

1 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

2 boiler   

n.锅炉；煮器(壶，锅等)

参考例句：

• That boiler will not hold up under pressure.那种锅炉受不住压力。
• This new boiler generates more heat than the old one.这个新锅炉产生的热量比旧锅炉多。

3 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

4 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

5 boycotts   

（对某事物的）抵制( boycott的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Their methods included boycotts and court action, supplemented by'sit-ins". 他们的主要方法包括联合抵制、法庭起诉，还附带进行静坐抗议。
• Are boycotts for other purposes illegal? 至于用于其它目的的联合抵制行动是否也是非法的呢？

6 domestication   

n.驯养，驯化

参考例句：

• The first was the domestication of animals. 第一个阶段是驯养动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• In northwestern China, there is no evidence for endemic domestication of any animals. 在中国西北，没有任何当地动物驯化的迹象。 来自辞典例句

7 debunking   

v.揭穿真相，暴露( debunk的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The debunking of religion has been too successful. 对于宗教的揭露太成功了。 来自互联网

8 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

9 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

10 orientation   

n.方向，目标；熟悉，适应，情况介绍

参考例句：

• Children need some orientation when they go to school.小孩子上学时需要适应。
• The traveller found his orientation with the aid of a good map.旅行者借助一幅好地图得知自己的方向。

11 atrophy   

n./v.萎缩，虚脱，衰退

参考例句：

• Patients exercised their atrophied limbs in the swimming pool.病人们在泳池里锻炼萎缩的四肢。
• Many hoped he would renew the country's atrophied political system.很多人都期望他能使该国萎靡的政治体系振作起来。

12 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

13 dispersed   

adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的

参考例句：

• The clouds dispersed themselves. 云散了。
• After school the children dispersed to their homes. 放学后，孩子们四散回家了。