英语PK台 第14期:老人家笃信的餐桌礼仪及传说演绎(2)

 Grace¹’s story: Grandpa’s rules

Grace水草：爷爷的规矩

Dialogue:

This weekend when I went with my parents to my grandparents’ home to eat, I ran into a really distressing² situation.

小祺：这周末我和爸妈去乡下爷爷奶奶家吃饭时，遇到了一件很苦恼的事。

Isn’t the weekend the happiest time of the week for you guys?

小漫：周末不是你们家最开心的每周聚会时间吗？

Oh! My old school grandpa just loves using old rules to get us young people to do things. Especially every time we eat, I get really stressed out.

小祺：哎！我那个老古董爷爷总喜欢用老规矩来要求我们这些小辈，尤其是每次吃饭时让我有些紧张。

What happened?

小漫：发生了什么事？

Yesterday evening when we were eating, I was so hungry I could eat a horse. The second I smelled that delicious rice, I started to wolf it down. I forgot to use my left hand to hold my rice bowl. This really made my grandpa lose it.

小祺：昨天傍晚开饭时，我饿极了，一闻到香喷喷的米饭，就狼吞虎咽地吃了起来，忘记了用左手端起饭碗，这让爷爷突然间很不高兴。

I’ve got some similar experience. I even asked my grandma why old people get angry about this kind of behavior.

小漫：我也有过类似经历，我还特地问过我奶奶为什么老人家会为这个行为生气。

What’d she say?

小祺：求告知。

Chinese people really care about table manners. Take us from Suzhou for example, we have a few specific rules. First, when you eat rice, you have to pick up the rice bowl with your left hand and use your right hand to pick up the food. Second, if the phone rings while you’re eating, you must set the chopsticks on the table and not stick them into your rice. That is really rude!

小漫：中国人非常讲究饭桌上的规矩，拿我们苏州来说吧，具体有这么几条：第一，吃饭时必须左手端饭碗，右手拿筷子夹菜。第二，如果你在吃饭中途接电话，必须把筷子放在桌上，千万不能将筷子插在碗里，这可是非常不礼貌！

It’s that serious?

小祺：这么严重？

Besides these strict etiquette³ examples, there’s also some really interesting ones. For example, when you’re eating, the higher you hold your chopsticks, the further away the woman will live from her parents’ home after she gets married.

小漫：除了这些严肃的礼仪，还有一些有趣的说法呢。比如，在吃饭时，你的手拿筷子的位置越高，意味着你嫁人后会离娘家很远。

That’s a really original saying! Table habits can somehow be a prediction for unmarried people!

小祺：这个说法还真新鲜！饭桌上的习惯竟然成了未来婚姻的预言啊！

Believe it or not, there’s more. If you don’t eat all of the rice in your bowl every time you eat, you’ll end up with a really unattractive partner in the future.

小漫：信不信由你，还有，如果你每次吃饭都没有把碗里的米饭吃干净，那你以后可是会碰到一个满脸麻子的伴侣。

Really?

小祺：真的吗？

Don’t underestimate⁴ how seriously old people take table etiquette. Actually, it’s really worth it to research this. So, Xiao Qi, come on! Let your grandpa see you in a different light!

小漫：你可别小看老人眼里的餐桌上的礼仪，其实还是很值得研究的。所以，小祺，赶快行动起来吧，让你的爷爷刮目相看！

New words for dialogue

Distressing situation = 苦恼的事

Old school = 老古董

So hungry you could eat a horse = 饿极了

Wolf something down = 狼吞虎咽地吃了起来

To lose it = to become very angry 生气了

Table manners = 饭桌上的规矩

Believe it or not =信不信由你

See someone in a different light = 刮目相看

1 grace   

n.优雅，雅致，魅力，恩惠，慈悲

参考例句：

• She is a beautiful girl with the grace and poise.她是一位仪态优雅的佳丽。
• I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。

2 distressing   

a.使人痛苦的

参考例句：

• All who saw the distressing scene revolted against it. 所有看到这种悲惨景象的人都对此感到难过。
• It is distressing to see food being wasted like this. 这样浪费粮食令人痛心。

3 etiquette   

n.礼仪，礼节；规矩

参考例句：

• The rules of etiquette are not so strict nowadays.如今的礼仪规则已不那么严格了。
• According to etiquette,you should stand up to meet a guest.按照礼节你应该站起来接待客人。

4 underestimate   

vt.对...估价过低，低估

参考例句：

• Don't underestimate the role of theory.不要轻视理论的作用。
• I think a lot of people still underestimate him.我觉得很多人仍然低估了他。