英语沙龙：与历史最相左的电影(1)

The Most Historically Inaccurate¹ MoviesⅠ

10 000 B.C.

Director Roland Emmerich is usually a stickler² for realism. So we hate to inform him that woolly mammoths were not, in fact, used to build pyramids. Woolly mammoths weren't even found in the desert. They wouldn't need to be woolly if that were the case. And there weren't any pyramids in Egypt until 2 500 B.C. or so.

Gladiator

Emperor Commodus was not the sniveling sister-obsessed creep portrayed³ in the movie. A violent alcoholic⁴, sure, but not so whiny⁵. He ruled ably for over a decade rather than ineptly⁶ for a couple months. He also didn't kill his father, Marcus Aurelius, who actually died of chickenpox. And instead of being killed in the gladiatorial arena⁸, he was murdered in his bathtub.

300

Though this paean⁹ to ancient moral codes and modern physical training is based on the real Battle of Thermopylae, the film takes many stylistic liberties. The most obvious one being Persian king Xerxes was not an 8-foot-tall leader. The Spartan¹⁰ council, was made up of men over the age of 60, with no one as young as Theron (played by 37-year-old Dominic West). And the warriors¹¹ of Sparta went into battle wearing bronze armor, not just leather Speedos.

The Last Samurai

The Japanese in the late 19th century did hire foreign advisers¹² to modernize¹³ their army, but they were mostly French, not American. Ken⁷ Watanabe's character was based on the real Saigo Takamori who committed ritual suicide, in defeat rather than in a volley of Gatling gun fire. Also, it's doubtful that a 40-something alcoholic Civil War veteran, even one with great hair, would master the chopsticks much less the samurai sword.

Apocalypto

This one movie has given entire anthropology¹⁴ departments migraines. Sure the Maya did have the odd human sacrifice but not to the Sun God, and only high-ranking captives taken in battle were killed. The conquistadors arriving at the end of the film made for unlikely saviors:an estimated 90% of indigenous¹⁵ American population was killed by smallpox¹⁶ from their infected livestock¹⁷.

1 inaccurate   

adj.错误的，不正确的，不准确的

参考例句：

• The book is both inaccurate and exaggerated.这本书不但不准确，而且夸大其词。
• She never knows the right time because her watch is inaccurate.她从来不知道准确的时间因为她的表不准。

2 stickler   

n.坚持细节之人

参考例句：

• She's a real stickler for etiquette,so you'd better ask her advice.她非常讲求礼节，所以你最好问她的意见。
• You will find Mrs. Carboy a stickler about trifles.您会发现卡博太太是个拘泥小节的人。

3 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

5 whiny   

adj. 好发牢骚的, 嘀咕不停的, 烦躁的

参考例句：

• People get rude and whiny when they are exhausted. 人们在精疲力竭的时候会变得粗野，爱发牢骚。
• People get rude and whiny and exacting when they are exhausted. 人在筋疲力尽的时候会变得粗暴、爱发牢骚而苛求。

6 ineptly   

adv. 不适当地，无能地

参考例句：

• Unless the tests are ineptly designed, removing tests will just remove power. 除非测试用例是不熟练的设计，否则去掉测试用例就是去除作用力。
• This function is ineptly left to a small voice. 这项任务不适当地交给了一个声音小的人。

7 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

8 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

9 paean   

n.赞美歌，欢乐歌

参考例句：

• She struck up the first paean on the grand piano.她开始在那架大钢琴上演奏起第一首颂歌。
• The novel is a paean to the end of empire.该小说奏响了一个帝国落寞的赞歌。

10 spartan   

adj.简朴的，刻苦的；n.斯巴达；斯巴达式的人

参考例句：

• Their spartan lifestyle prohibits a fridge or a phone.他们不使用冰箱和电话，过着简朴的生活。
• The rooms were spartan and undecorated.房间没有装饰，极为简陋。

11 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

12 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

13 modernize   

vt.使现代化，使适应现代的需要

参考例句：

• It was their manifest failure to modernize the country's industries.他们使国家进行工业现代化，明显失败了。
• There is a pressing need to modernise our electoral system.我们的选举制度迫切需要现代化。

14 anthropology   

n.人类学

参考例句：

• I believe he has started reading up anthropology.我相信他已开始深入研究人类学。
• Social anthropology is centrally concerned with the diversity of culture.社会人类学主要关于文化多样性。

15 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

16 smallpox   

n.天花

参考例句：

• In 1742 he suffered a fatal attack of smallpox.1742年，他染上了致命的天花。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child?你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

17 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。