致敬经典：《唐顿庄园》完美落幕

 　　“相聚离开总有时候”，到了《唐顿庄园》谢幕的时候了。虽然六年对一部英剧来说已属不易，可真的到了再见的时候我们还是依依不舍。“唐顿庄园”的主仆们为我们描绘了一场大不列颠版的“红楼梦”，让“唐家屯”那些事儿成为英伦年代剧永恒的经典。

　　It’s a sad week for Downton Abbey fans as the English period drama aired its final episode on Nov 9.

　　对《唐顿庄园》的粉丝来说，这是悲伤的一周，因为11月9日这部英伦古装剧完美谢幕了。

　　Six seasons after it debuted¹ on ITV in 2010, Downton Abbey has attracted fans worldwide with its vivid depiction² of the aristocratic Crawley family and their servants trying to adapt to changing norms in the early 20th century.

　　自2010年在英国独立电视台首播，《唐顿庄园》已经播出了六季，它在全球吸粉无数，生动地描绘了生活在20世纪初的贵族克劳利家族及其仆人们是如何挣扎着试图改变新（生活）规则的。

　　The first episode starts with Lord Grantham losing his heir in the sinking of the Titanic³. Matthew Crawley （Dan Stevens）, a distant cousin, is proclaimed the new heir and falls in love with Lady Mary （Michelle Dockery）, the eldest⁴ daughter of Earl of Grantham.

　　全剧一开始，格兰瑟姆伯爵的家产继承人因泰坦尼克的沉没而死亡。伯爵的远方表兄马修?克劳利（丹?史蒂文斯饰）成为新继承人，而他又爱上了伯爵家的大女儿玛丽小姐。

　　"It’s a surprise to realize how important her [Lady Mary’s] romance was to the success of the series. Her often scandalous love life, belying⁵ her chilly⁶ exterior⁷, kept us hooked,” commented Daily Mail.

　　“很难相信玛丽小姐的感情线会成为剧集成功的关键。她游走于各色男人之间，外表冷漠，却让我们欲罢不能，”《每日邮报》评价道。

　　But that isn’t the only virtue⁸ of Downton Abbey. For fans across the globe, its portrayal⁹ of uptight¹⁰ aristocratic life makes it stand out.

　　不过这可不是《唐顿庄园》的唯一看点。全球剧迷最爱看的还是它刻画的贵族的焦灼生活。

　　The story happens in the post-Edwardian era, when social etiquette¹¹ was held in great regard. There were strict rules for what to wear on certain occasions, how to set a dining room table and even what to eat first.

　　故事发生在爱德华七世末期，当时的社会还十分推崇社交礼节，对特定场合的穿着，餐桌摆设，甚至吃饭的顺序都有严格的规定。

　　These rules may have disappeared over the years, but the drama inside Downton Abbey remains¹² timeless. People are just as anxious about status and family obligation nowadays as they were decades ago, said Anne Mattina, a university professor from Boston, in an article for The Huffington Post.

　　多年后，这些规定已经没有了，但是它们却永远留在了《唐顿庄园》。在《赫芬顿邮报》的一篇文章中，波士顿的大学教授安妮?玛蒂娜说，人们对社会地位和家族责任的重视程度一点也不比十几年前低。

　　Downton Abbey also sheds light on the traditional British social hierarchy¹³ –the upstairs and the downstairs – according to Alison Graham, a British television critic.

　　《唐顿庄园》还（向观众）展示了传统的英国社会等级——贵族和下人，英国电视评论家艾莉森?格雷厄姆说。

　　"Downton Abbey was immaculate, a tidy, self-contained world where everyone knows their place,” she wrote on Radio Times. Though it’s a rather gentle paint of the cruel English social history, it sets “a touchstone for an idea of Britishness”, she commented.

　　她在《广播时报》上写道：“唐顿庄园是一个完美、有序、独立自足的世界，在这里每个人都各司其职。”她补充说，尽管对于残酷的英国社会史，《唐顿庄园》进行了相对温和的描绘，它还是为“大不列颠特征设定了标准”。

　　The Daily Mail agrees on that matter. “Downton Abbey set a new standard, and it’s probable that in 20 or 50 years critics will look back and say that this was period drama at its very best, often imitated but never bettered,” the newspaper commented.

　　《每日邮报》也赞同她的观点。“《唐顿庄园》设定了新的标准，再过20或者50年，评论家们回过头再看它，会感叹其是最棒的年代剧，常常被模仿，但从未被超越，”邮报评价说。

1 debuted   

初次表演，初次登台（debut的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• In late 2003 a full-size SUV, the Pathfinder Armada, debuted. 2003年末，全尺寸SUV的探路者无敌舰队，推出。
• The album debuted at number two and quickly went platinum. 专辑一亮相就荣登排行榜第二名，很快就取得了白金销量。

2 depiction   

n.描述

参考例句：

• Double rhythms, resounding through the lyric depiction and connecting with each other, indicate the thespian place of mankind and the cognition of the writer to this thespian place. 这双重旋律互为表里，表明了人类的某种悲剧性处境以及作家对这种悲剧性处境的感受和认识。
• A realistic depiction of scenes from everyday domestic life. 日常家居生活的写实画。

3 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

4 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

5 belying   

v.掩饰，与…不符，使…失望；掩饰( belie的现在分词 )；证明（或显示）…为虚假；辜负；就…扯谎

参考例句：

• Belying its simple graphic design, a T-shirt is now a symbolic medium for designers. 在T恤上面充满简洁的设计，现在已经成为设计师的一个符号化的媒介。 来自互联网
• Gordon Brown, belying his clunking image, has brought tech-savvy communications staff into Downing Street. 布朗已经把精通技术的通讯工作人员带到的唐宁街。 来自互联网

6 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

7 exterior   

adj.外部的，外在的；表面的

参考例句：

• The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
• We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。

8 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

9 portrayal   

n.饰演；描画

参考例句：

• His novel is a vivid portrayal of life in a mining community.他的小说生动地描绘了矿区的生活。
• The portrayal of the characters in the novel is lifelike.该书中的人物写得有血有肉。

10 uptight   

adj.焦虑不安的，紧张的

参考例句：

• He's feeling a bit uptight about his exam tomorrow.他因明天的考试而感到有点紧张。
• Try to laugh at it instead of getting uptight.试着一笑了之，不要紧张。

11 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。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 hierarchy   

n.等级制度；统治集团，领导层

参考例句：

• There is a rigid hierarchy of power in that country.那个国家有一套严密的权力等级制度。
• She's high up in the management hierarchy.她在管理阶层中地位很高。