美国国家公共电台 NPR Hulu's 'Harlots' Follows Prostitutes In 18th Century London

 

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

A new British costume drama debuts¹ on Hulu tonight, but if this genre² is not your cup of tea, don't tune³ out just yet. This is not "Masterpiece Theater." The series, called "Harlots," follows a female brothel owner and her daughters in 18th century London. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says the show's producers have excelled at crafting a modern story about the world's oldest profession. And we should warn you. This story does have some frank language about sex.

ERIC DEGGANS, BYLINE⁴: From the first episode, the action in "Harlots" poses a bold question. What would a TV show about prostitution look like if the creators and producers were mostly female?

(LAUGHTER)

DEGGANS: What it isn't, especially in the opening moments, is subtle. Consider this scene where the ladies working in the brothel are reading reviews at their services in a book published in 1763 written as a sort of Yelp⁵ for prostitution.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "HARLOTS")

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS #1: (As character) Let's see what's in here about you girls. Ms. Fanny Lambert - the very thing in winter for those who love a fat, jolly girl. A fine, bouncing, crummy wench - and not a miss in summer barring perspiration⁶.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS #2: (As character, laughter).

BRONWYN JAMES: (As Fanny Lambert) Does it say I stink⁷?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS #3: (As character) Perspire⁸ doesn't mean stink.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS #4: (As character) Yeah, it does.

DEGGANS: "Harlots" is a show created by two women, Moira Buffini and Alison Newman. Unlike most shows, "Harlots" features a mostly female creative team of producers, directors and writers. The result is a series that avoids the temptation of focusing on nude⁹ bodies and sex, which is arguably the way male producers have treated prostitutes in shows like "Game Of Thrones" and "Deadwood."

Instead, we see Oscar nominee¹⁰ Samantha Morton as Margaret Wells. She's a madam who sees prostitution as a route to financial independence at a time when women had to surrender their wealth to their husbands when they got married. And she's not above teasing a rich customer by previewing when she will auction¹¹ off her teenage daughter's virginity.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "HARLOTS")

SAMANTHA MORTON: (As Margaret Wells) I'm soon taking a fine new house. When we're settled there, I'll be taking sealed bids for Lucy's virginity.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As character) Twenty-five pounds to have her now.

MORTON: (As Margaret Wells) Sealed bids, as I did for Charlotte, my older daughter. She's one of the brightest stars in London's firmament¹², and I intend no less for Lucy.

DEGGANS: These aren't exactly hookers with a heart of gold, but from Margaret's point of view, she's done her daughter Lucy a great service. She's waited to induct her into the business even though she herself was sold to a madam at a much younger age.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "HARLOTS")

MORTON: (As Margaret Wells) My mother took me down (unintelligible) Lane. She'd spent every last farthing on her gin, the slut. She sold me to a bawd for a pair of shoes. I was 10.

DEGGANS: "Harlots" is mostly about women making supremely¹³ difficult choices at a time when they had few options. According to a graphic¹⁴ at the beginning of the first episode, 1 in 5 women worked in the profession in England at that time. It's kind of the anti-"Downton Abbey."

That point's driven home when you see "Downton" alum Jessica Brown Findlay - she played doomed¹⁵ daughter Sybil Crawley on that show - as Margaret Wells' older daughter, Catherine (ph). Here, Catherine speaks up for her mother, who's on trial for running a disreputable bawd or brothel.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "HARLOTS")

JESSICA BROWN FINDLAY: (As Charlotte) We are pursued and harried¹⁶ like prey¹⁷.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS #5: (As character) That's right, yeah.

FINDLAY: (As Charlotte) My mother protects her girls because the law does not.

(APPLAUSE)

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS #6: (As character) Charlotte, sit down.

FINDLAY: (As Charlotte) She is the exemplar of all the bawds in London.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As character) In your own words, you have admitted that your mother is a common bawd.

DEGGANS: Whoops¹⁸ - maybe she would have been better off keeping quiet just then. The show cheekily explores lots of topics, from the tension between religion and sex to the patriarchal power of a culture where men could plan their trips to the brothels right in front of their wives. Most importantly, this show created with a female gaze keeps its sights set on the humanity of its female characters despite their struggles working in an inhumane business. I'm Eric Deggans.

(SOUNDBITE OF LITTLE COMETS SONG, "WESTERN BOY")

1 debuts   

演员首次演出( debut的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He never really debuts the idea of taking money from his parents any longer. 他从此就再也没有认真起过向父母要钱的念头。
• This young soprano debuts next month at the metropolitan opera. 这位年轻的女高音歌唱家下个月将在纽约大都会歌剧院举行首演。

2 genre   

n.(文学、艺术等的)类型，体裁，风格

参考例句：

• My favorite music genre is blues.我最喜欢的音乐种类是布鲁斯音乐。
• Superficially,this Shakespeare's work seems to fit into the same genre.从表面上看， 莎士比亚的这个剧本似乎属于同一类型。

3 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 yelp   

vi.狗吠

参考例句：

• The dog gave a yelp of pain.狗疼得叫了一声。
• The puppy a yelp when John stepped on her tail.当约翰踩到小狗的尾巴，小狗发出尖叫。

6 perspiration   

n.汗水；出汗

参考例句：

• It is so hot that my clothes are wet with perspiration.天太热了，我的衣服被汗水湿透了。
• The perspiration was running down my back.汗从我背上淌下来。

7 stink   

vi.发出恶臭；糟透，招人厌恶；n.恶臭

参考例句：

• The stink of the rotten fish turned my stomach.腐烂的鱼臭味使我恶心。
• The room has awful stink.那个房间散发着难闻的臭气。

8 perspire   

vi.出汗，流汗

参考例句：

• He began to perspire heavily.他开始大量出汗。
• You perspire a lot when you are eating.你在吃饭的时候流汗很多。

9 nude   

adj.裸体的；n.裸体者，裸体艺术品

参考例句：

• It's a painting of the Duchess of Alba in the nude.这是一幅阿尔巴公爵夫人的裸体肖像画。
• She doesn't like nude swimming.她不喜欢裸泳。

10 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

11 auction   

n.拍卖；拍卖会；vt.拍卖

参考例句：

• They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
• They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。

12 firmament   

n.苍穹；最高层

参考例句：

• There are no stars in the firmament.天空没有一颗星星。
• He was rich,and a rising star in the political firmament.他十分富有，并且是政治高层一颗冉冉升起的新星。

13 supremely   

adv.无上地，崇高地

参考例句：

• They managed it all supremely well. 这件事他们干得极其出色。
• I consider a supremely beautiful gesture. 我觉得这是非常优雅的姿态。

14 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

15 doomed   

命定的

参考例句：

• The court doomed the accused to a long term of imprisonment. 法庭判处被告长期监禁。
• A country ruled by an iron hand is doomed to suffer. 被铁腕人物统治的国家定会遭受不幸的。

16 harried   

v.使苦恼( harry的过去式和过去分词 )；不断烦扰；一再袭击；侵扰

参考例句：

• She has been harried by the press all week. 整个星期她都受到新闻界的不断烦扰。
• The soldiers harried the enemy out of the country. 士兵们不断作骚扰性的攻击直至把敌人赶出国境为止。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

18 whoops   

int.呼喊声

参考例句：

• Whoops! Careful, you almost spilt coffee everywhere. 哎哟！小心点，你差点把咖啡洒得到处都是。
• We were awakened by the whoops of the sick baby. 生病婴儿的喘息声把我们弄醒了。