Chinese Practice
水漲船高
(shui2 zhang3 chuan2 gao1)
Photo: AFP
照片:法新社
when the water level goes up, all boats rise
英文片語a rising tide lifts all boats一般多認為出自美國前總統甘迺迪於一九六三年發表的演講,意指經濟好時,經濟體中所有人皆可受惠。甘迺迪的演講撰稿人泰德索倫森在其後曾表示這個片語並非甘迺迪或他所創,而是他幾年前在一個地方商會的信紙上看到的。甘迺迪在演講上使用了這個片語,但不是這個片語的創始人。
A rising tide lifts all boats這個說法至今已有至少一世紀的歷史,在美國一九一○年代出版的宗教書報中額為常見。這個片語看似源自於某個臨海的漁村,同樣的濱海意境,與在其一千年前出現的中文成語「水漲船高」有異曲同工之妙。
在西元一千○四年,中國宋朝的釋道原撰寫《景德傳燈錄》,記錄了多名禪師與僧人的禪法。書中提及「水長船高,泥多佛大」。「水漲船高」用於形容某人或事物提升後,連帶讓仰賴其的人或事物也跟著提升。而「泥多佛大」亦可單獨使用,意指深穩的根基或支持能造就成功。
(台北時報編譯涂宇安譯)
這名歌手爆紅後,他的樂團身價也水漲船高,現在有多家唱片公司都想要挖角他們。
(After this singer became very popular, his whole band became really famous, too, and now lots of record companies are looking to poach them.)
英文練習
a rising tide lifts all boats
Former US president John F. Kennedy is often credited with the phrase “a rising tide lifts all boats,” from a speech he made in 1963. The phrase is understood to mean that favorable economic conditions will improve the lot of all participants in that economy. His own speechwriter, Ted Sorensen, later debunked the idea that Kennedy — or he himself for that matter — had come up with the phrase, noting that he had seen it on a regional chamber of commerce letterhead some years earlier. Kennedy did use it, but it didn’t originate with him.
There are numerous references to the phrase in print in religious publications dating to the 1910s in the US, making the phrase at least a century old. You would expect it to have originated, perhaps, in a coastal fishing community. A similar mental image certainly occurred to another writer in a different place and at a different time: in China, 1,000 years ago.
During the Song dynasty, in the year 1004AD, the monk Shi Daoyuan published a book called Complete Record of the Transmission of the Lamp, a record of Ch’an (Zen) masters and other prominent Buddhist monks. In it appear the words 「水長船高,泥多佛大」, meaning “when the water rises, the boats are lifted high; the more clay there is, the larger the Buddha [statue]. The idiom 水漲船高 is now used to express the idea that when a person or object advances, so do the people or things that rely on them. Interestingly, the second part of the phrase, 泥多佛大, can be used as an idiom in its own right, a reference to the importance of support for the success of a venture.
(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
The growing poverty gap in many countries suggests that a rising tide does not, in fact, lift all boats.
(許多國家的貧富差距都在增大,這顯示整體經濟提升並不會改善所有人的生活。)
A: Also, police seized seven pornographic videos featuring minors that entertainer Mickey Huang purchased in his hard disc. B: That’s just outrageous! A: His ex-girlfriend entertainer Little S and some others are calling for a legal amendment to increase the penalty. B: The buyers and sellers should both be punished heavily. A: But the porn sellers’ Web sites are mostly overseas, so they are hard to catch. A: 此外警方也在黃子佼的硬碟裡,查到7部他買的未成年色情片。 B: 真是令人火大! A: 他的前女友小S等人,還呼籲修法,加重相關的罰則。 B: 購買者和販賣者雙方都該重罰。 A: 不過色情網站大多設在海外要抓也不容易吧。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
A: Entertainer Mickey Huang’s #MeToo scandal has kept snowballing. B: Didn’t Huang just escape prosecution on several sexual misconduct charges due to a lack of evidence? A: He has now been accused of raping a woman identified as "Miss K." B: It’s like one trouble follows another! A: His decent “persona” in the showbiz has totally collapsed. A: 藝人黃子佼的#MeToo事件真是沒完沒了。 B: 他的性騷擾案不是因為證據不足獲得不起訴? A: 但他又被某位「K小姐」指控性侵。 B: 天啊,真是一波未平,一波又起! A: 他在娛樂圈的優質「人設」都崩壞啦。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Jumping rope has long been considered an excellent form of exercise. It not only burns calories but also improves cardiovascular health and __1__ core muscles. Anyone who has used a traditional jump rope, though, knows that it requires a certain level of skill and coordination. However, with the development of the cordless jump rope, this is __2__ the case. The cordless jump rope is an innovation in the fitness industry that has gained popularity in recent years. As its name suggests, it doesn’t have a cord connecting the two handles. Instead, each handle features a short cord with a
Let’s explore another delicacy primarily known to Tainan locals: floating milkfish in thick soup. Despite its peculiar name, this dish is another Tainan specialty that showcases the popularity of milkfish, which is made into fish paste and served in thick soup. Unlike the version with tutuo fish, which also adds other ingredients to its thick soup, the floating milkfish version primarily features the “floating fish” itself in its thick soup, ensuring that the fish paste remains the star of the dish. 讓我們來探索另一道台南人熟悉的美食:浮水魚羹。這道菜名奇特的美食,再再展現了台南虱目魚料理的多樣。浮水魚羹是用虱目魚漿做成的羹品,雖然和𩵚魠魚羹一樣是羹湯,但不像𩵚魠魚羹會在湯中加入其他食材,而是讓虱目魚漿成為這道料理的主角。 peculiar (adj.) 獨特的;古怪的 The belly of a milkfish is considered the most