泰勒·斯威夫特开始走下坡路了？丨《经济学人》精读丨文娱
上个月霉霉发行了新专辑《苦难诗社》，来看看《经济学人》是怎么评价的。
原文我放到平台上了，包括英文原文、中文译文、音频、一键查词功能。扫描下方二维码，即可阅读。
我从中挑选了两段，带大家一起精读。先来看原文：
01
原文
Has Taylor Swift peaked?
The musician is at the height of her commercial, but not her creative, power
On April 19th she released a double album entitled “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology”. Over the course of 31 songs, Ms Swift wields her scalpel and dissects every inch of her recent relationships. Few songwriters have been better at transmuting heartbreak into hits. (“The high”, as she sang on “Blank Space”, has surely always been “worth the pain”.) Unfortunately, on this album, she has eschewed danceable pop for something as downcast as the title implies.
Gone are the irresistibly catchy choruses of “I Knew You Were Trouble” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”, replaced withdreamy synths, muted drums and languorous vocals. Ms Swift can do melancholy and wistfulness well. Yet “The Tortured Poets Department” is mournful without being memorable. For a woman who launched her career as a precocious country-singing teen, her new lyrics sound jarringly immature, with unimaginative rhymes. “Like I lost my twin / Fuck it if I can’t have him,” she sings in “Down Bad”.
02
精读
Has Taylor Swift peaked?
The musician is at the height of her commercial, but not her creative, power
泰勒·斯威夫特是否已达巅峰？
这位音乐家在商业上处于巅峰，但创作上并非如此。
at the height of 是很常见的表达，意思是“在…的鼎盛时期”，常见搭配有：
at the height of his career
at the height of their fame
《经济学人》中有篇“法国总统访美”的文章中就出现了这个表达：
In 1960, at the height of the cold war, Charles de Gaulle made a speech before the American Congress that won him a standing ovation.
1960 年，在冷战最激烈的时候，戴高乐在美国国会发表了一次演讲，赢得了全场起立鼓掌。
commercial 和 creative 是并列的关系，共同修饰后面的名词 power，commercial power 指“商业影响力”，creative power 指“创作影响力”。
On April 19th she released a double album entitled “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology”.
4月19日，泰勒斯威夫特发行了双专辑《苦难诗社：选集》。
entitle 意思是“给…命名”，「entitled+名字」常作为后置定语，放在名词后面，修饰前面的名词，比如：
a documentary entitled "The Price of Perfection"
一部名为《完美的代价》的纪录片
所以文中 a double album entitled “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology” 的意思是：名为《苦难诗社：选集》的双专辑。
torture 是动词，意思是“折磨”，可以指肉体和精神上的折磨，同义替换有 torment、afflict 等，看几个例句：
At times the memories returned to torment her.
有时，她再度想起往事，又会痛苦万分。
There are two main problems which afflict people with hearing impairments.
听力有障碍的人们主要受到两大问题的困扰。
“灾区”就可以用 the afflicted areas 表示，“患某种疾病”可以说 be afflicted with a disease.
霉霉新专辑名字 The Tortured Poets Department 翻译成“苦难诗社”，与电影《死亡诗社》的英文名 Dead Poets Society 结构相似。Society 有“社团、协会”的意思，如：
a member of the drama society
剧社成员
Anthology 可以从构词角度去理解，前缀“anth-”表示 flower 花，“-log”表示“摘，拾，收集”，此处用摘花比喻选出好的文章，所以 anthology 意思是指故事、诗、歌曲等的“选集”，如：
an anthology of American literature
美国文学选集
Over the course of 31 songs, Ms Swift wields her scalpel and dissects every inch of her recent relationships.
在这31首歌曲中，斯威夫特挥舞着手术刀，一寸寸剖析了她最近的恋情。
这里的 course 是 of course 的 course 也是 take a course (课程）的 course，在这里指：a period of time or process during which something happens “过程、时期”。
during / in / throughout / over the course of sth 是固定搭配，表示“在…时期”，如：
During the course of our conversation, it emerged that Bob had been in prison.
我们在谈话过程中得知鲍勃坐过牢。
wield 意思是“挥、操（刀）”，比如假期中拿着相机拍照的游客，就是 camera-wielding tourists：
wield 还可以引申为“运用、行使（权力等）”，搭配有 wield power / influence / authority 拥有并使用权力/影响/权威等。看一个《经济学人》里的例句：
But as games expand and spill into other formats, it is becoming clear that whoever dominates gaming is going to wield clout in every form of communication.
但如今游戏行业在不断扩张，并蔓延至其他媒介形式，这已然显露出一个事实，谁主宰了游戏，谁将主宰任何形式的通讯。
scalpel /'skælp(ə)l/ 是“手术刀，解剖刀”的意思，wield her scalpel 就是“拿着手术刀、挥舞着手术刀”。
dissects every inch of her recent relationships 中，dissect 本义是 to cut up a dead person, animal or plant in order to study it “解剖(人或动植物)”，引申为 to study sth closely and / or discuss it in great detail “仔细研究、详细评论、剖析”，美剧《亿万》中出现过这个词：
I should have looked at every contract Taylor ever worked on. Dissected every move.
我应该好好检查泰勒起草的每一份合同，逐条分析。
文中 dissects every inch of her recent relationships 意思是：细致地剖析了她最近的恋情。
Few songwriters have been better at transmuting heartbreak into hits. (“The high”, as she sang on “Blank Space”, has surely always been “worth the pain”.)
很少有词曲作者能比她更擅长将心碎变成热门歌曲。（正如她在《Blank Space》中唱的那样，“快乐”总是“值得付出痛苦”。）
transmute into 意思是 to change, or make sth change, into sth different 使…变成…，相当于 change… into、transform… into 或 convert… into。这个表达当 sth 作主语时，既可以用主动，也可以用被动，比如，被动用法：
It was once thought that lead could be transmuted into gold.
有人曾经认为铅可以变成黄金。
再看主动用法：
She ceased to think, as anger transmuted into passion...
当怒火转化为激情，她停止了思考。
hit 我们在公众号里讲过很多次了，作名词，指电影、歌曲、书籍的“热门作品”，transmuting heartbreak into hits 意思是：将心碎变成热门歌曲。
霉霉的这种天赋真的让我狠狠羡慕了，我要是在伤心的时候能疯狂写课就好了。
as she sang on “Blank Space” 意思是：正如她在《Blank Space》中唱的那样。在句中是一个插入语。
Unfortunately, on this album, she has eschewed danceable pop for something as downcast as the title implies.
不幸的是，在这张专辑中，她避开了欢快的流行曲风，取而代之的是一种比较阴郁的风格，就像专辑名字中体现的那样。
eschew 意思是 to deliberately avoid or keep away from sth “(有意地)避开，回避，避免”，文中 eschewed danceable pop 意思是：避开了欢快的流行曲风、避开了唱跳的流行歌曲。
同义替换有：
1）avoid
She carefully avoided his eyes (=did not look directly at his face).
她小心地避开他的目光。
2）shun
She was shunned by her family when she remarried.
她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
3）dodge
He ran across the courtyard, dodging a storm of bullets.
他跑过院子，躲避着雨点般的子弹。
4）fight shy of
Many women fight shy of motherhood.
许多女性不愿做母亲。
5）shirk
parents who shirk their responsibilities towards their children
逃避教养子女的责任的父母
6）refrain from
He appealed to all factions to refrain from violence.
他呼吁所有派系避免使用暴力。
7）duck (out of)
He just managed to duck out of sight.
他总算躲开了别人的视线。
for something as downcast as the title implies，这里的 for 表示方向，eschew A for B，逃避A而选择B。
as downcast as the title implies 修饰前面的 something，意思是：专辑名字体现得那样忧郁。
downcast 形容人或表情时，意思是 sad or depressed，看个例句：
A group of downcast men stood waiting for food.
一群人垂头丧气地站在那儿等着吃饭。
也可以用 dejected 替换，如：
She looked so dejected when she lost the game.
她输掉比赛时情绪显得非常低落。
03
泛读
Gone are the irresistibly catchy choruses of “I Knew You Were Trouble” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”, replaced with dreamy synths, muted drums and languorous vocals. Ms Swift can do melancholy and wistfulness well. Yet “The Tortured Poets Department” is mournful without being memorable. For a woman who launched her career as a precocious country-singing teen, her new lyrics sound jarringly immature, with unimaginative rhymes. “Like I lost my twin / Fuck it if I can’t have him,” she sings in “Down Bad”.
像《I Knew You Were Trouble》和《We are Never Ever Getting Back Together》中那样令人难以抗拒的朗朗上口的副歌已经不复存在，取而代之的是梦幻的合成器声、柔和的鼓声和慵懒的唱腔。斯威夫特女士善于演绎忧郁和伤感。然而，《苦难诗社》虽然哀伤，却未能给人留下深刻印象。她天资聪慧，年纪轻轻就以乡村歌手的身份出道，但这次的新歌词却听起来很不成熟，韵也欠缺想象力。她在《Down Bad》中唱道：“好似我失去了一位孪生姐妹/如果我不能拥有他，也无所谓了。”
这段话我们简单讲一下：
第一句：
catchy：pleasing and easily remembered “悦耳易记的”，如：
a catchy tune / slogan
容易上口的乐曲 / 口号
chorus 指“副歌”，如：
Everyone joined in the chorus.
唱到副歌时，大家都跟着齐唱起来。
dreamy 形容音乐指“恬静的”，synths 指“音响合成器”。
muted 形容声音指“静静的、减轻的”，muted drums 就是“柔和的鼓声”。
languorous 类似 lazy, relaxed，表示“懒洋洋的、慢悠悠的”，如：
languorous morning coffees on the terrace.
清晨在露台上悠然自得地啜着咖啡
文中 languorous vocals 就是“慵懒的唱腔”的意思。
第二句：Ms Swift can do melancholy and wistfulness well
do…well：把…做得很好。
melancholy 是不可数名词，指“忧郁、伤悲”，wistfulness 的形容词是 wistful “伤感的”，如：
a wistful smile
伤感的微笑
第三句：Yet “The Tortured Poets Department” is mournful without being memorable.
mournful 相当于 very sad，和前面的 melancholy、wistfulness 指的都是同一种情绪。
memorable 同 unforgettable，指“值得纪念的、难忘的”。
这句话意思是说，这部专辑虽然忧伤，但没给人留下深刻印象。
再看第四句：For a woman who launched her career as a precocious country-singing teen, her new lyrics sound jarringly immature, with unimaginative rhymes.
launch one's career 指“开启一个人的职业生涯”。
precocious 意思是 having developed particular abilities and ways of behaving at a much younger age than usual，形容人的能力、行为很早就成熟了，可以翻译成“早熟的、智慧超前的”，如：
From an early age she displayed a precocious talent for music.
她年纪轻轻就表现出不凡的音乐天赋。
文中 launched her career as a precocious country-singing teen 是说，泰勒年纪轻轻 (precocious) 就以乡村少女歌手的身份 (as a country-singing teen) 开启了职业生涯 (launched her career)。
再从写作角度看一下这段话，第一句 Gone are the irresistibly catchy choruses of “I Knew You Were Trouble” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”, replaced with dreamy synths, muted drums and languorous vocals.
这里面蕴含一个写作句型：Gone are the XX, replaced with YY.
这个句型可以用来描述变化，一个事物消失，被另一个事物取代。
比如，在教育领域，传统的填鸭式教学已被淘汰，取而代之的是互动式学习方法：
Gone are the days of traditional rote learning methods in education, replaced with interactive and experiential learning approaches.
在教育领域中，传统的死记硬背式学习方法已经一去不复返，取而代之的是互动式和体验式的学习方法。
再比如，在“保护传统建筑”的作文中，当我们谈到传统建筑物被拆除，取而代之的是高楼大厦，我们可以这样说：
Gone are the old neighborhoods, replaced with modern skyscrapers and malls, meaning the neglect of the preservation of our cultural heritage.
古老的街区消失了，取而代之的是现代摩天大楼和购物中心，这意味着我们忽视了文化遗产的保护。
后面几段中《经济学人》给出的评价有：
the songs are underwhelming and samey 这些歌曲乏善可陈，千篇一律。
tunes are bland 曲调平淡无奇。
lengthy 冗长。
short of her usual standard 达不到她平时的水准。
the lustre is fading 光芒正在消退。
总之，都是些负面的评价。
网友的评价也是两极分化很严重。但是作为一个文字工作者，我对旋律方面的不抓耳倒不在意，更关注霉霉在这张专辑中袒露出她不为人知的心灵低谷，尤其是仔细读了她在社交媒体上发布的类似“发刊词”的一段话之后，我很愿意认真聆听她诉说的每一个心灵破碎的瞬间。下面，大家一起来欣赏一下霉霉优美的“发刊词”吧：
The Tortured Poets Department. An anthology of new works that reflect events, opinions and sentiments from a fleeting and fatalistic moment in time - one that was both sensational and sorrowful in equal measure. This period of the author’s life is now over, the chapter closed and boarded up. There is nothing to avenge, no scores to settle once wounds have healed. And upon further reflection, a good number of them turned out to be self-inflicted. This writer is of the firm belief that our tears become holy in the form of ink on a page. Once we have spoken our saddest story, we can be free of it.
《苦难诗社》这张新专辑记录了一段转瞬即逝、宿命难测那些时刻里的事件、观点和情感——同等程度上既耸人听闻又悲伤欲绝。作者人生中的这段篇章，至此已落下帷幕，宛若尘封的旧宅，门窗紧闭。伤疤愈合之后，便没了复仇之心，恩怨两清。细细反思之下，其中许多伤痛实则是自我造成。笔者坚信，人间泪水，化成文字，便成了圣洁的存在。一旦我们倾诉了心中最悲伤的故事，便能得以释怀。
今天就到这里，感谢阅读！
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