Judy的女兒認為美貌是踏上成功之路的捷徑,因此一心想去整容,這讓Judy苦惱不已,她請求女兒從前的老師Matt來做說客……
Judy: Hey Matt!
Matt: Heya Judy!
Judy: Good to see you could make it to the party.
Matt: I wouldnt miss your daughters 18th birthday party!
Judy: Well, you were her favourite teacher at school!
Matt: She hated Maths, didnt she?
Judy: But it was you that helped her pass the exam in the end!
Matt: I guess so. So what did she ask for?
Judy: Youll never guess…
Matt: A brand new car? Does she want a big red 1)convertible to drive around town in with all of her friends? Judy: Hmmm no. ①A little closer to home.
Matt: She wants her bedroom decorated and a brand new 2)wardrobe?
Judy: She wants a totally new image. Youre almost right!
Matt: Oh, I dont know. I give up.
Judy: She wants plastic surgery!
Matt: What? ②Youre pulling my leg!
Judy: Im not!
Matt: She didnt 3)strike me as the type that would ever want to do that!
Judy: Well shes changed!
Matt: She will even more if she has it done!
Judy: Yeah!
Matt: What “work” does she want to have done?
Judy: I think she wants her nose straightened and some liposuction.
Matt: What? But she is so young…and there is nothing wrong with her nose!
Judy: Try telling her that! ③She has her heart set on it.
Matt: Where do you stand on the matter?
Judy: My husband and I dont agree with it at all. If she wants to be thinner she can do what I do and go to the gym!
Matt: Yeah! Its a bit extreme to 4)resort to surgery!
Judy: ④A bit drastic to say the least. But Im not worried.
Matt: Why not?
Judy: She has no money to pay for it!
Matt: Thank goodness!
Judy: Its such a shame that she doesnt understand at 18 that its whats on the inside that matters!
Smart Sentences
① A little closer to home. 接近了。
close to home: having a direct personal effect on sb.(對某人有直接的、切身的影響)。例如:
Her novel about a teenager from a single-parent family was a little close to home for me.
她那部關于一個來自單親家庭青少年的小說與我的生活相似。
② Youre pulling my leg! 你跟我開玩笑吧?
pull sb.s leg: tease sb. by telling him/her/them sth. shocking or worrying as a joke(與某人開玩笑)。例如:
We all knew he was pulling her leg by telling her that he lost their honeymoon plane tickets.
我們都知道他跟她說把他們?nèi)ザ让墼碌臋C票丟了是在逗她玩。
③ She has her heart set on it. 她一心想干這事。
heart set on sth./doing sth.: want sth. or to do sth. very much(一心想得到某物/做某事)。例如:
She has her heart set on Yale.
她一心想讀耶魯大學。
④ A bit drastic to say the least.至少說是有點頭腦發(fā)熱。
to say the least: used to suggest that a situation is actually much more serious than what is said(至少可以說)。例如:His performance last night, to say the least, was passable.
他昨晚的表演至少還算過得去。
⑤ Hopefully shell come round in a few months. 希望她在幾個月內(nèi)會改變。
come round: eventually change ones mind and accept sth. (改主意,轉(zhuǎn)變想法)。例如:
Its hard for him to see the benefits of frugality now, but he will come round soon.
現(xiàn)在很難讓他明白節(jié)儉的好處,但他很快會明白的。
Matt: But I guess todays youth are just obsessed with their image.
Judy: She claims it will help her in job interviews.
Matt: No no no. I do many interviews at my company and we dont care what you look like…its how 5)capable you are that matters!
Judy: I couldnt agree more. But she wont listen to her parents. She wants to look like one of her music idols apparently.
Matt: ⑤Hopefully shell come round in a few months.
Judy: I dont think its just a 6)phase. Ive been trying to tell her that she will regret doing it.
Matt: Kids rarely listen to their parents when they have their heart set on something.
Judy: I have an idea.
Matt: Go on…
Judy: Maybe you could have a little chat with her, you know, try and get this whole plastic surgery thing out of her mind.
Matt: Sure, Id be glad to help.
Judy: ⑥D(zhuǎn)ont make it look like Ive put you up to this!
Matt: Of course not!
Judy: Thanks a million!
⑥ Dont make it look like Ive put you up to this! 別是被我逼的你才這樣做!
put sb. up to sth.: encourage sb. to do sth. he/she will not normally do(讓某人做通常不情愿做的事情)。例如:
Last night, we put Dan up to hanging a scary mask outside Shellys window.我們昨晚慫恿丹去把一個恐怖面具掛在肖莉的窗戶外面。