背誦為王第四冊第48課
- 聽力原文
- 參考譯文
信用與現(xiàn)代消費(fèi)者
過去從未像現(xiàn)在這樣大力提倡和宣傳信用。人們被說服去購買金錢，然后又被其他廣告告知用錢買什么。銀行和建房互助會站在這場沖擊波的最前沿，無視個(gè)人欠債對社會結(jié)構(gòu)和支付平衡的影響，而一個(gè)采取放任主義的政府不愿對此承擔(dān)任何責(zé)任。人造的需求和欲望正強(qiáng)加給我們。因?yàn)槭褂玫募夹g(shù)始終很深奧，我們開始相信這些需求是自然的和不可改變的。
我們現(xiàn)在不得不應(yīng)付垃圾郵件、電話銷售，甚至是銷售代表們的強(qiáng)行登門夜訪。新生而繁榮的“奢侈品”市場，通常以信用支付，自然到處都是玻璃器具、瓷器、珠寶和皮邊兒書籍的制造商們在推銷他們的產(chǎn)品以及與其緊密聯(lián)系的“生活方式”。
設(shè)計(jì)師標(biāo)牌已經(jīng)獲得了特殊地位，并發(fā)出一種帶宗教色彩的光環(huán)。不是隨意一條牛仔褲都行，必須是一條有正確標(biāo)牌的牛仔褲。我們不但已經(jīng)被改變?yōu)榱?xí)慣性消費(fèi)者，而且我們越來越根據(jù)物品來定義自己和別人。我們已經(jīng)開始盲目迷戀商品。廣告里的消費(fèi)者形象大多是模式化的，他們必須代表各個(gè)類型的人，以便讓盡可能多的人形成認(rèn)同。
Lesson48 Credit and Modern Consumers
Credit is now being promoted and advertised as never before. People are being persuaded to buy money and then being told by other advertisements what to spend it on. Banks and Building Societies are at the forefront of this onslaught, heedless of the effect of personal debt on the social fabric and the balance of payments and a laissez-faire government refuses to take any responsibility. Artificial needs and desires are being foisted upon us and, because of the employment of evermore sophisticated techniques, we are beginning to believe that they are natural and immutable.
We now have to contend with junk mail, telephone selling and even cold visits by sales representatives to our homes in the evening. There is a new and thriving market for "luxury" goods, often bought on credit, naturally, with the manufacturers of glassware, china, jewellery and leather-bound books promoting their products and the associated "lifestyle" all over the place.
Designer labels have acquired special status and emanated a kind of religious aura. Any pair of jeans will not do; it has to be a pair with the correct label. Not only have we been transmogrified into habitual consumers, but we are increasingly defining ourselves and each other in terms of objects. We have become commodity fetishists. Images of consumers in adverts are largely stereotypes; they have to stand for categories of people in order to strike a bond of identification with as many of us as possible.
forefront 最前部；最前線
onslaught 沖擊
heedless 不注意的；不顧
laissez faire 放任；自由主義
foist 硬賣給；把...強(qiáng)加
evermore 始終
emanate 散發(fā)；發(fā)出,
transmogrify 使變形；使改變
fetishist 物神崇拜者
Credit is now being promoted and advertised as never before. People are being persuaded to buy money and then being told by other advertisements what to spend it on. Banks and Building Societies are at the forefront of this onslaught, heedless of the effect of personal debt on the social fabric and the balance of payments and a laissez-faire government refuses to take any responsibility. Artificial needs and desires are being foisted upon us and, because of the employment of evermore sophisticated techniques, we are beginning to believe that they are natural and immutable.
We now have to contend with junk mail, telephone selling and even cold visits by sales representatives to our homes in the evening. There is a new and thriving market for "luxury" goods, often bought on credit, naturally, with the manufacturers of glassware, china, jewellery and leather-bound books promoting their products and the associated "lifestyle" all over the place.
Designer labels have acquired special status and emanated a kind of religious aura. Any pair of jeans will not do; it has to be a pair with the correct label. Not only have we been transmogrified into habitual consumers, but we are increasingly defining ourselves and each other in terms of objects. We have become commodity fetishists. Images of consumers in adverts are largely stereotypes; they have to stand for categories of people in order to strike a bond of identification with as many of us as possible.
forefront 最前部；最前線
onslaught 沖擊
heedless 不注意的；不顧
laissez faire 放任；自由主義
foist 硬賣給；把...強(qiáng)加
evermore 始終
emanate 散發(fā)；發(fā)出,
transmogrify 使變形；使改變
fetishist 物神崇拜者
