然而, 我的父母家境都很貧困,兩個人都沒上過大學(xué),
[00:06.48]took the view that my overactive imagination was an amusing personal quirk,
他們認(rèn)為我過于豐富的想象力是令人驚訝的個人怪癖,
[00:11.44]that would never pay a mortgage, or secure a pension.
根本不足以讓我支付按揭,或者獲得足夠的養(yǎng)老金。
[00:15.48]I know that the irony strikes with the force of a cartoon anvil, now.
我現(xiàn)在明白了反諷就像用卡通鐵砧去打擊你,但......
[00:22.03]So they hoped that I would take a vocational degree; I wanted to study English Literature.
他們希望我取得高職學(xué)位,而我卻想攻讀英國文學(xué)。
[00:27.51]A compromise was reached that in retrospect satisfied nobody,and I went up to study Modern Languages.
最后,我和父母達(dá)成了妥協(xié),我改學(xué)現(xiàn)代語言。
[00:35.30]Hardly had my parents' car rounded the corner at the end of the road,
現(xiàn)在回想起來,當(dāng)時雙方都不怎么滿意。
[00:39.04]than I ditched German and scuttled off down the Classics corridor.
于是,父母的車剛一開遠(yuǎn),我就丟下德語,去學(xué)習(xí)古典文學(xué)。
[00:44.21]I cannot remember telling my parents that I was studying Classics;
我不記得告訴過父母自己在學(xué)習(xí)古典文學(xué),
[00:48.27]they might well have found out for the first time on graduation day.
他們可能是在我畢業(yè)典禮那天才知道的。
[00:53.19]Of all the subjects on this planet, I think they would have been hard put to name one less useful,
我想,他們也許認(rèn)為,在全世界所有專業(yè)中,不會有比研究希臘神話更沒用的專業(yè)了,
[00:59.42]than Greek mythology when it came to securing the keys to an executive bathroom.
那甚至無法換來一間獨立寬敞的衛(wèi)生間。
[01:06.35]I would like to make it clear, in parenthesis, that I do not blame my parents for their point of view.
在這里我想說明一點:我不會因為父母的觀點而責(zé)怪他們。
[01:12.56]There is an expiry date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction;
不要因為父母給你的人生路指錯了方向就無休止地埋怨他們。
[01:17.01]the moment you are old enough to take the wheel, responsibility lies with you.
當(dāng)你到了一定年齡,可以自己把握人生時,就應(yīng)該自己承擔(dān)責(zé)任。