2014年ESL之日常生活 20 Types of Vandalism

 

Types of Vandalism

Jim: Did you hear what happened to the Romeros? 

Helene: No, what? 

Jim: They went on vacation for a week and vandals broke a couple of windows in the back of their house and tagged their living room walls with graffiti. 

Helene: That’s terrible! There are always punks who like to egg houses in this neighborhood for fun, but this is much more serious. 

Jim: I think things are getting out of hand. Every week or two, we hear of incidents of people having their tires slashed¹ or their cars keyed. 

Helene: And the Jamisons had their flowerbeds trampled² and a small fire set on their lawn three weeks ago. This neighborhood is really going downhill. 

Jim: What should we do about it? 

Helene: What do you mean? 

Jim: I think we should start patrolling the streets at night. 

Helene: You mean organize a neighborhood watch? Wouldn’t that be dangerous? 

Jim: If you’re worried, when you see something suspicious, call the police. 

Helene: And you think they’ll come in time to catch them? The police aren’t known for quick response times in this neighborhood. 

Jim: Then we’ll go after them ourselves. 

Helene: You mean be vigilantes? I’m not sure that would be wise. 

Jim: Why not? If Clint Eastwood can do it, so can I. Go ahead, punk, make my day! 

 

Script by Dr. Lucy Tse 

1 slashed   

v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
• He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 trampled   

踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯

参考例句：

• He gripped his brother's arm lest he be trampled by the mob. 他紧抓着他兄弟的胳膊，怕他让暴民踩着。
• People were trampled underfoot in the rush for the exit. 有人在拼命涌向出口时被踩在脚下。