【英语趣味课堂】墨西哥的节日-A Mexican Holiday

 Silvia: So talking about Mexican celebrations, is Independence Day and Cinco De Mayo the same thing?

 

Diego: No, no, no. They're very different. Actually, Independence Day is celebrated¹ the 15th and 16th of September and Cinco De Mayo is celebrated the fifth of May.

 

Silvia: And why do people always confuse Cinco De Mayo with Independence Day?

 

Diego: That is a very good question and I don't really have an answer for it, but a lot of my friends who are from different countries, especially Europe and the United States. Every time it's like the 5th of May, they want to celebrate with me as if it were a very, very Mexican holiday, and it's a bit surprising because we don't think it's that important in Mexico.

 

Silvia: So why do you think it got so famous?

 

Diego: I don't know. Maybe it has a catchy² name or something, but the holiday of Cinco de Mayo is basically³ when the Mexican Army won against the French Army, and it was a very unlikely⁴ battle, and it all started because of a French bakery getting burned and we called it like the battle of the cakes.

 

Silvia: That's a funny name.

 

Diego: Yeah, it's a funny name. It's a bit ironic⁵ because it all started out of this little bakery getting burned and then the French declared war with Mexico and then we won so I guess that's why.

 

Silvia: What do they do for that day? In the States I think they celebrate it right?

 

Diego: I think they celebrate it and as you know there's a large community of like Mexican Americans, so they do celebrate and they probably get together, eat and maybe drink a little.

 

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the Lesson

confuse

 

People confuse Cinco De Mayo with Independence Day.

 

We confuse something with another thing when we mix them in our mind. Notice the samples.

 

On TV, I sometimes confuse Arsenal⁶ with Man U. They both wear red uniforms.

In written English, many people confuse ‘effect’ with ‘affect’.

as if

 

People want to celebrate as if it was a Mexican holiday.

 

We use the phrase 'as if ' to show what something or someone is like. Here are two sample sentences.

 

It looks as if it’s going to rain.

you sound as if you are not happy with your new job.

catchy name

 

It has a catchy name.

 

Something that’s catchy is easy to remember. Notice the following.

 

Blackberry is a great phone with a catchy name.

I’m not an Oasis⁷ fan, but their songs sure are catchy.

unlikely

 

It was a very unlikely battle.

 

‘Unlikely’ talks about something we don’t think or expect to happen. Here are two examples using unlikely’:

 

It’s unlikely Team USA will win the World Cup anytime soon.

I didn’t study last night, so it’s unlikely I’ll pass the test today.

declare war

 

The French declared war after the bakery was burned down.

 

In this example, ‘declare war’ means for a government to publicly and officially announce plans to go to war. See the samples below.

 

After the country was attacked, it declared war the next day.

In the United States, the president does not have the power to declare war. He or she must seek the approval⁸ of congress⁹.

1 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

2 catchy   

adj.易记住的，诡诈的，易使人上当的

参考例句：

• We need a new slogan.The old one's not catchy enough.我们需要新的口号，旧的不够吸引人。
• The chorus is very catchy to say the least.副歌部分很容易上口。

3 basically   

adv.基本上，从根本上说

参考例句：

• His heart is basically sound.他的心脏基本上健康。
• Basically I agree with your plan.我基本上同意你的计划。

4 unlikely   

adj.未必的，多半不可能的；不大可能发生的

参考例句：

• It was very unlikely that he would do that.他不见得会做那种事。
• It is unlikely that she will come. 她不大可能来了。

5 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。

6 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

7 oasis   

n.（沙漠中的）绿洲，宜人的地方

参考例句：

• They stopped for the night at an oasis.他们在沙漠中的绿洲停下来过夜。
• The town was an oasis of prosperity in a desert of poverty.该镇是贫穷荒漠中的一块繁荣的“绿洲”。

8 approval   

n.赞成，同意；批准，认可

参考例句：

• The audience has expressed its approval.观众已经认可。
• The teacher signed his approval.老师做了手势表示同意。

9 Congress   

n.(代表)大会；(C-:美国等国的)国会，议会

参考例句：

• There were some days to wait before the Congress.大会的召开还有几天时间。
• After 18 years in Congress,he intented to return to private life.在国会供职18年后，他打算告老还乡。