“公鸭嗓”成英国年轻女性新风尚

 Females are adopting a croaky drawl known as ‘vocal¹ fry’ and showcased by the likes of many US celebrities² including reality TV stars the Kardashian family.

女性如今都爱拉长调子用沙哑的声音说话，俗称“气泡音”。许多美国名人都这么说话，包括真人秀明星卡戴珊姐妹。

Their voices are also getting lower thanks to the linguistic³ phenomenon - perhaps reflecting the need to compete with men in the workplace.

这一语言现象还让这些女性的声音变得更低沉，也许反映出在职场上和男性竞争的需要。

One cultural critic complained that it made young women sound like ‘ducks quacking’.

一位文化评论家吐槽说这种风潮让年轻女孩的声音听起来像“鸭子嘎嘎叫”。

公鸭嗓

Paris Hilton and singers Britney Spears and Katy Perry are among other celebrities who pepper their speech with guttural growls⁴ and the style of speaking is becoming increasingly popular in the UK.

帕丽斯?希尔顿、歌手布兰妮和凯蒂?佩里等名人在说话时都会时不时发出这种低沉的喉音，这种说话风格在英国正变得越来越流行。

Also known as creaky voice, it involves elongating⁵ certain syllables⁶ so that they vibrate at the back of the throat, creating a tapping sound like a stick running along a railing.

这种声音也叫作“紧喉音”，发音时拉长特定音节，这样就会让喉咙深处发出颤音，产生一种像棍子一边移动一边敲击栏杆的哒哒声。

With vocal fry, the phrase ‘no way’ becomes ‘no waaaaaaay’ and ‘whatever’ turns into ‘whateverrrrrr’.

用“气泡音”说话，短语no way（绝不）就变成了no waaaaaaay，whatever（无论什么）就变成了whateverrrrrr。

Louisiana State University researchers said that women think that lower voices make them seem more masculine and so better able to take on men in the workplace.

路易斯安那州立大学的研究人员称，女性认为低沉的声音让她们听上去更阳刚，这样才能更好地在工作中与男性竞争。

However, while the vocal quirk⁷ hasn’t done Kim Kardashian’s career any harm, many believe it carries negative connotations.

不过，虽然这种嘎嘎嗓没有给金?卡戴珊的事业造成任何损害，但许多人认为这种声音带有负面含义。

One study found that women with the speech pattern sound less competent and less employable.

一项研究发现，这么说话的女性听起来能力较差，而且较不适宜被雇用。

The Society of Teachers of Speech and Drama has gone so far as to describe it as a speech impediment.

演讲及戏剧教师协会甚至将其称作一种语言障碍。

Chairman Cally Foster said: ‘It seems extraordinary that, having fought hard for the right to be heard, women risk not being listened to, or taken seriously, by adopting a speech impediment - one that is at best laughable, at worst vocally⁸ damaging.’

该协会主席卡莉?福斯特说：“这看起来真让人匪夷所思。女性费力争取了这么多年，就为了让自己的声音能被听到，而现在女性却时兴这种语言障碍，这将让女性面临得不到倾听或认真对待的风险。这种语言障碍往最好的方面说就是可笑，往最差的方面说则会损害声带。”

看小编描述了半天，还是对这种“公鸭嗓”没有概念，那就一起来看一段“水果姐”凯蒂·佩里视频吧！

1 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

2 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

3 linguistic   

adj.语言的，语言学的

参考例句：

• She is pursuing her linguistic researches.她在从事语言学的研究。
• The ability to write is a supreme test of linguistic competence.写作能力是对语言能力的最高形式的测试。

4 growls   

v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的第三人称单数 )；低声咆哮着说

参考例句：

• The dog growls at me. 狗向我狂吠。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The loudest growls have echoed around emerging markets and commodities. 熊嚎之声响彻新兴的市场与商品。 来自互联网

5 elongating   

v.延长，加长( elongate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The original structure of three-rolls piercing-elongating mill is improved. And good results have been achieved. 对原有三辊联合穿轧机结构上存在的问题进行了改进设计，并取得良好效果。 来自互联网
• The torch can bring higher arc voltage with lower fluctuation by elongating the arc. 该喷枪能够提高电弧电压并减小电弧电压波动。 来自互联网

6 syllables   

n.音节( syllable的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a word with two syllables 双音节单词
• 'No. But I'll swear it was a name of two syllables.' “想不起。不过我可以发誓，它有两个音节。” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

7 quirk   

n.奇事，巧合；古怪的举动

参考例句：

• He had a strange quirk of addressing his wife as Mrs Smith.他很怪，把自己的妻子称作史密斯夫人。
• The most annoying quirk of his is wearing a cap all the time.他最令人感到厌恶的怪癖就是无论何时都戴著帽子。

8 vocally   

adv. 用声音, 用口头, 藉著声音

参考例句：

• She is not SCREAMER or MOANER - She is VOCALLY APPRECIATIVE. 她并不乱叫或发牢骚，只是用声音表示喜怒。
• The left has been vocally against. 左派力量一直竭力声讨。