VOA文化艺术2022--英国“鲨鱼屋”成为受保护的地标

 

Britain’s ‘Shark House’ Becomes Protected Landmark¹

A famously strange statue in the city of Oxford², England recently received official protection as a historic landmark. But, Magnus Hanson-Heine, the son of the man who built the artwork, is not happy about the special recognition.

But first, about that statue: It is a 7.6 meter tall model of a shark. The strange part is in the sculpture's positioning up on the top of the Hanson-Heine house. It appears from the street as if the huge fish dove straight through the home's roof.

Magnus Hanson-Heine's father, Bill, put up the sculpture in 1986 as a protest against war and nuclear weapons. He worked on the art project with his friend, sculptor³ John Buckley.

Bill Heine was an American who studied law at the University of Oxford and made the town his home. He got the idea for the sculpture after he heard American warplanes fly over his house one night in April 1986. The next morning, he learned that the planes had been on their way to bomb Tripoli, Libya.

The men put the sculpture on display on August 9 to mark the 41st anniversary of the atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima, Japan.

The image of a shark crashing through the home captured the shock civilians⁴ must feel when bombs smash into their homes, Magnus Hanson-Heine said.

Bill Heine died in 2019.

Magnus Hanson-Heine calls the local government's declaration about the sculpture "absurd." His father, he explained, never sought nor accepted permission to put up the shark. In fact, he strongly believed, his son said, that the government should not decide what art the public should see.

And, Hanson-Heine noted⁵, the same local council that has declared the shark historic and protected, had spent years seeking its removal.

The shark's anti-war message is just as important today, Hanson-Heine said, as Russian bombs fall on Ukraine.

"That's obviously something that the people in Ukraine are experiencing right now in very real time," he said.

While that message is serious, the strange sculpture that rises over the otherwise normal street incites⁶ some fun and laughter as well.

Especially when someone asks about the model shark's unseen head. The story is that it crashed through to just above the toilet.

That, a laughing Magnus Hanson-Heine said, is a myth.

Words in This Story

roof –n. the cover or top of a building or vehicle

sculpture – n. a piece of art that is made by molding or carving⁷ clay, stone, metal, etc.

city council – n. the group of people who make rules for a city

absurd – adj. extremely silly, foolish or ridiculous

toilet– n. a large bowl that is attached to a pipe that is used for getting rid of bodily waste and then flushed with water

myth– n. an idea or story that is believed by many people but is not true

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1 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

2 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

3 sculptor   

n.雕刻家，雕刻家

参考例句：

• A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
• The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。

4 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 incites   

刺激，激励，煽动( incite的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• In all countries any person who incites others to insurrection is guilty of treason. 在任何国家里，煽动他人谋反者，都属犯叛国罪。
• The success of the handicapped man incites us to pursue our dreams. 这位残疾人的成功激励我们追求自己的梦想。

7 carving   

n.雕刻品，雕花

参考例句：

• All the furniture in the room had much carving.房间里所有的家具上都有许多雕刻。
• He acquired the craft of wood carving in his native town.他在老家学会了木雕手艺。