VOA慢速英语2010年-EXPLORATIONS - From 'Dracula' to 'Twil

VOICE ONE:

I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. Today we get to know more about a famous creature known for its pale skin, pointy teeth and big hunger for human blood. Vampires² have held an important place in the popular imagination since ancient times.

Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson) face facts in "Twilight³"

More recent versions of vampires are in many books, movies and television series. The "Twilight" series of books and movies has increased the popularity⁴ of vampires around the world.

EDWARD: "I'm a killer⁵."

BELLA: "I don't believe that."

EDWARD: "It's because you believe the lie. It's a camouflage⁶. I'm the world's most dangerous predator⁷. Everything about me invites you in. My voice, my face, even my smell. As if I would need any of that. As if you could out run me."

VOICE ONE:

That was a scene from the two thousand eight movie, "Twilight." It tells the story of a teenager named Bella Swan who falls in love with an unusual high school classmate named Edward Cullen. She knows there is something very special about him. He is very strong, very pale, and very cold to the touch. She soon discovers that Edward is a vampire¹.

BELLA: "I'm not afraid of you. I'm only afraid of losing you. I feel like you're going to disappear."

VOICE TWO:

Edward lives with a vampire family that has chosen to drink the blood of animals instead of humans. His family helps Bella when she is threatened by a more dangerous vampire.

The movie stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. It is based on a best-selling book by the American writer Stephenie Meyer. Her "Twilight" series includes four novels: "Twilight", "New Moon", "Eclipse⁸" and "Breaking Dawn." Miz Meyer says that the idea for the first book came from a dream. She dreamt about a young girl and a vampire having an intense discussion while standing⁹ in a forest. She wrote down all the details of her dream and developed it into a full story.

VOICE ONE:

Bella finds a new friend in "New Moon"

The second movie in the series, "New Moon," was released in November. It sold more tickets in its first day than any other American movie in history. It earned over seventy-two million dollars in its first day in theaters. American ticket sales the first weekend it was released made "New Moon" the third best-selling movie on record.

"New Moon" continues the love story between Bella and Edward. But Edward can no longer safely live in the same town as Bella. She is very lonely and sad without Edward. She becomes close friends with a young man who competes for her love and attention.

VOICE TWO:

Long before the "Twilight" series, writer Anne Rice created another popular series of vampire books. Her novel "Interview with a Vampire" has sold millions of copies and was also made into a movie.

Amy Smith teaches English at the University of the Pacific in California. She is an expert on vampires in film and literature. We asked Professor Smith why vampires are so popular in the United States. Professor Smith says that Americans love to see themselves as changeable and inventive. She says these two qualities also define¹⁰ vampires in movies and literature.

Amy Smith says vampires can change from human to animal forms. And if they do not have a traditional coffin¹¹ to sleep in during the day, they can find other answers, such as using a car.

VOICE ONE:

Amy Smith says vampires also adapt to the many local differences across the United States. She says there are city vampires like in the movies "The Addiction¹²" and "Nadja." And, there are sunny California vampires like in the former American television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer¹³."

She says vampires also adapt well to many kinds of movies and books: those that are funny, sad, adventurous¹⁴, scary or for young people.

Professor Smith says one reason the "Twilight" series of books and movies is so popular is that they are not just about finding love. They are about finding never-ending love. Bella has found someone who will love her forever.

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VOICE TWO:

The "Twilight" series is not the only source for good vampire watching these days. The movie "Daybreakers" was released in the United States earlier this month. It stars Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe. This story is set in the future. A virus turns much of the human population into vampires. As humans begin to disappear, the vampires must come up with a way to guarantee their future food supply.

Other recent vampire movies include the American film "Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant", the Swedish film "Let the Right One In" and the Korean film "Thirst."

VOICE ONE:

The American television show "True Blood" tells a more adult version of vampire love than "Twilight." It is about a young woman named Sookie Stackhouse who lives in the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana. She falls in love with Bill Compton, a vampire who lives in the town.

The vampires are not treated very well in this television program. They are fighting for equal rights with humans. In the first season of the show, Sookie's friends are not very happy that she is interested in a vampire.

Anna Paquin plays Sookie Stackhouse in the TV series "True Blood"

SAM: "Sookie, you're being a very stupid girl."

SOOKIE: "Who asked you? I can take care of myself."

SAM: "I don't think so. Matt could have seriously cut you up last night."

SOOKIE: "How do you know what Matt would have done?"

SAM: "Now you're setting up a date with a vampire! What do you have, a death wish?"

SOOKIE: "No, I don't have a death wish. I just happen to think that judging an entire group of people based on the actions of a few individuals within that group is morally wrong."

SAM: "Well, I will not let you put yourself or this bar in danger. I won't."

VOICE TWO:

"True Blood" has completed its second season on the cable channel HBO. Critics say the show has helped reinvent HBO. The channel was struggling to find television shows as popular as its former series, "The Sopranos."

Alan Ball created "True Blood." He has suggested one reason the show is so popular: men and women each find something they like in it. He says women like the storytelling and love scenes. And he says men like the large amount of sex and violence.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

More than one hundred years ago, vampires became popular after the publication of Irish writer Bram Stoker's book "Dracula." It was first published in Britain in eighteen ninety-seven. Mister Stoker did not invent the idea of a vampire. Cultures around the world have their own versions of these blood-sucking creatures. And, Mister Stoker was not the first person to write a story about a vampire. But his book defined¹⁵ one tradition of the vampire story.

Mister Stoker is thought to have based his evil Count Dracula character on a ruler who lived in fifteenth century Romania. Vlad the Impaler¹⁶ was said to have killed tens of thousands of people, including invading members of the Ottoman Empire.

VOICE TWO:

Bram Stoker's "Dracula" is told through the personal writings and letters of its characters. The story begins with the daily observations of a young English lawyer named Jonathan Harker.

He is sent to Transylvania to help a man named Count Dracula settle a property purchase in Britain. But his visit does not go as planned. Harker becomes a prisoner in the vampire's large home. After meeting Dracula's vampire brides, Harker barely¹⁷ escapes alive. The horror story continues when Dracula travels to England. Soon, Jonathan Harker's wife Mina becomes one of his victims.

VOICE ONE:

For many years, Bela Lugosi was everyone's idea of a vampire

Experts say the book explored different social subjects that were especially meaningful to English readers in the late nineteenth century. These include colonialism, immigration, folk culture versus¹⁸ modernity, and women's sexuality.

Count Dracula has been recreated in many plays and movies. One of the most famous, and in some ways the most frightening, is the nineteen twenty-two film "Nosferatu." This silent film was made by the German director F.W. Murnau. The vampire character in this movie, known as Count Orlak, is tall and thin with long pointy fingers.

The famous actor Bela Lugosi played Count Dracula first in the theater, then in a nineteen thirty-one movie version of the book.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Nina Auerbach is a literature professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Her book "Our Vampires, Ourselves" offers another explanation for the continued popularity of vampires. Professor Auerbach describes how the evolution of vampires tells a great deal about a culture's fears, which change over generations.

She shows how vampire stories help express people's cultural, social and political beliefs. Professor Auerbach says these creatures help people escape from the boredom¹⁹ and pressure of life. And she says they are very important because they tell us about our times and ourselves.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This program was written and produced by Dana Demange. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith. You can comment on this and other programs on our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English.

1 vampire   

n.吸血鬼

参考例句：

• It wasn't a wife waiting there for him but a blood sucking vampire!家里的不是个老婆，而是个吸人血的妖精！
• Children were afraid to go to sleep at night because of the many legends of vampire.由于听过许多有关吸血鬼的传说，孩子们晚上不敢去睡觉。

2 vampires   

n.吸血鬼( vampire的名词复数 )；吸血蝠；高利贷者；（舞台上的）活板门

参考例句：

• The most effective weapon against the vampires is avampire itself. 对付吸血鬼最有效的武器就是吸血鬼自己。 来自电影对白
• If vampires existed, don`t you think we would`ve found them by now? 如果真有吸血鬼，那我们怎么还没有找到他们呢？ 来自电影对白

3 twilight   

n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期

参考例句：

• Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
• Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。

4 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

5 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

6 camouflage   

n./v.掩饰，伪装

参考例句：

• The white fur of the polar bear is a natural camouflage.北极熊身上的白色的浓密软毛是一种天然的伪装。
• The animal's markings provide effective camouflage.这种动物身上的斑纹是很有效的伪装。

7 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

8 eclipse   

v.使黯然失色，使相形见绌，日食，月食

参考例句：

• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。
• There will be an eclipse of the moon next month.下个月有月食。

9 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

10 define   

vt.解释，下定义，阐述，限定，规定

参考例句：

• Please define the words.请解释这些字的意义。
• It's hard to define exactly what has changed.很难解释清楚到底发生了什么变化。

11 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

12 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

13 slayer   

n. 杀人者，凶手

参考例句：

• The young man was Oedipus, who thus unknowingly became the slayer of his own father. 这位青年就是俄狄浦斯。他在不明真相的情况下杀死了自己的父亲。
• May I depend on you to stand by me and my daughters, then, deer-slayer? 如此说来，我可以指望你照料我和女儿了，杀鹿人？

14 adventurous   

adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的　

参考例句：

• I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
• He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。

15 defined   

adj 定义的; 清晰的

参考例句：

• These categories are not well defined. 这些类别划分得不太明确。
• The powers of a judge are defined by law. 法官的权限是由法律规定的。

16 impaler   

插入物

参考例句：

• Vlad the Impaler is infamous for his cruel deeds. 弗拉德公爵因其残忍暴行而臭名昭彰。

17 barely   

adv.仅仅，几乎没有，几乎不

参考例句：

• The male bird is barely distinguishable from the female.雄鸟和雌鸟几乎无法辨别。
• He took barely enough money to keep the children in bread.他赚很少的钱仅够孩子们勉强糊口。

18 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

19 boredom   

n.厌烦，厌倦，乏味，无聊

参考例句：

• Unemployment can drive you mad with boredom.失业会让你无聊得发疯。
• A walkman can relieve the boredom of running.跑步时带着随身听就不那么乏味了。