我们生活的这个世界,似乎现实生活中的人深受虚构人物的影响。我们在网络和电视上的所见所闻,以及我们喜爱的小说,形成了我们对这个世界的看法。
An example of this was discovered by BBC radio program Woman’s Hour recently. The show did a poll of listeners’ ideas
近日BBC广播节目《女性时间》就发现了这一点。该节目在听众中做了一项民意调查,询问了他们哪些女性影响英国女性最深,并得出了《影响力榜单》。
Two of the women selected were unsurprising. One was Margaret Thatcher, prime minister of Britain between 1979 and 1990. She was the first female prime minister of the country and dominated British life for over a decade. Others included US singer Beyonce.
入选榜单的这两位女性都在意料之中。一位是1979年-1990年期间担任英国首相的玛格丽特·撒切尔。她是英国历史上的首位女首相,主宰了英国人的生活超过十年之久。另一位则是美国歌手碧昂斯。
One of the other choices was surprising, however. Whereas most of those chosen were real people, a fictional character also made the list. Bridget Jones, creation of British novelist and journalist Helen Fielding, was named as an inspiration to women.
然而,其他的选择却令人感到意外。尽管榜单上的大多数女性都是真实存在的,但一个虚构角色却也跻身其中。布丽吉特·琼斯是英国小说家、记者海伦·菲尔丁笔下的一个人物。她因鼓舞了众多女性而被提名。
Jones featured in Fielding’s newspaper columns, before the author wrote books
琼斯出现在菲尔丁的报纸专栏中,后来这位作家为这一角色创作了几部作品。这些小说大获成功,还被改编成了好几部电影,并由美国女演员蕾妮·齐薇格出演琼斯。
But what makes this character so
但究竟是什么让这一角色对女性如此重要?有人猜测,琼斯受到喜爱是因为她和玛格丽特·撒切尔以及碧昂斯恰恰相反。她只是个普通的女人,一天天地过着自己的小日子,还经常把生活弄得一团糟。琼斯的许多粉丝认为,她的魅力在于“每个人都认识一位布丽吉特·琼斯”,《影响力榜单》的评委艾伊莎·哈扎里加说道。事实上,许多人照镜子时都在自己身上看到了琼斯的影子。
She drinks too much and is rather eccentric.
她经常喝酒,还十分古怪。
Known for her trouble with men, she has a complicated love life. Not only can she not find “Mr Right”, she can’t even find “Mr Half-right”.
琼斯出了名的不擅长与男性交往,感情生活有些复杂。她找不到“真命天子”,就连半个也找不着。
However, the irony of the character is that she is hardly “Mrs Right” herself. Like everyone on the planet, she has her flaws, and this is what makes Jones endearing (讨人喜欢的) to her fans.
然而,讽刺的是,这个人物本身也并非“真命天女”。就像这个星球上的每个人一样,她有着自己的缺点,而这正是粉丝们如此喜欢琼斯的原因。
In a sense, she is an updated version of the heroines of Jane Austen, a writer who created many characters who seem as real as actual people to readers. Fielding even named Jones’ “Mr Right” after Mr Darcy of Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice.
在某种意义上,琼斯就是简·奥斯汀笔下女主角们的升级版。奥斯汀创作了不少读者们看来相当真实的人物。菲尔丁甚至还以奥斯汀的小说《傲慢与偏见》中的达西先生为琼斯的“真命天子”命名。
Jones isn’t a “woman of achievement”. Like everyone else in the world, both men and women, she’s just trying to live as well as she can – while messing up a lot along the way.
琼斯并非是一个“有成就的女人”。就像世界上的其他人一样,不论男性女性,她只是尽自己所能好好生活 —— 尽管一路走来她也弄砸了不少事情。
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