By Leo and Ms. Mae
Vocabulary: mind-blowing, Good Samaritan, mammonish girl, gold digger, brain damaged, blown away, voodoo, crime of passion, to the gills
Xiao Hong: Have you heard of the senseless killing at Virginia Tech? A Chinese graduate student decapitated a female Chinese student who arrived in the U.S. less than a month ago.
Xiao Ming: Sure, who hasn't? It's really a insane case. Why would the guy kill a girl he barely knew in such a ruthless manner? In addition, the guy doesn't even look like the killer type.
Xiao Hong: Why not? Isn't it obvious? The guy hits on the girl and the girl turns him down. The guy gets upset and then kills her. Why did the guy pick up the girl at the airport and accommodate her at his place? You think he is just a Good Samaritan? No, he was after the girl. Look now how people are trashing the girl on the internet, saying she was a mammonish girl, a gold digger. The world is totally upside down!
Xiao Ming: I can't believe the case is this simple. No guy would kill a girl just because she turned him down. They've only known each other a few weeks. The guy was definitely not insane, according to his friends. On the contrary, he's said to be sort of a nice guy?
Xiao Hong: Come on, it's called a crime of passion? A man can do anything when he loses his mind.
Xiao Ming: But they weren't even arguing before he killed her. He had a kitchen knife hidden on him. Oh, for Christ's sakes. It was definitely premeditated.
Xiao Hong: Well, he's lost money in the stock market; he was warned by his advisor and he was turned down by this girl? He was stressed to the gills? Wasn't that enough?
Xiao Ming: Not to me. Remember he decapitated the girl with a kitchen knife. You can't even break a rib with it.
Xiao Hong (seemed pissed off): OK, so what do you think happened?
Xiao Hong (being sarcastic): Sacrifice his life for what? National interest?
Xiao Ming (looking serious): You are on the right track, try thinking deep, very deep? What was his major?
Xiao Hong: Agricultural Economics, so what the heck?
Xiao Ming: Right, it's probably something related to the farm or food security economics. Here's what might have happened. The guy was supposed to be a graduate student, but he really was a government spy. Let's say he acquired some information, very important, highly classified, a matter of national security. And the girl happened to discover his real identity or maybe the girl was also a spy. The guy had to kill the girl for his country. Remember he decapitated her. This guy is a pro! Besides, where are his roommates now? They must all be spies. The guy is sacrificing himself to cover his partners. I bet he never squeals.
Xiao Hong: Your theory really blows me away. You must be brain damaged. If he is a professional killer, why did he choose to do it in the cafe? He should have known how to do it more stealthily.
Xiao Ming (surprised) That's an interesting point. (thinking) Maybe they didn't work for the government. They both belonged to a secret organization, a secret cult or something. The girl betrayed the organization, and decapitation is a symbolic punishment. Yep, that must be it.
Xiao Hong: Please, Ming, wake up. I'd rather believe the guy was under a "voodoo" spell. Stop daydreaming. Save your creative thoughts on my gift for Valentine's Day. OK?
Xiao Ming: Whatever...
Vocabulary Explanations:
mind-blowing
雷人的
To be outraged, unthinkable, shocked, so surprised that it's unbelievable
Good Samaritan
活雷锋，英文这个词出自于圣经。
from the Bible story in Matthew where Jesus tells of the Samaritan (a race, not accepted by the Jews) who takes pity on a sick Jew and takes care of him and pays for his care.
mammonish girl/gold digger
拜金女，mammon是圣经里象征财富的恶灵
Someone who is interested only in monetary gain, prostitutes for money.
brain-damaged
脑残
blown away/swept away
雷倒，我晕之类的意思
shocked, overwhelmed, overcome
voodoo
邪术，虽然这个词与伏都教有关，但中国也有相似的迷信，a voodoo doll就是中国类似的打小人。
crime of passion
激情犯，一时冲动而犯的罪
up to the gills, up to the neck, up to the eyeballs
形容程度比较深
Example: I‘ve been up to the gills in work.
He’s up to the eyeballs trying to finish his paper.
No comments:
Post a Comment