2005年6月5日 星期日

看時事學英文》隔岸觀火

■ 朱文章
在教育部政策主導下,多所大學甄選及畢業、公務員升遷、各中小學老師、大學及技職學生都必須通過不同門檻的語測中心主辦的全民英檢,引來托福、多益英語測驗主辦單位ETS的不滿。立委也不願坐視(sit on their thumbs),認為不可獨厚全民英檢。財團更想參戰,分一杯羹。
兩大英檢單位爭執背景複雜。托福及多益最早由語測中心代辦,但「代工者」卻發展出「自我品牌」(全民英檢),且報考人數多達百萬人次,席捲國內市場。對語測中心搶風頭的作為(to steal the thunder),台灣ETS有如被捅一刀( being stabbed in the back)。
大象打架 青草遭殃
對許多民眾而言,通過英檢和有無國際觀是兩回事。但許多大學的註冊費已先收取全民英檢報名費用,等於強迫捲入戰局。兩強相爭,弱者無法自外,英諺稱為「大象打架,青草遭殃」(In a fight between two elephants, the grass is sure to get hurt)。
台灣目前英語認證測驗多達八種,彼此競爭(in-fighting or internal squabbles)激烈,教育部日前表示,未來該部採計英語成績,將採歐洲共同語言能力分級架構,不再獨厚全民英檢或者托福。這種避免「順了姑意逆嫂意」的作為,日常英語說成"it's way above my pay scale",亦即「以我的薪水尚不足參與這等重大政策」,以避免捲入爭端。
例:"There were so many internal squabbles going on in the company that no progress was made toward developing a new product." 「公司內部雜音太多,新產品推出無期。」
"We watched their company go through an im-plosion and bought what was left of it at bargain prices." 「我們抓住對方內部意見不一致的機會,以便宜的價格買入他們的產品。」
"When the boss asked me about the rift in management, I just told him it was way above my pay scale." 「老闆拿高層派系傾軋話題來問我,我回答我位卑權輕,不懂得那麼多。」
看清楚局勢發展,懂得不輕易表態,當然是永保安康之道。中文諺語「鷸蚌相爭,漁翁得利」直譯為"The bird and the clam became so in-volved with their battle with each other that they became easy prey for a passing fisherman."。就漁翁而言,能抓住機會出手,滿載而歸,也要有「洞若觀火」的眼力,猶如英語所謂「放在顯微鏡下端詳」(putting it under the microscope)的能耐。
例:"I will highlight some of the deficiencies in this legislation by putting it under the microscope." 「我仔細研究了這個法案的弊病,現在就向大家報告。」
鷸蚌相爭 漁翁得利
鷸蚌相爭,也像兩虎相爭,必有一傷。形容避開風頭,等待兩強爭出高下之後,出面接收戰果的英語說法是"play both sides against the mid-dle",有如三十六計中的「隔岸觀火」、「隔山觀虎鬥」。
例:"We tried to play both sides against the middle and get our competitors to fight it out a-mongst themselves."「敵手正拚個你死我活,我們等著收拾殘局,接收戰果。」
為了與國際接軌,學習英文變成台灣全民運動,商機估計一年至少新台幣10億元。財團使出渾身解數,要發展題庫、與地方政府協議用為檢定標準,參與龐大商機的爭奪。這種以幫助廣大英語學習者達成願望,而達到賺錢目的的模式,與當年美國西部淘金記,賣裝備給淘金客,而在淘金熱潮真正賺到大錢的各色商人,簡直系出同門。
不從事淘金者的發財之道,是別具慧眼地在淘金客身上淘金(The merchants prospered by "mining the miners.")。因為加州蠻荒,一下湧進數十萬人,物資完全仰賴進口,奸商(profi-teers)趁機哄抬物價(price gouging),把囤積貨物以暴漲數十倍價格賣出。英語片語"pick and shovel company",意指「提供裝備給別人去發財的公司」(A company that supplies an in-dustry's equipment rather than its goods or ser-vices.),這個典故用來形容台灣的英檢機構,也頗貼切。(作者是陸軍官校語言中心主任)
【2005/06/05 經濟日報】

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