2012年ESL之餐饮娱乐 01 Animals in a Zoo

 

Animals in a Zoo 

Rafael: Go away and stop following us. Our club is for boys only. 

Deborah: I can’t wait to see the elephants at the zoo. I wish I could see them in their natural habitat, but a zoo is the next best thing. 

Zach: I don’t want to go to a place where animals are kept in captivity¹. How would you like it if you were locked in a cage and gawked at all day? 

Deborah: The animals in zoos are lucky. They have a nice, safe place to live away from predators², and their handlers make sure they never go hungry. Zoos preserve endangered species. 

Zach: If you think it’s so nice living in zoos, I’d like to see you switch places with a lion or a monkey for a month and see how you like it. 

Deborah: Animals aren’t people. They don’t have the same wants and needs. 

Zach: That’s what you think. One day, the animals aren’t going to take it anymore. They’ll rise up and break their shackles³. 

Deborah: And will you be their ringleader? 

Zach: No, I’ll be their cheering section. It’s about time animals get some respect. 

Deborah: Have you seen Planet of the Apes?! I’ll reserve a cage for you! 

Script by Dr. Lucy Tse 

1 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

2 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 shackles   

手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊

参考例句：

• a country struggling to free itself from the shackles of colonialism 为摆脱殖民主义的枷锁而斗争的国家
• The cars of the train are coupled together by shackles. 火车的车厢是用钩链连接起来的。