2022年经济学人 西德尼·波蒂埃是电影界的开路英雄

Books and Arts

文学与艺术

Hollywood legends -- The defiant¹ one

好莱坞传奇——挑战者

Sidney Poitier was a trailblazing hero of cinema

西德尼·波蒂埃是电影界的开路英雄

He showed the world that black actors could be Hollywood heroes.

他向世界展示了黑人演员可以成为好莱坞的英雄。

In films such as “To Sir, With Love”, “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” and “In the Heat of the Night”, all released in 1967, Sir Sidney Poitier was not a loyal sidekick or a servant.

在1967年上映的电影《吾爱吾师》、《猜猜谁来吃晚餐》和《炎热的夏夜》中，西德尼·波蒂埃爵士演的不是忠诚的助手或仆人。

He was a blisteringly handsome, nuanced and charismatic leading man.

他是英俊潇洒、表演细腻、极具魅力的男主角。

His talent, elegance² and class made him a superstar, and, in 1964, they made him the first ever black actor to win an Academy Award for a leading role, in “Lilies of the Field”.

他的才华、优雅和品位使他成为了一名巨星，并且在1964年，他凭借《野百合》成为了第一个获得奥斯卡最佳男主角的黑人演员。

Many in the film industry and beyond revered³ him as a trailblazer who refused to play any part that might reflect badly on black people.

电影行业内外的许多人都尊他为开拓者，他拒绝扮演任何可能有损黑人形象的角色。

A few critics called him bland⁴ and ingratiating.

一些评论家说他平平无奇且善于逢迎。

In the New York Times in 1967 Clifford Mason defined his benign⁵ on-screen persona as “a good guy in a totally white world…helping the white man solve the white man’s problem”.

在1967年的《纽约时报》上，克利福德·梅森将他银幕上的和善形象定义为“一个在全部是白人的世界中……帮助白人解决白人问题的好人”。

But no one could mistake the determination and skill it took for Sir Sidney, who died last week at the age of 94, to become Hollywood’s exemplar of African-American dignity.

但没有人会误解西德尼爵士（于上周去世，享年94岁）想要成为好莱坞非裔美国人尊严模范的决心和技能。

Born in 1927, he was the seventh child of farmers who grew tomatoes in the Bahamas.

他出生于1927年，是巴哈马群岛一对种植西红柿的农民的第七个孩子。

At 15 his parents sent him to live in Miami; the following year he moved to New York, where he worked on his diction by listening to radio announcers, and improved his literacy by poring over newspapers with a kind Jewish waiter at the restaurant where he washed dishes.

15岁时，父母将他送往迈阿密居住；第二年，他搬到纽约，在那里他通过听电台播音员的声音来练习发音，并与他洗盘子的餐厅里一位善良的犹太服务员一起研读报纸来提高自己的读写能力。

He joined the American Negro Theatre, and by the time he was cast in his first film, “No Way Out” (1950), he was as authoritative⁶ as any actor of any background, with a fiery⁷ glare, an imposing⁸ physical presence, exquisite⁹ poise¹⁰ and a penetrating¹¹ voice.

他加入了美国黑人剧院，当他出演他的第一部电影《无路可走》（1950年）时，他已经与具有各种出身背景的演员一样具有权威性，他有着炽烈的目光、俊朗的外形、高雅的姿态和具有穿透力的声音。

It was hard for any viewer to look away from him, or down on him.

任何观众都很难将目光从他身上移开，或者小瞧他。

Most of his films tackled racism¹².

他的大部分电影都与种族主义相关。

In the 1950s they included “Cry, the Beloved Country”, the filming of which let him see South African apartheid first-hand (he later played Nelson Mandela in a made-for-television biopic); “Blackboard Jungle”, a seminal¹³ rock ’n’ roll high-school drama; and “Porgy and Bess”, Otto Preminger’s film of George Gershwin’s musical.

其中1950年代的作品有：《非洲的愤怒》，这部电影让他亲眼目睹了南非的种族隔离状况（他后来在一部电视传记片中扮演纳尔逊·曼德拉）；《黑板丛林》，一部开创性的高中摇滚戏剧；以及《乞丐与荡妇》，这是奥托·普雷明格改编的乔治·格什温的音乐剧。

In “The Defiant Ones”, his chain-gang fugitive¹⁴ was manacled to a southern bigot played by Tony Curtis. Both were nominated for Oscars.

在《逃狱惊魂》中，他和托尼·柯蒂斯饰演的南方偏执狂被铁链锁在一起一同逃亡。两人都获得了奥斯卡提名。

Still, the criticisms hurt.

尽管如此，批评还是伤害到了他。

Tired of being a figurehead, Sir Sidney switched to lighter¹⁵ comic roles in the 1970s and directed several raucous¹⁶ comedies; “Stir Crazy” (1980) was his biggest hit.

厌倦了被人们说名不副实，西德尼爵士在1970年代转演轻松的喜剧角色，并执导了几部喧闹的喜剧。《油腔滑调》（1980年）是其中最成功的一部。

Knighted in 1974, he took a decade-long break from acting¹⁷ in his 50s, returning to the screen all too rarely afterwards.

1974年，他被封为爵士，并在50多岁时停演休整了长达十年的时间，之后便很少再出现在银幕上。

But he had already achieved as much as anyone in Hollywood history.

但他已经取得了好莱坞历史上任何一个人都没有的成就。

It wasn’t until 2002 that a second black star, Denzel Washington, received an Oscar for his performance in a leading role.

一直到2002年，才出现了第二位黑人明星丹泽尔·华盛顿，他凭借其在影片中的出色表现获得奥斯卡奖。

On the same evening, Mr Washington presented Sir Sidney with an honorary award for his extraordinary life’s work.

当天晚上，华盛顿先生向西德尼爵士颁发了荣誉奖，以表彰他这一生杰出的成果。

1 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

2 elegance   

n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙

参考例句：

• The furnishings in the room imparted an air of elegance.这个房间的家具带给这房间一种优雅的气氛。
• John has been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰因为衣着讲究而出名。

3 revered   

v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A number of institutions revered and respected in earlier times have become Aunt Sally for the present generation. 一些早年受到尊崇的惯例，现在已经成了这代人嘲弄的对象了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Chinese revered corn as a gift from heaven. 中国人将谷物奉为上天的恩赐。 来自辞典例句

4 bland   

adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的

参考例句：

• He eats bland food because of his stomach trouble.他因胃病而吃清淡的食物。
• This soup is too bland for me.这汤我喝起来偏淡。

5 benign   

adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的

参考例句：

• The benign weather brought North America a bumper crop.温和的气候给北美带来大丰收。
• Martha is a benign old lady.玛莎是个仁慈的老妇人。

6 authoritative   

adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的

参考例句：

• David speaks in an authoritative tone.大卫以命令的口吻说话。
• Her smile was warm but authoritative.她的笑容很和蔼，同时又透着威严。

7 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

8 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

9 exquisite   

adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的

参考例句：

• I was admiring the exquisite workmanship in the mosaic.我当时正在欣赏镶嵌画的精致做工。
• I still remember the exquisite pleasure I experienced in Bali.我依然记得在巴厘岛所经历的那种剧烈的快感。

10 poise   

vt./vi. 平衡，保持平衡；n.泰然自若，自信

参考例句：

• She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise.她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。
• Ballet classes are important for poise and grace.芭蕾课对培养优雅的姿仪非常重要。

11 penetrating   

adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的

参考例句：

• He had an extraordinarily penetrating gaze. 他的目光有股异乎寻常的洞察力。
• He examined the man with a penetrating gaze. 他以锐利的目光仔细观察了那个人。

12 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

13 seminal   

adj.影响深远的；种子的

参考例句：

• The reforms have been a seminal event in the history of the NHS.这些改革已成为英国国民保健制度史上影响深远的一件大事。
• The emperor's importance as a seminal figure of history won't be diminished.做为一个开创性历史人物的重要性是不会减弱的。

14 fugitive   

adj.逃亡的，易逝的；n.逃犯，逃亡者

参考例句：

• The police were able to deduce where the fugitive was hiding.警方成功地推断出那逃亡者躲藏的地方。
• The fugitive is believed to be headed for the border.逃犯被认为在向国境线逃窜。

15 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

16 raucous   

adj.(声音)沙哑的，粗糙的

参考例句：

• I heard sounds of raucous laughter upstairs.我听见楼上传来沙哑的笑声。
• They heard a bottle being smashed,then more raucous laughter.他们听见酒瓶摔碎的声音，然后是一阵更喧闹的笑声。

17 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。