VOA标准英语2010年-'Lost' Finds the End of the Road

The multicultural¹ cast of "Lost" inspired other television shows to use more diverse actors as well.

This past weekend, one of American TV's most successful prime-time dramatic series came to an end More than 20 million people watched the finale of ABC's "Lost," which was filmed entirely² in Hawaii.

For six years, audiences around the globe tuned⁴ in to follow the adventures of the survivors⁵ of a plane crash, stranded⁶ on a mysterious and dangerous island.

The castaways, who came from many parts of the world, had to learn to live with each other, and their pasts. Each week, the show took them - and viewers - on an emotional and mind-bending roller coaster ride, through a dizzying loop of supernatural forces, armed conspirators⁷ and, of course, romance.

Making a run to leave the island in the final episode of 'Lost."

Breaking ground

""Lost" is completely groundbreaking," said Henry Ian Cusick, who played the character Desmond. "And I'm so pleased for it because I love mythology⁸ and I love sci-fi."

While many fans pondered the mythology of "Lost," others were drawn⁹ to its depth. Storylines often touched on matters of fate, destiny, spirituality, the meaning of life, or what it means to be human.

Even though "Lost" featured an evil smoke monster, which terrorized the castaways, executive producer Jack¹¹ Bender says the show was really more about the monsters within the characters.

"It's ultimately about these people, it's the humanity of the show," he says.

More than 20 million people tuned in to watch the last episode of "Lost."

Multicultural cast

Over its six-year run, "Lost" won dozens of awards, including an Emmy and a Golden Globe for best drama series.

Michael Emerson took home an "Outstanding Supporting Actor" Emmy for his portrayal¹² of the character, Ben Linus. He credits the writers for much of the show's appeal.

""Lost" seems to me the best and most successful and logical use of a multicultural cast on television, seems organic," says Emerson. ""Lost" plays to our taste for mysteries and puzzles in a really good way."

Critics credited "Lost" with sparking a resurgence¹³ in serialized dramas, and inspired other networks to embrace more diversity in their casting. It was the first prime-time TV show to feature characters speaking in their native language with English subtitles¹⁴.

"I think it's changed the landscape of television," says Jean Higgins, one of the show's executive producers, who believes the series inspired other shows, through its storytelling and diversity. "I think a lot of them are really derivative¹⁵ of "Lost.""

Jack (Matthew Fox, left) battles to save the island on the final episode of 'Lost.'

The end of "Lost"

With so many viewing choices, getting audiences to tune³ in to a serialized drama each week is no easy feat¹⁰, yet "Lost" managed to hold onto a huge, loyal fan base.

Damon Lindelof, one of the show's creators, says getting ABC to announce an end date for "Lost" three years in advance, gave them time to carefully craft the plot line leading to the finale.

"The idea of thinking about life after "Lost" or life without "Lost", is incredibly bittersweet," he says. "But at the same time, I think that we're all thrilled that it's ending. The fact that the show is now coming to an end, and we're ending it on our own terms as opposed to the show is being canceled, or went on three or four years after it should have, really generates this tremendous excitement."

For cast members like Jorge Garcia, who played Hurley, filming their final shows together was poignant¹⁶.

"Coming in this season, shooting has been really cool, but kind of feels like your senior year, where you're really appreciative," he says. "And you know the sadness is coming, but you're not there yet. Right now, you're just kind of enjoying everybody and just soaking everything in again."

Fans can keep on soaking it in. "Lost" continues in syndication, on DVD and on countless¹⁷ Websites devoted¹⁸ to the extraordinary adventure.
 

1 multicultural   

adj.融合多种文化的，多种文化的

参考例句：

• Children growing up in a multicultural society.在多元文化社会中长大的孩子们。
• The school has been attempting to bring a multicultural perspective to its curriculum.这所学校已经在尝试将一种多元文化视角引入其课程。

2 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

3 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

4 tuned   

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。
• The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

6 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

7 conspirators   

n.共谋者，阴谋家( conspirator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The conspirators took no part in the fighting which ensued. 密谋者没有参加随后发生的战斗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The French conspirators were forced to escape very hurriedly. 法国同谋者被迫匆促逃亡。 来自辞典例句

8 mythology   

n.神话，神话学，神话集

参考例句：

• In Greek mythology,Zeus was the ruler of Gods and men.在希腊神话中，宙斯是众神和人类的统治者。
• He is the hero of Greek mythology.他是希腊民间传说中的英雄。

9 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

10 feat   

n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的

参考例句：

• Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
• He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。

11 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

12 portrayal   

n.饰演；描画

参考例句：

• His novel is a vivid portrayal of life in a mining community.他的小说生动地描绘了矿区的生活。
• The portrayal of the characters in the novel is lifelike.该书中的人物写得有血有肉。

13 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

14 subtitles   

n.说明字幕，印在外国影片上的对白翻译字幕，译文对白字幕；小标题，副标题( subtitle的名词复数 )；（电影的）字幕

参考例句：

• subtitles for the deaf and the hard of hearing 为耳聋和听力不佳者打出的字幕
• a Polish film with English subtitles 附有英语字幕的波兰影片

15 derivative   

n.派(衍)生物；adj.非独创性的，模仿他人的

参考例句：

• His paintings are really quite derivative.他的画实在没有创意。
• Derivative works are far more complicated.派生作品更加复杂。

16 poignant   

adj.令人痛苦的，辛酸的，惨痛的

参考例句：

• His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
• It is especially poignant that he died on the day before his wedding.他在婚礼前一天去世了，这尤其令人悲恸。

17 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

18 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。