VOA标准英语2011--Families Joined By Marriage are Unlikely

Families Joined By Marriage are Unlikely Fit in 'Jumping The Broom'

The bride's family is wealthy; the groom¹'s is working class. If they can get through the wedding ceremony, the young couple may stand a chance. It's a new film about family secrets as well as cultural and economic differences within the African-American community. Alan Silverman has this look at Jumping The Broom.
"This is the broom that Mike and I jumped when we got married."
"Jason and I want to start our own traditions."
"It's just so..."
"Ghetto²?"
"I was going to say 'simple.'"
Many African-American wedding ceremonies end with the bride and groom jumping over a broomstick to begin their new life together. The custom dates back centuries to slavery and is believed to have roots in West Africa. But for Sabrina and Jason, whether or not to include the time-honored tradition in their wedding on Martha's Vineyard, an island retreat off Massachusetts, is a small detail considering the vast differences between their two families.
"Jason and I are in love, really in love."
"Jason makes a good impression, but we haven't met his family yet. What are they like?"
"I don't know. I haven't met them yet."
"Sabrina!"
"Mom."
Mrs. Watson never lets her daughter, Sabrina, forget about their family's status and she is suspicious of Jason's humble³ background. Angela Bassett plays Mrs. Watson. She doesn't worry that her character's haughty⁴ attitude could alienate⁵ audiences.
"I don't pander⁶ for the audience to like me. If you don't like me, I think that's even a more interesting choice," Bassett says.
Far from the Watsons' island mansion⁷, the Taylors live in New York where Jason's single mom worked at the local post office to put him through college.
"By now she should have come over here to Brooklyn to meet me. You will not believe it: she sent me a text message! A text message when she could pick up a phone and call me like I'm a human being. I don't play this way. Strike one."
Stage and screen veteran Loretta Devine co-stars as Mrs. Taylor, who seems determined⁸ to stop the wedding.
"I don't think she ever was dishonest with anybody in the film, and I think she really was driven to save her son because she really believed that he was in danger," explains Devine. "So that was what I tried to bring to it: a mother's love for her son."
The two families bring opposite views of the black American experience, but director Salim Akil believes the story is not only about ethnicity.
"In popular culture, there is this notion that African-American men and women can't get together and we're having these issues," Akil says. "I think it's an American problem because I know a lot of white women and men who are having just as many issues trying to find 'that person' as anyone. .... The conversation starts at 'how do we negotiate these relationships.'"
"Sometimes life will really test you."
"Oh, we'll pass. Reverend James, Jason was sent to me. He is my soul mate."
"Aww, that's so sweet; but even a soul mate can really test you."
Well-known black clergyman Bishop⁹ T.D. Jakes has a cameo in the film and, as a producer of Jumping The Broom, made sure it delivers his signature theme of uplifting spirituality. However, Paula Patton, who stars as the bride-to-be, insists the faith-based message never got in the way of telling a believable story with believable characters.
"The Taylors, that are from downtown, definitely could have gone into caricatures and stereotypical¹⁰ ways that they may behave," notes Patton. "And the same thing with the Watsons, who are 'uptown.' You could have seen them be too 'uppity' and you would not have seen the heart and the three-dimensional attributes. We are all human beings. We come from different places, but we needed to speak to the honesty of these people and if the humor comes, then it comes."
Jumping The Broom does use a luxurious¹¹ mansion on Martha's Vineyard for the wedding venue¹². But most of the film was shot in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia where the rugged¹³ coastline looks similar, but the tax credits for film production are far more generous.

1 groom   

vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁

参考例句：

• His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
• George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作，乔治已在接受专门的培训。

2 ghetto   

n.少数民族聚居区，贫民区

参考例句：

• Racism and crime still flourish in the ghetto.城市贫民区的种族主义和犯罪仍然十分猖獗。
• I saw that achievement as a possible pattern for the entire ghetto.我把获得的成就看作整个黑人区可以仿效的榜样。

3 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

4 haughty   

adj.傲慢的，高傲的

参考例句：

• He gave me a haughty look and walked away.他向我摆出傲慢的表情后走开。
• They were displeased with her haughty airs.他们讨厌她高傲的派头。

5 alienate   

vt.使疏远，离间；转让(财产等)

参考例句：

• His attempts to alienate the two friends failed because they had complete faith.他离间那两个朋友的企图失败了，因为他们彼此完全信任。
• We'd better not alienate ourselves from the colleagues.我们最好还是不要与同事们疏远。

6 pander   

v.迎合；n.拉皮条者，勾引者；帮人做坏事的人

参考例句：

• Don't pander to such people. 要迎合这样的人。
• Those novels pander to people's liking for stories about crime.那些小说迎合读者对犯罪故事的爱好。

7 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

10 stereotypical   

n.常规

参考例句：

• Personas should be typical and believable, but not stereotypical. 人物角色应该是典型和可信赖的，但不是一成不变的。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Anything could be stereotypical, so I guess it could be criticism. 任何东西都可以变的老套，所以我猜那就是一种批评。 来自互联网

11 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

12 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

13 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。