昨日[dripping contempt]の "dripping" は意味が良く分からないが無視すると書きました、やはり気になるので調べました。辞書で "dripping" あるいは "drip" を見ても "dripping contempt" の意味として適当な説明は見あたりません。しかし、Googleで "dripping contempt" を検索すると、この表現は結構使われていて、オバマ大統領が "dripping contempt" の表情だとしての写真も載っています。 結局辞書での記述で見つけたのは例によってスラング専門の辞書Urban Dictionaryだけで "Sweet Dud" の説明の中に次ぎのように "dripping contempt" が使われていました。。
・Sweet Dud is a response used to show complete an utter contempt for whatever anyone else throws at you. Whether it's critically important, or silly in nature, Sweet Dud is an appropriate response for all.
You can add dripping contempt by including contemptuous facial expressions (e.g. raise the eyebrows slightly, throw in a smirk, and quasi-chuckle), extending your arm 90 degrees from your body, and extending your hand at 45 degrees.
"dripping contempt" の "dripping" は "contempt" を強調しているものと思われます。
MARTHA: ... before I'm through with you you'll wish you'd died in that automobile, you bastard.
GEORGE [emphasizing with his forefinger]: And you'll wish you'd never mentioned our son!
MARTHA [dripping contempt]: You ...
GEORGE: Now, I said I warned you.
MARTHA: I'm impressed.
GEORGE: I warned you not to go too far.
MARTHA: I'm just begining.
GEORGE [calmly, matter-of-factly]: I'm numbed enough ...
[dripping contempt]の "dripping" も良く分かりませんが、それはとりあえず無視して、 [calmly, matter-of-factly]:の "matter-of-factly" が気になるので調べます。
「実は」の様な前置きとして "as a matter of fact" と言いますが、その副詞形の様な "matter-of-factly" の意味は辞書に載っているか調べます。
・Wiktionary: 1. As though stating a fact: "I took the liberty of inviting somebody else to have dinner with us," Stallman said, matter-of-factly, giving me the same cat-like smile he gave me back in that Palo Alto restaurant. 2, As though the situation is normal and not unusual; not dramatically or fancifully.: He was not of the East; and he came of a breed who fought devils and wizards as promptly and matter-of-factly as they battled human foes.
多くの辞書は "matter-of-factly" は"matter-of-fact" の副詞形として後者の意味だけを次ぎのように説明しています。
・Cambridge English Dictionary: not showing feelings or emotion, especially in a situation when emotion would be expected: He spoke in a very matter-of-fact way about the accident.
Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?のMARTHA:とGEORGE夫婦の関係はかなり悪い様です。
MARTHA: My arm has gotten tired whipping you.
GEORGE: [stares at her in disbelief]: You're mad.
MARTHA: For twenty-three years!
GEORGE: You're deluded ... Martha, you're deluded.
MARTHA: IT'S NOT WHAT I'VE WANTED.
GEORGE: I thought at least you were ... on to yourself. I didn't know. I ... didn't know.
MARTHA [anger taking over]: I'm on to myself
"be on to onself" は慣用句の様ですが、分からないので調べます。
"be on to onself" と言う慣用句は見つかりませんでしたが、"be on to" と言う慣用句がありました。
・Dictionary.com: Be aware of or have information about, as in They can't pull that trick again; we're on to them now.
・Wiktionary: (idiomatic) To figure out; to realize the truth.: I was planning it as a surprise, but I think he is on to me.
・American Heritage Dictionary: To be aware of or have information about: You'll never deceive us again; we're on to you.
これで上の引用個所の意味は一応通じます。 多分正解でしょう。
今読んでいるのはWho's afraid of Virginia Woolf?の第二章はWALPURGISNACHTとなっていますが、これはどう見てもドイツ語です。一応英英辞書を見るとドイツ語として次ぎの二つの意味が載っていました。
1: the eve of May Day on which witches are held to ride to an appointed rendezvous
2: something (as an event or situation) having a nightmarish quality
この章の意味は多分２でしょう。話は益々異様な会話になって行くようです。
GEORGE [claps his hands together, once, loud]: I've got it! I'll tell you what game we'll play. We're done with Humilitate the Host ... this round, anyway ... we're done with that ... and we don't want to play Hump the Hostess, yet ... not yet ... so I know what we'll play .... We'll play a round of Get the Guests. How about that? How about a little game of Get the Guests?
MARTHA [turning away, a little disgusted]: Jesus, George.
GEORGE: Book dropper! Child mentioner!
HONEY: I don't like these games.
NICK: Yeah ... I think maybe we've had enough of games, now....
GEORGE: Oh, no ... oh, no ... we haven't. We've had only one game.... Now we're going to have another. You can't fly on one game.
上の文中のHump the Hostess、Get the Guests、Book dropper!、 Child mentioner（これはMARTHAが息子の事を話した事を指しているのかも？）と分からない事だらけです。 引用個所の最後に出てきた "You can't fly on one game." は勝ち逃げを思い起こさせる表現ですが、どういう事でしょうか？ "fly" の意味を辞書で確認してみます。
・Macmillan Dictionary: [intransitive/transitive] formal to leave a place suddenly in order to escape from a difficult or dangerous situation: fly the country: Thousands flew the country when he came to power.
・Vocabulary.com: run away quickly
やはり "fly" に逃げる意味がある様です。 ゲームを一つしただけで止める/逃げるのは駄目と言っている様です。
Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?のGEORGEとMARTHAの関係、会話は余り穏やかとは言えません。
GEORGE: STOP IT, MARTHA!
MARTHA [irritated]: Whadda you want?
GEORGE [too patiently]: I'd thought you were telling the story of our courtship, Martha ... I didn't know you were going to start in on the other business.
MARTHA [so-thereish]: Well, I am!
今日取り上げる表現 "so-thereish" は辞書には載っていません。 しかたなくGoogleで検索すると、リストされるほとんどがWho's afraid of Virginia Woolf?に出てくる "so-thereish" ですが、辞書ではないので、その意味を説明している様な内容は見つかりません。しかし、分かったことは、"so-thereish" はEdward Albeeの造語で、元は "so there" らしいと言う事です。そこで、 "so there" を辞書で見ると、
・Cambridge English Dictionary: used for emphasis, or to show that something is being done in opposition to someone else's wishes: Mine's bigger than yours, so there!: No, I won't help you, so there!
・Wiktionary: (idiomatic) (childish) A defiant expression used to finish a poorly-made argument.: Ha! I just smashed up your best vase.: Well, well, I'll break your vase in return, so there.
これはネイティブでないと使えない口語ですね。ただ映画やTVドラマには出てきそうな表現です。
今日の表現もWho's afraid of Virginia Woolf?からですが、単語なので調べるのは難しくなさそうです。
NICK [to HONEY]: I told you we shouldn't have come.
MARTHA [stentorian]: I said c'mon in! Now c'mon!
客のNICKとHONEYは玄関の外 でMARTHAとGEORGEの言い争いのような声が聞こえたのでしょう。
[stentorian] は知らない単語なので調べます。
・Collins English Dictionary: (of the voice, etc) uncommonly loud ⇒ stentorian tones: Switching on his searchlight torch, he bellowed in a stentorian voice.
・Vocabulary.com: The adjective stentorian describes a booming voice. If you're teaching a group of unruly kids, you'll need to practice a stentorian voice to be heard above the din.
The adjective stentorian comes from Greek mythology. Stentor was a herald in the Trojan War, mentioned in Homer's "Iliad." Homer wrote of brazen-voiced Stentor, whose cry was as loud as that of fifty men together. So anyone with a stentorian voice has a voice like the mythic Stentor. You can also use stentorian to describe a style of speaking that emphasizes boom and power.
ギリシャ神話からの単語なので "loud voice" とは無縁に見えるのですね。
He asked his father, who was a minister and a bit of a twit,
if they could discuss the use of the car.
His father took him to his study and said to him,
"I'll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up,
study your bible a little and get your hair cut, and we'll talk about it."
After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father
if they could discuss use of the car.
They again went to the father's study where his father said,
"Son, I've been real proud of you. You have brought your grades up,
you've studied your bible diligently, but you didn't get your hair cut!"
The young man waited a moment and replied,
"You know Dad, I've been thinking about that.
Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, Noah had long hair,
and even Jesus had long hair...."
To which his father replied,
"Yes, and they walked everywhere they went!"
お父さんの勝ち。歩くことは健康にも良いですよ。
Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?から、昨日取り上げた場面の直後です。
GEORGEは渋々と客を迎えに玄関に向かいます。
GEORGE: [moves a little towards the door, smiling slightly]: All right, love ... whatever love wants. [Stops.] Just don't start on the bit, that's all.
MARTHA: The bit? The bit? What kind of language is that? What are you talking about?
GEORGE: The bit. Just don't start in on the bit.
MARTHA: You imitating one of your studets, for God's sake? What are you trying to do? WHAT BIT?
GEORGE: Just don't start in on the bit about the kid, that's all.
GEORGEが言う "don't start on the bit" の意味が分かりません。 私が分からないのとは意味が違うと思いますが、MARTHAも "the bit" が何を指しているのか分からない様子です。
"bit" は少しの何かに関係する色々な意味がありますが、上の状況に関係しそうなのは次の意味ではないかと思います。
・Macmillan Dictionary: a small part usually with spoken lines in a theatrical performance
・Infoplease Dictionary: a stereotypic or habitual set of behaviors, attitudes, or styles associated with an individual, role, situation, etc.: the whole Wall Street bit.
GEORGEはMARTHAに、息子の事を話題にするなと言いたいようです。
今日取り上げるっ表現はその中にあったものです。
[The front door-bell chimes.]
MARTHA: Party! Party!
GEORGE: [murderously]: I'm really looking forward to this, Martha...
MARTHA: [same]: Go answer the door.
GEORGE: [not moving]: You answer it.
MARTHA: Get to that door, you.
[He does not move.]
I'll fix you, you...
GEORGE: [fake-spits]: ...to you....
[Door chime again.]
MARTHA: [shouting ... to the door]: C'MON IN! [To GEORGE, between her teeth] I said, get over there!
GEORGE: [moves a little towards the door, smiling slightly]
"between her teeth" が今日調べる表現ですが、これは慣用句らしいので辞書で直ぐに見つかりそうだと思ったのですが、OneLookの検索では "between one's teeth" の表現の項目は見つかりません。しかし、"get/take the bit between your teeth" の慣用句として次ぎの様な説明が見つかりました。
・Cambridge Idioms Dictionary: (British, American & Australian) also take the bit in your teeth (American): to start doing something in a very keen way When the team really gets the bit between their teeth, they are almost impossible to beat. (British, American & Australian)
・McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs: to put oneself in charge; to take charge. Someone needed to direct the project, so I took the bit in my teeth. If you want to get something done, you've got to take the bit between your teeth and get to work.
・Dictionary.com: take the bit in / between one's teeth, to cast off control; willfully go one's own way: He took the bit in his teeth and acted against his parents' wishes.
・The Phrase Finder: Take control of a situation: Origin: A bit is a mouthpiece that is used to control a horse's movements. It is normally fitted so that pressure on the reins presses the bit against the soft parts of the horse's mouth, causing it to turn its head. This expression alludes to a horse biting on the bit and taking control away from the rider.
"bit" が馬具のはみを意味しているとは意外でした。
"between her teeth" は小さい声で静かに言うことかとも思ったのですが、ドアに行きなさいと言っても動かないGEORGEに対し、MARTHAはきっぱりと命令していると解釈すれば良いのでしょうか？
そこでしつこく調べるとReal Dictionaryに "Synonyms for between the teeth (adverb): sotto voce, under one's breath" と言う説明を見つけました。 確認の為に "sotto voce" を別の同意語辞書、Thesaurus.comで見ると：
sotto voce: in an undertone: barely audible, between the teeth, in a whisper, in soft tones, under one's breath, with bated breath
とあり "between the teeth" は "barely audible" の意味と解釈する方が無難な様です。 しかし、"take the bit in / between one's teeth" の慣用句の意味も覚えたい。
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