文化面面觀  Harry Potter: its cultural impact and commercial success

我觀之我見  本段故事是影片中Miranda 和 Andy 之間的又一場交鋒。在聽從了Nigel的建議后，開始認真對待工作、變得時尚的Andy 在工作上已開始得到Miranda的贊許，被允許將雜志送到她家去。

考考你  一展身手

影片對白

Miranda: My girls are leaving on the train for their grandmother's at 4:00... so the book better be here no later than 3:00.

Andy: Of course!

Miranda: And I would like my steak here in 15 minutes.

Andy: No problem! Okay. I have four hours to get the impossible manuscript. Smith & Wollensky's doesn't open until 11:30. How am I gonna get the steak? Okay. I will be back in 15 minutes. Wish me luck!

Emily: No.Shart.

Andy: Yes, yes, yes, yes. I've beenon hold. It's for Miranda Priestly. It's very important. Yes, I know it's impossible to get... but, well, I was wondering if you could make the impossible possible... if that'sat allpossible. Yes, I'm calling about the Harry Potter manuscript. Uh, no. Unpublished. Not a chance? Tell her that it's for Miranda Priestly. 'Cause I think itmakes a difference. Let me call you back. Hi. You probably don't remember me. We met at James Holt's party. I'm Miranda Priestly's assistant.

Christian: The Harry Potter manuscript? Oh, you're kidding.

Andy: Uh, sorry to ask, but I'm desperate.

Christian: Just tell her it can't be done. You'll have to come up with a Plan "B."

Andy: Well, this is Miranda Priestly we're talking about. There is no Plan "B". There's only Plan "A". Is she back? Am I fired?

Emily: I rarely say this to people who aren't me... but you have got to calm down. Bloody hell!

Miranda: Coat, bag. What's that? Oh, I don't want that. I'm having lunch with Irv. I'll be back at 3:00. I'd like my Starbucks waiting. Oh, and if you don't have that Harry Potter book by then... don't even bother coming back.

Nate: Hello. Quit? Are you sure?

Andy: I failed. She's gonna fire me anyway. I might as wellbeat her to the punch.

Nate: Wow. Andy, good for you. Congratulations. You're free.

Andy: Yeah. Well, listen, I'll call you later.

Nate: Okay.

妙語佳句，活學活用

1. Shart

Shart 是一個新造出來的詞，它可以表示 shit+fart，意思就是“When one farts and a little shit comes out.”，很惡心吧。它還有個引申的用法是“gamble and lose”，因為有時候 fart 是一種很冒險的事情，后果可能會很嚴重。總之，在這里 Emily 對 Andy 說的這個詞意思非常不好，相當于“祝你倒霉”吧。

2. On hold

It refers to be in a state of temporary interruption, but not disconnection, during a telephone call. On hold 的意思就是中文里的“呼叫保持，打電話時的等待”，例如：While I was on hold, I checked my calendar for when I could schedule a meeting.

3. At all

At all 常用的意思有下面四種：

1) In any way or manner，究竟，例如：Is she able to sing at all?
2) To any extent，在任何程度上，例如：Was she at all surprised?
3) For any reason，基于任何原因，例如：Why bother at all?
4) In the slightest degree, under any circumstances，任何情況下，例如：She simply refused to walk at all. 做此意解時常與否定連用，例如：He was not at all frightened.

在本片段中，at all 采用的是第二種意思。

4. Make a difference

這個片語也寫作 make the difference，意思是“Cause a change in effect, change the nature of something 導致變化”，例如：His score on this test will make the difference between passing and failing.

在本片段中，make a difference 的意思是“Be important, matter”，例如：Her volunteer work made a difference in many lives.