上次提到英语中若干独特书面语短语,如:make a mental note, that said,...etc. 它们的出现在书面语言中,会赋予文章一种独特的味道。其实,类似的语汇或短语在英语中还真不少,少的或许是一双好奇敏锐的眼睛:
1. Granted,
Granted, it's a splendid car, but have you seen how much it costs!
(的確, 那汽車很漂亮, 可你看過價錢了嗎?)
Today is Election Day in the U.K. Elections here in Great Britain are quite different from what people are used to in the United States. For instance, our elections here are a lot more polite. Granted, a lot of that is due to the fact that Donald Trump is not involved.
(今天是英国的大选日。 大不列颠这边的大选与美国大异其趣。 例如,我们这边的大选更加彬彬有礼些。 当然, 它很大程度上是因为特朗普没有参与其中。)
从上面两例中可以看出, granted一旦独立使用于句首,它通常是一个承上启下的过渡词,语气中有先肯定前面的内容,再语气一转,更强调后面的内容。
2. Not that...
Some voters apparently just drooled on their ballots, not that this stopped battalions of Washington lawyers from passionately debating which candidate these voters were drooling for.
(有些选民显然刚刚流口水流到选票上了。 这并不就意味着华盛顿这帮律师就不会去争辩这些选民的口水是为谁而流。)
Not that I am stingy or uncharitable. To the contrary, I would love to give away a free pony with every book or even free books. However, sadly, my personal deficit is only slightly less than our government's--not that that has slowed those guys a bit. If I had a printing press like theirs, I'd have money, too, I guess.
(不是因为我是个吝啬鬼或者没有爱心。正相反,我很愿意每本书都免费附赠一只幼驹,甚至连书都免费。但遗憾的是,我的个人赤字比政府赤字略少一点点而已--这并不不会让那帮家伙花钱悠着点。我要是拥有一台像他们那样的印钞机,我想我也会很有钱的。)
同样,not that...也是用于承上启下,但它不是先肯定前面的内容,而是否定它。它也不强调后面的内容,而是给后面的内容留下足够的余地。
这两个独特语汇的书面语特质很明显,在平时口语中不大常用。
Granted, they can make your writings more bookish. Not that they would make your writings sound shakespearian.
(的确,它们可以让你的写作更具有书面语的味道。 但并不就意味你写出的东西带有文学的味道。)