据BBC报道,优衣库创办人柳井正近日表示,优衣库没有使用中国新疆生产的棉花,引发热议。
看了下BBC的这篇报道,涉及到优衣库创始人说“没有使用新疆棉”的是这几句话:
The boss of the company behind global fashion chain Uniqlo has told the BBC that the Japanese firm does not use cotton from the Xinjiang region of China in its products.
全球时尚连锁品牌优衣库(Uniqlo)的母公司老板接受BBC采访时表示,这家日本公司在产品中并未使用来自中国新疆地区的棉花。
But speaking to the BBC in Tokyo about the firm's measures to be more transparent about where the materials in its clothes come from and how they are made, he said: "We’re not using [cotton from Xinjiang]."
但在东京接受BBC采访时,他谈到了公司为提高其服装原材料来源和制造过程透明度所采取的措施。他表示:“我们没有使用(新疆棉)。”
"By mentioning which cotton we’re using..." he continued, before pausing and ending his answer with "Actually, it gets too political if I say anymore so let's stop here".
他补充说:“谈到我们使用什么棉花……”接着稍作停顿,继续说道,“实际上,如果我说得更多,这就变得太政治化了,所以我们就到此为止吧。”
结合BBC的后续报道及Reuters、The Independent的报道,分享几个地道英文表达:
1. fall out of favour/favor
文中的例句是:
Xinjiang cotton was once known as some of the best fabric in the world. But it has fallen out of favour after allegations that...
新疆棉曾被认为是世界上最好的布料之一,但在...后,新疆棉已不再受欢迎。
fall/remain/go out of favour/favor 表示“不再受欢迎/受人喜爱”、“失宠”,是外刊中一个很常见的表达。 类似的表达有 lose favor , fall from favor。
我们看几个例句:
HIIT, or high-intensity interval training, workouts are falling out of favor. 高强度间歇训练(HIIT)正在失去人们的青睐。
《纽约时报》例句:Manhattan society is a different story. Christopher Buckley, a comic author who satirized the Trump administration in the novel “Make Russia Great Again,” said, “Washington tends to be more tolerant of fellow swamp creatures, who are continually in and out of favor.”
曼哈顿的社会则有所不同。在其小说《让俄罗斯恢复伟大荣光》(Make Russia Great Again)中讽刺特朗普政-府的漫画作家克里斯托弗·巴克利(Christopher Buckley)表示,“华盛顿往往更能容忍沼泽生物的同伴,让他们一会儿得宠,一会儿失宠。”
2. take a side
文中的例句是:
His decision not to take a side helped Uniqlo to remain popular in China's huge retail market.
他(指优衣库创始人柳井正)不选边站的决定让优衣库在中国庞大的零售市场中继续受到欢迎。
take a side / take sides /take someone's side / choose sides 表示“ (在争论或战争中) 支持一方",选边站、站队。
文中的另一个例句:
"Both Beijing and Washington want companies to choose sides, and Tokyo will continue to lean closer to the United States in this matter."
“北京和华盛顿都希望公司选择立场,而东京在这方面将继续靠近美国。”
再看《纽约时报》例句:
They don’t really want to take a side because it could hurt their interests either way. 他们真的不想站队,因为这可能会损害他们的利益。
3. backlash
文中的例句是:
Many global brands removed products using Xinjiang cotton from their shelves, which led to fierce backlash in China. Brands such as H&M, Nike, Burberry, Esprit and Adidas were boycotted.
许多全球品牌下架使用新疆棉的产品,这在中国引发强烈反弹。H&M、耐克(Nike)、博柏利(Burberry,巴宝莉)、思捷(Esprit) 和阿迪达斯(Adidas)等品牌都遭到抵制。
backlash /ˈbæklæʃ/ n. 表示“对社会变动等的)强烈抵制,集体反对”,常见搭配是 a backlash against sth / a backlash from some。在外刊或新闻媒体报道中最常见的表达是face backlash:
BBC在优衣库新疆棉事件的后续报道,就用到了这个表达:
Uniqlo is facing an online backlash in China after the boss of its parent company said the Japanese clothing retailer does not source cotton from Xinjiang.
从上面这个例句中,我们还可以学到一个熟词僻义:source。
source 作名词表示“来源、出处”,动词短语source sth from sth 表示“从...获得,从...采购”
另外,《卫报》在报道耐克和H&M碰瓷新疆棉花时,就用到backlash这个词。
同样表示“抵制”,还可以用 boycott ,/ˈbɔɪkɒt/ v. 拒绝购买(或使用、参加),也可当名词使用。
例如,The Independent 报道优衣库创始人关于新疆棉的言论,用的标题是:Uniqlo faces calls for boycott in China after CEO’s Xinjiang cotton comment。
END
感谢大家阅读。
来源:BBC(节选)
Uniqlo does not use Xinjiang cotton, boss says
Uniqlo faces China backlash over cotton comments
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