随身英语

A love of miniature 微缩物的独特魅力

无论是在艺术、电影、文学，还是玩具里，我们都可以看到微缩物的身影。千百年来，人类对微小的物品情有独钟。如今，网上有专做迷你食物的烹饪频道，也有艺术家展示用日常物品创造出的独特微观模型。本期 “随身英语” 讨论为什么有些人会格外喜欢这些袖珍的物件。

词汇：size 尺寸

What do table football, a doll's house and a remote-control car all have in common? They are all smaller versions of real things. And humans have long been intrigued by all things miniature. The Chinese ancient art of nut carving sees artists sculpt intricate designs, including microscopic people, into fruit or nut stones. English author Mary Norton wrote the fictional book series The Borrowers – they are tiny people who live secretly in the walls and floors of a normal-sized house. And then there are the online channels all about miniature cooking.

Valarmathi and Rajkumar, who run The Tiny Foods, film tiny versions of traditional Indian dishes being made, set amongst the backdrop of a minuscule village complete with teeny cooking utensils. Speaking to the BBC, Valarmathi says she was inspired by her grandmother who 'used to cook in really tiny pots'. Similarly, Kate Murdoch, who runs Tiny Kitchen, makes meals cooked on a hob that's powered by a tealight. Her videos include whisking eggs in a tiny mixing bowl and then cooking omelettes in pans the size of a postage stamp.

And then there's the art world… The miniature artist and photographer Tanaka Tatsuya has been rising to online fame. He takes everyday small objects and turns them into new fun-size dioramas. His creations include a face mask resembling lanes in a swimming pool, watermelon mountains and some penguins on an iceberg, which is in fact a bar of soap.

So, why do we love small things? Simon Garfield, author of In Miniature, says that holding a scaled-down world in our hands, gives us a feeling of control and helps us understand what is too big to envision at full scale, like skyscrapers and railways. With models, we can observe, learn and appreciate what we have – with less. He discusses how the fascination may also relate to childhood. Toy dolls and plastic construction kits make us conquerors of worlds. 'We may never have such dominion over the world again, unless we continue the play into adulthood.'

So, just like the worlds of art and literature, why not embrace a little love of miniature?

词汇表

miniature 微型的，袖珍的
intricate 复杂精细的
microscopic 极小的，需要用显微镜才能看到的
tiny 微小的
normal-sized 正常尺寸的
backdrop 背景
minuscule 微小的，极小的
teeny 很小的
tealight 茶蜡
postage stamp 邮票
turn into 将…变成…
fun-size 比普通尺寸小的
diorama （重现故事场景或自然世界样貌的）立体透视模型
resemble 看起来像，与…相似
scaled-down 缩小比例的
full scale 全尺寸，原物大小
model 模型

测验与练习

1.  阅读课文并回答问题。

1. True or false? The Borrowers are fictional people.

2. What do Valarmathi and Rajkumar do?

3. How does Kate Murdoch cook tiny meals?  

4. What does Tanaka Tatsuya make dioramas from?

5. Why does Simon Garfield mention skyscrapers and railways?

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. This model is _______. It isn't bigger or smaller than the real version.

miniature                  tiny                   full scale              teeny

2. Dinner is on the _______. Help yourself!  

postage stamp          hob                  tealight                skyscraper

3. It's a plastic toy, so it's just a _______ of a car. It's not real. 

diorama                    model               minuscule            backdrop

4. It's smaller than the original statue because it's a _______ version.

traditional                 intricate             fictional                scaled-down

5. I know you're not your sister, but you really _______ her!   

turn into                    carve                whisk                    resemble

答案

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。 

1. True or false? The Borrowers are fictional people.

True. They are tiny people from the fictional book series, The Borrowers.

2. What do Valarmathi and Rajkumar do?

They film tiny versions of traditional Indian dishes being made.

3. How does Kate Murdoch cook tiny meals? 

She makes meals cooked on a hob that's powered by atealight.  

4. What does Tanaka Tatsuya make dioramas from?

Tanaka Tatsuya likes to take everyday small objects and turn them into new fun-size dioramas.

5. Why does Simon Garfield mention skyscrapers and railways?

Because they are examples of things that are too big to envision at full scale.

2.  选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. This model is full scale. It isn't bigger or smaller than the real version.

2. Dinner is on the hob. Help yourself! 

3. It's a plastic toy, so it's just a model of a car. It's not real.

4. It's smaller than the original statue because it's a scaled-down version.

5. I know you're not your sister, but you really resemble her!