Friends英语赏析【35】休息还是分手？

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第三十五篇

Rachel近来因为工作繁忙而很少有空和Ross在一起，并且她和公司里的一位男同事因为工作上的接触让Ross很吃醋，结果事情越变越糟，气头上的Rachel提出和Ross分手。更糟的是一个误会让Ross在和Rachel分开不久后与另一女孩发生了关系，这下Rachel可和Ross之间可真的要完了：

Ross: Y'know what, y'know what, I’m-I’m not the one that wanted that, that break, okay. You’re the one that bailed on us. You’re the one that, that ran when things got just a little rough!
Rachel: That’s....
Ross: That’s what?!
Rachel: That is neither here nor there.
Ross: Okay, well here we are. Now we’re in a tough spot again, Rach. What do you want to do? How do you want to handle it? Huh? Do you wanna fight for us? Or, do you wanna bail? Look, I, I did a terrible, stupid, stupid thing. Okay? And I’m sorry, I wish I could take it back, but I can’t. I just can’t see us throwing away something we know is so damn good.

【世博视角】

Break 作为名词的解释之一是“休息”，比如lunch break 就是“午休时间”, 有的公司还会有tea break 或者是 coffee break,“用来吃茶点的休息时间”， 又比如：We'd worked for ten hours without a break.先前Rachel和Ross在争吵时，Rachel说了句maybe we should take a break., Ross以为她的意思是他们双方应该“休息”一下，别再继续这场争吵，可谁知Rachel却说No. A break from us.这里的这个break 意思可是“分手”。Ross觉得虽然他做了对不起Rachel的事情，但Rachel自己也有一定的责任，毕竟是她先提出分手的，是她先放弃，是她在事情变得不顺利时先跑开的 (I’m not the one that wanted that, that break, okay. You’re the one that bailed on us. You’re the one that, that ran when things got just a little rough!) 句中的bail这个动词就相当于abandon,表示“放弃”。

Ross的话也不无道理，Rachel一时也有些说不出话来，可现在的问题是说Ross最终做了错事，伤害了Rachel的感情，而不是说谁先提出分手的，所以她说了句That is neither here nor there.这个口语表达法的意思就是“某个事实并不重要，因为它与主题无关”，例如：

The fact that she needed the money for her children is neither here nor there - it's still stealing.
You pay for the movie and I'll get the dinner check, or vice versa—it's neither here nor there.

也许谁先提出分手并不重要，在这关头(a tough spot), Ross想知道Rachel会怎么处理，是原谅他犯的错，继续这段感情，还是放弃呢？尽管Ross再三认错，可Rachel还是没能原谅他。

*本篇所讲到的表达法:

break
That is neither here nor there.