Business: English Skills
ビジネスチャンスを活かす英語力UPのために
はじめまして。12月のB項を担当させていただく小島です。
寒い日が続きますが、皆さまお元気でお過ごしでしょうか。
今回は、今年ノーベル文学賞を受賞された日系イギリス人小説家であるガズオ･イシグロさんが、2006年に代表作『私を離さないで (Never Let Me Go)』を出版した際のインタビューを取り上げたいと思います。この作品は、臓器提供をするクローン人間を主人公としたもので、2010年にイギリスで映画化され、また昨年にはTBSでドラマ化されるなど、その衝撃的な内容から大きな注目を集めました。
The Japan Timesにより、カズオ･イシグロさんが本作品で何を描きたかったのか、インタビューが掲載されていましたので一部抜粋して解説を行いたいと思います。
…………Well, as a novelist, you can go down many paths when you take a subject(3). For me, of course, one of the very first things that occurred to me when I thought about writing this story was, of course, it could turn into one of these stories about escape. Usually, that’s the first things anybody thinks of. But I realized that it would soon become a story about.. it would be a kind of metaphor, if you like, for an exploited class who then rebels. And could be one of these stories about the human spirit. It’s basically about slavery and rebellion. And I knew I didn’t want to write that kind of story.
What’s always been much more fascinating for me has been the extent to which human beings do accept their position that they’ve been given. You pointed out these extreme cases (2), but I think throughout history, you see that citizens of various countries have accepted all kinds of things, they’ve accepted all kinds of hideous hardship to themselves and their families because they though that this is better for the greater cause.
And even when you are not in such extreme situations, I am fascinated by the extent to which people are passive (3). They accept their job, their status. They don’t try and break our of it. In fact the opposite, they try and gain some sense of dignity by doing their little job well of fulfilling their little role very well. And so sometimes this is very sad and tragic. Sometimes it’s a source of heroism and courage. But to me, that vision of the world is much more interesting.
…………We don’t live in a state of having a broad perspective and always having the courage to rebel and move out of our position. I see a world in which people are born into little, kind of, narrow destinies, and they accept this, even when it’s painful and hideous or very restricting. And they struggle with this. And they try to squeeze their dreams and hopes into this kind of very small, narrow area (4). So that’s always fascinated me more than, you know, people who kind of tear down the system and rebel.
Today’s Vocabularies:
occur to：思い浮かぶ/ turn A into B：AをBに変える/ exploited：搾取された/ rebels：反乱/ slavery：奴隷制/ fascinating：魅力的な/ throughout~：～を通して/ hideous：恐ろしい/ cause: 意義、主義/ extreme極端な/ passive：受動的な、消極的な/ break out of~：～抜け出す/ dignity：威厳、尊厳/ fulfill：果たす/ tragic：悲劇的な/ courage：勇気/ perspective：視点、観点/ move out of~： ～から抜け出す/ restricting：制限するような/ struggle with~：～と闘う、奮闘する/ tear down~：～を破壊する
Translation
(1) Well, as a novelist, you can go down many paths when you take a subject.
小説家として、あるテーマを取り上げる際の選択肢は沢山あります。
→go down a path：道をたどる
(2) You pointed out these extreme cases, but I think throughout history, you see that citizens of various countries have accepted all kinds of things………
極端なケースを取り上げましたが、今までの歴史を振り返っても様々な国民はあらゆることを受け入れてきたのです。
→point out~：～を取り上げる、～を指摘する
(3) And even when you are not in such extreme situations, I am fascinated by the extent to which people are passive.
そのような極端な状況でなくても、私は人がどれほど消極的なのかということに興味をかき立てられます。
→be fascinated by~：～に魅了される、興味をそそられる
(4) And they try to squeeze their dreams and hopes into this kind of very small, narrow area.
そして彼らは夢や希望をこのとても小さくて狭いところに絞り込もうとするのです。
→squeeze A into B：AをBに詰め込む
The japan times NEWS DIGEST VOL.69 (November, 2017) 引用
この記事を読んでカズオ･イシグロさんの作品を読んでみたくなりました！英語力をつけるために洋書読んでみたけれども、難しくて結局諦めてしまったという話を友人から聞いたことがあります。自分のレベルにあった洋書を選択する方法もありますし、今回のようにインタビューの記事を読んで作者や作品について知ることも出来ますね。
