MAJOR HALBERT: My lord, there is a rider at the gates. A civilian¹ carrying a white flag.

CORNWALLIS: I'm occupied .

MAJOR HALBERT: He has a pair of dogs with him. Great Danes.

CORNWALLIS: Now we come to the matter of the specific targeting of officers during engagements. Of course you must know that in civilized² warfare³, officers in the field must not be accorded inappropriate levels of hostile attention.

MARTIN: To your mind , what are appropriate levels of hostile attention?

CORNWALLIS: Colonel, imagine the utter chaos⁴ that would follow from leaderless armies having at each other. There must be gentlemen in command to lead and, and, and when appropriate, restrain their men.

MARTIN: Restrain them from, say, targeting civilians⁵. Women, children and such?

CORNWALLIS: That's a separate issue.

MARTIN: No, no, no, I consider them linked. As long as your soldiers attack civilians, I will order the shooting of your officers at every engagement. And my men are excellent marksmen.

CORNWALLIS: Very well, now let us move on to... 

MARTIN: Prisoner exchange.

CORNWALLIS: Sir?

MARTIN: You have eighteen of my men. I want them back.

CORNWALLIS: I, I do have eighteen criminals under sentence of death, but I, I hold no prisoners of war.

MARTIN: If that's your position, then eighteen of your officers will have to die. Nineteen, if you hang me with my men.

CORNWALLIS: My officers?

MARTIN: Sir, top of the ridge⁶, to your left. Just Below the tree line.

CORNWALLIS: Their names and ranks?

MARTIN: They refused to give me their names. But their ranks are nine lieutenants⁷, five captains, three majors and one very fat colonel who called me a cheeky fellow.

CORNWALLIS: You know this is not the conduct of a gentleman.

MARTIN: If the conduct of your officers is the measure of a gentleman, I take that as a compliment. Get my men.

CORNWALLIS: Arrange the exchange.

MAJOR HALBERT: My lord.

MARTIN: Thank you sir.

MAJOR HALBERT: One of our captured officers, my lord.

CORNWALLIS: My reputation suffers because of your incompetence⁸! That man insults me!

TAVINGTON: Quite impressive for a farmer with a pitchfork, wouldn't you say?

CORNWALLIS: I want you to find that man. I want you to capture him.

TAVINGTON: The man has the loyalty⁹ of the people. They protect him. Protect his family. Protect the families of his men. I can capture him for you. But to do so requires the use of tactics that are somewhat… what was the word your lordship used? "Brutal¹⁰", I think.

CORNWALLIS: Go on.

TAVINGTON: I am preparing to do what is necessary. I alone will assume the full mantle¹¹ of responsibility for my actions free of the chain of command rendering¹² you blameless. However, if I do this, you and I both know that I can never return to England with honor. What, I wonder, is to become of me?

CORNWALLIS: When this war is over here in the colonies, the new aristocracy will be landowners.

TAVINGTON: Tell me about Ohio.

PRIVATE: Make way .

TAVINGTON: As you were. Wilkins. A plantation¹³ seven miles from Wakefield, on the Santee, east of Black Swamp. Who lived there?

WILKINS: Benjamin Martin.

BORDON: He is the ghost.

TAVINGTON: What do you know about him?

WILKINS: Hell , everything. I could tell you the size of his boot.

妙语佳句，活学活用

1. Occupied

Occupied 这个词有很多有趣的用法，我们来一一看一下。作为形容词，occupied可以表示：
1）被使用的，例如：She keeps her time well occupied. The WC is occupied.
2）被占领的，例如：the occupied countries of Europe
3）有人居住的，例如：Not all the occupied (or tenanted) apartments were well kept up.
4）投入精力/集中注意力做……事，例如：She keeps herself fully¹⁴ occupied with volunteer activities.

在片段中的这个occupied 意思是“正被某事占据”，可以译为“我正忙着呢”。

2. To one's mind

和 in one's opinion 同义，例如：To my mind we have enough money to start building now.

3. Become of

“Happen to, befall, be the fate of 使遭遇，发生于，变成”的意思，例如：I haven't seen Joe in a year; what has become of his book?

4. Make way

意思是“让路”，例如：Make way for the king!
Make way 还表示“给别人让位”，例如：He resigned to make way for a younger man.
此外，make way 还表示“发展，进步”，如：Is this enterprise making way?
Please make way for the wheelchair.

5. Hell

Hell 在这里是个语气词，用来加强语气，如：“Hell no!”。Hell也可以用来表示惊讶，愤怒，厌恶等感情。

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