Why I'm glad my prediction was wrong
文章来源: 文章作者: 发布时间:2009-04-03 01:02 字体: [ ]  进入论坛
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Usually one hates to admit he or she is wrong on a prediction. But I, for one, am more than glad to say I did not get it right on the Zhang Yimou-directed extravaganza for last night's Beijing Olympics opening ceremony.

He achieved something I thought he was both incapable1 of and unwilling2 to do.

To start with, he went for the high-brow - if we use the CCTV New Year's eve gala as a benchmark - a risky3 move considering the size of the audience. Of course there was plenty to please the senses, but movable type printing and ancient paintings seemed too archaic4 a subject. Hey, it turned out to be some of the most ingenious moments of the evening.

The concept of an ink painting was exactly what I said Zhang and his team would never dare choose. The distilled5 colors of black and white are simply the opposite of his favorite color scheme of bright red and yellow, China's de rigueur choice for celebration. I do not know how much pressure he had to withstand before he could convince people that dancers clad in pitch black imitating brush strokes or in white doing the tai chi would be a good idea.

It seems that Zhang and company were inspired by the 2004 Athens show, which did not aim to win over people with no knowledge of the ancient civilization. While sculpture was the manifestation6 in Greece, Zhang resorted to Chinese painting, upon whose abstract lines a colorful world emerged, including the not surprising Peking Opera and the very well produced "Ritual Music", where grand and regal styles of the Tang Dynasty literally7 rose and reached for the sky.

There was not as much hi-tech as I had expected, especially after watching the opening ceremony of the 2006 Doha Asian Games. The mythological8 figures such as Pangu, Nuwa and Houyi were nowhere in sight. They certainly would have wowed us - or the child in us. Was this a technological9 factor is an aesthetic10 one? The fast moving and sudden appearance of large props11 in a vast arena12 visible from all four sides no doubt presented a daunting13 task. On second thought, they would not have fit into the current theme, which seemed to be from ancient glory to future glory.

The show did make use of the vertical14 space, such as the flying dance girls, the astronauts, the giant globe, and the encircling panel in the ceiling that forms a clever "crown" where images constantly evolved to compliment the action on the floor. However, the best action indeed took place on solid ground, where both old-style shape formations and new surprises coalesced15 into one.

Now that I have listed my errors, I will run down the list of what I got right or almost right. Sarah Brightman is close to Celine Dion in terms of power ballads16, and Liu Huan was on the shortlist I mentioned. It was a safe bet, which deprived us of the shock of seeing a Chinese folk-style warbler or a total unknown.

Harmony was brought up more than once, and emphasized in the Confucius and Taoist numbers. The image of thousands of Confucius look-alikes, the word formed by the human-formed movable type, the cosmic atmosphere of Lang Lang's piano solo, the doves, the sights and sounds of Mother Nature, the 2,008 smiling faces from all over the world - all pointed17 to the omnipresent force of harmony.

Still, I regret the image of phoenix18 was passed over. A dancer or a group of dancers in one phoenix costume could have parachuted into the stadium, if rising up is too cumbersome19. But hey, this was more innovative20 and ideology-free than I had expected. I have no reason to complain.



点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 incapable w9ZxK     
adj.无能力的,不能做某事的
参考例句:
  • He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。
  • Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。
2 unwilling CjpwB     
adj.不情愿的
参考例句:
  • The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
  • His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。
3 risky IXVxe     
adj.有风险的,冒险的
参考例句:
  • It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险,但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
  • He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。
4 archaic 4Nyyd     
adj.(语言、词汇等)古代的,已不通用的
参考例句:
  • The company does some things in archaic ways,such as not using computers for bookkeeping.这个公司有些做法陈旧,如记账不使用电脑。
  • Shaanxi is one of the Chinese archaic civilized origins which has a long history.陕西省是中国古代文明发祥之一,有悠久的历史。
5 distilled 4e59b94e0e02e468188de436f8158165     
adj.由蒸馏得来的v.蒸馏( distil的过去式和过去分词 );从…提取精华
参考例句:
  • The televised interview was distilled from 16 hours of film. 那次电视采访是从16个小时的影片中选出的精华。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Gasoline is distilled from crude oil. 汽油是从原油中提炼出来的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 manifestation 0RCz6     
n.表现形式;表明;现象
参考例句:
  • Her smile is a manifestation of joy.她的微笑是她快乐的表现。
  • What we call mass is only another manifestation of energy.我们称之为质量的东西只是能量的另一种表现形态。
7 literally 28Wzv     
adv.照字面意义,逐字地;确实
参考例句:
  • He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
  • Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候,她不走到真正要昏厥了,决不肯坐下来。
8 mythological BFaxL     
adj.神话的
参考例句:
  • He is remembered for his historical and mythological works. 他以其带有历史感和神话色彩的作品而著称。
  • But even so, the cumulative process had for most Americans a deep, almost mythological significance. 不过即使如此,移民渐增的过程,对于大部分美国人,还是意味深长的,几乎有不可思议的影响。
9 technological gqiwY     
adj.技术的;工艺的
参考例句:
  • A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
  • Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今, 随着科技进步,生活节奏不断增快。
10 aesthetic px8zm     
adj.美学的,审美的,有美感
参考例句:
  • My aesthetic standards are quite different from his.我的审美标准与他的大不相同。
  • The professor advanced a new aesthetic theory.那位教授提出了新的美学理论。
11 props 50fe03ab7bf37089a7e88da9b31ffb3b     
小道具; 支柱( prop的名词复数 ); 支持者; 道具; (橄榄球中的)支柱前锋
参考例句:
  • Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
  • The government props up the prices of farm products to support farmers' incomes. 政府保持农产品价格不变以保障农民们的收入。
12 arena Yv4zd     
n.竞技场,运动场所;竞争场所,舞台
参考例句:
  • She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
  • He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。
13 daunting daunting     
adj.使人畏缩的
参考例句:
  • They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
  • Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。
14 vertical ZiywU     
adj.垂直的,顶点的,纵向的;n.垂直物,垂直的位置
参考例句:
  • The northern side of the mountain is almost vertical.这座山的北坡几乎是垂直的。
  • Vertical air motions are not measured by this system.垂直气流的运动不用这种系统来测量。
15 coalesced f8059c4b4d1477d57bcd822ab233e0c1     
v.联合,合并( coalesce的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The puddles had coalesced into a small stream. 地面上水洼子里的水汇流成了一条小溪。
  • The views of party leaders coalesced to form a coherent policy. 党的领导人的各种观点已统一为一致的政策。 来自辞典例句
16 ballads 95577d817acb2df7c85c48b13aa69676     
民歌,民谣,特别指叙述故事的歌( ballad的名词复数 ); 讴
参考例句:
  • She belted out ballads and hillbilly songs one after another all evening. 她整晚一个接一个地大唱民谣和乡村小调。
  • She taught him to read and even to sing two or three little ballads,accompanying him on her old piano. 她教他读书,还教他唱两三首民谣,弹着她的旧钢琴为他伴奏。
17 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
18 phoenix 7Njxf     
n.凤凰,长生(不死)鸟;引申为重生
参考例句:
  • The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
  • The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。
19 cumbersome Mnizj     
adj.笨重的,不便携带的
参考例句:
  • Although the machine looks cumbersome,it is actually easy to use.尽管这台机器看上去很笨重,操作起来却很容易。
  • The furniture is too cumbersome to move.家具太笨,搬起来很不方便。
20 innovative D6Vxq     
adj.革新的,新颖的,富有革新精神的
参考例句:
  • Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
  • He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。
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