the importance of not being earnest
Продолжаю думать про разницу в восприятии.
Проверила гипотезу, что в Aнглии реакция гораздо более резкая, чем в штатах - вполне похоже на правду. (Например, в "большой четверке" - the times / the independent / the guardian / the daily telegraph - рецензии совершенно разгромные. А вот в ny times - сильно положительная)
И вот, как мне кажется, почему еще англичан так вывернуло.
В чудесной книжке Kate Fox "Watching the English" есть глава "Humour Rules" (там вообще много полезного..)
At the most basic level, an underlying rule in all English conversation is the proscription of 'earnestness'. Although we may not have the monopoly on humour, or even irony, the English are probably more acutely sensitive than any other nation to the distinction between 'serious' and 'solemn', between 'sincerity' and 'earnestness'.
... the Importance of Not Being Earnest rule is really quite simple. Seriousness is acceptable, solemnity is prohibited. Sincerity is allowed, earnestness is strictly forbidden. Pomposity and self-importance are outlawed. Serious matters can be spoken of seriously, but one must never take oneself too seriously .
... To take a deliberately extreme example, the kind of hand-on-heart, gushing earnestness and pompous, Bible-thumping solemnity favoured by almost all American politicians would never win a single vote in this country... The same goes for the gushy, tearful acceptance speeches of American actors at the Oscars and other award ceremonies, to which English television viewers across the country all respond with the same finger-down-throat 'I'm going to be sick' gesture. You will rarely see English Oscar-winners indulging in these heart-on-sleeve displays - their speeches tend to be either short and dignified or self-depreciatingly humourous, and even so they nearly always manage to look uncomfortable and embarrassed. Any English thespian who dares to break these unwritten rules is ridiculed and dismissed as a 'luvvie'.
Проверила гипотезу, что в Aнглии реакция гораздо более резкая, чем в штатах - вполне похоже на правду. (Например, в "большой четверке" - the times / the independent / the guardian / the daily telegraph - рецензии совершенно разгромные. А вот в ny times - сильно положительная)
И вот, как мне кажется, почему еще англичан так вывернуло.
В чудесной книжке Kate Fox "Watching the English" есть глава "Humour Rules" (там вообще много полезного..)
At the most basic level, an underlying rule in all English conversation is the proscription of 'earnestness'. Although we may not have the monopoly on humour, or even irony, the English are probably more acutely sensitive than any other nation to the distinction between 'serious' and 'solemn', between 'sincerity' and 'earnestness'.
... the Importance of Not Being Earnest rule is really quite simple. Seriousness is acceptable, solemnity is prohibited. Sincerity is allowed, earnestness is strictly forbidden. Pomposity and self-importance are outlawed. Serious matters can be spoken of seriously, but one must never take oneself too seriously .
... To take a deliberately extreme example, the kind of hand-on-heart, gushing earnestness and pompous, Bible-thumping solemnity favoured by almost all American politicians would never win a single vote in this country... The same goes for the gushy, tearful acceptance speeches of American actors at the Oscars and other award ceremonies, to which English television viewers across the country all respond with the same finger-down-throat 'I'm going to be sick' gesture. You will rarely see English Oscar-winners indulging in these heart-on-sleeve displays - their speeches tend to be either short and dignified or self-depreciatingly humourous, and even so they nearly always manage to look uncomfortable and embarrassed. Any English thespian who dares to break these unwritten rules is ridiculed and dismissed as a 'luvvie'.