關于夢想

故事梗概：法默從小就希望成為一名宇航員。不過，家庭變故使他提早結束宇航員生涯，當上了農民。隨后，法默在自己的農場造火箭，期待奔向太空。發射前夕，法默引起了聯邦調查局的關注，而他們家也成了全世界的焦點。多重壓力下，法默試飛，卻遭遇失敗，身負重傷，意志消沉。在人們都對他失去信心的時候，妻子鼓勵法默追求夢想，最后法默成功坐著自己的火箭飛上太空。

(A hearing is held to discuss Farmer’s space-going plan.)

Judge A: Who’s your personnel at Mission Control?

Farmer: Shepard Farmer， my son.

Judge A: Does he have any experience?

Farmer: ①Sure does. Fifteen years.

Judge A: Is this a joke to you， Mr. Farmer? A 15-year-old will be the head of your Mission Control?

Farmer: He’s perfectly capable of launching his dad into space. Don’t 1)underestimate what my child can do.

Judge B: Come on. He’s 15 years old.

Colonel: We also have an 2)evaluation that was done recently by a Dr. Beth Goode.

Lawyer: Nurse Goode?

Colonel: These are alarming comments made by the doctor. She said that Mr. Farmer is angry...unstable...

3)delusional...and that his overall mental health is in question. Charlie， ②your father took his own life， is that correct?

Farmer: Don’t go there， colonel.

Judges: I can tell you right now， ③what you have built here...is a one-way ticket to the afterlife. A facility in which Mr. Farmer could get himself into space. The U.S. government has a space program， Mr. Farmer. Why don’t you just leave this to the professionals?

Farmer: In 1960 they started a space race. By 1969 we were on the moon. Now， in that short period of time， look what we 4)accomplished. And in my opinion， I believe that if some other country...wanted to go to the moon and live there...we’d get in a war with them because we think the moon is ours. Well， it’s not. Just like it’s not your right to tell me whether or not I can launch into space.

Judge B: Mr. Farmer， we have laws.

Farmer: I know we have laws. We got all kind of laws. We got more laws to tell us what we can’t do than anything else. We got laws to protect us from other laws.

Judge B: Comments like that do not help.

Farmer: Listen， I…I…you’ve been talking all morning. Let me talk for a minute. Okay? I won’t take long. You see， when I was a kid， they used to tell me that I could be anything I wanted to be. No matter what. And maybe I am

5)insane， I don’t know， but I still believe that. I believe it with all my heart. ④Somewhere along the line...we stopped believing that we could do anything. And if we don’t have our dreams， we have nothing.

Judge B: ⑤You’ll be informed of our decision.

（專家小組就法默要上太空的決定召開聽證會。）

評判甲：誰來負責航天飛行控制中心？

法默：我兒子謝潑德·法默。

評判甲：他有經驗嗎？

法默：當然。有15年的經驗了。

評判甲：你在開玩笑嗎，法默先生？一個15歲的孩子掌控你的航天飛行控制中心？

法默：他完全有能力把他的父親發射上天。不要低估我孩子的能力。

評判乙：得了吧，他才15歲。

上校：我們還有一份貝絲·古德醫生最近做的心理狀況評估報告。

律師：古德護士嗎？

上校：這位醫生提出了令人擔憂的意見。她認為法默先生易怒、情緒不穩定、有妄想傾向，而且整體精神狀況值得懷疑。查理，你的父親自殺了，對嗎？

法默：上校，別談這個。

評判們：我現在就能告訴你，你所建造的是張通往天國的單程票。一個能將法默先生帶上太空的設備。法默先生，美國政府有太空計劃。為何不把這留給專業人士去做呢？

法默：上世紀60年代，太空競賽開始。到1969年，我們已經登上了月球。那么，再看看那短短時間里我們就取得了怎樣的成就。依我看，我相信要是其他國家想上月球，想住在月球上，我們會和他們挑起戰爭，因為我們認為月球是我們的。噢，但它不是。同樣，你也沒權決定我是否能發射火箭進入太空。

評判乙：法默先生，我們有法律。

法默：我知道有法律。我們有各種各樣的法律。這種禁止我們做事的法律比什么都多但是還有一些法則是用來保護我們免受其它法律約束的。

評判乙：這些話于事無補。

法默：聽著，我……我……你們已經說了一上午了。讓我說一會，好吧？我不會說太久。你知道，我小的時候，大人總是對我說，只要我想，我就什么都能做到。無論什么。也許我瘋了，我也不知道，可我仍然相信這一點。我從心底里堅信這一點。在人生的旅途中總有某個時候……我們不再相信自己無所不能。一旦我們失去了夢想，我們就將一無所有。

評判乙：我們會通知你我們的決定。

Smart Sentences

① Sure does. 當然。

Sure does. = He sure does.

sure do/does: an expression for an affirmative answer（肯定答復的表達方式）

e.g. —Do you know how to connect all these PCs to one printer? 你知道怎樣把這些電腦連在同一臺打印機上嗎？

—Sure do. 當然啦。

Suitable Occasion: oral， informal

② Your father took his own life. 你的父親自殺了。

take one’s own life: kill oneself， suicide（自殺）

e.g. I don’t believe that John would ever take his own life. 我怎么都不相信約翰會自殺。

Similar Expression: commit suicide

Suitable Occasion: oral written， formal informal

③ What you have built here...is a one-way ticket to the afterlife. 你所建造的是張通往天國的單程票。

one-way ticket to: sth. will definitely lead to what is to be mentioned（必然結果）

e.g. Smoking is a one-way ticket to doom. 抽煙是死路一條。

Similar Expression: one–way journey

Suitable Occasion: oral written， formal informal

④ Somewhere along the line... 在人生的旅途中總有某個時候……

along the line: during the course of a situation or activity（在過程中；從頭至尾，自始至終）

e.g. Somewhere along the line of the relationship， Amy sensed a change took place in John. 在他們關系發展的過程中，艾米感覺到約翰變了。

Similar Expression: down the line

Suitable Occasion: oral written， formal informal

⑤ You’ll be informed of our decision. 我們會通知你我們的決定。

inform sb. of sth.: tell sb. about sth.（向某人知會某事）

e.g. Mr. Black informed Joe of the ruling on his appeal. 布萊克先生把對喬上訴的裁定通知他。

Suitable Occasion: oral written， formal