“无米之炊”怎么说?
汉语里有“巧妇难为无米之炊”之说,英语中也有类似的表达,不过得把“米”和“炊”换成“砖”和“稻草”。感觉怪异?不急,了解了它的渊源,也就不觉得奇怪了。短语“making bricks without straw(无米之炊)”源于《圣经》。 据《圣经·出埃及记》记载:在逃离埃及之前,以色列人一直给埃及法老做苦力,如砌砖、搬运、盖房子。当时,brick(砖)是用泥土加straw(稻草)制成的,如果没有稻草,泥土就无法更好地粘在一起,砖自然也就无法砌制了。 后来,摩西请求法老给以色列人三天假期,好让他们到沙漠里去祭祀上帝。法老不但不听,反而变本加厉、苛刻无度。他下了命令——“Making bricks without straw”,即拒绝供应以色列人制砖的材料straw(稻草),并要求他们一天内制出与以往同样多的砖头。既得找砖头,又得等时间内按数交差,再巧的砌砖匠也难以做到啊。 看下面一个例句:If I don't have the data, how can I carry out the analysis? I can't make bricks without straw. (没有数据,我怎么做分析?我无法造无米之炊。)
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