If you’ve never quite managed to finish Pride And Prejudice or Jane Eyre, you’re not alone. Some 71 per cent of us claim we’ve read classics in an attempt to seem more cultured, according to a study by Lindeman’s Wine and Book Club.
如果你從未讀完《傲慢與偏見(jiàn)》或《簡(jiǎn)·愛(ài)》,別擔(dān)心,你不是一個(gè)人。英國(guó)林德曼美酒與圖書(shū)俱樂(lè)部的一項(xiàng)調(diào)查顯示,71%的英國(guó)人為了顯得更有文化,會(huì)吹噓自己讀過(guò)某些名著。

Most ‘book bluffers’ said they lied about their reading because they did not want to appear stupid. More men were fibbers, with 23 per cent saying they had lied to impress a female, while women said they feared friends’ and colleagues’ judgement.
大部分“吹噓自己讀過(guò)名著的人”都說(shuō),他們謊稱(chēng)自己讀過(guò)某些書(shū)是因?yàn)樗麄儾幌腼@得無(wú)知。男士們比女士們更愛(ài)撒謊說(shuō)自己讀過(guò)某些名著,23%的男士聲稱(chēng)他們?nèi)龌攀菫榱私o女性留下深刻印象,而女士們則說(shuō)她們?nèi)鲋e是因?yàn)楹ε屡笥褌兒屯聜儗?duì)她們有不好的看法。

Books that had been made into films or TV series were the most lied about as people at least knew the plot. The top five books people claimed to have read were: Pride And Prejudice, The Lord Of The Rings, Jane Eyre, Tess Of The d’Urbervilles and The Hobbit.
人們普遍謊稱(chēng)自己讀過(guò)那些已被拍成電影或電視劇的圖書(shū),因?yàn)橹辽龠€知道里面的情節(jié)。在人們聲稱(chēng)讀過(guò)的書(shū)中,排名前五位的依次是:《傲慢與偏見(jiàn)》、《指環(huán)王》、《簡(jiǎn)·愛(ài)》、《德伯家的苔絲》和《魔戒前傳》。

Less than half of Brits (45 per cent) correctly named Emily Bronte as the author of Wuthering Heights. Many believed it to be Charles Dickens (16 per cent), Charlotte Bronte (13 per cent), fictitious character Jane Eyre (12 per cent) and even the singer Kate Bush (4 per cent).
不到一半的英國(guó)人(45%)能準(zhǔn)確說(shuō)出《呼嘯山莊》的作者是艾米莉·勃朗特。有人認(rèn)為該書(shū)的作者是查爾斯·狄更斯(16%),有人認(rèn)為是夏洛蒂·勃朗特(13%),也有人認(rèn)為是虛構(gòu)的人物簡(jiǎn)·愛(ài)(12%),甚至還有人認(rèn)為是歌手凱特·布什(4%)。

When it comes to Jane Eyre, 15 per cent wrongly think it was written by Jane Austen while the Bronte sisters are most commonly credited with writing Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles.
15%的人錯(cuò)誤地認(rèn)為《簡(jiǎn)·愛(ài)》的作者是簡(jiǎn)·奧斯汀,而托馬斯·哈代的《德伯家的苔絲》最容易被人認(rèn)為是勃朗特三姐妹寫(xiě)的。

According to Debrett’s, the authority on etiquette, wanting to appear literary is a peculiarly British trait. David Miller, Director at Debrett’s, said: 'Social etiquette is an important part of being British and we’ve been bound by it for centuries.
按照英國(guó)禮儀權(quán)威機(jī)構(gòu)德布雷特出版社的說(shuō)法,想讓自己看起來(lái)精通文學(xué)是英國(guó)人獨(dú)有的特征。 德布雷特出版社的主任戴維·米勒說(shuō):“社交禮儀是英國(guó)人很重要的一部分,幾百年來(lái)我們一直受到它的約束?!?/div>

'We can’t help but care about how we’re perceived by others - it’s an intrinsic part of our DNA, which makes the lengths we’ll go to keep face ever more amusing.
“我們總是禁不住關(guān)心他人對(duì)我們的看法——這是我們DNA中固有的基因,它使得我們總是盡量讓自己顯得更加有趣。”

'It’s notable men are most likely to bluff about the books they’ve read in order to win over the fairer sex. However it’s interesting women are most concerned about being judged by their female peers, casting a shadow on modern day notions of sisterhood.'
“很明顯,男士們吹噓自己讀過(guò)很多書(shū)是為了贏得女士們的芳心。然而有趣的是,女士們吹噓自己讀過(guò)很多書(shū)是因?yàn)樗齻冴P(guān)心女性朋友對(duì)她們的評(píng)價(jià),這無(wú)疑會(huì)對(duì)現(xiàn)代姐妹觀產(chǎn)生負(fù)面影響?!?/div>

Four in ten Brits confess they keep works of literature on their bookshelves purely for display purposes. In a bid to keep up appearances, 57 per cent make sure the tomes on view are literary classics - even if they’ve never digested a word of them.
40%的英國(guó)人承認(rèn),他們把文學(xué)作品擺在書(shū)架上純粹是做做樣子。為了面子上好看,57%的英國(guó)人家里都擺放著大部頭的經(jīng)典文學(xué)作品——即使他們從沒(méi)看過(guò)里面的一個(gè)字。

We’re also keen to impress others while reading on the move, with 23 per cent of us making sure we are seen out and about with the ‘right’ book.
英國(guó)人也喜歡在車(chē)上看書(shū)來(lái)給他人留下深刻印象,23%的人出去時(shí)都確保隨身帶著“適合”的圖書(shū)。

The study was conducted by the Lindeman’s Wine and Book Club which will be holding events at Oxfam bookshops nationwide.
這項(xiàng)研究是由英國(guó)林德曼美酒與圖書(shū)俱樂(lè)部進(jìn)行的,該俱樂(lè)部還將在全國(guó)范圍內(nèi)舉辦樂(lè)施會(huì)書(shū)店活動(dòng)。