中國(guó)網(wǎng)站品牌欄目（頻道）
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 An image of a black cat. Halloween is a bad time of year for black cats, with their long-standing connections with witches, hubble-bubble and evil.
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Halloween is a bad time of year for black cats, with their long-standing connections with witches, hubble-bubble and evil. Reports of deliberate cruelty to black cats rise especially in the weeks around Halloween in Britain, the RSPCA animal charity said on Wednesday. But it seems that not only do people treat black cats badly in October -- they shun them for the rest of the year too. Black cats at animal shelters take longer than others to find homes, probably because of all the superstitions surrounding them, the charity said. "Unfortunately, black cats often do spend longer in our rehoming centres than others as they are frequently overlooked by potential owners," said shelter manager Beverly Leavy. "But their fur color makes no difference to how much love they have to give," she added. "The cats are ready to make wonderful pets." The image problem varies from country to country and often involves black cats crossing people's paths. Historians differ about the origins of the superstitions. Some point to the ancient Celts, some to folklore tales that liken cats to snakes and cast them as the constant companions of witches, others to a Medieval belief that they caused the black plague in Europe. The view that they bring bad luck has also woven its way into art and popular culture. American writer of macabre tales, Edgar Alan Poe, published a short story "The Black Cat" in 1843 and in the late 19th century a shady cabaret called Le Chat Noir welcomed guests in the Bohemian Montmartre district of Paris. The RSPCA is appealing for potential owners to come forward for the black cats in its shelters. They can be found on www.rspca.org.uk. (Read by Chantal Anderson. Chantal Anderson is a multimedia journalist at the China Daily Web site.) 點(diǎn)擊查看更多雙語(yǔ)新聞
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對(duì)于黑貓來(lái)說(shuō)，萬(wàn)圣節(jié)是一年中最“悲慘”的日子。一直以來(lái)，人們都將它們與巫婆、喧鬧以及邪惡聯(lián)系在一起。 英國(guó)皇家防止虐待動(dòng)物協(xié)會(huì)（RSPCA）于本周三稱，在臨近萬(wàn)圣節(jié)的前幾周，英國(guó)故意虐待黑貓的案例數(shù)出現(xiàn)上升。 但似乎人們不僅在十月份虐待黑貓，其它時(shí)候也是避之不及。 該慈善機(jī)構(gòu)稱，動(dòng)物收容所里的黑貓等待領(lǐng)養(yǎng)的時(shí)間比其它貓都要長(zhǎng)，這或許是因?yàn)槟切┡c之相關(guān)的迷信說(shuō)法。 收容所經(jīng)理貝弗莉?利維說(shuō)：“不幸的是，黑貓往往在我們的收養(yǎng)中心待得時(shí)間更久，它們常被潛在的收養(yǎng)者們忽視?！?/font> 她說(shuō)：“但它們皮毛的顏色和它們給予人們的愛的多少?zèng)]有關(guān)系。它們可以成為很好的寵物。” 各國(guó)有關(guān)黑貓的迷信說(shuō)法各不相同，但一般都有忌諱看見黑貓從自己面前走過這一說(shuō)。 歷史學(xué)家對(duì)這些迷信說(shuō)法的起源看法各異。 有些人認(rèn)為這源于古凱爾特人，有些人則認(rèn)為這與把黑貓比作蛇，總將黑貓與巫婆扯在一起的民間傳說(shuō)有關(guān)，還有一些人認(rèn)為這源于中世紀(jì)時(shí)期的一種有關(guān)黑貓?jiān)跉W洲引發(fā)鼠疫的說(shuō)法。 黑貓會(huì)帶來(lái)厄運(yùn)的說(shuō)法在藝術(shù)和流行文化中也有所體現(xiàn)。 美國(guó)驚悚小說(shuō)家埃德加?愛倫?坡曾于1843年發(fā)表了一本名為《黑貓》的短篇小說(shuō)。19世紀(jì)晚期，一家名為L(zhǎng)e Chat Noir（法語(yǔ)，黑貓）的隱秘歌舞表演場(chǎng)所在法國(guó)巴黎具有波希米亞風(fēng)格的蒙馬特區(qū)開業(yè)。 英國(guó)皇家防止虐待動(dòng)物協(xié)會(huì)正呼吁潛在的收養(yǎng)者們主動(dòng)領(lǐng)養(yǎng)收容所的黑貓。具體信息可登陸www.rspca.org.uk網(wǎng)站查詢。 相關(guān)閱讀 中國(guó)首個(gè)鬼屋展現(xiàn)地道萬(wàn)圣節(jié) （英語(yǔ)點(diǎn)津Julie 姍姍編輯） |
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Vocabulary: hubble-bubble: an uproar; a hubbub（騷亂，吵鬧） shun：to keep away from (a place, person, object, etc.), from motives of dislike, caution, etc.; take pains to avoid（避開） folklore：the traditional beliefs, legends, customs, etc., of a people; lore of a people（民間傳說(shuō)） black plague：鼠疫 macabre：gruesome and horrifying; ghastly; horrible（恐怖的，令人毛骨悚然的） cabaret：a restaurant providing food, drink, music, a dance floor, and often a floor show（有音樂、歌舞表演的酒店） |
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