美国习惯用语 | behind the scenes

我们社区委员会上周末举行选举,结果,一个默默无闻的人当上了委员会主席。后来我听说,这个人在选举前一直在家里办宴会,把好多委员请去吃饭,拉关系,拉选票。这让我想到了一个习惯用语。那就是:behind the scenes。

behind the scenes是“幕后”的意思。我们社区委员会的选举就是这样,候选人请委员会成员吃饭,说服他们把票投给自己,可我们这些普通居民根本不知道这些事情。

  • It was done behind the scenes.
    这事是瞒着大家,暗中进行的。

在下面这段话中我们要谈到一个叫Wikileaks的组织,中文叫“维基泄密”。它到底泄露了那些秘密呢?

  • WikiLeaks is an international organization that publishes secret information from a variety of unnamed sources. Its release of several pages of sensitive e-mails from U.S. diplomats caused a lot of concern. Many in the government claim that such communications should remain private. They warn that it could harm national security and international relations to let the public learn what goes on behind the scenes.
    维基泄密是一个国际组织,专门公开来自各种匿名渠道的秘密信息。这个组织向公众泄露了长达数页的美国外交官收发的电子邮件的内容,这些敏感的信息引发了很多人的关注。许多政府人士说,这些邮件的内容不应该曝光。他们警告说,让公众了解到政府私下里进行的活动会给国家安全和国际关系带来伤害。

不过从另外一方面说,公众是有知情权的。我们不是用“无事不可对人言”来形容行为磊落,心胸坦荡的人么?

我们常说“没有不透风的墙”。如果不想让别人知道你的秘密,唯一的办法就是不要把这个秘密告诉别人,不管是写信、电子邮件还是打电话、聊天。

  • Whenever players on the team were interviewed, they expressed their admiration and support for Coach Green. Behind the scenes, however, they complained bitterly about his lack of experience. Soon enough, their dislike of him became well-known. That's when fans called for the Coach to resign.
    队员们在接受采访时,总是表达他们对格林教练的敬仰和支持。可是,在背后,他们总是非常不满地抱怨这位教练缺乏经验。很快,队员们对教练的反感就变得尽人皆知了。于是,球迷们要求教练下课。

Behind the scenes,还可以放在一起当形容词用,表示幕后的,后台的。比如:

  • a behind the scenes look at a fashion show
    时装秀的后台情况
  • a behind the scenes video of how a car is manufactured
    揭密汽车制造过程的录像。