Legally Blonde

映画を見ていると素晴らしいスピーチに出会うことがあります。卓越した脚本家が選び抜いた言葉ですから優れているのは当然ですね。珠玉のスピーチは、音読したり、オーバーラッピング(シンクロリーディング)したりして英語学習にぜひ活かしたい。

これは『Legally Blonde(キューティー・ブロンド)』から。この映画はタイトルがすごく凝っています。単にlegally(法律上の)とblonde(ブロンドの人)を組み合わせただけの題名ではありません。blonde(ブロンド)は金髪・色白・青い瞳の人を指し、素敵な容姿である一方、どうも頭が軽いイメージがあるようです。それと対称をなすのがbrunette(ブルネット)で、髪や肌が浅黒い人を指し、インテリのイメージがあります。次のブロンド・ジョークで感じてみてください。

A Blonde Goes Shopping
While wandering through a clothes store in a shopping mall, a blonde suddenly remembers she needs a microwave. Seeing one in the back, she tells the clerk she wants to buy it. The clerk looks up, and glances at the microwave in question and says, "We can't sell that to blondes."

Irate at the apparent discrimination she decides she'll fool him, and goes home and dyes her hair to become a brunette. The next day she returns to the same store and again asks a different clerk for the microwave. Again the clerk says, "We can't sell that to a blonde impersonating a brunette."

Aghast, she thinks it's unfair discrimination and decides to try one more time, only this time as a red-head. She waits patiently outside the store until another clerk is available and once more asks to buy the microwave. Again she is disappointed to hear, "We can't sell that to a blonde impersonating a red-head."

Frustrated she asks, "How did you know I was a blonde?"

"Because, that's not a microwave, it's a TV."

Dumb Blonde Jokes

話が逸れてしまいました。この映画は頭が弱いはずのblondeのElle Woodsが、超難関のHarvard University(ハーバード大学)のLaw School(法科大学院)受験を突破し、活躍するという痛快なストーリー。Law School(法科大学院)受験に向けて猛勉強し、将来はlawyer(弁護士)を目指すわけですから、legally(法律上の)という形容詞を使っているのだと思います。また、legally blind(法的に盲目の人)という言葉を文字ったものだという話もあります。

それではElle Woodsのスピーチにいってみましょう。音声はこちらです。

On our very first day at Harvard, a very wise Professor quoted Aristotle: "The law is reason free from passion." Well, no offense to Aristotle, but in my three years at Harvard I have come to find that passion is a key ingredient to the study and practice of law -- and of life. It is with passion, courage of conviction, and strong sense of self that we take our next steps into the world, remembering that first impressions are not always correct. You must always have faith in people. And most importantly, you must always have faith in yourself.

Congratulations class of 2004 -- we did it!

【glossary】Aristotle アリストテレス　　offense 無礼・侮辱　　ingredient 構成要因　　conviction 信念