VOA慢速英语--What If Clinton Were a Man, Trump Were a Woman?
时间：2019-01-02 作者：英语课 分类：2017年VOA慢速英语(四)月
After Hillary Clinton lost the presidency 1 to Donald Trump 2, some wondered how many voters were unwilling 3 to elect a woman for president. Now, a New York show is helping 4 to provide some answers.
It is recreating important moments from the three Trump-Clinton presidential debates, but with a big difference. A female actor plays Trump and a male actor plays Clinton.
The show is called: "Her Opponent."
Do the gender 5 changes make a difference? People who have seen the show say yes.
But surprisingly, many who speak out in the discussion that follows each show say Trump comes across in the show more sympathetic as a woman and Clinton less so as a man.
Christine Ostrosky, 22, is a senior at Miami University in Ohio. She watched a performance of "Her Opponent" online.
When she watched the "real" debates, she said, "It was obvious to me" that Clinton had more charisma 6, and was clearly the more qualified 7 debater."
But after watching the Trump and Clinton actors perform the debate lines, Ostrosky said she could understand better the appeal Trump had with some women voters.
Among the debate moments acted out in "Her Opponent," is this one over Clinton's experience.
Let's listen to the real Trump and Clinton in the presidential debate:
Clinton: So I know how to really work to get new jobs and to get exports that help to create more new jobs.
Trump: But you haven't done it in 30 years or 26 years or any number you want to...
Clinton: Well, I've been a senator, Donald...
Trump: You haven't done it. You haven't done it.
Clinton: And I have been a secretary of state.
Actors practicing for new show,
Now, let's listen to the rehearsal 8 of the actors playing Trump and Clinton in "Her Opponent:"
Clinton: So I know how to really work to get new jobs and to get exports that help to create more new jobs.
Trump: But you haven't done it in 30 years or 26 years or any number you want to...
Clinton: Well, I've been a senator, Donald...
Trump: You haven't done it. You haven't done it.
Clinton: And I have been a secretary of state.
The show's creators are Joe Salvatore, a playwright 9 and New York University theater professor and Maria Guadalupe, who teaches political science and economics at Insead, a graduate business school in France.
Guadalupe said: "One sees that, when performed by a man, Clinton was behaving within a very female script (smiling, nodding while she was being attacked) and that was not appealing and looked weak."
But Trump, performed by a woman, "looked less aggressive and more truthful 10, passionate 11," Guadalupe said.
Salvatore said it was not so much that Clinton supporters became Trump supporters after watching "Her Opponent." But audience members say they now know "why Trump won," he said.
Salvatore said the experience of putting together "Her Opponent" has left him ready to offer advice to candidates.
A candidate might learn a lot by watching how an actor would act out their words, complete with facial expressions and hand motions, Salvatore said.
"I think that we spend a lot of time in analysis talking about what people said and I don't think that we spend enough time in analysis talking about how people said it."
It is not only word choice, but how a person delivers his or her message, Salvatore said.
"I think this difference between Clinton offering so many facts and figures, almost to the point of it being dizzying in some moments in the debates, vs. Trump saying kind of short, quick, repeatable things over and over again, even if they are not necessarily accurate. The message lands more strongly and clearly."
This kind of show is called ‘documentary theater'
A show in which the actors repeat the same words said earlier by other people is not new. Some call it "documentary theater."
According to Drama Online, this type of show dates back to the 1920s. The aims of documentary theater are to reassess history and to investigate major events.
I'm Dorothy Gundy.
And I'm Bruce Alpert.
Bruce Alpert reported on this story. Dorothy Gundy produced the video. Hai Do was the editor.
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and share your views on 51VOA.COM. Are your views of a person affected 12 by their gender? Explain.
Words in This Story
gender - n. the state of being male or female
obvious - adj. easy to see or notice
charisma - n. a special charm or appeal that causes people to feel attracted and excited by someone
qualified - adj. having the necessary skill, experience, or knowledge to do a particular job or activity
script - n. the written form of a play, movie, television show
nod - v. to move your head up and down as a way of answering "yes" or of showing agreement
passionate - adj. having, showing, or expressing strong emotions or beliefs
analyze 13 - v. to study something closely and carefully
dizzying - adj. causing or likely to cause dizziness
accurate - adj. free from mistakes or errors
reassess - v. to reconsider a judgement about someone or something
- Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
- Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。
- He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
- The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。
- The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
- His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。
- The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
- By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
- French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
- Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。
- He has enormous charisma. He is a giant of a man.他有超凡的个人魅力，是个伟人。
- I don't have the charisma to pull a crowd this size.我没有那么大的魅力，能吸引这么多人。
- He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
- We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。
- I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。
- You can sharpen your skills with rehearsal.排练可以让技巧更加纯熟。
- Gwyn Thomas was a famous playwright.格温·托马斯是著名的剧作家。
- The playwright was slaughtered by the press.这位剧作家受到新闻界的无情批判。
- You can count on him for a truthful report of the accident.你放心，他会对事故作出如实的报告的。
- I don't think you are being entirely truthful.我认为你并没全讲真话。
- He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
- He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。
- She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
- His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。