A Wise Guy 自作聪明的人

邱海林

Last week I was at a party having a great time when a wise guy really started to bother me.

The party started off very nicely， there were lots of people and plenty of good food and， of course， everybody was drinking quite a bit. My friends and I were chewing the fat about the past week when this guy joined our conversation. We continued our conversation and everything was very pleasant. A friend of mine was letting off steam about some problems he was having at work. Suddenly， the wise guy asked a loaded question about one of our colleagues（同事;同行）. We thought he was horsing around， so we really didn’t answer his question. I mean， it’s not a good idea to take a dig at a colleague no matter how much you might dislike him. We continued our conversation although it was clear that the new guy really wanted to have a run-in because he kept asking stupid questions.

It became clear that we weren’t going to answer any of his questions. This led him to start talking big about all his projects， business deals and how important he was.

In other words， the guy was full of hot air. In fact， he seemed to be a sitting duck for someone. It didn’t take long. One of my friends decided he wouldn’t pull his punches and started to make fun of everything the guy said. It just got worse and worse. Finally， my friend told the guy to put a sock in it.

Still， the guy continued on about what a fantastic life he had， the great vacations he had taken， the amazing job offers he got every week， on and on he went. The last straw was when he told us about the brand new hot car he had bought. My friend turned to the man and told him that everything he had told us was a snow job. He obviously didn’t have a job， friends or a fancy car. He was， in fact， a wise guy. He had hit the bull’s-eye. It was rather sad， but you could see how embarrassed the poor guy felt. It was all rather sad.

【精彩译文】

上周，我在一个聚会上玩得十分开心，直到被一个自作聪明的人弄得兴致全无。

聚会一开始进展得十分顺利，宾客如云，美食众多，当然，人们都举杯畅饮。在这个家伙加入我们的谈话前，我和朋友们聊着上周发生的事。我们继续着谈话，一切都那么美好。我的一个朋友抱怨着工作上遇到的烦心事。突然，这个自作聪明的人问了我的同事一个别有用心的問题。我们觉得他是在找茬，就没有回答他的问题。我的意思是说，不管你多么不喜欢你的同事，挖苦他也是不好的。虽然这个家伙很显然想插嘴，因为他不停地问一些愚蠢的问题，但我们仍继续着自己的谈话。

显而易见，我们不准备回答他的任何问题。于是他开始吹嘘起自己所有的项目、生意和本事。

换句话说，这个家伙满嘴都在跑火车。事实上，对于别人来说，他似乎就是一个容易被打击的对象。没过多久，我的一个朋友决定挫挫他的锐气，开始取笑起他说的话。结果玩笑越开越大。最后，我的朋友告诉这个家伙让他闭嘴。

但是，他仍然吹嘘自己过着多么有趣的生活、享受着多么棒的假期，以及每周收到多好的工作机会。我朋友告诉他，他所说的一切都是谎言。显而易见，这个家伙既没有工作、朋友，也没有豪车。事实上，他就是在自作聪明。这真是一针见血。虽然很悲惨，但你可以看到这个可怜虫有多么窘迫。真是太惨了。

【习 语】

chew the fat讨论;聊天

let off steam说或做某事以舒缓压力

horse around胡闹;做蠢事

take a dig at someone批评某人

have a run-in不赞同某人

talk big用夸张的方式谈论自己的成功或计划

hot air大话

sitting duck容易攻擊的对象

pull one’s punches故意不猛烈打击，常用于否定句

put a sock in it闭嘴，安静点

last straw使某人的忍耐突破极限的某事

snow job谎言或骗局

hit the bull’s-eye掌握事物的关键

loaded question别有用心的问题

【练一练】

1.I wish you would ______________. I can’t hear myself think.

2.Let’s have a drink and _________.

3.We like to ____________ at work sometimes. My colleagues are pretty fun.

4.I can’t answer that because I think it’s a _____________.

5.That’s a __________. Don’t believe a word of it.

6.That’s right！ You’ve _____________.

7.If you keep doing that you’ll be a ___________ for criticism.

8.I like to ___________ by going hiking.

答案：1. put a sock in it 2. chew the fat 3. horse around 4. loaded question 5. snow job

6. hit the bull’s-eye 7. sitting duck 8. let off steam