Translation Class  每周一译

  “闪电约会”＆“闪婚”

    火车提速，网络提速，建设提速，如今，男男女女的约会和恋爱也跟着大提速。假如你还觉得online dating（网络交友）是时下最时髦的男女联谊方式的话，那就太落伍了。美国现在最流行的是speed dating。中文对此还没有约定俗成的说法，所以speed dating 翻译为“闪电约会”或“快速约会”也只是权宜之计。

    Speed dating是由犹太人的一项习俗或仪式衍生而来的，它的目的只有一个，那就是在最短的时间里认识最多的异性。

    Speed dating is a method of meeting potential partners in which each participant has only about five minutes to talk to each of his or her dates before being moved on to the next one. At the end of the event, participants decide whom  they would like to see again.

    参加闪电约会的人通过一连串约5分钟的简短交谈可以和较多的异性进行一对一的接触。活动结束后，参与者再向自己感兴趣的异性提出再次见面的邀请。

    Time is money. “闪电约会”后，不妨继续“闪电恋爱”——whirlwind romance。

    Whirlwind是旋风的意思，旋风迅疾且难以预测，所以a whirlwind romance is a romance that happens very quickly and quite unexpectedly。A whirlwind romance 就是那种突然而快速的恋爱，换句话说，就是闪电式的罗曼蒂克。

    如果恋人在认识之后不久就结婚了，你就可以用flash marriage（闪婚）来表示。

    However, the “flash marriage” model has aroused heated public debate. Many white-collar employees asked whether such marriages will be long-term and stable.