ラジオ英会話 25/2/5(水) 冒頭の会話。larger than life
Hey Roza, I’ll paint David behind this old house.
Wow, he’s bigger than the house. Your painting is not very realistic, is it?
No, no, no, he was just painting my larger than life personality.
Ah,
–
“Hey Roza, I’ll paint David behind this old house.” This is a straightforward statement. The speaker is telling Roza they’re going to create a painting of David, and David will be positioned in the painting behind an old house.
“Wow, he’s bigger than the house. Your painting is not very realistic, is it?” Roza’s response is key. She observes that in the painting, David appears larger than the house. This leads her to conclude that the painting isn’t realistic. She’s pointing out the scale is off.
この絵は写実的ではないと結論づける。 彼女はスケールがずれていると指摘しているのだ。
“No, no, no, he was just painting my larger than life personality.” This is the speaker’s explanation for the unrealistic scale. They’re not trying to create a photorealistic portrait. Instead, they’re trying to capture David’s personality, which they describe as “larger than life.” This is an idiom meaning David has a very big, bold, or dramatic personality. The painting is symbolic, not literal.
写実的な肖像画を描こうとしているのではない。むしろ、デイビッドの個性を捉えようとしているのだ。 これは、彼が大胆で、ドラマチックな性格であることを意味します。この絵は象徴的であり、文字通りの意味ではない。
“Ah,” Roza’s “Ah” signifies understanding. She gets it now. The speaker wasn’t aiming for realism; they were trying to portray David’s personality through exaggerated size.
話し手はリアリズムを目指したのではなく、誇張された大きさによってダビデの個性を描こうとしたのだ。
In short:
The humor (or at least the intended cleverness) of the exchange comes from the speaker’s playful use of the phrase “larger than life.” Roza initially takes the large size literally, thinking it’s a bad painting. The speaker then clarifies that the size is meant to represent David’s personality, not his physical size.
paint peɪnt 描く、塗る
behind bɪˈhaɪnd ～の後ろに
old house oʊld haʊs 古い家
bigger than ˈbɪɡər ðən ～より大きい
realistic ˌriːəˈlɪstɪk 現実的な、写実的な
painting ˈpeɪntɪŋ 絵画、ペイント
scale skeɪl 規模、スケール
personality ˌpɜːrsəˈnælɪti 性格、個性
larger than life ˈlɑːrʤər ðən laɪf 並外れた、伝説的な
idiom ˈɪdiəm 慣用句、イディオム
dramatic drəˈmætɪk 劇的な、印象的な
symbolic sɪmˈbɑːlɪk 象徴的な
literal ˈlɪtərəl 文字通りの
photorealistic ˌfoʊtoʊˌriːəˈlɪstɪk 写実的な
humor ˈhjuːmɚ ユーモア
cleverness ˈklɛvɚnəs 賢さ、機知
playful ˈpleɪfəl 遊び心のある、ふざけた
exaggerate ɪɡˈzædʒəˌreɪt 誇張する
signify ˈsɪɡnɪˌfaɪ 示す、意味する
portray pɔːrˈtreɪ 描写する、表現する
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