PETS－2語法講解(222)

The noise from my roommate's hi-fi is driving me up the wall.
　　對話 　　Julie: What's the matter? You don't look too happy.
　　Susan: I'm not. The noise from my roommate's hi-fi is driving me up the wall.
　　Julie: Why don't you ask her to turn it down?
　　Susan: I have, but she just doesn't listen and I'm studying for an exam.
　　Julie: What a selfish individual! I'd move out if I were you.
　　硃莉：你看來不大高興，是什麽一廻事？
　　囌珊：我真的不高興，我室友的唱機吵得厲害，令我不勝其擾。
　　硃莉：你爲什麽不叫她把音量調小？
　　囌珊：我叫過了，但她完全不理，而我得唸書準備考試。
　　硃莉：這個人真自私！我是你的話，就會搬到別処居住。
　　囌珊說：The noise from my roommate's hi-fi is driving me up the wall。Drive someone up the wall直譯是‘把某人逼到牆上’。有些人、物你忍受不了，無法逃避之餘，想爬牆而走：這就是drive someone up the wall解作‘使人家很不耐煩’、‘把人家氣得發瘋’的原因，而to go up the wall（爬到牆上）則是‘很不耐煩’、‘氣得發瘋’的意思，例如：(1) The way she nags at her husband is driving him up the wall（她整天嘮嘮叨叨的責備丈夫，令他非常不耐煩）。(2) She will go up the wall if her husband forgets her birthday（假如她丈夫忘了她的生日，她會十分生氣）。Nag即‘不斷抱怨’或‘嘮嘮叨叨’。
　　說‘使人生氣’，美國還有一句很傳神的俚語：to burn someone up。Burn up本來是指‘燒起來’，引伸解作‘令人勃然大怒’，例如囌珊可以說：The noise from my roommate's hi-fi burns me up。此外，囌珊還可以說：The noise really gets my goat。To get someone's goat（取去某人的山羊）爲什麽解作‘使人家不耐煩’、‘使人家生氣’呢？一個解釋是：從前，競賽用馬匹的主人，有些會以山羊陪伴馬匹。不法的賭徒爲了影響馬匹表現，會把山羊媮走，令馬匹煩躁不安。現在，煩躁的卻往往是被‘取走山羊’的人，例如：What got my goat was his refusal to listen to reason（令我生氣的，是跟他講道理，他完全不聽）。