中国宫廷剧的成功秘诀是什么？ | 双语阅读

从《甄嬛传》到《延禧攻略》，清宫剧总能引发观众的热捧。谈到清宫剧的成功秘诀，有学者称，一是勾心斗角的故事与当今职场生活存在共鸣；二是它们重现了中国文化的辉煌之处。

Screenshot: FTChinese

全文共468个单词。

Imagine the script of Downton Abbey, the lavish UK television period drama, tickled to launch subtle barbs at the administration of Theresa May and, say, her handling of Brexit.

想象一下大排场的英国历史剧《唐顿庄园》(Downton Abbey)的剧本含沙射影地讽刺特里萨•梅(Theresa May)的政府以及她处理英国退欧的方式，由此引发观众共鸣。

①barb[bɑːb] n. 带刺的话

例句：I tried to ignore their barbs about my new jacket. 我努力不去理会他们针对我的新夹克说的那些连讽带刺的话。

Chinese costume dramas, equally lavish and likewise holding a nation in thrall.

The shows are lapped up by Chinese viewers. The Story of Yanxi Palace, which ran to 70 episodes, became the most googled TV show last year and was shown in more than 80 countries. According to iQiyi, the Netflix-like platform that hosts the show, it was streamed an average 300m times a day and has been viewed more than 21bn times.

中国的古装剧同样奢华，同样吸引全国的观众。

这些节目受到中国观众的热捧。达70集的《延禧攻略》(The Story of Yanxi Palace)，成为去年在谷歌(Google)上搜索最多的电视节目，并在80多个国家播出。根据播出该剧的爱奇艺（iQiyi，一家类似Netflix的平台）的数据，它平均每天播放3亿次宫廷剧，累计观看次数超过210亿次。

The secret sauce of the imperial dramas, says Lok-yin Law, lecturer at the School of Arts & Social Sciences at the Open University of Hong Kong (and husband of an avid fan), is two-fold. The stories resonate with everyday life, in the court or today’s workplace — back-stabbing is every bit as common in offices as it was in dynastic harems — and they revive the glory of Chinese culture.

香港公开大学人文社会科学院(School of Arts & Social Sciences at the Open University of Hong Kong)讲师Lok-yin Law（他太太就是一名清宫剧狂热粉丝）表示，清宫剧的成功秘诀有两点。一是这些故事与当今职场生活存在共鸣——办公室里的背后中伤就像王朝后宫嫔妃间的勾心斗角一样寻常；二是它们重现了中国文化的辉煌之处。

②resonate [ˈrez.ən.eɪt] v. 使产生联想；引起共鸣

例句：Her experiences resonate powerfully with me, living, as I do, in a similar family situation. 她的家庭生活环境和我相似，所以她的经历在我心中引起强烈共鸣。

Photo credit: Getty Images

The everyday appeal goes beyond bitchy colleagues. Patriarchal power politics may be the reality, but Yanxi Palace boasts a female protagonist who is more conniving minx than demure doll, and has won legions of feminist fans.

日常吸引力不只是背后诋毁人的同事。父权制的权力政治也许是现实，但《延禧攻略》有一位女性主角，她机敏灵活，而非端庄娴静的“花瓶”，赢得了大批女权主义粉丝。

As with British period dramas, historians carp that accuracy is sacrificed for ratings. “It’s impossible an emperor in the Qing Dynasty, very busy dealing with politics and affairs of state . . . would have time to deal with so many concubines and negotiate among them,” says Song Geng, associate professor at Hong Kong university’s School of Chinese.

与英国的历史剧一样，历史学家们抱怨称，它们为了收视率而牺牲了准确性。香港大学中文学院(School of Chinese, The University of Hong Kong)副教授宋耕表示：“在清朝，皇帝忙着处理政治和国家事务……他们不可能有时间应付这么多的嫔妃，还要在她们中间斡旋。”

That highlights another schism: any educational purpose of TV shows is at odds with the profit motive of producers. Dramas set in Imperial China — much like those based in Edwardian Britain or indeed the 1980s Texas of Dallas — go big on costumes, intrigue and wavering moral compasses. They are less occupied with instructing the nation’s youth in history and moral rectitude.

这突显出另一种割裂：电视剧的任何教育目的宫廷剧，都与制片人的盈利动机不一致。以中华帝国时期——就像爱德华时代的英国或者20世纪80年代的德克萨斯州达拉斯——为时代背景的电视剧，在服装、阴谋和摇摆不定的道德标准上大肆渲染。它们不太致力于教导国内的年轻人了解历史和培养正直品行。

③schism [ˈsɪz.əm] n. 分裂

示例：a schism within the Church 教会内部的分裂

Photo credit: Getty Images

That, of course, is ultimately where their appeal lies: as escapist dramas rooted just enough in the enduring traits of human nature to ensure growing audiences. Several are finding popularity beyond China, particularly in Vietnam, Singapore . Indeed, says Mr Law, he sees more chat about the shows in his Facebook social circles than among his friends on the mainland.

当然，最终而言这正是它们的吸引力所在：因为逃避现实的电视剧根植于人性的永恒特征，其挖掘深度恰好足够确保观众人数不断增。有几部电视剧在中国境外的市场受到欢迎，尤其是在越南、新加坡。Lok-yin Law说，事实上，他在Facebook社交圈中看到的对这些节目的讨论比他在内地朋友圈中看到的还要多。

Hence the potential for the imperial dramas to become part of China’s soft power arsenal. That its culture has failed to hold much global sway — compare the reach of South Korea’s K-pop or Japanese anime — is a source of dismay within China. “It’s ridiculous that Kung Fu Panda was made by Hollywood,” harrumphs one analyst.

因此，宫廷剧有望成为中国软实力“军火库”的一部分。中国文化未能在全球拥有太大影响力——与韩国流行音乐(K-pop)或日本动漫的影响力形成对比——这一事实，令中国国内的一些人感到沮丧。一位分析师表示：“《功夫熊猫》(Kung Fu Panda)由好莱坞出品是荒谬的。”

For Prof Song it’s a missed opportunity. “It could be . . . just like the K-wave,” he says. “For me this is good for China because it shows the influence of the culture.”

对于宋耕来说，这是一个错失的机会。他说：“它可以……变得就像韩流一样。我认为这对中国有利，因为它显示了文化的影响力。”

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