come up with something to say
I might never have thought of anything to say but then, I smelled the smoke from her cigarette.5 to 7 · 2014 — 第 1 / 10 章 · 4'15" · B2
Brian Meets Arielle in a Cafe, Explained：worth having
A young American writer strikes up a conversation with a French woman in a cafe. They trade names via The Little Mermaid, she calls her afternoons 'my exile,' and they agree to meet again on Friday. At their next meeting, her talk of reading him - 'what sort of man am I dealing with' - keeps the flirtation light but guarded.
あらすじ
In a cafe, Brian, a young writer with nothing published, gets talking to Arielle, a Frenchwoman. They bond over The Little Mermaid and the name they share, and she invites him to find her there every Friday at the end of lunch. At home, Brian tells his father about work and resists law school. A second meeting turns playful and teasing.
注目の表現
the little mermaidexileit's codeworth having
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このシーンの表現
worth having
deserving to be pursued
Brian cloaks his wish to meet again in hiring logic, lightly dodging his father's law-school push.
A friendship worth having survives one honest disagreement.
このシーンの他の表現
- the little mermaid
the Disney mermaid she is named after
- exile
banishment, used lightly
- it's code
this is insider shorthand
- damp
soaked, said of a person
- leaves you free to
gives you the time to
このシーンのメモ一覧
73 行のセリフに 25 件のメモ
modal perfect: Might have thought looks back at what could have happened but did not.
I might never have thought of anything to say but then, I smelled the smoke from her cigarette.Thought of blends into /ˈθɔːtəv/.
I might never have thought of anything to say but then, I smelled the smoke from her cigarette.Link May I into one smooth /meɪ-aɪ/ sound.
My name is Brian. May I ask your name?the first thing you thought of
Yes, I'm familiar. Tha... that's where your mind goes?Your is usually reduced to a quick yer.
Yes, I'm familiar. Tha... that's where your mind goes?or that kind of thing
Did you see it yesterday or something?how to say a word in a language
What's the French word for...as something is ending
Well, I'm here every Friday at the close of lunch in my exile.at the very end of
Well, it's gonna sound stupid, but the fiction editor from the "Atlantic" added the word sorry to the bottom of my latest rejection.going to, spoken — Spoken only; write going to in anything formal.
Well, it's gonna sound stupid, but the fiction editor from the "Atlantic" added the word sorry to the bottom of my latest rejection.what on earth — Casual frustration between peers; avoid it at work or with elders.
What the hell does that mean?almost made it
It means I got close. It's code.deserving to be pursued
Brian cloaks his wish to meet again in hiring logic, lightly dodging his father's law-school push.
Any job worth having requires a second interview.reduced relative: Worth having sits after the noun as a shortened relative clause.
Any job worth having requires a second interview.assumed you would skip it
I thought perhaps you wouldn't come.never crossed my mind
It never occurred to me.the kind of person I am facing
What sort of man am I dealing with?gives you the time to
Arielle's rapid questions about his free afternoons are her way of asking what he actually does.
So, Brian, what is it you do in your life that leaves you free to wander about the streets in the afternoons, and smoke in nooks, and talk to strangers?walk around without a plan
So, Brian, what is it you do in your life that leaves you free to wander about the streets in the afternoons, and smoke in nooks, and talk to strangers?relative clause: The that-clause describes what kind of life his work gives him.
So, Brian, what is it you do in your life that leaves you free to wander about the streets in the afternoons, and smoke in nooks, and talk to strangers?still not, but soon
No, not yet.anything you want to ask me
Uh-huh. So do you have any questions for me?how could you — A theatrical accusation; too sharp for ordinary conversation.
Certainly not. How dare you?raised the topic first
You brought it up. I would have never...「Brian Meets Arielle in a Cafe」を読み解く
What's really going on
The first meeting is all surface and electricity. Brian has nothing prepared; what starts him talking is a smell, and Arielle rewards the impulse by giving him both a name and a standing appointment. The banter does the work of intimacy: The Little Mermaid becomes a private joke, "my exile" tells him more about her situation than any explanation, and the Friday hour is offered as a rule rather than a date. The second meeting shows the game settling in. She frames it plainly - "A woman has to know what sort of man she's dealing with" - and when he parries, her joke about the prostitute question keeps the flirtation sharp and slightly out of reach. Nothing is settled, and that is the pleasure.
Theme
RomanceTwo strangers turn a chance cafe encounter into a weekly appointment, and the flirtation grows through private jokes and teasing.
IdentityArielle's exile and her refusal to explain herself let Brian project a mystery onto her, while he is still a writer without a book.
このチャプターで学べること
- worth having marks a goal you actually want.
- It never occurred to me denies any hesitation.
- or something softens a guess about someone's plans.
- The second-interview line turns dating into hiring.
発音のポイント
- thought of — Thought of blends into /ˈθɔːtəv/.
- May I ask — Link May I into one smooth /meɪ-aɪ/ sound.
- your mind — Your is usually reduced to a quick yer.
Any job worth having requires a second interview.Brian's father's line about work, aimed at his son's stalled writing career: anything worthwhile demands you show up and be tested again.
A woman has to know what sort of man she's dealing with.Arielle's framing of their flirtation as an assessment - she is deciding what Brian is, and she says so to his face.
I would like it very much if that would happen.Brian's careful, formal way of saying he wants to see her again, guarding eagerness behind polite phrasing.
Are you asking me if I'm a prostitute?Her deadpan turn on his polite question about her profession, catching his awkward curiosity and turning it into a joke.
このシーンについての質問
Why does Arielle meet Brian only on Fridays?
She offers the Friday hour as a fixed rule, which keeps the relationship bounded and light. It also hints at a life she is not explaining, since she calls those afternoons her exile.
Why does Brian's father bring up law school?
Because Brian has not published and is drifting. His father wants a stable career, and the second-interview line is his way of saying that a writing life demands more than hope.
What makes Brian start talking to Arielle?
He has nothing prepared, but the smell of her cigarette gives him an opening: he recognizes it as French or Spanish, and since he does not speak Spanish, he takes a chance in English.
Why does Brian ask about her profession?
He is curious and out of small talk. The question comes out clumsily, and her joke about the prostitute turns his awkwardness back on him.
What does 'it's code' mean when Brian talks about the rejection?
He is reading the editor's added 'sorry' as a private signal that he almost made it. It is the writer's version of encouragement, visible only to insiders.
5 to 7 · 全 10 章
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次のチャプター · 第 2 章culled from the subtextThe 5 to 7 Rule
再生中 · 第 1 章worth havingBrian Meets Arielle in a Cafe
第 2 章culled from the subtextThe 5 to 7 Rule
第 3 章those are the rulesArielle Sets the Rules
第 4 章speak highly ofArielle's Husband Meets Brian
第 5 章able to affordBrian Dines With Valery's Friends
第 6 章Pardon my FrenchBrian's Parents Meet Arielle
第 7 章be afraid of being afraidBrian Teaches the Kids Baseball
第 8 章get your head rightBrian Reads His Story Aloud
第 9 章talk you off the ledgeBrian Proposes to Arielle
第 10 章the salt of the EarthArielle's Farewell Letter第 1 / 10 章 · 残り約 35 分