be enrolled at school
Why aren't you in school?An American Crime · 2007 — 第 8 / 16 章 · 4'53" · A2
Sylvia and Jennie's Long-Distance Call, Explained：long-distance call
Sylvia and Jennie scrape together change from bottles so they can call their mother. On the line they confess, "Oh, Gertrude's awful strict, mama." The call isn't really about missing home — it's two girls testing whether anyone is coming to get them.
あらすじ
At the Baniszewski house, Sylvia and Jennie collect empty bottles at the park and trade them in for coins, then slip away to make a long-distance call. Their mother is in the hospital; she promises to pick them up in two weeks. While they talk, Gertrude listens in and then questions where the money came from.
注目の表現
crush on someonesluthow is everything goingpick someone up
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このシーンの表現
crush on someone
secretly like someone
Outside church, someone teases Sylvia about the boy she has just met, half joking.
He has had a crush on his classmate all year.
このシーンの他の表現
- slut
a slur for a loose woman
- how is everything going
how are things
- pick someone up
come and collect someone
- calling your boyfriend
mocking her for calling a boy
- take care of
look after
このシーンのメモ一覧
81 行のセリフに 27 件のメモ
meet you at that place
Maybe I'll see you there.going to — Everyday speech; avoid it in formal writing.
Huh... I'm gonna go.unhappy about something
Why was Mama so upset about the other day?a slur for a loose woman — A heavy slur; never use it in polite speech.
I told everyone, that Paula was a slut.spreading among people
There's some worse rumors going around, about her.promiscuous — Gossipy and insulting; avoid saying it to anyone's face.
- What do you think? - Yeah, she's real easy.a small drink
You wanna a sip?Link wanna and a so it sounds like one word.
You wanna a sip?at the right age
I ain't old enough.The t in ain't often drops, and old enough runs together.
I ain't old enough.am not — Casual nonstandard speech; keep it out of writing.
I ain't old enough.be supposed to: Be supposed to marks what is expected or intended; here it sounds helpless.
How we're supposed to do that?for what length of time
So, huh... how long's Sylvia gonna be staying here?secretly like someone
Outside church, someone teases Sylvia about the boy she has just met, half joking.
You got a crush on Sylvia?liked by a group
I was popular with the boys too then, they all chased me.back from school
What're you doing home from school so early?In fast speech what're you can blur into wacha.
What're you doing home from school so early?come and collect someone
On the phone the mother promises to come for the girls in two weeks, giving them hope.
I'm gonna pick you up in 2 weeks.how are things
Once the call connects, the mother asks how the girls are getting on, listening for trouble.
So, how is everything going there?quantifier phrase: A whole lotta is a casual way to say a whole lot of.
We got in a whole lotta trouble.a whole lot of — Very casual; fine with friends, not in formal talk.
We got in a whole lotta trouble.possessive noun: The 's here is the contraction of is, not possession.
because your check's late.have got to — Spoken shorthand; too casual for formal writing.
Oh, we gotta go.no one important
Nobody special.a call over a long distance
Where'd you get the money to make a long-distance call?collect from the ground
I was picking up empty bottles at the Park, and traded'm in.「Sylvia and Jennie's Long-Distance Call」を読み解く
What's really going on
On the surface it's a tender phone call home, but the scene is really about how little these girls are allowed to want. Sylvia has been placed in a stranger's house, and the one thing she asks for is her mother's voice. When she says, "Oh, Gertrude's awful strict, mama," she isn't complaining about chores; she's reporting a danger in the only language a child has. The long-distance call is also a small act of defiance: nobody gave them the money, so they earned it themselves. Gertrude's "Calling your boyfriend, Sylvia?" turns that defiance into something dirty, and her question about the fare makes the call itself an offense. The tragedy is that the call changes nothing; the girls hang up and stay exactly where they are.
Theme
Family loveSylvia and Jennie spend their last coins on a call to their mother, and her promise to pick them up is the scene's one hope.
Family conflictGertrude turns the girls' phone call, and the few coins they earned, into an offense she can interrogate.
このチャプターで学べること
- A short call home can carry a family's whole weight.
- Talk of a crush keeps the scene light before it turns.
- Catching someone on the phone is about power, not the call.
- Rumors here are weapons, not idle gossip.
発音のポイント
- wanna a — Link wanna and a so it sounds like one word.
- ain't old — The t in ain't often drops, and old enough runs together.
- What're you — In fast speech what're you can blur into wacha.
I was afraid, you didn't get our letter.The mother admits she worried the girls never received her letter — a small reminder that letters, not phone calls, are how this family usually keeps in touch.
Where'd you get the money to make a long-distance call?Gertrude's question sounds practical but is an accusation: a child living on her charity should not have money of her own.
I was picking up empty bottles at the Park, and traded'm in.Sylvia explains, plainly, that she earned the money by collecting and returning bottles — her answer is honest and slightly proud.
Oh, Gertrude's awful strict, mama.A coded complaint: Sylvia tells her mother that Gertrude is harsh without saying exactly what has been happening at the house.
このシーンについての質問
Why do the girls have to collect bottles to call their mother?
They have no money of their own. Sylvia says she picked up empty bottles at the park and traded them in, which shows how little the sisters are given and how much the call matters to them.
Does Gertrude really believe Sylvia is calling a boyfriend?
Probably not. "Calling your boyfriend" is mockery, a way to make the girls' longing for their mother sound cheap and shameful. It says more about Gertrude's suspicion than about Sylvia.
Why does Gertrude ask where the money came from?
The call is a small sign that the girls still have a life and a will outside her house. Asking about the money lets her turn their one private act into an offense she can punish.
Why doesn't their mother come to get them right away?
She is in the hospital and says she will pick them up in two weeks. Her absence is what leaves the girls at Gertrude's mercy and makes the phone call their only lifeline.
アメリカン・クライム · 全 16 章
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次のチャプター · 第 9 章nothing but troubleGertrude Catches Sylvia's Call
第 1 章have a chance toSylvia Meets Friends at Church
第 2 章for a livingPaula Brags About Her Married Boyfriend
第 3 章make a differenceGertrude Takes In the Likens Girls
第 4 章take them inSylvia and Jennie Move In
第 5 章none of your businessPaula Reveals Her Pregnancy
第 6 章knows bestBradley Shows His True Face
第 7 章narrow gatePaula Accuses Sylvia of Spreading Lies
再生中 · 第 8 章long-distance callSylvia and Jennie's Long-Distance Call
第 9 章nothing but troubleGertrude Catches Sylvia's Call
第 10 章come betweenGertrude Lays Down the Rules
第 11 章learns her lessonGertrude Says Sylvia Went to Juvenile
第 12 章tie someone upThe Children Testify Against Gertrude
第 13 章know what it's likeGertrude's Basement Confession
第 14 章get to the bottom of somethingReverend Collier Visits Gertrude
第 15 章faking itSylvia Dies While No One Acts
第 16 章take the standJennie and Gertrude Take the Stand第 8 / 16 章 · 残り約 25 分