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Another Year · 2010 — 第 6 / 25 章 · 4'00" · B2

Mary's Car and the Eco Debate, Explained：had you down as

Mary wants to buy a car so she can take off whenever she likes, and the friends drift into an argument about the environment. Tom notes there are no incentives to take the train, Gerri points to carbon footprints, and Mary mocks the idea that her old car is the problem: "anything we do is a piss in the ocean."

あらすじ

Over coffee, Tom and Gerri talk about their trip to Ireland, and Mary feels left out: she can't afford both a car and a holiday, and she has no one to travel with. Talk turns to the environment, where Mary defends buying a cheap old car and argues that personal choices are meaningless next to government inaction and corporate waste.

Family dinnersArgumentsComplainingExplainingFriendsB2slowbritish
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注目の表現

had you down asfancya piss in the oceancarbon footprint

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このシーンの表現

had you down as

to have judged someone as

Mary refuses to sleep in a tent, so Tom teases that he never pictured her as the outdoorsy type.

I have never had you down as a morning person.

このシーンの他の表現

  • fancy

    to want or feel like

  • a piss in the ocean

    a pointless drop in the ocean

  • carbon footprint

    the carbon a person leaves

  • environmentally friendly

    not harmful to the planet

  • thriving economy

    a strong, growing economy

このシーンのメモ一覧

65 行のセリフに 27 件のメモ

表現 · B1rent a cottage / rent somewhere

to hire a small country house

That's correct. Rent a cottage, take the car.
表現 · A2take the car

to go by car

That's correct. Rent a cottage, take the car.
表現 · B1do a bit of something

to do a little of something

- If it's nice we might do a bit of camping. - Oh, no.
スラング · B1fancy

to want or fancy — Very British for wants and preferences; rare in US English.

I wouldn't fancy sleeping in a tent, thank you very much.
発音had you

Had and you blend, the d sliding into a j sound.

No, I never had you down as one of nature's Girl Guides, Mary.
表現 · A2get a holiday

to have a break from work

I'm not going to get a holiday this year.
表現 · A2go with someone

to go somewhere together

But then I never do, do I, Gerri? Because I haven't got anyone to go with.
文法 · B2anyone to go with

infinitive modifier: To go with modifies anyone and keeps its preposition at the end.

But then I never do, do I, Gerri? Because I haven't got anyone to go with.
表現 · B1it's all right for someone

easy for you to say

It's all right for you two, you've got each other.
表現 · A2have been somewhere before

to have visited a place already

You've been there before, haven't you?
表現 · B1can't afford to do something

to have too little money for

You see, I can't afford to buy my car and have a holiday.
文法 · B2if I had more money, then I could

unreal condition: If plus past tense with could describes a situation she does not actually have.

But, if I had more money, then I could do both.
表現 · A2feel like doing something / feel like a ...

to have a feeling or a wish

I feel like I'm being somebody else.
発音being somebody

Run being and somebody together without a pause.

I feel like I'm being somebody else.
表現 · A2cheaper than something

less expensive than

But, you see, the car is cheaper than the train, isn't it?
表現 · B2no incentive to do something

no reason to bother doing it

Financially, cars are cheaper. That's why there's no incentive to go by train.
表現 · B2aviation fuel

fuel used by aircraft

No government wants to increase the duty on aviation fuel.
表現 · B1invest in something

to put money into something

And this government won't invest in the railways, so anything we do is a piss in the ocean.
発音piss in

Link piss and in so they run into one word.

And this government won't invest in the railways, so anything we do is a piss in the ocean.
文法 · B2who keep their lights on all night

relative clause: The who-clause adds what the big corporations do all night.

And then there's the big corporations, who keep their lights on all night in empty office blocks.
表現 · B1do one's bit

to do one's share

We're all expected to do our bit with eco bulbs.
表現 · A2stop doing something

to give up an activity

Should I stop recycling, then, Gerri?
表現 · B1more than one needs

more than is necessary

I don't live in a house that's more than I need.
表現 · A2get a takeaway

to order food to eat elsewhere

You get takeaways, don't you?
スラング · A2takeaways

food ordered to take away — British for takeout food; Americans say takeout.

You get takeaways, don't you?
表現 · B1absolutely right

entirely correct

You're absolutely right, Mary.
表現 · A2would you like something

an offer of something

And would you like some coffee?

「Mary's Car and the Eco Debate」を読み解く

What's really going on

The scene looks like a light debate about cars and the planet, but it is really about Mary's place in the group. Her talk of escaping — 'I feel like I'm being somebody else' — betrays a loneliness that the environmental argument lets everyone avoid naming. She is the outsider in a room of couples, and when she says 'it's all right for you two, you've got each other,' the joke about holidays lands harder than the jokes around it. Her strongest line, that anything they do is 'a piss in the ocean,' is both a real point about government and business and a defense of her own small life. Tom can tease her about eco bulbs, but he can also answer seriously, and that mixture is what makes the table feel like a family.

Theme

LonelinessMary's talk of escaping and her line about the couple having each other reveal she is alone in a room full of pairs.
SatireThe environmental debate mocks how personal ethics are pushed while governments and corporations carry on.

このチャプターで学べること

  • Carbon footprint counts the damage you leave
  • Do our bit means do your share
  • A piss in the ocean is a hopeless effort
  • Fancy in British English means want

発音のポイント

  • had you — Had and you blend, the d sliding into a j sound.
  • being somebody — Run being and somebody together without a pause.
  • piss in — Link piss and in so they run into one word.
No, I never had you down as one of nature's Girl Guides, Mary.

Tom's teasing: he says he never pictured Mary as the outdoorsy, always-prepared type.

I feel like I'm being somebody else.

Mary's reason for liking the car: driving lets her feel like a different, freer person.

Yet we're constantly told that the measure of a thriving economy is the sale of new cars.

Her point that growth is measured by car sales, so the system rewards exactly the behavior that harms the planet.

And this government won't invest in the railways, so anything we do is a piss in the ocean.

The argument that individual action is pointless when the government refuses to invest in public transport.

このシーンについての質問

Why does Mary want to buy a car?

She cannot afford both a car and a holiday, and a cheap car would let her take off whenever she likes. She also says driving makes her feel like a different person.

What does "a piss in the ocean" mean?

It means something too small to make any difference, like a drop in the sea. Mary uses it to say that individual efforts are pointless while government and big business do nothing.

Why does Mary feel left out?

Everyone around her is part of a couple, and she has no one to travel with. She says, "it's all right for you two, you've got each other," which shows how much her singleness weighs on her.

What does Tom point out about trains?

He says cars are cheaper than trains financially, so there is no incentive to take the train. He also notes that governments will not raise taxes on aviation fuel or invest in the railways.

Why is Mary's line about being somebody else important?

It reveals what the car really means to her: not transport but escape. Driving is a way to step out of her ordinary, lonely life and feel different, if only for a while.

家族の庭 · 全 25 章

すべて見る →
次のチャプター · 第 7 章onwards and upwardsMary Confesses Her Old Love
第 1 章taken your timeA Woman Asks for Sleeping Pills第 2 章the boot on the other footJanet Rates Her Happiness第 3 章a sight for sore eyesMary Confides in Gerri Over Drinks第 4 章raring to goSupper Talk and a Court Case第 5 章middle-aged spreadMary Arrives for Dinner再生中 · 第 6 章had you down asMary's Car and the Eco Debate第 7 章onwards and upwardsMary Confesses Her Old Love第 8 章knackeredJoe Comes Home on Sunday Morning第 9 章same old, same oldKen Visits Tom and Gerri第 10 章stuck in a rutKen Breaks Down at Dinner第 11 章crossed my mindMary Arrives Late With a New Car第 12 章the making ofMary Shows Up in Her New Car第 13 章the world's your oysterMary's Tipsy Talk With Joe第 14 章got carried awayKen Makes a Pass at Mary第 15 章call a spade a spadeJoe Introduces Katie to His Parents第 16 章cut your lossesMary Recounts Her Car Disaster第 17 章a mean curryMary Meets Joe's Girlfriend Katie第 18 章a dark horseTom and Gerri Discuss Joe's Girlfriend第 19 章be glad whenVisiting Ronnie Before the Funeral第 20 章turned upCarl Arrives After the Funeral第 21 章out of the blueAfter the Funeral, Back at Ronnie's第 22 章one of those thingsCarl Confronts Tom at the House第 23 章on the spur of the momentMary Turns Up Unannounced第 24 章bits and bobsMary Visits for a Cup of Tea第 25 章give you a handMary Keeps Ronnie Company
第 6 / 25 章 · 残り約 70 分