make an ass of me把我當傻瓜耍

把“好運到不敢相信”擺成 wonder 與 madness 的對立，一句話立住整章的自我懷疑。

'tis wonder that X, yet 'tis not Y

遇到好到不真實的事，想說明自己沒昏頭時用。

It is a wonder, yet it is no delusion. ／ This feels unreal, but I am not fooling myself.

literary

'tis 弱讀成一個音節，wonder 與 madness 對照重讀。

It is wonder that I got the offer, yet it is not a mistake. 我拿到這個 offer 確實像奇蹟，但這不是搞錯了。

把“拍馬屁”反過來說成傷害，一句悖論拆穿奉承，比直接罵人還狠。

the better for X and the worse for Y

想諷刺身邊只會吹捧、不肯說實話的人時套用。

I do better with critics than with flatterers. ／ His praise hurts me more than any insult.

中性

better 和 worse 一升一降，foes 與 friends 對稱重讀。

I am the better for my critics and the worse for my fans. 批評我的人讓我進步，捧我的人反而讓我退步。

把抽象的“良知”塞進口袋，勸人破例的俏皮話，畫面感與幽默都在。

put your X in your pocket

想半開玩笑地勸人破例一次時，對熟人說；正式場合別用。

Put your principles aside for once. ／ Pocket your pride and take the deal.

口語

grace 重讀，in your pocket 連讀，for this once 放慢收尾。

Put your conscience in your pocket and accept the free upgrade. 先把良心放一放，接受這個免費升級吧。

用「摸得到、看得見」給荒唐的處境找證據，越認真越顯出誤會的好笑與心酸。

This pearl she gave me, I do feel it and see it.

半開玩笑地為自己的判斷找實據時用；正式論證要有更多依據，別隻憑感覺。

She gave me this pearl; I can touch and see it. ／ I hold the proof in my hand.

literary

This pearl she gave me 平推，I do feel it 重讀，and see it 放慢收住。

This receipt she gave me, I do feel it and see it. 這張收據是她給我的，我摸得到也看得見。

用「送狗又要回」戳破假客氣，一個荒誕比喻把耍賴說得又準又好笑。

This is to give a dog and in recompense desire my dog again.

半開玩笑地拆穿假慷慨時用；正式談判裡說會得罪人，別用。

That is giving a gift and then demanding it back. ／ You give with one hand and take with the other.

口語

This is to give a dog 平推，and in recompense 稍頓，desire my dog again 放慢收住。

This is to give a dog and in recompense desire my dog again, that discount is no discount. 這就像把狗送人再要回去，那點折扣根本不算折扣。