英文阅读：Down but not out
Reader question:What does the expression "down but not out" mean? And where does it come
from? Give examples.
My comments:
"Down but not out" is a variation of "down and out." Both expressions come
from the game of boxing.
It is one thing to try to learn expressions like these (along with their
definitions and usage) by rote, but quite another, and far easier if you happen
to know their origins. Learning idioms by rote doesn't always make it easy for
you to put them into use correctly. Understanding where they come from, on the
other hand, often gives you the confidence that you can put them into use in the
right circumstances.
In the game of boxing, one of the more dramatic ways to end a contest (or
bout, as it is called) is by knockout, i.e. by KNOCKing your opponent OUT
(unconscious). The knockout is declared if a player who's knocked DOWN to the
floor (or canvas as they call it) fails to stand up on his feet within 10
seconds. As soon as the player is down on the floor, the referee begins the
count to 10, at the end of which he waves his hand and sometimes say "OUT",
meaning the player is deemed out of conscious and therefore unable to continue.
Game over.
A lot of times the player who's knocked down is able to stand back up
before the count to ten ends and therefore the game continues. In this case, the
player is described as "down but not out". The fight resumes until one player is
knocked down, and this time fails to get up. In this case, he's described as
"down and out." If neither player is knocked out, they are said to be able to go
the distance of a, say, 12-round fight. The winner is declared then via a points
count by three ring-side officials. Oh, never mind.
"Down but not out" hence applies to situations where people are having
temporary difficulties but are not deemed hopeless of recovery and eventual
victory. If people are described as "down and out", on the other hand, the
situation is, well, pretty dire for them. The homeless, jobless, those on
welfare are often said to be down-and-out, meaning they don't have a chance. Not
that they really don't have a chance, just that society considers them to be
so.
Back to boxing for a moment, the Great Mohammed Ali was knocked down many
times in his illustrious career but seldom did he get himself knocked out. Mike
Tyson, on the other hand, was seldom knocked down and but he was almost always
knocked out whenever he was knocked down. That's why Iron Mike, who once claimed
to be the "Baddest" man on the planet, always shrinks in comparison with
Ali.
It borders on sacrilege, in fact, for me to have mentioned Tyson in the
same breath with Ali, Tyson, not me, being the guilty party of course (lest
young readers who are only old enough to watch Tyson entertain the wrong ideas).
In terms of spirituality, Ali is peerless in the ring (the boxing playing field)
and outside. Ali was big enough, you see, to not forget shaking hands with the
guards at the court trial that sentenced him to prison for refusing to go half
the globe and fight a war in Viet Nam because he "ain't got no quarrel with them
Viet Cong".
Uh oh, I'm drifting again. Anyways, those are my idol thoughts on
boxers.
And here are media examples:
Down but not out
1. Dollar is down, but not out, as Fed cuts rates
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Federal Reserve's biggest emergency interest rate
cut in more than two decades took a bite out of the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, but
could end up helping both the currency and the U.S. economy rebound as early as
this spring.
2. Darwin down but not out
The British government has withdrawn its bid to have Charles Darwin's home
and the surrounding countryside designated a World Heritage Site, at the same
time expressing strong concern over the way in which sites of scientific
heritage are judged. The decision follows an unfavourable evaluation of the
Darwin bid by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), which
advises UNESCO's World Heritage Committee on aspects of cultural heritage
(nature.com, June 21, 2007).
Down and out
1. Reality Check: Sanjaya Down and Out on 'American Idol'
So it finally happened: Despite the valiant efforts of Fanjayas and
ruckus-causers across the country, the 17-year-old was sent packing.
Based on the response in the auditorium — insane hoots and hollers of joy
when Ryan revealed that LaKisha was staying while Sanjaya was leaving — this
momentous occasion happened not a minute too soon.
But in the Sanjaya universe, heroes don't go down without a fight — or at
least a snarky comment — and our boy got his by changing the words of Bonnie
Raitt's song from "Let's give them something to talk about, how about love?" to
"Let's give them something to talk about, other than hair."
To which I say: Sanjaya, people didn't only talk about your hair. They also
spent a good deal of time lamenting your voice. And some of us also pondered
your weirder comments about the universe of Sanjaya and whatnot (FOXNews.com,
April 19, 2007).
2. Brewster Manse Welcomes the Down and Out
Despite its upper-crust name, there are no lords, earls, or duchesses
living at Morningthorpe Manor. The Brewster mansion, with its 31 rooms and 13
fireplaces, instead houses "commoners"-the kind with guts, determination, and a
strong will to radically improve their lives. The stately 1894 mansion, on 50
acres that include a carriage house and two other residences, is one of the five
facilities nationwide that make up Delancey Street, America's leading
residential self-help organization for the disenfranchised. It's a haven for
everyone from ex-cons to the homeless to those who have simply hit rock
bottom.
Since opening in 1980, the Brewster Delancey Street has turned around the
lives of up to 7,000 men and women, ages 18 to 68-many of whom were hard-core
drug and alcohol abusers with no work skills or education and histories of
poverty or violence. During their two- to four-year stays, residents earn a GED
and are trained in three marketable fields, such as the culinary arts,
woodworking, moving and trucking, construction, accounting, automotive repair,
and antique refinishing. Occupants also learn positive ethics, as well as
practical and social skills that teach them how to lead productive, crime- and
drug-free lives full of purpose and integrity (lohud.com, December 21,
2007).
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