英文阅读：He's a class act
Reader question: "He's a class act." What does that mean?My comments: It means he's an excellent person. How excellent? That depends
on context.
A person who's seen by others as a "class act" usually demonstrates some
unique good qualities and those qualities are found in context. That is, a
sentence like "he's a class act" seldom stands on its own. It must be followed
or preceded by explanations.
Yes, and that's the good part of the English language. English, you see, is
explanatory, sentences explain each other. While a sentence like "he's a rascal"
can perfectly stand on its own footing in Chinese conversations (with no
explanation given about that person's rascal behavior), it can never stand alone
in English, that is, without risking sounding like an ass. In Chinese, of
course, if you give only conclusions and never explain what you mean by what you
say, rather than diminishing your credibility, this practice might even give you
an extra aura of profundity.
Joking aside, "class act" is an American idiom pointing to somebody
possessing some outstanding qualities. Do you notice the "class" distinction in
it? Somebody who's described as a "class act" often shows "class" (style). He is
probably "in a class of his own" (peerless) and "a hard act to follow"
(inimitable), using other American idioms.
Without further ado, let's examine some of the qualities of "a class act"
through context (explanations following each example, in brackets, are
mine):
1. He (Yao Ming) is a class act in every way, and a credit to China. He is
as beloved in Houston as he is in his home town of Shanghai.
- McClatchy Blog: China Rises, washingtonbureau.typepad.com, June 29,
2008.
(Yao is good altogether.)
2. "I think in the end, when South Dakota and Montana go last and have
their final result, she (Hilary Clinton) will sit back and see whether a win can
be achieved or not — and if not, she is a class act and will do the class thing
and get on board with the Democratic ticket," said Jay Jacobs, a Democratic
leader on Long Island and a superdelegate and top fund-raiser for Mrs.
Clinton.
- Clinton Still Sees Plenty of Reasons to Press Her Campaign, The New York
Times, May 21, 2008.
(In other words, she will be gracious in defeat and continue to help the
Democratic cause.)
3. I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with Muhammad Ali, in person,
one on one. What a great, generous and kind person. He didn't have to speak to
me, or walk up to me. He saw me take his picture in a crowded airport in 1986.
He walked across the concourse and spoke with me, asked if I had gotten a good
enough shot, and let me take another. What a class act!
- Digg.com.
(There's only one Ali – So much humanity in a boxer who lives by knocking
people down.)
4. America is a class act
The US regards itself as the ultimate meritocracy, but social mobility is
as feeble as Europe's - and declining
Comment by Gary Younge, The Guardian, January 27, 2003.
(Oops! That is a word play, meaning class distinction is alive in
America.)
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