布什的英语水平到底怎么样？
前一阵子，一名中国博士留学生因为“英文不如美国人流利”而受到耶鲁大学的不公正待遇，在华人中间引起强烈反响。我一下子就联想到了耶鲁大学的一位校友，当然是一位美国人，而且不是随便哪个美国人，他是Georges W. Bush，也就是现任美国总统。布什总统讲英文屡屡出错，发音口齿不清，所以有美国人故意学布什地发音方式，夸张地把President
Bush（布什总统）的President省掉一个P，叫成Resident
，所以President Bush就成了Resident
Bush（布什居民）。还美国人专门发明了一个新词bushism专指“布什式英语”，维基百科也为bushism开辟了专门的词条，搜集布什总统的英文错误存档，随时更新。需要说明一点的是，我们介绍“布什式英语”并非嘲弄美国总统，也不想给大家一个英语很难学的印象。正相反，我的目的是想告诉大家，我们中国人学说英语尽管大胆地去说，不要怕说错不好意思，人家美国总统错成那样都无所谓，我们这些老外说错个把字慌什么。
（1）语法篇
布什式英语的最大的语法特色就是把系动词be的复数are简化成is，这一点和我们中国人学英语时常犯的错误时一模一样，因为汉语的“是”就不分单复数，“他是”、“他们是”都是“是”，不像英语He
is，They are那么罗嗦。比如2000年总统竞选电视辩论的时候，面对电脑文字处理器一般精准的戈尔，布什连连把该说are的地方说成is：
"There
is no new accountability measures in Vice President Gore's plan."
（“戈尔副总统的计划中没有新的承担责任的措施”，因为measures是复数，所以要用are，而不是is）
"There's
too many issues left unresolved."
（“有太多的问题未获得解决”，因为issues 是复数，所以要用are，而不是is）
"You
bet there's things the government can do."
（“当然有些事情政府可以做”，因为things是复数，所以要用are，而不是is）
"So
I think step one to make sure prescription drugs is more affordable for seniors“
（“所以我觉得第一步是要使处方药让老人们能买得起”）因为drugs是复数，所以要用are，而不是is）。
不信试一试，上述的句子放在Microsoft word里都要被打上绿杠作为错误显示出来的。
布什式英语的另一个特色就是形容词的比较级，喜欢使用more，或者few，而不是根据形容词本身的音节特征选择使用词根加-er，这又是中国人常犯的错误。2000年1月29日布什在Concord，N.H.的一次讲话中问道：
"Will
the highways on the Internet become more few?"
（“互联网上的高速路会变得更少了吗？”）这里形容词few的比较级，应该是fewer，more few闻所未闻，错的离谱，一般人最多错说成less
few，Resident Bush真不是等闲之辈。
最近，布什英语的比较级又有了新的进展。2005年9月20日在Gulfport，Miss. 又说："We
look forward to hearing your vision, so we can more better do our job." （“我们等着听你们的高见，以便我们干得更好。”）本来，better已经是good的比较级，是正确的，不幸布什却有画蛇添足地在better之前又加上了more，什么是more better?
作为总统，布什非常关心儿童的教育，特别是拼读认写的能力。在2001年华盛顿电视电台记者晚餐会上，布什忧心忡忡地问到："Rarely
is the question asked, is our children learning?" （“很少有人问这个问题：我们的儿童在学习吗？”）这个句子中，儿童children是复数，所以相应的系词应该是are，而不是is，布什又犯了老毛病。由于这句话在媒体中广为传播，成为笑谈，布什可能受了一定的刺激，从此见children一词后面开始用复数are。2004年1月23日在华盛顿的一次关于演讲中谈到了儿童中的文盲，说了这样一句话：
"The illiteracy level of our children are appalling." （“儿童文盲的程度令人震惊”）。children是复数固然不错，可惜布什忽略了这里的主语是单数的level而不是children，所以应该用is，而不是are。
2001年2月21日布什在Townsend,
Tenn关于教育改革的一次演讲中说到“儿童”这个词的时候使用的单数是单数child，但却又犯了另一个错误：
“You teach a child to read, and
he or her will be able to pass a literacy test. ”
（你教一个孩子拼读，他或者她将会通过语文的测验）。
he or
she（他或她），本是美国人常用的显示那女平等“政治正确”的常用词组，布什居然把主格的she错说成了宾格的her。显然，布什总统以这样的水平去参加语文考试一准儿是通不过的。
（2）词汇篇
布什式英语词汇的第一个特征就是发明新词，或者赋予某一个老词以新的意义。1999年6月布什在谈到与希腊的关系时说："Keep
good relations with the Grecians" （与希腊人保持良好关系），错把“希腊人”（Greek）说成Grecians，犯了中小学生常犯的错误，以为America（美国）的人是American，Greece（希腊）的人就是Grecians。
不过，布什也不是完全无的放矢，Grecians这个词还真有，可以指“希腊式”的建筑或相貌。有时候不是还会发明新词。2004年10月15日布什在Indianapolis,
IN的讲话中振振有词地说："I
refuse to be sucked into your hypnotheoretical arguments." （我拒绝接受你的hypnotheoretical论点。）。什么是hypnotheoretical？这个词word不认识，我估计布什本来想说hypothetical（假设性的），可惜多加了几个零碎。
布什式英语词汇的另外一个特征是正话反说。2001年1月29日，布什在华盛顿的一次讲话中说："I
am mindful not only of preserving executive powers for myself, but for
predecessors as well."（我不仅在意维系我自己的行政权力，也要维系我的前任们的行政权力。）往者往矣，布什为什么要维护其“前任”的行政权力呢？原来布什想说“successors”（继任者），结果说反了，说成了“predecessors”（前任）。
布什总统2001年1月7日在纽约州Rochester谈到经济问题时，以通俗的经济学家的口吻说到："If
the tarriers and bariffs (barriers and tariffs) are torn down, this economy
will grow."（如果打烂tarriers和bariffs，咱的这个经济就会增长）。当时听众们顿时堕入云里雾里，不是布什的经济理论有什么高深之处，而是谁也没有听说过tarriers和bariffs这两个词，半天才醒过梦来：布什总统本是要说barriers（壁垒）和tariffs（关税）啊！
这种把两个词的第一个辅音弄反了的语言现象在英语里有一个专门的词描述叫做spoonerism，“首音误植”，不是布什总统的知识产权，而是以一个教士的名字命名的语言现象。这个教士名叫William
Archibald Spooner（1844-1930），平素一张嘴就会把前后几个词的辅音弄反，比如"Mardon
me padam, this pie is occupewed. Can I sew you to another sheet?." (Pardon
me, madam, this pew is occupied. Can I show you to another seat?对不起，太太，这个座位已经有人了，我给你指另外一个座位好吗？)
“首音误植”还不打紧，因为毕竟表明总统还是掌握了相关的词汇，只不过情急之中舌头跟不上脑子而已。但是在另外的一些场合，布什明显地表现出词汇贫乏，如轮如何找不到合适的词来表达自己的意思。2001年1月14日，布什在接受纽约时报采访时对当时加利福尼亚州发生的电力危机发表评论：
"The
几天以后，2001年1月18日布什在总统就职典礼前接受合众社采访时信心十足地说："I'm
hopeful. I know there is a lot of ambition in
布什的词汇量有限，有限的词汇还会出错，难怪很多人经常误解甚至耻笑这位总统。为此布什也颇感委屈，他在2000年11月6日在Bentonville,
Ark. 的一次讲话中这样辩解说：“They
misunderestimated me."（他们低估了我），可惜又把underestimate（低估）画蛇添足说成misunderestimate，让我的word软件打了红线，又是个布什不适新词。
The
great thing about
"It
was just inebriating (enthralling) what
I'm
hopeful. I know there is a lot of ambition in
"Let
me put it to you this way, I am not a revengeful (vengeful) person."— Interview with Time magazine in the Dec. 25, 2000, issue.
The
great thing about
Well,
I think if you say you're going to do something and don't do it, that's
trustworthiness."--CNN online chat, Aug. 30, 2000
I
understand small business growth. I was one."—New
York Daily News, Feb. 19, 2000
A
Bushism is a word, phrase, or other grammatical configuration unique to the
style of President George W. Bush
while speaking publicly and usually extemporaneously. While any public figure
speaking in so many venues over time is prone to a few unflattering errors, the
President's regular use of incorrect grammatical constructions has some common
characteristics that have given him a hallmark style:
Adding
agentive endings to words not usually
accustomed to such treatment, such as suiciders, game changer, and truth teller
Splicing
words together in incorrect combinations, such as misunderestimated and musta
could've
Redundant
or Odd sentence construction, such as "We had a chance to visit with
Teresa Nelson who's a parent, and a mom or a dad."
Slang
or incorrect use of double negatives, as in "We've not got no better
friend and ally than
Quotes
from the President's speeches that create an impression of poor fluency and
lack of understanding of the English language are often called Bushisms. Many
quotes, sometimes taken out of context, are used by opponents to imply that the
President has significant misconceptions about geography, history, political
processes, and the world in general. There is no easy way to tell how many of
the quotes reflect the President's actual knowledge and opinions and how many
are merely results of verbal mishaps. Some supposed Bushisms are also possible
misquotes or stem from difficultly understanding the President's
Psychoanalyst
Frank (2004) based on the "growing anecdotal evidence" of these
Bushisms diagnosed that the President may suffer from dyslexia, ADHD,
and other thought disorders, observing that:
"Naturally,
the occasional misstatement or discrepancy between word and deed may be
dismissed as politics as usual. But when the most powerful man on the planet
consistently exhibits an array of multiple, serious, and untreated symptoms — any one of which I've seen patients need years to work
through — it's certainly cause for further
investigation, if not for outright alarm. President Bush is not my patient, of
course, but the discipline of applied psychoanalysis gives us a way to make as
much sense of his psyche as he is likely ever to allow."
List
of Bushisms
"I'm
also mindful that man should never try to put words in God's mouth. I mean, we
should never ascribe natural disasters or anything else, to God. We are in no
way, shape, or form should a human being, play God." --Appearing on ABC's
20/20,
"I
believe we are called to do the hard work to make our communities and quality
of life a better place." --
"I
just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about
peace." --
"I
think war is a dangerous place." -—
"I
want to thank my friend, Sen. Bill Frist, for joining us today. … He married a
"Our
enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking
about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." -—
"I've
coined new words, like, misunderstanding and Hispanically."—Radio-Television Correspondents Association dinner,
Washington, D.C., March 29, 2001
"The
administration I'll bring is a group of men and women who are focused on what's
best for America, honest men and women, decent men and women, women who will
see service to our country as a great privilege and who will not stain the
house."-Des Moines Register debate,
"If
you're sick and tired of the politics of cynicism and polls and principles,
come and join this campaign."-
"I
know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."—Saginaw,
Mich., Sept. 29, 2000
"It's
clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it."--Reuters, May 5, 2000
"I
understand small business growth. I was one."-
"The
most important job is not to be governor, or first lady in my case."-
"It's
your money. You paid for it."—LaCrosse, Wis., Oct.
18, 2000
"We
ought to make the pie higher."—South Carolina
Republican Debate, Feb. 15, 2000
"Make
The Pie Higher"
"Make
The Pie Higher" is a poem comprised of
Bushisms. Each line contains a malapropism said to have been uttered by
George W. Bush. Although its origin of is uncertain, it has been attributed to Washington Post political cartoonist and satirist Richard Thompson. The poem has been
criticized as apocryphal, but each
line has been verified by the Urban
Legends Reference Pages at Snopes.com as having been spoken by Bush
at one point or another during his Presidency.
Make
The Pie Higher
I
think we all agree, the past is over.
This is still a dangerous world.
It's a world of madmen and uncertainty
and potential mental losses.
Rarely
is the question asked
Is our children learning?
Will the highways of the Internet become more few?
How many hands have I shaked?
They
misunderestimate me.
I am a pitbull on the pantleg of opportunity.
I know that the human being and the fish can coexist.
Families is where our nation finds hope, where our wings take dream.
Put
food on your family!
Knock down the tollbooth!
Vulcanize society!
Make the pie higher! Make the pie higher!
This
article has been moved from another Wiki project because it contains
quotations. Please move or incorporate its contents into the Wikiquote article
space.
What
follows is a list of made up words and confused or grammatically incorrect
phrases spoken by U.S. President George W. Bush. An article on these can be
found at Bushism.
""It
seemed like Amnesty
International based some of their decisions on the word and
allegations by people who were held in detention, people who hate America, people had
been trained in some instances to disassemble – that means not tell the truth." --Washington, D.C.,
31 May 2005
"But
Iraq
has—have got people there that are willing to kill, and
they're hard-nosed killers. And we will work with the Iraqis to secure their
future." --
"We
expect the states to show us whether or not we're achieving simple objectives—like literacy, literacy in math, the ability to read and
write." -—on federal education requirements,
"It's
in our country's interests to find those who would do harm to us and get them
out of harm's way." -—
"In
terms of timetables, as quickly as possible—whatever
that means." -—On the president's time frame for
shoring up Social Security,
"I
believe we are called to do the hard work to make our communities and quality
of life a better place." -—Collinsville, Ill.,
5 Jan., 2005
"This
notion that the
"If
you're a younger person, you ought to be asking members of Congress and the United States
Senate and the president what you
intend to do about it. If you see a train wreck coming, you ought to be saying,
what are you going to do about it, Mr. Congressman, or Madam Congressman?"
-—
"It's
a time of sorrow and sadness when we lose a loss of life." -—
"I
always jest to people, the Oval Office is
the kind of place where people stand outside, they're getting ready to come in
and tell me what for, and they walk in and get overwhelmed by the atmosphere.
And they say 'man, you're looking pretty.' " -—
"After
standing on the stage, after the debates, I made it very plain, we will not
have an all-volunteer army. And yet, this week—we will
have an all-volunteer army. Let me restate that."-—Daytona Beach,
"Free
societies are hopeful societies. And free societies will be allies against
these hateful few who have no conscience, who kill at the whim of a hat."-—
"Too
many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYN's aren't able
to practice their love with women all across the country." -—Sept. 6, 2004,
"I
didn't join the International
Criminal Court because I don't want to put our troops in the hands
of prosecutors from other nations. Look, if somebody has done some wrong in our
military, we'll take care of it. We got plenty of capability of dealing with justice."
-—
"Tribal
sovereignty means that, it's sovereign. You're a—you've
been given sovereignty, and
you're viewed as a sovereign entity. And, therefore, the relationship between
the federal government
and tribes is one between sovereign entities." -—
"Secondly,
the tactics of our—as you know, we don't have
relationships with
"Our
enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking
about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." -—
"I
want to thank my friend, Sen. Bill Frist, for
joining us today. … He married a Texas girl, I want you to
know. (Laughter.) Karyn is with us. A
"I'm
honored to shake the hand of a brave Iraqi citizen who had his hand cut off by
Saddam Hussein." -—
"[B]y
the way, we rank 10th amongst the industrialized world in broadband technology
and its availability. That's not good enough for
"The
march to war affected the people's confidence. It's hard to make investment.
See, if you're a small business owner or a large business owner and you're
thinking about investing, you've got to be optimistic when you invest. Except
when you're marching to war, it's not a very optimistic thought, is it? In
other words, it's the opposite of optimistic when you're thinking you're going
to war." -—
"More
Muslims have died at
the hands of killers than—I say more Muslims—a lot of Muslims have died—I don't
know the exact count—at
"King Abdullah
of Jordan, the King of Morocco,
I mean, there's a series of places—Qatar, Oman—I
mean, places that are developing—Bahrain—they're all developing the habits of free societies." -—
"My
views are one that speaks to freedom." -—
"I
was a prisoner too, but for bad reasons." -—To
Argentine President Nestor Kirchner,
on being told that all but one of the Argentine delegates to a summit meeting
were imprisoned during the military dictatorship, Monterrey, Mexico, Jan. 13,
2004
"One
of the most meaningful things that's happened to me since I've been the
governor—the president—governor—president. Oops. Ex-governor. I went to Bethesda Naval
Hospital to give a fellow a Purple Heart,
and at the same moment I watched him—get a Purple Heart
for action in Iraq—and at that same—right
after I gave him the Purple Heart, he was sworn in as a citizen of the United
States—a Mexican citizen, now a United States
citizen."—Washington, D.C., Jan. 9, 2004
"The
ambassador and the general were briefing
me on the—the vast majority of Iraqis want to live in a
peaceful, free world. And we will find these people and we will bring them to
justice." -—
"See,
free nations are peaceful nations. Free nations don't attack each other. Free
nations don't develop weapons of mass destruction." -—
"I
glance at the headlines just to kind of get a flavor for what's moving. I
rarely read the stories, and get briefed by people who are probably read the
news themselves." -—
"I'm
so pleased to be able to say hello to Bill Scranton. He's one of the great
"Our
country puts $1 billion a year up to help feed the hungry. And we're by far the
most generous nation in the world when it comes to that, and I'm proud to
report that. This isn't a contest of who's the most generous. I'm just telling
you as an aside. We're generous. We shouldn't be bragging about it. But we are.
We're very generous." -—
"My
answer is bring them on." -—On Iraqi militants
attacking
"
"Now,
there are some who would like to rewrite history—revisionist
historians is what I like to call them." -—
"I'm
the master of low expectations." -—Aboard Air
Force One, June 4, 2003
"I'm
also not very analytical. You know I don't spend a lot of time thinking about
myself, about why I do things." -—Aboard Air Force
One, June 4, 2003
"I
recently met with the finance minister of the Palestinian Authority, was very
impressed by his grasp of finances." -—
"We
ended the rule of one of history's worst tyrants, and in so doing, we not only
freed the American people, we made our own people more secure." -—
"We've
got hundreds of sites to exploit, looking for the chemical and biological
weapons that we know Saddam Hussein
had prior to our entrance into
"I
think war is a dangerous place." -—
"You're
free. And freedom is beautiful. And, you know, it'll take time to restore chaos
and order—order out of chaos. But we will." -—
"Now,
we talked to Joan Hanover. She and her husband, George, were visiting with us.
They are near retirement—retiring—in
the process of retiring, meaning they're very smart, active, capable people who
are retirement age and are retiring." -—
"And,
most importantly, Alma Powell, secretary of Colin Powell, is with us." -—
"The
war on terror involves Saddam Hussein because of the nature of Saddam Hussein,
the history of Saddam Hussein, and his willingness to terrorize himself."
-—
"The
law I sign today directs new funds and new focus to the task of collecting
vital intelligence on terrorist threats and on weapons of mass
production." -—
"I
know something about being a government. And you've got a good one." -—Stumping for Gov. Mike Huckabee,
"Let
me tell you my thoughts about tax relief. When your economy is kind of ooching
along, it's important to let people have more of their own money."—Boston, Oct. 4, 2002
"I
was proud the other day when both Republicans and Democrats stood with
me in the Rose Garden to announce their support for a clear statement of
purpose: you disarm, or we will." -—Speaking about
Saddam Hussein,
"I'm
plowed of the leadership of Chuck Grassley and Greg Ganske and Jim Leach."
-—
"There's
an old saying in Tennessee—I know it's in Texas,
probably in Tennessee—that says, fool me once, shame on—shame on you. Fool me—you can't get
fooled again." -—
"There's
no doubt in my mind that we should allow the world worst leaders to hold
"I'm
also mindful that man should never try to put words in God's mouth. I mean, we
should never ascribe natural disasters or anything else, to God. We are in no
way, shape, or form should a human being, play God." -—Appearing
on ABC's 20/20,
"My
pro-life position is I believe there's life. It's not necessarily based in
religion. I think there's a life there, therefore the notion of life, liberty,
and pursuit of happiness." --Quoted in the
"I'm
hopeful. I know there is a lot of ambition in
"I'm
not gonna fire a $2 million missile at a $10 empty tent and hit a camel in the
butt." - September 20, 2001.
"The
lint in my bellybutton is red, white, and blue."
"Truth
Teller"
"In
my judgment, when the United States
says there will be serious consequences, and if there isn't serious
consequences, it creates adverse consequences."
"There
is no such thing necessarily in a dictatorial regime of iron-clad absolutely
solid evidence. The evidence I had was the best possible evidence that he had a
weapon."
"See,
without the tax relief
package, there would have been a deficit, but there wouldn't have been the
commiserate—not 'commiserate'—the
kick to our economy that occurred as a result of the tax relief."
"[T]he
best way to find these terrorists who hide in holes is to get people coming
forth to describe the location of the hole, is to give clues and data."
"You're
working hard to put food on your family."
"Rarely
is the question asked, is our children learning?" (2001 Washington
TV/Radio Correspondents dinner)
After
graduating from the Phillips Academy
in June 1964, Bush attended Yale University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History in 1968.
Due to
Bush's colorful mistakes when speaking, detractors coined a new term, “bushism”, to describe the grammatical configuration unique to Bush. Bushisms have been widely popularized and archived across the internet due to their
humorous nature. Some of his detractors, with varying degrees of seriousness,
consider him unintelligent. On the other hand, his score on the Air Force
Officer Qualifying Test (at age 22) suggests that his I.Q.
was the mid-120s, above average.
Many
thanks to Daniel Kurtzman About's guide to political humor for the Bushisms quote resource and images.
"Drug
therapies are replacing a lot of medicines (medicine) as we used to know
it."
"I
have a different vision of leadership. A leadership (leader) is someone who
brings people together." —Bartlett, Tenn., Aug.
18, 2000
"We
ought to make the pie higher (larger)."—South
Carolina Republican Debate, Feb. 15, 2000
OK, so
President Bush has a few problems with basic grammar skills. Let's see how he
does when it comes to vocabulary and the meaning of words! This time, click on
the button to see a short explanation and / or the word which should have been
used.
'Well,
I think if you say you're going to do something and don't do it, that's
trustworthiness.'
'We
cannot let terrorists and rogue nations hold this nation hostile or hold our
allies hostile.'
'This
case has had full analyzation and has been looked at a lot. I understand the
emotionality of death penalty cases.'
'The
benefits of helping somebody is beneficial.'
'[We
will] use our technology to enhance uncertainty abroad.'
'The
senator has got to understand if he's going to have - he can't have it both
ways. He can't take the high horse and then claim the low road.''
...more
and more of our imports are coming from overseas.'
'If
the terriers and bariffs are torn down, this economy will grow.'
'There
is no doubt in my mind that this country cannot achieve any objective we put
our mind to.'
'It's
hard to be successful if you don't make something somebody doesn't want to
buy.'
'I
want to thank the astronauts who are with us, the courageous spacial
entrepreneurs who set such a wonderful example for the young of our country.'
'I had
the opportunity to go out to
'I
think war is a dangerous place.'
'Sometimes,
'I
know the human being and fish can co-exist peacefully.'
'I
have said that the sanction regime [against
'The
most important job is not to be governor, or first lady in my case.'
'Will
the highways on the Internet become more few?'
'Drug
therapies are replacing a lot of medicines as we used to know it.'
'I
think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer
questions. I can't answer your question.'
'Our
enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking
about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.'
'We
don't believe in planners and deciders making the decisions on behalf of
Americans.'
'It's
clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it.'
'We
want our teachers to be trained so they can meet the obligations, their
obligations as teachers. We want them to know how to teach the science of
reading. In order to make sure there's not this kind of federal — federal cufflink.'
'I've
been to war. I've raised twins. If I had a choice, I'd rather go to war.'
'You're
working hard to put food on your family.'
'He
married a
'I
think it's interesting. I'm a follower of American politics.'
'I'm
the master of low expectations.'
'I had
my first 'scope', as we say in the business, I think maybe five or six years
ago. They discovered polyps for the first time.'
'There
are a couple of cows waiting for me. You know, when I first got back from
'I'm a
patient man, which is hard for me to believe.'
'It's
amazing with the software that has been developed these days that enable a
camera to distinguish the difference between a squirrel and a bomb.'
'You
teach a child to read and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test.'
'I
understand small business growth. I was one.'
'Families
is where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream.'
2002年7月4日美国独立日，布什就美国要求国际刑事法庭给与美国人豁免权一事发了这么一段议论：
"The
International Criminal Court is troubling to the