有些成年人似乎永遠(yuǎn)也長不大。來看看為什么有些人喜歡在業(yè)余時(shí)間做看似只有在孩童時(shí)代才會(huì)做的事情，如制作飛機(jī)模型、搭建積木套裝。有證據(jù)表明，這些人其實(shí)有充分的理由癡迷于這類愛好。玩兒時(shí)的玩具是否說明我們在尋找內(nèi)心的那個(gè) “大小孩”？聽 “隨身英語” 節(jié)目討論以玩玩具為興趣愛好的成年人。

詞匯：play 玩耍

We all know children love to play with?toys. But as they approach?adulthood, they stop being playful and concentrate on grown-up things – or so we believe. However, in recent times at least, adults are revisiting their?childhood?and buying toys for themselves – and they've been given the nickname 'kidults'.

我們都知道孩子們喜歡玩玩具。但當(dāng)他們接近成年時(shí)，他們不再玩耍，而是專注于成年人的事情——至少我們是這么認(rèn)為的。然而，至少在最近，成年人正在重溫他們的童年，為自己買玩具——他們被稱為“成年人”。

There are many reasons for the rise of the kidult, but it's certainly big business. In the USA for example, the Toy Association says that over half of adults bought toys and games for themselves last year.?Nostalgia?is part of the reason: people want to relive their childhood and now have the disposable income to do so.?Puzzles?and?board games?are traditional toys that can be enjoyed at any age.

成年人的崛起有很多原因，但這肯定是一筆大生意。以美國為例，玩具協(xié)會(huì)表示，去年超過一半的成年人為自己購買了玩具和游戲。懷舊是部分原因:人們想重溫童年，現(xiàn)在又有了可支配收入。拼圖和棋盤游戲是適合任何年齡的傳統(tǒng)玩具。

But there's more to being a?big kid?than just taking?a trip down memory lane. People have more time to?let their hair down?and play.?Hobbies?such as?modelling?and?construction?with plastic bricks can help people develop skills into adulthood. And they allow people to switch off and relax. In fact, Frederique Tutt, global industry analyst at NPD, told the BBC: "I'd say much of this is providing an escape from the stresses and strains of modern-day living, fulfilling our need to find?downtime."

但作為一個(gè)大孩子，除了回憶往事，還有更多的事情要做。人們有更多的時(shí)間放松和玩耍。像建模和用塑料磚建造這樣的愛好可以幫助人們在成年后發(fā)展技能。它們還能讓人們放松下來。事實(shí)上，NPD的全球行業(yè)分析師弗雷德里克·圖特告訴BBC:“我想說，這在很大程度上是為了逃避現(xiàn)代生活的壓力和緊張，滿足我們尋找休息時(shí)間的需求?！?/p>

Some people are even finding comfort and?camaraderie?by playing with others. Although competing with others through?video gaming?might be nothing new, others are coming together to build?train sets?or sophisticated models. In Brighton in the UK, for example, Brighton Bricks is a club where adult fans of the toy Lego meet up every month to talk, play and swap?collections.

有些人甚至通過和別人一起玩來尋找安慰和友情。雖然通過電子游戲與他人競爭可能不是什么新鮮事，但其他人正在聯(lián)合起來制作火車套裝或復(fù)雜的模型。例如，在英國的布萊頓(Brighton)，“布萊頓積木”(Brighton Bricks)是一個(gè)俱樂部，玩具樂高(Lego)的成年粉絲每個(gè)月都會(huì)聚在一起聊天、玩耍和交換收藏。

But those who think playing with toys is childish and?immature?should take note of the research by René Proyer, professor of psychology at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg in Germany. It suggests that adults who demonstrate more?playful?personality traits are more motivated, creative and?spontaneous. So, it seems life shouldn't be?all work and no play, and maybe we should take play more seriously!

但那些認(rèn)為玩玩具是幼稚和不成熟的人應(yīng)該注意一下德國哈雷-維滕貝格馬丁·路德大學(xué)心理學(xué)教授雷納爾·普羅耶的研究。研究表明，表現(xiàn)出更頑皮性格特征的成年人更有動(dòng)力、更有創(chuàng)造力、更隨性。所以，看來生活不應(yīng)該只有工作沒有娛樂，也許我們應(yīng)該更認(rèn)真地對待娛樂!

詞匯表

toy 玩具
adulthood 成年
childhood 童年
kidult 童心未泯的成年人，大小孩
nostalgia 懷舊
puzzle 智力游戲，謎
board game 棋盤游戲或玩具
big kid 大孩子
a trip down memory lane 追憶往昔
let someone's hair down 某人徹底放松、盡情享受
hobby 業(yè)余愛好
modelling 制作模型（玩具車、裝飾擺件等）
construction 組裝物體（積木套裝等）
downtime 休息時(shí)間
camaraderie 友情
video gaming 玩電子游戲
train set 成套火車（玩具）
collection 收藏品
immature 不成熟的，幼稚的
playful 愛玩的，有趣的
spontaneous 隨性的
all work and no play 只工作不放松

測驗(yàn)與練習(xí)

1.?閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. What are the reasons mentioned in the article that adults are buying more toys for themselves?

2. How might playing with toys as an adult help you?

3. What might be the benefits of playing with other adults?

4. True or false??Research by René Proyer suggests that being playful makes you more creative.

5. Is there an age limit to enjoying puzzles and board games?

2.?選擇意思恰當(dāng)?shù)膯卧~或詞組來完成下列句子。

1. My _______ include painting, acting and singing.

collections? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?puzzles? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?hobbies? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?downtime

2. You need to _______ and come to the party. It'll be fun!

let your hair drop? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? let my hair down????

let your hairs down? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?let your hair down

3. He's such a _______ – he still takes his teddy bear to bed at night!

immature? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?childhood? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? spontaneous? ? ? ? ? ? ?big kid

4. When I get some _______, I like to have a go at doing a jigsaw puzzle.

collections???????????????????? downtime? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? nostalgia? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?construction

5. Shall we _______ and get out the old dolls you used to play with out of the cupboard?

take a trip down memory lane? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? take a voyage down memory lane

take a trip up memory lane? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?have journeys down memory lane

答案

1.?閱讀課文并回答問題。?

1. What are the reasons mentioned in the article that adults are buying more toys for themselves?

Many adults have more disposable income and more leisure time.

2. How might playing with toys as an adult help you?

It helps you to develop new skills and relax and switch off. And as Frederique Tutt said, it can provide an escape from the stresses and strains of modern-day living.

3. What might be the benefits of playing with other adults?

Playing with others can give you comfort and camaraderie.

4. True or false??Research by René Proyer suggests that being playful makes you more creative.

True. Her research suggests that adults who demonstrate more playful personality traits are more motivated, creative and spontaneous.

5. Is there an age limit to enjoying puzzles and board games?

No. Puzzles and board games are traditional toys that can be enjoyed at any age.

2.?選擇意思恰當(dāng)?shù)膯卧~或詞組來完成下列句子。

1. My?hobbies?include painting, acting and singing.

2. You need to?let your hair down?and come to the party. It'll be fun!

3. He's such a?big kid?– he still takes his teddy bear to bed at night!

4. When I get some?downtime, I like to have a go at doing a jigsaw puzzle.

5. Shall we?take a?trip down memory lane?and get out the old dolls you used to play with out of the cupboard?

文章來源BBC，侵權(quán)刪，本文僅用于英語學(xué)習(xí)。