外国人喝酒之前为什么要碰杯(2)

外国人喝酒之前为什么要碰杯

To get at the real reason for the clink of glass on glass, we have to first look at why and how we toast, and where the practice originated.

学习啦在线学习网 　　那么要找到喝酒碰杯的真正原因，我们首先应该了解的是我们为什么喝酒?怎么喝酒?并会在什么样的情况下碰杯?

学习啦在线学习网 　　The custom of sealing with booze expressions of good wishes for the health of others dates back so far that its origins are now lost to us, yet in numerous cultures such acts of camaraderie often involved shared drinking vessels. The clinking of individual cups or glasses as a proof of trust wouldn't have meant much when everyone drank from the same bowl. Indeed, in those cultures where shared drinking containers was the norm, to produce one's own vessel in such company was to communicate an unmistakable message of hostility and distrust; it would have been regarded as akin to bringing along a food taster to sample the repast.

　　"Toasting," our term for the pronouncement of benedictions followed by a swallowing of alcohol, is believed to have taken its name from a practice involving a shared drinking vessel. Floated in the "loving cup" passed among celebrants in Britain was a piece of (spiced) cooked bread that the host would consume along with the last few drops of liquid after the cup had made one round of the company. In modern times toasting has become a matter of imbibing from individual drinking vessels rather than from one shared flagon, so to compensate for the sense of unity lost in doing away with the sharing of the same cup we have evolved the practice of simultaneously drinking each from our own glass when a toast is made, thereby maintaining a communal connection to the kind words being spoken.

　　我们很难找到喝酒狂欢表达良好祝愿如身体健康等的起源。然而在众多中，朋友之间的行为会经常涉及到祝酒，每个人从同一个碗里喝酒，那么碰杯就不再是信任彼此的证明。实际上，在这样一种文化里，公用同一个酒器成为一种规则，单独用你自己的酒杯会带来敌对和不信任的误解信息，这将被认为同做餐后的食物品尝家的品尝行为来防毒相类似。

　　“干杯”，我们喝酒后紧随祝福的一句，名字来源被认为是一个涉及公用的酒杯的行为。英国神父流传来的流动的“爱情杯”是主人当酒杯走过一轮后在一块烹制的面包滴几滴酒吃掉的。现在祝酒，不再公用一个酒杯，而是用自己的杯子。为了弥补群体脱离感，抛弃了公用酒杯，我们开始用自个的杯子，因此祝酒才产生了。因此一种靠说友好祝福维系关系的方式产生了。

　　The clinking of glasses has been added to the practice of offering toasts for a few reasons, none having anything to do with poison. Prior to such augmentation, toasts pleased only four of the five senses; by adding the "clink," a pleasant sound was made part of the experience, and wine glasses have come to be prized not only for their appearance but also for the tones they produce when struck. Yet beyond mere aural pleasure, the act of touching your glass to that of others is a way of emphasizing that you are part of the good wishes being expressed, that you are making a physical connection to the toast. The practice also serves another purpose, that of uniting the individuals taking part in the benediction into a cohesive group: as the wine glasses are brought together, so symbolically are the people holding them. On a deeper level, the wine is also being recommuned with itself — that which had been one (when it had been in its own bottle) but was separated (when it was poured into a variety of glasses) is brought back into contact with the whole of itself, if only for a moment.

　　Etiquette mavens say one need not clink glasses with everyone present when participating in toasts among large assemblies. Rather than reach across vast expanses of wide tables (thereby risking losing your balance and ending up in the guacamole), simply raise your glass and make eye contact with the group.

　　碰杯因一些原因也被加进祝酒的行列，和毒药没有一丝关系。增加了这些，祝酒使气氛好了五分之四。通过加碰杯这一环节，一种悦耳的声音成为祝酒的一部分。并且不仅仅赞美杯的出现还赞美酒杯碰撞时发出的响声。然而除了听觉享受外，有人和你碰杯也是一种友好祝福的暗示。你通过祝酒与人发生了接触。碰杯还有另一个意图，就是通过人与人的祝酒使之参加到一个有关联的大集体。当酒杯碰在一起的时候，人们也象征性地“拥抱”了。深层次的说，人也是(当用自己的杯子喝酒时)在一起的，(当酒在一起时)人其实是分开的，从某种意义上说，酒有了人回归一个完整的联系的含义。

　　礼节上在现在当一个人参加一个大聚会时不需要和每个人碰杯。相比较隔个大桌子(而冒着失去平衡的危险)碰杯而言，还不如举起酒杯眼神交流感情来得真切。