Lesson 26 Wanted: a large biscuit tin
No one can avoid being influenced by advertisements. Much as we may pride ourselves on our good taste, we are no longer free to choose the things we want, for advertising exerts a subtle influence on us. In their efforts to persuade us to buy this or that product, advertisers have made a close study of human nature and have classified all our little weaknesses.
Advertisers discovered years ago that all of us love to get something for nothing. An advertisement which begins with the magic word FREE can rarely go wrong. These days, advertisers not only offer free samples, but free cars, free houses, and free trips round the world as well. They devise hundreds of competitions which will enable us to win huge sums of money. Radio and television have made it possible for advertisers to capture the attention of millions of people in this way.
During a radio programme, a company of biscuit manufacturers once asked listeners to bake biscuits and send them to their factory. They offered to pay $2 a pound for the biggest biscuit baked by a listener. The response to this competition was tremendous. Before long, biscuits of all shapes and sizes began arriving at the factory. One lady brought in a biscuit on a wheelbarrow. It weighed nearly 500 pounds. A little later, a man came along with a biscuit which occupied the whole boot of his car. All the biscuits that were sent were carefully weighed. The largest was 713 pounds. It seemed certain that this would win the prize. But just before the competition closed, a lorry arrived at the factory with a truly colossal biscuit which weighed 2,400 pounds. It had been baked by a college student who had used over 1,000 pounds of flour, 800 pounds of sugar, 200 pounds of fat, and 400 pounds of various other ingredients. It was so heavy that a crane had to be used to remove it from the lorry. The manufacturers had to pay more money than they had anticipated, or they bought the biscuit from the student for $4800.
New words and expressions 生詞和短語
influence
v. 影響
pride
v. 驕傲
taste
n. 鑒賞力
exert
v. 施加
subtle
aj. 微妙的，難以捉摸的
advertiser
n. 做廣告的人
classify
v. 分類
magic
adj. 有奇妙作用
sample
n. 樣品
devise
v. 設計，想出
capture
v. 吸引，贏得
manufacturer
n. 生產廠家，製造商
wheelbarrow
n. 獨輪手推車
boot
n. （汽車尾部的）行李箱
ingredient
n. 配料
crane
n. 起重機
anticipate
v. 預期，預料
參考譯文
沒有人能避免受廣告的影響。盡管我們可以自誇自己的鑒賞力如何敏銳，但我們已經無法獨立自主地選購自己所需的東西了。這是因為廣告在我們身上施加著一種潛移默化的影響。做廣告的人在力圖勸說我們買下這種產品或那種產品之前，已經仔細地研究了人的本性，並把人的弱點進行了分類。
做廣告的人們多年前就發現我們大家都喜歡免費得到東西。凡是用“免費”這個神奇的詞開頭的廣告很少會失敗的。目前，做廣告的人不僅提供免費樣品，而且還提供免費汽車，免費住房，免費周遊世界。他們設計數以百計的競賽，競賽中有人可贏得巨額獎金。電台、電視使做廣告的人可以用這種手段吸引成百萬人的注意力。
有一次，在電台播放的節目裏，一個生產餅幹的公司請聽眾烘製餅幹送到他們的工廠去。他們願意以每磅10美元的價錢買下由聽眾烘製的最大的餅幹。這次競賽在聽眾中引起極其熱烈的反響。不久，形狀各異，大小不一的餅幹陸續送到工廠。一位女士用手推車運來一個餅幹，重達500磅左右。相隔不一會兒，一個男子也帶來一個大餅幹，那個餅幹把汽車的行李箱擠得滿滿的。凡送來的餅幹都仔細地稱量。最重的一個達713磅，看來這個餅幹獲獎無疑了。但就在競賽截止時間將到之際，一輛卡車駛進了工廠，運來了一個特大無比、重達2,400磅的餅幹。它是由一個大學生烘製的，用去1,000多磅的麵粉、800磅食糖、200磅動物脂肪及400磅其他各種原料。餅幹份量太重了，用了一台起重機才把它從卡車上卸下。餅幹公司不得不付出比他們預計多得多的錢，因為為買下那學生烘製的餅幹他們支付了24,000美元。
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