Upstairs, downstairs: The life of a British maid - Stephanie Honchell Smith · TED-Ed
讲述1906年英国女仆Alice Sutton的一天，展现她作为仆人工作的艰辛与对女性选举权的追求。适合练习生活场景和情感表达。
It's just before dawn on a Saturday in summer 1906, and 16-year-old Alice Sutton’s mind is already spinning— tonight’s plans could cost her her job.
那是1906年夏天一个周六的黎明前，16岁的爱丽丝·萨顿思绪万千：今晚的计划可能会让她失去工作。
But for now, there's work to do.
不过目前还有工作需要完成。
Alice gets ready slowly, thinking about how her life has changed.
爱丽丝慢慢地做着准备，同时思考着自己的生活发生了怎样的变化。
Only a week ago, she was the lone servant in a modest home.
就在一周前，她还是那座普通住宅里唯一的仆人。
Now she’s an under-housemaid at Wroxton Abbey in Oxfordshire, England, the grand estate of Sir John and Lady Ann Ashby-Blythe.
如今，她在英格兰牛津郡的罗克斯顿修道院（Wroxton Abbey）担任杂役。这座宏伟的庄园属于约翰·阿什比-布莱斯爵士（Sir John Ashby-Blythe）和安·阿什比-布莱斯夫人（Lady Ann Ashby-Blythe）。
As one of the lower-ranking indoor servants, she reports to the housemaids and, ultimately, the housekeeper, Mrs. Fletcher.
作为地位较低的室内仆人之一，她直接向女仆们汇报工作，最终的工作汇报对象是管家弗莱彻夫人（Mrs. Fletcher）。
Her responsibilities include scrubbing floors, sweeping fireplaces, and other cleaning tasks.
她的职责包括擦地板、清扫壁炉以及其他清洁工作。
She’s one of over a million women in domestic service in England— making up almost 30% of the female workforce.
她是英格兰超过一百万从事家政服务的女性中的一员，这些女性几乎占了整个女性劳动力的30%。
All but the poorest households have at least one servant, while estates like Wroxton employ dozens.
除了最贫困的家庭外，几乎所有家庭都至少雇有一名仆人；像罗克斯顿（Wroxton）这样的庄园甚至会雇用数十名仆人。
She waits for Roberta, her nosy roommate, to leave.
她等着罗伯塔——那个爱管闲事的室友——离开。
When all’s clear, Alice slips a stick of chalk into her pocket.
等一切恢复正常后，爱丽丝把一根粉笔塞进了自己的口袋里。
A buzz of excitement fills the kitchen as everyone discusses tonight’s guest: Prince Arthur, the king’s brother.
厨房里充满了兴奋的气氛，大家都在讨论今晚的客人——亚瑟王子，国王的弟弟。
Tonight is Alice’s chance to prove herself to her new employers.
今晚，爱丽丝有机会向她的新雇主证明自己的能力。
As she finishes her breakfast, Alice watches as a kitchen maid carefully stirs eggs, ensuring the yolks stay perfectly centered.
爱丽丝吃完早餐后，看到一位厨房女佣正仔细地搅拌鸡蛋，确保蛋黄始终位于鸡蛋的中心位置。
Like many of the tasks servants perform, it requires painstaking precision.
就像仆人们所执行的许多任务一样，这项工作也需要极其精确的操作。
And Alice thinks it’s the sort of pointless demand only someone who has never had to do it could dream up.
爱丽丝认为，这种毫无意义的要求，只有那些从未真正做过这件事的人才想得出来。
Alice and another under-housemaid, Louisa, head to Sir John and Lady Ann’s rooms to perform their morning chores:
爱丽丝和另一位女仆路易莎前往约翰爵士与安夫人的房间，开始执行她们早晨的职责。
filling the water basins, opening the curtains, and carrying out the chamber pots.
给水槽加水、拉开窗帘，以及清理便盆。
The two girls had become fast friends after meeting months ago at a gathering of the Women’s Social and Political Union.
这两个女孩几个月前在“妇女社会与政治联盟”的一次聚会上相识后，很快就成为了好朋友。
Since 1869, British women who owned property had been allowed to vote in local elections— but not in parliamentary ones.
自1869年起，拥有财产的英国女性被允许在当地选举中投票，但无权参加议会选举。
Many hoped the Liberal Party, back in power since December, would expand voting rights for all women, but they kept deferring the issue.
许多人希望自去年12月重新执政以来的自由党能够为所有女性扩大投票权，然而该党却一再推迟解决这一问题的时间。
This included Alice’s employer, Sir John, who, while a critic of Britain’s imperial project, had yet to voice an opinion on women's suffrage.
其中还包括爱丽丝的雇主约翰爵士。虽然他对英国的帝国主义政策持批评态度，但至今仍未就妇女选举权问题发表过任何意见。
But now, women of all classes were demanding deeds, not words, from the government— chaining themselves to railings,
但如今，各个阶层的女性都在要求政府采取实际行动，而不仅仅是空口承诺；她们甚至将自己锁在栏杆上，以示抗议。
smashing windows, and defacing churches.
他们砸碎窗户，破坏教堂的设施。
Alice and Louisa hadn't gone that far.
爱丽丝和路易莎还没有走到那么远的地方。
Not yet.
还没有。
Alice's afternoon is spent in the downstairs
爱丽丝的下午时间是在楼下度过的。
entryway, washing each tile in the grand mosaic with milk so it would gleam in the candlelight as the guests arrived.
入口处：人们用牛奶清洗那块巨大的马赛克瓷砖，这样当宾客到来时，这些瓷砖在烛光下会闪闪发光。
As the dinner hour nears, she guides footmen carrying intricately carved butter sculptures to the dining room, and notices Roberta pulling Luisa aside.
随着晚餐时间的临近，她引领那些手持雕刻精美的黄油雕塑的仆人们前往餐厅，并注意到罗伯塔正把路易莎拉到一边谈话。
Alice lingers, trying to listen in on their conversation, but Mrs. Fletcher admonishes her for dawdling.
爱丽丝站在那里迟迟不肯离开，试图偷听他们的谈话，但弗莱彻太太责备她浪费时间、磨磨蹭蹭。
By the time Prince Arthur's motorcar finally arrives, Alice has spent over 12 hours on her feet.
当亚瑟王子的汽车终于到达时，爱丽丝已经站立了超过12个小时。
As the dinner bell rings out, she realizes it's now or never.
当晚餐铃声响起时，她意识到现在就是行动的最佳时机——否则机会将永远失去。
She and Louisa slip out and run to the nearby church.
她和路易莎悄悄溜了出去，跑向了附近的教堂。
Alice scrawls “Votes For Women” across the wall while Louisa strews pamphlets about.
爱丽丝在墙上潦草地写下了“支持女性投票权”的字样，而路易莎则四处散发相关宣传册。
Suddenly, Roberta emerges from the shadows.
突然，罗伯塔从阴影中走了出来。
Before Alice can stammer an excuse, Roberta hurls a rock at one of the windows.
还没等爱丽丝结结巴巴地找借口，罗伯塔就朝其中一扇窗户扔去了一块石头。
The three girls stand back and smile, imagining Sir John and the prince’s reactions when they arrive for church the next morning.
这三个女孩站在一旁，微笑着想象着约翰爵士和王子第二天早上去教堂时的反应。
With the prince there, the act might even make the newspapers.
有王子在场的话，这件事甚至可能会登上报纸。
They rush back to the Abbey, arriving just in time to help clean up after dinner.
他们匆忙赶回修道院，刚好在晚餐后及时赶到帮忙清理现场。
Alice heads to bed, exhilarated and exhausted, unaware of how much would change in the years to come.
爱丽丝上床睡觉了，她既感到兴奋又疲惫不堪，却丝毫没有意识到在未来的岁月里，自己的生活将会发生多么巨大的变化。