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英语口语Topic：圣诞节快乐：Happy还是Merry Christmas? 你只说Happy birthday! 你只说Happy Valentine's Day! 你只说Happy New Year，等等。 你也只习惯(其实更是从初中就开始学英语的中国人习惯和知道)说：Merry Christmas!而且唯独Christmas说Merry,not Happy, 那么，有没有人说Happy Christmas呢？ 现在，我们把这个问题作为一个“英语口语Topic”，我们的答案并不在于得出一个either-or(非此即彼，二选一，要么这个要么那个/要么就是对要么就是错) choice/answer，我们的重点在于通过这个Topic，以后再有人问你这个问题时，你能用英语跟人表述/回答这个“问题”，能够提高你的英语口语(而不是用中文回答)。这个才是学习的关键。 看完我提供的下面两篇英语短文之后，希望你今后能熟练“使用”下面的英语句子回答或讨论Merry Christmas or Happy Christmas问题：  1. Well you know, both Merry Christmas and Happy Christmas are greetings used around Christmastime. 说Merry Christmas也好，说Happy Christmas也罢，都是圣诞节的一种问候。 2. There is debate(争论，辩论,or argument, discussion) whether we should say Merry Christmas or Happy Christmas. 3. Well, I think it is both acceptable(两可的) to say Merry Xmas and Happy Christmas. 4. It all depends on who you are.就看你是什么人了。 5. Merry Christmas is a very religious way of greeting people. 说Merry Xmas是一种宗教色彩很浓厚的表达方式。 6. If you are a christian(基督徒),believing in Christianity(信仰基督教), then you should say Merry Christmas to another christian(对另外一个基督徒要说Merry Christmas). 7. But if you are not a christian, for example, you are a Muslim(穆斯林教徒),or a Buddhist(佛教徒),or any other religious believers(其它任何别的宗教教徒), Christmas is nothing more than an ordinary holiday(不过就是普通节日),just like your birthday, just like New Year, just like Valentine's Day, people may not be happy if you say Merry Christmas to them(对方不高兴的)：I am not a christian.Say Happy to me is more than enough(说happy足矣！) 8. So you can just say Happy Christmas. 9. That is why some people say Merry Christmas, while some people say Happy Christmas. 能这么说英语，比你非得用中文争个Merry和Happy孰对孰错对我们的英语口语有意义的多。 快把这些英语背下来，以后可以跟人说。 能读懂下面的英语吗？ 1. Merry Christmas vs Happy Christmas Merry Christmas and Happy Christmas are both greetings used during the last part of December, around Christmastime. The first word of each is only capitalized when used as a greeting. When one is speaking of a happy or merry Christmas, the adjectives are lowercase. Merry Christmas began as a saying in the 1500s. It was recorded in a letter as a wish that God would send the recipient a “merry Christmas”. It was solidified as a capitalized greeting by Charles Dickens in his great work A Christmas Carol. Queen Elizabeth II, for whatever reason, did not use Dickens’ phrase. Instead, she used the phrase Happy Christmas in her broadcasts to her subjects. After her use, the term gained popularity and is still the most common form in Great Britain and Ireland. There is debate whether or not the greeting has religious meaning and whether a more generic Happy Holidays should be used instead to respect non-Christian views. Be aware of your audience when choosing the correct phrase. 2. There is more than just Christianity Listen, if there was ONLY Christianity allowed in this country, then sure...it would be fine to say "Merry Christmas" to everyone. But the fact of the matter is that there are many other faiths in America, as well as some atheists and agnostics. If you are Christian, go ahead and say "Merry Christmas" to every Tom, Dick and Jane you meet. Just don't claim you're being "persecuted" when the person responds with a different religious greeting instead! |
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