it calms with its very magnitude

enti · 发表于 2019-1-17 09:10:41

They met in town. Faye was waitressing at the bowling alley one Friday night when Gene wandered in with a pack of his friends. She’d never seen him before, so she knew immediately that he wasn’t from town and must have come from the mountains surrounding the valley. Farm life had made Gene different from other young men: he was serious for his age, more physically impressive and independent-minded.

There’s a sense of sovereignty that comes from life on a mountain, a perception of privacy and isolation, even of dominion. In that vast space you can sail unaccompanied for hours, afloat on pine and brush and rock. It’s a tranquility born of sheer immensity; it calms with its very magnitude, which renders the merely human of no consequence. Gene was formed by this alpine hypnosis, this hushing of human drama.

这段是介绍她父母相识; 描述她父亲的性格

我就想问这个it calms 到底是指让人calm还是山calm

老强 · 发表于 2019-1-17 09:56:02

本帖最后由老强于 2019-1-17 09:58 编辑

it指代that vast space，这句话还在强调 "万籁俱寂"。

enti · 发表于 2019-1-17 10:16:46

是, 所以即使calm的通常用法是calm down sb，这里也不是 it calms (people) with its very magnitude?

Serendipiti · 发表于 2019-1-17 11:16:50

環境讓人calm

老强 · 发表于 2019-1-17 11:17:01

enti 发表于 2019-1-17 10:16
是, 所以即使calm的通常用法是calm down sb，这里也不是 it calms (people) with its very magnitude? ...

calm在这里就是个表状态的静态词，为什么一定要理解为使动的动态词呢？

enti · 发表于 2019-1-17 12:20:26

这样的啊，我之前都不知道静态词/动态词

比如collins词典里就只看到说 “When the sea calms, it becomes still because the wind stops blowing strongly. When the wind calms, it stops blowing strongly."

而且别人都说是calm down sb，再加个 with its very magnitude, 好像解释成开阔的视野让人心安也不是不可以。然后我才来问得。

感谢老强大大

lewpad · 发表于 2019-1-17 13:18:03

本帖最后由 lewpad 于 2019-1-17 13:20 编辑

it 不指人也不指山，指的是In that vast space you can sail unaccompanied... afloat ...这个状态下的环境--广袤静谧的空间。which从句说的是这样的空间使人变得渺小。
calm 在有的词典中有become quiet这样的意思，是一个静态动词，如果理解为动态动词也说得通，calm后省略了you （down），这更符合我们的理解。

kjcqs · 发表于 2019-1-17 19:03:58

我也觉得it指山区环境。calm在这里是不及物动词。

franciscojose · 发表于 2019-1-22 21:44:35

Yeah, i truly agree with you. That's really the case.

[语言求助] it calms with its very magnitude