溝通是最重要的

曲永華

Noisy neighbors are a common problem in a society where many people live closely together. And this can be most important when you share walls， floors or ceilings with neighbors in a flat. A noisy neighbor can make life challenging， especially if noise goes well into night， or happens during early morning hours.①This situation needs to be dealt with properly， which requires your ability to keep calm.

You should first try to tell your noisy neighbors about the noise. This conversation should be polite， even friendly. It can begin with a statement like. “I am not sure you are aware（明白;意識到）”. Explain the problem in an honest way， and ask the neighbor to turn down the music， or not to hold parties until 3 a.m. You can also add that you realize they hear your noise too， and you are certainly willing to try to stop anything in your behavior that is creating extra noise.

You should know that not all neighbors are going to follow your requirement， and some may act in a bad manner. If the noisy neighbors don’t change their behavior， the next step should be to write the neighbors a letter. The letter should show your grievances（不滿）and the dates when the noise was quite terrible. For example， if your neighbor has loud gatherings every Friday night that last into the early morning then write down those dates.

When the noise remains going on， you should report it to local authorities（權力部門）， or even the police department， when it is really necessary. Often， however，②the problem is solved when the noisy neighbor knows you are going to call the police.

③Do be aware that you cannot always require noisy neighbors to be quiet. When the noise remains going on， it is wise not to deal with it in an angry or retaliatory（報復性的）fashion. If you have completed the steps and letter， don’t start hitting walls or floors around in your home or turning up the music to make your neighbors angry. Just have patience and remember that communication is the most important.

[精彩譯文]

在一個許多人生活在一起的社會里，吵鬧的鄰居是一個普遍的問題。當你和鄰居在公寓里共用墻壁、地板或天花板時，這一點是最重要的。一個吵鬧的鄰居會讓生活充滿挑戰，特別是如果噪音持續到深夜，或者發生在清晨。這種情況需要妥善處理，需要你保持冷靜的能力。

你應該先把噪音的問題告訴你吵鬧的鄰居。這種談話應該是禮貌的，甚至是友好的。它可以用這樣的語句開頭。“我不確定你是否知道”。以誠實的方式解釋問題，并要求鄰居把音樂關小一點，或者在凌晨3點之前不要舉行聚會。你還可以補充說，你意識到他們也聽到了你的噪音，你當然愿意停止任何在你的行為中制造額外噪音的事情。

你應該知道，并不是所有的鄰居都會遵守你的要求，有些鄰居可能會做出不好的行為。如果吵鬧的鄰居不改變他們的行為，下一步應該給鄰居寫封信。這封信應該表明你的不滿和噪音非常嚴重那天的日期。例如，如果你的鄰居每個星期五晚上都有喧鬧的聚會，一直持續到清晨，那么寫下這些日期。

當噪音仍然存在時，如果確實有必要，你應該向當地有關部門甚至警察局報告。然而，通常當吵鬧的鄰居知道你要報警時，問題就解決了。

要知道，你不能總是要求吵鬧的鄰居保持安靜。當噪音仍在繼續時，明智的做法是不要用憤怒或報復的方式來處理它。如果你已經完成了這些步驟和寫信，不要開始在家里敲打墻壁或地板，也不要開大音量讓鄰居生氣。只要有耐心，記住溝通是最重要的。

[難點解讀]

①This situation needs to be dealt with properly， which requires your ability to keep calm.

need to do sth. 意為“需要做某事”，be dealt with 表示被動之意，意為“被處理”。 如：

The bike needs to be repaired at once. 這輛自行車需要馬上修理。

The case must be dealt with as soon as possible. 此案宜從速處理。

②The problem is solved when the noisy neighbor knows you are going to call the police.

本句是含有時間狀語從句的復合句。主句的主語是the problem，是動作的承受者，因此本句的動詞要用被動形式。如：

The floor is cleaned every day. 每天都清掃地面。

English is spoken in most of the countries in the world. 世界上大多數國家都講英語。

③Do be aware that you cannot always require noisy neighbors to be quiet.

require sb. to do sth. 意為“要求某人去做某事”， 其中to do 作賓語的補足語。如：

Our teachers always require us to study hard every day. 老師總是要求我們每天努力學習。