| [00:00.10] |
Now, the VOA |
| [00:12.48] |
Special English program |
| [00:14.52] |
WORDS AND THEIR STORIES. |
| [00:16.71] |
Making choices is necessary, |
| [00:20.75] |
but not always easy. |
| [00:22.96] |
Many of our expressions |
| [00:25.64] |
tell about this difficulty. |
| [00:28.43] |
One of these expressions |
| [00:30.88] |
is Hobson's choice. |
| [00:33.11] |
It often is used to |
| [00:35.97] |
describe a difficult choice. |
| [00:38.51] |
But that is not |
| [00:40.60] |
what it really means. |
| [00:42.89] |
Its real meaning is |
| [00:45.85] |
to have no choice at all. |
| [00:48.18] |
The Hobson in the expression |
| [00:51.93] |
was Thomas Hobson. |
| [00:54.02] |
Mister Hobson owned |
| [00:56.35] |
a stable of horses |
| [00:57.65] |
in Cambridge, England. |
| [01:00.04] |
Mister Hobson often |
| [01:02.99] |
rented horses to the students |
| [01:04.99] |
at Cambridge University. |
| [01:07.68] |
But, he did not really trust them |
| [01:11.21] |
to take good care of the horses. |
| [01:14.35] |
So, he had a rule |
| [01:17.68] |
that prevented the students |
| [01:19.17] |
from riding his best horses. |
| [01:22.32] |
They could take the horse |
| [01:24.36] |
that was nearest the stable door. |
| [01:27.33] |
Or, they could not |
| [01:29.59] |
take any horse at all. |
| [01:31.92] |
Thus, a Hobson's choice |
| [01:34.81] |
was really no choice. |
| [01:37.31] |
Another expression |
| [01:40.48] |
for having no real choice |
| [01:42.68] |
is between a rock and a hard place. |
| [01:46.82] |
It is often used to describe |
| [01:50.41] |
a difficult situation |
| [01:52.11] |
with few choices, |
| [01:54.40] |
none of them good. |
| [01:56.29] |
For example, your boss may |
| [02:00.02] |
ask you to work late. |
| [02:01.53] |
But you have plans to go to |
| [02:04.47] |
a movie with your friends. |
| [02:06.31] |
If you refuse to work, |
| [02:09.06] |
your boss gets angry. |
| [02:11.20] |
But if you do not go to the movies |
| [02:14.59] |
with your friends, |
| [02:15.78] |
they may get angry. |
| [02:17.93] |
So what do you do? |
| [02:20.65] |
You are caught between |
| [02:22.95] |
a rock and a hard place. |
| [02:25.86] |
Another expression, |
| [02:28.29] |
between the devil |
| [02:30.24] |
and the deep blue sea, |
| [02:32.44] |
also gives you a choice |
| [02:34.33] |
between two equally dangerous things. |
| [02:38.06] |
Its meaning seems clear. |
| [02:41.11] |
You can choose the devil |
| [02:43.26] |
and his burning fires of hell. |
| [02:45.99] |
Or, you can choose |
| [02:48.53] |
to drown in the sea. |
| [02:50.43] |
Some word experts say |
| [02:54.22] |
the expression comes from |
| [02:56.16] |
the days of wooden ships. |
| [02:58.34] |
The devil is a word for a seam |
| [03:03.32] |
between two pieces of wood |
| [03:05.56] |
along the water-line of a ship. |
| [03:08.65] |
If the seam or crack between |
| [03:12.48] |
the two pieces of wood |
| [03:13.93] |
begins to leak, |
| [03:15.03] |
then a sailor must fix it. |
| [03:18.22] |
The sailor ordered to make |
| [03:21.41] |
the repairs was |
| [03:23.17] |
in a dangerous situation. |
| [03:25.36] |
He was hanging over the side |
| [03:28.01] |
of the ship, working |
| [03:29.32] |
between the devil |
| [03:31.62] |
and the deep blue sea. |
| [03:34.01] |
There is still another expression |
| [03:37.99] |
that describes a situation |
| [03:40.58] |
with only bad choices, |
| [03:43.13] |
being on the horns of a dilemma. |
| [03:46.41] |
The dictionary says |
| [03:49.70] |
a dilemma is a situation |
| [03:52.64] |
in which you must make a decision |
| [03:55.62] |
about two equally balanced choices. |
| [03:59.66] |
When your dilemma has horns, |
| [04:02.96] |
a choice becomes impossible. |
| [04:05.99] |
When you are on the horns |
| [04:09.28] |
of a dilemma, no matter |
| [04:11.61] |
which horn you choose, |
| [04:13.27] |
something bad will happen. |
| [04:16.26] |
(MUSIC) |
| [04:26.73] |
This VOA Special English program, |
| [04:30.21] |
WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, |
| [04:32.21] |
was written by Marilyn Christiano. |
| [04:34.75] |
I'm Christopher Cruise. |