在第26屆中國日報社“21世紀杯”全國大學生英語演講比賽中,來自清華大學的韓書緣摘得北京賽區桂冠,并在總決賽獲得全國一等獎的佳績。
如今,她不僅僅在“21世紀杯”的舞台上發光發熱,也在中國日報21世紀報推出的“少年會客廳”第五期節目中,暢談中印關系的“今”與“昔”。
對于書緣來說,語言更像是一把有力的工具,她更想借助語言的力量,做一名有溫度、有情懷的表達者。
重返舞台 綻放光彩
這并不是韓書緣第一次站上“21世紀杯”演講比賽的舞台。
2018年,當時正念高一的她,闖進了江蘇省高中組決賽。不過那次比賽進展得并不順利,過度緊繃的狀态讓她最後一輪的表現産生了失誤。
韓書緣回憶道,在即興問答環節,評委問她如何看待中國人的人際關系,但她站在台上實在是太緊張了。
當時,她錯誤地把interpersonal relationship聽成了international relationship,甚至沒理會評委善意的中文提醒,一個勁兒地講述自己對中國外交的理解。
最後她止步江蘇省一等獎,沒能圓夢全國賽的舞台。
這段不盡如人意的比賽經曆在她心中留下了遺憾,也讓她明白,比賽時的緊張和焦慮反而會成為選手最大的絆腳石。
2021年4月,已經是清華大學外文系大一學生的她又重新站上了這個熟悉的舞台。
與三年前不一樣的是,賽前她似乎不再像當初那樣為結果不斷焦慮和緊張了。
在今年北京賽區決賽中,針對Protecting the Blue Planet這一宏大的主題,書緣以化妝品為切入口,發出了“When we are thinking of beautifying ourselves, remember to make sure that we are not causing our blue planet to lose its own beauty”的呼籲。
她兼具科學特色和人文底蘊的演講以及機智幽默的即興回答,最終獲得了評委們的一緻認可,讓她成功摘得北京賽區桂冠。
她說,好像當自己放下了“一定要取得某個結果”的執念後,那些遙不可及的夢反而更容易實現。
堅定自我,勇敢發聲
備戰全國總決賽的過程并不輕松。
在構思總決賽The Power of Ideals的演講稿時,韓書緣希望從gender equality(性别平等)的角度出發——她想起了Jane Austen偷偷寫作的場景,想起了Marie Curie對女兒們的鼓勵,想起了Virginia Woolf一個人的房間,想起了Ruth Bader Ginsberg作為大法官為性别平等作出的不懈努力。
有趣的是,在今年進入總決賽的12位選手中,女生占據了七個席位,超過了男生。她因此臨時在演講稿中增添了一段對半決賽賽況的回應。
“More than half of the national finalists are girls, and several of them won the semi-final in dark-blue suits instead of pink dresses. Lucky contestants today, no matter boys or girls, won the judges votes because of our speeches,rather than our fancy clothes.
”韓書緣說,她很感謝“21世紀杯”的舞台,讓她得到了一次為女孩們發聲的機會。
與此同時,她也非常感謝吳霞教授在整個比賽過程中給她的幫助。
吳霞教授是非常有經驗的教練,曾經指導過很多21世紀杯的優秀選手,她一直對學生關愛有加,所以平時學生們都親切地喊她吳媽。
雖然吳霞教授平時在系裡的工作已經非常繁忙,但她還是不厭其煩地幫助韓書緣修改已備演講的稿子,有時甚至在淩晨提出新的修改建議。
韓書緣說:“吳老師反複叮囑我不要緊張、放平心态。比賽當天清晨6點多收到吳老師'書緣加油,沒問題的’的微信消息,真的讓我非常感動。”
感謝遺憾,重塑自我
對于這次沒能站上冠亞季軍的領獎台,韓書緣表示還是有點遺憾,但她确實看到了其他選手更加優秀的表現。
她笑稱:“我好像總是要在'21世紀杯’的舞台上留下些遺憾。但正如三年前一樣,我相信這些遺憾會幫助我成為更好的自己。我會繼續享受舞台、享受演講的!”
在參加演講比賽的過程中,韓書緣發現,往往同一個話題能激發出完全不同的視角和觀點,這也是演講最吸引她的地方。
她曾在比賽中抽到一道視頻題,視頻的大緻内容是:立方體對球産生了好感,于是它通過不斷改變自己的形狀來迎合球的喜好,但始終無法得到球的認可。
這道題給書緣留下了非常深刻的印象,因為她在賽後和評委交流的過程中發現,老、中、青三代人對這道題的理解大相徑庭。
她看到了愛情、友情等複雜的人際關系,一位女老師看到了職業選擇與人生規劃,而另一位外籍評委則看到了種族歧視等人權問題。
“表達自己的想法固然重要,但傾聽他人的觀點,常常更能幫助我拓寬視野,看到同一件事情的方方面面。” 韓書緣說。
韓書緣的口語課老師Andy Mok教授曾經告訴她,演講的本質是觀點的交流,因此對于一個演講者來說,最重要的就是對演講内容有清晰透徹的思考。
因此,她希望自己在英語演講比賽中,鍛煉的不僅僅是自己的口語表達,更是如何借助英語這門語言,輸出更有深度、更有質量的觀點的能力。
韓書緣說,她的夢想是一步一步走向更廣闊的舞台,在未來成為一個真正有思想、有溫度、有情懷的表達者。
⬇️ 韓書緣總決賽演講稿全文:
向上滑動閱覽
The Power of Ideals
On a sheet of parchment, Jane Austen scribbled down intensively: “Something must and will happen to throw a hero in her way.” A statement with power and determination. But the frowning face betrayed her worries—in a time when women were not supposed to be educated, let alone to be a writer, will the novel be truly regarded as a novel one day?
Then came Marie Curie, a reagent bottle in one hand, a textbook in the other. She spoke to her two daughters: “We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained.” In a time when stereotypes of all kinds were placed on women, her inspiring story empowered many female talents to get rid of the limit on their choice of career path and pushed forward the progress towards gender equality.
In 1996, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was reading aloud the opinion of the Supreme Court:“This opinion does mark as presumptively invalid a law that denies to women equal opportunity to inspire, achieve, participate, and contribute to society based on what they can do.” Ginsburg’s greatness was not only revealed in her own success as a female justice in the Supreme Court, but her contributions in fighting against any exclusion of women at her time.
Looking back, I saw far more women standing up forgender equality. Mulan was cutting off her waist length hair and disguised herself as a male warrior, Virginia Woolf was fighting for a room of her own, Emma Watson was calling for the end of gender inequality in the United Nations. It was these trailblazers from East and West, from past and now, that paved the way for the rise of women’s status. In China, for example, over half of the graduate students today are women, surpassing males for the first time. At Tokyo this year, women made up 49% of Olympic competitors. By comparison, in the 1908 Games men outnumbered women 53 to 1.
However, after generations of struggle, are we seeing the light at the end of the tunnel? Single women in their 30s are leftover women, while men in their 30s are golden bachelors. Women make up half of the U.S. workforce, but the average working woman earns only 77 percent of what the average working man makes.And my grandma just called me this morning to instruct me the stage etiquette of being sweet and adorable.She didn’t know that more than half of the national finalists are girls, and several of them won the semi-final in dark-blue suits instead of pink dresses. Lucky contestants today, no matter boys or girls, won the judges votes because of our speeches,rather than our fancy clothes.
The power of ideals has already enabled women more often as equal partners to men. If you would ask me whether we will achieve complete gender equality in the end, I will definitely say “yes”. I believe the whole world will treat men and women equally, in the way the judges do to the constants in this competition.
10月比賽剛結束,韓書緣就被“少年會客廳”邀請為第五期節目的演講嘉賓,以一篇,收獲了不少觀衆的喜愛。 還沒有看過少年會客廳?上一篇
國家公祭日
有話要說...