麥可·傑克遜，是一位相當了不起的美國歌手、詞曲創作人、舞蹈家、表演家、慈善家、音樂家、人道主義者、和平主義者、慈善機構創辦人。
人們給予他各種好評，各種稱號，但是在一個單方面的指控的時候，人性中隱藏的黑暗面就全部被爆發出來，即使他之前做了那麼多的慈善，也被別人認為是為了罪惡而扯的一塊遮羞布。即使他一再否認自己沒有做過哪些事，人們還是潛意識的相信看起來弱勢力的那群人。
然而事實真相呢，在他死後，才被真正的揭開，這個時候，人們才開始記起他的偉大，但是那個人永遠也不會知道了。
今天奇速君分享麥當娜在2009年第26屆MTV頒獎典禮（MTV Video Music Awards）上發表的致敬麥可·傑克遜的演講，可謂是最著名的一篇紀念演講，也是英語學習訓練中的一篇經典材料！來一起聽聽吧！
Michael Jackson was born in August, 1958. So was I. Michael Jackson grew up in the suburbs of the Midwest. So did I. Michael Jackson had eight brothers and sisters. So do I. When Michael Jackson was 6, he became a superstar and was perhaps the world’s most beloved child. When I was 6 my mother died. I think he got the shorter end of the stick.
麥可·傑克遜出生於1958年8月。我也是。麥可·傑克遜在美國中西部的郊區長大，我也是。麥可·傑克遜有八個兄弟姐妹，我也有。在麥可·傑克遜年僅6歲的時候，他便成為了一個超級巨星，或許更是世界上最受鍾愛的小孩。而我6歲的時候，母親永遠離開了我。我認為他比我更不幸。
I never had a mother, but he never had a childhood. And when you never get to have something, you become obsessed by it. I spent my childhood searching for my mother figures; sometimes I was successful. But how do you recreate your childhood when you are under the magnifying glass of the world for you entire life?
我從沒有擁有過母愛，而他卻從來沒有享受過童年。當一個人意識到永遠得不到某種東西時，你就會對此念念不忘。我耗盡了童年尋找母親的形象；有時我成功了。但當你的一生都被放在放大鏡下被人關注時，試問你如何重新找回你的童年？
There is no question that Michael Jackson was one of the greatest talents the world has ever known…… That when he sang a song at the ripe old age of 8, he could make you feel like an experienced adult was squeezing your heart with his words…That the way he moved had the elegance of Fred Astaire and packed the punch of Muhammad Ali… That his music had an extra layer of inexplicable magic that didn’t just make you want to dance, but actually made you believe that you could fly, dare to dream, be anything that you wanted to be. Because that is what heroes do. And Michael Jackson was a hero.
毫無疑問，麥可·傑克遜是世界上最偉大的天才之一。當他還是個8歲的小孩時，他的歌聲已經讓人感覺像個飽經滄桑的成人在述說他的故事，也因此扣人心弦，他舞動的方式，帶著弗雷德·阿斯泰爾的高雅，充滿著拳王阿里的力量，他的音樂附著有一層無法解釋魔力，令你不僅僅想隨之而舞，更令你相信你可以飛翔，敢於夢想，成為任何你想成為的人。因為這就是英雄的影響力！而麥可·傑克遜就是個英雄！
He performed in soccer stadiums around the world, he sold hundreds of millions of records, he dined with prime ministers and presidents. Girls fell in love with him, boys fell in love with him, everyone wanted to dance like him, he seemed otherworldly, but he was also a human being. Like most performers, he was shy and plagued with insecurities.
他在世界各地的體育場裡表演，他賣出了上億張唱片，他和總理首相總統共進晚餐。女孩愛上他，男孩愛上他，所有人都想像他一樣舞蹈，他看上去就像來自另外一個世界，但他依然是一個普通人。就像大多數表演家一樣，他害羞，苦惱著沒有安全感。
I can’t say we were great friends, but in 1991 I decided I wanted to get to know him better. I asked him out to dinner. I said, 「My treat, I』ll drive, just you and me.」 He agreed and showed up to my house without any bodyguards. We drove to the restaurant in my car. It was dark out, but he was still wearing sunglasses. I said, 「Michael, I feel like I’m talking to a limousine, do you think you could take off those glasses so I could see your eyes?」 He paused for a moment, then he tossed the glasses out the window, looked at me with a wink and a smile and said. 「Can you see me now, is that better?」
我無法說我們是很要好的朋友，但是在1991年，我決定我要更多地了解他。我邀請他出來共進晚餐。我說：「我請客，我開車，只有你和我。」他答應了，並隻身一人不帶保鏢出現在我家中。我開車和他去餐館，天已經很黑的可他仍然戴著他的墨鏡。於是我說：「麥可，我覺得我是在跟這部車說話。你能把眼鏡摘掉讓我看見你的眼睛嗎？」他猶豫了一會兒然後把眼鏡扔出窗外，用閃爍的眼睛看著我，微笑著說：「現在你能看見我了沒？有沒有好點？」
In that moment, I could see both his vulnerability and his charm. The rest of the dinner, I was hell-bent;on getting him to eat French fries, drink wine, have dessert and say bad words, things he never seemed to allow himself to do. Later, we went back to my house to watch a movie and we sat on the couch like two kids, and somewhere in the middle of the film, his hand snuck over and held mine. It felt like he was looking for a friend more than a romance and I was happy to oblige him. And in that moment he didn’t feel like a superstar, he felt like a human being. We went out a few more times together and then for one reason or another we fell out of touch.
在這時，我終於感受到他的脆弱和他的魅力。晚餐的其它部分，我則是努力要讓他吃點炸薯條，喝點酒，享用點甜點，說點髒話，這些事情看上去是他永遠不會允許自己去做的。之後，我們回到我的房子，看了部電影，我們坐在沙發上，就像兩個孩子，就在電影放映中，他的手悄悄伸過來，握住了我的手。感覺上他是在尋找一個朋友，而不是尋找一份浪漫，我很高興地遵從了他。在那個時刻，他感覺不像一個超級巨星，他就感覺是一個普通人。我們後來又一起出去過好幾次，但因為一些原因，我們失去了聯絡。
Then, the witch hunt began and it seemed like one negative story after the other was coming out about Michael. I felt his pain. I know what it’s like to walk down the street and feel like the whole world has turned against you. I know what it’s like to feel helpless and unable to defend yourself because the roar of the lynch mob is so loud that you are convinced your voice can never be heard.
然後，獵殺行動開始了，一個又一個負面故事糾纏著麥可。我可以體會他的痛苦。我很清楚當一個人走在街上而全世界似乎都與你為敵的感覺。我也很清楚那種無助和無法為自己辯護的痛苦，因為那些嘶吼著要將你處死的聲音實在太大，以至於你確信無論如何，你的聲音也不會有人聽見。
But I had a childhood, and I was allowed to make mistakes and find my own way in the world without the glare of the spotlight. When I first heard that Michael had died I was in London, days away from the opening of my tour. Michael was going to perform in the same venue as me a week later.
All I could think about in that moment was that I had abandoned him. That we had abandoned him. That we had allowed this magnificent creature that once set the world on fire to somehow slip through the cracks. While he was trying to build a family and rebuild his career, we were all busy passing judgment. Most of us had turned our backs on him.
但我有過童年，我可以被允許去犯錯誤，然後在沒有聚光燈閃耀的情況下，再在這個世界上找到屬於我的路。當我聽到麥可去世的消息時，我正在倫敦，還有幾天我就將在這裡開始我的巡演。麥可也將於一周後在我表演的同一個場館裡開唱。
而我當時的感覺便是我遺棄了他。我們都遺棄了他。我們曾讓這個如此高貴壯美的生命，這個曾經讓世界為之瘋狂的生命，不知所以地被我們置之不理！當他試圖建立自己的家庭和重拾他的事業時，我們都忙於對他做出評判。我們中的大部分人都對他背過身去。
In a desperate attemp to hold onto his memory, I went on the internet to watch old clips of him dancing and singing on TV and on stage and I thought, 「My God, he was so unique, so original, so rare. And there will never be anyone like him again.」 He was a king……
為拼命留住關於他的記憶，我上網，去看那些他在電視和舞臺上唱歌跳舞的老片段，這時我想的是，「我的上帝，他是那麼的獨特，那麼的原創，那麼的罕見。再也不會有一個人和他一樣了。」他就是個國王……
But he was also a human being and alas, we are all human beings and sometimes we have to lose things before we can truly appreciate them. I want to end this on a positive note and say that my sons, age 9 and 4, are obsessed with Michael Jackson.
There’s a whole lot of crotch-grabbing and moonwalking going on in my house, and it seems like a whole new generation of kids has discovered his genius and are bringing him to life again. I hope that wherever Michael is right now, he is smiling about this.
但他也是一個普通人，而，天啦，我們都是凡人，有時我們必須得等到失去以後，才能真正懂得去珍惜。最後，我想以一個積極樂觀的方式結束我的發言。我的兩個兒子，一個9歲，一個4歲，都非常痴迷於麥可·傑克遜。
他們成天都在家裡跳月球漫步，抓著褲襠，就好像全世界新一代的小孩兒們都發現了他的天才，並要讓他起死回生。我希望麥可現在無論身在何方，他都能為之微笑。
Yes, yes Michael Jackson was a human being, but dammit, he was a king. Long live the king.
是的，是的，麥可·傑克遜是一個凡人，但該死的，他還是一個王者！一個永世長存的王者！
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