The Complex History of Meeting Your Exact Double 當你遇見你的分身 Meeting one’s double—or doppelgänger◆—has a long and complex history. 遇見跟自己長得一模一樣的人──或是分身──有著一段很長且複雜的歷史。
A doppelg?nger is supposed to be a person’s exact double. The word has been borrowed from German and is often translated as “double walker.” In the past, the appearance of a doppelg?nger was never good news, though. In traditional myths◆ and legends◆, a doppelg?nger was a type of ghost or spirit. Seeing a doppelg?nger usually meant something bad would happen. In many legends, seeing one’s own double meant that death was near. In other stories, seeing someone else’s double meant something bad could happen to that person. Before the German word “doppelg?nger” became common, the English word “fetch” was used to describe seeing a spirit copy of one’s self. Other cultures also had their own words for a similar spirit or creature. In Egypt, it was called a ka, which was a spirit that had all the same memories as the person it copied. The ka could be found causing all kinds of trouble in folklore◆. In Norse◆ and Finnish◆ mythology◆, a similar being would appear to show people their near future. The doppelg?nger is also considered a version◆ of the Ankou, a sign of death in Breton◆ folklore. In all of these cultures’ legends, it was always a bad sign to see your doppelg?nger.
1. double n. 極相似的人；替身演員 Jason looks like Tom Cruise’s double. People on the street often ask him for a snap. 傑森跟湯姆•克魯斯長得超像。街上常有人找他合照。 * snap n. 快照 2. be supposed to V 應該做…… Ian was supposed to come to the party yesterday, but he never showed up. 伊恩應該來昨天的派對才對，但他都沒出現。 3. exact a. 一樣的；精確的 These two vases share the exact pattern of animals. 這兩只花瓶有同樣的動物圖樣。 4. borrow A from B 從 B 借用／引用 A Ned borrowed his ideas from some of the most well-known movies in pop culture. 奈德的點子引用自流行文化中一些最有名的電影。 5. appearance [ J`pIrJns ] n. 出現，到來 The sudden appearance of that mean dog really scared Wendy. 那隻惡犬突然的出現真的嚇到溫蒂了。 6. copy n. 複製品；（相同印刷品的）一份 & vt. 複製；模仿 Can you send me a copy of that letter, please? 能請你寄給我一份那封信的副本嗎？ The little girl likes to copy the way her mother speaks. 這個小女孩喜歡模仿她媽媽說話的模樣。 7. similar a. 相／類似的 Parents from all walks of life have similar problems when it comes to raising children. 來自社會各階層的父母對養兒育女都有類似的問題。 8. creature n. 生物；怪物 No one in the town knew where this ugly creature came from. 鎮上沒有人知道這醜陋的生物從哪來的。
◆ doppelgänger n. 分身；與某人外貌相同的人 ◆ myth n. 迷思；神話 ◆ legend n. 傳奇 ◆ folklore n. 民間傳說；民俗 ◆ mythology n. 神話（集） ◆ version n. 版本
種種跡象 本文中的名詞 sign 指的並非常見的「標記；指示牌；信號」，而是表「（表某事屬實的）跡象，徵兆」。而 (star) sign 這個字也能表示「星座」的意思。例： Crying is considered by some people to be a sign of weakness. （哭泣被某些人視為軟弱的表現。） In some cultures, seeing a black cat is a sign of bad luck. （在某些文化中，看見黑貓被視為一個厄運的徵兆。） Tracy always laughs at those who believe in star signs. （崔西總是嘲笑那些相信星座的人。）
分身應該是跟一個人像同個模子印出來的人。這個字是從德文借用而來的，而且常被譯為「雙重行者」。但是在過去，分身的出現卻從來不是個好消息。 在傳統神話及傳說中，分身是一種鬼怪或是靈體。看到分身時通常表示有壞事要發生了。在許多傳說中，某人看到酷似自己的人意味著死期將近。在其他故事中，看到長得跟其他人一樣的人則表示可能有壞事要發生在那個人身上。 在「doppelg?nger」這個德文單字變得普遍之前，英文裡「fetch」這個字就被用來描述一個人看到靈體翻版的自己（編按：此說法源自愛爾蘭民間傳說）。在其他文化中對於稱呼這一種類似的靈體或是生物也有自己的字詞。埃及稱它為「ka」，這是一種擁有與其複製的人完全相同記憶的靈體。在民間傳說中發現 ka 會引起各種的麻煩。在古斯堪地那維亞及芬蘭神話中，一種相似的生物會現身在人們面前並顯示他們不久後的未來。在布列塔尼民俗中，分身也被視為是一種「Ankou」 ── 一個死亡的徵兆（編按：Ankou 為一種似鬼怪的骷髏怪物，其職責為引領亡靈前往地獄）。在所有這些文化的傳說裡，看到你的分身總是一個壞兆頭。
