追忆20年：美国人为何对戴安娜念念不忘？

By+Jason+le+Miere

If evidence was required that people in the United States remain obsessed with Princess Diana 20 years after her tragic death in a Paris tunnel， there certainly is.2 NBCs Dateline was given over to a two-hour investigation into the “Life and Death of Princess Diana”in May， while HBO released a new documentary Diana， Our Mother： Her Life and Legacy in July.3 For weeks， ABC and CBS aired news specials on “The Peoples Princess.”4

Dianas legacy， of course， lives on through her two sons， Princes William and Harry， as well as Williams wife， Kate Middleton.5 Like Diana， all three enjoy huge popularity in the U.S.， with a favorability rating， according to a CNN poll taken before the Queens Diamond Jubilee6 in 2012， of 70 percent or more.

Dianas wedding to Charles in 1981 was watched by an estimated 17 million people in the U.S. It was the beginning of her 16 years as the most photographed woman in the world， during which she shook off the stuffy， stiff-upper-lip traditions of the British royal family and embraced a more American approach to public life and celebrity.7

“Americans were at her wedding fascinated by the fairy tale aspect of her romance with Charles，” said Arianne Chernock， a historian on the monarchy and associate professor of history at Boston University.8 “And then， of course， the tragedy of that fairy tale， and her in some ways very American commitment to being candid and questioning traditions and undercutting traditions，9 probably also appeals to American audiences.”

Dianas appeal in the U.S. can perhaps be best summarized by a photograph taken during a trip across the Atlantic in 1985. After talking makeup tips and drug problems with first lady Nancy Reagan， she dined at the White House with the elite of politics， business and Hollywood， who， according to an account from The New York Times， boasted of her“star quality” and “Cinderella quality.”10

At one point， she rose from her seat to take the hand of John Travolta11. A photo shows Diana reveling in the moment， as others in the room， including Ronald and Nancy Reagan， watch， fully captivated.12 Hailed as a style icon in the mold of Jackie Kennedy，13 she effortlessly skated between palaces， red carpets and， during frequent aid trips， hospitals.

“She herself really embraced America，” Chernock says. “She was kind of like Grace Kelly14. She had that kind of informality about her， media savvy15 and a desire to really connect with people and push the boundaries.”endprint

Dianas approach would eventually come to a tragic end. When attempting to evade the everpresent paparazzi，16 the car she was traveling in lost control at the entrance to a Paris tunnel in the early hours of August 31， 1997.

At the time， she was just 36， only just over a year older than Prince William is today. And at that point she was even more popular stateside17. Her funeral was watched by 33 million people， with 86 percent of all homes watching television during that time slot tuning in.18

Her early demise19， together with the tragic and， to some， still mysterious circumstances surrounding her death， helps explain why fascination with her remains strong. But her legacy goes much deeper in a country that her former butler20 said she likely would have moved to if she had not died.

“Diana did not invent an American obsession with the royal family， but she certainly took it to a new level，”Chernock says. “I think she was a real point of contact， very accessible way into thinking about the royal family. She was very human； she exposed her frailties， her weaknesses—and Americans， with our confessional culture， gravitate toward that.”21

The way Dianas legacy continues to resonate22 in America could affect how Prince Charles is viewed. His reputation has rebounded to a large extent from the beating it took23 during the demise of his marriage to Diana. But neither he nor his current wife， Camilla Parker-Bowles24， with whom he is widely acknowledged to have had an affair during his previous marriage， can match Diana when it comes to appealing to the masses—on either side of the Atlantic.

In 2012， Charless favorability rating in the U.S. was found to be well down in relation to his sons， at 57 percent， with Camilla， who could soon be queen， at just 36 percent.25 But Chernock believes the popularity of Dianas sons will shelter her former husband from any real backlash.26

“When we talk about the royal family， whos getting the attention？ Its not Charles， its his sons，” she says. “I think he at this point has kind of accepted that to some extent， and people will want the throne to be successful because theyre really interested in that next generation being successful.”

1. Princess Diana： 戴安娜王妃（1961—1997），是威爾士亲王查尔斯（HRH Prince Charles）的第一任妻子，婚后积极投身于公共服务和慈善事业，有“The Peoples Princess”之称。由于身为王室成员的压力，以及查尔斯和卡米拉的旧情，二人的婚姻不久便走到尽头。1997年戴安娜在法国巴黎因车祸去世。endprint

2. 如果想证明戴安娜王妃在巴黎一个隧道里不幸身亡的20年后，美国人仍对她痴情未改，证据当然有很多。

3. NBC：（美国）全国广播公司（National Broadcasting Company）；Dateline：《日界线》，是美国一个新闻杂志节目；HBO： Home Box Office的缩写，直译为“家庭票房”，是美国一个付费有线和卫星电视联播网，主要播出上映过的电影和独立制播的电视剧。

4. ABC： 美国广播公司（American Broadcasting Company）；CBS：哥伦比亚广播公司（Columbia Broadcasting System）；air： v.（在广播或电视上）播放，播出。

5. 当然，戴安娜身后的影响力在她的两个儿子威廉王子和哈里王子，还有威廉王子的妻子凯特·米德尔顿身上得到了延续。live on： 继续存在（活着）。

6. Queens Diamond Jubilee： 伊丽莎白二世钻禧纪念（Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II），是2012年的一项国际庆祝活动，以纪念60年前（1952年）英女王伊丽莎白二世继位。伊丽莎白二世在位期间，先后于1977年和2002年举办了银禧纪念和金禧纪念庆祝活动。jubilee意为“大型庆典，周年纪念”。

7. stuffy： 古板的；stiff-upper-lip： 坚定沉着的，不露感情的；celebrity： 名人。

8. monarchy： // 皇室，王室；associate professor：副教授。

9. commitment to： 信奉，拥护；candid： 直率的，坦诚的；undercut： 削弱……的力量。

10. 在与第一夫人南希·里根探讨了化妆技巧和药物问题后，她与政界要人、商业精英和好莱坞名人一同在白宫就餐。根据《纽约时报》的描述，“她浑身都散发出明星气质和灰姑娘般的特质。”Nancy Reagan： 南希·里根（1921—2016），是美国第40任总统罗纳德·里根的夫人；elite： 精英；boast of： 夸耀；Cinderella： 灰姑娘。

11. John Travolta： 约翰·特拉沃尔塔（1954— ），美国演员、制片人，曾出演《低俗小说》、《矮子当道》等。

12. revel： 狂欢，陶醉；captivate： 迷住。

13. hail as： 称赞……为；Jackie Kennedy： 杰奎琳·肯尼迪（1929—1994），昵称杰基·肯尼迪，是美國第35任总统约翰·肯尼迪的夫人，她被誉为美国历史上最美的第一夫人，也是20世纪60年代美国妇女心目中公认的时尚引领者。

14. Grace Kelly： 格蕾丝·凯利（1929—1982），美国女演员，凭借《乡下姑娘》获得奥斯卡影后殊荣，后成为摩纳哥王妃。

15. savvy： 悟性，理解力。

16. evade： 躲避；ever-present： 无时无刻不在的；paparazzi： 狗仔队。

17. stateside： 在美国国内。

18. time slot：（电视或广播电台的）播放时段；tune in：收看，收听。

19. demise： 死亡。

20. butler： 男管家。

21. frailty： // 弱点；confessional： 忏悔的，自白的；gravitate toward： 向……倾斜。

22. resonate： 产生共鸣，使回响。

23. take a beating： （因做得不好或被批评而）遭受损失，遭受打击。

24. Camilla Parker-Bowles： 卡米拉·帕克-鲍尔斯，现称“康沃尔公爵夫人卡米拉殿下”，是查尔斯的第二任妻子。

25. 2012年，查尔斯在美国的支持率为57%，与他儿子们相比明显有所下降，而即将成为王后的卡米拉的支持率仅为36%。

26. 但是彻诺克认为，戴安娜儿子们的受欢迎程度会保护她的前夫免受任何真正的抵制。backlash： 强烈抵制。endprint