3 Break a leg 断一条腿 (好运)

To wish an actor prior to his going on stage to ‘break a leg’ is a well-known practice. A pretty strange wish, actually it is meant magically to bring him luck and make sure that his performance will be a success. From the superstitious age it was thought that jealous forces, always present, are only too anxious to spoil any venture. A good luck wish would alert and provoke them to do their evil work, whilst a curse will make them turn their attention elsewhere. The underlying principle is the belief that if you wish evil, then good will come. I’m sure it’s called reverse psychology these days.

在一个演员上台之前预祝他“断一条腿”是一个众所周知的行为。这是一个奇怪的祝福，事实上，这意味着神奇般的带给他好运和确保他的演出成功。在迷信的岁月里，人们认为一直存在的嫉妒的力量是十分急躁的，它会破坏任何冒险。一个好运的祝福会警惕并促使他们做邪恶的工作，然而诅咒会转移他们的注意力。最基本的理论就是，如果你的祝福邪恶，好运反会来临。我觉得这个现在叫做逆反心理。