Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[leslie]

Hi Teachers,

Days ago I watched a movie-- Love Actually-- on TV. And there's a sentence that baffled me. The episode is about one of the actresses whose name is Juliet who came to her husband's best friend, Mark, asking for the wedding video tape he did for them. When watching the video at his apartment, juliet found Mark secretly adored her before she got married, because on the tape they're all about Juliet. Here's the dialogue quoted:

Juliet: you never talk to me. You always talk to Peter (Juliet's husband).

Mark: I hope it's useful.Don't show it (the video tape) around too much. It needs a bit of editing. Look, I've got to get a lunch. Early lunch.You can just show yourself out, can't you? It's a.... self-preservation thing, you know.

Juliet: yeah...

When I looked up the dictionary for 'self-preservation', the definition is kind of like 'self-protectin or self-defense', I was just wondering what the self-preservation thing means in this movie. One of the subtitles translate it as 'introvert' and the other 'it's a secret inside me.'. Could I read it as 'It's something that I want to keep it to myself as a personal belonging'? Could you explain it to me?

Thanks very much.
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Less Is Blessed

[CP]

It might mean, I don't want to be around when you watch the tape because I want to protect myself from your reactions to it and/or from re-living that time.
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[asterix]

Self-preservation is supposed to be one of our built-in imperatives.
In other words, you will do anything necessary to save yourself from harm.

I haven't seen the movie, but obviously Mark thinks there will be trouble if he doesn't buzz off for lunch immediately. Maybe he is afraid of being alone with Juliet.

[nawee]

Well, as someone who has watched this film many times, I can say with some confidence that Mark's "It's a self-preservation thing" was an answer to Juliet's comment that he never talked to her.

1. Mark likes Juliet.
2. Juliet thought he didn't like her because he never talked to her.
3. Mark never talked to Juliet because he didn't want to have his heart broken for being in love with his best friend's girlfriend. (Not talking to her is his self-preservation mechanism, a way to protect himself from the heartache)

Hope this helps,

Nawee