last man standing

この連休はなかなか外出する気にもならず、ブログアップばかりしています。映画1917でベネディクト・カンバーバッチの印象深い言葉。

There's only one way this war ends: last man standing.

仲間を救いたければ- 命の限り急ぐんだ

Twitterでも予告編と本編とで和訳が違っていると指摘されていましたが、last man standingの語感を考えてみたいです。

ソンムの戦いを生き延びた少尉がまさにこのタイトルをつけた本を出していました。

Last Man Standing: The Memiors of a Seaforth Highlander during the Great War

(English Edition) Kindle版　Richard Van Emden (著)

This fantastic little WWI book is a must for any budding historians. Collins was underage when he joined the Seaforth Highlanders and was a 19-year-old officer when he led at the battle of the Somme. This book contains extracts from his diaries and a remarkable personal collection of photographs which lend this account a poignancy and immediacy which is often breathtaking. - Scottish Field This is a harrowing tale of battle, loss and the horrors of war. - Scotland Magazine

読み始めのところで、いきなりショッキングな内容がありました。前線に出た兵士は平均的に6週間で死亡するか怪我をするかしたそうで、このCollins少尉は大体平均的な従軍して怪我をして3度も前線に出て戦ったとあります。およそ45万人の兵士が死傷した壮絶なソンムの戦いがここからも伺えます。

Introduction

It has been commonly said that the average 'life' expectancy at the front of a Second Lieutenant in World War One was approximately six weeks before he was either killed or wounded. In this respect, and in this one respect only, my friend Norman Collins was no better than average. He arrived on the Somme in late October 1916 and was wounded in early December – six weeks. In late April 1917 he returned to France and was slightly wounded in late May – five weeks; then he was wounded for the third and final time in the second week of July – six weeks. His 17 weeks at the front were to put him in hospital for a total of 14 months and give him a lifetime of pain that no disability pension could ever compensate for.

The Last Man Standingは第二次大戦のエジプトのEl Alamein戦いに従軍したオーストラリア兵士の手記にも使われていました。こちらもドイツの名将ロンメル将軍率いたドイツ軍との激戦だったようです。

The Last Man Standing: Herb Ashby and the Battle of El Alamein 

(English Edition)  Kindle版 Peter Dornan  (著)

'Where was the rest of the company? Why is no one else firing? A quick look behind revealed the shocking truth. Herb was alone. No one was following there was no one able to follow. He was the last man standing.'

The Australians played a crucial role in the Allied victory in the Battle of El Alamein, one of the turning points of the Second World War. Rommel said after the battle, I could have won North Africa with a division of Australians under my command'. Yet victory came at a heavy price, with more than a thousand Australians lost in the battle.

リーマンショックを切り抜けたJPモルガンのJamie Dimonの評伝にもLast Man Standingが使われています。Last manとあるくらいですから、大きな犠牲者を出す中でうまく切り抜けて生き延びた人物を指している感じでしょうか。

Last Man Standing: The Ascent of Jamie Dimon and JPMorgan Chase 

(English Edition)  Kindle版 Duff McDonald  (著)

In the midst of the most disastrous economic climate of Wall Street’s history, one executive has weathered the storm more deftly than any other: Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase. In 2008, while Dimon’s competitors watched their companies crumble, JPMorgan not only survived, it made an astonishing $5 billion profit. Dimon’s continued triumph in the face of an industry-wide meltdown has made him a paragon of finance. 

In Last Man Standing, award-winning journalist Duff McDonald provides an unprecedented and deeply personal look at the extraordinary figure behind JPMorgan’s success. Using countless hours of interviews with Dimon and his full circle of friends, family, and colleagues, this definitive biography is by far the most comprehensive portrait of the man known as the Savior of Wall Street. 

ボンジョビにの曲にもLast Man Standingがありましたが、昔ながらのやり方を貫いている自分を半ば自虐的に、半ば誇りを持って歌っている感じです。

さて、カンバーバッチの言葉、There's only one way this war ends: last man standing.はどのように受け止めるべきでしょうか。最後の一人になるまで戦い抜くしかないという勇ましい決意なのか、それとも、双方の陣営でひとっこひとりいなくなるまで熾烈で悲惨な戦いを続けるしかないという悲壮な諦めに近いものなのか。まあ、それは映画を見た人が感じ取るべきことでしょうか。