哲学 - 柏拉图：英语精读讲义

Athens 2400 years ago, it's a compact place.

2400年前的雅典，是一个小巧紧凑的地方。

Only about a quarter of a million people live here.

这里只生活着大约25万人口。

There are fine baths, theaters, temples, shopping arcades, and gymnasiums.

有着精美的浴场、剧院、神庙、购物廊和体育馆。

It's warm for more than half the year.

这里一年大半的时间都很温暖。

This is also home to the world's first true and probably greatest philosopher, Plato.

这里也是世界上第一位真正的、或许也是最伟大的哲学家——柏拉图的故乡。

Born into a prominent and wealthy family in the city,

出生于这座城市的一个显赫富裕家庭，

Plato devoted his life to one goal, 短語搭配

柏拉图将自己的一生奉献给了一个目标，

helping people to reach a state of what he termed Eudaimonia or fulfillment. 文化背景

帮助人们达到他所谓的“Eudaimonia”即圆满的状态。

Plato is often confused with Socrates. 短語搭配

柏拉图经常被与苏格拉底混淆。

Socrates was an older friend who taught Plato a lot but didn't write any books.

苏格拉底是一位年长的朋友，他教了柏拉图很多东西，但没有写下任何著作。

Plato wrote lots of them,

柏拉图则写了很多，

36, all dialogues,

36部，全都是对话录，

beautifully crafted scripts of imaginary discussions

那些都是经过精心雕琢的虚构讨论剧本，

in which Socrates is always allotted a starring role. 短語搭配

在其中苏格拉底总是被分配到主角的位置。

Among them,

其中包括，

The Republic, The Symposium, The Laws, The Meno, and The Apology.

《理想国》、《会饮篇》、《法律篇》、《曼诺篇》和《申辩篇》。

Plato had four big ideas for making life more fulfilled.

柏拉图有四个能让生活变得更圆满的伟大思想。

First big idea,

第一个伟大思想，

think more.

多思考。

We rarely give ourselves time to think carefully and logically about our lives

我们很少给自己时间去仔细且合乎逻辑地思考我们的生活

and how to live them.

以及该如何去生活。

Sometimes we just go along with what the Greeks called doxa 講解

有时我们只是顺从希腊人所说的“doxa”

or popular opinions.

也就是大众的意见。

In the 36 books he wrote,

在他写下的36本书中，

Plato showed this common-sense to be riddled with errors, 習語

柏拉图指出了这种常识充满了错误、

prejudice, and superstition.

偏见和迷信。

Fame is great.

名气是极好的。

Follow your heart.

追随你的心。

Money is the key to a good life.

金钱是美好生活的关键。

The problem is popular opinions edge us towards the wrong values, 用詞

问题在于大众的意见将我们推向了错误的价值观、

careers, and relationships.

职业和人际关系。

Plato's answer is know yourself. 文化背景

柏拉图的答案是认识你自己。

It means doing a special kind of therapy,

这意味着进行一种特殊的治疗，

philosophy.

即哲学。

Subjecting your ideas to examination 短語搭配

让你的思想接受审视，

rather than acting on impulse. 短語搭配

而不是凭冲动行事。

If you strengthen your self-knowledge,

如果你加强了自我认知，

you don't get so pulled around by feelings.

你就不会被感情牵着鼻子走。

Plato compared the role of our feelings 表達脈絡

柏拉图把我们感情的作用比作

to being dragged dangerously along

被危险地拖拽着前行，

by a group of wild horses.

而拖拽我们的是一群野马。

In honor of his mentor and friend Socrates,

为了向他的导师和朋友苏格拉底致敬，

this kind of examination is called a Socratic discussion. 文化背景

这种审视被称为苏格拉底式讨论。

You can have it with yourself or ideally with another person

你可以自己和自己进行，或者最理想的是与另一个人一起，

who isn't trying to catch you out 短語動詞

这个人并不是想挑你的刺，

but wants to help you clarify your own ideas.

而是想帮你理清自己的思路。

Second big idea,

第二个伟大思想，

let your lover change you.

让你的爱人改变你。

That sounds weird if you think that love means finding someone

如果你认为爱意味着寻找一个

who wants you just the way you are. 短語搭配

喜欢你本来面目的人，这听起来会很奇怪。

In The Symposium, 文化背景

在《会饮篇》中，

Plato's play about a dinner party

柏拉图的一部关于晚宴的戏剧，

where a group of friends drink too much and get talking about love, sex, and relationships,

一群朋友在宴会上喝多了，开始谈论爱情、性和人际关系，

Plato says true love is admiration.

柏拉图说真正的爱是钦佩。

In other words, 表達脈絡

换句话说，

the person you need to get together with 短語動詞

你需要结合的那个人

should have very good qualities which you yourself lack. 語法

应该具备你自己所缺乏的优秀品质。

Let's say they should be really brave 表達脈絡

比如说他们应该非常勇敢，

or organized or warm and sincere.

或者有条理，或者温暖真诚。

By getting close to this person, 語法

通过靠近这个人，

you can become a little like they are.

你可以变得有点像他们。

The right person for us

对我们来说正确的人

helps us grow to our full potential. 短語搭配

会帮助我们发挥出全部潜力。

For Plato,

对于柏拉图来说，

in a good relationship,

在一段良好的关系中，

a couple shouldn't love each other exactly as they are right now.

伴侣不应该爱对方现在的样子。

They should be committed to educating each other 短語搭配

他们应该致力于教育彼此，

and to enduring the stormy passages this inevitably involves. 習語

并忍受这不可避免会卷入的风暴。

Each person should want to seduce the other 用詞

每个人都应该想要诱导对方

into becoming a better version of themselves.

成为更好版本的自己。

Three,

第三，

decode the message of beauty.

解读美的讯息。

Everyone pretty much likes beautiful things, 短語搭配

几乎每个人都喜欢美丽的事物，

Plato was the first to ask,

柏拉图是第一个问出这样问题的人，

why do we like them?

为什么我们喜欢它们？

He found a fascinating reason.

他找到了一个迷人的原因。

Beautiful objects are whispering important truths 習語

美丽的事物在低声诉说着重要的真理，

to us about the good life.

向我们诉说美好生活的真理。

We find things beautiful

我们觉得事物美丽，

when we unconsciously sense in them qualities we need 語法

是因为我们在潜意识中感受到了我们所需要、

but are missing in our lives.

但在生活中却缺乏的品质。

Gentleness,

温柔，

harmony, balance,

和谐，平衡，

peace, strength.

宁静，力量。

Beautiful objects,

因此，

therefore, 表達脈絡

美丽的事物

have a really important function.

有着一个非常重要的功能。

They help to educate our souls.

它们帮助教育我们的灵魂。

Ugliness is a serious matter too.

丑陋也是一件严肃的事情。

It parades dangerous and damaged characteristics in front of us.

它在我们面前展示着危险和受损的特征。

It makes it harder to be wise, kind, and calm.

它让我们更难变得明智、善良和从容。

Plato sees art as therapeutic. 短語搭配

柏拉图认为艺术具有治疗作用。

It's the duty of poets and painters and nowadays novelists, 語法

这是诗人和画家，以及如今的小说家、

TV producers, and designers

电视制作人和设计师的职责，

to help us to live good lives.

帮助我们过上美好的生活。

Four,

第四，

reform society.

改革社会。

Plato spent a lot of time thinking

柏拉图花了很多时间思考

how the government and society should ideally be.

理想的政府和社会应该是怎样的。

He was the world's first utopia thinker.

他是世界上第一位乌托邦思想家。

In this,

在这一点上，

he was inspired by Athens's great rival, 文化背景

他受到了雅典的伟大宿敌——

Sparta.

斯巴达的启发。

This was a city-sized machine 習語

这是一个城市规模的机器，

for turning out great soldiers. 短語動詞

专门用来培养伟大的士兵。

Everything the Spartans did,

斯巴达人所做的一切，

how they raised their children,

他们如何抚养孩子，

how their economy was organized,

他们的经济如何组织，

whom they admired,

他们钦佩什么人，

how they had sex,

他们如何进行性生活，

what they ate,

他们吃什么，

was tailored to that one goal. 短語搭配

都是为了那一个目标量身定制的。

And Sparta was hugely successful

从军事角度来看，

from a military point of view. 短語搭配

斯巴达取得了巨大的成功。

But that wasn't Plato's concern.

但那并不是柏拉图所关心的。

He wanted to know,

他想知道，

how could a society get better at producing not military power, 語法

一个社会如何才能更擅长创造的不是军事力量，

but fulfilled people?

而是获得圆满的人？

In his book,

在他的著作

The Republic,

《理想国》中，

Plato identifies a number of changes that should be made.

柏拉图指出了应该进行的一系列改变。

Athenian society was very focused on the rich,

雅典社会非常关注富人，

like the louche aristocrat Alcibiades, 用詞

比如声名狼藉的贵族阿尔西比亚德斯，

and sports celebrities like the boxer Milo of Croton.

以及像克罗顿的米罗这样的体育明星。

Plato wasn't impressed.

柏拉图对此不以为然。

It really matters who we admire

我们钦佩谁真的很重要，

because celebrities influence our outlook,

因为名人会影响我们的世界观、

ideas, and conduct.

思想和行为。

And bad heroes give glamour to flaws of character. 習語

而糟糕的英雄给性格缺陷赋予了魅力。

Plato therefore wanted to give Athens new celebrities,

因此，柏拉图想给雅典带来新的名人，

replacing the current crop with ideally wise and good people he called guardians, 講解

用他称之为“护卫者”的理想中明智而优秀的人来取代现有的这批人，

models for everyone's good development.

成为每个人良好发展的榜样。

These people would be distinguished by their record of public service, 短語搭配

这些人将因其公共服务的记录、

their modesty and simple habits,

他们谦逊和简单的生活习惯、

their dislike of the limelight, 習語

他们对出风头的厌恶，

and their wide and deep experience.

以及他们广泛而深刻的经验而受人尊敬。

They would be the most honored and admired people in society.

他们将成为社会中最受尊敬和钦佩的人。

He also wanted to end democracy in Athens.

他还想结束雅典的民主制度。

He wasn't crazy. 表達脈絡

他没疯。

He just observed how few people think

他只是观察到了有很少人在投票前

properly before they vote.

进行了适当的思考。

And therefore,

因而，

we get very substandard rulers.

我们得到了非常不合格的统治者。

He didn't want to replace democracy with a horrid dictatorship,

他不想用可怕的独裁来取代民主，

but he wanted to prevent people from voting 語法

但他想阻止人们投票，

until they'd started to think rationally.

直到他们开始理性思考。

That is,

也就是说，

until they'd become philosophers.

直到他们成为哲学家。

Otherwise,

否则，

government would just be a kind of mob rule. 文化背景

政府只会变成一种暴民统治。

To help the process,

为了帮助这个过程，

Plato started a school,

柏拉图在雅典创办了一所学校，

The Academy in Athens, 文化背景

即雅典学院，

which lasted a good 300 years. 用詞

持续了足足300年。

There,

在那里，

pupils learnt not just maths and spelling, 語法

学生们不仅学习数学和拼写，

but also how to be good and kind.

还学习如何变得优秀和善良。

His ultimate goal

他的最终目标

was that politicians should become philosophers.

是让政治家成为哲学家。

The world will not be right,

世界是不会走上正轨的，

he said,

他说，

until kings become philosophers or philosophers kings. 語法

除非国王成为哲学家，或者哲学家成为国王。