哲学 - 蒙田：英语精读讲义

We generally think that philosophers should be proud of their big brains

我们通常认为哲学家应该为自己的聪明才智感到骄傲

and be fans of thinking,

并且热衷于思考、

self-reflection and rational analysis.

自我反省和理性分析。

But there's one philosopher,

但有一位哲学家，

born in France in 1533,

1533年出生于法国，

who had a refreshingly different take. 短語搭配

他的观点却令人耳目一新。

Michel de Montaigne was an intellectual

米歇尔·德·蒙田是一位知识分子，

who spent his writing life

他将自己的写作生涯

knocking the arrogance of intellectuals.

用于抨击知识分子的傲慢。

In his great masterpiece,

在他的伟大杰作

The Essays,

《随笔集》中，

he comes across as relentlessly wise and intelligent, 短語動詞

他表现出无比的智慧和聪慧，

but also as constantly modest

同时也始终保持谦逊，

and keen to debunk the pretensions of learning. 用詞

致力于揭穿学术上的自命不凡。

Not least,

尤其值得一提的是，

he's extremely funny,

他非常幽默，

reminding his readers

他提醒读者：

to learn that we have said or done a stupid thing is nothing. 表達脈絡

发现自己说错话或做错事根本算不上什么。

We must learn a more ample and important lesson,

我们必须吸取一个更充分、更重要的教训：

that we are but blockheads.

那就是我们不过是一群笨蛋。

Or as he put it,

或者正如他所说：

on the highest throne in the world, 習語

即使坐在世界上最高的王座上，

we are seated still upon our arses.

我们依然是坐在自己的屁股上。

Montaigne was a child of the Renaissance, 文化背景

蒙田是文艺复兴时代的产儿，

and the ancient philosophers popular in Montaigne's day

蒙田时代流行的古代哲学家们

believed that our powers of reason

认为，我们的理性能力

could afford us a happiness and greatness denied to other creatures. 用詞

能够赋予我们其他生物所没有的幸福与伟大。

Reason was a sophisticated,

理性是一种精密、

almost divine tool

几乎神圣的工具，

offering us mastery over the world and ourselves.

使我们能够主宰世界和自我。

That was the line taken by philosophers like Cicero. 短語搭配

这就是西塞罗等哲学家所持的观点。

But this characterization of human reason enraged Montaigne.

但这种对人类理性的刻画激怒了蒙田。

After hanging out with academics and philosophers, 短語動詞

在与学者和哲学家们打交道之后，

he wrote,

他写道：

"In practice,

“在现实中，

thousands of little women in their villages

村庄里的成千上万个普通妇女，

have lived more gentle, 語法

已经过上了更加温和、

more equable and more constant lives than Cicero."

比西塞罗更平静、更坚定的生活。”

His point wasn't that human beings can't reason at all, 表達脈絡

他的观点并非说人类完全无法推理，

simply that they tend to be far too arrogant

只是说人类往往过于傲慢，

about the limits of their brains.

没有认识到自己大脑的局限性。

As he wrote,

正如他所写：

"Our life consists partly in madness,

“我们的生活一部分是由疯狂构成，

partly in wisdom.

另一部分是智慧。

Whoever writes about it merely respectfully and by rule,

那些只以恭敬和守规矩的态度来描写生活的人，

leaves more than half of it behind." 習語

遗漏了生活的一大半。”

Perhaps the most obvious example of our madness is the struggle of living within a human body.

也许我们疯狂最明显的例子就是在一副人类躯体中挣扎求生。

Our bodies smell,

我们的身体会散发气味、

ache, sag,

疼痛、下垂、

pulse, throb, and age,

脉动、抽搐并逐渐衰老，

whatever the desires of our minds. 語法

无论我们的心灵有什么渴望。

Montaigne was the world's first and possibly only philosopher

蒙田是世界上第一位，也可能是唯一一位

to talk at length about impotence, 短語搭配

长篇大论探讨阳痿的哲学家，

which seemed to him a prime example 短語搭配

在他看来，这是一个典型的例子，

of how crazy and fragile our minds are.

证明了我们的心灵是多么疯狂和脆弱。

Montaigne had a friend who'd grown impotent

蒙田有个朋友，

with a woman he particularly liked.

在面对自己特别喜欢的女人时患上了阳痿。

Montaigne didn't blame the penis.

蒙田并没有怪罪阴茎。

The problem was the mind,

问题在于心理，

the oppressive notion that we had complete control over our bodies,

在于那种认为我们可以完全控制自己身体的压迫性观念，

and the horror of departing from this theoretical normality. 用詞

以及偏离这种理论常态时的恐惧。

The solution, Montaigne said,

蒙田说，解决办法

was to redraw our sense of what's normal. 習語

是重新定义我们对“正常”的认知。

By accepting a loss of command over the penis 語法

通过将失去对阴茎的控制

as a harmless common possibility in lovemaking,

视为做爱时无害且常见的可能性，

one could preempt its occurrence,

人们就可以预防它的发生，

as the stricken man eventually discovered.

正如那位受打击的男士最终发现的那样。

In bed with a woman,

在与女人上床时，

he learned to admit beforehand

他学会了预先承认

that he was subject to this infirmity 用詞

自己容易受这种小毛病的影响，

and spoke openly about it,

并公开谈论它，

so relieving the tensions within his soul. 語法

从而缓解了灵魂深处的紧张。

By bearing the malady

通过将这种症状

as something to be expected,

视为意料之中的事，

his sense of constriction grew less

他的压抑感减轻了，

and weighed less heavily upon him. 習語

心理负担也没有那么重了。

Montaigne's frankness allows the tensions in the reader's own soul

蒙田的坦率让读者内心的紧张

to be relieved.

也得以缓解。

A man who failed with his girlfriend

一个在女友面前表现不佳的男人

could regain his forces and soothe the anxieties of his beloved 短語搭配

能够恢复力量并安抚爱人的焦虑，

by accepting that his impotence belonged to a broad realm of sexual mishaps,

只要他接受自己的阳痿属于广泛的性意外范畴，

neither very rare nor very peculiar. 語法

既不极其罕见也非特别奇特。

Montaigne was equally frank about the limitations of his intellect

蒙田同样坦率地谈到自己智力的局限

and of its usefulness.

以及这种智力用处的局限。

Academia was deeply prestigious in Montaigne's day,

在蒙田时代，学术界极具声望，

as in our own.

就像我们今天一样。

Yet although Montaigne was an excellent scholar,

然而，尽管蒙田是一位出色的学者，

he hated pedantry in academia.

他却讨厌学术界的卖弄学问。

He only wanted to learn things that were useful

他只想学习有用的东西，

and relentlessly attacked academics for being out of touch. 習語

并无情地抨击学者们脱离实际。

"If man were wise,

“如果人是明智的，

he would gauge the true worth of anything 短語搭配

他就会衡量任何事物的真正价值，

by its usefulness and appropriateness

根据它对他的生活的有用性和

to his life," he said.

适宜性，”他说。

Only that which makes us feel better

只有那些让我们感觉更好的东西

may be worth understanding.

才值得去理解。

In this vein, 表達脈絡

在这种理念下，

Montaigne mocked books that were difficult to read.

蒙田嘲笑那些晦涩难懂的书籍。

He admitted to his readers

他向读者承认，

that he found Plato more than a little boring 語氣意圖

他觉得柏拉图的作品非常无聊，

and that he just wanted to have fun with books.

他只想在书本中找到乐趣。

"I'm not prepared to bash my brains out for anything, 習語

“我不打算为任何事情绞尽脑汁，

not even for learning's sake, 短語搭配

哪怕是为了学问，

however precious it may be. 語法

无论它多么珍贵。

From books,

从书中，

all I seek is to get myself some pleasure. 語法

我所寻求的只是获得一些快乐。

By an honorable pastime.

通过一种体面的消遣方式。

If I come across some difficult passages in my reading, 短語動詞

如果我在阅读时遇到一些难懂的段落，

I don't bite my nails over them. 習語

我不会为此咬着指甲苦思冥想。

After making a charge or two, 習語

稍微琢磨一两次后，

I let them be. 短語搭配

我就随它去了。

If one book tires me,

如果一本书让我觉得累了，

I just take up another." 短語動詞

我就换另一本。”

He could be pretty caustic about incomprehensible philosophers. 用詞

对于晦涩难懂的哲学家，他有时会非常刻薄。

"Difficulty is a coin which the learned conjure with, 習語

“晦涩是学者们变戏法的硬币，

so as not to reveal the vanity of their studies,

为的是不暴露他们研究的空虚，

and which human stupidity is keen to accept in payment."

而人类的愚蠢却乐于接受这种付款。”

Montaigne observed how an intimidating scholarly culture

蒙田观察到，令人畏惧的学术文化

has made all of us study other people's books 語法

是如何让我们所有人都去研究别人的书，

way before we study our own minds.

而不是先去研究我们自己的内心。

And yet,

然而，

as he put it, 短語搭配

正如他所说：

"We are richer than we think,

“我们比自己想象的要富有，

each one of us."

我们每个人都是。”

Montaigne is refreshing because he describes a life

蒙田令人耳目一新，因为他描述了一种生活，

which is recognizably like our own

这种生活和我们自己的生活非常相似，

and yet inspiring still.

却依然充满启发。

He is a very human ideal.

他是一个非常人性化的理想典范。

We may all arrive at wise ideas

我们都可以得出明智的想法，

if we cease to think of ourselves 短語搭配

只要我们不再认为自己

as unsuited to the task,

不适合这项任务，

just because we aren't 2,000 years old

仅仅因为我们没有两千岁，

or aren't interested in the topics

或者对柏拉图对话录

of Plato's dialogues

的主题不感兴趣，

or have a so-called ordinary life.

或者过着所谓的平凡生活。

Montaigne reassures us.

蒙田宽慰我们。

"You can attach the whole of moral philosophy

“你可以把整个道德哲学

to a commonplace private life

附着在平凡的私人生活上，

just as well as to one with richer stuff." 語法

就像附着在内涵更丰富的生活上一样完美。”

In Montaigne's redrawn portrait of the adequate semi-rational human being,

在蒙田重新描绘的那个勉强半理性的人类画像中，

it's possible to speak no Greek,

我们完全可以不懂希腊语，

change one's mind after a meal,

饭后改变主意，

get bored with a book,

觉得一本书无聊，

be impotent,

患上阳痿，

and know pretty much none of the ancient philosophers.

而且对古代哲学家几乎一无所知。

A virtuous ordinary life 表達脈絡

过着普通但有德行的生活，

striving for wisdom,

努力追求智慧，

but never far from folly,

却从未远离愚蠢，

is achievement enough.

这已经足够是一项成就了。

Montaigne remains the great readable intellectual

蒙田依然是那位极具可读性的伟大知识分子，

with whom we can laugh at intellectuals

我们可以和他一起嘲笑知识分子，

and pretensions of many kinds.

嘲笑各种自命不凡。

He was a breath of fresh air 習語

他的存在就像是一股清新的空气，

in the cloistered,

吹进了那封闭、

unworldly, snobbish corridors

脱离世俗、自命清高的走廊，

of the academia of the 16th century.

也就是十六世纪的学术界。

And because academia has sadly not changed very much,

可悲的是，学术界并没有太大改变，

he continues to be an inspiration and a solace 用詞

因此他依然是一种启迪和慰藉，

to all of us who feel routinely oppressed and patronized 用詞

献给我们所有时常感到被压迫和居高临下对待的人，

by the pedantry and arrogance of so-called clever people. 語氣意圖

因为那些所谓聪明人的迂腐与傲慢。