写随笔的巨匠米歇尔·德·蒙田
日期:2021-01-21 14:08

(单词翻译:单击)

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

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我们通常认为哲学家应该非常自豪于自己的聪明,

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and be fans of thinking self-reflection and rational analysis.

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而且热爱反思和理性分析Gk3cUYdO37C3fWjw0an

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But there's one philosopher, born in France in 1533,

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但有一位哲学家,1533年生于法国,

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who had a refreshingly different take.

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对此有令人耳目一新的不同看法URfJZREJOOwb(ynJcA

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Michel de Montaigne was an intellectual

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米歇尔·德·蒙田,作为知识分子,

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who spent his writing life knocking the arrogance of intellectuals.

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他一生的写作都在揶揄知识分子的傲慢fHQhWsB9CLw

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In his great masterpiece, the 'Essays', he comes across as relentlessly wise and intelligent —

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在他杰出的著作《随笔集》中,他展现出极端的聪明,

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but also as constantly modest and keen to debunk the pretensions of learning.

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但也同时保持谦逊,并热切地揭穿学习的虚伪m4B�qtY-Z)

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Not least, he's extremely funny, reminding his readers:

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除此之外,他非常逗趣,提醒读者:

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'to learn that we have said or done a stupid thing is nothing,

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“知道自己说过或做过什么蠢事实在没什么大不了,

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we must learn a more ample and important lesson:

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我们还必须学习更广泛、更重要的一课:

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that we are but blockheads...

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我们不过是个蠢蛋ddtpNHFaeW*Hd|.Zsl

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(or, as he put it)

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(或者就像他说的:)

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On the highest throne in the world,

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即使在世界上最位高权重的王位,

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we are seated, still, upon our arses.'

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我们依然只是坐在自己的屁股上wX*g&eJK9p_DNm#h#or,1fFe。“

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Montaigne was a child of the Renaissance

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蒙田身在文艺复兴时代,

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and the ancient philosophers popular in Montaigne's day

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而在蒙田那时代受到欢迎的古典哲学家

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believed that our powers of reason could afford us a happiness and greatness

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普遍相信人类的理性力量能使我们快乐、伟大,

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denied to other creatures.

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这是其他的生物无法企及的F+E!=]E#8r;

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Reason was a sophisticated, almost divine, tool

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理性是最精致、甚至神圣的力量,

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offering us mastery over the world and ourselves.

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让我们得以主导世界、主导自己,

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That was the line taken by philosophers like Cicero.

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这是像西赛罗那样的哲学家的观点_7|s,A|kjd5HF4HUJ

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But this characterization of human reason enraged Montaigne.

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然而,这种对人类理性的描述激怒了蒙田.

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After hanging out with academics and philosophers, he wrote,

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在接触过非常多学术界人士和哲学家之后,他写道:

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"In practice, thousands of little women in their villages

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“事实上,成千上万生活在村庄里的小妇人,

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have lived more gentle, more equable and more constant lives than [Cicero].

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都比西赛罗过得还祥和、平静、而忠诚&5Qq^LiqupSr;Kx-+。”

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

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他并不是完全否定人类的理性,

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simply that they tend to be far too arrogant about the limits of their brains.

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而是人类太过傲慢而未能认清大脑的局限u)RN3WaHZSiou5

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As he wrote,

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就如同他写的:

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"Our life consists partly in madness, partly in wisdom.

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“我们的生命一半是疯狂,一半是智慧;

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Whoever writes about it merely respectfully and by rule

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任何人若只是带着敬意描述它,

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leaves more than half of it behind."

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即是将一半以上的生命略去不谈2vfMOG;+eo]YW。”

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Perhaps the most obvious example of our madness

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也许我们的疯狂最明显的例子,

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is the struggle of living within a human body.

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就是活在人类肉体内的各种挣扎S9fHZ#KB+9hMrF;v),!

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Our bodies smell, ache, sag, pulse, throb and age (whatever the desires of our minds).

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无论我们的大脑希望如何,我们的肉体仍会有气味、会疼痛、下垂、脉动、老去LvKIpY&gDI

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Montaigne was the world's first and possibly only philosopher to talk at length about impotence,

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蒙田是有史以来第一个、也许是唯一一个讨论性无能的哲学家

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which seemed to him a prime example of how crazy and fragile our minds are.

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对他而言,这是显示出我们的大脑有多疯狂和脆弱的主要例子bRhTx1k)-t

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Montaigne had a friend who'd grown impotent with a woman he particularly liked.

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蒙田的一位朋友在他特别心爱的女人面前不举GUME7BC*F5

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Montaigne didn't blame the penis.

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蒙田认为这不是下体的错;

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The problem was the mind,

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问题出在大脑,

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

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在于那个压迫性的认知,认为我们可以完全掌控自己的肉体,

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and the horror of departing from this theoretical normality.

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并且恐惧于自己偏离这个理论上的正常7MJ%y~o;@AP.

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The solution, Montaigne said, was to redraw our sense of what's normal.

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而解决的办法,蒙田表示,是重新界定何谓正常41u_-X.BxL|

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By accepting a loss of command over the penis as a harmless common possibility in lovemaking

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如果放弃对下体的控制,并接受不举是发生关系时一个正常的可能,

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one could preempt its occurrence

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就能预测它的发生,

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as the stricken man eventually discovered.

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就像那位大受打击的朋友终于发现的3zrIDLP6aAE[YCT

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In bed with a woman, he learnt to, Admit beforehand that he was subject to this infirmity

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当和女人发生关系时,他学会事先承认自己的缺陷,

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and spoke openly about it, so relieving the tensions within his soul.

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并且坦诚地讨论此事,因而舒缓了他灵魂深处的压力8SobTS4Ow36

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By bearing the malady as something to be expected,

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一旦承认这个缺陷是可能发生的,

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his sense of constriction grew less and weighed less heavily upon him.

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这件事的束缚感就会减轻N3mQBOf-f%1qlEh.|[

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Montaigne's frankness allows the tensions in the reader's own soul to be relieved.

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蒙田坦然的态度让读者灵魂深处的紧张得以舒缓5JDficj&Il_

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A man who failed with his girlfriend could regain his forces

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当男性面对女友无能为力时,可以从这样的说法中重获力量,

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and soothe the anxieties of his beloved

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并以此舒缓他的爱人的焦虑,

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

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接受他的性无能是一种广泛发生的性缺陷,

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neither very rare nor very peculiar.

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既不罕见、也并非异常)-OGwiWqyHqY@

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Montaigne was equally frank about limitations of his intellect (and of its usefulness).

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蒙田对于智识的局限也同样坦率,并且怀疑智识是否有用=@@&|*vA4NMmAaIsCyn

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Academia was deeply prestigious in Montaigne's day, as in our own.

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蒙田那时代的学术界充满优越感,我们这时代亦然=TqR1YfqD;

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Yet, although Montaigne was an excellent scholar,

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然而,尽管蒙田是个杰出的学者,

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he hated pedantry in academia.

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他非常厌恶学术圈的学究气息zZ-lW!Qc^jZ

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He only wanted to learn things that were useful

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他只想学习有用的事物,

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and relentlessly attacked academics for being out of touch.

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并无情地抨击学术圈的不切实际T[Q3s6pz1.Z

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"If man were wise, he would gauge the true worth of anything by its usefulness and appropriateness to his life," he said.

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“一个人如果聪明,就会根据事物对其人生的用处和适切性来衡量其真正价值.E*q,^CxLxSnfpA1J。”

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Only that which makes us feel better maybe worth understanding.

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只有那些能让我们感觉更良好的事物值得了解9j7Zly%L(^KO

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In this vein, Montaigne mocked books that were difficult to read.

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在这个脉络下,蒙田嘲笑那些难以阅读的书籍,

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He admitted to his readers that he found Plato more than a little boring —

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他向读者承认,他觉得阅读柏拉图有点无聊;

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and that he just wanted to have fun with books:

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他只想要从书中寻找乐趣:

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

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“我不打算为任何事物绞尽脑汁,

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not even for learning's sake however precious it may be.

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即使是为了学习,无论它有多珍贵J9r[7csDXZc2-CC

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From books all I seek is to get myself some pleasure by an honorable pastime...

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我想从书本中寻求的,仅只是拥有一段美好时光让自己愉快;

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If I come across some difficult passages in my reading

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如果在阅读时遇到困难的段落,

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I don't bite my nails over them:

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我不会为此钻牛角尖:

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after making a charge or two I let them be...

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在尝试了一两次之后,我就让它去了;

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If one book tires me I just take up another."

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如果有本书让我觉得疲惫,我就换另外一本2S4kY@GcM92ySP]iXi9%。”

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He could be pretty caustic about incomprehensible philosophers.

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他对于那些令人难以理解的哲学家非常尖酸刻薄Bo0gAab+N6-l0f

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"Difficulty is a coin which the learned conjure with so as not to reveal the vanity of their studies

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“艰涩是学者用来变把戏的铜板,目的是为了避免泄漏他们徒劳无功的研究,

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

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而人类的愚蠢则对它热切地照单全收]WcE%e_D#%VH4%rylPHC。”

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Montaigne observed how an intimidating scholarly culture has made all of us study other people's books way before we study our own minds.

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蒙田观察到,恫吓式的学术文化,如何让我们在学习自己的思想以前,急于学习他人的书,

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And yet, as he put it:

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然而就如同他说的:

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"We are richer than we think, each one of us."

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“我们比自己以为的还要更丰富,每一个人都是如此SN.mT-H@0H。”

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Montaigne is refreshing

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蒙田让人耳目一新,

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because he describes a life which is recognizably like our own

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他描绘生活与我们现在生活非常接近,

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and yet inspiring still —

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并且具有启发意义^UeP(89S]%f-PGs]b

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he is a very human ideal.

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他是充满人性的理想型thJ;h^RbtAl]a7LpWAw

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We may all arrived at wise ideas

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我们都可能拥有充满智慧的思想,

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if we cease to think of ourselves as unsuited to the task

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只要我们不再认为自己无法这么做9nQnhl%Kd=BGd2Ev&bG

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just because we aren't two thousand years old,

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只因为我们不是两千岁,

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or aren't interested in the topics of Plato's dialogues

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或对柏拉图对话录中的主题不感兴趣,

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or have a so-called ordinary life.

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或只拥有所谓的平凡生活L!8V(T1Laxxj

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Montaigne reassures us:

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蒙田向我们保证:

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"You can attach the whole of moral philosophy to a commonplace private life

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“你可以将整套道德哲学应用在平凡的私人生活中,

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just as well as to one with richer stuff."

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就如同应用在不平凡的生活5H]prCDm+.A-E^!Ps。”

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

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蒙田重新描述的贴切的、半理性人类的样貌,

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it's possible to speak no Greek

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可以不谈论古希腊、

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change one's mind after a meal,

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在一顿饭的时间内改变主意、

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get bored with a book,

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觉得书本很无聊、

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be impotent

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性无能、

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and know pretty much none of the Ancient philosophers.

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太了解古典哲学家ha7+.Z-L[r,024Q+t;v&

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A virtuous ordinary life, striving for wisdom but never far from folly,

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有德性的平凡生活、追求智慧、但未曾远离蠢事,

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is achievement enough.

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已经是足够了不起的成就p^VkqH2=)1d1

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Montaigne remains the great, readable intellectual

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蒙田是位伟大、简单易读的知识份子,

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with whom we can laugh at intellectuals and pretensions of many kinds.

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我们可以跟他一起嘲笑知识份子和各种虚伪7.^1LWrJ^t

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He was a breath of fresh air in the cloistered, unworldly, snobbish corridors of the academia of the 16th century —

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在16世纪学术圈那不切实际又充满势利眼的象牙塔里,蒙田是一股清流,

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and because academia has, sadly, not changed very much,

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而因为学术圈可悲的至今并未有太多转变,

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he continues to be an inspiration and a solace to all of us

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蒙田持续地成为我们的鼓舞和慰藉Cm|AS@U;Nwi-+k)#

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who feel routinely oppressed and patronized by the pedantry and arrogance of so-called clever people.

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对于所有觉得自己日复一日地被那些充满学究气的、傲慢的、所谓的聪明人压迫和指导的人们而言3#q0#c0u(B-U

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