《四季隨筆》節(jié)選 - 秋 09

《四季隨筆》是吉辛的散文代表作。其中對隱士賴克羅夫特醉心于書籍、自然景色與回憶過去生活的描述，其實(shí)是吉辛的自述，作者以此來抒發(fā)自己的情感，因而本書是一部富有自傳色彩的小品文集。

吉辛窮困的一生，對文學(xué)名著的愛好與追求，以及對大自然恬靜生活的向往，在書中均有充分的反映。本書分為春、夏、秋、冬四個(gè)部分，文筆優(yōu)美，行文流暢，是英國文學(xué)中小品文的珍品之一。

以下是由網(wǎng)友分享的《四季隨筆》節(jié)選 - 秋 09的內(nèi)容，讓我們一起來感受吉辛的四季吧!

It is amusing to note the superficial forms of reaction against scientific positivism. The triumph of Darwin was signalized by the invention of that happy word Agnostic, which had great vogue. But agnosticism, as a fashion, was far too reasonable to endure. There came a rumour of Oriental magic, (how the world repeats itself!) and presently every one who had nothing better to do gossipped about "esoteric Buddhism"— the saving adjective sounded well in a drawing-room. It did not hold very long, even with the novelists; for the English taste this esotericism was too exotic. Somebody suggested that the old table-turning and spirit-rapping, which had homely associations, might be re-considered in a scientific light, and the idea was seized upon. Superstition pranked in the professor's spectacles, it set up a laboratory, and printed grave reports. Day by day its sphere widened. Hypnotism brought matter for the marvel-mongers, and there followed a long procession of words in limping Greek—a little difficult till practice had made perfect. Another fortunate terminologist hit upon the word "psychical"—the P might be sounded or not, according to the taste and fancy of the pronouncer—and the fashionable children of a scientific age were thoroughly at ease. "There MUST be something, you know; one always felt that there MUST be something." And now, if one may judge from what one reads, psychical "science" is comfortably joining hands with the sorcery of the Middle Ages. It is said to be a lucrative moment for wizards that peep and that mutter. If the law against fortune-telling were as strictly enforced in the polite world as it occasionally is in slums and hamlets, we should have a merry time. But it is difficult to prosecute a Professor of Telepathy—and how he would welcome the advertisement!

看到旨在顛覆科學(xué)實(shí)證主義的種種膚淺形式，我們可能會忍俊不禁。達(dá)爾文的勝利，是以“不可知”這個(gè)妙詞的發(fā)明為標(biāo)志的，它現(xiàn)在大行其道。但作為時(shí)尚的不可知論太過理性，讓人無法忍受。關(guān)于東方巫術(shù)（歷史總是重復(fù)自己?。。┑闹{言一傳來，“詭秘佛教”立刻就成了街頭巷尾無聊人士的談資——“詭秘”這個(gè)增色的形容詞在客廳里聽起來很不錯(cuò)。它的壽命不長，連小說家也很快受不了它；因?yàn)閷τ谟说钠肺?，“詭秘主義”聽起來有太重的異域感。有人建議，對讓人產(chǎn)生親切聯(lián)想的古老的桌靈轉(zhuǎn)和招魂術(shù)，從科學(xué)角度進(jìn)行再思考，這個(gè)主意很快付諸實(shí)施了。迷信在教授的眼鏡里胡鬧，它建立了實(shí)驗(yàn)室，印出了嚴(yán)肅的報(bào)告，它的疆域一日日拓展。催眠術(shù)給那些獵奇者提供了素材，隨之便出現(xiàn)了一長串蹩腳的希臘詞——起初有點(diǎn)難，后來則熟能生巧。另一個(gè)幸運(yùn)的術(shù)語學(xué)家碰上了psychical（靈）這個(gè)詞，根據(jù)個(gè)人的口味和喜好，p發(fā)不發(fā)音兩可——于是，科學(xué)時(shí)代的時(shí)髦孩子們完全安然自處了。“你知道，肯定有某種東西，我一直覺得肯定有某種東西”?，F(xiàn)在，如果從我們所讀到的來判斷，通靈的“科學(xué)”已經(jīng)和中世紀(jì)的巫術(shù)愉快地聯(lián)手了。據(jù)說這正是嘴里念念有詞眼睛偷瞅人的巫師們的發(fā)財(cái)時(shí)代。如果禁止算命的法律在上流社會中和偶然在陋巷寒村一樣嚴(yán)格地加以執(zhí)行，那我們便可以獲得一段開心時(shí)光。然而，起訴一個(gè)傳心術(shù)教授并不容易——而他將多么歡迎這種免費(fèi)廣告！

Of course I know very well that all that make use of these words are not in one and the same category. There is a study of the human mind, in health and in disease, which calls for as much respect as any other study conscientiously and capably pursued; that it lends occasion to fribbles and knaves is no argument against any honest tendency of thought. Men whom one cannot but esteem are deeply engaged in psychical investigations, and have convinced themselves that they are brought into touch with phenomena inexplicable by the commonly accepted laws of life. Be it so. They may be on the point of making discoveries in the world beyond sense. For my own part, everything of this kind not only does not interest me; I turn from it with the strongest distaste. If every wonder-story examined by the Psychical Society were set before me with irresistible evidence of its truth, my feeling (call it my prejudice) would undergo no change whatever. No whit the less should I yawn over the next batch, and lay the narratives aside with—yes, with a sort of disgust. "An ounce of civet, good apothecary!"23 Why it should be so with me I cannot say. I am as indifferent to the facts or fancies of spiritualism as I am, for instance, to the latest mechanical application of electricity. Edisons and Marconis24 may thrill the world with astounding novelties; they astound me, as every one else, but straightway I forget my astonishment, and am in every respect the man I was before. The thing has simply no concern for me, and I care not a volt if to-morrow the proclaimed discovery be proved a journalist's mistake or invention.

當(dāng)然，我非常清楚，利用這些詞的人不是一丘之貉。確實(shí)有一門學(xué)問專門研究人類在健康或疾病狀況下頭腦的情況，和其他專心從事的研究一樣值得受到尊重；它會被無聊和無賴的人利用，這并不能作為抵制任何誠實(shí)思想傾向的理由。有些我們應(yīng)該敬重的人，全身心致力于通靈的研究，并深信自己觸到了一些不能用公認(rèn)的生命規(guī)律來解釋的現(xiàn)象。就由他們?nèi)グ?！也許他們正要在超越感官外的世界里面有所發(fā)現(xiàn)。就我自己來說，所有這類事情我都不感興趣，甚至帶著最強(qiáng)烈的厭惡回避它們。即使將通靈協(xié)會研究過的每一樁奇聞異事都放在我面前，用最無可辯駁的證據(jù)來證明它的真實(shí)性，我的感覺（或者說，我的偏見）也不會有一星半點(diǎn)的改變。再來一堆故事，我會一樣哈欠連天，將奇聞異事擱置一邊——對，很反感地?！皝硪话凰眷`貓香，好藥劑師！”為什么有這種心態(tài)，我自己也說不清楚。我對招魂說，就像對電的最新機(jī)械應(yīng)用一樣不感興趣。愛迪生和馬可尼之輩可以用驚人的新奇事物讓世界興奮不已；如所有人一樣，我也被他們震驚了，但很快我會忘掉自己的驚異，在各方面都和過去一般無二。這種事與我根本沒有關(guān)系，我也不在乎明天這個(gè)所謂的發(fā)現(xiàn)是否會是一個(gè)新聞?dòng)浾叩腻e(cuò)誤或杜撰。

Am I, then, a hidebound materialist? If I know myself, hardly that. Once, in conversation with G. A., I referred to his position as that of the agnostic. He corrected me. "The agnostic grants that there MAY be something beyond the sphere of man's knowledge; I can make no such admission. For me, what is called the unknowable is simply the non-existent. We see what is, and we see all." Now this gave me a sort of shock; it seemed incredible to me that a man of so much intelligence could hold such a view.

那么，我是一個(gè)保守的唯物主義者嗎？如果我了解自己的話，那并不是如此。曾經(jīng)在和G.A.的談話中，我將他的立場指認(rèn)為不可知論。他糾正了我,“不可知論認(rèn)為，在人們的認(rèn)識領(lǐng)域之外可能存在某些東西，我可不同意這種看法。在我看來，所謂的不可知事物根本是不存在的。我們感知到的，它就存在，我們能感知到所有存在的事物?！蔽衣犕旰蟠蟪砸惑@，一個(gè)如此智慧的人竟然持這種觀點(diǎn)，顯得令人難以置信。

So far am I from feeling satisfied with any explanation, scientific or other, of myself and of the world about me, that not a day goes by but I fall a-marvelling before the mystery of the universe. To trumpet the triumphs of human knowledge seems to me worse than childishness; now, as of old, we know but one thing—that we know nothing. What! Can I pluck the f lower by the wayside, and, as I gaze at it, feel that, if I knew all the teachings of histology, morphology, and so on, with regard to it, I should have exhausted its meanings? What is all this but words, words, words? Interesting, yes, as observation; but, the more interesting, so much the more provocative of wonder and of hopeless questioning. One may gaze and think till the brain whirls—till the little blossom in one's hand becomes as overwhelming a miracle as the very sun in heaven. Nothing to be known? The flower simply a flower, and there an end on't? The man simply a product of evolutionary law, his senses and his intellect merely availing him to take account of the natural mechanism of which he forms a part? I find it very hard to believe that this is the conviction of any human mind. Rather I would think that despair at an insoluble problem, and perhaps impatience with those who pretend to solve it, bring about a resolute disregard of everything beyond the physical fact, and so at length a self-deception which seems obtuseness.

對于我自身和周圍的世界，任何科學(xué)的或是其他的解釋，都遠(yuǎn)不能讓我感到滿意，以致于每一天我都驚異于宇宙的奇跡。鼓吹人類知識的勝利，在我看來比幼稚還要不如?，F(xiàn)在和過去一樣，我們知道的只有一件事——那就是，我們一無所知。什么！我在路邊摘了一朵花，凝視著它，我會想到：假如我對生物組織學(xué)、生物形態(tài)學(xué)等相關(guān)知識都了如指掌，我就能奢望窮盡這朵花的含義嗎？所有這些除了詞、詞、詞，還有什么呢？有趣，是的，站在觀察的角度；然而，越有趣，就越能勾起人們的興趣和無望的探詢。我們可以凝視并思考，直到頭暈?zāi)X脹——直到手中的小花變成像太陽一樣炫目的奇跡。無可探求嗎？花不過是一朵花，僅此而已？人類不過是進(jìn)化規(guī)律的一個(gè)產(chǎn)物，他的感官和智慧只是幫助他來理解自己作為其中一部分的自然機(jī)制？我很難相信這是每個(gè)人心中的想法。我寧愿這樣想，因?yàn)閷σ粋€(gè)無法解決的難題的絕望，或許還對假裝已經(jīng)解決這難題的人缺乏耐心，導(dǎo)致了人們徹底忽視了超越物質(zhì)形態(tài)存在的一切事物，最后造成了一種看似愚蠢的自我欺騙。