培根美文赏析-Of Goodness and GOODNESS OF NATURE 论善

I TAKE goodness in this sense, the affecting of the weal of men, which is that the Grecians call philanthropia; and the word humanity (as it is used) is a little too light to express it.  Goodness I call the habit, and goodness of nature, the inclination¹.  This of all virtues³, and dignities of the mind, is the greatest; being the character of the Deity⁴: and without it, man is a busy, mischievous⁵, wretched thing; no better than a kind of vermin. Goodness answers to the theological virtue², charity, and admits no excess, but error.  The desire of power in excess, caused the angels to fall; the desire of knowledge in excess, caused man to fall: but in charity there is no excess; neither can angel, nor man, come in dan ger by it.  The inclination to goodness, is imprinted⁶ deeply in the nature of man; insomuch, that if it issue not towards men, it willtake unto other living creatures; as it is seen in the Turks, a cruel people, who nevertheless are kind to beasts, and give alms, to dogs and birds; insomuch, as Busbechius reporteth, a Christian⁷ boy, in Constantinople, had like to have been stoned, for gagging in a waggishness⁸ a long-billed fowl⁹.Errors indeed in this virtue of goodness, or charity, may be committed.  The Italians have an ungracious proverb, Tanto buon che val niente: so good, that he is good for nothing.  And one of he doctors of Italy, Nicholas Machiavel, had the confidence to put in writing, almost in plain terms, That the Christian faith, had given up good men, in prey¹⁰ to those that are tyrannical and unjust.  Which he spake, because indeed there was never law, or sect¹¹, or opinion, did so much magnify goodness, as the Christian religion doth. Therefore, to avoid the scandal and the danger both, it is good, to take knowledge of the errors of an habit so excellent.  Seek the good of other men, but be not in bondage¹² to their faces or fancies; for  that is but facility, or softness; which taketh an honest mind prisoner.  Neither give thou AEsop's cock a gem¹³, who would be better pleased, and happier, if he had had a barley-corn.  The example of God, teacheth the lesson truly: He sendeth his rain, and maketh his sun to shine, upon the just and unjust; but he doth not rain wealth, nor shine honor and virtues, upon men equally.  Common benefits, are to be communicate with all; but peculiar¹⁴ benefits, with choice.  And beware how in making the portraiture¹⁵, thou breakest the pattern. For divinity, maketh the love of ourselves the pattern; the love of our neighbors, but the portraiture.Sell all thou hast, and give it to the poor, and follow me: but, sell not all thou hast, except thou come and follow me; that is, except thou have a vocation¹⁶, wherein thou mayest do as much good,with little means as with great; for otherwise, infeeding the streams, thou driest the fountain. Neither is there only a habit of goodness, directed by right reason; but there is in some men, even in nature, a disposition¹⁷ towards it; as on the other side, there is a natural malignity¹⁸.  For there be, that in their nature do not affect the good of others. The lighter¹⁹ sort of malignity, turneth but to a crassness²⁰, or frowardness, or aptness to oppose, or difficulties, or the like; but the deeper sort, to envy and mere²¹ mischief²².  Such men, in other men's calamities²³, are, as it were, in season, and are ever on the loading part: not so good as the dogs, that licked Lazarus' sores; but like flies, that are still buzzing upon any thing that is raw; misanthropi, that make it their practice, to bring men to the bough²⁴, and yet never a tree for the purpose in their gardens, as Timon had.  Such dispositions²⁵, are the very errors of human nature; and yet they are the fittest timber, to make great politics of; like to knee timber, that is good for ships, that are ordained²⁶ to be tossed; but not for building houses, that shall stand firm.  The parts and signs of goodness, are many.  If a man be gracious and courteous²⁷ to strangers, it shows he is a citizen of the world, and that his heart is no island, cut off from other lands, but a continent, that joins to them.  If he be compassionate²⁸ towards the afflictions of others, it shows that his heart is like the noble tree, that is wounded itself, when it gives the balm.  If he easily pardons, and remits²⁹ offences, it shows that his mind is planted above injuries; so that he cannot be shot.  If he be thankful for small benefits, it shows that he weighs men's minds, and not their trash.  But above all, if he have St. Paul's perfection, that he would wish to be anathema³⁰ from Christ, for the salvation³¹ of his brethren, it shows much of a divine nature, and a kind of conformity³² with Christ himself.  我认为善的定义就是有利于人类。这也就是古希腊人所谓“仁（Philanthropia） 。或者“人道精神 ”（humanity） ，但意义还要深。

   利人的品德人我认为就是善
。在性格中具有这种天然倾向的人，就是“仁者”。这是人类的一切精神和道德品格中最伟大的一种 。因为它是属于神的品格
。如果人不具有这种品格
，他就成为一种自私的、比禽兽好不了多少的东西。这种善的品格也许会犯错误，但却永远不会过分 。过分的权势欲曾使得撒旦变成魔鬼
。过分的求知欲也曾使人类的社先堕落。但唯有善的品格 ，无论对于神或人
，都永远不会成为过分的东西 。

    向善的倾向可以说是人性所固有的
。如果这种仁爱之心不施于人，也会施之于其他生物的。例如土耳其人是一个对人很残忍的民族 ，但他们对狗和鸟等动物却很仁慈 。据伯斯贝斯的记述
，有一个欧洲人在君士坦木丁堡，由于戏弄一只鸟 ，险些被当人用石块击死
。

    但人性中这种仁善的倾向
，有时也会犯错误。所以意大利有句嘲讽话：“他由于太仁慈，而成了一个窝囊废 。
”马基雅弗利曾写道：“基督教的教义使人成为软弱的羔羊 ，以供那些暴君享用。”他所以这样说
，是因为确实没有任何其他法律 、宗教或学说，比基督教更鼓励人与人的爱了
。但是为了不做滥施仁爱的傻子 ，我们就要注意，不要受有些人的假面具和私欲的欺弄
，而变得太轻信和软心肠。轻信和软心肠其实常常是束缚老实人的枷锁 。比如我们就绝不应该把一颗珍珠赠给伊索那只公鸡——因为它本来只配得到一颗麦粒的
。

    《圣经》中曾说：“天父使太阳照好人，也同样照坏人。降雨给行善的 ，也给作恶的 。 ”但上帝绝不把财富、荣誉和才能对人人平均分配
。一般的福利应该人人均沾。而特殊的荣耀就必须有所选择 。另外要小心
，我们在做好事时，不要先毁了自己
。神告诉我们：要像别人爱你那样爱别人。——“去卖掉你所有的财产 ，赠给穷人
，把财富积存在天上，然后跟我来
” 。但除非你已要跟神一道走 ，否则还是不要把你的一切都卖掉
。

    在人类中既有天然向善的倾向
，也有天然向恶的倾向。那种虚荣
、急躁、固执的性格还不是最坏的，最恶的乃是嫉妒以至祸害他人 。有一种人专靠落井下石 ，给别人制造灾祸来谋生——他们简直还不如《圣经》里那条以舔疮为生的恶狗
，而更像那种吸吮死尸汁液的苍蝇。这种“憎厌人类者”（misanthropi）与雅典的泰门是正相反——虽然他们的园子里并没有一棵能供他人使用的树，却不能做栋梁
。因为船是注定要在海里颠簸的 ，而栋梁却是必须能立定脚跟的。

    善的天性有很多特征 。如果一个人对外邦人也能温和有礼，那么他就可以被称作一个“世界的公民 ”——他的心与五洲四海是相通的
。如果他对其他人的痛苦不幸有同情之心
，那他的心必定十分美好，犹如那能流出汁液为人治伤痛的珍贵树木。如果他能原谅宽容别人的冒犯 ，就证明他的心灵乃是超越了一切伤害的 。如果他并不轻视别人对他的微不帮助
，那就证他更重视的乃是人心而不是钱财
。最后，如果一个人竟能像《圣经》中的圣保罗那样 ，肯为了兄弟们的得救甚至甘于忍受神的诅咒；那么他就必定超越了凡人
，而且有真正基督徒的品格了。
 

1 inclination
n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好
参考例句：
She greeted us with a slight inclination of the head.她微微点头向我们致意 。 I did not feel the slightest inclination to hurry.我没有丝毫着急的意思 。

2 virtue
n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效 ，效力
参考例句：
He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。 You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵 。

3 virtues
美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处
参考例句：
Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处 。 She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

4 deity
n.神 ，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物)
参考例句：
Many animals were seen as the manifestation of a deity.许多动物被看作神的化身 。 The deity was hidden in the deepest recesses of the temple.神藏在庙宇壁龛的最深处。

5 mischievous
adj.调皮的，恶作剧的 ，有害的 ，伤人的
参考例句：
He is a mischievous but lovable boy.他是一个淘气但可爱的小孩 。 A mischievous cur must be tied short.恶狗必须拴得短。

6 imprinted
v.盖印（imprint的过去式与过去分词形式）
参考例句：
The terrible scenes were indelibly imprinted on his mind. 那些恐怖场面深深地铭刻在他的心中 。 The scene was imprinted on my mind. 那个场面铭刻在我的心中 。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 Christian
adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒
参考例句：
They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。 His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒 。

8 waggishness
参考例句：

9 fowl
n.家禽，鸡 ，禽肉
参考例句：
Fowl is not part of a traditional brunch.禽肉不是传统的早午餐的一部分 。 Since my heart attack,I've eaten more fish and fowl and less red meat.自从我患了心脏病后，我就多吃鱼肉和禽肉 ，少吃红色肉类。

10 prey
n.被掠食者，牺牲者 ，掠食；v.捕食 ，掠夺，折磨
参考例句：
Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食 。 The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物 。

11 sect
n.派别 ，宗教 ，学派，派系
参考例句：
When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。 Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂 。

12 bondage
n.奴役 ，束缚
参考例句：
Masters sometimes allowed their slaves to buy their way out of bondage.奴隶主们有时允许奴隶为自己赎身 。 They aim to deliver the people who are in bondage to superstitious belief.他们的目的在于解脱那些受迷信束缚的人。

13 gem
n.宝石 ，珠宝；受爱戴的人 [同]jewel
参考例句：
The gem is beyond my pocket.这颗宝石我可买不起 。 The little gem is worth two thousand dollars.这块小宝石价值两千美元。

14 peculiar
adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的 ，特有的
参考例句：
He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特 。 He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

15 portraiture
n.肖像画法
参考例句：
I am going to have my portraiture taken.我请人给自己画张肖像 。 The painting of beautiful women was another field of portraiture.人物画中的另一个领域是仕女画 。

16 vocation
n.职业 ，行业
参考例句：
She struggled for years to find her true vocation.她多年来苦苦寻找真正适合自己的职业。 She felt it was her vocation to minister to the sick.她觉得照料病人是她的天职 。

17 disposition
n.性情，性格；意向 ，倾向；排列，部署
参考例句：
He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理 。 He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

18 malignity
n.极度的恶意 ，恶毒；（病的）恶性
参考例句：
The little witch put a mock malignity into her beautiful eyes, and Joseph, trembling with sincere horror, hurried out praying and ejaculating "wicked" as he went. 这个小女巫那双美丽的眼睛里添上一种嘲弄的恶毒神气 。约瑟夫真的吓得直抖，赶紧跑出去 ，一边跑一边祷告 ，还嚷着“恶毒！ ” 来自《简明英汉词典》 Outside, the pitiless rain fell, fell steadily, with a fierce malignity that was all too human. 外面下着无情的雨，不断地下着 ，简直跟通人性那样凶狠而恶毒 。 来自辞典例句

19 lighter
n.打火机 ，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级
参考例句：
The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。 The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火 。

20 crassness
参考例句：

21 mere
adj.纯粹的；仅仅 ，只不过
参考例句：
That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话 。 It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

22 mischief
n.损害 ，伤害，危害；恶作剧 ，捣蛋 ，胡闹
参考例句：
Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害 。 He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。

23 calamities
n.灾祸，灾难( calamity的名词复数 )；不幸之事
参考例句：
They will only triumph by persevering in their struggle against natural calamities. 他们只有坚持与自然灾害搏斗 ，才能取得胜利 。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 One moment's false security can bring a century of calamities. 图一时之苟安，贻百年之大患。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

24 bough
n.大树枝 ，主枝
参考例句：
I rested my fishing rod against a pine bough.我把钓鱼竿靠在一棵松树的大树枝上 。 Every bough was swinging in the wind.每条树枝都在风里摇摆 。

25 dispositions
安排( disposition的名词复数 )； 倾向； （财产 、金钱的）处置； 气质
参考例句：
We got out some information about the enemy's dispositions from the captured enemy officer. 我们从捕获的敌军官那里问出一些有关敌军部署的情况。 Elasticity, solubility, inflammability are paradigm cases of dispositions in natural objects. 伸缩性 、可缩性、易燃性是天然物体倾向性的范例 。

26 ordained
v.任命（某人）为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 )；授予（某人）圣职；（上帝 、法律等）命令；判定
参考例句：
He was ordained in 1984. 他在一九八四年被任命为牧师 。 来自《简明英汉词典》 He was ordained priest. 他被任命为牧师。 来自辞典例句

27 courteous
adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的
参考例句：
Although she often disagreed with me,she was always courteous.尽管她常常和我意见不一 ，但她总是很谦恭有礼 。 He was a kind and courteous man.他为人友善 ，而且彬彬有礼 。

28 compassionate
adj.有同情心的，表示同情的
参考例句：
She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。 The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯 。

29 remits
n.职权范围 ，控制范围 ，影响范围( remit的名词复数 )v.免除（债务），宽恕( remit的第三人称单数 )；使某事缓和；寄回 ，传送
参考例句：
He remits home every month. 他每月汇款回家 。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 Second, company remits are far more global than that of the average job seeker or sovereign. 其次 ，较之普通求职者或一国政府，企业的活动要全球化得多。 来自互联网

30 anathema
n.诅咒；被诅咒的人(物) ，十分讨厌的人(物)
参考例句：
Independence for the Kurds is anathema to Turkey and Iran.库尔德人的独立对土耳其和伊朗来说将是一场梦魇 。 Her views are ( an ) anathema to me.她的观点真叫我讨厌。

31 salvation
n.（尤指基督）救世 ，超度，拯救 ，解困
参考例句：
Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革 。 Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。

32 conformity
n.一致，遵从 ，顺从
参考例句：
Was his action in conformity with the law?他的行动是否合法？ The plan was made in conformity with his views.计划仍按他的意见制定 。