Lesson Eleven On Human Nature and Politics
论 人 性 与 政 治
11-1 Undoubtedly the desire for food has been, and still is, one of the main causes of great political events.
勿容置疑，对于食物的欲望一直是并仍然是导致重大政治事件的主要原因之一。
But man differs from other animals in one very important respect, and that is that he has desires which are, so to speak, infinite, which can never be fully gratified, and which would keep him restless even in Paradise.
但人与其他动物有一个很重要的区别，那就是人有着可谓无休止的欲望， 永远不可能得到完全满足，即使到了天堂也还不得安宁
the boa constrictor, when he has had an adequate meal , goes to sleep, and does not wake until he needs another meal.
巨蟒饱餐一顿后就睡觉，直到需要再吃一顿时才醒来。
Human beings, for the most part , are not like this. When the Arabs, who had been used to living sparingly on a few dates , acquired the riches of the Eastern Roman Empire and dwelt in palaces of almost unbelievable luxury , they did not, on that account , become inactive.
对于大多数人来说并非如此。阿拉伯人曾习惯于靠吃几个枣子节俭度日，当他们获得东罗马帝国的财富，居住在几乎令人难以置信 的豪华宫殿中时，他们并未因此就闲居不动了。
Hunger could no longer be a motive, for Greek slaves supplied them with
exquisite viands at the slightest nod.
饥饿不可能再是一个动机，因为 只需轻轻一点头，希腊奴隶就会奉上精美佳肴。
But other desires kept them active: four in particular, which we can label acquisitiveness佔有欲, rivalry競爭欲, vanity虛榮心 and love of power.權力欲
但是别的欲望使他们继续活跃，主要有四种欲望，我们称之为：占有欲，竞争欲，虚荣心和权力欲。
11-2 Acquisitiveness the wish to possess as much as possible of goods, or the title to goods is a motive which, I suppose, has its origin in a combination of fear with the desire for necessaries.
占有欲——希望占有尽可能多的财产或对财产的所有权——在我看来是一种动机，它根源于恐惧和对拥有生活必需品的欲望的结合。
11-3 I once befriended two little girls from Esthonia, who had narrowly escaped death from starvation in a famine .
我曾经帮助过两个爱沙尼亚来的小姑娘，她们在一场饥荒中死里逃生，幸免 饿死。
They lived in my family, and of course had plenty to eat.
她们住在我家中，当然有足够的东西吃。
But they spent all their leisure visiting neighbouring farms and stealing potatoes, which they hoarded.
但是她们却花费所有的闲暇时间到邻近的农场去偷土豆，然后贮藏起来。
Rockefeller, who in his infancy had experienced great poverty , spent his adult life in a similar manner.
洛克菲勒在童年时代经受过极度的贫困，也以与此类似的方式度过他的成年。
Similarly the Arab chieftains on their silken Byzantine divans could not forget the desert, and hoarded riches far beyond any possible physical need .
同样，那些坐在拜占庭帝国柔软光滑的长沙發椅上的阿拉伯酋长们也无法忘记沙漠，贮藏起远远超过可能需要的物质财富。
But whatever the psychoanalysis of acquisitiveness, no one can deny that it is one of the great motives especially among the more powerful , for, as I said before, it is one of the infinite motives.
但不论对占有欲作什么样的精神分析，没人能够否认这是巨大的动机之一
However much you may acquire you will always wish to acquire more; satiety is a dream which will always elude you.
特别 是对较有权势的人更是如此，因为正如我前面所说，这是一个无休止的动机。无
论你获得多少，你总是希望获得更多，完全满足是一个永远无法实现的梦想。
11-4 But acquisitiveness, although it is the mainspring of the capitalist system, is by no means the most powerful of the motives that survive the conquest of hunger .
虽然占有欲是资本主义制度的主要动力，但它决不是征服了饥饿以后最强大动机。
Rivalry is a much stronger motive. Over and over again in Muhammadan history, dynasties have come to grief because the sons of a sultan by different mothers could not agree, and in the resulting civil war universal ruin resulted .
竞争欲是一个更强大的动机。在伊斯兰教的历史上，王朝一次又一次陷入灾难，因为苏丹不同妻子所生的儿子们意见分歧，导致了内战，也造成普遍的破坏。
The same sort of thing happens in modern Europe.
同样的事也在现代欧洲发生
When the British Government very unwisely allowed the Kaiser to be present at a naval review at Spithead, the thought which arose in his mind was not the one which we had intended.
当英国政府很不明智地允许德国皇帝出席在斯匹特海德港举行的海军阅兵时，他脑子里出现的想法并不是我们想要他有的想法
What he thought was, \
他想的是：“我一定要拥有一支同奶奶的海军一样好的海军。”
And from this thought have sprung all our subsequent troubles.
我们此后的一切麻烦都来自这个想法
The world would be a happier place than it is if acquisitiveness were always
stronger than rivalry .
如果占有欲总是强于竞争欲的话，世界将是一个比现在更快乐的地方。
But in fact, a great many men will cheerfully face impoverishment if they can thereby secure complete ruin for their rivals(競爭對手) . Hence the present level of taxation.
事实上，许多人会甘心情愿地面对贫困，只要这样做能导致对 手的彻底毁灭。因此有了现在的税制。
11-5 Vanity is a motive of immense potency .
虚荣心是一个有着极大潜力的动机。`
Anyone who has much to do with children knows how they are constantly performing some antic and saying \fundamental desires of the human heart.
任何一个常与孩子们打交道的人都知道， 他们经常做个什么怪动作，然后说“看我的”。“看我的”是人类内心最基本的欲望之一
It can take innumerable forms, from buffoonery to the pursuit of posthumous fame.
它可以有无数表现形式，从插科打挥到追求死后的名声。`
There was a Renaissance Italian princeling who was asked by the priest on his deathbed if he had anything to repent of.