评论
打印
The outside influences are always pouring in upon us, and we are always obeying their orders and accepting their verdicts. The Smiths like the new play; the Joneses go to see it, and they copy the Smith verdict. Morals, religions, politics, get their following from surrounding influences and atmospheres, almost entirely; not from study, not from thinking. A man must and will have his own approval first of all, in each and every moment and circumstance of his life—even if he must repent of a self-approved act the moment after its commission, in order to get his self-approval again: but, speaking in general terms, a man's self-approval in the large concerns of life has its source in the approval of the peoples about him, and not in a searching personal examination of the matter. Mohammedans are Mohammedans because they are born and reared among the sect, not because they have thought it out and can furnish sound reasons for being Mohammedans; we know why Catholics are Catholics; why Presbyterians are Presbyterian why Baptists are Baptists; why Mormons are Mormons; why thieves are thieves; why monarchists are monarchists; why Republicans are Republicans and Democrats, Democrats. We know it is a matter of association and sympathy, not reasoning and examination; that hardly a man in the world has an opinion upon morals, politics, or religion which he got otherwise than through his associations and sympathies. Broadly speaking, there are none but corn-pone opinions. And broadly speaking, corn-pone stands for self-approval. Self-approval is acquired mainly from the approval of other people. The result is conformity. Sometimes conformity has a sordid business interest—the bread and—butter interest—but not in most cases. I think. I think that in the majority of cases it is unconscious and not calculated; that it is born of the human being's natural yearning to stand well with his fellows and have their inspiring approval and praise—a yearning which is commonly so strong and so insistent that it cannot be effectually resisted, and must have its way.
外界的影响总是不断向我们扑面而来，我们则总是不断地遵从它们的命令，接受它们的定论。史密斯一家喜欢那部新戏，琼斯一家也跑去看这部戏，而且还模仿史密斯家的评论观点。道德、宗教、政治都几乎完全是从周围的影响力和风气中获得大批拥护者，而不是经过研究和思考。一个人必须而且将会首先获得自我认同，在他生命中的任何时候和任何环境中——就算他必定会在刚完成自我认同的举动那一刻感到后悔，但是为了再次得到自我认同——一般来说，一个人在人生大事中的自我认同根源于周围人对他的认可，而不是源于个人对问题的彻底考察。伊斯兰教徒就是伊斯兰教徒，是因为他们在该教派中出生长大，而不是因为他们经过深思熟虑并且能够提供作为伊斯兰教徒的合理的理由；我们知道，天主教徒为什么是天主教徒；长老会教友为什么是长老会教友，浸礼会教友为什么是浸礼会教友；摩门教徒为什么是摩门教徒；贼为什么会做贼；君主主义者为什么是君主主义者；共和党人为什么是共和党人，民主党人为什么是民主党人。我们知道，这是一个交往与同感的问题，而不是推理与验证的问题；世界上几乎没有一个人关于道德、政治或宗教方面的观点是通过交往与同感以外的方法获得的。广义上说，观点是众人的观点。而且一般来说，从众代表着自我肯定。自我肯定主要是通过别人的肯定获得的，其结果就是顺从。有时候顺从具有一种肮脏的商业利益——生计的利益——但大多数情况并非如此。我觉得是这样的。我认为，在大多数情况下，它是无意识的，而非有意的；人类天生就有这种博得同伴好感、获得让人振奋的肯定和赞誉的自然渴望——这种渴望通常是那么强烈而持久，以致无法有效抵制，它一定会被付诸实践。
