TED演讲:怀疑乃信仰之关键(8)

 　　In fact, most of us do,  事实上，我们大多数也会拒绝

　　whether we're atheist¹ or theist or anywhere in between or beyond, for that matter, 无论我们是无神论者或有神论者，或中间派或超越二者，就此而言

　　what drives us is that, despite our doubts and even because of our doubts, we reject the nihilism of despair. 让我们前进的是：尽管我们会怀疑，甚至正是因为我们怀疑，我们排斥絶望的虚无主义

　　We insist on faith in the future and in each other. 我们坚持信仰，对未来和对彼此皆是

　　Call this naive² if you like. Call it impossibly idealistic if you must. 随便你叫它做天真。叫它做不可能的理想主义

　　But one thing is sure: Call it human. 但这点是确定的：叫它做人性

　　Could Muhammad have so radically³ changed his world  穆罕穆德能彻底改变他的世界吗？

　　without such faith, without the refusal to cede⁴ to the arrogance⁵ of closed-minded certainty? 没有信仰，不拒绝退让给抱成见的固执傲慢者？

　　I think not.  我认为不会

　　After keeping company with him as a writer for the past five years, 在过去五年里，作为一位陪伴他的作家

　　I can't see that he'd be anything but utterly⁶ outraged⁷ at the militant⁸ fundamentalists 我看到他对那些被称为激进的原教旨主义者非常愤怒

　　who claim to speak and act in his name in the Middle East and elsewhere today.  对那些今天在中东和其他地方藉他的名行事的人。

　　He'd be appalled⁹ at the repression¹⁰ of half the population because of their gender¹¹. 他会对半数人口因为她们的性别而受到压抑感到大为震惊

　　He'd be torn apart by the bitter divisiveness of sectarianism.  他会被宗派主义之间充满仇恨的分歧所折磨

　　He'd call out terrorism for what it is,  他会大声叫喊那是恐怖主义

　　not only criminal but an obscene travesty¹² of everything he believed in and struggled for. 不仅是罪犯，还是对他所相信的、所奋斗的、令人厌恶的拙劣模仿

　　He'd say what the Koran says: Anyone who takes a life takes the life of all humanity. 他会照着《古兰经》说：任何人夺走一条生命，就夺走了全人类的生命

　　Anyone who saves a life, saves the life of all humanity.  任何人拯救一条生命，就拯救了全人类的生命

　　And he'd commit himself fully¹³ to the hard and thorny¹⁴ process of making peace. Thank you. 他会全心全力地投入这条艰难的、充满荆棘的和平之路。谢谢

1 atheist   

n.无神论者

参考例句：

• She was an atheist but now she says she's seen the light.她本来是个无神论者，可是现在她说自己的信仰改变了。
• He is admittedly an atheist.他被公认是位无神论者。

2 naive   

adj.幼稚的，轻信的；天真的

参考例句：

• It's naive of you to believe he'll do what he says.相信他会言行一致，你未免太单纯了。
• Don't be naive.The matter is not so simple.你别傻乎乎的。事情没有那么简单。

3 radically   

ad.根本地，本质地

参考例句：

• I think we may have to rethink our policies fairly radically. 我认为我们可能要对我们的政策进行根本的反思。
• The health service must be radically reformed. 公共医疗卫生服务必须进行彻底改革。

4 cede   

v.割让，放弃

参考例句：

• The debater refused to cede the point to her opponent.辩论者拒绝向她的对手放弃其主张。
• Not because I'm proud.In fact,in front of you I cede all my pride.这不是因为骄傲，事实上我在你面前毫无骄傲可言。

5 arrogance   

n.傲慢，自大

参考例句：

• His arrogance comes out in every speech he makes.他每次讲话都表现得骄傲自大。
• Arrogance arrested his progress.骄傲阻碍了他的进步。

6 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

7 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

8 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

9 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 repression   

n.镇压，抑制，抑压

参考例句：

• The repression of your true feelings is harmful to your health.压抑你的真实感情有害健康。
• This touched off a new storm against violent repression.这引起了反对暴力镇压的新风暴。

11 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

12 travesty   

n.歪曲，嘲弄，滑稽化

参考例句：

• The trial was a travesty of justice.这次审判嘲弄了法律的公正性。
• The play was,in their view,a travesty of the truth.这个剧本在他们看来是对事实的歪曲。

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

14 thorny   

adj.多刺的，棘手的

参考例句：

• The young captain is pondering over a thorny problem.年轻的上尉正在思考一个棘手的问题。
• The boys argued over the thorny points in the lesson.孩子们辩论功课中的难点。