经济学人441:东西方 "欢喜冤家"

 　　Books and Arts; Book Review;

　　文艺；书评；

　　Asia and the West；Never the twain

　　东西方；“欢喜冤家”

　　The intellectual roots of Asian anti-Westernism

　　亚洲知识分子反西化的学术根源

　　From the Ruins of Empire: The Revolt Against the West and the Remaking of Asia. By Pankaj Mishra.

　　源自帝国的废墟： 反抗西方，亚洲崛起。Pankaj Mishra著。

　　Rarely has the prestige of the West fallen lower in Asian eyes. Seemingly endless wars and the attendant abuses, financial crisis and economic malaise have made Europe and America look less like models to aspire¹ to than dire² examples to be shunned³. In response, Asian elites⁴ are searching their own cultures and intellectual histories for inspiration.

　　以前，在亚洲人眼中，西方似乎得神庇护，很少落后于亚洲。不过，似乎没完没了的战争和随之而来的虐待、金融危机和经济瘟疫使欧洲和美国不再是亚洲人心中值得学习的榜样，却成为人们唯恐避之不及的悲惨对象。与之相照应的是，亚洲精英们正在本国文化和思想史中寻找灵感。

　　As Pankaj Mishra, a prolific⁵ Indian writer, shows in this subtle, erudite and entertaining account of Asian intellectuals’ responses to the West, much the same was true over a century ago. He defines Asia broadly, as bordering with Europe at the Aegean Sea and Africa at the River Nile. A century ago, what he calls “an irreversible process of intellectual…decolonisation” was under way across this huge region. For Mr Mishra, and many Asians, the 20th century’s central events were the “intellectual and political awakening⁶ of Asia and its emergence⁷ from the ruins of both Asian and European empires”. China and India have shaken off foreign predators⁸ and become global powers. Japan has risen, fallen and risen again. It is commonplace to describe the current century as Asia’s.

　　印度高产作家潘卡旭以精细、博学和有趣的文笔描绘出亚洲知识分子对西方的反应，他们的反应与一个多世纪前的人们的反应差不多。他把亚洲笼统地定义为一个在爱琴海区域与欧洲接壤、在尼罗河与非洲接壤的地区。据他所说，一个世纪以前，“一场不可逆转的思想非殖民化的过程”正在这一辽阔地区如火如荼地开展。对米希尔先生和很多亚洲人来说，20世纪的这一主要运动其实是“亚洲人的知识和政治上的觉醒，以及亚洲各国在亚洲强国和欧洲帝国殖民统治的废墟中崛起”。中国和印度都摆脱了外国列强的统治，并位于世界强国之列。日本则是强盛、倒下、又再次崛起。如今，二十一世纪被描绘成亚洲时代的这一说法是家喻户晓。

　　Mr Mishra tells the story of this resurgence⁹ through the lives of a number of pivotal figures, as they grappled with the dilemma¹⁰ of how to replicate¹¹ the West’s power while retaining their Asian “essence”. He pays most attention to two, both little known in the West. One, Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, was like most of them “neither an unthinking Westerniser, nor a devout¹² traditionalist”. Despite his name, and despite a tomb in Kabul restored at America’s expense, al-Afghani was born in Persia in 1838. An itinerant¹³ Islamist activist¹⁴, he also spent time in Egypt, India, Turkey and Russia, railing against the feebleness and injustices¹⁵ of Oriental despotisms and the immorality¹⁶ of Western imperialism¹⁷, and trying to forge a Pan-Islamic movement. He had the ear of sultans and shahs.

　　通过再现历史风云人物的生活，米什拉讲述了国家复兴的故事，但这些风云人物为在确保亚洲“核心”的同时，如何复制西方强国的繁荣而进退两难、烦恼不已。对西方世界完全陌生的两个人，他在笔墨间却倾注了很多关心。一位是哲马鲁丁?阿富汗尼，就像大多数的历史人物一样“并非不加思考的照搬西方者，也非食古不化的传统者”。尽管他的姓名很奇怪，美国人修整了喀布尔（阿富汗的首都）的坟墓，1838年，阿富汗尼出生在波斯（西南亚国家，现称伊朗）。作为一名行走中的伊斯兰积极分子，他在埃及、印度、土耳其和俄国都呆过，他抱怨东方独裁统治的脆弱和不公，也责怪西方帝国主义的不道德，甚至试图开展泛伊斯兰教运动。他有苏丹（某些伊斯兰国家统治者的称号）和伊朗国王的耳目。

　　The other main character is Liang Qichao, a leading Chinese intellectual in the twilight¹⁸ of the last imperial dynasty, the Qing, and the chaotic¹⁹ early years after it fell in 1911. Steeped in the old Confucian traditions and aghast at the weak new republic, he came to the conclusion that “the Chinese people must for now accept authoritarian²⁰ rule; they cannot enjoy freedom”. Writing in 1903, however, he saw this as a temporary phenomenon. He would have been surprised to find China’s rulers today arguing much the same.

　　另一个主人公是梁启超，中国最后一个封建王朝——清朝的一个杰出知识分子，他在晚清时期和清王朝1911年被推翻后，混乱不堪的最初几年里都有很大影响。他深受传统儒家思想的毒害，却又被脆弱的新民主共和国吓呆了，所以得出一个结论：“从现在起，中国人必须接受帝制统治的现实，他们享受不了自由”。这句话写于1903年，他把民国时期的存在视为暂时现象。如果看到现在的中国，他可能惊讶地发现当今的统治者也在抱怨同样的问题。

　　Two other developments would also have surprised these men. The first is how disastrously²¹ some of the syntheses of West and East worked out: from Mao’s and Pol Pot’s millenarian communism, to al-Qaeda’s brand of Islamist fundamentalism and Japan’s replication of the worst traits of Western imperialism.

　　其它两个发展也可能吓着这样的人。第一个是西方和东方的一些结合体造成的灾难性影响：从毛泽东时代和Pol Pot’s的千年共产主义，到打着伊斯兰原教主义旗号的基地组织和日本复制西方帝国主义的陋习。

　　Japan’s later aggression²² helps explain the other surprise: that in many ways the links between Asian thinkers look more tenuous²³ now than they did a century ago. Then, men such as Liang, or Rabindranath Tagore (pictured) from Bengal, would travel to Tokyo. They would dream of a pan-Asian response to the West, inspired by Japan’s example. China is now the coming Asian power, but it is not an intellectual hub of pan-Asianism, either in Communist orthodoxy or in efforts to revive Confucianism. And the Islam of al-Afghani’s ideological²⁴ heirs has made little headway in non-Muslim countries.

　　之后日本侵略各国的事实帮助解释了另一件奇事：从很多方面看来，现在亚洲思想家间联系比千年前的思想家们的联络都苍白无力。那时，像梁启超这样的人，或者来自孟加拉的Rabindranath Tagore（如照片），会去日本旅行。受日本的启发，他们会梦想着不惧美国，泛亚主义。中国现在是崛起中的亚洲强国，但它却不是亚洲主义——正统共产主义或努力复活儒家思想——的知识分子聚集地。而阿富汗尼的意识形态的伊斯兰教继承者在非穆斯林国家也几乎没有取得进步。

　　There is one contemporary Asian phenomenon that, Mr Mishra notes, would seem far less surprising to the author’s subjects than to many present-day Westerners. That is the depth of anti-Western feeling. Millions, he writes, “derive profound gratification from the prospect²⁵ of humiliating their former masters and overlords.” That prospect, however, masks what Mr Mishra concedes is an “immense intellectual failure”, because “no convincingly universalist response exists today to Western ideas of politics and economy”.

　　米什拉先生指出，当今亚洲的一个现象是，似乎亚洲知识分子对作者举出的人物的关注程度远不如当今的很多西方人。惊讶，这是很多反西的亚洲人内心的感受。相反，他写道，数百万的人“从羞辱自己祖先和君主的过程获得极大的满足感。”然而，米什拉先生得出结论，这一前景是“知识分子最大的失败”，因为“因为现今，对西方思想家的政治和经济的见解，亚洲人并没有令人信服的、普遍接受的回应存在。”

　　The ways of the West may not be working. Yet the alarming truth, Mr Mishra concludes, is that the East is on course to make many of the same mistakes that the West has made in its time.

　　西方的方法也不一定好用。米什拉先生总结说，值得警醒的事实是，东方人正在犯西方在发展时期犯过的同样错误。

1 aspire   

vi.(to，after)渴望，追求，有志于

参考例句：

• Living together with you is what I aspire toward in my life.和你一起生活是我一生最大的愿望。
• I aspire to be an innovator not a follower.我迫切希望能变成个开创者而不是跟随者。

2 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

3 shunned   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was shunned by her family when she remarried. 她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
• He was a shy man who shunned all publicity. 他是个怕羞的人，总是避开一切引人注目的活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 elites   

精华( elite的名词复数 )； 精锐； 上层集团； （统称）掌权人物

参考例句：

• The elites are by their nature a factor contributing to underdevelopment. 这些上层人物天生是助长欠发达的因素。
• Elites always detest gifted and nimble outsiders. 社会名流对天赋聪明、多才多艺的局外人一向嫌恶。

5 prolific   

adj.丰富的，大量的；多产的，富有创造力的

参考例句：

• She is a prolific writer of novels and short stories.她是一位多产的作家，写了很多小说和短篇故事。
• The last few pages of the document are prolific of mistakes.这个文件的最后几页错误很多。

6 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

7 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

8 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

10 dilemma   

n.困境，进退两难的局面

参考例句：

• I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
• He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。

11 replicate   

v.折叠，复制，模写；n.同样的样品；adj.转折的

参考例句：

• The DNA of chromatin must replicate before cell division.染色质DNA在细胞分裂之前必须复制。
• It is also easy to replicate,as the next subsection explains.就像下一个小节详细说明的那样，它还可以被轻易的复制。

12 devout   

adj.虔诚的，虔敬的，衷心的 (n.devoutness)

参考例句：

• His devout Catholicism appeals to ordinary people.他对天主教的虔诚信仰感染了普通民众。
• The devout man prayed daily.那位虔诚的男士每天都祈祷。

13 itinerant   

adj.巡回的；流动的

参考例句：

• He is starting itinerant performance all over the world.他正在世界各地巡回演出。
• There is a general debate nowadays about the problem of itinerant workers.目前，针对流动工人的问题展开了普遍的争论。

14 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

15 injustices   

不公平( injustice的名词复数 )； 非正义； 待…不公正； 冤枉

参考例句：

• One who committed many injustices is doomed to failure. 多行不义必自毙。
• He felt confident that his injustices would be righted. 他相信他的冤屈会受到昭雪的。

16 immorality   

n. 不道德, 无道义

参考例句：

• All the churchmen have preached against immorality. 所有牧师都讲道反对不道德的行为。
• Where the European sees immorality and lawlessness, strict law rules in reality. 在欧洲人视为不道德和无规则的地方，事实上都盛行着一种严格的规则。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源

17 imperialism   

n.帝国主义，帝国主义政策

参考例句：

• They held the imperialism in contempt.他们鄙视帝国主义。
• Imperialism has not been able to subjugate China.帝国主义不能征服中国。

18 twilight   

n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期

参考例句：

• Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
• Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。

19 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

20 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

21 disastrously   

ad.灾难性地

参考例句：

• Their profits began to spiral down disastrously. 他们的利润开始螺旋形地急剧下降。
• The fit between the country's information needs and its information media has become disastrously disjointed. 全国的信息需求与信息传播媒介之间的配置，出现了严重的不协调。

22 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

23 tenuous   

adj.细薄的，稀薄的，空洞的

参考例句：

• He has a rather tenuous grasp of reality.他对现实认识很肤浅。
• The air ten miles above the earth is very tenuous.距离地面十公里的空气十分稀薄。

24 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

25 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。