越孤独越聚会，还是越聚会越孤独？

早上好！又到周末啦！

经过了一周忙碌的工作和学习，在周末与三五好友一块儿聚聚再好不过了。

今天小编为大家推荐的文章主题就是聚会。作者是英国著名女作家罗斯•麦考利（Rose Macaulay）。

作者简介

罗斯•麦考利

英国女诗人、小说家、散文家。出身于书香门第，就读于牛津大学，处女作《伯特家风》问世后，名重一时，为批评界所推崇。 

聚会本是寻常琐事，但作者却另辟蹊径，冷嘲热讽人类为了躲避恐惧和孤寂才精心设计了聚会的消遣形式。

本文小处着眼，深处落墨。细节翔实，入情入理，贴近生活；全文结构完整，层层铺垫，行文迂回曲折，挖掘人类的内心世界。

先来学习一下文中出现的部分单词。

comprehensible adj. 易于了解的

ordain v. 规定

gregarious adj. 群集的

admonition n. 忠告

dignify v. 夸大其名使得堂皇

savage adj. 野蛮的

conventionalism n. 传统主义

doll v. 穿戴整齐

clamour n. 喧闹

flag v. 用旗或其他信号使（人、汽车等）停下

break away 突然离开

consoling adj. 令人安慰的

edible adj. 可食用的

gregarious instinct 群居本能

pasteboard n. 纸板

inscribe v. 写下

请欣赏由沈汀、钟秋为您朗读的这篇文章。中文版本由贾立平翻译。

晚 间 聚 会

Evening Parties

Human

beings are curious creatures, and in nothing more curious than in the forms of diversion which they devise for themselves. Some of these are quite comprehensible; they give physical or mental pleasure. Bathing in the sea, for instance ; or watching a play ; or visiting the Zoo ; or eating agreeable food at someone else's expense, or even at one's own ; or playing some game with a ball. It is easy to understand that having one's person surrounded by water, in which one floats and swims, or watching human life enacted improbably by others on a stage, or seeing strange beasts in cages, or rolling elegant foods about the palate, or chasing after a ball, is pleasing. But, besides these simple pleasures, humanity has devised some so-called amusements which seem to depend for their reputations as entertainments less on pleasing sensations inflicted on the participants than on some convention which has ordained that these pursuits shall be held agreeable. 

人类是充满好奇的动物，最能体现其好奇心的莫过于他们为自己设想的五花八门的娱乐形式。有些娱乐形式很合乎常理，能给人以身体或精神的享受，比如：在大海中游泳，看戏，去伦敦动物园，别人请客美餐一顿，自己掏钱也行，和别人玩球类比赛等等，四周都是水，漂浮在水中游泳，观看别人在舞台上演绎自己的人生，看笼子里的奇禽异兽，让珍馐美味在上下颚翻滚，追着球跑，人们都会乐在其中，这无可厚非。这些娱乐形式都很简单。人类对消遣花样翻新，有些所谓的消遣恐怕只是为了款待而消遣，靠的不是给参加者带来感官的愉悦，更多的是靠某种约定俗成，规定大家应该认为追求这些消遣会带给人们欢乐。

It

speaks well, perhaps, for the kindliness and amiability of the human race that most such pursuits are of a gregarious nature. Assembling together; dearly we love to do this. "Neglect not the assembling of yourselves together," says (I think) St. Paul somewhere; and it was a superfluous piece of admonition. Neglect of this will never be numbered among the many omissions of mankind. Seeing one another ; meeting the others of our race ; exchanging remarks ; or merely observing in what particular garments they have elected to clothe themselves today ; this is so nearly universal a custom that it has become dignified into an entertainment, and we issue to one another invitations to attend such gatherings.

这些消遣追求大部分都属群体行为，这或许可以说明人类与人为善、和睦相处的秉性。大家聚一聚；我们太想聚一聚了。“不要忘了常聚聚。”圣保罗（我想是他）好像在哪里说过；这句忠告太多余。人类遗忘的东西很多，但忘记聚会不在此列。你来我往见见面啊，互诉衷肠啊，或者就是想知道今天大家的着装，想看看大家特别挑选了什么衣服；这种成规几乎具有普世性，久而久之就冠冕堂皇地升级为款待。大家纷纷互发请帖参加这样的聚会。

We

issue them and we accept them, and, when the appointed date arrives, we assume such of our clothes as we believe to be suitable to the gathering, and sally forth to the party of pleasure. Often, indeed usually, it is in the evening. Therefore we clothe ourselves in such garb as men and women have agreed, in their strange symbolism, to consider appropriate to the hours after eight o'clock or so. And perhaps—who knows?—it is in the exercise of this savage and primitive conventionalism that a large part of the pleasure of an evening gathering consists. We are very primitive creatures, and the mere satisfaction of self-adornment, and of assuming for a particular occasion a particular set of clothes, may well tickle our sensibilities. Be that as it may, we arrive at our party dolled, so to speak up, and find ourselves in a crowd of our fellow-creatures, all dolled up too.

大家发帖的发帖，接帖的接帖。约定的日子一到，大家就把自认为适合聚会的衣服穿上，然后奔赴快乐的聚会了。往往聚会都在晚上，通常都是这样。所有着装都按照男男女女们一致公认适合晚上约八点之后穿的衣服，并且带有莫名其妙的象征意义。也许——谁知道呢？——晚上聚会之所以快乐主要在于践行这种野蛮原始的成规而已。我们是很原始的动物，把自己打扮一番，为参加一个特殊的场合挑选特别的衣服，仅此而已，就足以触发我们的各种感觉。不管那么多了，我们照例盛装华服赴约，到后发现周围的人也都是盛装华服。

Now

we are off. The party of pleasure has begun. We see friends and talk to them. But this we could do with greater comfort at our own homes or in theirs; this cannot, surely, be the promised pleasure. As a matter of fact, if you succeed in getting into a corner with a friend and talking, be sure you will be very soon torn asunder by an energetic hostess, whose motto is "Keep them moving." We are introduced to new acquaintances This may, no doubt, be very agreeable. They may be persons you are glad to know. But it is doubtful whether your acquaintanceship will prosper very much tonight. It may well be that no topics suitable for discussion will present themselves to either of you at the moment of introduction. I know someone who says that she never can think of anything of some more sophisticated remark. Having thought of it, you must launch it, in the peculiarly resonant pitch necessary to carry it above the clamour (for this clamour, which somewhat resembles the shrieking of a jazz band, is an essential accompaniment to a party, and part of the entertainment provided). A conversation will then ensue, and must be carried on until one or other of you either flags or breaks away, or until someone intervenes between you.

动起来吧！快乐的聚会开始啦！看见朋友就聊上一番，这样聊天远不如在自己家或对方家更惬意，当然也不可能获得期许中的快乐。的确，如果你就这样和朋友缩在一个角落里大谈特谈，肯定会立刻被张罗能干的女主人拆散。她的座右铭是：“别干坐着！”我们还被介绍给刚认识的人，这还蛮不错嘛！说不定正好是你想结交的朋友呢！至于两个人之间的交情一夜之间能否升温就不好说了。也许两个人认识的时候连适合的话题都找不到。我认识一个人，聚会时她除了对被介绍给她的人说“你喜欢参加聚会吗？”竟无话可说。未免太失礼了吧！怎么说得出口啊！总得找些比较有深度的话吧！想好后就放马过去。说的时候声音要特别洪亮，要盖过嘈杂的声音才行（嘈杂的声音有点像爵士乐队，尖声尖气，是聚会必不可少的伴奏，也是款待别人内容的一部分）。接着对话就开始了，一直持续到两个中的一个叫停或中途离开，或者有人插话。

One

way and another, a very great deal gets said at a party. Let us hope that this is a good thing. It is apparent, anyhow, that the mere use of the tongue, quite apart from the words it utters, gives pleasure to many. If it gives you no pleasure, and if, further, you derive one from listening to the remarks of others, there is no need to converse. You had better then take up a position in a solitary corner (if possible on a chair, but this is a rare treat) and merely listen to the noise as to a concert, not endeavouring to form out of it sentences. As a matter of fact, if thus listened to, the noise of a party will be found a very interesting noise, containing a great variety of different sounds. If you are of those who like also to look at the clothes of others, you will, from this point of vantage, have a good view of these.

不管怎样，聚会时要说的话很多。希望这是件好事。不管怎样，除了说出的话外，很显然舌头的唯一用途是可以给许多人带来快乐。如果动舌头不会给你带来什么快乐，退一步，如果旁听别人的谈话就可以获得快乐，那就没有必要说话。最好找一个僻静的角落（如果可能的话， 就坐在椅子上，不过这可是求知难得的），像听音乐会一样，只需听杂乱的声音，无需连词成句。其实，这样听，你就会发现聚会里的噪音很有意思，夹杂着各种各样的声音。如果你是那种还很喜欢看别人的衣服的人，可以利用这个有利地势，一切尽收眼底。

It

is very possible, however, that you have only come to the party on the chance of obtaining something good to eat. This is, after all, as good a reason as another. You will, with any luck, be offered some comestible—a sandwich, or a chocolate, or some kind of a drink, or, if you are very fortunate, an ice. With a view to this, you cannot do better than to stand solitary, so that your host or hostess may, in despair of making you talk, give you to eat. If you have eaten or drunk, you have anyhow got something out of the party; you can say, in recalling it, " I ate two chocolates, and that sandwich pleased me," or, better still, " I drank." Words spoken are empty air, and drift windily into oblivion; and, anyhow, there are greatly too many of these ; but about food and drink there is something solid and consoling. An hour in which you have consumed nourishment is seldom an hour spent in vain.

然而，很有可能，来参加聚会就只是想得到好吃的东西。毕竟，类似的借口还算说得过去。运气好的话，会得到三明治、巧克力，还有喝的。如果有口福的话，还能吃到冰激凌。打着这样的算盘，独自一人再好不过了，男主人或女主人因为实在没办法让你开口说话，就会给你吃的。如果有吃有喝，还能顺手牵羊拿走点，回想起来还可以说：“我吃了两块巧克力。三明治吃了真爽！”或者如果口福不浅的话，还会说：“还有喝的呢！”说出去的话像空空如也的气体一样，随风而逝；然而，奇怪的是，这样的话实在太多太多了；还是吃的喝的来得实在，来得让人安慰。一个小时一直在摄入养料，那这一个小时就不算白过。

But

far be it from me to suggest that we should, or do, take such pains over attiring ourselves, and go to so much trouble, and possibly expense, in travelling from one house to another, merely for the sake of some foolish edible trifle which could be procured and consumed with greater ease in the home. I am convinced that the majority of human creatures do not go to parties for the sake of any food, or even drink, that they may get there. No ; the reason (if reason indeed there is beyond blind habit) is, fundamentally, that primitive instinct to take any chance of herding together which led our earliest forefathers to form tribes, village communities, and cities. It is the same reason for which great spaces of the countryside in all lands stand empty, while those who might live there herd, instead, in hideous, shrieking and dreadful cities. It is, in short, the gregarious instinct, based on fear of solitude, on terror of such dangers and uncanny visitant; as may, we feel, attack us unless we hide within the crowd.

我可不是说我们应该或者真的要煞费苦心打扮一番，然后再折腾一番，还有可能破费一番，从一个屋子穿到另一个屋子，为的就是吃到不怎么样的零食。比起来，在家吃要自在得多。我相信大多数人类动物不是为了吃，更不是为了喝而赴约到此。绝对不是！（如果真的有原因，除了漫无目的的习惯外）其根本原因是想利用一切机会成群结队聚在一起的原始本能。正是出于这种本能，我们的远祖才建立了部落、村镇和城市。正是同样的原因，所有的土地上的广阔的村庄空无一人，人们都集结在丑恶、充满尖叫声、可怕的城市里了。简而言之，这是一种群居本能，因为害怕寂寞，畏惧我们以为可能袭击我们的种种危险和不速之客。躲在人群中就没事了。

We

are a haunted race, fleeing from silence and great spaces, feeling safe only when surrounded by warm, comprehensible, chattering humanity like ourselves. So, when there comes for us a little pasteboard card inscribed with an address where, and a date when, we may thus surround ourselves, under some hospitable roof, we may say with our minds and lips, " Shall I go to this? " casually, as if it mattered not at all; but deep down in our hidden souls the primal whisper sounds- " There will be people there. There is safety in a crowd. Go ! "

我们是不安分守己的物种，从安静辽阔的地方跑出来，只有置身于能带给我们温暖、善解人意、喋喋不休的同类之中才有安全感。所以当一张写有赴约地址和日期的硬纸片投向我们，我们就可以围聚在热情好客的主人家，我们会心口如一地随口道：“我要去！”好像无所谓的样子；其实说这话之前，有个声音很小，隐藏在我们内心深处：“那里有人。人多的地方安全。去！”

This

is, at least, what I presume occurs in that buried self of which we know so little. Anyhow, for one reason or another, go we do, quite often. And if anyone knows of any other reason why, I should be glad to hear it. Not that, personally, I do not enjoy parties. . .

至少，这就是我所认为的自我隐藏起来的内心活动，只是我们自己却知之甚少。说一千道一万，我们还是去了，去得还挺频繁。如果有人知道还有别的原因，我会洗耳恭听。

我自己嘛，也不是不喜欢参加聚会……

笔者认为群居是人类本能，聚会则给人以安全感。但是，在“宅文化”盛行的今天，也有许多人认为越聚会越孤独。两种观点，你站哪边？

春节前后聚会总是特别多，你到底是去呢还是去呢？欢迎留言分享哦！

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