哈佛教授谈“伟大”|《全球脑库》：美国曾经因何而伟大，将来又会因何而伟大？

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本期导读：“伟大”这个词儿，是个好词儿，也因此，古今中外，才有各种各样的东东，不管是人、事、物，或团体、国家、民族，都想与之产生关联，贴上“伟大”的标签。人们的日常生活中，从不缺少“伟大”的身影，有时候，甚至给人以被滥用的感觉。

不过，纵然“伟大”可能会被滥用，但只要是能被贴上“伟大”标签、能经受得住历史的淘洗且能被多数人认可的东西，也必然有它真正的伟大之处。不管是伟大事件、伟大人物、伟大文明，都有着一种超越民族的普适性以及跨越时空的永恒性。

但是，说到具体的人事物是否伟大时，却总是公说公理、婆说婆理，充满争议。之所以这样，是因为，不同的人眼里，伟大的标准千差万别，萝卜白菜各有所爱。这样看来，其实，“伟大”这个词儿本身，就是个问题。

What Makes America Great

美国因何而伟大？

Presidential inaugurations and commencement ceremonies are usually very emotional events. They are rites of passage that mark both an end and a new beginning in the life of a country or an individual.

总统就职典礼与学生毕业典礼，通常都是非常激动人心的时刻。典礼活动，是承前启后必不可少的重要环节。领导人就职典礼，对一个国家来说，意味着一个时代的结束以及一个新的时代的开启。学生毕业典礼，对个体生命来说，则代表着学生时代的结束以及社会人生的开幕。

1.inauguration [ɪ,nɔːgjʊ'reɪʃ(ə)n] n. 就职典礼；开始，开创；开幕式

2.commencement [kə'mensm(ə)nt] n. 开始，发端；毕业典礼

3.rite[raɪt] n. 仪式；惯例，习俗；典礼

4.passage ['pæsɪdʒ] n. 一段（文章）；走廊；通路

As a professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, I attend our commencement ceremony every year. Despite this regularity, I still become emotional as I see my students complete a phase of their lives and contemplate their future.

作为哈佛大学肯尼迪政府学院的一名教授，我每年都会参加学生们的毕业典礼。尽管每年都会参加，但每次看到我的学生完成他们人生的一个阶段并开启他们的未来征程时，我依然会感到激动不已。

1.regularity [reɡjʊ'lærətɪ] n. 规则性；整齐；正规；匀称

2.contemplate ['kɒntempleɪt] vt. 沉思；注视；思忖；预期；vi. 冥思苦想；深思熟虑

One of the highlights of our ceremony is a video in which several professors and public personalities read, line by line, John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address. It is a text written 56 years ago, in a different world, where the Cold War, the threat of nuclear Armageddon, and the challenges faced by so many newly independent poor states dominated policymakers’ concerns. And yet, running at under 14 minutes, it never fails to move and inspire everyone in the audience, including that half of the graduates and their families who hail from other countries, near and far.

每次毕业典礼上，最重要的环节之一就是播放一段视频，视频中，几位教授和公共人物会一句一句地念出肯尼迪的就职演说。演说内容写于56年前，那时，是一个与现在完全不同的世界，当时冷战正酣，核武大战一触即发，新独立的很多国家也面临系列挑战，这一切，都让决策者大伤脑筋。不过，尽管那个视频还不到14分钟，但每次播放都能让在座的每一个人为之动容、受之启发，当然也包括从各个国家远道而来的学生们的家人。

1.Armageddon [,a:mə'gedn] n. 大决战；世界末日善恶决战的战场（源于《圣经》）

2.hail from（车、船）来自；（人）出生于

To understand why, it is useful to recall a few of the most famous passages. For starters, there was Kennedy’s vow to defend freedom for its friends and from its enemies: “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.”

若要探究个中原因，回味一下其中最著名的几段话便能略知一二。首先，是肯尼迪在演讲中对捍卫自由的誓言：“要让每个国家，不管是友是敌，都清楚地知道，我们会不惜一切代价、不惧任何负担、不怕任何艰难，为所有的朋友提供支持，来对抗一切敌人，以确保自由的胜利和荣光。”

There was also his commitment to fight poverty: “To those people in the huts and villages of half the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period is required – not because the communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right. If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.”

肯尼迪在演讲中对贫困问题也做出过承诺：“对于生活在贫困世界中、居住于破败不堪的棚舍里、为摆脱悲惨命运而不断挣扎的亿万人民，我们保证会尽我们最大的努力，为他们提供帮助，支持他们自己努力解救自己，不管需要多久，我们都将义无反顾。之所以这样，不是因为共产主义可能会这样做，不是因为我们需要他们的选票，而是因为这样做是正确的、是正义的。在一个自由的社会，若占社会多数的穷人得不到帮助，那么占社会少数的富人也不会安稳无忧。”

1.hut [hʌt] n. 小屋；临时营房；vt. 使住在小屋中；驻扎；vi. 住在小屋中；驻扎

2.mass [mæs] n. 块，团；群众，民众；大量，众多；adj. 群众的，民众的；大规模的，集中的；vi. 聚集起来，聚集；vt. 使集合

And this commitment was part and parcel of hemispheric solidarity: “To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge – to convert our good words into good deeds – in a new alliance for progress – to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty.”

而且，肯尼迪对西半球实现大团结的诺言也掷地有声：“对于我们国境之南的兄弟共和国们，我们会提供特殊支持，把我们的承诺变成行动，团结一致实现进步，帮助自由的人们以及自由的政府彻底摆脱贫困的枷锁。”

1.part and parcel重要(或主要、基本)部分；不可缺少的部分

2.hemispheric [,hɛmə'sfɛrɪk] adj. 半球的，半球形状的

3.solidarity [,sɒlɪ'dærɪtɪ] n. 团结，团结一致

4.cast off  摆脱；抛弃；解开（缆绳等）

Finally, there was Kennedy’s ethic of service on behalf of the commonwealth: “And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

最后，是肯尼迪以国家的口吻对奉献精神的呼吁：“我亲爱的同胞们，不要问你的国家能为你做什么，而要问你能为你的国家做什么。我尊敬的全世界人民，不要问美国将会为你做什么，而要问我们团结一起将能为人类的自由事业做什么。”

These words’ enduring emotional appeal is rooted in their embrace of a potentially difficult course of action, motivated by a pledge to uphold values shared by citizens of America and the world alike. It was this approach – one founded on a value-based system of rules, not on individual deals – that enabled the US to create and sustain a coalition of countries that could maintain peace and international cooperation.

这些演讲词之所以历久弥新，主要在于其所蕴含的那种为伟大事业而不畏艰难的奋斗精神，那种对美国以及全世界人们所共有的价值理念的不懈追求。正是这种基于价值理念而非基于一锤子买卖的规则体系，使得美国能够团结各个国家，并进而促进了国际合作、维护了世界和平。

1.appeal [ə'piːl] vi. 呼吁，恳求；上诉；诉诸，求助；有吸引力，迎合爱好；（体育比赛中）诉诸裁判；n. 呼吁，请求；吸引力，感染力；上诉；诉诸裁判；vt. 将…上诉，对…上诉

Fast forward to today. President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign narrative was based on the assumption that the US has fallen from its former greatness. Jobs have moved to Mexico and China because weak leaders negotiated bad deals. Immigrants, mostly illegal, have taken the few jobs that remain, killing and raping in their free time. It follows that the US needs a president who will put America first and knows how to extract the best deals for it at every opportunity, using the country’s full might to advance its interests.

让我们把视线转到当下。候任总统特朗普竞选口号的潜台词是，美国曾经伟大，而现在却已不再伟大。因为得了软骨病的美国领导人，达成了不利于美国的贸易协议，美国的就业机会都已跑到了墨西哥和中国。而移民，大多还是非法的，把仅剩的不多的工作机会也霸占了，工作之余还不忘干些谋杀强奸的勾当。这样，美国就需要一位能把“美国放在优先位置”的总统，需要一位知道如何利用每个机会为美国谋福利的总统，需要一位能够利用美国力量来增进美国利益的总统。

1.narrative ['nærətɪv] n. 叙述；故事；讲述；adj. 叙事的，叙述的；叙事体的

2.extract [ˈekstrækt]  vt. 提取；取出；摘录；榨取；n. 汁；摘录；榨出物；选粹

I doubt that an inaugural address based on these ideas will awe and inspire many audiences at commencement ceremonies, especi 47 32460 47 15288 0 0 2073 0 0:00:15 0:00:07 0:00:08 3499ally where many of those in attendance are citizens of other countries. Such a speech will encourage no one to “bear any burden” for the sake of any universal principle or challenge, be it human rights or global warming. It will not exhort us to focus on something bigger than ourselves.

我很是怀疑，基于这些理念的一场就职演说，能否打动、感染参加就职典礼的多数听众，而且听众中也不乏很多来自其他国家的代表。这样的一场演说，将不会让任何人感到对普世原则或全球挑战所需“担当的责任”，不管是人权事业还是全球变暖。这样的演说，也不利于劝导人们敞开胸怀拥抱人类的各项伟大事业，而只会让人们缩小视野关注于自身。

1.exhort [ɪg'zɔːt] vt. 忠告；劝诫；vi. 劝告

Over the course of history, very few powerful states have developed a sense of themselves as being based not on ethnic heritage, but on a set of values that all citizens can live by. For the US, it was “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” For the Soviet Union, it was international proletarian solidarity – “workers of the world, unite.” The European Union is based on universal values and principles that are so attractive that 28 countries have opted to join it; and, Brexit notwithstanding, some half-dozen more are trying to get in.

在历史的整个进程中，凡是大国强国，其自我意识的演化，都不是基于其自己的种族渊源，而是基于普适于全人类的一套价值观念。对于美国来说，那就是“生命权、自由权，以及追求幸福的权利”。对于苏联，那就是全世界无产阶级大团结——“全世界的工人，团结起来！”而欧盟的建立，也是基于系列普世的价值观念和原则，才进而得以发展到28个成员国的规模。尽管英国已决定脱欧，但仍有多个国家正在努力争取加入欧盟。

1.proletarian [,prəʊlɪ'teərɪən]  n. 普罗，无产者；工人；adj. 普罗阶级的，无产阶级的

By contrast, a great and powerful Russia or China today – or the Third Reich in its time – may be able to garner the support of its citizens; but such states cannot constitute the basis of an international order that others find appealing, because they are based on a vision of themselves that does not encompass others.

比较来看，当下，不管是追求民族复兴、要成为伟大国家的俄罗斯还是中国，抑或意图重振第三帝国雄威的德国，获得其各自国内民众的支持或许都没问题，但这些国家都难以建立一套其他国家都能认可的国际秩序，因为，他们的眼光都仅局限于其自身，而不具有也适用于其他国家的包容性。

1.Reich [raiʃ; raik]  n. 德国；德意志帝国

2.garner ['gɑːnə] vt. 获得；储存；把…储入谷仓；n. 谷仓

3.encompass [ɪn'kʌmpəs] vt. 包含；包围，环绕；完成

The basis of America’s greatness and ability to lead the world stems from universal values that underpin a set of rules that uphold the others’ rights, not an America that tries to base its greatness on a set of deals aimed at getting the better of others. Such an America will find its ability to lead the world compromised by a shortage of goodwill and an abundance of distrust. Other countries will huddle together to protect themselves from the US bully.

美国的伟大以及其对世界的领导力，主要源于一套普世价值。正是这套普世价值，构建了维护所有国家权益的国际规则的基础。美国的伟大，不是源于为了从其他国家获得好处而达成的一笔笔交易。否则，美国领导世界的能力，将会被敌意和不信任所吞噬，其他国家也将会抱团取暖，提防美国，保护自身利益。

1.abundance [ə'bʌnd(ə)ns]  n. 充裕，丰富

2.huddle ['hʌd(ə)l] vt. 把...挤在一起；使缩成一团；草率了事；vi. 蜷缩；挤作一团；n. 拥挤；混乱；杂乱一团

3.bully ['bʊlɪ] n. 欺凌弱小者；土霸；adj. 第一流的；特好的；vt. 欺负；威吓；vi. 欺侮人；adv. 很；十分；int. 好；妙

If Trump really wants to make America great again, he should ponder how his inaugural address will sound to a global audience 56 years from now. Will it inspire the Class of 2073 the way Kennedy’s address still inspires graduates today?

若特朗普真的想让美国再次伟大，就需要好好想想，他的就职演说56年后听起来会给人一种什么样的感觉。特朗普的就职演说，能否也像56年前肯尼迪的演说依然能启迪今天的毕业生那样，在56年后依然能启迪2073年的毕业生？

1.ponder ['pɒndə] vt. 仔细考虑；衡量；vi. 考虑；沉思

Contributor: Ricardo Hausmann, a former minister of planning of Venezuela and former Chief Economist of the Inter-American Development Bank, is Professor of the Practice of Economic Development at Harvard University, where he is also Director of the Center for International Development. He is Chair of the World Economic Forum's Global Agenda Meta-Council on Inclusive Growth.

作者简介：里卡多·豪斯曼，委内瑞拉规划部前部长，美洲开发银行前首席经济师，哈佛大学经济发展实践学教授，兼任哈佛大学国际发展研究中心主任、世界经济论坛“全球包容性增长议程委员会”主席。

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