[转载]小小伟人(A Little Great Man)
2017-04-17 15:55阅读：
小小伟人
奥利弗•哥尔德斯密斯
奥利弗•哥尔德斯密斯（1730—1774），英国剧作家、诗人、散文家。主要作品有小说《威克菲尔德牧师》，喜剧《曲身求爱》，诗歌《荒村》等。其散文风格平易近人，风趣幽默，本篇文章正体现了这种风格。
在翻阅本地报纸的时候，我计算了一下，在不到半年的时间里，这里至少出了25名伟人，17名非常伟大的人，9名非常杰出的人。报上说，这些人都会受到后人的敬仰；他们显赫的名字将为世世代代所惊叹。让我想想——如果半年出46名伟人，那一年下来就有92名。我不知道后来的人怎么可能记住这么多的伟人，也不知道将来人们除了背诵伟人名册之外，还有没有其他的事情要操心。
公司的总裁开始演讲了，他马上被当成伟人记录下来；平庸的学者压缩他的著作出对开本了，很快也成为伟人；诗人用押韵的形式把陈旧的感伤串连起来，一时间也成为伟人。无论受到仰慕的对象多么渺小，身后总会有一群更加渺小的仰慕者跟随。随行的人们一声欢呼，他便大步走向伟大，得意洋洋地回头看看那群追随者，一路领略各式各样古怪、离奇、荒诞和自命不凡的渺小者。
昨天，有位先生请我吃饭，他保证请我吃一块鹿的腰胴肉、一只甲鱼，并且晋见—位伟人。我如约而至。鹿肉味道不错，甲鱼也很好，但是，那个伟人却让人难以忍受。我刚一开口说话，立刻就遭到他的厉声驳斥。为了挽回些面子，我试图接二连三地发起进攻，却又被稀里糊涂地击退。我决定再次从战壕发起冲锋，把谈论的焦点转到中国政府上来。即使在这个问题上，他还是一如既往地断言、斥责、反驳。天啊，我想，这个人竟然装作比我还了解中国！我朝四下里望望，想看看
有谁站在我这一边，但是，每只眼睛都敬慕地凝视着这位伟人。因此，我想自己还是安安静静地坐着，在其后的谈话里当个好好先生才是上策。
一个人一旦拥有了一批仰慕者，他就会做出自认为合理其实非常荒唐的事；别人还以为他的言行都是感情的升华或者是大智若愚。假如他违背了常识，就算把茶壶当成烟盒，也会有人辩解说，那是因为他在专心致志地思考大事：要是他们的言谈举止跟常人无异，那他们就跟常人一样算不上伟人了。伟大这个概念涵盖了某种奇特的东西，因为对于跟我们非常相似的事物，我们很少会感到惊讶。
鞑靼人立喇嘛，最先考虑的是把他放在寺庙里的阴暗角落，让他若隐若现地坐在那里，调整手、嘴唇和眼睛的活动；但最重要的是，他必须做到庄严和肃静。然而这只是把他奉为神明的序曲：一批使者被派到民间去，称赞他是非常虔诚、庄严、热爱混沌未开的众生；人们听信了使者的话，就把喇嘛当作偶像顶礼膜拜；他一动不动地接受人们的称颂，于是成为神，从此由下面的僧人用那不朽的勺子喂养。这个国家也可以使用相同的办法制造伟人。偶像只需把自己藏起来，然后派出手下的小使者为他高唱赞歌，不管是政治家还是作家，都会立即被列入伟人名单；如果时兴赞美，如果他对公众谨小慎微地掩盖了自身的渺小，他会一直受到赞美。
我游历过许多国家，也去过无数的城市，但没有诞生过十一二位这种小伟人的城市，我还从来没有见识过。他们都认为自己是世界闻名的，并且互相恭维对方的伟大。如果有两个这样的人相互客套、相互吹捧的时候，是非常有趣的。我曾见到过这样一件事：一位德国医生把一位修道士大肆赞扬了一番，在场的人们都把他当作了世上最有智慧的人；然后，修道士又反过来把医生恭维了一番，跟他平分了这份美誉。于是，这两人在众人的掌声中阔步离去。
过分的赞美不仅仅陪伴着我们伟人的生前，甚至也会不多不少地伴随他进入坟墓。经常会有下面事情发生：他的一个小小的崇拜者因为他这个大人物而取得成功，于是把他的生平和著作编成年表。把这称之为炉火边和安乐椅之间的人生革命，可能是恰当的。我们从这份年表中可以知道，这位伟人是哪年出生的，早年什么时候就表现出了不同寻常的天分和勤奋的迹象，以及他的伯母和母亲所收集的他小时候说过的一些妙语。第二本书会介绍他上大学时的情况，书中告诉我们，他在学业上取得了非常惊人进步，补袜子的技术非常高超，而且有用纸包书保护封面的新发明。紧接着，他又在文学界崭露头角，出版了对开本的书。现在，伟人成熟了，他的作品被所有喜欢收藏珍本的人争相购买，各种学术团体竞相邀请他参加；他跟某位拉丁名字很长的外国人辩论并战胜对手，得到几位严肃的大作家的赞扬；他特别喜欢吃猪肉蘸鸡蛋沙司，他成为一家文学俱乐部的主席并在荣誉到达巅峰时去世。他们是多么幸福啊，因为某个小小的忠实随从，不仅不会抛弃他们，而且准备与每个反对者辩论，当着反对者的面歌颂他们；同时准备在他们生前渲染他们的骄傲，在他们死后美化他们的品行。至于你跟我，朋友，因为没有谦恭的追随者相伴，我们现在不是伟人，将来也不可能成为伟人，而且也不在乎自己是否是个伟人，但是，我们至少可以争取做一个拥有平常心的老实人。
A Little Great Man
Oliver Goldsmith
In reading the newspapers here, I have reckoned up not less
than twenty five great men, seventeen very great men, and nine very
extraordinary men in less than the compass of half a year. These,
say the gazettes, are the men that posterity are to gaze at with
admiration; these the names that fame will be employed in holding
up for the astonishment of succeeding ages. Let me see — forty six
great men in half a year, amounts to just ninety two in a year. — I
wonder how posterity will be able to remember them all, or whether
the people, in future times, will have any other business to mind,
but that of getting the catalogue by heart.
Does the mayor of a corporation make a speech? He is
instantly set down for a great man. Does a pedant digest his common
place book into a folio? He quickly becomes great: Does a poet
siring up trite sentiments in rhyme? He also becomes the great man
of the hour. How diminutive soever the object of
adminition，each is followed by a crowd of
still more diminutive admirers. The shout begins in his train,
onward he marches towards immortality, looks back at the pursuing
crowd with self satisfaction; catching all the oddities, the
whimsies, the absurdities, and the littlenesses of conscious
greatness, by the way.
I was yesterday invited by a gentleman to dinner,who promised
that our entertainment should consist of an haunch of venison, a
turtle, and a great man. I came, according to appointment. The
venison was fine, the turtle good, but the great man insupportable.
The moment I ventured to speak, I was at once contradicted with a
snap. I attempted, by a second and a third assault, to retrieve my
lost reputation, but was still beat back with confusion. I was
resolved to attack him once more from entrenchment, and turned the
conversation upon the government of China: but even here he
asserted, snapped, and contradicted as before. Heavens , thought I,
this man pretends to know China even better than myself! I looked
round to see who was on my side, but every eye was fixed in
admiration on the great man; I therefore, at last thought proper to
sit silent, and act the pretty gentleman during the ensuing
conversation.
When a man has once secured a circle of admirers, he may be
as ridiculous here as he thinks proper; and it all passes for
elevation of sentiment, or learned absence. If he transgresses the
common forms of breeding, mistakes even a teapot for a tobacco box,
it is said, that his thoughts are fixed on more important
objects：to speak and act like the rest of
mankind is to be no greater than they. There is something of oddity
in the very idea of greatness; for we are seldom astonished at a
thing very much resembling ourselves.
When the Tartars make a Lama, their first care is to place
him in a dark cor ner of the temple; here he is to sit half
concealed from view, to regulate the m otion of his hands, lips,
and eyes; but, above ail, he is enjoined gravity and s ilence.
This, however, is but the prelude to his apotheosis: a set of
emissaries are dispatched among the people to cry up his piety,
gravity, and love of raw f lesh; the people take them at their
word, approach the Lama, now become an idol, with the most humble
prostration: he receives their addresses without motion, commences
a god, and is ever after fed by his priests with the spoon of
immortality. The same receipt in this country serves to make a
great man. The idol only keeps close, sends out his little
emissaries to be hearty in his praise; and straight, whether
statesman or author, he is set down in the list of fame, continuing
to be praised while it is fashionable to praise, or while he
prudently keeps his minuteness, concealed from the
public.
I have visited many countries, and have been in cities
without number, yet never did I enter a town which could not
produce ten or twelve of those little great men; all fancying
themselves known to the rest of the world, and complimenting each
other upon their extensive reputation. It is amusing enough when
two of those domestic prodigies of learning mount the stage of
ceremony, and give and take praise from each other. I have been
present when a German doctor, for having pronounced a panegyric
upon a certain monk, was thought the most ingenious man in the
world; till the monk soon after divided this reputation by
returning the compliment; by which means they both marched off with
universal applause.
The same degree of underserved adulation that attends our
great man while living, often also follows him to tomb. It
frequently happens that one of his little admirers sits down big
with the important subject, and is delivered of the history of his
life and writings. This may properly be called the revolutions of a
life between the fireside and the easy chair. In this we learn, the
year in which he was born, at what an early age he gave symptoms of
uncommon genius and application, together with some of his smart
sayings, collected by his aunt and mother, while yet but a boy. The
next book introduces him to the University, where we are informed
of his amazing progress in learning, his excellent skill in darning
stockings, and his new invention for papering books to save the
covers. He next makes his appearance in the republic of letters,
and publishes his foliol. Now the colossus is reared, his works are
eagerly bought up by all the purchasers of scarce books. The
learned societies invite him to become a member; he disputes
against some foreigner with a long Latin name, conquers in the
controversy, is complimented by several authors of gravity and
importance, is excessively fond of egg sauce with his pig, becomes
president of a literary club, and dies in the meridian of his
glory. Happy they, who thus have some little faithful attendant,
who never forsakes them, but prepares to wrangle and to praise
against every opposer; at once ready to increase their pride while
living, and their character when dead. For you and I, my friend,
who have no humble admirer thus to attend us, we, who neither are,
nor ever will be great men, and who do not much care whether we are
great men or no, at least let us strive to be honest men, and to
have common sense.
