Unit3Lying全新版大学英语综合教程五课文翻译.docx

1、Unit3Lying全新版大学英语综合教程五课文翻译Unit 3 LyingText A The Truth About Lying 1. Ive been wanting to write on a subject that intrigues and challenges me: the subject of lying. Ive found it very difficult to do. Everyone Ive talked to has a quite intense and personal but often rather intolerant point of view ab

2、out what we can and can never never tell lies about. Ive finally reached the conclusion that I cant present any ultimate conclusions, for too many people would promptly disagree. Instead, Id like to present a series of moral puzzles, all concerned with lying. Ill tell you what I think about them. Do

3、 you agree?Social Lies 2. Most of the people Ive talked with say that they find social lying acceptable and necessary. They think its the civilized way for folks to behave. Without these little white lies, they say, our relationships would be short and brutish and nasty. Its arrogant, they say, to i

4、nsist on being so incorruptible and so brave that you cause other people unnecessary embarrassment or pain by compulsively assailing them with your honesty. I basically agree. What about you? 3. Will you say to people, when it simply isnt true, I like your new hairdo, Youre looking much better, its

5、so nice to see you, I had a wonderful time? 4. Will you praise hideous presents and homely kids? 5. Will you decline invitations with Were busy that night so sorry we cant come, when the truth is youd rather stay home than dine with the So-and-sos? 6. And even though, as I do, you may prefer the pol

6、ite evasion of You really cooked up a storm instead of The soup which tastes like warmed-over coffee is wonderful, will you, if you must, proclaim it wonderful? 7. Theres one man I know who absolutely refuses to tell social lies. I cant play that game, he says; Im simply not made that way. And his a

7、nswer to the argument that saying nice things to someone doesnt cost anything is, Yes, it does it destroys your credibility. Now, he wont, unsolicited, offer his views on the painting you just bought, but you dont ask his frank opinion unless you want frank, and his silence at those moments when the

8、 rest of us liars are muttering, Isnt it lovely? is, for the most part, eloquent enough. My friend does not indulge in what he calls flattery, false praise and mellifluous comments. When others tell fibs he will not go along. He says that social lying is lying, that little white lies are still lies.

9、 And he feels that telling lies is morally wrong. What about you?Peace-Keeping Lies 8. Many people tell peace-keeping lies: lies designed to avoid irritation or argument, lies designed to shelter the liar from possible blame or pain; lies (or so it is rationalized) designed to keep trouble at bay wi

10、thout hurting anyone. 9. I tell these lies at times, and yet I always feel theyre wrong. I understand why we tell them, but still they feel wrong. And whenever I lie so that someone wont disapprove of me or think less of me or holler at me, I feel Im a bit of a coward, I feel Im dodging responsibili

11、ty, I feel.guilty. What about you? 10. Do you, when youre late for a date because you overslept, say that youre late because you got caught in a traffic jam? 11. Do you, when you forget to call a friend, say that you called several times but the line was busy? 12. Do you, when you didnt remember tha

12、t it was your fathers birthday, say that his present must be delayed in the mail? 13. And when youre planning a weekend in New York City and youre not in the mood to visit your mother, who lives there, do you conceal with a lie, if you must the fact that youll be in New York? Or do you have the cour

13、age or is it the cruelty? to say, Ill be in New York, but sorry I dont plan on seeing you? 14. (Dave and his wife Elaine have two quite different points of view on this very subject. He calls her a coward. She says shes being wise. He says she must assert her right to visit New York sometimes and no

14、t see her mother. To which she always patiently replies: Why should we have useless fights? My mothers too old to change. We get along much better when I lie to her.) 15. Finally, do you keep the peace by telling your husband lies on the subject of money? Do you reduce what you really paid for your

15、shoes? And in general do you find yourself ready, willing and able to lie to him when you make absurd mistakes or lose or break things? 16. I used to have a romantic idea that part of intimacy was confessing every dumb thing that you did to your husband. But after a couple of years of that, says Lau

16、ra, have I changed my mind! 17. And having changed her mind, she finds herself telling peacekeeping lies. And yes, I tell them too. What about you?Protective Lies 18. Protective lies are lies folks tell often quite serious lies because theyre convinced that the truth would be too damaging. They lie

17、because they feel there are certain human values that supersede the wrong of having lied. They lie, not for personal gain, but because they believe its for the good of the person theyre lying to. They lie to those they love, to those who trust them most of all, on the grounds that breaking this trus

18、t is justified. 19. They may lie to their children on money or marital matters. 20. They may lie to the dying about the state of their health. 21. They may lie to their closest friend because the truth about her talents or son or psyche would be or so they insist utterly devastating. 22. I sometimes

19、 tell such lies, but Im aware that its quite presumptuous to claim I know whats best for others to know. Thats called playing God . Thats called manipulation and control. And we never can be sure, once we start to juggle lies, just where theyll land, exactly where theyll roll. 23. And furthermore, w

20、e may find ourselves lying in order to back up the lies that are backing up the lie we initially told. 24. And furthermore lets be honest if conditions were reversed, we certainly wouldnt want anyone lying to us. 25. Yet, having said all that, I still believe that there are times when protective lie

21、s must nonetheless be told. What about you?Trust-Keeping Lies 26. Another group of lies are trust-keeping lies, lies that involve triangulation, with A (thats you) telling lies to B on behalf of C (whose trust youd promised to keep). Most people concede that once youve agreed not to betray a friends

22、 confidence, you cant betray it, even if you must lie. But Ive talked with people who dont want you telling them anything that they might be called on to lie about. 27. I dont tell lies for myself, says Fran, and I dont want to have to tell them for other people. Which means, she agrees, that if her

23、 best friend is having an affair, she absolutely doesnt want to know about it. 28. Are you saying, her best friend asks, that youd betray me? 29. Fran is very pained but very adamant. I wouldnt want to betray you, sodont tell me anything about it. 30. Frans best friend is shocked. What about you? 31

24、. Do you believe you can have close friends if youre not prepared to receive their deepest secrets? 32. Do you believe you must always lie for your friends? 33. Do you believe, if your friend tells a secret that turns out to be quite immoral or illegal, that once youve promised to keep it, you must

25、keep it? 34. And what if your friend were your boss if you were perhaps one of the Presidents men would you betray or lie for him over, say, Watergate? 35. As you can see, these issues get terribly sticky. 36. Its my belief that once weve promised to keep a trust, we must tell lies to keep it. I als

26、o believe that we cant tell Watergate lies. And if these two statements strike you as quite contradictory, youre right theyre quite contradictory. But for now theyre the best I can do. What about you? 37. There are those who have no talent for lying. 38. Over the years, I tried to lie, a friend of m

27、ine explained, but I always got found out and I always got punished. I guess I gave myself away because I feel guilty about any kind of lying. It looks as if Im stuck with telling the truth. 39. For those of us, however, who are good at telling lies, for those of us who lie and dont get caught, the

28、question of whether or not to lie can be a hard and serious moral problem. I liked the remark of a friend of mine who said, Im willing to lie. But just as a last resort the truths always better. 40. Because, he explained, though others may completely accept the lie Im telling, I dont.41. I tend to f

29、eel that way too. 42. What about you?关于扯谎的真相朱迪斯维奥斯特 我一直想写一个令我深感爱好的话题：关于扯谎的问题。我感觉那个题目很难写。所有我交谈过的人都对什么情形能够扯谎 什么情形绝对不能够扯谎 持有强烈的、常常不容他人分说的个人意见。最后我得出结论，我不能下任何定论，因为如此做就会有太多的人当即反对。我想我仍是提出假设干都与扯谎有关的道义上的难题吧。我将向读者说明我对这些难题的个人观点。你们感觉对吗？社交性假话 和我交谈过的大多数人都说，他们以为旨在增进社会交际的假话是能够同意的，也是必要的。他们以为这是一种文明的行为。他们说，要不是这种无关紧要的假

30、话，人与人之间的关系就会变得粗野不快，无法持久。他们说，若是你要做到十二分正直、十二分无畏，不由自主地用你的老实使他人陷入没必要要的窘境或痛楚当中，这只能说你是傲慢自大。对此，我大体赞同。你呢？ 你会可不能跟人说：“我喜爱你的新发型，”“你气色好多了，”“见到你真快乐，”“我玩得很尽兴，”而事实上全然不是这么回事儿？ 你会可不能对令人憎厌的礼物，或相貌平平的小孩称赞有加？ 你婉辞邀请时会可不能说“那天晚上咱们正好没空 真对不起，咱们不能来，”而事实上你是宁肯呆在家里也不想跟某某夫妇一路进餐？ 尽管像我那样，你也想用 “太丰盛了”这种委婉的托辞，而不是盛赞“那汤味道好极了”(其实味同从头热过的咖

31、啡)，但如果是你必需赞美那汤，你会说它鲜美吗? 我熟悉一个人，他完全拒绝说这种社交性假话。“我可不能那一套，”他说，“我生来就可不能那一套。”讲到对人家说几句好听的话并非失去什么，他的回答是：“不对，固然有损失 那会损害你的诚信度。”因此你不问他，他可不能对你刚买来的画发表意见，但除非你想听老实话，不然你也可不能去问他的真实方式。当咱们这些扯谎者轻宣称赞着“多美啊”的时候，他的沉默往往是极能说明问题的。我的这位朋友从来不讲他所说的“奉承话、虚假的赞美话和悦耳话”。他人说些无伤大雅的假话，他那么不。他说社交性假话仍是假话，无关紧要的小小假话仍是假话。他以为扯谎不合道德。你呢？息事宁人的假话 很多

32、人为了息事宁人而扯谎：那种意在幸免动气或争吵的假话，意在使扯谎者免受可能的责备或苦恼的假话；意在(或据以为理应)不损害他人而又能帮忙幸免麻烦的假话。 我有时也说这种谎，只是我总感觉不该说。我明白什么缘故要说这种谎，但说这种谎终究不对。每当我为了不让他人讨厌自己、看轻自己、或冲着自己嚷嚷而扯谎时，我总感觉自己有点像个懦夫，感觉自己是在逃避责任，感觉惭愧。你呢？ 你由于睡过头赴约会迟到了，会可不能说是因为碰上堵车才晚到的？ 你忘了给朋友打电话，会可不能谎称打过好几回，可电话老占线？ 你忘了父亲的生日，会可不能说寄给他的礼物准是给耽搁了？ 你打算去纽约市度周末，但又不想去看望住在那里的母亲，你会必要的话用假话隐瞒你将到纽约的事实，仍是会勇敢地或说狠心地说：“我要来纽约，可是抱歉，我不打算来看望你”？ (戴夫和妻子伊莱恩正是在那个问