2020年经济学人 约翰逊专栏--种族歧视用语(2)

The problem runs deep. A host of negative words and expressions in English contain the modifier “black”; they are old, and are probably related to a primeval fear of darkness. Nonetheless the constant equation of “black” with danger or evil can weary black human beings: consider black magic, blackguard, black-hearted, black economy and so forth¹. Some, such as blackmail², are unavoidable fixtures³. But not all: the computer types who are replacing “blacklist” (a list of e-mail addresses that cannot reach you) with “blocklist” are making a small but symbolic⁴ effort.

这个问题根深蒂固。英语中存在大量负面的词汇和表达带有修饰语“黑色”；这种表达由来已久，很可能与人们对黑暗的原始恐惧有关。尽管如此，“黑色”与危险或邪恶的永恒等式让黑人们不厌其烦：比如黑魔法、恶棍、黑心、黑色经济等等。在一些固定用法的表达中，“黑色”的使用不可避免，比如敲诈勒索这个词。但并不是所有的表达都必须固定使用“黑色”，计算机从业者在使用“黑名单”时用“blocklist”替代“blacklist”（黑名单是指无法联系你的一系列邮件地址的清单），这样的做法微不足道，但意义非凡。

The same tech wizards deploying⁵ “blocklist” have proposed new terms for “master” and “slave” in computing⁶ (whereby one process or device controls another). This seems justifiable⁷, too. The hunt for “masters” has ranged beyond power relationships, however. Harvard has dropped the name “house masters” for faculty⁸ members who live in student accommodation and have a pastoral role. Some property salesmen are ditching “master bedroom” in favour of “main bedroom”. These changes may be inessential, but they are harmless.

提出使用“blocklist”的技术奇才还提出用新术语来替代计算机中的“主”和“从”（“主”和“从”表示一个程序或设备控制另一个程序或设备）。这样的替代似乎也合情合理。但是，对“主”这一术语的取代已经超出了他的权力关系。哈佛大学已经取消了“舍监”这一称呼，“舍监”指代那些住在学生宿舍并承担教牧角色的教职人员。一些房地产销售人员在描述“主卧”时，也弃用了“master bedroom”，转而使用“main bedroom”。这样的改变也许无关紧要，但却不会招惹麻烦。

The harm comes only when sensitivity to offence goes so far that it undermines the assumption of good faith to which people are generally entitled. At a meeting of the Linguistic⁹ Society of America in 2018, for instance, Itamar Francez of the University of Chicago spoke¹⁰ on a panel about diversity in the discipline. He decried¹¹ “formalchismo”: older scholars’ dismissal of new perspectives for being expressed without traditional formality. Many in the audience liked his coinage, but Mr Francez soon found himself retracting¹² it: a listener had complained that it “creates a hostile environment in linguistics¹³ for Spanish speakers”. More and more academics say they are afraid to discuss controversial issues; that becomes harder still when even those trying to confront racism¹⁴ are vulnerable to a “call-out” over a triviality.

只有在人们对冒犯的界定过于敏感，以至于连公众普遍认可的善意都无法接受的时候，麻烦就会随之而来。比如，在2018年举办的美国语言学会的一次会议上，芝加哥大学的伊塔玛·弗朗兹在小组讨论中进行发言，对语言学的学科多样性进行探讨。他谴责“形式主义”，即年长的学者们因为新观点不符合传统的表达形式就不屑一顾。许多观众喜欢弗朗兹这一新创造的词汇，但他自己很快就觉得这个词不能使用，因为一名听众抱怨称，“在语言学上，这个词会对讲西班牙语的人造成不良影响”。越来越多的学者表示，他们害怕讨论有争议的问题；甚至那些反对种族歧视的人都很容易因为微不足道的小事而受到谴责，讨论由此变得越发艰难。

The losers could be those who need frank discussion most: minority students who should be able to decry¹⁵ the real harms they face, in forms large and small. One student at USC wrote on Instagram that the “nei ge” flap “is going to be used to gaslight us when we try to voice our actual grievances”. An evergrowing list of things you cannot say helps no one. Progress requires more open conversation, not less.

那些最需要进行开诚布公讨论的人可能最深受其害，也就是那些少数族裔的学生，他们应该强烈谴责自己遭受的真正伤害，不论伤害程度的深浅。一名南加州大学的学生在Instagram上写道，“当我们试图表达我们真正面临的苦痛时，由‘内个’引发的骚动事件对我们进行了心理操纵，会让我们噤若寒蝉”。禁言清单越来越长，这无益于任何人。只有广开言论，而非闭口不言，才能取得进步。

1 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

2 blackmail   

n.讹诈，敲诈，勒索，胁迫，恫吓

参考例句：

• She demanded ＄1000 blackmail from him.她向他敲诈了1000美元。
• The journalist used blackmail to make the lawyer give him the documents.记者讹诈那名律师交给他文件。

3 fixtures   

（房屋等的）固定装置( fixture的名词复数 )； 如（浴盆、抽水马桶）； 固定在某位置的人或物； （定期定点举行的）体育活动

参考例句：

• The insurance policy covers the building and any fixtures contained therein. 保险单为这座大楼及其中所有的设施保了险。
• The fixtures had already been sold and the sum divided. 固定设备已经卖了，钱也分了。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

4 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

5 deploying   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的现在分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Provides support for developing and deploying distributed, component-based applications. 为开发和部署基于组件的分布式应用程序提供支持。
• Advertisement, publishing, repair, and install-on-demand are all available when deploying your application. 在部署应用程序时提供公布、发布、修复和即需即装功能。

6 computing   

n.计算

参考例句：

• to work in computing 从事信息处理
• Back in the dark ages of computing, in about 1980, they started a software company. 早在计算机尚未普及的时代（约1980年），他们就创办了软件公司。

7 justifiable   

adj.有理由的，无可非议的

参考例句：

• What he has done is hardly justifiable.他的所作所为说不过去。
• Justifiable defense is the act being exempted from crimes.正当防卫不属于犯罪行为。

8 faculty   

n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员

参考例句：

• He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
• He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

9 linguistic   

adj.语言的，语言学的

参考例句：

• She is pursuing her linguistic researches.她在从事语言学的研究。
• The ability to write is a supreme test of linguistic competence.写作能力是对语言能力的最高形式的测试。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 decried   

v.公开反对，谴责( decry的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The measures were decried as useless. 这些措施受到指责，说是不起作用。
• The old poet decried the mediocrity of today's writing. 老诗人抨击了现代文体的平庸无奇。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

12 retracting   

v.撤回或撤消( retract的现在分词 )；拒绝执行或遵守；缩回；拉回

参考例句：

• The cart can automatic retracting, releasing and laying cables. 本收放车具有自动收线、放线、排线功能。 来自互联网
• I mean, is the art of retracting just too much for you? 我是说，这个缩进技术对于你太难了吗？ 来自互联网

13 linguistics   

n.语言学

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• Linguistics is a scientific study of the property of language.语言学是指对语言的性质所作的系统研究。

14 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

15 decry   

v.危难，谴责

参考例句：

• Some people will decry this,insisting that President Obama should have tried harder to gain bipartisan support.有些人会对此表示谴责，坚持说奥巴马总统原本应该更加努力获得两党的支持。
• Now you decry him as another Hitler because he is a threat to the controlling interest of oil in the middle east.现在你却因为他对中东石油控制权益构成了威胁而谴责他为另一个希特勒。