第四册第18篇：百万富翁的悲哀

18. Sorrows of the Millionaire 百万富翁的悲哀
by George Bernard Shaw

The millionaire class, a small but growing one into which any of us may be flung tomorrow by the accidents of commerce, is perhaps the most neglected in the community. As far as I know, this is the first tract¹ that has ever been written for millionaires.
百万富翁是一个虽小却正在扩大成长的阶层，我们当中任何人都可能由于做生意发了横财明天就被投进这个阶层。然而这个阶层在社会上或许是最受忽视的。为百万富翁鸣不平的小文章，据我所知，这还是第一篇。

In the advertisements of the manufacturers of the country, I find that everything is produced for the million and nothing for the millionaire. Children, boys, youth, “gents”, ladies, artisans, professional men, even peers, and kings, are catered² for; but the millionaire’s custom is evidently not worth having; there are too few of him. Whilst the poorest have their Rag Fair, a duly organized and busy market in Houndsditch, where you can buy a boot for a penny, you may search the world in vain for the market where the ￡50 boot, the special dear line of hats at forty guineas, the cloth of gold bicycling suit, and the Cleopatra claret, four pearls to the bottle, can be purchased wholesale³.
在这个国度所有制造商的广告上，我发现什么东西都是为成百万人生产的，而为百万富翁生产的却什么也没有。儿童，少年，青年，“绅士”，太太小姐，手艺人，职员，甚至贵族和国王，他们都得到供应；但是百万富翁的光顾显然并不值得欢迎，因为他们人数太少。穷光蛋有他们的旧货商场，那是在猎狐犬沟的一个货源充足，生意兴隆的市场，在那里一便士能买到一双靴子；而你找遍世界，也找不到一个市场能批发五十英镑一双的靴子，四十畿尼一顶的特档货帽子，骑自行车服装用的金线织品，值四颗珍珠一瓶的克娄巴特拉女王牌红葡萄酒。

Thus the unfortunate millionaire has the responsibility of prodigious⁴ wealth without the possibility of enjoying himself more than any ordinary rich man. Indeed, in many things he cannot enjoy himself more than many poor men do, nor even so much; for a drum major is better dressed; a trainer’s stable lad often rides a better horse; the first-class carriage is shared by office boys taking their young ladies out for the evening; everybody who goes down to Brighton for Sunday rides in the Pullman car; and of what use is it to be able to pay for a peacock’s brain sandwich when there is nothing to be had but ham or beef?
因此，不幸的百万富翁对巨额财富要承担责任，而其享受却不可能高于普通的有钱人。说真的，在好些方面，他的享受高不过许多穷人，甚至比不上穷人。因为一名军乐队的指挥穿得比他漂亮，驯马师的马童常骑更骏的马；头等车厢向来由服侍年轻太太小姐们晚间去兜风的勤杂人员共享；到布赖顿过星期天人人都乘普尔门式火车的客车。一个人买得起夹孔雀脑的三明治，碰到只有火腿或牛肉供应，也只好徒唤奈何！

The injustice⁵ of his state of things has not been sufficiently⁶ considered. A man with an income of ￡25 a year can multiply his comfort beyond all calculation by doubling his income. A man with ￡50 a year can at least quadruple his comfort by doubling his income. Probably up to even ￡250 a year doubled income means doubled comfort. After that the increment⁷ of comfort grows less in proportion to the increment of income until a point is reached at which the victim is satiated and even surfeited⁸ with everything that money can procure⁹. To expect him to enjoy another hundred thousand pounds because men like money, is exactly as if you were to expect a confectioner’s shop-boy to enjoy two hours more work a day because boys are fond of sweets. What can the wretched millionaire do that needs a million? Does he want a fleet of yachts, a Rotten Row full of carriages, an army of servants, a whole city of town houses, or a continent for a game preserve? Can he attend more than one theatre in one evening, or wear more than one suit at a time, or digest more meals than his butler? Is it a luxury to have more money to take care of, more begging letters to read, and to be cut off from those delicious Alnaschar dreams in which the poor man, sitting down to consider what he will do in the always possible event of some unknown relative leaving him a fortune, forgets his privation.
诸如此类不公平的情况，这里还远远没有说完。一个人每年收入25英镑，一旦他的收入增加一倍，他的舒服程度可以提高无数倍。一个人每年收入50英镑，一旦收入加一倍，至少可以得到四倍的舒服。说不定每年收入高达250英镑的人，双倍的收入也还意味着双倍的舒服。超过此数者，舒服程度的增长与岁入的增长的比例就越来越小，最后达到一点，他成了财富的牺牲品，对于凡金钱所能买到的任何东西他都感到厌腻，甚至恶心。你说人人喜欢金钱，就以为他多得十万英镑便会高兴；那就象因为小孩子爱吃糖果，你就以为糖果店的小伙计乐意每天加班两小时一样。可怜的百万富翁究竟要那百万英镑做什么呢？难道他需要一大队游艇？要挤满海德公园骑马道那么多的马车？要一支仆从大军？要整城的住房？或者整个一块大陆作为他狩猎的林苑？一个晚上他能上几个戏院看戏？一身能同时穿几套衣服？一天又能比他的管厨多消化几餐？他要照管更多的钱财，要看更多向他告贷的信，难道这也是一种乐事？穷人可以做黄粱美梦，可以坐下来盘算，如果哪天一位素不相识的亲戚给他留下一笔财产时他该如何消受，以致暂时忘了自己的穷困，因为这种飞来横财总不是绝对不可能的；而百万富翁却用不着再做这种黄粱美梦，难道这也是一种乐事？

And yet there is no sympathy for this hidden sorrow of Plutocracy¹⁰. The poor alone are pitied. Societies spring up in all directions to relieve all sorts of comparatively happy people, from discharged prisoners in the first rapture¹¹ of their regained¹² liberty to children revelling¹³ in the luxury of an unlimited¹⁴ appetite; but no hand is stretched out to the millionaire, except to beg. In all our dealing¹⁵ with him lies implicit¹⁶ the delusion¹⁷ that he has nothing to complain of, and that he ought to be ashamed of rolling in wealth whilst others are starving.
然而对富豪们内心的悲哀竟无人表示同情，惟独穷人有人怜悯。各种社会团体如雨后春笋般地兴起，以救济各种各样还算幸福的人们，从获释的囚徒──他们正初尝重获自由的狂喜，到那些穷苦的儿童──他们因能得到饱餐一顿的享受而欢喜雀跃。可是没有人向百万富翁伸手，除非为了乞求。我们同他打交道时无疑还有这么一种幻觉：他没有什么好抱怨的，他应该因自己在钱堆里打滚而别人却在挨饿而感到惭愧。

1 tract   

n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林)

参考例句：

• He owns a large tract of forest.他拥有一大片森林。
• He wrote a tract on this subject.他曾对此写了一篇短文。

2 catered   

提供饮食及服务( cater的过去式和过去分词 )； 满足需要，适合

参考例句：

• We catered for forty but only twenty came. 我们准备了40客饭菜，但只来了20个人。
• They catered for everyone regardless of social rank. 他们为所有人服务而不计较其社会地位。

3 wholesale   

n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售

参考例句：

• The retail dealer buys at wholesale and sells at retail.零售商批发购进货物，以零售价卖出。
• Such shoes usually wholesale for much less.这种鞋批发出售通常要便宜得多。

4 prodigious   

adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的

参考例句：

• This business generates cash in prodigious amounts.这种业务收益丰厚。
• He impressed all who met him with his prodigious memory.他惊人的记忆力让所有见过他的人都印象深刻。

5 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

6 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

7 increment   

n.增值，增价；提薪，增加工资

参考例句：

• Each increment of knowledge tells us more of our world.知识的点滴增长都会增进我们对世界的认知。
• She receives a salary increment each year.她每年得到加薪。

8 surfeited   

v.吃得过多( surfeit的过去式和过去分词 )；由于过量而厌腻

参考例句：

• They were surfeited with entertainment. 他们对玩乐生厌了；他们玩腻了。 来自辞典例句
• They had cloyed him with obedience, and surfeited him with sweet respect and submission. 她们在他面前百依百顺，甜言蜜语，卑躬屈膝。 来自辞典例句

9 procure   

vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条

参考例句：

• Can you procure some specimens for me?你能替我弄到一些标本吗？
• I'll try my best to procure you that original French novel.我将尽全力给你搞到那本原版法国小说。

10 plutocracy   

n.富豪统治

参考例句：

• Financial,not moral,considerations will prevail in a plutocracy.在富豪当政的国家里，人们见利忘义。
• The most prolific of the debunkers of the plutocracy was Gustavus Myers.揭发富豪统治集团的作家中，最多产的是古斯塔夫斯·迈尔斯。

11 rapture   

n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜

参考例句：

• His speech was received with rapture by his supporters.他的演说受到支持者们的热烈欢迎。
• In the midst of his rapture,he was interrupted by his father.他正欢天喜地，被他父亲打断了。

12 regained   

复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• The majority of the people in the world have regained their liberty. 世界上大多数人已重获自由。
• She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise. 她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。

13 revelling   

v.作乐( revel的现在分词 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉

参考例句：

• I think he's secretly revelling in all the attention. 我觉得他对于能够引起广泛的注意心里感到飘飘然。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They were drinking and revelling all night. 他们整夜喝酒作乐。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。

15 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

16 implicit   

a.暗示的，含蓄的，不明晰的，绝对的

参考例句：

• A soldier must give implicit obedience to his officers. 士兵必须绝对服从他的长官。
• Her silence gave implicit consent. 她的沉默表示默许。

17 delusion   

n.谬见，欺骗，幻觉，迷惑

参考例句：

• He is under the delusion that he is Napoleon.他患了妄想症，认为自己是拿破仑。
• I was under the delusion that he intended to marry me.我误认为他要娶我。