经济学人149:苏联旧事 斯大林和他可憎的事业

　　Soviet¹ history
苏联旧事
Stalin and his cursed cause
斯大林和他可憎的事业
High five for communism
为共产主义击掌
Stalin's Curse: Battling for Communism in War and Cold War. By Robert Gellately.
斯大林的诅咒》：热冷战期间为共产主义而战斗。罗伯特盖拉特莱著。
FIRST and foremost, Stalin was a communist, who believed that the sacred cause justified² the most extreme measures: what non-believers would call unparalleled barbarity. This central message in Robert Gellately's masterly new book is an uncomfortable one for those who believe that Stalinism was an aberration³, or a reaction to mistakes made by the West. It is facile to say Stalin was simply a psychopath, that he believed in terror for terror's sake, or that the Red Tsar's personality cult⁴ replaced ideology⁵. A Leninist to his core, he was conspiratorial⁶, lethal⁷, cynical⁸ and utterly⁹ convinced of his own rightness.
首先，斯大林是一个共产主义者。他相信只要是为了神圣的事业，采取最极端措施也是可以的。而不相信的人称之为空前的暴行。盖拉特莱最新的作品堪称大师之作。文中表达的中心思想会让一些人感到不安。那些人认为斯大林主义不合常规，或者是对西方所犯的错误作出的回应。人们可以轻率地说，斯大林就是一个精神病，他为引起恐慌而信仰恐怖活动。或者说他用对“红色沙皇”的个人狂热崇拜取代意识形态。斯大林是彻头彻尾的列宁主义者，他爱耍阴谋，心狠手辣，生性多疑，却坚信自己事业的正义性。
“Stalin's Curse” draws mainly on German and Russian archives, plus numerous first-hand accounts, and the author's formidable interpretative skills. Unlike other biographies that have focused on the most sensational¹⁰ episodes in the dictator's life, it sets Stalin firmly in the historical context: the rise (and eventual¹¹ fall) of what the author calls the “Red Empire”.
除了运用大量第一手记述资料之外，《斯大林的诅咒》主要参考了德国和俄国档案。书中作者对史料的解读展现出高超的技巧。与其他传记聚焦这个独裁者一生中最轰动的轶事不同，本书牢牢地将斯大林置身于在历史大背景(作者称之为“红色帝国”的崛起,最终失败了)
Mr Gellately's latest work has a good claim to be the best single-volume account of the darkest period in Russian history. It is part of a crop of excellent new accounts of the era. It sits well with Timothy Snyder's 2010 book, “Bloodlands” (about mass killings) and Anne Applebaum's “Iron Curtain” (which deals with eastern Europe after 1944 and which came out last year). It is also a worthy¹² successor to his “Lenin, Stalin, Hitler: The Age of Social Catastrophe” (2008), which compared and contrasted the three monsters.
要说讲述俄国最黑暗时期的单册历史书描述中最优秀的，盖拉特莱的新书当之无愧。它是记录那个时代的诸多新杰作之一。这本书和蒂莫西 斯奈德2010年的新书《血色土地》（讲述数起大屠杀）和安妮 阿普勒鲍姆“《铁幕》（此书讲述1944年之后的东欧历史，去年出版）相得益彰。此书算得上盖拉特莱的《列宁，斯大林，希特勒：灾难的年代》的出色姊妹篇。后者比较了三个残酷的领导人。
Stalin's supposed strategic genius gets short shrift, along with his generalship. Because communist doctrine¹³ said all imperialists were equal, Stalin failed to see that the Western powers were not the same as Nazi¹⁴ Germany, and might even be useful allies against it. For all his paranoia¹⁵ and cynicism, the Soviet leader was determinedly¹⁶ friendly to Adolf Hitler, apparently¹⁷ believing that close ties with the Soviet Union made a Nazi attack less likely. But Hitler saw it the other way round: relying on Soviet imports endangered his long-term goal of destroying communism.
人类们认为斯大林满腹韬略和将才的天赋，本书作者却不以为然。因为社会主义教条宣称帝国主义者都是一样的。斯大林没能看到西方政权与纳粹德国并非完全相同，甚至与西方政权联盟可能对反纳粹德国最有效。尽管偏执又多疑，这位苏维埃领导人却坚定地对阿道夫希特勒表示友好，显然是认为德国和苏联关系紧密，可以减少纳粹进攻的可能性。但希特勒却从另一方面看待此事：依赖苏联进口威胁了他摧毁社会主义的长远目标。
Where Stalin excelled, again and again, was in ruthlessness and attention to detail. He paid minute attention to extending Soviet rule in places conquered at the war's end. He took great interest in details of science and cultural policy, fearing even the faintest breach¹⁸ in communist omniscience¹⁹. The results might be disastrous²⁰: but they were in accordance with communist theory, which was what mattered.
斯大林次次出众的是残暴以及对细节的关注。在这场战争尾声，他对苏联统治在被攻克地区的扩张给予了密切关注。他对科学和文化政策的细枝末节十分感兴趣，甚至担心自己的模糊会对社会主义者无所不知的形象造成破坏。其结果可能是灾难性的，但再这些政策都与社会主义理论相符合 ，这是最关键的。
Mr Gellately, a professor in Florida, has a deft²¹ touch with detail. For all the havoc²² he wreaked²³ on the countryside, Stalin knew next to nothing about it (he seems to have visited farms only once, in 1928). During their furious conquest of Germany, the Red Army soldiers avenged²⁴ their homeland's suffering in an orgy of destruction. An eyewitness²⁵ describes their taking “axes to armchairs, sofas, tables and stools, even baby carriages”. Individual stories are recounted with understated sympathy. But the scope of the suffering is inconceivable. An all but forgotten post-war famine in the Soviet Union killed 1m-2m people. Communism probably killed around 25m: roughly the same toll²⁶ of death and destruction as that wrought²⁷ by the Nazis²⁸.
盖拉特莱，是一名佛罗里达的教授，善于挖掘细节。尽管斯大林在农村造成了破坏，本人却几乎毫不知情（貌似他只在1928年参观了农场一次）。在猛攻德国期间，红军通过一系列肆意摧毁来为祖国曾遭受的苦难复仇。一个目击者形容他们“用斧头劈扶手椅，沙发，桌子，凳子甚至婴儿车”。个体的故事只是带着轻描淡写的同情色彩叙述着。但苦难的波及之广是难以想象的。 一场快被遗忘的苏联战后饥荒饿死了10到20万人。共产主义可能导致了25万人死亡：和纳粹造成的死亡、损失数字大致持平。
Aside from the chief villain²⁹, Western leaders too come in for quiet but deserved scorn. Both Franklin Roosevelt and Harry³⁰ Truman failed to grasp their counterpart's malevolence³¹. Winston Churchill made casual deals that consigned³² millions of people to slavery and torment³³. The foreigners thought Stalin was a curmudgeonly³⁴ ally to be coaxed³⁵ and cajoled. He treated them as enemies to be outwitted. Far from provoking Stalin into unnecessary hostility³⁶, the Western powers were not nearly tough enough.
除首要的反面人物外，西方领导人也受到虽克制的但应得的蔑视。富兰克林罗斯福和哈里S杜鲁门都没能洞悉与他们的对手斯大林的恶毒。邱吉尔随意就达成了协议：导致数以百万计的人遭受奴役和折磨。这个外国人认为斯大林是个易被哄骗和劝诱的，脾气暴躁的同盟者。他对他们就像瞒骗敌人。西方列强不愿挑起斯大林的不必要敌意，更谈不上对他采取强硬态度。
Some of the strongest passages of the book concern Stalin's final years: the sharpening contrast between his obsessive³⁷ paranoia and his analytical³⁸ powers; the looming³⁹ anti-Semitism, and the beginnings of a massive new arms build-up. Little of that came to fruition, sparing the world untold⁴⁰ new horrors. But what Stalin did achieve was quite bad enough.
书中涉及斯大林最后日子的段落是高潮：他的强迫性偏执和超强的分析能力形成鲜明对比；骨子里的反亲犹太人主义，一种大规模新式军备逐步增强的开端。这些只有少部分实现了，使世界免于数不清的新恐慌。但已实现了的那些，却是够坏的了。

1 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

2 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

3 aberration   

n.离开正路，脱离常规，色差

参考例句：

• The removal of the chromatic aberration is then of primary importance.这时消除色差具有头等重要性。
• Owing to a strange mental aberration he forgot his own name.由于一种莫名的精神错乱，他把自己的名字忘了。

4 cult   

n.异教，邪教；时尚，狂热的崇拜

参考例句：

• Her books aren't bestsellers,but they have a certain cult following.她的书算不上畅销书，但有一定的崇拜者。
• The cult of sun worship is probably the most primitive one.太阳崇拜仪式或许是最为原始的一种。

5 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

6 conspiratorial   

adj.阴谋的，阴谋者的

参考例句：

• She handed the note to me with a conspiratorial air. 她鬼鬼祟祟地把字条交给了我。 来自辞典例句
• It was enough to win a gap-toothed, conspiratorial grin. 这赢得对方咧嘴一笑。 来自互联网

7 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

8 cynical   

adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的

参考例句：

• The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
• He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。

9 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

10 sensational   

adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的

参考例句：

• Papers of this kind are full of sensational news reports.这类报纸满是耸人听闻的新闻报道。
• Their performance was sensational.他们的演出妙极了。

11 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

12 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

13 doctrine   

n.教义；主义；学说

参考例句：

• He was impelled to proclaim his doctrine.他不得不宣扬他的教义。
• The council met to consider changes to doctrine.宗教议会开会考虑更改教义。

14 Nazi   

n.纳粹分子，adj.纳粹党的，纳粹的

参考例句：

• They declare the Nazi regime overthrown and sue for peace.他们宣布纳粹政权已被推翻，并出面求和。
• Nazi closes those war criminals inside their concentration camp.纳粹把那些战犯关在他们的集中营里。

15 paranoia   

n.妄想狂，偏执狂；多疑症

参考例句：

• Her passion for cleanliness borders on paranoia.她的洁癖近乎偏执。
• The push for reform is also motivated by political paranoia.竞选的改革运动也受到政治偏执狂症的推动。

16 determinedly   

adv.决意地；坚决地，坚定地

参考例句：

• "Don't shove me,'said one of the strikers, determinedly. "I'm not doing anything." “别推我，"其中的一个罢工工人坚决地说，"我可没干什么。” 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Dorothy's chin set determinedly as she looked calmly at him. 多萝西平静地看着他，下巴绷得紧紧的，看来是打定主意了。 来自名作英译部分

17 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

18 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

19 omniscience   

n.全知，全知者，上帝

参考例句：

• Omniscience is impossible, but we be ready at all times, constantly studied. 无所不知是不可能，但我们应该时刻准备着，不断地进修学习。 来自互联网
• Thus, the argument concludes that omniscience and omnipotence are logically incompatible. 因此，争论断定那个上帝和全能是逻辑地不兼容的。 来自互联网

20 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。

21 deft   

adj.灵巧的，熟练的（a deft hand 能手）

参考例句：

• The pianist has deft fingers.钢琴家有灵巧的双手。
• This bird,sharp of eye and deft of beak,can accurately peck the flying insects in the air.这只鸟眼疾嘴快，能准确地把空中的飞虫啄住。

22 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

23 wreaked   

诉诸（武力），施行（暴力），发（脾气）( wreak的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city. 地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• They have wreaked dreadful havoc among the wildlife by shooting and trapping. 他们射杀和诱捕野生动物，造成了严重的破坏。

24 avenged   

v.为…复仇，报…之仇( avenge的过去式和过去分词 )；为…报复

参考例句：

• She avenged her mother's death upon the Nazi soldiers. 她惩处了纳粹士兵以报杀母之仇。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Indians avenged the burning of their village on〔upon〕 the settlers. 印第安人因为村庄被焚毁向拓居者们进行报复。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 eyewitness   

n.目击者，见证人

参考例句：

• The police questioned several eyewitness to the murder.警察询问了谋杀案的几位目击者。
• He was the only eyewitness of the robbery.他是那起抢劫案的唯一目击者。

26 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

27 wrought   

v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的

参考例句：

• Events in Paris wrought a change in British opinion towards France and Germany.巴黎发生的事件改变了英国对法国和德国的看法。
• It's a walking stick with a gold head wrought in the form of a flower.那是一个金质花形包头的拐杖。

28 Nazis   

n.（德国的）纳粹党员( Nazi的名词复数 )；纳粹主义

参考例句：

• The Nazis worked them over with gun butts. 纳粹分子用枪托毒打他们。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Nazis were responsible for the mass murder of Jews during World War Ⅱ. 纳粹必须为第二次世界大战中对犹太人的大屠杀负责。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 villain   

n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因

参考例句：

• He was cast as the villain in the play.他在戏里扮演反面角色。
• The man who played the villain acted very well.扮演恶棍的那个男演员演得很好。

30 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

31 malevolence   

n.恶意，狠毒

参考例句：

• I had always been aware of a frame of malevolence under his urbanity. 我常常觉察到，在他温文尔雅的下面掩藏着一种恶意。 来自辞典例句

32 consigned   

v.把…置于（令人不快的境地）( consign的过去式和过去分词 )；把…托付给；把…托人代售；丟弃

参考例句：

• I consigned her letter to the waste basket. 我把她的信丢进了废纸篓。
• The father consigned the child to his sister's care. 那位父亲把孩子托付给他妹妹照看。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

33 torment   

n.折磨；令人痛苦的东西(人)；vt.折磨；纠缠

参考例句：

• He has never suffered the torment of rejection.他从未经受过遭人拒绝的痛苦。
• Now nothing aggravates me more than when people torment each other.没有什么东西比人们的互相折磨更使我愤怒。

34 curmudgeonly   

adj.小气的，不和悦的

参考例句：

• Under Mr Obama nobody will dare to seem so curmudgeonly. 在奥巴马时代，没有人敢表现得如此小气。 来自互联网

35 coaxed   

v.哄，用好话劝说( coax的过去式和过去分词 )；巧言骗取；哄劝，劝诱

参考例句：

• She coaxed the horse into coming a little closer. 她哄着那匹马让它再靠近了一点。
• I coaxed my sister into taking me to the theatre. 我用好话哄姐姐带我去看戏。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

36 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。

37 obsessive   

adj. 着迷的, 强迫性的, 分神的

参考例句：

• Some people are obsessive about cleanliness.有些人有洁癖。
• He's becoming more and more obsessive about punctuality.他对守时要求越来越过分了。

38 analytical   

adj.分析的；用分析法的

参考例句：

• I have an analytical approach to every survey.对每项调查我都采用分析方法。
• As a result,analytical data obtained by analysts were often in disagreement.结果各个分析家所得的分析数据常常不一致。

39 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望

40 untold   

adj.数不清的，无数的

参考例句：

• She has done untold damage to our chances.她给我们的机遇造成了不可估量的损害。
• They suffered untold terrors in the dark and huddled together for comfort.他们遭受着黑暗中的难以言传的种种恐怖，因而只好挤在一堆互相壮胆。