双语有声阅读：论美(弗兰西斯.培根)

美德好比宝石，它在朴素背景的衬托下反而更华丽；同样，一个打扮并不华贵却端庄严肃而有美德者是令人肃然起敬的。

 

 

Of beauty

 

 

Virtue¹ is like a rich stone, best plain set; and surely virtue is best, in a body that is comely², though not of delicate features; and that hath rather dignity of presence, than beauty of aspect.

 

Neither is it almost seen, that very beautiful persons are otherwise of great virtue; as if nature were rather busy, not to err³, than in labor⁴ to produce excellency.And therefore they prove accomplished⁵, but not of great spirit; and study rather behavior, than virtue.

 

But this holds not always:for Augustus Caesar, Titus Vespasianus, Philip le Belle⁶ of France, Edward the Fourth of England, Alcibiades of Athens, Ismael the Sophy of Persia, were all high and great spirits; and yet the most beautiful men of their times.

 

In beauty, that of favor, is more than that of color; and that of decent and gracious motion, more than that of favor.

 

That is the best part of beauty, which a picture cannot express; no, nor the first sight of the life.

 

There is no excellent beauty, that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.

 

A man cannot tell whether Apelles, or Albert Durer, were the more trifler;whereof the one, would make a personage by geometrical proportions; the other, by taking the best parts out of divers⁷ faces, to make one excellent. Such personages, I think, would please nobody, but the painter that made them.

 

Not but I think a painter may make a better face than ever was; but he must do it by a kind of felicity (as a musician that maketh an excellent air in music), and not by rule.

 

A man shall see faces, that if you examine them part by part, you shall find never a good; and yet altogether do well.If it be true that the principal part of beauty is in decent motion, certainly it is no marvel⁸, though persons in years seem many times more amiable⁹; pulchrorum autumnus pulcher; for no youth can be comely but by pardon, and considering the youth, as to make up the comeliness¹⁰.Beauty is as summer fruits, which are easy to corrupt¹¹, and cannot last; and for the most part it makes a dissolute youth, and an age a little out of countenance¹²; but yet certainly again, if it light well, it maketh virtue shine, and vices¹³ blush.

 

论美

 

弗兰西斯.培根

 

美德好比宝石，它在朴素背景的衬托下反而更华丽；同样，一个打扮并不华贵却端庄严肃而有美德者是令人肃然起敬的。

 

外表美丽的人，未必也具有内在的美。因为造物主似乎是吝啬的，他给了此就不再予彼。

 

所以许多容颜俊秀的人却不足为训，他们过于追求外形美丽而忽略了内心的美。

 

但是这也不全对：

 

因为奥古斯都、菲斯帕斯、菲力普王、爱德华四世、阿尔西巴底斯、伊斯梅尔等都既是大丈夫，又是美男子。

 

就形貌而言，自然之美要胜于粉饰之美，而优雅行为之美又胜于单纯仪容之美。

 

最高的美是画家所无法表现的，因为它是难于直观的，这是一种奇妙的美。

 

虽然没有完美，但是有一些奇妙的可取点。

 

曾经有两位画家--阿皮雷斯和艾伯特丢勒滑稽地认为，可以按照几何比例，或者通过摄取不同人身上最美的特点，用画合成一张最完美的人像.

 

其实像这样画出来的美人，恐怕只表现了画家本人的某种偏爱。

 

美是很难制订规范的(正如同音乐一样)，创造它的常常是机遇，而不是公式。

 

有许多的脸型，就它的部分看并不优美，但作为整体却非常动人。

 

有些老人显得很可爱，因为他们的作风优雅而美。

 

有一句拉丁谚语说过：“暮秋之色更美。”而尽管有的年轻人具有美貌，却由于缺乏完美的修养而不配得到最好的赞美。美犹如盛夏的水果，是容易腐烂而难保持的。世上有许多美人，他们有过放荡的青春，却迎受着愧悔的晚年。 因此，应该把美的形貌与美的德行结合起来。这样，美才会放射出夺目的光辉。

1 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

2 comely   

adj.漂亮的，合宜的

参考例句：

• His wife is a comely young woman.他的妻子是一个美丽的少妇。
• A nervous,comely-dressed little girl stepped out.一个紧张不安、衣着漂亮的小姑娘站了出来。

3 err   

vi.犯错误，出差错

参考例句：

• He did not err by a hair's breadth in his calculation.他的计算结果一丝不差。
• The arrows err not from their aim.箭无虚发。

4 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

5 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

6 belle   

n.靓女

参考例句：

• She was the belle of her Sunday School class.在主日学校她是她们班的班花。
• She was the belle of the ball.她是那个舞会中的美女。

7 divers   

adj.不同的；种种的

参考例句：

• He chose divers of them,who were asked to accompany him.他选择他们当中的几个人，要他们和他作伴。
• Two divers work together while a standby diver remains on the surface.两名潜水员协同工作，同时有一名候补潜水员留在水面上。

8 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

9 amiable   

adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的

参考例句：

• She was a very kind and amiable old woman.她是个善良和气的老太太。
• We have a very amiable companionship.我们之间存在一种友好的关系。

10 comeliness   

n. 清秀, 美丽, 合宜

参考例句：

• Your comeliness is law with Mr. Wildeve. 你的美貌，对于韦狄先生，就是律令。
• Her comeliness overwhelmed him. 她的清秀美丽使他倾倒。

11 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

12 countenance   

n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同

参考例句：

• At the sight of this photograph he changed his countenance.他一看见这张照片脸色就变了。
• I made a fierce countenance as if I would eat him alive.我脸色恶狠狠地，仿佛要把他活生生地吞下去。

13 vices   

缺陷( vice的名词复数 )； 恶习； 不道德行为； 台钳

参考例句：

• In spite of his vices, he was loved by all. 尽管他有缺点，还是受到大家的爱戴。
• He vituperated from the pulpit the vices of the court. 他在教堂的讲坛上责骂宫廷的罪恶。