语言的天赋

 　　The gift of tongues.

　　语言的天赋。

　　What makes some people learn language after language?

　　何者吸引一些人接二连三地学习多门语言?

　　Babel No More: The Search for the World's Most Extraordinary Language Learners.

　　消逝的巴别塔：寻找世间最卓越的语言学习者。

　　CARDINAL¹ MEZZOFANTI of Bologna was a secular² saint. Though he never performed the kind of miracle needed to be officially canonised, his power was close to unearthly. Mezzofanti was said to speak 72 languages. Or 50. Or to have fully³ mastered 30. No one was certain of the true figure, but it was a lot. Visitors flocked from all corners of Europe to test him and came away stunned⁴. He could switch between languages with ease. Two condemned⁵ prisoners were due to be executed, but no one knew their language to hear their confession⁶. Mezzofanti learned it in a night, heard their sins the next morning and saved them from hell.

　　博洛尼亚的Mezzofanti红衣主教是一个身处于俗世的圣人。尽管他从未演示过任何奇迹而被正式册封为圣徒，其能力也近乎超自然了。据说Mezzofanti可以说72抑或50种语言，若说精通则是30种。对此，没人能说得准，但总之很多。成群结队从欧洲各地赶来验证他能力的游客都带着瞠目结舌的神情离去。他可以轻松地任意在几种语言之间切换。曾有两个被定罪的囚犯即将行刑，却因说一口无人知晓的语言使得最后的忏悔无人听得懂。Mezzofanti用一夜学会了这种语言，并于隔天早晨倾听了他们的罪孽，救赎了他们的灵魂以免于沦落地狱。

　　Or so the legend goes. In "Babel No More", Michael Erard has written the first serious book about the people who master vast numbers of languages—or claim to. A journalist with some linguistics⁸ training, Mr Erard is not a hyperpolyglot himself (he speaks some Spanish and Chinese), but he approaches his topic with both wonder and a healthy dash of scepticism.

　　如此这般，传言之谓。《消逝的巴别塔》是Michael Erard所写的有关于精通或声称自己精通许多种语言之人的第一本严肃书籍。Erard先生虽是个受过些许语言学训练的记者，但却并没有通晓超多种语言的特殊能力（他能说一点西班牙语和中文），不过他在处理论题时，即带着惊奇艳羡，又带着几许健康的怀疑态度。

　　Mezzofanti, for example, was a high-ranking clergyman born in 1774. In most of his interactions, he would have been the one to pick the topic of conversation, and he could rely on the same formulae he had used many times. He lived in an age when "knowing" a language more often meant reading and translating rather than speaking fluently with natives. Nonetheless, Mezzofanti clearly had speaking talent; his English accent was so good as to be almost too correct, an Irish observer noted⁹.

　　如Mezzsfanti生于1774年，曾是高级神职人员。多数情况下，他可能正是在与人交流中掌握选择话题主动权的人，如此，他便能够仰仗用过许多次的同一种模式交谈了。他所生活的年代对于“知晓”一种语言的理解更多的是指能读能译而非能够流利地与母语使用者交流。尽管如此，Mezzofanti显然还是拥有语言天赋的：一个爱尔兰目击者指出，他的英语口音好到几乎过了头。

　　To find out whether anyone could really learn so many languages, Mr Erard set out to find modern Mezzofantis. The people he meets are certainly interesting. One man with a mental age of nine has a vast memory for foreign words and the use of grammatical endings, but he cannot seem to break free of English word-order. Ken¹⁰ Hale, who was a linguist⁷ at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and died in 2001, was said to have learned 50 languages, including notoriously difficult Finnish while on a flight to Helsinki. Professional linguists¹¹ still swear by his talent. But he insisted he spoke¹² only three (English, Spanish and Warlpiri—from Australia's Northern Territory) and could merely "talk in" others.

　　为了弄清是否真有人能够学如此多的语言，Erard先生启程去寻找现代的“Mezzofantis”。他果真遇到了有趣之人。一个心理年龄仅9岁的男子拥有大量关于外语单词和词尾的记忆，但似乎不能打破英语词序的思维定式。另据说Ken Hale，这位于2011年去世的麻省理工学院的语言学家，生前学习了50种语言，甚至在一架飞往赫尔辛基的航班上学会被公认极难的芬兰语。语言专家们至今仍对他的天赋确信无疑。而他本人确坚称自己只会三门语言（英语，西班牙语和沃匹利语——来自于澳洲北领地），而对于其它语言，聊聊尚可。

　　Mr Erard says that true hyperpolyglottery begins at about 11 languages, and that while legends abound¹³, tried and tested exemplars are few. Ziad Fazah, raised in Lebanon and now living in Brazil, once held the Guinness world record for 58 languages. But when surprised on a Chilean television show by native speakers, he utterly¹⁴ flubbed questions in Finnish, Mandarin¹⁵, Farsi and Russian (including "What day is it today?" in Russian), a failure that lives in infamy¹⁶ on YouTube. Perhaps he was a fraud; perhaps he simply had a miserable¹⁷ day. Hyperpolyglots must warm up or "prime" their weaker languages, with a few hours' or days' practice, to use them comfortably. Switching quickly between more than around six or seven is near-impossible even for the most gifted.

　　Erard先生称真正的精通超多语言者应从掌握11门语言算起，而且尽管传言四起，能经受住考验的实例确少之甚少。成长于黎巴嫩现居于巴西的Ziad Fazah曾因会58种语言而被载入吉尼斯世界纪录，却在一台智利的电视节目中在无准备状态下受到母语使用的突袭，以至于完全弄错了用芬兰语、普通话、波斯语和俄语问的问题（包括俄语的“今天周几？”），这个失败带了的耻辱在因YouTube得以长存。也许Ziad Fazah是个骗子，也许他那天只是特别倒霉。精通超多语言者必须对他较薄弱的语言进行几小时甚至是几天的热身或者说是“事先准备”，才能自如运用这些语言。而迅速地在六、七种语言之间来回切换，即使对于那些天赋异禀者来说，也几乎是不可能的。

　　Does that mean they don't really know them? Is instant availability of native-like competence¹⁸ the only standard for "nowing" a language? How should partly knowing a tongue be tallied¹⁹? What if you can only read in it? Mr Erard repeatedly peppers his text with such questions, feeling his way through his story as a thoughtful observer, rather than banging about like an academic with a theory to defend or a pitchman with a technique to sell.

　　这就意味着他们并非真正知晓这些语言么？拥有与母语使用者那样呼之即来来之能用的能力即是“知晓”一种语言的唯一标准吗？该如何评估部分知晓一门语言呢？又如果你仅能阅读呢？Erard先生在他的文章中接二连三地提出问题，如一个善思考的观察者根据故事寻找线索，而非言辞激烈地如同一个专家用理论来辩解或像个宣传员以技巧来销售自己的观点。

　　Hyperpolyglots are more likely to be introverted than extroverted²⁰, which may come as a surprise to some. Hale's son always said that, in his father's case, languages were a cloak for a shy man. Another, Alexander Arguelles, has learned dozens of languages only to read them, saying "It's rare that you have an interesting conversation in English. Why do I think it would be any better in another language?" Emil Krebs, an early-20th-century German diplomat²¹ who was also credited with knowing dozens of languages, was boorish²² in all of them. He once refused to speak to his wife for several months because she told him to put on a winter coat.

　　令很多人感到惊奇的是，精通超多语言者们的性格更趋于内向。Hale的儿子总是说，在他父亲看来，语言是腼腆者的伪装。另一个名为Alexander Arguelles的人会许多种语言却都仅限于阅读，他解释说“如果你对用英语交谈都罕有兴趣的话，又怎会对说其他语言有更多好感呢？”20世纪上半叶的德国外交官Emil Krebs也被公认会几十种语言，但不管说哪一种都是生硬无礼。他曾有一次几个月都拒绝跟他妻子说话仅因为她让他添一件冬衣。

　　Different hypotheses may explain part of the language-learner's gift. Some hyperpolyglots seem near-autistic. In support, Mr Erard points to the theory of Simon Baron-Cohen, of Cambridge University, that autists have an "extreme male brain" that seeks to master systems. Another hypothesis is the "Geschwind-Galaburda" cluster of traits. Supposedly resulting from abnormal antenatal exposure to hormones²³, this cluster includes maleness, homosexuality, left-handedness, poor visual-spatial skills, immune disorders²⁴, and perhaps also language-learning talent. Brain areas are also keyed to certain skills. The left Heschl’s gyrus is bigger than average in professional phoneticians. People who learn new vocabulary quickly show more activity in the hippocampus. Krebs's brain, preserved in slices at a laboratory in Düsseldorf, shows various unusual features.

　　不同的假说也许能够解释语言学习者的部分天赋。有一些精通超多语言者显现出自闭的倾向。Erard先生以剑桥大学Simon Baron-Cohen的理论作为例证，即自闭症患者拥有“极端男性大脑”以寻求对事物系统性地掌握。另一个假设则是“Geschwind-Galaburda”的特征簇。这一被推测为因孕期非正常接触到荷尔蒙而导致的特征包括男性向、同性恋、左撇子、立体空间辨别力差、免疫系统紊乱，也可能是学习语言的天赋。大脑的区域与特定的人体机能相联系。专业语音学者的左听皮质区比常人大，而能够快速学习新词汇的人大脑海马区域较常人活跃。Kreb的大脑切片被保存在杜塞尔多夫的一个实验室里，其显示出多种不同寻常的特质。

　　The discovery of the FOXP2 brain gene²⁵, a mutation²⁶ of which can cause language loss, was met with considerable excitement when it was announced over a decade ago. But the reality is that many parts of the brain work together to produce speech and no single gene, region of the brain or theory can explain successful language-learning. In the end Mr Erard is happy simply to meet interesting characters, tell fascinating tales and round up the research without trying to judge which is the best work.

　　十多年前，对FOXP2大脑基因突变会导致语言能力丧失这一发现的公布使众人激动不已。事实上，话语能力是大脑的许多部分共同运作而产生的，没有任何单独的基因、大脑区域或理论的不同领域可以成功解释语言学习。最后，Erard先生只能满足于结实有趣之人、叙述精彩故事和搜集科研的喜悦之情，而非对这些研究的优劣妄加评判。

　　At the end of his story, however, he finds a surprise in Mezzofanti's archive: flashcards. Stacks of them, in Georgian, Hungarian, Arabic, Algonquin and nine other tongues. The world's most celebrated²⁷ hyperpolyglot relied on the same tools given to first-year language-learners today. The conclusion? Hyperpolyglots may begin with talent, but they aren't geniuses. They simply enjoy tasks that are drudgery²⁸ to normal people. The talent and enjoyment²⁹ drive a virtuous³⁰ cycle that pushes them to feats³¹ others simply shake their heads at, admiration³² mixed with no small amount of incomprehension.

　　然而，在著述的末尾，他在Messofanti的档案资料中找到令人惊讶的发现：抽认卡——一大堆的抽认卡，格鲁吉亚语，匈牙利语，阿拉伯语，阿尔贡金语以及另外九中语言——举世最著名的通晓超多语言者也要依靠这一现今我们为语言初学者所准备的工具。结论呢？精通超多语言者最初确实可能由能力而起，但他们也并非天才而只是能够对一般人觉得单调乏味的工作感到乐在其中。这一由天赋和兴趣所形成的良性循环驱策着他们成就另他人望而却步的事业，而在得到他人钦佩的同时也伴随着更多的不解。

1 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。

2 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

5 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

6 confession   

n.自白，供认，承认

参考例句：

• Her confession was simply tantamount to a casual explanation.她的自白简直等于一篇即席说明。
• The police used torture to extort a confession from him.警察对他用刑逼供。

7 linguist   

n.语言学家；精通数种外国语言者

参考例句：

• I used to be a linguist till I become a writer.过去我是个语言学家，后来成了作家。
• Professor Cui has a high reputation as a linguist.崔教授作为语言学家名声很高。

8 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。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

11 linguists   

n.通晓数国语言的人( linguist的名词复数 )；语言学家

参考例句：

• The linguists went to study tribal languages in the field. 语言学家们去实地研究部落语言了。 来自辞典例句
• The linguists' main interest has been to analyze and describe languages. 语言学家的主要兴趣一直在于分析并描述语言。 来自辞典例句

12 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。

13 abound   

vi.大量存在；(in，with)充满，富于

参考例句：

• Oranges abound here all the year round.这里一年到头都有很多橙子。
• But problems abound in the management of State-owned companies.但是在国有企业的管理中仍然存在不少问题。

14 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。

15 Mandarin   

n.中国官话，国语，满清官吏；adj.华丽辞藻的

参考例句：

• Just over one billion people speak Mandarin as their native tongue.大约有十亿以上的人口以华语为母语。
• Mandarin will be the new official language of the European Union.普通话会变成欧盟新的官方语言。

16 infamy   

n.声名狼藉，出丑，恶行

参考例句：

• They may grant you power,honour,and riches but afflict you with servitude,infamy,and poverty.他们可以给你权力、荣誉和财富，但却用奴役、耻辱和贫穷来折磨你。
• Traitors are held in infamy.叛徒为人所不齿。

17 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

18 competence   

n.能力，胜任，称职

参考例句：

• This mess is a poor reflection on his competence.这种混乱情况说明他难当此任。
• These are matters within the competence of the court.这些是法院权限以内的事。

19 tallied   

v.计算，清点( tally的过去式和过去分词 )；加标签（或标记）于；（使）符合；（使）吻合

参考例句：

• The girl tallied them with her eyes for a moment. 新娘用目光把这些化妆品清点了一下。 来自教父部分
• His account of the accident tallied with hers. 他对事故的陈述和她的相吻合。 来自辞典例句

20 extroverted   

a.性格外向的

参考例句：

• Do you think you are introverted or extroverted? 你认为你性格内向还是外向？
• Are you introverted or extroverted? 你个性内向还是外向？ 来自轻松英语会话---联想2000词(上)

21 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

22 boorish   

adj.粗野的，乡巴佬的

参考例句：

• His manner seemed rather boorish.他的举止看上去很俗气。
• He disgusted many with his boorish behaviour.他的粗野行为让很多人都讨厌他。

23 hormones   

n. 荷尔蒙，激素 名词hormone的复数形式

参考例句：

• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body. 这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。
• The adrenals produce a large per cent of a man's sex hormones. 肾上腺分泌人体的大部分性激素。

24 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

26 mutation   

n.变化，变异，转变

参考例句：

• People who have this mutation need less sleep than others.有这种突变的人需要的睡眠比其他人少。
• So far the discussion has centered entirely around mutation in the strict sense.到目前为止，严格来讲，讨论完全集中于围绕突变问题上。

27 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

28 drudgery   

n.苦工，重活，单调乏味的工作

参考例句：

• People want to get away from the drudgery of their everyday lives.人们想摆脱日常生活中单调乏味的工作。
• He spent his life in pointlessly tiresome drudgery.他的一生都在做毫无意义的烦人的苦差事。

29 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

30 virtuous   

adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的

参考例句：

• She was such a virtuous woman that everybody respected her.她是个有道德的女性，人人都尊敬她。
• My uncle is always proud of having a virtuous wife.叔叔一直为娶到一位贤德的妻子而骄傲。

31 feats   

功绩，伟业，技艺( feat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He used to astound his friends with feats of physical endurance. 过去，他表现出来的惊人耐力常让朋友们大吃一惊。
• His heroic feats made him a legend in his own time. 他的英雄业绩使他成了他那个时代的传奇人物。

32 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。