2020年经济学人 共济会会所内幕(2)

In this account, however, Mr Dickie veers¹ away from celebrity² biography to focus on the broader membership. His characters are idealists and misfits—political exiles and refugees, traumatised soldiers, addicts³ who have overcome their vices⁴. Their organisation⁵, says Mr Dickie, is essentially⁶ a network of patronage⁷. But he emphasises how many Masons treat its values of friendship, respect, integrity and charity as genuine anchors in their lives, not simply as window dressing⁸ for a practical agenda.

然而，迪基先生在自己的书中避而不谈名人传记，转而关注广大会员。他笔下的人物有理想主义者，也有与之格格不入的政治流亡者和难民，还有遍体鳞伤的士兵和戒毒的瘾君子。迪基表示，共济会本质上是一个资助网络。但是他还强调，有很多的美生真正将友谊、尊重、政治和慈善视为自己生活的锚，而不只是视之为实际的议题而装腔作势。

It is tempting⁹ to see the Masons as an elite¹⁰ clique¹¹ of white, male, middle-class gatekeepers. And that has often been true. But the outfit¹² described in “The Craft” is more diverse. In early modern Europe, Mr Dickie writes, the Lodges¹³ were among the few places where men from different classes could socialise. The Masons wore (and still wear) gloves during their meetings “so that no Brother can tell the difference between the hands of a Duke and the hands of a dustman”. Slaves were forbidden to join, but several American branches, such as that led by Prince Hall, a black leatherworker from Boston, played a role in the abolitionist struggle. In theory the Masons do not accept females, yet Mr Dickie meets Olivia Chaumont, who in 2007 became the order’s first transgender member.

人们很容易认为美生是由白人、男性、中产阶级把关者组成的精英集团。这也经常会是事实。但是《TheCraft》书中描绘的组成人员要更加多样化。迪基写道，现代早期的欧洲，共济会会所是为数不多的可供来自不同阶级的男性社交的地方。美生们在开会时会带着手套（现在仍然带着），“这样就没有兄弟能够辨别出是公爵的手还是清洁工的手”。奴隶们禁止入内，但是有几个美国分会在废奴主义斗争中发挥了作用，比如说由波士顿的一名黑人皮革工人普林斯·霍尔创立的共济会王子堂。理论上，共济会不吸收女性。但是迪基看到了奥利维亚·乔蒙特这个例外，她在2007年成为该组织的第一位变性会员。

Most books about the Masons speculate on the extent to which they have shaped history. Mr Dickie is more interested in the opposite question. He shows how reactionaries¹⁴ have consistently projected their darkest fears onto the society.

大多数描写美生的书籍都在推测其对历史的塑造程度。迪基却对相反的问题更有兴趣。他在书中展示了反动派是如何不断地将共济会笼罩在最黑暗的恐惧之下。

1 veers   

v.（尤指交通工具）改变方向或路线( veer的第三人称单数 )；（指谈话内容、人的行为或观点）突然改变；（指风） （在北半球按顺时针方向、在南半球按逆时针方向）逐渐转向；风向顺时针转

参考例句：

• The car veers out of control. 这辆车失去了控制。 来自辞典例句
• His fondness for his characters sometimes veers towards the sentimental. 他对那位主人公的偏爱有时也稍显矫情。 来自互联网

2 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

3 addicts   

有…瘾的人( addict的名词复数 )； 入迷的人

参考例句：

• a unit for rehabilitating drug addicts 帮助吸毒者恢复正常生活的机构
• There is counseling to help Internet addicts?even online. 有咨询机构帮助网络沉迷者。 来自超越目标英语 第3册

4 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。

5 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

6 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

7 patronage   

n.赞助，支援，援助；光顾，捧场

参考例句：

• Though it was not yet noon,there was considerable patronage.虽然时间未到中午，店中已有许多顾客惠顾。
• I am sorry to say that my patronage ends with this.很抱歉，我的赞助只能到此为止。

8 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

9 tempting   

a.诱人的, 吸引人的

参考例句：

• It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
• It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。

10 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

11 clique   

n.朋党派系，小集团

参考例句：

• The reactionary ruling clique was torn by internal strife.反动统治集团内部勾心斗角，四分五裂。
• If the renegade clique of that country were in power,it would have meant serious disaster for the people.如果那个国家的叛徒集团一得势，人民就要遭殃。

12 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

13 lodges   

v.存放( lodge的第三人称单数 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属

参考例句：

• But I forget, if I ever heard, where he lodges in Liverpool. 可是我记不得有没有听他说过他在利物浦的住址。 来自辞典例句
• My friend lodges in my uncle's house. 我朋友寄居在我叔叔家。 来自辞典例句

14 reactionaries   

n.反动分子，反动派( reactionary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The reactionaries are fierce in appearance but feeble in reality. 反动派看起来很强大，实际上十分虚弱。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We definitely do not apply a policy of benevolence to the reactionaries. 我们对反动派决不施仁政。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》