中级口译：中国哲学的特征

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However, because of their unique identity as sorcerers, Chinese philosophers were not merely pursuing knowledge out of a pure "love of wisdom" as did their western counterparts. While they also tried their best to explain naturally occurring phenomena¹, what concerned them most were social issues. The purpose of learning the "orders of things" was to provide a better and more complet systematic² explanation to human matters, rather than solving the problem of the absence of spiritual dependence³ after the collapse⁴ of primitive⁵ religious beliefs in ancient China.

然而，由于信奉巫术的传统，中国哲学家们“爱智慧”（小编注：“哲学”的英文philosophy源自希腊语，意为“爱智慧”）并不像西方哲学家们那样纯粹的。尽管中国哲学家们也尝试着解释一些自然现象，然而他们最关注的还是社会问题。因为，在先前的信仰体系崩溃之后，“了解事物运行的规律”（小编注：哲学的基本主题之一）是为了对的现有的社会存在做出更加全面、系统的解释，而不是像西方哲学那样为人们提供一个精神的归宿。

The specific social and historical conditions that nurtured⁶ the birth of Chinese philosophers have not only contributed to the features of Chinese philosophy, but also influenced the characters of Chinese people."To examine heavenly order to learn human affairs," -- perhaps considered the prime task by ancient Chinese philosophers --characterized Chinese philosophy with the distinct feature of giving great attention to societal needs. The focal point on people led to Chinese philosophers’ suffering and worries about society, especially at the times of social chaos⁷.

这一特定的社会和历史条件不仅仅孕育出了中国哲学，也深深中国人的本性产生了深远的影响。“究天理而知人事”——被中国古代的哲学家们认为是最重要的任务。因而，中国哲学也是就自然而然的形成了关注社会需求多于关注自然的特性。同时，对于人世的贯注也使得中国的哲人们在社会动荡时期尤为痛苦。

On the other hand, ancient Chinese had a good tradition of theoretical thinking. Though the focus was always on human affairs, Chinese philosophers were always looking for a reason to develop thought that explained ordinary or mundane⁸ affairs of the day-to-day world.

另一方面，中国古人有很好的理论思考传统。尽管思考通常集中在社会事务方面，中国哲人们也试图建立、发展着能够解释宇宙万物的思想体系。

学，分享智慧……

1 phenomena   

n.现象

参考例句：

• Ade couldn't relate the phenomena with any theory he knew.艾德无法用他所知道的任何理论来解释这种现象。
• The object of these experiments was to find the connection,if any,between the two phenomena.这些实验的目的就是探索这两种现象之间的联系，如果存在着任何联系的话。

2 systematic   

adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的

参考例句：

• The way he works isn't very systematic.他的工作不是很有条理。
• The teacher made a systematic work of teaching.这个教师进行系统的教学工作。

3 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

4 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

5 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

6 nurtured   

养育( nurture的过去式和过去分词 )； 培育； 滋长； 助长

参考例句：

• She is looking fondly at the plants he had nurtured. 她深情地看着他培育的植物。
• Any latter-day Einstein would still be spotted and nurtured. 任何一个未来的爱因斯坦都会被发现并受到培养。

7 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

8 mundane   

adj.平凡的；尘世的；宇宙的

参考例句：

• I hope I can get an interesting job and not something mundane.我希望我可以得到的是一份有趣的工作，而不是一份平凡无奇的。
• I find it humorous sometimes that even the most mundane occurrences can have an impact on our awareness.我发现生活有时挺诙谐的，即使是最平凡的事情也能影响我们的感知。