The Essence of Freedom
A
If our freedom means ease alone①，if it means shirking②the hard disciplines of learning，if it means evading②the rigors and rewards of creative activity，if it means more expenditure on advertising than education，if it means in the schools the steady cult of the trivial and the mediocre，if it means—worst of all—indifference，or even contempt③for all but athletic excellence，we may keep for a time the forms of free society，but its spirit will be dead．
—Adlai Stevenson
B
No one can be perfectly free till all are free;no one can be perfectly moral till all are moral;no one can be perfectly happy till all are happy．
—Herbert Spencer
ease n安逸(=comfort) cult n迷信
shirk v逃避 discipline n训练
trivial adj琐碎的(=insignificant)
mediocre adj平庸的(=ordinary) evade v回避(=avoid)
indifference n漠不关心 rigor n严峻;艰苦
contempt n鄙视(=scorn)
中译 自由的真谛
A
如果我们的自由仅仅是指舒适，如果自由是指逃避学习过程所需的艰苦磨炼，如果自由是指回避创造性劳动带来的严峻考验及其回报，如果自由是指将更多金钱花在广告上而不是用在教育上，如果自由是指在学校里只热衷于浅薄平庸琐事，而最糟糕的是，如果自由是指除了重视体育成绩之外，对其他一切都漠不关心甚至不屑一顾，那么，尽管我们可以暂时维持一个自由社会的形式，但其精神终会消亡。
——阿德莱·史蒂文森
B
在全人类获得自由之前，无人能完全自由;在全人类都有道德之前，无人能称拥有完美的道德;在全人类都幸福之前，无人能享受完满的幸福。
——赫伯特·斯宾塞
原来如此！
自由是人类追求的目标，也是现代人的口号，但在追求个人自由时，有谁真正了解自由的真义?
本篇的两段均用排比结构(parallelism)写成。英语的排比句常常和对偶与重复词语结合使用，把相关、相对或相衬的两部分意思突出来，(A)段一口气使用了六个“if it means…”条件状语从句，最后用一个主句结尾，以此指出自由的真谛。又试看取自狄更斯的《双城记》片段:
It was the best of time，it was the worst of time;it was the age of wisdom，it was the age of foolishness;it was the epoch of belief，it was the epoch of incredulity;it was the season of light，it was the season of darkness;it was the spring of hope，it was the winter of despair;we had everything before us，we had nothing before us．
—Charles Dickens:A Tale of Two Cities
(这是最好的时光，这是最坏的时光;这是智慧的年代，这是愚蠢的年代;这是信仰的时期，这是怀疑的时期;这是光明的季节，这是黑暗的季节;这是希望之春，这是失望之冬;人们前面有着各种各样事物，人们前面一无所有。)
增值英语
①If freedom means ease…
在(A)段中，mean是动词，解“表示，意指”，也可解“意图”。其后可接名词、动名词、不定式、副词和从句。例:
The frontier incident might meanwar．边境事故可能意味着战争将会发生。
To raise wages meansincreasing purchasing power．提高工资意味着增加购买力。
I didn't meanto be rude to you．我没有意图对你无礼。
They meanwell/meanill towards us．他们对我们一番好意/心存恶意。
I certainly meantwhat I said．我当然是说得出做得到。
mean还可以带双宾语(double object)。
They meanyou no harm．/They meanno harm to you．他们对你没有恶意。
此外mean作形容词时可表示“卑鄙的”、“吝啬的”、“低劣的”或“平均的”之意。
His meanbehaviour is despicable．他的卑鄙行为是可耻的。
The meantemperature in summer is over 30℃．夏天平均温度超过三十摄氏度。
②shirking the hard disciplines…evading the rigors…
shirk和evade是同义词，它们都是表示“逃避”、“回避”(avoid/shun)之意。
He cannot be trusted as he likes to shirkhis duties．他这人不可信，因为他喜欢逃避责任。
That man is evadingthe police who are investigating a burglary case．那人在躲避正在调查一桩入屋行劫案的警员。
③indifference，or even contempt
本篇有些描写态度的词语，如indifference、contempt和evading，它们的形容词形式为indifferent(漠不关心)、contemptuous(鄙视)及evasive(推诿的):
He is indifferentto advice．他对劝告漠不关心。
I am contemptuousof dishonest people．我鄙视不诚实的人。
Whenever you ask her about her job，she always gives evasive answers．每当问及她的职业时，她总是闪烁其词。