辛普森爸爸能爲現代生活帶來什麼啓示大綱

It has been some week for The Simpsons.

辛普森家庭再次走紅已經有些時日了。

First, they received international acclaim for forecasting Donald Trump's election victory, then they were nominated for a Critics Choice award, and now the University of Glasgow has launched a philosophy course based on the musings of Homer Simpson.

首先，他們因爲準確預測特朗普的當選而受到國際讚譽，隨後他們又被提名爲“傑出評論家 ”。最近，英國格拉斯哥大學還專門開設了一門哲學課來研究辛普森爸爸。

The Simpsons is one of the modern world's greatest cultural artefacts, partly because it is so full of philosophy, according to the course description.

據課程簡介，大概是《辛普森一家》豐富的哲學性，使它成爲現代社會最爲偉大的文化產品之一。

Since it first aired in 1989, The Simpsons has never been afraid to touch on the key issues of the day.

自1989年第一次播出開始，《辛普森一家》總是緊跟時代話題。

Politics, family, relationships, parenting, religion, education - you name it, they've done it.

無論是政治、家庭、人際關係、爲人父母、宗教亦或教育，只有你想不到，沒有他們做不到的話題。

And any glance at Homers greatest quotes shows that the cartoons main man has a view on everything from gender equality to fatherhood.

只需略讀辛普森爸爸的最佳語錄，就會發現這部動畫的主角關注衆多話題，從兩性平等到父親的職責。

In light of this, what can we learn from his pearls of wisdom?

因此，我們能夠如何借鑑他的如珠妙語呢？

What can he teach us about life?

他能夠給我們什麼生活上的啓發呢？

Through the medium of Homers idiocy, The Simpsons has shone a light on some of the most pressing societal issues in the modern world, such as...

借辛普森爸爸這些“蠢話”，《辛普森一家》讓現代一些最爲急迫的社會問題浮出水面。比方說……

Loneliness among the elderly

孤寡老人

The problem: More than a quarter of people over 65 who live alone are lonely, while it was revealed in 2014 that Britain is the loneliness capital of Europe - with people here less likely to know their neighbours or have strong friendships than people anywhere else in Europe.

問題現狀：超過1/4的65歲以上的獨居老人表示深感寂寞，而2014年的調查顯示，英國更是歐洲孤獨之都。英國人不太認得他們的鄰居，也比歐洲其他地方更難有堅固友誼。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

Old people don't need companionship. They need to be isolated and studied so it can be determined what nutrients they have that might be extracted for our personal use.

“老人家需要被孤立和研究而不是陪伴，因此他們的營養素就能確定下來，以被我們個人使用。”

Being a man

作爲男人

The problem: There is a "crisis in modern masculinity", with men failing to cope with personal and professional pressures, according to a report by mental health charity CALM.

問題現狀：心理健康機構CALM最新報告表明，現在出現了“現代男子氣概危機”，男性難以應對個人及職業壓力。

Phrases like "man up" are commonplace, damaging and can blur our understanding of masculinity and manhood.

“拿出男人的樣子來”這種話早已耳熟能詳。然而這樣的話會破壞和混淆我們對男子氣概和男兒氣質的理解。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

“The code of the schoolyard, Marge! The rules that teach a boy to be a man. Let’s see. Don’t tattle. Always make fun of those different from you. Never say anything, unless you’re sure everyone feels exactly the same way you do.”

“瑪姬，學校的真諦就是要讓一個男孩長成一個男人。走着瞧，不要多嘴。記得要捉弄那些跟你不一樣的人。如果你不確定是否跟大家同感的話，什麼都不要說”。

Coping with pressure

應對壓力

The problem:

問題現狀：

Research from mental health charity Mind found that four in five 18 to 34-year-old men put on a brave face when they are anxious.

心理健康慈善機構Mind的研究表明，4/5的18到34歲的男性都會在焦慮的時候強作鎮定。

Repressing those feelings won't help anyone.

然而，抑制焦慮只是無濟於事。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

Just squeeze your rage up into a bitter little ball and release it at an appropriate time, like that day I hit the referee with the whisky bottle.

“你應該把怒氣攢到合適的時間爆發，就像那天我用威士忌瓶子砸了裁判那樣”。

Young people

年輕人

The problem:

問題現狀：

A controversial one, this, but there is no denying that many young people feel that the future they wanted has been prevented by older generations.

這其實挺棘手的，但事實是，很多當代年輕人都認爲老一輩人阻止他們去追求他們自己想要的未來。

Not only was there the referendum vote to leave the EU, but also claims of inter-generational unfairness prompted by fears that the younger people are essentially getting turned over by a system that favours older people.

這不僅說的是脫歐投票，也指因擔心年輕人會被一個更偏向老者的體制顛覆所產生的代際不公。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

I believe that children are our future. Unless we stop them now.

“我相信如果我們不加干涉的話，孩子就是我們的未來。

Diversity

多樣性

The problem: Hate crimes against ethnic minorities in the UK leapt by more than 40 percent in the month following the EU referendum.

問題現狀：在脫歐公投之後的那個月裏，英國出於對於少數族裔的仇恨心理而引發的犯罪行爲激增超40%。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

Just blame it on the guy who doesn't speak English.

“怪那些不說英語的人（即少數族裔）好了。”

I'm a white male, age 18 to 49. Everyone listens to me, no matter how dumb my suggestions are.

“我是一個年齡在18-49歲以內的白種男性。不管我的意見有多蠢，大家都聽我的。”

Politics

政治

The problem: We are so far beyond telling the truth in politics that Oxford Dictionaries has announced a joint US-UK word of the year: post-truth.

問題現狀：我們已經偏離政治真相太遠了，爲此，牛津詞典頒佈了2016英美年度詞彙，即“後真相”。

The word, which follows in the wake of Brexit and Trumps victory, is defined as relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.

這個在脫歐公投及特朗普當選之後出現的詞，被定義爲一種情感及個人信仰比客觀事實更能左右公衆輿論的環境。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

People can come up with statistics to prove anything.

“人們可以用數據來證實所有的事情。”

Fourteen percent of all people know that.

“14%的人都知道這一點。”

Working life

工作

The problem: It was warned last year that a slump in productivity over the summer months could cost the private sector 8bn each year.

問題現狀：去年，有人警告每年夏季出現的生產力衰退將會造成私營企業損失約80億英鎊。

The price of laziness is not to be sniffed at.

因爲懶惰而付出的代價不容小覷。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

Lisa, if you don't like your job don't strike. Just go in every day and do it really half-assed.

“麗莎，要是你不喜歡你的工作，也不能罷工。你可以每天去做做樣子就好啦。”

"I want to share something with you - the three little sentences that will get you through life.

我想跟你說點事，下面這三個短句能夠幫你順利度過這一生。

Number one: Cover for me.

第一句是，“替我應付一下”。

Number two: Oh, good idea, boss!

第二句是，“老闆您說得對”！

Number three: It was like that when I got here.

第三句是，“我來這的時候就已經那樣了”。

Fatherhood

爲人父親

The problem: Piling pressure on children can be both debilitating and damaging.

問題現狀：給孩子太重的壓力很有可能會適得其反。

Two years ago the Lancashire FA launched an initiative that urged parents to not shout or communicate with their children while they were playing football, with welfare officer Neil Yates saying he recently watched an under-nine game where a child was reduced to tears by baying parents.

兩年前，蘭卡斯爾足協呼籲父母不要在孩子上場踢球的時候試圖對他們大喊大叫，而福利幹事尼爾?耶茨也提到他最近看過的一場九歲以下孩子的球賽，其中一個小球員因自己父母的咆哮傷心流淚。

When sporting success can be a ticket to riches and a new life for the entire family, it's no surprise that the pressure can become a little overbearing (just watch the American documentary Trophy Kids), but quite clearly this is not going to help the poor child.

運動方面的功成名就確實可以讓整個家庭過上好日子，因此說是“壓力山大”一點也不爲過。（只用看看美國紀錄片《獎盃孩子》就知道了），然而，這對於窮人家的孩子而言卻沒什麼用處。

Indeed, a 2014 study by researchers at the University of Colorado showed that making children take part in structured activities like football training or music practice hinders their ability to set and reach goals.

實際上，據科羅拉多大學2014年的研究表明，讓孩子參加一些結構化的活動，比如說足球或音樂訓練，會阻礙他們設定目標和達成目標的能力。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

OK, son. Just remember to have fun out there today. And if you lose, I'll kill you.

“兒子，只用記住我們今天是來玩的。如果你輸了，我就會‘殺了你’。”

Marriage

婚姻

The problem: Figures released earlier this month showed that women do 60 percent more unpaid household work than men.

問題現狀：本月早些時候公佈的數據表明，女性比男性要多做六成的家務活，還分文不取。

Women still spend twice as much time in the kitchen as men, and around two hours more per week on laundry, despite the rise of the supposed "new man".

儘管分擔家務及照顧子女重擔的“新派男子”正在興起，女性花在廚房的時間依然是男性的兩倍，而且每週也會在洗衣方面多花大約兩小時。

Homer says:

辛普森爸爸說：

"Marge, I'm going to miss you so much. And it's not just the sex. It's also the food preparation."

“瑪姬，我會很想你的。不只是因爲做愛，也是因爲你能做飯。”