14　铁石心肠

我们的故事，又回到了属于荷马的故乡、属于神话传说中众神之地的希腊，回到了美女海伦曾经生活过的斯巴达。

公元前900年左右的时候，斯巴达曾经有一个叫作莱克格斯的人。这可是个很硬气的名字，而你们在听完他的故事之后，可能也会认为他是条硬汉子的。莱克格斯希望，让自己所在的斯巴达成为世界上最强大的一座城市。

首先，他必须弄清楚，什么因素能够让一座城市和一个民族变得强大起来。

于是，他开始动身四处游历，并且在多年里走访了当时世界上所有的主要国家，以便弄清楚究竟是什么东西让这些国家变得强大。而他发现的就是：

无论是哪里，倘若人们心中所想的主要是享乐，是让他们自己过得开心、快乐，那么这些地方的人就不会有什么擅长的，威望也不高，因而该地就不会很强大。

他还发现，无论是哪里，倘若人们心中所想的主要是努力工作和尽职尽责，而不管自己所做的工作舒不舒适，那么这些地方的人通常在某个方面都很出色和具有某种威望，因而该地通常都很强大。

于是，莱克格斯便回到故乡斯巴达，开始着手制定出一系列的法律法规；他认

So Lycurgus came back to his home Sparta and set to work to make a set of rules that he thought would make his people greater than all other people in the world. These rules were called a Code of Laws,and I think you'll agree they were very hard,and they made the Spartans hard,too—as hard as nails.We shall see whether they made the Spartans really great,also.

To begin with,babies,as soon as they were born,were examined to see that they were strong and perfect. Whenever one was found who did not seem to be so,he or she was put out on the mountainside and left to die.Lycurgus wanted no weaklings in Sparta.

When boys were seven years old,they were taken from their mothers and put in a school,which was more like a soldiers'camp than a school,and they never lived anywhere else until they were sixty years old.

In this school they were not taught the things you are,but only the things that trained them to be good soldiers.

There were no such things as schoolbooks then.

There were no spelling books.

There were no arithmetics.

There were no geographies. No one knew enough about the world to write a geography.

There were no histories. No one knew much about things that had happened in the world before that time,and of course none of the history since then that you now study had taken place.

为，这些法律法规将会让斯巴达这个民族变得比世界上其他所有的民族都要强大。这些法律法规统称为“法典”，它们极其严厉，让斯巴达人也变得非常冷酷无情，简直变得铁石心肠；我觉得，你们也会这样认为的。当然，我们也应当来看一看，它们是不是真的让斯巴达人变得强大了。

首先，斯巴达人在婴儿刚刚出生后，就会对婴儿进行体检，看他们的身体是不是强壮、是不是有缺陷。假如发现哪个婴儿看上去身体不好或者是生理上有缺陷，他或她就会被扔到山坡上去自生自灭。莱克格斯可不希望斯巴达有体弱多病的人。

男孩长到七岁时，就会被带离母亲身边，到学校里去。这种学校，更像是军营；而从此时开始，男孩子们就会一直在这里生活，直到六十岁为止。

在这个学校里，他们学习的并不是像你们如今所学的这种知识，而是只学习能够将他们一个个都训练成优秀战士的知识。

那时，他们还没有课本之类的东西。

他们还没有拼写课本。

他们还没有算术课。

他们还没有地理课。这是因为，当时人们对整个世界的了解不多，还不足以让人编写出一本地理书来。

他们也没有历史课。这是因为，当时人们对世界上以前所发生的事情还不怎么了解，而你们如今所学的、从那时以来的历史，当然也还没有发生。

在某些时候，斯巴达的男孩都会接受鞭打；这并不是因为他们做错了什么事

At certain times,the Spartan boy was whipped,not because he had done anything wrong,but just to teach him to suffer pain without whimpering. He would have been disgraced forever if he had cried,no matter how badly he was hurt.

He was exercised and drilled and worked until he was ready to drop. Still he was obliged to keep on,no matter how tired or hungry or sleepy or aching he might be,and he must never show by any sign how he felt.

He was made to eat the worst kind of food,to go hungry and thirsty for long periods of time,to go out in the bitter cold with little or no clothing,just to get used to such hardships and able to bear all sorts of discomforts. This kind of training,this kind of hardening,is therefore called Spartan discipline.How do you think you would have liked it?

The Spartans'food,clothing,and lodging were all furnished them,though it was very poor food and poor clothing and poor lodging. They were not allowed good things to eat,soft beds to lie on,or fine clothing to wear.Such things were called luxuries,and luxuries,Lycurgus thought,would make people soft and weak,and he wanted his people hard and strong.

The Spartans were even taught to speak in a short and blunt manner；they were taught not to waste words；they must say what they had to say in as few words as possible. This manner of speaking we call laconic from the name Laconia,the state in which Sparta was located.

Once a king wrote to the Spartans a threatening letter,saying that they had better do

情，而是为了教会他们咬紧牙关、一声不吭地承受痛苦。无论受了多重的伤，只要哭一声，他以后就会永远都抬不起头来。

他会一直接受锻炼、一直进行训练和工作，直到快要累趴下才作罢。但无论身体有多累、多饿、多困或者多疼，他仍然必须坚持下去，并且绝不能表现出一丝痛苦。

他必须吃最不好的食物，必须长时间地忍受饥饿和口渴，必须在衣着单薄或者甚至不穿衣服的情况下出去忍受刺骨的寒冷；这样做，都是为了让他们习惯这些磨难，从而能够忍受各种各样的艰苦环境。因此，这种训练和磨炼，便被人们称作是“斯巴达式的训练”。你们觉得，你们会不会喜欢这样的训练呢？

斯巴达人的食物、衣服和住所都是免费供应的，但他们的食物都极其糟糕，衣物都极其粗糙，住所都极其简陋。他们不允许吃美味可口的食物，不能睡柔软舒适的床铺，也不准穿华美精制的衣服。他们把这些东西称作奢侈品；莱克格斯认为，奢侈品会让人们变得软弱无能，而他则希望自己的人民一个个都坚强健壮。

甚至在说话方式上，斯巴达人也被训练得说话非常简短而直率；他们被训练得毫无废话，只能用尽量简短的语句说出必须要说的话语。因此，我们便根据斯巴达人所在的“拉科尼亚”这个国家的名称，将这种方式叫作“拉科尼亚式”的说话方式。

有一次，一位国王给斯巴达人写了一封恐吓信，要他们最好遵照他的命令行

what he told them to,for if he came and took their country,he would destroy their city and make them slaves.

The Spartans sent a messenger back with their answer,and when the letter was opened,it contained only one word：

“IF！”

Even today,we call such an answer,short but to the point,a laconic answer.

Did all this hard training and hard work make the Spartans the greatest people in the world?

Lycurgus did make the Spartans the strongest and best fighters in the world—but—

The Spartans conquered all the peoples around about them,though there were ten times as many—but—

They made these people their slaves,who did all their farming and other work—but—

We shall see later whether Lycurgus's idea was right.

North of Sparta was another great city of Greece called Athens. There were,of course,many other towns in Greece,but Sparta and Athens were the most important.In Athens the people lived and thought quite differently from those in Sparta.

The Athenians were just as fond of everything beautiful as the Spartans were of discipline and of everything military.

The Athenians loved athletic games of all sorts just as the Spartans did,but they also

事；如果胆敢不服从，逼得他前来征服斯巴达的话，他就会摧毁斯巴达城，让斯巴达人都做奴隶。

斯巴达人派了一名信使前去回复；国王拆开回信后，却发现里面只有一个词：

“胆敢！”

就算是到了今天，我们还会把这样一种简洁却又切中要害的回答，称作拉科尼亚式的回答呢。

这种种艰苦的训练和辛勤的劳作，有没有让斯巴达人变成世界上最强大的一个民族呢？

莱克格斯的确让斯巴达人变成了世界上最强大和最优秀的战士，但是——

斯巴达人征服了周边地区所有的民族，尽管这些民族的人数有斯巴达人的十倍之多，但是——

他们让这些民族的人全都变成了自己的奴隶，替他们干农活和其他的工作，但是——

我们日后就会看出，莱克格斯的想法究竟对不对？

斯巴达的北面，是古希腊另一个伟大的城市，叫作雅典。当然，古希腊还有其他许多的城镇，但斯巴达和雅典是其中最重要的两座。在雅典，人们的生活方式和思维方式都与斯巴达人大不一样。

雅典人热爱一切美丽的事物，就像斯巴达人热爱纪律和军事一样。

尽管雅典人像斯巴达人一样热爱各种各样的体育竞赛，但他们还热爱音乐和诗

loved music and poetry and beautiful statues,paintings,vases,buildings,and such things that are known as the arts.

The Athenians believed in training the mind as well as the body. The Spartans believed the training of the body was the all-important thing.Which do you like better,the Athenians'idea or the Spartans'idea?

Once at a big game a very old man was looking for a seat on the Athenians'side. There was no seat empty,and no Athenian offered to give him one.Whereupon the Spartans called to the old man and gave him the best seat on their side.The Athenians cheered the Spartans to show how fine they thought this act.At this the Spartans said：

“The Athenians know what is right but they don't do it.”

歌，热爱美丽的雕塑、油画、花瓶、建筑物等我们称为艺术品的事物。

雅典人认为，既要锻炼身体，同时也应锻炼心智。可斯巴达人却认为，锻炼身体才是最重要的事情。那么，你们是赞同雅典人的观点呢，还是赞同斯巴达人的观点呢？

有一次，雅典和斯巴达之间举行了一场重大的比赛。一位老年人想在雅典人那边找个座位，可那边已经没有空座位了，也没有一个雅典人给他让座。于是，斯巴达人把老人叫到了他们那一边，给他让出了最好的一个座位。雅典人都纷纷为斯巴达人喝彩，表示他们都认为这一举动非常好。对此，斯巴达人评价说：

“雅典人明白什么事情是对的，可他们却不去行动。”