The Republic — Page 14
To Plato himself, the enquiry 'what was the intention of the writer,' or 'what was the principal argument of the Republic' would have been hardly intelligible, and therefore had better be at once dismissed (cp. the Introduction to the Phaedrus).
对于柏拉图本人而言，"作者的意图是什么"或"《理想国》的主要论点是什么"这样的追问几乎是难以理解的，因此最好立即将其搁置（参见《斐德罗篇》导言）。
Is not the Republic the vehicle of three or four great truths which, to Plato's own mind, are most naturally represented in the form of the State?
《理想国》不正是承载着三四种伟大真理的载体吗？在柏拉图自己看来，这些真理以国家的形式来呈现是最为自然的。
Just as in the Jewish prophets the reign of Messiah, or 'the day of the Lord,' or the suffering Servant or people of God, or the 'Sun of righteousness with healing in his wings' only convey, to us at least, their great spiritual ideals, so through the Greek State Plato reveals to us his own thoughts about divine perfection, which is the idea of good—like the sun in the visible world;—about human perfection, which is justice—about education beginning in youth and continuing in later years—about poets and sophists and tyrants who are the false teachers and evil rulers of mankind—about 'the world' which is the embodiment of them—about a kingdom which exists nowhere upon earth but is laid up in heaven to be the pattern and rule of human life.
正如犹太先知笔下弥赛亚的统治、"主的日子"、受苦的仆人或上帝的子民，抑或"那有医治之能的公义之日"，至少对我们而言，不过传达了他们伟大的精神理想；同样，柏拉图借助希腊城邦向我们揭示了他自己的思想：关于神圣的完美——即善的理念，犹如可见世界中的太阳；关于人类的完美——即正义；关于教育——始于青年，延续至晚年；关于诗人、智者与僭主——他们是人类虚假的教师与邪恶的统治者；关于"世界"——它是这些人的化身；关于一个王国——它在地上无处存在，却储藏于天国之中，作为人类生活的范式与准则。
No such inspired creation is at unity with itself, any more than the clouds of heaven when the sun pierces through them.
没有任何这样富有灵感的创作能够与自身保持完全的一致，就如同阳光穿透云层时天上的云彩一般。
Every shade of light and dark, of truth, and of fiction which is the veil of truth, is allowable in a work of philosophical imagination.
在哲学想象的作品中，光与暗的每一种色调，真实的每一个层面，以及作为真理面纱的虚构，都是被允许的。
Vocabulary
- 对于
- duìyú — regarding; with respect to something
- 柏拉图
- Bólātú — Plato, ancient Greek philosopher
- 本人
- běnrén — oneself; the person in question
- 而言
- éryán — as far as ... is concerned; speaking of
- 作者
- zuòzhě — author; writer of a work
- 的
- de — structural particle indicating possession or modification
- 意图
- yìtú — intention; purpose behind an action
- 是
- shì — to be; is, am, are
- 什么
- shénme — what; used in questions about identity
- 或
- huò — or; either; alternatively
- 理想国
- Lǐxiǎngguó — The Republic, Plato's famous philosophical dialogue
- 主要
- zhǔyào — main; primary; most important
- 论点
- lùndiǎn — argument; thesis point in a discussion
- 这样
- zhèyàng — like this; in this way; such
- 追问
- zhuīwèn — to question persistently; to probe further
- 几乎
- jīhū — almost; nearly; practically
- 难以理解
- nányǐ lǐjiě — difficult to understand; hard to comprehend
- 因此
- yīncǐ — therefore; as a result; consequently
- 最好
- zuìhǎo — best; it would be best to
- 立即
- lìjí — immediately; right away; at once
- 将
- jiāng — will; to; used before verb as marker
- 其
- qí — it; its; that; third-person pronoun
- 搁置
- gēzhì — to set aside; to shelve a matter
- 参见
- cānjiàn — see also; refer to another source
- 斐德罗篇
- Fěidéluó piān — Phaedrus, a dialogue written by Plato
- 导言
- dǎoyán — introduction; preface to a written work
- 不
- bù — no; not; negation particle
- 正是
- zhèngshì — precisely; exactly; it is exactly
- 承载
- chéngzài — to carry; to bear; to hold content
- 着
- zhe — particle indicating ongoing state or action
- 三四
- sān sì — three or four; several; a few
- 种
- zhǒng — kind; type; sort; classifier for types
- 伟大
- wěidà — great; magnificent; grand and significant
- 真理
- zhēnlǐ — truth; universal or absolute truth
- 载体
- zàitǐ — carrier; vehicle for conveying something
- 吗
- ma — question particle indicating yes/no question
- 在
- zài — at; in; located at; existing in
- 自己
- zìjǐ — oneself; self; one's own
- 看来
- kànlái — it seems; in one's view; apparently
- 这些
- zhèxiē — these; referring to multiple nearby things
- 以
- yǐ — with; by means of; using
- 国家
- guójiā — country; nation; state
- 形式
- xíngshì — form; format; manner of expression
- 来
- lái — to come; used to introduce an action
- 呈现
- chéngxiàn — to present; to display; to manifest
- 最为
- zuìwéi — most; to the greatest degree
- 自然
- zìrán — natural; nature; naturally; of course
- 正如
- zhèngrú — just as; exactly as; in the same way
- 犹太
- Yóutài — Jewish; pertaining to Jews or Judaism
- 先知
- xiānzhī — prophet; one who foretells divine messages
- 笔下
- bǐxià — under one's pen; in one's writing
- 弥赛亚
- Mísàiyà — Messiah; the promised savior figure
- 统治
- tǒngzhì — to rule; to govern; governance
- 主
- zhǔ — Lord; master; God; the Lord
- 日子
- rìzi — day; days; period of time; life
- 受苦
- shòukǔ — to suffer; to endure hardship or pain
- 仆人
- púrén — servant; one who serves another person
- 上帝
- Shàngdì — God; the supreme deity in Christianity
- 子民
- zǐmín — subjects; people under a ruler or God
- 抑或
- yìhuò — or; alternatively; used in formal writing
- 那
- nà — that; those; referring to distant thing
- 有
- yǒu — to have; there is; to exist
- 医治
- yīzhì — to heal; to cure a disease or wound
- 之能
- zhī néng — the ability of; the power to do
- 公义
- gōngyì — justice; righteousness; moral fairness
- 之日
- zhī rì — the day of; on the day when
- 至少
- zhìshǎo — at least; no less than a minimum
- 对
- duì — to; toward; for; directed at
- 我们
- wǒmen — we; us; our group
- 不过
- búguò — however; but; only; merely
- 传达
- chuándá — to convey; to communicate a message
- 了
- le — particle indicating completed action or change
- 他们
- tāmen — they; them; third-person plural pronoun
- 精神
- jīngshén — spirit; mind; mental state; essence
- 理想
- lǐxiǎng — ideal; aspiration; perfect vision
- 同样
- tóngyàng — likewise; similarly; in the same way
- 借助
- jièzhù — with the help of; by means of
- 希腊
- Xīlà — Greece; pertaining to ancient or modern Greece
- 城邦
- chéngbāng — city-state; autonomous political unit like Athens
- 向
- xiàng — toward; to; facing a direction
- 揭示
- jiēshì — to reveal; to disclose; to illuminate truth
- 他
- tā — he; him; third-person male pronoun
- 思想
- sīxiǎng — thought; idea; ideology; way of thinking
- 关于
- guānyú — about; regarding; concerning a topic
- 神圣
- shénshèng — sacred; divine; holy and revered
- 完美
- wánměi — perfect; flawless; without any defects
- 即
- jí — that is; namely; i.e.; meaning
- 善
- shàn — good; goodness; virtue; the Good
- 理念
- lǐniàn — idea; concept; Platonic Form or Idea
- 犹如
- yóurú — just like; as if; resembling greatly
- 可见
- kějiàn — visible; perceptible; it can be seen
- 世界
- shìjiè — world; the entire realm of existence
- 中
- zhōng — in; inside; middle; among
- 太阳
- tàiyáng — the sun; solar body in the sky
- 人类
- rénlèi — humanity; humankind; the human race
- 正义
- zhèngyì — justice; righteousness; what is morally right
- 教育
- jiàoyù — education; the process of teaching and learning
- 始于
- shǐyú — begins with; starts from a point
- 青年
- qīngnián — youth; young people; early stage of life
- 延续
- yánxù — to continue; to extend over time
- 至
- zhì — to; until; reaching a point
- 晚年
- wǎnnián — old age; later years of one's life
- 诗人
- shīrén — poet; one who writes poetry
- 智者
- zhìzhě — wise person; sage; one with wisdom
- 与
- yǔ — and; with; together with
- 僭主
- jiànzhǔ — tyrant; one who seizes power illegally
- 虚假
- xūjiǎ — false; fake; deceptive; not genuine
- 教师
- jiàoshī — teacher; educator; instructor
- 邪恶
- xié'è — evil; wicked; morally corrupt
- 统治者
- tǒngzhìzhě — ruler; one who governs or controls others
- 它
- tā — it; third-person pronoun for objects/things
- 人
- rén — person; people; human being
- 化身
- huàshēn — incarnation; embodiment; personification of something
- 一个
- yīgè — one; a single; a classifier for people/objects
- 王国
- wángguó — kingdom; realm ruled by a monarch
- 地上
- dìshàng — on earth; on the ground; earthly realm
- 无处
- wúchù — nowhere; no place; not anywhere
- 存在
- cúnzài — to exist; existence; being present
- 却
- què — yet; but; however; on the contrary
- 储藏
- chǔcáng — to store; to preserve; to keep in reserve
- 于
- yú — in; at; from; formal preposition
- 天国
- tiānguó — heaven; heavenly kingdom; the Kingdom of God
- 之中
- zhīzhōng — within; in the middle of; among
- 作为
- zuòwéi — as; serving as; in the role of
- 生活
- shēnghuó — life; daily living; to live
- 范式
- fànshì — paradigm; model; standard pattern or framework
- 准则
- zhǔnzé — principle; norm; standard rule of conduct
- 没有
- méiyǒu — do not have; there is not; without
- 任何
- rènhé — any; whatever; no matter which
- 富有
- fùyǒu — rich in; full of; abundantly possessing
- 灵感
- línggǎn — inspiration; creative spark or insight
- 创作
- chuàngzuò — creative work; to create literary or artistic works
- 能够
- nénggòu — to be able to; can; capable of
- 自身
- zìshēn — oneself; itself; one's own self
- 保持
- bǎochí — to maintain; to keep; to preserve a state
- 完全
- wánquán — completely; entirely; fully; total
- 一致
- yīzhì — consistent; unanimous; in agreement; aligned
- 就
- jiù — just; then; as soon as; precisely
- 如同
- rútóng — just like; as; similar to something
- 阳光
- yángguāng — sunlight; sunshine; rays of the sun
- 穿透
- chuāntòu — to penetrate; to pierce through something
- 云层
- yúncéng — cloud layer; thick layer of clouds
- 时
- shí — when; at the time of; during
- 天上
- tiānshàng — in the sky; heavenly; above in heaven
- 云彩
- yúncǎi — clouds; colorful clouds in the sky
- 一般
- yībān — ordinary; general; like; similar to
- 哲学
- zhéxué — philosophy; the study of fundamental questions
- 想象
- xiǎngxiàng — imagination; to imagine; mental visualization
- 作品
- zuòpǐn — work; piece of art, literature, or music
- 光
- guāng — light; brightness; ray of light
- 暗
- àn — dark; dim; darkness; obscure
- 每一种
- měi yī zhǒng — every kind; each type or sort
- 色调
- sèdiào — tone; hue; shade of color
- 真实
- zhēnshí — real; true; genuine; authentic
- 每一个
- měi yīgè — every one; each individual item or person
- 层面
- céngmiàn — level; dimension; aspect of something
- 以及
- yǐjí — as well as; and also; together with
- 面纱
- miànshā — veil; a covering that hides something
- 虚构
- xūgòu — fiction; fabrication; invented narrative
- 都是
- dōu shì — all are; everything is; without exception
- 被
- bèi — passive particle; by; acted upon marker
- 允许
- yǔnxǔ — to permit; to allow; to give permission
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