Leo Tolstoy:SEARCHING FOR THE MEANING OF LIFE

⊙ By Corrie Haluga翻譯：Wendy

Leo Tolstoy:SEARCHING FOR THE MEANING OF LIFE

托爾斯泰：終生尋找生命意義

⊙ By Corrie Haluga翻譯：Wendy

“幸福的家庭都是相似的，不幸的家庭各有各的不幸。”140年前，俄國作家托爾斯泰（1828—1910）用這句話開始了他的巨著《安娜 · 卡列尼娜》。這是人們熟悉的一句話，但許多人不知道的是，這本書不僅僅講述了一個女人的愛情悲劇，更反映了作者對人生，對哲學，對宗教的苦苦探索。托爾斯泰是一名優秀作家，同時還是一位卓有成就的思想家和哲學家。他在不同時期的作品是他一生精神追求的寫照。

“A question brought me to the point of ending my life when I was fifty years old. My question was the most simple one that lies in every person. It is the question without which life is impossible: Why do I live? Why do I wish for anything, or do anything? Is there anything in my life that will not be1)destroyed by my death?”

These are the words of the famous Russian writer Leo Tolstoy. Like Tolstoy, many people ask these difficult questions. And they struggle to find meaning in their life. Tolstoy spent his whole life trying to answer difficult questions like these. His search for answers influenced his writing.

On August 28th, 1828, Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy was born in the country of Russia.

As a child, Tolstoy was a member of the Russian Catholic Church. But as a young man, he began to question that faith. Tolstoy wanted to make his own moral decisions; he was tired of being told what to believe. He thought people could achieve a2)degree of perfection—if they tried hard enough. So he worked very hard at being the best in everything he did. He thought that he would find meaning and truth in success.

In the 1850s, Leo Tolstoy wrote his first stories. He wrote about his experiences in the military. He also told stories about when he was a child. These works were published and Tolstoy became a well-known writer.

Tolstoy was finally successful. He earned the respect he always wanted. Many wealthy and3)intelligent men met and talked with Tolstoy. Some of the men were writers like him. They talked a lot about faith and the meaning of life. But soon Tolstoy recognized that these men were not perfect. They were proud and they made very bad moral choices. Tolstoy had thought these rich and powerful men could answer his questions about faith. Now he knew they could not.

So in the 1860s, Tolstoy tried a different way to find meaning. He opened a school for the children of his4)serfs—the people who worked on his land. These

1) destroy [d?'str??] v. 破壞，毀壞

2) degree [d?'gri?] n. 等級，程度

3) intelligent [?n'tel?d?(?)nt] adj. 有才智的，聰明的

4) serf [sз?f] n. 農奴workers were very poor. He wanted to help them because he thought they were more honest than the wealthy people he knew.

Tolstoy learned many things from his workers. He respected how they worked hard to provide for their families. He began to believe that marriage and family would give his life meaning. So in 1862, Leo Tolstoy married a young woman named Sonya Behrs.

The next 15 years were the best years of Tolstoy’s life. It was during this time that he wrote his most famous books—War and Peace and Anna Karenina. Many literature experts say that War and Peace is one of the greatest books ever written.

Both War and Peace and Anna Karenina communicate Tolstoy’s beliefs about the Russian nation, church and people. They also communicate what he thought was the answer to all his questions. Tolstoy believed humans were supposed to live a simple life and take care of their families. Tolstoy thought this would satisfy him and bring him happiness.

Leo Tolstoy is still a very respected writer today. His faith and writings have influenced many people. Tolstoy’s search for the meaning of life is something everyone can understand. His teachings still interest people all over the world.

我們常常聽到有同學說寫不好作文是因為自己的英語水平不高，只能寫簡單的短句。如果仔細看看這篇介紹托爾斯泰的文章，你會發現它通篇都是短句，大部分句子在十一、十二個詞左右，最長的也不超過二十個詞。文章的句子雖然短，句子結構也不復雜，但作者注意變換句式，避免文章陷于單調無味。在整篇文章里，沒有連續三句話以上是用同一個詞開頭的——僅這一點就值得在寫作文時句句都以I或者We開頭的同學多加注意了。好文章不在于深奧難懂的詞，也不在于復雜的長句。這篇文章就是一個例子。

It was during this time that he wrote his most famous books—War and Peace and Anna Karenina.

這是一個強調句型。盡管句子講的是作家寫出了巨作，卻用強調句型突出事情發生的時間，表明這一特定時間段的重要性。

“當我五十歲的時候，有一個問題幾乎讓我結束了自己的性命。我的問題也是每個人都會想到的最簡單的問題——如果沒有這個問題，人簡直無法活下去：我為什么活著？我為什么想得到點什么？或者想做一些事情？在我的生命中，有什么東西不會因我的逝去而毀滅嗎？”

以上是著名的俄國作家列夫·托爾斯泰的話。很多人也像托爾斯泰一樣提出過這些難以回答的問題，并努力尋找生命的意義。托爾斯泰窮畢生之力去尋找答案，這種努力對他的寫作產生了影響。

1828年8月28日，列夫·尼古拉耶維奇·托爾斯泰在俄國出生。

童年時的托爾斯泰是一名俄羅斯天主信徒，但到了青年時期，他開始對自己的信仰產生了疑問。托爾斯泰想要建立自己的一套道德標準，他已經厭倦了由別人告訴他該相信什么。他認為人們只要真的付出努力，就可以達到一定程度的完美境界。因此他力求自己事事做到最好，他覺得自己可以在成功中找到人生的意義和真諦。

在19世紀50年代，列夫·托爾斯泰寫了他的第一批小說，講述了自己從軍的經歷，還寫了一些關于他童年生活的小說。這些作品出版面世后，托爾斯泰成了一位著名作家。

托爾斯泰終獲成功，贏得了他一直希望得到的尊重。很多有錢人及智者紛紛與托爾斯泰會面、交談，有些人跟他一樣，也是作家。他們談論大量關于信仰及生活意義的話題。但托爾斯泰很快意識到這些人并不完美，他們很傲慢，而道德標準卻極低。托爾斯泰曾經以為這些有錢有勢的人可以回答他關于信仰的問題，現在他知道他們無濟于事。

所以，在19世紀60年代，托爾斯泰嘗試用一種不同的方法去尋找生命的意義。他為自家農奴（即在他的土地上工作的人）的孩子辦了一所學校。這些工人非常貧窮，他想幫助他們，因為他覺得他們比他認識的富人要真誠得多。

托爾斯泰從他的工人身上學到了很多東西，他敬重他們勤奮工作、供養家庭的生活方式。他開始相信婚姻和家庭可以給他的生命賦予意義。于是在1862年，列夫·托爾斯泰與一個名叫索妮婭·別爾斯的年輕姑娘結了婚。

此后的15年是托爾斯泰一生中最美好的時光，正是在這期間，他寫出了他最出名的作品——《戰爭與和平》及《安娜·卡列尼娜》。很多文學評論家認為《戰爭與和平》是人類有史以來最偉大的作品之一。

《戰爭與和平》和《安娜·卡列尼娜》這兩本書都體現了托爾斯泰對俄羅斯民族、教會及人民的情懷，亦傳達了他對所探索的所有問題的想法。托爾斯泰認為人類應該過著簡單的生活，并照顧好家庭。托爾斯泰相信這樣的生活會令他心滿意足，給他帶來幸福。

直到今天，列夫·托爾斯泰仍然是一個備受尊敬的作家，他的信念及作品影響了很多人。每個人都可以理解托爾斯泰對人生意義的追求，他的學說仍然吸引著世界各地的人們。