Architectural Designs of Legislature in the World

⊙ By Max Cohen de Lara

翻譯：丁一

我們都知道，世界各國有不同的地形地貌和風土人情。但據研究，各國立法機構的會議廳遠不如各國風景那般多彩，只有區區的五種樣式，這多少讓人有點意外。到底是怎么回事呢？一起來了解一下吧。

Every one of the United Nations’ 193 member states has a legislatures[立法機關]and each has a plenary[全體會議]hall for its meetings. Although each state has a parliament[議會]of some kind, their plenary chambers[會所]have a very limited number of shapes. Most surprisingly, these buildings have hardly changed since the 19th century.

1） Semicircle[半圓]

The most common shape is the semicircle, which goes back to classical antiquity[古代].

This shape made its neoclassical[新古典主義的]comeback with the French Revolution, which gave birth to its National Assembly and took over the Palais Bourbon for its meetings. Its shape is particularly common in Europe, where, during the 19th century, newly forming nation states adopted the semicircular shape for their legislatures. The semicircle fuses[融合]the members of parliament into a single entity.

Nevertheless, while the Greek semicircle assemblies[集會]had been accessible to all its citizens in a direct democracy, in the new European states, the architecture was used to encourage consensus[一致意見]among a group of representative[代議制的]elites[精英]. Also, the chambers of Senate and House on Capitol Hill convene[集會]in a semicircular setting.

2） Opposing Benches

A second, distinctly different, type is the combative[好斗的]British model of opposing benches, which encourages two parties to see themselves in distinct opposition to one another. It dates back to the pews[教堂長椅]of St. Stephen’s Chapel[小教堂]in the 13th century,where the English king called a form of parliament for the first time.

The setting of two sides that confront[對抗]each other provokes[激起]a more heated debate than the single body that is created in the semicircular setting of most continental parliaments. Because of its historical ties[聯系]with Britain, the shape of opposing benches is also found in Commonwealth[英聯邦]countries.Architect Le Corbusier used it, for example, in some of the plenary chamber of the regional parliament building in India.

3） Horseshoe[馬蹄形]

A third type is a mixture of the previous two, in which the opposing benches bend toward each other on one side of the room to form a horseshoe. This can be seen in many Commonwealth countries, including Australia, Malaysia and South Africa. One of the most beautiful parliament buildings in the world, the Jatiyo Sangshad[孟加拉國立法機構]in Bangladesh designed by architect Louis Kahn, meets in a horseshoe sseettttiinngg..

4） Circle

A fourth, rarer type, is the circle. Only nine parliaments in the world meet in this setting.

Inspired by the Icelandic national parliament of the 8th century,the reintroduction of the circle can be attributed[歸因于]primarily to German architect Günther Behnisch, who in the 1980s introduced a radical[完全的]new circular design for the plenary chamber for the West German parliament in Bonn. However, Behnisch’s design wwaass hhaarrddllyy uusseedd aaffter Germany’s reunification[統一], when the parliament moved to Berlin. In the renovated[翻新的]parliament building, architect Norman Foster created a new meeting hall in a semicircular setting.

5） Classroom

The fifth and final type is the classroom, where members of parliament sit in regimented[編排]rows focused on a single speaker in the hall.For instance, the parliaments of Russia and North Korea meet in a classroom setting.

These five architectural designs influence every legislature in the world and tell you how each governs.Architecture sets the stage for our lives; it creates the world we inhabit and shapes how we relate[建立聯系]to one another.

CY百科

◆ Commonwealth of Nations 英聯邦：由52個獨立主權國家組成，成員大多為大英帝國的殖民地或保護國，伊麗莎白女王二世為英聯邦的名義元首。英聯邦不是一個國家，沒有中央政權，不設權力機構。英國和各成員國互派高級專員，代表大使級外交關系。

◆ Palais Bourbon 波旁宮：此為法國國民議會所在地，在塞納河南岸，是一座有260多年歷史的古典建筑，它由意大利設計師Lorenzo Giardini設計，是法國在1722年為路易十四的女兒波旁公爵夫人建造，并由此得名。它被看作是法國法律的象征，1830年起用作國民議會。

參考譯文

在聯合國的193個成員國中，每個國家都有立法機構，而每個立法機構都有舉行全體會議的會堂。雖然各國都有某種形式的議會，但召開全體會議的會堂樣式非常有限。最令人驚訝的是，這些建筑物自19世紀以來幾乎沒有多大改變。

一、半圓形

最常見的是可追溯到古代的半圓形。

隨著法國大革命的到來，這種形狀實現了自身新古典主義的復興。誕生于大革命期間的國民議會占領了波旁宮，并在此召開會議。這種形狀的會議廳在歐洲特別常見：在19世紀，歐洲新成立國家的立法機構均采用半圓形。半圓形狀能讓議員們融入到一個整體中。

然而，雖然在古希臘時期，依照直接民主的原則，所有公民都可以進入當時的半圓形議會，但在新成立的歐洲國家里，這種建筑形式則是為了鼓勵代議制的精英們達成共識。此外，美國國會山上的參眾兩院也是在半圓形的會議廳開會的。

二、對坐長凳

第二種類型是好斗的英式對坐長凳——與前一種完全不同，這種布局鼓勵雙方直接面對彼此。它可以追溯到13世紀時圣斯蒂芬教堂的條凳，英格蘭國王在那里第一次召集了可稱之為議會的會議。

雙方面對面的布局要比大多數歐洲議會的半圓形布局更能挑起激烈的辯論。對坐長凳式的議會廳在與英國有歷史淵源的英聯邦國家中也可見到。例如，建筑師勒·柯布西耶在為印度一些地方議會大樓設計會議大廳時就采用了這種樣式。

三、馬蹄形

第三種類型是前兩種類型的混合體，即對坐長凳在會堂的一側合攏，形成馬蹄形。這種樣式出現在許多英聯邦國家，包括澳大利亞、馬來西亞和南非等。孟加拉國議會大廈是世界上最美的議會大廈之一，由建筑師路易·卡恩設計，該國立法機構正是馬蹄形的布局。

四、圓形

第四種呈圓形，很少見。世界上只有九個國家的議會是在這種布局下開會的。

受到8世紀冰島議會的影響，德國建筑師京特·貝尼施重新采用圓形樣式來設計大會堂。20世紀80年代，他為位于波恩的西德議會會議廳采用了全新的圓形設計。然而，當德國統一，議會搬到柏林后，貝尼施的設計就沒怎么被采用了，建筑師曼·福斯特為翻修后的德國國會大廈設計了半圓形的新會議廳。

五、課堂形式

第五種類型是課堂式，即議會成員在整齊劃一的一排排座位上坐好，目光集中于會議廳里的唯一發言人。例如，俄羅斯和朝鮮的議會就在課堂式的會議廳里開會。

以上五類建筑設計影響著世界上每一個立法機構，并且體現了不同的治國形式。建筑為我們的生活建造舞臺，打造我們生活的世界，并影響我們之間相處的方式。