Why the Simple Life is Not Just Beautiful, It’s Necessary簡約生活為何美且必要

The good life is the simple life. Among philosophical ideas about how we should live， this one is a hardy perennial; from Socrates to Thoreau， from the Buddha to Wendell Berry1， thinkers have been peddling it for more than two millennia.

美好生活乃是簡約生活。這一理念在諸多關于如何生活的哲學觀點中經久不衰。從蘇格拉底到梭羅，從佛陀到溫德爾·貝里，兩千多年來，思想家們一直在宣揚它。

And it still has plenty of adherents2. Magazines such as Real Simple call out to us from the supermarket checkout; Oprah Winfrey regularly interviews fans of simple living such as Jack Kornfield， a teacher of Buddhist mindfulness; the Slow Movement， which advocates a return to pre-industrial basics， attracts followers across continents.

如今，這種理念仍有眾多擁躉。在超市收銀臺，像《返璞歸真》這樣的雜志吸引著我們注意；電視熒屏上，脫口秀巨星奧普拉·溫弗瑞定期采訪一些簡約生活的倡導者，比如佛教正念法師杰克·康菲爾德；放眼全球，倡導回歸前工業時代簡約生活方式的“慢生活運動”吸引著各大洲的追隨者。

Through much of human history， frugal simplicity was not a choice but a necessity—and since necessary， it was also deemed a moral virtue. But with the advent of industrial capitalism and a consumer society， a system arose that was committed to relentless growth， and with it grew a population （aka ‘the market’） that was enabled and encouraged to buy lots of stuff that， by traditional standards， was surplus to requirements. As a result， there’s a disconnect between the traditional values we have inherited and the consumerist3 imperatives instilled in us by contemporary culture.

縱觀人類歷史，大多數時候節儉樸素并非一種選擇，而是一種必需。因為必需，它也被視為一種美德。然而，隨著工業資本主義和消費社會的興起，一種追求無節制增長的體系應運而生，隨之而來的是被稱作“市場”的龐大群體，這些人有能力并被鼓勵去購買大量的非必要物品，按照傳統標準衡量，這些物品往往是多余的。于是，我們從先輩那里繼承的傳統價值觀念與當代文化灌輸給我們的消費主義沖動之間便產生了脫節。

In pre-modern times， the discrepancy between what the philosophers advised and how people lived was not so great. Wealth provided security， but even for the rich wealth was flimsy protection against misfortunes such as war， famine， disease， injustice and the disfavour4 of tyrants. The Stoic philosopher Seneca， one of the richest men in Rome， still ended up being sentenced to death by Nero. As for the vast majority—slaves， serfs， peasants and labourers—there was virtually no prospect of accumulating even modest wealth.

現代以前，哲學家的建議與人們的生活方式之間，差異并非如此顯著。財富能帶來安全保障，然而即使對于富人，財富在諸如戰爭、饑荒、疾病、不公以及暴政等不幸面前也只是脆弱的保護傘。斯多葛派哲學家塞內加身為羅馬最富有的人之一，最終仍被暴君尼祿判處死刑。而絕大多數人，諸如奴隸、農奴、小農和勞工，幾乎沒有機會積累哪怕微不足道的財富。

Before the advent of machine-based agriculture， representative democracy， civil rights， antibiotics5 and aspirin， just making it through a long life without too much suffering counted as doing pretty well. Today， though， at least in prosperous societies， people want and expect （and can usually have） a good deal more. Living simply now strikes many people as simply boring.

在機械化農業、代議制民主、公民權利、抗生素和阿司匹林出現之前，人們能安度漫長的一生而不受太多痛苦，就已經算很不錯了。而如今，至少在繁榮的社會里，人們想要更多并期望（通常也能擁有）更多。對很多人來說，簡約生活是枯燥乏味的代名詞。

Yet there seems to be growing interest， especially among millennials， in rediscovering the benefits of simple living. Some of this might reflect a kind of nostalgia for the pre-industrial or pre-consumerist6 world， and also sympathy for the moral argument that says that living in a simple manner makes you a better person， by building desirable traits such as frugality， resilience and independence—or a happier person， by promoting peace of mind and good health， and keeping you close to nature.

然而似乎越來越多的人，尤其是千禧一代，開始熱衷重新發現簡約生活的諸多益處。部分原因或許是對前工業或前消費主義時代的懷念，同時也是出于對一種道德觀點的認同，即簡約的生活方式能夠塑造諸如節儉、堅韌和獨立等優良品質，使人成為更好的個體；或者通過促進內心安寧和身體健康并貼近自然，使我們成為更快樂的個體。

These are plausible arguments. Yet in spite of the official respect their teachings command， the sages have proved remarkably unpersuasive. Millions of us continue to rush around getting and spending， buying lottery tickets， working long hours， racking up debt， and striving 24/7 to climb the greasy pole. Why is this？

這些觀點聽起來不無道理。然而，盡管人們公開宣揚并尊崇先哲的教誨，但事實可證，它們的說服力絕非高明。無數的人們繼續奔波忙碌，不停地追逐索取和消費、購買彩票、加班加點、債臺高筑、在名利天梯上沒日沒夜拼命往上爬。為何如此？

One obvious answer is good old-fashioned hypocrisy7. We applaud the frugal8 philosophy while ignoring its precepts in our day-to-day lives. We praise the simple lifestyle of， say， Pope Francis， seeing it as a sign of his moral integrity， while also hoping for and cheering on economic growth driven， in large part， by a demand for bigger houses， fancier cars and other luxury goods.

一個顯然的答案是老生常談的人性的虛偽。我們對節儉的哲學拍手稱贊，可一到實際生活，就把那些清規戒律拋到了九霄云外。我們夸贊像教皇方濟各那樣簡樸的生活方式，認為這彰顯了他的道德操守，同時我們卻又期盼和歡呼經濟增長，而很大程度上說，這種增長是由對更大的房子、更豪華的汽車以及其他奢侈品的需求而驅動的。

But the problem isn’t just that our practice conflicts with our professed beliefs. Our thinking about simplicity and luxury， frugality9 and extravagance， is fundamentally inconsistent. We condemn extravagance that is wasteful or tasteless and yet we tout monuments of past extravagance， such as the palace at Versailles， as highly admirable. The truth is that much of what we call ‘culture’ is fuelled by forms of extravagance.

但問題不僅在于我們的行為與我們宣稱的信念之間的沖突。我們對于簡潔與奢侈、節儉與鋪張的認知，從根本上就是自相矛盾。我們譴責鋪張浪費、缺乏品位的奢華，卻對歷史上奢華的遺跡贊不絕口，比如凡爾賽宮。事實是，我們所謂的“文化”很大程度上要靠各種形式的奢華鑄就。

Somewhat paradoxically10， then， the case for living simply was most persuasive when most people had little choice but to live that way. The traditional arguments for simple living in effect rationalise a necessity. But the same arguments have less purchase when the life of frugal simplicity is a choice， one way of living among many. Then the philosophy of frugality becomes a hard sell.

頗具諷刺意味的是，當大多數人別無選擇，只能過簡約生活的時候，提倡簡約生活的觀點最有說服力。傳統上支持簡約生活的論據實際上是在論證一種必要性。但當節儉樸素的生活不是唯一選項，而是眾多可選的生活方式之一，這些論據就沒那么有說服力了。于是節儉哲學也就讓人難以買賬。

That might be about to change， under the influence of two factors： economics and environmentalism. When recession strikes， as it has done recently （revealing11 inherent instabilities in an economic system committed to unending growth） millions of people suddenly find themselves in circumstances where frugality once again becomes a necessity， and the value of its associated virtues is rediscovered.

在經濟與環保兩大因素的影響下，這種局面或將迎來轉機。當衰退來襲，就像我們最近經歷的那樣（暴露出這套追求無休止增長的經濟體系的內在不穩定性），無數的人們突然意識到又陷入了必須節儉的境地，而與之相關聯的美德也重獲重視。

In societies such as the United States， we are currently witnessing a tendency for capitalism to stretch12 the distance between the ‘have lots’ and the ‘have nots’. These growing inequalities invite a fresh critique of extravagance and waste. When so many people live below the poverty line， there is something unseemly about in-your-face displays of opulence and luxury. Moreover， the lopsided13 distribution of wealth also represents a lost opportunity. According to Epicurus and the other sages of simplicity， one can live perfectly well， provided certain basic needs are satisfied—a view endorsed in modern times by the psychologist Abraham Maslow’s ‘hierarchy of needs’. If correct， it’s an argument for using surplus wealth to ensure that everyone has basics such as food， housing， healthcare， education， utilities and public transport—at low cost， rather than allowing it to be funnelled14 into a few private pockets.

在美國這樣的社會，我們正目睹資本主義不斷拉大“富者”與“貧者”的鴻溝。這些日益加劇的不平等激起民眾對鋪張浪費的新一輪聲討。當如此眾多的人口掙扎在貧困線以下，那些公然炫耀財富與奢華的行為顯得格外刺眼。而且，財富分配失衡也意味著機會的喪失。按照伊壁鳩魯等倡導簡約生活的先哲的觀點，只要某些基本需求得到滿足，人們就可以過得很好——現代心理學家亞伯拉罕·馬斯洛的“需求層次理論”也認可這一觀點。如果這是正確的，那么我們就有充分的理由利用社會剩余財富，確保以低成本滿足所有人的食物、住房、醫療、教育、水電煤氣、公共交通等基本生活需求，而不是任由財富流入少數人的私囊。

However wise the sages， it would not have occurred to Socrates or Epicurus to argue for the simple life in terms of environmentalism. Two centuries of industrialisation， population growth and frenzied15 economic activity has bequeathed16 us smog; polluted lakes， rivers and oceans; toxic waste; soil erosion; deforestation; extinction of plant and animal species， and global warming. The philosophy of frugal simplicity expresses values and advocates a lifestyle that might be our best hope for reversing these trends and preserving our planet’s fragile ecosystems.

縱使蘇格拉底、伊壁鳩魯等先哲明智過人，也想不到從環保主義角度為簡約生活辯護。兩百多年的工業化、人口增長和經濟狂熱留給我們霧霾、被污染的河流湖海、有毒廢棄物、水土流失、森林濫伐、動植物物種滅絕和全球變暖。節儉樸素的生活哲學所承載的價值和倡導的生活方式，或許是我們扭轉趨勢、拯救地球脆弱生態系統的最佳希望。

Many people are still unconvinced by this. But if our current methods of making， getting， spending and discarding prove unsustainable， then there could come a time—and it might come quite soon—when we are forced towards simplicity. In which case， a venerable17 tradition will turn out to contain the philosophy of the future.

許多人對此仍不以為然。但倘若我們現在的制造、索取、消費和丟棄的模式被證明難以為繼，那么或許在將來某個時候——這個時候可能近在咫尺——我們將被迫走向簡約生活。到那時，這一古老崇高的傳統將被證明歷久彌新。

（譯者單位：北京語言大學）

1當代美國著名詩人、散文家、農民和小說家，有農民詩人之稱。" 2 adherent信徒；追隨者。

3 consumerist消費主義的。" 4 disfavour不贊成，不喜歡。" 5 antibiotics抗生素。

6 pre-consumerist前消費主義的。" 7 hypocrisy虛偽，偽善。" 8 frugal節儉的，節約的。

9 frugality儉省，節儉。" 10 paradoxically自相矛盾地。" 11 reveal揭示，透露。

12 stretch（使）變大，拉長。" 13 lopsided不平衡的，傾向一方的。" 14 funnel輸送，傳送。

15 frenzied瘋狂的，狂暴的。" 16 bequeath遺贈，遺留。" 17 venerable莊嚴的，值得尊敬的。