為何勸1讀書？The Call to Read

世人都說讀書好，但好在哪里？即使勸人讀書者，也未必能說出個所以然來，且書浩若煙海，讀什么書？即使勸人讀書這一行為本身，也儼然成了一種社會現象。

It is well acknowledged that reading books is beneficial， but in what way？ Even those who encourage reading may struggle to account for the exact reasons. Moreover， with the number of books as vast as the ocean， we often wonder which ones to choose. Even the act of persuading others to read in itself has become a social phenomenon.

關于讀書之好，可分為兩個層次，一是物質上的，一是精神上的。物質上的讀書是功利的，幾乎各個時代都有《勸學篇》2，比如荀子的、趙恒的、張之洞的、宋真宗的等，而勸學或勸讀的出發點也多是以功利為之，像“書中自有顏如玉”“書中自有黃金屋”3之類的勸誡比比皆是。雖然各個時代對讀書的目標定位不同，但多是朝著“有用”的目標出發的。對于追求功利者，目標實現，書自然是寶，反之自暴自棄。周期性出現的讀書無用論，便是對于借讀書而獲利目標失望情緒的流露。

The value of reading can be assessed from two dimensions： materially， and spiritually. Reading for material gain is utilitarian. Throughout history， virtually every era has its own Encouragement to Study， such as Encouragement to Study by Xunzi， Zhao Heng， Zhang Zhidong and Emperor Zhenzong of Song， the starting point of which is to promote reading as a path to success and fame. Classic sayings to exhort one to read like “In books， you’ll find beauties as fair as jade; in books， riches as precious as gold” epitomize this utilitarian view. While reading goals vary from era to era， the focus mostly remains on tangible rewards. For those in pursuit of such gains， books are treasures—on the contrary they abandon themselves to defeats. The periodic emergence of the argument “Reading is useless” is a reflection of the outpouring of disappointment toward the goal of profiting from reading.

精神上的讀書是積極的，圖的是精神之用，是世俗者眼中的“無用”之用。無論是為了獲取知識，還是為了提升認識、開闊眼界，都是一種高貴的精神追求，為此目標而讀書者是不用勸的，讀書與否，歸根結底是有用和無用、世俗和精神之爭。

Reading for spiritual nourishment is positive， seeking for spiritual utility， which is a proactive pursuit of intellectual nourishment， deemed “useless” in the eyes of the worldly pragmatists. Either to acquire knowledge， or to deepen insight or to broaden one’s vision， reading embodies noble spiritual pursuit. Therefore， readers with this goal need no persuasion， for the choice to read or not intrinsically hinges on a dialectical conflict between pragmatism and idealism， alongside the mundane and the spiritual.

需要勸讀才讀書的人是社會上的普通人群，而書也一定是要能夠讀得懂的那種，最直接的是文史哲類的書。讀文史哲類的書可以長見識，陶性情，這些也是勸讀者最直觀的出發點。但因為是面對普通大眾的，所以出版機構一般會將經典通俗化，走商業化的市場路線，比如把哲學做成快餐文化4，即碎片化的解讀，淺嘗輒止。讀書讀經典，經典能經得起時間的考驗。被規勸才去讀書的人，絕非為精神之用，勉強讀之，未必有益。若止步于一知半解，甚至會誤入歧途。

Those who feel encouraged to read are the ordinary people in the society， and the books must be understandable， the most direct works of which are those on literature， history， and philosophy. Such reading may expand one’s knowledge and cultivate one’s temperament， which is the most intuitive starting point for those who advocate reading. Nevertheless， as it’s targeted at the general public， publishing houses often popularize classics and adopt commercial market strategies， for example， transforming philosophy into ‘fast-food culture’， which involves fragmented interpretations， encouraging superficial engagement. One should read classics， which stand the test of time. Those compelled to read are by no means to pursue spiritual utility， whose half-hearted engagement is unlikely to yield any meaningful benefit. Moreover， a shallow understanding may even lead them to go astray.

文史哲這三者難度不等，文學最直接，比如小說，以愉悅性情為主，歷史次之，雖不一定要窮糾其理，至少可以提供傳說、故事，所以文學和歷史比較容易接近。但哲學比較深奧，重在思辨和批判。如果說讀文、史主要靠形象思維，那么讀哲學，還需要理性思辨的加持。

Amid literature， history， and philosophy， the level of difficulty varies. Literature is the most direct， such as novels primarily aiming to cheer up the disposition. History comes next： while one need not exhaustively delve into principles， it at least offers legends and stories. Thus， the two categories are easier to approach. However， profoundly abstruse is philosophy， which lays its focus on speculation and critique. If reading literature and history relies mainly on figurative thinking， then reading philosophy requires the support of rational speculation.

周期性勸人讀書是社會現象。勸刷手機的低頭族5讀書，是出于勸人者的鄙視，借讀書這類表現正能量的行為抗拒負面的社會現象，代自己出氣，書扮演了勸善金科6的角色；勸不講道理的人讀書，是變相對于蠻橫者的揶揄，這是因為社會普遍認為知書可以達理。此時，勸人者不僅勸人讀書，還勸人多讀書，強調自己說理的語氣。即使在與書天天打交道的學術圈里，一個人也會在不同意對方的觀點時以勸對方多讀書作為譏諷之語。

The periodic persuasion to read mirrors a social phenomenon. Encouraging phubbers addicted to mobile phones to read often stems from latent disdain of the persuaders， who promote reading， a behaviour symbolizing positive values， to fight against negative social phenomena， in a bid to use it as a form of emotional venting. Also， books assume the role of moral canons： persuading the unreasonable to read is a veiled mockery of their brashness rooted in the societal belief that learning may lead to rationality. At this point， the persuaders not only advocate reading， but they also emphasize their tone of reasoning. Even in academic circles， where people regard books as daily companions， one may have the chance to sarcastically urge others to read more， when disagreeing with the others’ views.

讀書為精神，不為功利而世俗，卻能收獲健康之侶7。書是智慧的結晶，常讀書，就會減少“書到用時方恨少8”的感嘆。

Reading for the spiritual nourishment rather than utilitarianism and worldliness， nurtures a spiritual companion. Books， as crystallization of wisdom， and regular reading may reduce the lament of “regretting not having enough knowledge when the need arises”.

讀書不用勸，待人勸時已無功。

* 博士，二級教授，博導，中國英漢語比較研究會副會長，“譯者行為批評”理論創建者。

1“勸”本來有勸告，規勸之意，故可以用persuasion之類的表示勸告的詞語表示，但規勸色彩不強烈，故選使用call，意為“號召”或“呼喚”，旨在傳達原文中“勸”所蘊含的強烈建議和引導意味。" 2《勸學篇》是中國古代文學中一個常見的主題，不同時代的文人都曾有過關于勸學的論述或作品。此處提及的《勸學篇》包括：戰國荀子的儒家經典《勸學》，側重 “學不可以已” 的修身思想；北宋趙恒的《勵學篇》；清末張之洞的《勸學篇》，提出 “中學為體，西學為用” 的改革主張。" 3“書中自有黃金屋，書中自有顏如玉”出自宋真宗趙恒《勵學篇》，是中國古代典型的功利主義勸學口號，原文強調讀書可帶來物質回報與社會地位。

4“快餐文化”原指一種追求速成、通俗、短期流行，而不注重深厚積累和內在價值的文化思潮和文化現象。此處指的是一種將復雜、深奧的知識或思想簡化、通俗化，以便于大眾快速理解和接受。

5“低頭族”指過度沉迷手機等電子設備、忽視現實社交的人群，該詞源于中文“低頭看屏幕”的行為描述，反映數字時代的全球性社會問題。" 6“勸善金科”文中指書籍被視為引導道德向善的典范，體現傳統社會對書籍教化功能的推崇，故選用moral canons來概括書籍在道德提升方面的作用。

7“健康之侶”此處并非字面意義上的健康伙伴，而是指書籍作為精神伴侶，能夠滋養心靈、提升智慧，從而間接促進個人的身心健康，故選用a spiritual companion強調是精神伴侶。" 8“書到用時方恨少”原意指在需要使用知識或技能時才意識到自己的不足，因而感到遺憾或懊悔。此成語反映了中國人對于知識學習的一種普遍態度，即強調平時積累的重要性，以免在關鍵時刻因知識不足而錯失良機。