四季随笔-the private papers of henry ryecroft(英文版)-第35节

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


　have　those　accents　overborne　by　a　living　tongue；　however　wele　its　sound　at　another　time？　Jealously　I　guard　my　Christmas　solitude。
XX
Is　it　true　that　the　English　are　deeply　branded　with　the　vice　of　hypocrisy？　The　accusation；　of　course；　dates　from　the　time　of　the　Round…heads；　before　that；　nothing　in　the　national　character　could　have　suggested　it。　The　England　of　Chaucer；　the　England　of　Shakespeare；　assuredly　was　not　hypocrite。　The　change　wrought　by　Puritanism　introduced　into　the　life　of　the　people　that　new　element　which　ever　since；　more　or　less　notably；　has　suggested　to　the　observer　a　habit　of　double…dealing　in　morality　and　religion。　The　scorn　of　the　Cavalier　is　easily　understood；　it　created　a　traditional　Cromwell；　who；　till　Carlyle　arose；　figured　before　the　world　as　our　arch…dissembler。　With　the　decline　of　genuine　Puritanism　came　that　peculiarly　English　manifestation　of　piety　and　virtue　which　is　represented　by　Mr。　Pecksniff……a　being　so　utterly　different　from　Tartufe；　and　perhaps　impossible　to　be　understood　save　by　Englishmen　themselves。　But　it　is　in　our　own　time　that　the　familiar　reproach　has　been　persistently　levelled　at　us。　It　often　sounds　upon　the　lips　of　our　emancipated　youth；　it　is　stereotyped　for　daily　impression　in　the　offices　of　Continental　newspapers。　And　for　the　reason　one　has　not　far　to　look。　When　Napoleon　called　us　a　〃nation　of　shop…　keepers；〃　we　were　nothing　of　the　kind；　since　his　day　we　have　bee　so；　in　the　strictest　sense　of　the　word；　and　consider　the　spectacle　of　a　flourishing　tradesman；　anything　but　scrupulous　in　his　methods　of　business；　who　loses　no　opportunity　of　bidding　all　mankind　to　regard　him　as　a　religious　and　moral　exemplar。　This　is　the　actual　show　of　things　with　us；　this　is　the　England　seen　by　our　bitterest　censors。　There　is　an　excuse　for　those　who　charge　us　with　〃hypocrisy。〃
But　the　word　is　ill…chosen；　and　indicates　a　misconception。　The　characteristic　of　your　true　hypocrite　is　the　assumption　of　a　virtue　which　not　only　he　has　not；　but　which　he　is　incapable　of　possessing；　and　in　which　he　does　not　believe。　The　hypocrite　may　have；　most　likely　has；　（for　he　is　a　man　of　brains；）　a　conscious　rule　of　life；　but　it　is　never　that　of　the　person　to　whom　his　hypocrisy　is　directed。　Tartufe　incarnates　him　once　for　all。　Tartufe　is　by　conviction　an　atheist　and　a　sensualist；　he　despises　all　who　regard　life　from　the　contrasted　point　of　view。　But　among　Englishmen　such　an　attitude　of　mind　has　always　been　extremely　rare；　to　presume　it　in　our　typical　money…maker　who　has　edifying　sentiments　on　his　lips　is　to　fall　into　a　grotesque　error　of　judgment。　No　doubt　that　error　is　mitted　by　the　ordinary　foreign　journalist；　a　man　who　knows　less　than　little　of　English　civilization。　More　enlightened　critics；　if　they　use　the　word　at　all；　do　so　carelessly；　when　speaking　with　more　precision；　they　call　the　English　〃pharisaic〃……and　e　nearer　the　truth。
Our　vice　is　self…righteousness。　We　are　essentially　an　Old　Testament　people；　Christianity　has　never　entered　into　our　soul　we　see　ourselves　as　the　Chosen；　and　by　no　effort　of　spiritual　aspiration　can　attain　unto　humility。　In　this　there　is　nothing　hypocritic。　The　blatant　upstart　who　builds　a　church；　lays　out　his　money　in　that　way　not　merely　to　win　social　consideration；　in　his　curious　little　soul　he　believes　（so　far　as　he　can　believe　anything）　that　what　he　has　done　is　pleasing　to　God　and　beneficial　to　mankind。　He　may　have　lied　and　cheated　for　every　sovereign　he　possesses；　he　may　have　polluted　his　life　with　uncleanness；　he　may　have　perpetrated　many　kinds　of　cruelty　and　baseness……but　all　these　things　has　he　done　against　his　conscience；　and；　as　soon　as　the　opportunity　es；　he　will　make　atonement　for　them　in　the　way　suggested　by　such　faith　as　he　has；　the　way　approved　by　public　opinion。　His　religion；　strictly　defined；　is　AN　INERADICABLE　BELIEF　IN　HIS　OWN　RELIGIOUSNESS。　As　an　Englishman；　he　holds　as　birthright　the　true　Piety；　the　true　Morals。　That　he　has　〃gone　wrong〃　is；　alas；　undeniable；　but　never……even　when　leering　most　satirically……did　he　deny　his　creed。　When；　at　public　dinners　and　elsewhere；　he　tuned　his　voice　to　the　note　of　edification；　this　man　did　not　utter　the　lie　of　the　hypocrite　he　MEANT　EVERY　WORD　HE　SAID。　Uttering　high　sentiments；　he　spoke；　not　as　an　individual；　but　as　an　Englishman；　and　most　thoroughly　did　he　believe　that　all　who　heard　him　owed　in　their　hearts　allegiance　to　the　same　faith。　He　is；　if　you　like；　a　Pharisee……but　do　not　misunderstand；　his　Pharisaism　has　nothing　personal。　That　would　be　quite　another　kind　of　man；　existing；　to　be　sure；　in　England；　but　not　as　a　national　type。　No；　he　is　a　Pharisee　in　the　minor　degree　with　regard　to　those　of　his　countrymen　who　differ　from　him　in　dogma；　he　is　Pharisee　absolute　with　regard　to　the　foreigner。　And　there　he　stands；　representing　an　Empire。
The　word　hypocrisy　is　perhaps　most　of　all　applied　to　our　behaviour　in　matters　of　sexual　morality；　and　here　with　specially　flagrant　misuse。　Multitudes　of　Englishmen　have　thrown　aside　the　national　religious　dogma；　but　very　few　indeed　have　abandoned　the　conviction　that　the　rules　of　morality　publicly　upheld　in　England　are　the　best　known　in　the　world。　Any　one　interested　in　doing　so　can　but　too　easily　demonstrate　that　English　social　life　is　no　purer　than　that　of　most　other　countries。　Scandals　of　peculiar　grossness；　at　no　long　intervals；　give　rich　opportunity　to　the　scoffer。　The　streets　of　our　great　towns　nightly　present　an　exhibition　the　like　of　which　cannot　be　seen　elsewhere　in　the　world。　Despite　all　this；　your　average　Englishman　takes　for　granted　his　country's　moral　superiority；　and　loses　no　chance　of　proclaiming　it　at　the　expense　of　other　peoples。　To　call　him　hypocrite；　is　simply　not　to　know　the　man。　He　may；　for　his　own　part；　be　gross…minded　and　lax　of　life；　that　has　nothing　to　do　with　the　matter；　HE　BELIEVES　IN　VIRTUE。　Tell　him　that　English　morality　is　mere　lip…service；　and　he　will　blaze　with　as　honest　anger　as　man　ever　felt。　He　is　a　monument　of　self…righteousness；　again　not　personal　but　national。
XXI
I　make　use　of　the　present　tense；　but　am　I　speaking　truly　of　present　England？　Such　powerful　agencies　of　change　have　been　at　work　during　the　last　thirty　years；　and　it　is　difficult；　nay　impossible；　to　ascertain　in　what　degree　they　have　affected　the　national　character；　thus　far。　One　notes　the　obvious：　decline　of　conventional　religion；　free　discussion　of　the　old　moral　standards；　therewith；　a　growth　of　materialism　which　favours　every　anarchic　tendency。　Is　it　to　be　feared　that　self…righteousness　may　be　degenerating　into　the　darker　vice　of　true　hypocrisy？　For　the　English　to　lose　belief　in　themselves……not　merely　in　their　potential　goodness；　but　in　their　pre…eminence　as　examples　and　agents　of　good……would　mean　as　hopeless　a　national　corruption　as　any　recorded　in　history。　To　doubt　their　genuine　worship；　in　the　past；　of　a　very　high　（though　not；　of　course；　the　highest）　ethical　ideal；　is　impossible　for　any　one　born　and　bred　in　England；　no　less　impossible　to　deny　that　those　who　are　rightly　deemed　〃best〃　among　us；　the　men　and　women　of　gentle　or　humble　birth　who　are　not　infected　by　the　evils　of　the　new　spirit；　still　lead；　in　a　very　true　sense；　〃honest；　sober；　and　godly〃　lives。　Such　folk；　one　knows；　were　never　in　a　majority；　but　of　old　they　had　a　power　which　made　them　veritable　representatives　of　the　English　ETHOS。　If　they　thought　highly　of　themselves；　why；　the　fact　justified　them；　if　they　spoke；　at　times；　as　Pharisees；　it　was　a　fault　of　temper　which　carried　with　it　no　grave　condemnation。　Hypocrisy　was；　of　all　forms　of　baseness；　that　which　they　most　abhorred。　So　is　it　still　with　their　descendants。　Whether　these　continue　to　speak　among　us　with　authority；　no　man　can　certainly　say。　If　their　power　is　lost；　and　those　who　talk　of　English　hypocrisy　no　longer　use　the　word　amiss；　we　shall　soon　know　it。
XXII
It　is　time　that　we　gave　a　second　thought　to　Puritanism。　In　the　heyday　of　release　from　forms　which　had　lost　their　meaning；　it　was　natural　to　look　back　on　that　period　of　our　history　with　eyes　that　saw　in　it　nothing　but　fanatical　excess；　we　approved　the　picturesque　phrase　which　showed　the　English　mind　going　into　prison　and　having　the　key　turned　upon　it。　Now；　when　the　peril　of　emancipation　bees　as　manifest　as　was　the　hardship　of　restraint；　we　shall　do　well　to　remember　all　the　good　that　lay　in　that　stern　Puritan　discipline；　how　it　renewed　the　spiritual　vitality　of　our　race；　and　made　for　the　civic　freedom　which　is　our　highest　national　privilege。　An　age　of　intellectual　glory　is　wont　to　be　paid　for　in　the　general　decline　of　that　which　follows。　Imagine　England　under　Stuart　rule；　with　no　faith　but　the　Protestantism　of　the　Tudor。　Imagine　（not　to　think　of　worse）　English　literature　represented　by　Cowley；　and　the　name　of　Milton　unknown。　The　Puritan　came　as　the　physician；　he　brought　his　tonic　at　the　moment　when　lassitude　and　supineness　would　naturally　have　followed　upon　a　supreme　display　of　racial　vitality。　Regret；　if　you　will；　that　England　turned　for　her　religion　to　the　books　of　Israel；　this　suddenly　revealed　sympathy　of　our　race　with　a　fierce　Oriental　theocracy　is　perhaps　not　difficult　to　explain；　but　one　cannot　help　wishing　that　its　piety　had　taken　another　form；　later；　there　had　to　e　the　〃exodus　from　Houndsditch；〃　with　how　much　conflict　and　misery！　Such；　h