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Don’t Worry, Be Gloomy 如果梵谷不忧郁……

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Few would argue with the claim that happiness is our preferred state of being. Given the choice, most of us would surely choose pleasure over pain. However, could it be that we are getting too much of a good thing when it comes to happiness? In recent years, there has been an increasing movement putting forward the case for a little bit of sadness in our lives.

快乐是大家比较喜欢的身心状态，这点应该没有什么人会反驳。如果可以选择，我们多数人当然会选择快乐，而不是痛苦。但是，有没有可能我们把快乐看的太重要了呢？近几年来，出现了一种推动在生活里包含一点点悲伤的思想活动。

While gloominess hasn’t had much of a history of people supporting its cause, the promotion of happiness has been big business. It was in the 1990s that the movement really took off, when researchers found evidence of happy moods having many positive effects on the body and mind. Subsequently, a host of writers and entrepreneurs took advantage of this discovery, flooding the market with books and magazine articles promising to make people happier. An entire industry of success coaches and motivational speakers sprang up to assist those pursuing the elusive goal of true happiness.

悲伤获得人们支持的历史尚短，而快乐却一直都受到瞩目，并获得提倡。在1990年代，强调快乐的运动开始蓬勃发展，当时研究人员找到证据，证明快乐的心情对于身心有正面影响。其后，一群作家以及企业家利用这个发现，让市面上充斥着各式各样的书籍以及杂志文章，教导人们如何获得快乐。指导如何成功的教练以及激励人心的讲师成了新兴行业，帮助人们追求真实快乐这难以达到的境界。

Now, though, there is some good news for those who are fed up with being told to smile all the time. After years of being seen as a feeling to avoid, sadness is making somewhat of a comeback.

然而，长年来让人避之唯恐不及的悲伤情感渐渐有卷土重来的趋势；对早厌烦被时时提醒要微笑的人，这还真是个好消息。

Vocabulary

单词发音

gloomy [ˋglumɪ] adj. 忧郁的

evidence [ˋɛvədəns] n. 证据

subsequently [ˋsʌbsɪ͵kwɛntlɪ] adv. 随后，接着

motivational [͵motəˋveʃənəl] adj. 激发积极性的

comeback [ˋkʌm͵bæk] n. 重整旗鼓; 东山再起; 复原

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单词发音

being [ˋbiɪŋ] n. 存在；生存

given the choice 如果可以选择  short form of “When we are given the choice….”

too much of a good thing 好事过头反成坏事 if you have too much of a good thing, something pleasant becomes unpleasant because you have too much of it

put forward 提出; 推荐 to offer for consideration

gloominess [ˋglumɪnɪs] n. 阴暗；忧郁

cause [kɔz] n. 理由，根据; 原因

big business 大生意 important business activity that makes a lot of money

effect [ɪˋfɛkt] n. 影响

entrepreneur [͵ɑntrəprəˋnɝ] n. 企业家；事业创办者

coach [kotʃ] n. 教练

elusive [ɪˋlusɪv] adj. 难以理解的; 难捉摸的

be fed up 感到厌烦的  Informal annoyed, discontented, or bored

somewhat of 几分, 一点  a bit of

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The pro-sadness supporters are basically reacting to the excesses of this drive for constant happiness. Rather than saying that being miserable is preferable to being merry, they believe that feeling “down in the dumps” is simply a natural part of life.

这些赞成悲伤的支持者基本上是反对过度强调要不断追求快乐。与其说悲伤比快乐重要，不如说「低潮」是日常生活中正常的一部份。

Eric Wilson, a professor of English at Wake Forest University, is one such advocate. He originally jumped aboard the happiness bandwagon, but it wasn’t long before he decided to jump off. He tried grinning more and using more enthusiastic expressions in conversations as he’d been told, but it just didn’t feel right. Now, having embraced his melancholy side, he has published a book entitled “Against Happiness.” In it, he argues that this obsession with happiness, particularly in America, has caused a widespread “disregard for the value of sadness.”

维克森林大学的英语教授艾瑞克．威尔森便是提倡悲伤的学者。最初，他也跟上那股「快乐」的潮流，但没多久便退出了。他试着照别人教他的方法，与人交谈时多笑一点，并且使用更多热切的表达方式，但是他就是觉得不对劲。现在，接受了自己抑郁的一面，他出版了一本书，书名是《抗拒快乐》。在这本书里面，他提出沈溺于「快乐」在美国已经造成大家「漠视悲伤的价值」。

Looking back, without gloomy feelings, many of the world’s greatest artists would have been deprived of their muse. Beethoven, for example, composed much of his most celebrated music in a less-than-joyful state of mind. And without experiencing tragedy and heartbreak, the great painter Vincent van Gogh would unlikely have created so many of his masterpieces. Clearly, the world would be a considerably duller place without at least some of us suffering our fair share of misery.

回溯过去，如果少了郁闷的心情，很多世界伟大艺术家创作的灵感将被剥夺。比如说，贝多芬在丝毫称不上愉快的心情下谱出那些最富盛名的乐章。梵谷若没有经历悲剧及痛彻心扉，就不可能创造出那么多的杰作。显然地，这世界若没有一些人经历不幸将变得无趣许多。

Vocabulary

单词发音

excess [ɪkˋsɛs] n. 过量; 过度

miserable [ˋmɪzərəb!] adj. 凄惨的；悲哀的

advocate [ˋædvəkɪt] n. 提倡者；拥护者

enthusiastic [ɪn͵θjuzɪˋæstɪk] adj. 热情的；热心的

deprive [dɪˋpraɪv] v. 剥夺，从……夺走；使丧失[（+of）]

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drive [draɪv] n. 驱动, 动力; 欲望

rather than 而不是...; 与其…instead of

preferable [ˋprɛfərəb!] adj. 更合意的[（+to）]

down in the dumps【口】沮丧的; 抑郁的 unhappy; depressed

jump on the bandwagon 赶时髦 to support something that is popular

grin [grɪn] v. 露齿而笑

melancholy [ˋmɛlən͵kɑlɪ] n. 忧郁

obsession [əbˋsɛʃən] n. 摆脱不了的思想（或情感）[C][（+about/with）]

disregard [͵dɪsrɪˋgɑrd] v. 漠视; 不理会

muse [mjuz] n.【古】沉思，冥想

dull [dʌl] adj. 乏味的，单调的

have fair share of 得到(超过)通常得到的或期望得到的数量  to have a lot or more than enough of something bad

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Results of recent research help to back up the view that a moderate does of negativity is not necessarily a bad thing. A worldwide survey was conducted, in which over 100,000 people were asked to rate their happiness on a scale of 1 to 10. Those who rated themselves happiest, at 9’s and 10’s, were on average not as successful, in terms of career or education, as those who rated themselves as an 8. This suggests that, for those near the top of their profession, a certain amount of dissatisfaction goes a long way. Instead of being happy with their lives, they drive themselves on to achieve more. On the other hand, those who feel totally satisfied with their lives lack this kind of motivation.

最近的研究也支持这样的论点，适度的负面情绪不尽然是件坏事。有项对象超过万人的全球性调查，要求受试者用从1到10的量表来评估他们的快乐程度。量表分数9或者10分的人认为自己最快乐，但就教育以及职业来说，平均而言，他们并没有比那些评比自己快乐指数是8的人来得成功。这项结果意味着，对于在各行业接近顶尖的份子来说，某种程度的不满足有相当的影响。他们不觉得自己的生活令人满意，相反地，他们会鞭策自己更努力，以求做到更好。另一方面，对自己生活非常满意的人便欠缺这种激励。

The message to take home from this whole happiness versus sadness debate is not that there is anything wrong with feeling happy, of course. It’s more a case of striking a balance between a healthy dose of cheer and a little bit of sorrow. So the next time you’re feeling down, look on the bright side and remember that sadness isn’t all bad. In the grand scheme of things, it brings its own benefits and adds a creative color to our lives.

在这场快乐对悲伤的辩论中所要传达的讯息，当然不是认为快乐有什么不对。它的诉求是在健康的快乐情绪以及些许的悲伤之间取得平衡。所以，下一次你觉得情绪低落时，看看事情的光明面，并且记得悲伤未必都不好。宏观而言，悲伤有它的好处，也让我们的生活更添创意色彩。

−by David Vickers

Vocabulary

单词发音

moderate [ˋmɑdərɪt] adj. 适度的

survey [ˋsɝve] n. 调查

career [kəˋrɪr] n.（终身的）职业; 生涯

profession [prəˋfɛʃən] n.（尤指受过良好教育或专门训练者，如律师，医生，教师的）职业

versus [ˋvɝsəs] prep. 对; 与……相对

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片语发音

back up 支持 to support or assist

on average 平均, 通常

in terms of  就...方面来说  regarding something; concerning something

dissatisfaction [͵dɪssætɪsˋfækʃən] n. 不满；不平

go a long way 大有帮助  If you say that something goes a long way towards doing a particular thing, you mean that it (something) is an important factor in achieving that thing.

take home from something:  牢记在心; 获得的结论 to take a thought, idea, or concept away [to one's home] from something…..

strike a balance 调和折衷  to make a compromise

in the grand/great scheme of things  宏观而言 if you say that in the grand scheme of things something is not important, you mean that it is not important when compared to much more serious things