Chapter 44 Emile (Volume Six) Section Nine

I had expected him to be so suddenly angry, so I acted nonchalantly to make him angry.How could I have taught him to behave calmly if I didn't have the calm attitude that I taught him over and over again!Emile knows me very well, so he believes that I will never ask him to do any bad things, but as far as he understands the meaning of the word "bad things", leaving Sophie is a bad thing, so, He waited to see how I would explain it.So I continued: " Do you believe, dear Emile, that there is anyone (whatever he may be) who has lived happier than you have been these three months?If you believe it, you should throw away this wrong idea.You have had all the pleasures of life before you have tasted them, and there is nothing left to enjoy but what you have experienced during these three months.Sensual pleasures are fleeting, and the inner habit is always to forget them.You have much more pleasure in wishing than you will actually enjoy in the future.Imagination puts a beautiful garment on what you desire, but when you get it, it takes the garment away.Apart from God-in-itself, only that which does not exist is truly beautiful.If this state of affairs lasts long, you may have found supreme happiness.But everything that belongs to man ages; in life, everything comes to an end, everything is temporary.If the circumstances that make us happy continue to exist endlessly, we will get used to enjoying them and lose their taste.If the outside world does not change at all, our hearts will change; either happiness leaves us, or we leave happiness.

"In the days when you are intoxicated, time is passing quietly. Summer is over and winter is coming. Even if our physical strength allows us to continue to see them in such a hot season, they will not agree. Whether we want to or not Yes, we must all change our way of life, which cannot last long. I see from your anxious eyes that it will not be difficult to change, for with the Sophie's vow and You can easily think of a way to avoid the snow and not go to them to see her. Temporary measures are good, but when spring comes and the snow melts, you will have to marry; so we should consider a Applicable methods throughout the year Caixing.

"You want to marry Sophie, but you haven't known her five months! You don't want to marry her because she suits you, but because she pleases you; don't you love her to guarantee her Compatible with you, don't people who love each other at first don't hate each other later! She is a very virtuous person, I know that. Is it enough for a person to be virtuous? Are two people compatible if they are both honest? What I worry about is not her character but her temperament. How can a woman's temperament be seen in one day? Do you know how many situations you need to observe Can you observe her temper thoroughly? Can four months of love guarantee that you will love her forever? Maybe you will forget her completely after leaving for two months, and maybe you will meet her immediately after you leave. To a person who completely excludes her from your heart. Maybe when you come back, you will find her cold and indifferent to you, which is in contrast to the way she is affectionate to you now. Feelings and her character It's irrelevant, she may still be that honest, but she doesn't love you anymore. I believe she will be equally loyal in the future, but without a test, who can guarantee you that she still loves you? Conversely , who dares to assure her that you still love her? Do you want to wait until the test is no longer needed? Do you want to wait until it is impossible for the two of you to separate before you understand each other's true temperament?

"Sophie is not yet eighteen, and you have only just turned twenty. This is the time for love, not for marriage. At that age one wants to be a father and a mother! Ah! Bring them up well, at least you cannot be a child yourself. Do you know how many young women have ruined their bodies and shortened their lives by having boys and girls before their age? Do you know how many children have been born because their mothers If the mother and the child both develop at the same time, if a share of the nutrients needed for physical growth is distributed to two people, the mother and the child will not get the share determined by nature. Aren't they all bad-looking? If I had known Emile well, he would have preferred to marry later, to marry a strong wife, and to raise healthy children, than to sacrifice them to his own burning desires. life and health.

"Now a little about yourself. You are eager to be a husband and a father, but have you considered the responsibilities of a husband and a father? When you are the head of the family, you also become a member of the nation What does it mean to be a member of a country? Do you know this? You have studied the responsibilities of being a human being, but do you know the responsibilities of being a citizen? Do you know what the government, the law and the motherland are? Do you know how much it costs you to live? Do you know for whom you should die? You think you know everything, but in fact you know nothing. One of the possessive social orders Before accepting a seat, you should research and understand what position is best for you.

"Emile, you should leave Sophie. I don't mean to tell you to abandon her. It would be very good for her if you could leave her and not marry her. You will leave her now so that you Better to be her husband when you come back. Don't think you are worthy enough to marry her. Ah! You still have much to do! You have to fulfill the noble mission, and you have to learn to bear Pain of parting, you are going to get the reward of fidelity, so that when you come back, you have the right to be with her with dignity, to be able to ask her to repay you without her gift, and to accept your marriage proposal ".

Since this young man has not yet experienced self-struggle and is not used to restraining desires with will, he was very unconvinced. He objected and argued with me.Why don't you want the happiness that is about to come?She is willing to marry him, but he does not marry her, does this mean that he looks down on her?Why must he be so far away from her in order to learn what he ought to know?Even if he had to leave her, why didn't he let him wait until he and she had formed an indissoluble relationship and had a guarantee before leaving?In short, what he meant was: he would not be willing to follow me until he became her husband; he would be able to leave her at ease only after they got married... "It is precisely because I want to leave her that I have to Marry her first, my dear Emile! How contradictory you are! A man is indeed worthy of our admiration if he can live without his mistress; A man who is a husband should not leave his wife when it is not necessary. Don't be suspicious. I have seen that you are not doing this out of your heart. You should have the courage to tell Sophie that you have to leave She. Well! Take courage, since you are not obeying reason, then you must obey another teacher. You have not forgotten the letter you made with me. Emile, you must leave Sophie, I want you to do this."

After listening to what I said, he lowered his head and thought silently for a while, then raised his head and asked me in a very firm tone: "When are we leaving?" "A week later," I replied: "Sophie must be prepared mentally for our departure. Women are weaker, and we should make arrangements for them; for you, this departure is inevitable, but for her Not so, so we should forgive her for not approaching this matter with your great courage." I would very much like to continue the story of the love of these two young men till the day they parted; but I have already wasted enough of the reader's time, so let us make a long story short and tell them The story here comes to an end.Would Emile dare to show his lover the firmness he had just shown his friend?In my opinion, he is daring; the reason why he can be so resolute is precisely because his love for Sophie is very sincere.If he could have left her without cost, he would have been ashamed to tell her; he left her as a sinner, which is always a difficult role for an honest man, and therefore, The greater his sacrifice, the more venerable he appears in the eyes of those who made him meet it.He was not afraid of her misunderstanding of his motives for leaving her.Every time he glanced at her, he seemed to say to her: "Sophie, you must understand my heart, and you must be faithful to your love; your lover is not a man without virtue."

As for the self-respecting Sophie, she tried to deal with the sudden shock with poise, as indifferent as she could.But, like Emile, her firmness soon softened because she had no experience of struggle and victory.She could not help weeping and trembling from time to time, and she was afraid that Emile would forget her, and she was all the more saddened by this separation.She never cried in front of her lover, she never expressed her worry to him; she restrained her emotions as much as possible in front of him, and never even sighed; I told her that she regarded me as her bosom friend.Women are very clever and good at disguising.The more she complained secretly about my despotism, the more courteous she was to me, knowing that my fate was in my hands.

I comforted her, I tried to reassure her, I assured her that her lover, or rather her husband, was faithful to her; and if she would be as faithful as he was to her, I assured her He will marry her in two years.She respects me quite a lot, so she believes that I will not lie to her.I am now mutual guarantor between them.Their hearts, their character, my integrity, and the confidence of their parents, all reassured them of their destiny.But of what use is reason if a man has a weak heart?They feel that this separation is as if they will never see each other again. At this time, Sophie remembered that O'Xalie had also harbored some hidden worries, and she thought that she was now in O'Xalie's position.We must not allow her to have that wild love again when he was gone. "Sophie," I said to her one day, "you and Emile will give each other a book. You will give him a copy of The Adventures of Teresmarcus so that he can learn the lessons of Teresmarcus." and let him send you a copy of The Spectator which you like. In it you may study the vocations of honest women, and always think of those vocations which will be fulfilled two years from now." This book, as a result, made both of them feel like it and made them feel confident in each other.But at last, the sad day came, and they had to part.

The venerable father (with whom I consulted everything) embraced me as I bid him farewell, and taking me aside, said in a very heavy and slightly serious tone: "I have done my best. All my powers please you, and I know that I am working with a man of honor; and now I have but one word to say to you: Please remember that your pupil has kissed my daughter's Lips, a marriage contract is signed." What a difference in the expressions of the two lovers!Emile was very excited, and couldn't help crying. Tears flowed down the hands of Sophie's father and mother, and on Sophie's hands. People always say a few words over and over again.On another occasion, if he talked over and over again incoherently as he did, everyone would laugh.As for Sophie, she was pale, with dark eyes, and stood listlessly without moving, neither speaking nor crying, nor looking up at anyone, not even Emile. one look.Although he took her hand and held her tightly in his arms, she couldn't change her expression; she still stood there motionless, crying to him, embracing him, and what he did All of this seemed to be indifferent; in her opinion, he had already left her long ago.This expression is much more touching than the weeping and inseparable pathetic expression shown by her lover!It broke his heart to see and feel Sophie's expression.It was with great difficulty that I pulled him away; if I had left him there a little longer, perhaps he would not have gone.I am glad that he saw this miserable look when he was gone.In case he should be tempted by someone in the future to make him forget Sophie's feelings for him, I will remind him of what he saw on the day of departure, so that, as long as his conscience is not dead, I will He must be able to bring him back to her side again. travel Some people have asked whether it is good for young people to travel, and there has been much debate on the subject.If we ask in another way, whether people who have traveled abroad are good, maybe there will not be so many opinions. The result of excessive reading is harmful to scientific research.When a man thinks he already knows what he reads in a book, he thinks he can quit studying it.Reading too much will create some self-righteous and ignorant people.In no other century did men read so much as in this century, yet in no other century did they know so little.Of all the countries of Europe, no country has printed so many works of history, literature, travel, etc., as France, and yet no country has so little knowledge of the genius and customs of other peoples. of.There are too many books, but it makes us stop reading the book of the world; or, even if we read, everyone only reads the page he sees.If I didn't know that someone said: "How can you be a Persian!" When I heard this sentence, I thought it was said by people from the country with the most ethnic prejudices, and I thought it was the people who spread ethnic prejudices the most. What the woman said. A Parisian thinks he understands people of all nationalities, but in fact he only understands the French; in Paris, there are many foreigners all day long, but to the Parisians, every foreigner is particularly strange, There is no second one in the whole world.You have to study carefully the bourgeoisie of this great city, and have lived with them for some time, before you are convinced that, for all their cleverness, they are at the same time very stupid.The strange thing is that each of them may have read about a country a dozen times, yet when they actually meet the people of that country, they are still bewildered. It is indeed not easy to see the truth of the matter through the biases of the author and our own.I have read many travel notes in my life, but I have never found any two travel notes that describe the same people in the same way.After comparing some of the things I saw with what I read in books, I finally resolved to put away all the works of travellers, regretting that I should not have spent my time reading them. , And from this I deeply believe that to do all kinds of research, one should observe on the spot instead of just reading books.This is indeed the case, because, even though the travelers are all very honest, what they describe is only what they have seen or what they take for granted, and they must use their own opinions to paint the truth of the matter. A layer of false color.If it is necessary to further analyze what are their lies and bad words, what will be the result? Since some boast to us of the usefulness of reading, let us leave it to those who are born to read.Like Raymond Lure's method, this one has an advantage: it teaches them to talk about things they don't even understand.It can also train some fifteen-year-old to be Plato, and talk about his philosophy among a small group, and tell people about the customs of Egypt and India in the words of Paul Lucas or Tavernier . I think it is indisputable that no one can say that he understands human beings if he has seen only one people, but only those with whom he has lived.So again we can ask the question of travel in another way: "Is it enough for a well-bred man to know only his own countrymen, or does he also need to look at peoples in general?" who?" In this way, there is nothing to dispute or doubt.You see, solving a difficult problem sometimes depends a lot on how you frame the problem. However, in order to study human beings, do we need to travel all over the earth?Are you going to Japan to observe the Europeans?In order to understand a nation, is it necessary to study every individual in that nation?No, the people of a nation are so much alike that there is no need to study them separately.If you have observed ten Frenchmen, you have observed all Frenchmen.As for the British and people of other nationalities, although we cannot say that seeing ten British or people of other nationalities is equivalent to seeing all the British or people of other nationalities, one thing is certain, that is, every nationality Each has its own unique characteristics. Although this characteristic cannot be summarized from one person alone, it can be summarized from several people.Just as you have seen all the French if you have seen ten Frenchmen, so you can understand ten peoples only by doing a comparative study of them. In order to increase knowledge, it is not enough to go to various countries, one must also know how to travel in those countries.In order to do research, you need to have a vision and focus it on what you want to know.There are many who, after traveling, are not taught as much as they are from books, simply because they do not know how to use their heads; in reading they are at least guided by the author, but When they travel by themselves, they don't know what to see.There are others who, after traveling for a while, do not gain much, because they have no desire to increase their knowledge.Their purposes are so different that it is impossible for them to travel with the purpose of learning; it is impossible for you to look carefully at something that you do not care to observe.Among all the nations in the world, the French like to travel abroad the most. However, because he has too many habits, he often regards things that are not habits as habits.There are French people in every corner of the world.In no other country do so many people travel as in France.But in spite of this, of all the peoples in Europe, the French are the only ones who know the least about other peoples, though they have seen more people of other peoples than anyone else.The English travel too, but in a different way; the two peoples are opposites in every way.The English nobility love to travel, while the French nobility never travel abroad; the French people love to travel, but the English people never travel abroad.This difference, I think, just shows that the British are admirable.The French almost always go to foreign countries to make a small fortune, while the British do not go abroad to make a fortune. If they want to make a fortune, they must bring enough money to do business; Other countries spend their money instead of earning a living; they're too proud to go abroad to do mean things.This enables them to gain much more knowledge abroad than the French who travel abroad for another purpose.The English, however, have their national prejudices too, and more than any other; but they have their roots in their inner feelings, not in their ignorance.The prejudice of the English is born of pride, the pride of the French of vanity. Just as people who are least educated are generally wiser, so people who travel infrequently get the best results when they do, because they don't love to see trivial things as much as we do. , do not like us to find those things that cater to our idle curiosity, so they can devote all their attention to the study of those really meaningful problems.As far as I know, only Spaniards travel in this way.As for the Frenchman, he only knows to visit artists when he arrives in a country, while the Englishman loves to copy ancient monuments, the German takes his title book to all the scholars; Study the political institutions, customs, and security of that country; and among the men of these four countries, he alone could bring back from what he saw and heard something beneficial to his country. People in ancient times rarely traveled abroad, and they seldom read and wrote books such as travel notes. However, we can see from the works they left us that they understood each other better than we understand us at the same time. Generations of people also understand clearly.Take the poet Homer as an example. When we read his works, we feel as if we have been in the country he described; I express my admiration, because although the history he wrote focused on narrative and rarely analyzed and commented, his description of the customs and customs at that time was far beyond what our historians can match today. Scientists have described many and many characters in their works.Tacitus has described the Germans of his day far better than any writer has described the Germans today.There is no doubt that those who study ancient history know the Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Gauls, and Persians better than any of us knows our neighbors. It must also be admitted that the original characteristics of the various nations are disappearing day by day, so that it is more difficult to know them.As people of various races mix with each other, the distinction between nationalities has gradually disappeared. In the past, the difference between this nation and that nation was very obvious and could be seen at a glance.In the past, every nation was relatively closed to itself, and the communication between them was not as frequent as it is now, their common or conflicting interests were not as many as they are now, and the political and mass ties between nations were also more numerous than they are now. It is rare now, and the so-called negotiations between the kings are not as noisy as they are now, and they rarely send envoys or envoys who live in Changchuan to each other, and there are very few ocean voyages, and they do not go to far places. To trade and do business, and what little trade there was between them was carried on by the king himself, either by employing foreigners, or by men who were despised by all, who could neither affect any people nor May bring nations and nations closer to each other.The connection between Europe and Asia is now a hundred times closer than that between Gaul and Spain; Europe alone is far less populated than the entire world today. To this point, what needs to be added is that most ancient people can be said to be natives, that is, people who grew up in their country; since they have lived in their country for a long time, they can no longer remember their origins. When did the ancestors settle there in the first place? At the same time, because they lived for a long time, the local terroir also left an indelible mark on them; on the contrary, taking us today, when the Romans invaded More recently, there has been a great migration of savages, which has mixed people from all countries and peoples.The French today are no longer the tall, big, fair-haired, fair-skinned Frenchmen; the Greeks are no longer the Greeks who serve as models in art; even The appearance of the Romans also changed, and even their temperament; the Persians, who were originally of the Tartar race, lost their ugliness day by day by intermingling with the Segarsians. Son; the Europeans of today are no longer Gauls, Germans, Iberians, and Allobrogs; difference. This is why the national character of antiquity, brought about by the influence of climate, reveals more than today the differences in temperament, appearance, customs and character between nations; today's Europe is so unstable that there is no Time has ample time for natural causes to make their stamp, and meanwhile the forests of Europe have been felled, the ponds have been dried up, and the land cultivated, though worse than in ancient times, has been more uniformly cultivated than ever before; Even the difference in appearance between this place and that place, this country and that country is not discernible. Perhaps, when we consider these and other reasons, we will not be so hasty to look at the books of Herodotus, Ticias and Pliny, and say that the inhabitants of every country they describe Both have original features and significant differences that we haven't seen before.If you can find the old people, you can see the old faces in them; if they haven't changed at all, they can stay the same.If we can study all the people who have ever lived in this world together at the same time, how can we not believe that they have indeed become very different from century to century, and how can we not believe that today no matter you From one ethnic group to another ethnic group, people like them cannot be found. As the work of study becomes more and more difficult, it is neglected more and more and is done only halfway, and this is one reason why we do not succeed so well in dealing with the development of human nature.Whatever purpose a person travels with, he only knows to acquire knowledge related to his purpose during his travels.If his purpose is to create a philosophy, he will only see what he wants to see; if his purpose is to pursue goods, he will focus all his attention on his own interests. Related things go up.Although commerce and handicrafts can make people of various countries communicate with each other, they also prevent them from understanding each other, because when they want to seek benefits from each other, how can they bother to ask about other things? It is good for us to see all the places where we can live, because then we can choose the place where we can live most comfortably.If every man is to live self-sufficiently and by his own strength, he need only know the place where he lives.A savage lives without the help of any man, and has no greed for the whole world, and therefore he understands only, and only so much, the place in which he lives.If he is compelled to live elsewhere, he will avoid the places where men live. He will live by wild animals, and he can live as long as there are wild animals.But we, we need to live the lives of civilized people, we cannot live without eating people, each of us likes to go to the country with the largest number of people for our own benefit.That's why everyone is flocking to Rome, Paris and London.In the capitals of all countries, the price of human blood is always the cheapest.When you go to a metropolis, you will see big shots, and big shots are all pretty much the same. It is said that many of our scholars have traveled to foreign countries in order to study knowledge. This is not true; those scholars, like everyone else, have traveled to foreign countries for profit.Men like Plato and Pythagoras are nowhere to be found today, and if they were, they are not in our country.All our scholars travel abroad by order of the court; the court sends them, pays them for their travel, pays them their salaries, and tells them to study this or that thing, and it is evident that the things they go to study are decided. Not morally.They must devote all their time to the purpose of the court; they are too honest, how can they take the money of the court and not do the business of the court.No matter which country you are in, if some curious people spend their own money to travel, it is not to study people, but to teach people.What they need is not learning but flashy appearance.Where can they think that they should learn to get rid of the shackles of prejudice during their travels?They travel precisely out of prejudice. There is a big difference between traveling to see the mountains and rivers of a country and traveling to study its people.Curious people always travel with the former purpose in mind, and they just take a look at the people of a country incidentally during their travels.For those who study philosophy, it should be the opposite of them, mainly studying the people, and looking at mountains and rivers incidentally.Children look at things first, and when they grow up enough, they study people.A grown-up should study people before looking at things, if he has time to look at things. Therefore, we cannot conclude that travel is useless just because it has not traveled well.However, even if we admit that traveling is useful, can we say that anyone can travel?No, on the contrary, there are only a few men who are fit to travel, only those who have considerable perseverance, who can learn from the mistakes of others without being tempted, and who can learn from the evils of others without doing them themselves. Only those who do evil things can travel.Traveling can make a man's nature develop in its inclination, and finally make him a good man or a bad man.What a man who has traveled the world looks like when he comes back, he will always be like that for the rest of his life.When he returns from his travels, he will be worse than better, because he has traveled to desire bad things instead of good things.The ill-behaved young man, who is not well educated, will in his travels pick up the vices of all the countries he has visited, but he will learn nothing of the virtues of others, although others expose their vices. Virtue is displayed; however, young people who grow up in good families, because their good natures are well cultivated, and because they really travel for the purpose of education, after their travels, all of them will be better than they were when they traveled. Better and smarter before.This is how my Emile traveled.The young man, the man worthy of a noble age, the man whose virtues were the envy of all Europe, the man who died for his country at the prime of his life but lived well, the man whose Thus travels the man whose virtue adorns his tomb, who waits for the strangers to come and scatter flowers on his grave. Everything that is done after some reasoning has its own laws.Traveling, as an integral part of education, also has its rules.Traveling for the sake of traveling is running around and wandering around; even if it is said to travel for education, this purpose is too vague, because education without a clear purpose is meaningless.I want young people to have a clear intention to learn, which, when well chosen, can determine what to learn.采取我所实行的方法，就自然而然要继续按照我在这里所说的话去做的。 但是，通过他和事物的物质关系以及他和人的道德关系对自己做了一番研究之后，他还需要通过他和本国的同胞之间的法律关系来研究他的处境。为此，他首先需要一般地研究政府的性质，研究政府的各种形式，最后还要专门研究他出生地的政府，以便了解他在那个政府管辖之下生活是不是适宜，因为，每一个人由于具有任何力量都不可能加以破坏的权利，所以在他长大成人和做了自己的主人的时候，他就可以自主地废弃那个把他同社会联系起来的契约，离开那个社会所在的国家。他之所以在长大到有理智的年龄以后还被大家看作是默认了他的祖先所订立的契约，只不过是因为他还居住在那个地方。正如他有权放弃他所继承的父亲的遗产一样，他也有权放弃他的祖国；再说，出生地是自然的赐与，他一放弃了它，也就放弃了一切了。每一个人，不论他出生在什么地方，除非他为了取得国家保护的权利而自愿受到法律的管辖以外，他要想在他出生的那个地方自由自在地生活，是不能不遇到危险的。 我用实际的例子告诉他说：“一直到现在为止，你都是在我的指导之下生活的，你还没有管理你自己的能力。不过，你即将达到这样的年龄了，法律将在你达到这个年龄的时候允许你自己处理你自己的事情，从而使你自己做你本身的主人。你不久就将发现你在这个社会上是孤孤单单的，要依靠一切，甚至还要依靠你的遗产。你想创立一个家，这是很值得称赞的，它是男人的天职之一；不过，在你结婚之前，你必须知道你自己愿意成为一个什么样的人，你怎样度过你的一生，你用什么方法去可靠地为你和你的家庭谋求面包，因为，尽管我们不应当把挣面包看作是一件主要的事情，但也应当在这个问题上有所思考。难道说你愿意依靠你所轻视的那些人吗？难道说你愿意通过那些使你要不断地受到他人摆布的社会关系，通过那些迫使你自己也要变成坏人才能逃避坏人的欺骗的社会关系，去建立你的家和确定你的地位吗？”说完以后，我就向他讲述各种可能的运用他的资财的办法，例如，或者用之于经商，或者用之于从政，或者用之于理财；我向他指出，不管他去做什么，他都要遇到一些危险，使他处于今天不知明天如何的境地，使他事事都要看别人怎样对他而决定他的行为，因而使他不能不按照别人的榜样和偏见更改他的性情、他的看法和他的做法。 我告诉他说：“另外还有一个使用你的时间和精力的办法，那就是去当兵，也就是说，受他人以高薪雇用，去屠杀那些从来没有对我们做过坏事的人。这个职业在男子们当中是很受尊重的，大家对那些只会干这种杀人的事情的人是特别看得起的。此外，这个职业不仅不需要你放弃其他的财产，而且还使你更加需要它们；消灭那些从事这个职业的人，也是搞这个职业的人的一种光荣。当然，他们并不是通通都同归于尽的；而且，正如种种其他的职业一样，这个职业不知不觉地也形成了一种发财致富的方式；不过，我很担心，在我向你讲述那些在这方面取得成功的人是怎样作法的时候，我也许会使你产生好奇心，去学他们的样子。” “你还须知道的是，在从事这个职业的时候，也许除了追逐女人以外，即使你没有豪壮的勇气也没有关系；反之，你表现得最畏缩、最卑贱和最奴才样，反而会受到人家的特别看重，因为如果你想认真地全心全意地干，你也许还会受到人家的轻视和怀恨，说不定还会被人家赶走，至少，你所有的伙伴将因你在他们梳装打扮的时候跑到战濠去工作，而藐视你和排挤你。” 可以想象得到，所有这种种职业都是不合爱弥儿的兴趣的。“怎么！”他会向我说：“难道说我把童年时候的本领都忘得一干二净了吗？我的胳臂断掉了吗？我的气力全都用尽了吗？我不会干活了吗？你所说的那些职业和人们愚蠢的偏见，对我有什么关系？我只知道为人善良和正直才是最光荣的；我只知道同我所喜欢的人一块儿独立生活，以自己的劳动去挣得面包和增进健康，才是最幸福的。你向我讲的那些危险，是吓不倒我的。我只要在这个世界上有那样一小块土地，就满足了。我埋头苦干，使土地出产东西，我就可以无忧无虑地生活。我只要有苏菲和这样一块土地，我就可以过很富裕的日子。” “不错，我的朋友，一位妻子和一块属于你的土地，是足够使一个明智的人过幸福的生活了；但是，这一点点财富尽管是不算多，但并不是如你所想象的是人人都可以得到的。最稀罕难得的妻子，你已经是找到了，现在让我们来谈一谈土地。 “一块属于你的土地，亲爱的爱弥儿，你在哪里去选择这样一块土地？在这个世界上，你站在什么地方可以这样说：'我是这里的主人，这块土地上的东西是属于我的？'我们固然是可以知道在哪一个地方容易使人发财致富，但我们哪里知道在什么地方可以使人不需要财富也能生活呢？谁知道在什么地方可以生活得既自由又不依赖他人，既不需要侵害别人也不怕别人来侵害自己呢？你以为我们可以很容易地找到一个永远让我们为人诚实的国家吗？如果说确有那样一种又合法又可靠的谋生办法，可以使我们无须玩弄手段或同人家打交道，就能独立地生活的话，我认为，那就是靠你的双手劳动，耕种你自己的土地了；但是，我们在哪一个国家里能这样说：'我所耕种的这一块土地是属于我的？'在选择这样一个幸福的地方以前，必须要弄清楚你在那里是不是一定能够得到你所寻求的安宁，你必须防备专制的政府、迫害异端的宗教和不良的风俗来扰乱你的安宁。你必须要能够避免种种苛捐杂税，以免把你的劳动果实通通剥削干净，你必须要能够避免同人家无止无休地打官司，以免把你的财富消耗得一无剩余。你必须要能够堂堂正正地生活，以便使你无须去讨好当地的官员或他们的下属、法官、教士、有钱有势的邻居和各种各样的坏人，因为，要是你不做好预防他们的准备，他们就一定要来侵害你的。 “你尤其要使你能够躲避大官贵族和富豪的侵凌，因为，他们一看见拿伯的葡萄园，他们就要把他们土地的边界划过去包围它的。如果你真是不幸，碰上了那样一个有地位的人在你的茅屋旁边买下了或者修建了一座房屋，你是不是有把握可以使他找不到任何借口以你的土地去扩大他的庄园，或者，也许在明天，你是不是有把握可以不让他修一条大路来侵占你的土地？如果你想树立足够的名声，以避免所有这些不愉快的事情，那你就要同时贮蓄足够的钱财，因为在这种情况下贮蓄钱财，对你是没有什么不好的。钱财和名声是互相依赖的，有钱财而无名声，或者有名声而无钱财，都是不行的。 “亲爱的爱弥儿，我的经验比你多，我对你这个计划将要遇到的困难比你看得清楚。不过，你的计划确实是一个很好的计划，踏踏实实的计划，它将最终使你获得幸福，让我们努力把它付之实行。我有一个建议：让我们从现在起，花两年的时间去游历，等你游历回来以后才在欧洲选择一个可以使你和你的家人幸福生活的地方，以便避免我刚才向你讲述的那些麻烦。如果我们成功了，你就可以得到其他的人寻求不到的幸福，你就不会后悔把你的时间拿来这样利用。如果不成功，你也可以消除你的幻想，把痛苦看作是不可避免的，从而使你自己得到安慰，按照需要的法则办事。” 我不知道，读者诸君是不是可以看出这样一种学习的办法将使我们得到怎样的结果；但是，我现在敢断言，如果爱弥儿本着这样一种意图去开始和继续游历一番之后回来，仍然对政治制度、人民风俗和各种各样的政府法规一无所知的话，那必然是因为我们两个人都有不够的地方：他的智慧不够，我的判断的能力不够。 政治学还有待于发展，据估计，它也许永远不会发展起来了。在这方面居于一切学者之首的格劳修斯，只不过是一个小孩子，而且最糟糕的是，他还是一个心眼很坏的孩子。我认为，根据大家一方面把格劳修斯捧上了天，另一方面把霍布斯骂得狗血喷头的情况来看，正好证明根本就没有几个明理的人读过了或理解了这两个人的著作。事实是，他们两个人的理论完全是一模一样的，只不过各人使用的辞句不同罢了。他们论述的方法也是有所不同的。霍布斯是采取诡辩的方法，而格劳修斯则采取诗人的方法，其他的一切，就完全是一样的了。 在近代的人当中，只有一个人说得上是有能力创立这样一门既庞杂而又没有用处的学问的，此人就是著名的孟德斯鸠。不过，他避而不谈政治学的原理，而只满足于论述各国政府的成文法；在这个世界上，再没有什么东西比这两门学问的内容不同的了。 然而，任何一个人，只要他想按照各个政府实际的情况认真地研究它们，就不能不把这两门学问结合起来。为了要判断它们现在是什么样子，就必须知道它们应当是什么样子。要想阐明这些重大的问题，最困难的地方在于我们能不能够使一个人有兴趣去讨论和回答这两个问题：“它们和我有什么关系？”以及“我怎样对待它们？”我们已经使我们的爱弥儿能够自己解答这两个问题了。 第二个困难之点在于我们每一个人都有儿童时期养成的偏见，在于我们都受过种种教条的熏染，尤其是在于著述家们个个都有偏心；他们时刻都在说他们阐述真理，其实他们哪里管真理不真理，他们心目中所考虑的是他们的利益，只不过他们在口头上不讲就是了。老百姓既没有委著述家们去做教授，也没有给他们年金或法兰西学院院上的席位，所以，请你想一想，老百姓的地位怎么能够由他们去决定！我要尽量使这个困难之点在爱弥儿眼中看来算不了一回事情。当他刚刚知道什么叫政府的时候，他唯一要做的事情是去寻找最好的政府，他的目的并不是为了著书立说，万一他真要执笔著书的话，那也不是为了讨好当今的权贵，而是为了树立人权。 还有第三个困难之点，这一点只是个别的人才会遇到，而且是易于解决的，所以我现在既不把它提出来，也不着手去解决它，因为，只要我不怕它就行了。我认为，当我们去从事这样一种研究的时候，我们所需要的，并不是巨大的才能，而是对正义的真诚的爱和对真理的尊重。如果说我们可以找得到一个适当的时机对政治制度作公正不偏的研究的话，我认为，现在就是这样的时机了，否则，以后就再也找不到这样的机会了。