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LESSON 7
Samuel Johnson, 1700-1784. This truly remarkable man was the son of a bookseller and stationer; he was born in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England. He entered Pembroke College, Oxford, in 1728; but, at the end of three years, his poverty compelled him to leave without taking his degree. In 1736, he married Mrs. Porter, a widow of little culture, much older than himself, but possessed of some property. The marriage seems to have been a happy one, nevertheless; and, on the death of his wife, in 1752, Johnson mourned for her, most sincerely. Soon after his marriage, he opened a private school, but obtained only three pupils, one of whom was David Garrick, afterward the celebrated actor. In 1737, he removed to London, where he lived for most of the remainder of his life. Here he entered upon literary work, in which he continued, and from which he derived his chief support, although at times it was but a meager one. His “Vanity of Human Wishes” was sold for ten guineas. His great Dictionary, the first one of the English language worthy of mention, brought him 1575 Pounds, and occupied his time for seven years. Most of the money he received for the work went to pay his six amanuenses. The other most famous of his numerous literary works are “The Rambler,” “Rasselas,” “The Lives of the English Poets,” and his edition of Shakespeare. In person, Johnson was heavy and awkward; he was the victim of scrofula in his youth, and of dropsy in his old age. In manner, he was boorish and overbearing; but his great powers and his wisdom caused his company to be sought by many eminent men of his time.
Omar, the son of Hassan, had passed seventy-five years in honor and prosperity. The favor of three successive caliphs had filled his house with gold and silver; and whenever heappeared, the benedictions of the people proclaimed his passage.
Terrestrial happiness is of short continuance. The brightness of the flame is wasting its fuel; the fragrant flower is passing away in its own odors. The vigor of Omar began to fail;the curls of beauty fell from his head; strength departed from his hands, and agility from his feet. He gave back to the caliph the keys of trust, and the seals of secrecy; and sought no other pleasure for the remainder of life than the converse of the wise and the gratitude of the good.
The powers of his mind were yet unimpaired. His chamber was filled by visitants, eager to catch the dictates of experience, and officious to pay the tribute of admiration. Caleb, theson of the viceroy of Egypt, entered every day early, and retired late. He was beautiful and eloquent; Omar admired his wit, and loved his docility.
“Tell me,” said Caleb, “thou to whose voice nations have listened, and whose wisdom is known to the extremities of Asia, tell me, how I may resemble Omar the prudent? The arts by which thou hast gained power and preserved it, are to thee no longer necessary or useful; impart to me the secret of thy conduct, and teach me the plan upon which thy wisdom has built thy fortune.”
“Young man,” said Omar, “it is of little use to form plans of life. When I took my firstsurvey of the world, in my twentieth year, having considered the various conditions of mankind, in the hour of solitude I said thus to myself, leaning against a cedar which spread its branches over my head: ‘Seventy years are allowed to man; I have yet fifty remaining.
“‘Ten years I will allot to the attainment of knowledge, and ten I will pass in foreign countries; I shall be learned, and therefore I shall be honored; every city will shout at my arrival, and every student will solicit my friendship. Twenty years thus passed will store my mind with images which I shall be busy through the rest of my life in combining and comparing. I shall revel in inexhaustible accumulations of intellectual riches; I shall find newpleasures for every moment, and shall never more be weary of myself.
“‘I will not, however, deviate too far from the beaten track of life; but will try what can be found in female delicacy. I will marry a wife as beautiful as the houries, and wise as Zobeide; and with her I will live twenty years within the suburbs of Bagdad, in every pleasure that wealth can purchase, and fancy can invent.
“‘I will then retire to a rural dwelling, pass my days in obscurity and contemplation; and lie silently down on the bed of death. Through my life it shall be my settled resolution, that I will never depend on the smile of princes; that I will never stand exposed to the artificesof courts; I will never pant for public honors, nor disturb my quiet with the affairs of state.’ Such was my scheme of life, which I impressed indelibly upon my memory.
“The first part of my ensuing time was to be spent in search of knowledge, and I knownot how I was diverted from my design. I had no visible impediments without, nor any ungovernable passion within. I regarded knowledge as the highest honor, and the most engaging pleasure; yet day stole upon day, and month glided after month, till I found that seven years of the first ten had vanished, and left nothing behind them.
“I now postponed my purpose of traveling; for why should I go abroad, while so much remained to be learned at home? I immured myself for four years, and studied the laws of the empire. The fame of my skill reached the judges: I was found able to speak upon doubtful questions, and I was commanded to stand at the footstool of the caliph. I was heard with attention; I was consulted with confidence, and the love of praise fastened on my heart.
“I still wished to see distant countries; listened with rapture to the relations of travelers, and resolved some time to ask my dismission, that I might feast my soul with novelty; but my presence was always necessary, and the stream of business hurried me along. Sometimes, I was afraid lest I should be charged with ingratitude; but I still proposed to travel, and therefore would not confine myself by marriage.
“In my fiftieth year, I began to suspect that the time of my traveling was past; and thoughtit best to lay hold on the felicity yet in my power, and indulge myself in domestic pleasures. But, at fifty, no man easily finds a woman beautiful as the houries, and wise as Zobeide. inquired and rejected, consulted and deliberated, till the sixty-second year made me ashamed of wishing to marry. I had now nothing left but retirement; and for retirement I never found a time, till disease forced me from public employment.
“Such was my scheme, and such has been its consequence. With an insatiable thirst for knowledge, I trifled away the years of improvement; with a restless desire of seeing differentcountries, I have always resided in the same city; with the highest expectation of connubial felicity, I have lived unmarried; and with an unalterable resolution of contemplative retirement, I am going to die within the walls of Bagdad.”
【中文阅读】
哈桑的儿子奥马尔在尊享荣誉和富有中，已经过了七十五岁。接连三任哈里发的眷顾，使他的宅邸里堆满了金银财宝，不论何时只要他一现身，人们都会夹道欢呼，向他祝福。
世俗的幸福都是短暂的，火苗的亮度需要燃料来维持，再芬芳的鲜花也有暗香凋零的时候。奥马尔的精力开始衰弱了。一绺鬈发从他头上倏然落下。他的双手没了往昔过人的力量，双腿也不再那么敏捷了。于是，他向哈里发交还了信任的钥匙，还有严守秘密的印信，在余生不再追求其他快乐，但求明智和乐善。
他的思维还未受损害。他家的客厅里宾客如云。这些人热衷于聆听奥马尔讲述过往的经历，过分殷勤地奉上赞美阿谀之辞。埃及总督的儿子卡勒卜每天早早到场，很晚才离去。他仪容风雅，谈吐不俗。奥马尔欣赏他的才智，喜欢他温驯的样子。
“告诉我，”卡勒卜说，“在这个国家你想听谁的声音，在亚洲谁的智慧闻名遐迩，告诉我，我如何才能效仿奥马尔的明智？您赢得影响力并能保持下来的秘籍，对您来说不再是必要和有用的了。将您的处事秘诀传授给我吧，把您用智慧赢得巨额财富的一番规划教给我吧。”
“年轻人，”奥马尔说，“生活规划无甚用处。二十几岁时，我最初审视这个世界时，用孤独的目光看待人类变化多端的处境，倚着一株枝叶繁茂的柏树我自语道：‘人生七十即是高寿，我还有五十年的时间。’
于是，我抽出十年时间用来掌握知识，另外用十年时间游历各国。通过这段经历，我明白了一个道理，我将酬之以荣。沿途每个城市在我莅临时都夹道欢呼，每位学生都请求与我结交。二十年的光阴在我心里留驻这样的印象，就是我将在余生忙于联合和比较。我将陶醉于永不枯竭的智慧财富的积累。每一时刻我都会找到新的快乐，永远乐此不疲。
然而，我不会脱离生活常规太远的，当然会尝试在女性的微妙精致中所蕴含的真谛。我要娶一位美若天仙、聪明似佐贝德的姑娘。在她的陪伴下，我在巴格达城郊一住就是二十年，凡是财富能买到的快乐都享受了，凡是能想出的奇思妙想都尝试了。
从那以后我退隐山林，在默默无闻和沉思冥想中打发日子，直到静静的寿终正寝。这将是我最后的归宿，我不再仰赖王子的微笑过日子了，我也不会再在庙堂的虚伪中战战兢兢了；我不再渴望那个大众的欢呼，也不会为国务打扰内心的平静。这就是我的生活计划，在我的记忆中刻下了难以磨灭的印象。
最先要做的就是获取知识，我不晓得自己是如何偏离最初的设计的。我没有能看得见的阻碍，也没有难于驾驭的激情。我将知识看做是最高荣誉和最愉悦的快乐。然而日复一日，月复一月，我发现最初十年有七年都荒废虚度了。
我不得不推迟旅行打算，在家里有这么多东西要学，为什么还要出去呢？我自我幽闭了四年，专心学习帝国的法律。我掌握的法律知识已经够得上法官了，发现自己也能对一些怀疑的问题做出解答了，于是我被派到哈里发的王座旁站立。我用心倾听，满怀信心地说出自己的意见，得到赞扬那种欣喜很快流满了心田。
我仍旧希望亲眼见识一下遥远的他国，极度欢喜地聆听旅行归来的人讲述他们的见闻，下决心找时间请求免职，这样我的灵魂就能享受新奇事物的饕餮了。可是，我的存在始终不可或缺，繁忙的公事让我喘不过气来。有时，我真的担心自己被指责忘恩负义，不过我仍然打算出去见世面，因此不会受婚姻的束缚。
在我五十岁时，我开始怀疑自己旅行的愿望恐要化为泡影，尽管我一生中的华年都用来追求影响力所带来的幸福，而未能享受家庭之快乐。但是，人生五十有谁还能轻易找到貌美如花，像佐贝德那样聪明的女人。我到处打听，屡屡碰壁，直到六十二岁那年我方为自己想结婚的愿望而羞愧。现在，我除了归隐林下还有什么呢。可是，我一直没有时间真正停下来过隐居生活，直到疾病迫使我辞去公职。
这就是我的计划，这就是我的计划所导致的后果。对知识怀有难以满足的饥渴，可我却浪费了个人际遇能获得改善的那段岁月；对一览各个不同国家抱有难以遏制的愿望，可是我却始终住在同一座城市；对婚姻幸福抱有最高程度的渴望，可是我却终生未娶；下定决心要过归隐林下的宁静生活，可是看来我终将在巴格达城里了此一生了。