It is not difficult to imagine a world short of ambition. It would probably be a kinder world: with out demands, without abrasions, without disappointments. People would have time for reflection. Such work as they did would not be for themselves but for the collectivity. Competition would never enter in. conflict would be eliminated, tension become a thing of the past. The stress of creation would be at an end. Art would no longer be troubling, but purely celebratory in its functions. Longevity would be increased, for fewer people would die of heart attack or stroke caused by tumultuous endeavor. Anxiety would be extinct. Time would stretch on and on, with ambition long departed from the human heart.
Ah, how unrelieved boring life would be!
There is a strong view that holds that success is a myth, and ambition therefore a sham. Does this mean that success does not really exist? That achievement is at bottom empty? That the efforts of men and women are of no significance alongside the force of movements and events now not all success, obviously, is worth esteeming, nor all ambition worth cultivating. Which are and which are not is something one soon enough learns on one’s own. But even the most cynical secretly admit that success exists; that achievement counts for a great deal; and that the true myth is that the actions of men and women are useless. To believe otherwise is to take on a point of view that is likely to be deranging. It is, in its implications, to remove all motives for competence, interest in attainment, and regard for posterity.
We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time or conditions of our death. But within all this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we shall live: courageously or in cowardice, honorably or dishonorably, with purpose or in drift. We decide what is important and what is trivial in life. We decide that what makes us significant is either what we do or what we refuse to do. But no matter how indifferent the universe may be to our choices and decisions, these choices and decisions are ours to make. We decide. We choose. And as we decide and choose, so are our lives formed. In the end, forming our own destiny is what ambition is about.
很難想象一個缺乏抱負的世界。它可能是一個更好的世界：沒有需求，沒有磨損，沒有失望。人們會有時間思考。他們所做的工作不是為了自己，而是為了整個集體。競爭永遠不會進入。沖突將被消除，緊張成為過去的事情。創(chuàng)造的壓力將在一個結束。藝術將不再是困擾，但其功能將純粹為了慶典。長壽的人會增加，因為越來越少的人會死于心臟病或中風。焦慮將滅絕。時間會舒展，有野心的人會從人的心靈中離去。
啊，多么無聊的生活！
有一種強烈的觀點認為，成功是一種神話，而野心則是虛假的。這是否意味著成功并不存在？這一成就是在底空？那男人和女人的努力是毫無意義的活動與事件不是所有的成功，很顯然，力都值得景仰，也并非所有的抱負都值得培養(yǎng)。哪一個是不是很快就學會了自己。但即使是最憤世嫉俗的人也承認，成功的存在是成功的，這是一個偉大的成就，而真正的神話是男人和女人的行為都是無用的。要不然就是采取一個觀點很可能造成混亂。它的含義是，把所有的能力、興趣和成就都除去，以除去所有的動機。
我們不選擇出生。我們不選擇我們的父母。我們不選擇我們的歷史時期，我們出生的國家，或是我們成長的直接環(huán)境。我們絕大多數(shù)人都不會選擇死亡，也不能選擇死亡的時間或條件。但是在這些無法選擇的領域，我們選擇將如何生活：勇敢或怯懦，高尚還是卑微，有目的或漂移。我們決定什么是重要的，什么是微不足道的生活。我們決定什么使我們重要的是我們做什么，我們拒絕做什么。但不管宇宙對我們的選擇和決定有多么漠不關心，這些選擇和決定都是我們自己做出的。我們決定。我們選擇。當我們決定和選擇時，我們的生活就形成了。最終，形成我們自己的命運是什么樣的野心。
Ah, how unrelieved boring life would be!
There is a strong view that holds that success is a myth, and ambition therefore a sham. Does this mean that success does not really exist? That achievement is at bottom empty? That the efforts of men and women are of no significance alongside the force of movements and events now not all success, obviously, is worth esteeming, nor all ambition worth cultivating. Which are and which are not is something one soon enough learns on one’s own. But even the most cynical secretly admit that success exists; that achievement counts for a great deal; and that the true myth is that the actions of men and women are useless. To believe otherwise is to take on a point of view that is likely to be deranging. It is, in its implications, to remove all motives for competence, interest in attainment, and regard for posterity.
We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time or conditions of our death. But within all this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we shall live: courageously or in cowardice, honorably or dishonorably, with purpose or in drift. We decide what is important and what is trivial in life. We decide that what makes us significant is either what we do or what we refuse to do. But no matter how indifferent the universe may be to our choices and decisions, these choices and decisions are ours to make. We decide. We choose. And as we decide and choose, so are our lives formed. In the end, forming our own destiny is what ambition is about.
很難想象一個缺乏抱負的世界。它可能是一個更好的世界：沒有需求，沒有磨損，沒有失望。人們會有時間思考。他們所做的工作不是為了自己，而是為了整個集體。競爭永遠不會進入。沖突將被消除，緊張成為過去的事情。創(chuàng)造的壓力將在一個結束。藝術將不再是困擾，但其功能將純粹為了慶典。長壽的人會增加，因為越來越少的人會死于心臟病或中風。焦慮將滅絕。時間會舒展，有野心的人會從人的心靈中離去。
啊，多么無聊的生活！
有一種強烈的觀點認為，成功是一種神話，而野心則是虛假的。這是否意味著成功并不存在？這一成就是在底空？那男人和女人的努力是毫無意義的活動與事件不是所有的成功，很顯然，力都值得景仰，也并非所有的抱負都值得培養(yǎng)。哪一個是不是很快就學會了自己。但即使是最憤世嫉俗的人也承認，成功的存在是成功的，這是一個偉大的成就，而真正的神話是男人和女人的行為都是無用的。要不然就是采取一個觀點很可能造成混亂。它的含義是，把所有的能力、興趣和成就都除去，以除去所有的動機。
我們不選擇出生。我們不選擇我們的父母。我們不選擇我們的歷史時期，我們出生的國家，或是我們成長的直接環(huán)境。我們絕大多數(shù)人都不會選擇死亡，也不能選擇死亡的時間或條件。但是在這些無法選擇的領域，我們選擇將如何生活：勇敢或怯懦，高尚還是卑微，有目的或漂移。我們決定什么是重要的，什么是微不足道的生活。我們決定什么使我們重要的是我們做什么，我們拒絕做什么。但不管宇宙對我們的選擇和決定有多么漠不關心，這些選擇和決定都是我們自己做出的。我們決定。我們選擇。當我們決定和選擇時，我們的生活就形成了。最終，形成我們自己的命運是什么樣的野心。