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2011年8月17至22日，美国副总统约瑟夫•拜登（Joseph Biden）应邀对中国进行正式访问。在即将结束访问之际，拜登于21日来到四川大学就中美关系进行演讲，并与数百名学子展开互动。本期《滋味人生》选取了拜登在互动环节对川大学生提出的有关演讲与双边关系问题的回答。让我们一起来感受这位能言善辩的副总统的妙语连珠吧！
人物背景
约瑟夫•拜登（Joseph Biden），现任美国奥巴马政府副总统。29岁当选参议员，是当时史无前例的最年轻的参议员。拜登在外交政策方面是一位重量级人物，在参议院的任职时间比经验丰富的共和党候选人麦凯恩（John McCain）长十年，比奥巴马的任职时间多出近三十年。拜登在华盛顿被认为是一位学院派人物，可以在发表热情赞扬言论之后立刻言辞犀利。
Questions: [no sound]
(1) What role has public speaking played in your life?
(2) What role do you think public speaking will play among our youth of the two countries and to our bilateral relations?
The 1)commodity that is worth a lot more than public speaking is 2)sincerity when one speaks. I mean this sincerely now. (Laughter.) There are great 3)orators that have come along in the world history who have been 4)charlatans. So the most important thing to look to in a leader’s speech is not the 5)elegance or the 6)rhetorical 7)flourish of his or her comments, but the judgment of whether or not you believe they are sincere in what they are saying.
Secondly, you 8)compliment me by saying I’m a [sic] accomplished public speaker. I don’t know whether you had an opportunity to see a movie that has gotten worldwide 9)circulation called The King’s Speech. Well, but for the royal blood and the money, that could have been me. I was a serious 10)stutterer when I was in school as a child, as a high school student, and even into college. And I practiced very, very hard by myself, standing in front of a mirror, trying to 11)enunciate without 12)contorting my face.
When you think about it, whether it’s China or America, the only 13)impediment people free feel…feel free to make fun of and humor of is a stutterer. If I had a 14)deformed face, you would not make fun of my face. But if I stood before you and ta-ta-talked to-to-to you like that, you’d do what you’re now—you’re smiling. And it’s 15)offensive. It’s offensive. Because it is a serious impediment. When one stutters, people believe they are stupid. People believe they are not worth much. And there’s tens of millions of people around the world trapped with a keen mind and big heart, trapped inside of a body that cannot 16)articulate what they feel.
And the reason I bother to mention that to you is to get to the third and most important point. Speech, communication—to state the obvious—is the 17)currency of understanding. It’s the currency with which we exchange ideas. It’s the stuff from which flows the sense of whether one is being truthful or honest or sincere. We judge from the way people speak whether they’re being 18)transparent and open, whether they’re being 19)cramped and 20)cabined. And so the thing that I’m most embarrassed about in my career of 38 years of having an opportunity to literally meet every major world leader in the last 38 years. I was elected as a 30…29-year-old young man from 21)modest means. And I’ve had that opportunity. The thing that always embarrasses me is—and in the back of my head, I’m embarrassed in front of you—I’m embarrassed I can’t speak to you in Chinese. I would seriously—I would rather be able to honor you and show my respect for you by speaking your language, as you honor me by speaking mine.
And so language, the ability not only to master the ability to put your ideas into words 22)succinctly on a 23)platform to communicate ideas to your own people, it is even more impressive when you have the capacity to do that and communicate your ideas, especially as future business and political and 24)moral leaders in the world in the language of the people to whom you’re speaking.
So I think there is no greater resource that a nation could seek than having a group of people who were able to communicate in the same idiom, the same dialect, the same…the same pattern as the people to whom with they’re speaking. Because this is all about…all about understanding one another.
Let me conclude by saying this. My father was a high school-educated man. He never went to a university and…and nor did my mother or anyone in my family at that time. But my father was an elegant, 25)decent man…26)eloquent and elegant, decent man. My father used to have an expression that maybe is the best way for me to conclude my comments with you all, and I wish I could stay later…longer, sincerely wish I could. He used to say, “Joe, the only conflict that is worse than one that is intended is one that is unintended.” The only conflict worse than one that is intended is one that is unintended.
Language, speech, interchange, openness, communication—that is the material that can be used to lessen the possibility of the unintended, the unintended conflict. I have great faith in all of you. I mean this sincerely. You’re an incredible country, an incredible people. And the fact there’s a hundred thousand students here at this great university, the fact that there are millions of Chinese at universities throughout…throughout this country; the fact there’s 130,000 Chinese nationals speaking…citizens, going to American universities is the stuff which gives me faith.
Believe in yourselves. Believe in yourselves. You have the capacity to do anything, anything anyone in the world has ever done. And the more you do, the 27)better off my granddaughter and my great granddaughter’s generation are going to be.
Thank you for the honor of being here. (Applause.)
对于演讲者来说，真诚远比演讲技巧更有价值。我说这句话的时候是真诚的。（笑声）在世界历史长河中不乏一些享有盛名的演说家，他们其实是江湖骗子。因此，在听一位领导人演说时，最重要的不是看其能否侃侃而谈或其措辞是否文采飞扬，而在于你是否认为演说者当下态度诚恳。
其次，你夸奖我是一位很有造诣的演说家。我不知道你是否有机会观看一部引起全球关注的电影，叫做《国王的演讲》。如果忽略皇室血统和财富，那（主角）说的可能就是我本人。从小学到高中甚至到上大学，我一直患有严重的口吃。我坚持不懈地练习，站在镜子前面，努力让自己在发音时不把脸扭歪。
大家可以想一想，无论在中国还是美国，人们唯一可以随便拿来开玩笑或是取笑的生理缺陷就是口吃。如果我有一张残缺变形的脸，你们不会取笑我的脸。但是，如果我站在你们面前，像这样跟……跟……跟你们说……说……说话，你们可能就会像现在这样——在微笑。但这么做是非常不礼貌的，非常不礼貌。因为这（指口吃）是一种严重的生理缺陷。人们往往认为口吃的人很笨，认为他们一无是处，然而世界上有千千万万睿智而胸怀大志的人由于生理上的缺陷无法表达他们的情感。
我之所以提到这件事，是因为接下来我要讲到的第三点，也是最重要的一点。言语、交流——表达清楚明白的想法——是达到相互理解的途径，是我们交流彼此想法的途径，也是我们判断一个人是否真实、正直或诚恳的途径。通过人们说话的方式，我们可以判断他们是开诚布公还是居心叵测。在我38年的职业生涯中——我曾有机会在这38年中与世界各地的领导人会晤——有一点让我感到最尴尬。我家境贫寒，30岁的时候——其实是29岁——赢得选举担任公职。我得到了这个机会，但有一点总是让我感到尴尬——此刻我站在你们面前，内心也感到同样的尴尬——因为我不能用中文与你们交流。我真心地——我能用你们的语言来表示我对你们的尊重，正如你们用我的语言表示对我的尊重一样。（译者注：拜登认为能用聆听者的语言来描述自己的想法才是对对方的尊重以及能更明晰地表达自己的意思，但是他无法使用对方的语言，因此感到尴尬。）
所以说，运用语言是一种能力，这种能力不仅能使你站在讲台上用词汇简单明了地向你的同胞传达你的想法，更令人钦佩的是，你有能力用别人的母语表达你的想法，特别是作为一个未来的企业家、政治家以及道德典范。
因此，对于一个国家而言，我认为最宝贵的资源就是有这样一批人，他们能够用对方的习惯用语、方言乃至遵循对方的语言习惯表达自己，因为归根结底最重要的是互相理解。
我这么来总结我的回答吧。我的父亲只上过高中，从未上过大学……我的母亲和任何家人那时都没上过大学。但是我的父亲是一个文雅、体面的人……说话很有说服力、温文尔雅、体面的人。或许用我父亲常说的一句话能最好地总结我对大家的讲话，我希望能够多留一会儿……多待一些时间，我衷心希望我能如此。他常说，“乔，最糟糕的对立，是无意间造成的。” 最糟糕的对立，是无意间造成的。
语言、演说、交流、开放、沟通——这些能帮助我们减少可能无意造成的对立。我对你们有极大的信心。我真心这么认为。你们是一个了不起的国家、了不起的民族。在这所优秀的大学里有成千上万的学生，在整个国家有数百万人进入高等学府；有十三万中国公民在美国留学，这些事实就是我信心的来源。
相信自己，相信自己。你们有能力做任何事情，做世界上任何人曾经做过的任何事。你们做得越多，我的孙女和重孙女辈的一代会过得更好。
感谢你们让我有幸来到这里。（掌声）
人物背景
约瑟夫•拜登（Joseph Biden），现任美国奥巴马政府副总统。29岁当选参议员，是当时史无前例的最年轻的参议员。拜登在外交政策方面是一位重量级人物，在参议院的任职时间比经验丰富的共和党候选人麦凯恩（John McCain）长十年，比奥巴马的任职时间多出近三十年。拜登在华盛顿被认为是一位学院派人物，可以在发表热情赞扬言论之后立刻言辞犀利。
Questions: [no sound]
(1) What role has public speaking played in your life?
(2) What role do you think public speaking will play among our youth of the two countries and to our bilateral relations?
The 1)commodity that is worth a lot more than public speaking is 2)sincerity when one speaks. I mean this sincerely now. (Laughter.) There are great 3)orators that have come along in the world history who have been 4)charlatans. So the most important thing to look to in a leader’s speech is not the 5)elegance or the 6)rhetorical 7)flourish of his or her comments, but the judgment of whether or not you believe they are sincere in what they are saying.
Secondly, you 8)compliment me by saying I’m a [sic] accomplished public speaker. I don’t know whether you had an opportunity to see a movie that has gotten worldwide 9)circulation called The King’s Speech. Well, but for the royal blood and the money, that could have been me. I was a serious 10)stutterer when I was in school as a child, as a high school student, and even into college. And I practiced very, very hard by myself, standing in front of a mirror, trying to 11)enunciate without 12)contorting my face.
When you think about it, whether it’s China or America, the only 13)impediment people free feel…feel free to make fun of and humor of is a stutterer. If I had a 14)deformed face, you would not make fun of my face. But if I stood before you and ta-ta-talked to-to-to you like that, you’d do what you’re now—you’re smiling. And it’s 15)offensive. It’s offensive. Because it is a serious impediment. When one stutters, people believe they are stupid. People believe they are not worth much. And there’s tens of millions of people around the world trapped with a keen mind and big heart, trapped inside of a body that cannot 16)articulate what they feel.
And the reason I bother to mention that to you is to get to the third and most important point. Speech, communication—to state the obvious—is the 17)currency of understanding. It’s the currency with which we exchange ideas. It’s the stuff from which flows the sense of whether one is being truthful or honest or sincere. We judge from the way people speak whether they’re being 18)transparent and open, whether they’re being 19)cramped and 20)cabined. And so the thing that I’m most embarrassed about in my career of 38 years of having an opportunity to literally meet every major world leader in the last 38 years. I was elected as a 30…29-year-old young man from 21)modest means. And I’ve had that opportunity. The thing that always embarrasses me is—and in the back of my head, I’m embarrassed in front of you—I’m embarrassed I can’t speak to you in Chinese. I would seriously—I would rather be able to honor you and show my respect for you by speaking your language, as you honor me by speaking mine.
And so language, the ability not only to master the ability to put your ideas into words 22)succinctly on a 23)platform to communicate ideas to your own people, it is even more impressive when you have the capacity to do that and communicate your ideas, especially as future business and political and 24)moral leaders in the world in the language of the people to whom you’re speaking.
So I think there is no greater resource that a nation could seek than having a group of people who were able to communicate in the same idiom, the same dialect, the same…the same pattern as the people to whom with they’re speaking. Because this is all about…all about understanding one another.
Let me conclude by saying this. My father was a high school-educated man. He never went to a university and…and nor did my mother or anyone in my family at that time. But my father was an elegant, 25)decent man…26)eloquent and elegant, decent man. My father used to have an expression that maybe is the best way for me to conclude my comments with you all, and I wish I could stay later…longer, sincerely wish I could. He used to say, “Joe, the only conflict that is worse than one that is intended is one that is unintended.” The only conflict worse than one that is intended is one that is unintended.
Language, speech, interchange, openness, communication—that is the material that can be used to lessen the possibility of the unintended, the unintended conflict. I have great faith in all of you. I mean this sincerely. You’re an incredible country, an incredible people. And the fact there’s a hundred thousand students here at this great university, the fact that there are millions of Chinese at universities throughout…throughout this country; the fact there’s 130,000 Chinese nationals speaking…citizens, going to American universities is the stuff which gives me faith.
Believe in yourselves. Believe in yourselves. You have the capacity to do anything, anything anyone in the world has ever done. And the more you do, the 27)better off my granddaughter and my great granddaughter’s generation are going to be.
Thank you for the honor of being here. (Applause.)
对于演讲者来说，真诚远比演讲技巧更有价值。我说这句话的时候是真诚的。（笑声）在世界历史长河中不乏一些享有盛名的演说家，他们其实是江湖骗子。因此，在听一位领导人演说时，最重要的不是看其能否侃侃而谈或其措辞是否文采飞扬，而在于你是否认为演说者当下态度诚恳。
其次，你夸奖我是一位很有造诣的演说家。我不知道你是否有机会观看一部引起全球关注的电影，叫做《国王的演讲》。如果忽略皇室血统和财富，那（主角）说的可能就是我本人。从小学到高中甚至到上大学，我一直患有严重的口吃。我坚持不懈地练习，站在镜子前面，努力让自己在发音时不把脸扭歪。
大家可以想一想，无论在中国还是美国，人们唯一可以随便拿来开玩笑或是取笑的生理缺陷就是口吃。如果我有一张残缺变形的脸，你们不会取笑我的脸。但是，如果我站在你们面前，像这样跟……跟……跟你们说……说……说话，你们可能就会像现在这样——在微笑。但这么做是非常不礼貌的，非常不礼貌。因为这（指口吃）是一种严重的生理缺陷。人们往往认为口吃的人很笨，认为他们一无是处，然而世界上有千千万万睿智而胸怀大志的人由于生理上的缺陷无法表达他们的情感。
我之所以提到这件事，是因为接下来我要讲到的第三点，也是最重要的一点。言语、交流——表达清楚明白的想法——是达到相互理解的途径，是我们交流彼此想法的途径，也是我们判断一个人是否真实、正直或诚恳的途径。通过人们说话的方式，我们可以判断他们是开诚布公还是居心叵测。在我38年的职业生涯中——我曾有机会在这38年中与世界各地的领导人会晤——有一点让我感到最尴尬。我家境贫寒，30岁的时候——其实是29岁——赢得选举担任公职。我得到了这个机会，但有一点总是让我感到尴尬——此刻我站在你们面前，内心也感到同样的尴尬——因为我不能用中文与你们交流。我真心地——我能用你们的语言来表示我对你们的尊重，正如你们用我的语言表示对我的尊重一样。（译者注：拜登认为能用聆听者的语言来描述自己的想法才是对对方的尊重以及能更明晰地表达自己的意思，但是他无法使用对方的语言，因此感到尴尬。）
所以说，运用语言是一种能力，这种能力不仅能使你站在讲台上用词汇简单明了地向你的同胞传达你的想法，更令人钦佩的是，你有能力用别人的母语表达你的想法，特别是作为一个未来的企业家、政治家以及道德典范。
因此，对于一个国家而言，我认为最宝贵的资源就是有这样一批人，他们能够用对方的习惯用语、方言乃至遵循对方的语言习惯表达自己，因为归根结底最重要的是互相理解。
我这么来总结我的回答吧。我的父亲只上过高中，从未上过大学……我的母亲和任何家人那时都没上过大学。但是我的父亲是一个文雅、体面的人……说话很有说服力、温文尔雅、体面的人。或许用我父亲常说的一句话能最好地总结我对大家的讲话，我希望能够多留一会儿……多待一些时间，我衷心希望我能如此。他常说，“乔，最糟糕的对立，是无意间造成的。” 最糟糕的对立，是无意间造成的。
语言、演说、交流、开放、沟通——这些能帮助我们减少可能无意造成的对立。我对你们有极大的信心。我真心这么认为。你们是一个了不起的国家、了不起的民族。在这所优秀的大学里有成千上万的学生，在整个国家有数百万人进入高等学府；有十三万中国公民在美国留学，这些事实就是我信心的来源。
相信自己，相信自己。你们有能力做任何事情，做世界上任何人曾经做过的任何事。你们做得越多，我的孙女和重孙女辈的一代会过得更好。
感谢你们让我有幸来到这里。（掌声）