CET6

Lesson 6
Aggressive Patriotism in Sports

Some people believe that international sports create goodwill between the nations. Others say that the opposite is true: that international contests encourage false national pride and lead to misunderstanding and hatred. There is probably some truth in both arguments, but in recent years the Olympic Games have done little to support the view that sports encourages international brotherhood. Not only was there the tragic incident involving the murder of athletes, but the Games were also ruined by lesser incidents caused principally by minor national contests.

One country received its second-place medals with visible indignation after the hockey final. There had been noisy scenes at the end of the hockey match, the losers objecting to the final decisions. They were convinced that one of their goals should not have been disallowed and that their opponents’ victory was unfair. Their manager was in a rage when he said: “This wasn’t hockey. Hockey and the International Hockey Federation are finished.” The president of the Federation said later that such behavior could result in the suspension of the team for at least three years.

The American basketball team announced that they would not yield first place to Russia, after a disputable end to their contest. The game had ended in disturbance. It was thought at first that the United States had won, by a single point, but it was announced that there were three seconds still to play. A Russian player then threw the ball from one end of the court to the other, and another player popped it into the basket. It was the first time the USA had ever lost an Olympic basketball match. The American players then voted not to receive the silver medals.

Incidents of this kind will continue as long as sport is played competitively rather than for the love of the game. In the present organization of the Olympics there is far too much that encourages aggressive patriotism.

名人名言

It may also be said that rational, industrious, useful human beings are divided into two classes: first, those whose work is work and whose pleasure is pleasure; and secondly, those whose work and pleasure are one. Of these the former are the majority. They have their compensations. The long hours in the office or the factory bring with them as their reward, not only the means of sustenance, but a keen appetite for pleasure even in its simplest and most modest forms. But Fortune’s favoured children belong to the second class. Their life is a natural harmony. For them the working hours are never long enough. Each day is a holiday, and ordinary holidays when they come are grudged as enforced interruptions in an absorbing vocation. Yet to both classes the need of an alternative outlook, of a change of atmosphere, of a diversion of effort, is essential. Indeed, it may well be that those whose work is their pleasure are those who most need the means of banishing it at intervals from their minds.

—Winston Churchill

体育运动中激进的爱国主义

一些人认为国际体育运动能够在国与国之间创造友善。另外一些人认为情况恰恰相反：国际竞赛会鼓励产生过激的民族自尊心，从而导致误解和仇恨。也许两种观点都有一些正确之处，但是近年来举办的奥林匹克运动会几乎没有证据支持运动会能够增进国际友爱这种观点。在奥运会中不仅有谋杀运动员这样的惨案，而且运动会的形象也被主要由少数国家的竞赛引发的小型事件(incident)破坏了。

某次曲棍球决赛后，一个国家在大家明显的公愤（indignation）中赢得了银牌。在曲棍球(hockey)比赛接近尾声时，场面一片混乱，失败者反对最后的裁决。他们坚信他们的一次进球不应被判无效，对手的胜利是不公平的。他们的经理在说这些话时十分愤怒：“这不是曲棍球。曲棍球和国际曲棍球联合会都完蛋了。”联合会主席后来说球队这样的行为可导致其被判停赛（suspension）至少3年。

在前苏联与美国的一场结局具有争议性的比赛之后，美国篮球队宣称他们不会向苏联队屈服。这场比赛在骚乱（disturbance）中结束。一开始大家认为美国队将以一分的优势获胜，但是后来宣布离比赛结束还有3秒钟。然后，一位苏联选手从赛场一端把球向另一端传去，接着另一位选手将球扣入篮中。这是美国篮球队首次在奥林匹克篮球赛中失利。美国队员投票表决拒绝接受银牌。

只要体育运动仍是为竞争而不是因热爱运动本身而举办，那么此类事件就会层出不穷。目前奥林匹克组织太过于鼓励激进爱国主义精神（patriotism）了。

名人名言

也可以这么说，明智的、勤奋的、有用的人可以分成两类：第一类，他们工作就是工作，娱乐就是娱乐。第二类，他们的工作和娱乐是一码事。在这两种人当中，前者占多数。他们得到相应的补偿（compensations）。长时间的办公室或工厂里工作，作为回报给他们带来的不仅是维持生计的金钱，而且是一种渴求消遣的强烈欲望，哪怕这种消遣是以最简单、最朴实的方式进行。命运的宠儿则属于第二类人。他们的生活是一种自然的和谐。对他们来说，工作时间永远太短，每个工作日都是假期；正常的假日来临之时，他们总是抱怨（grudged）他们正在全神贯注的工作被强行中断。然而，对于这两种人来说，变换一下视角，改变（diversion）一下氛围，做一件别的事，是十分必要的。的确如此，那些工作即娱乐的人们很可能最需要以某种方式使他们每隔一段时间可以把工作从大脑中驱逐（banishing）出去。

——温斯顿·丘吉尔

（责任编辑：中大编辑）

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