本文摘选自英国作家奥尔德斯·赫胥黎的Selected Snobberies，讨论世上种种势利现象。作者最为世人所知的代表作是《美丽新世界》。总共5篇，今天是最后一篇。

If we regard activity as being in itself a good, then we must count all snobberies as good; for all provoke activity. If, with the Buddhists（佛教徒）, we regard all activity in this world of illusion as bad, then we shall condemn all snobberies out of hand.

1. world of illusion：虚幻的世界，红尘俗世

2. out of hand：立即；无法控制（相当于out of control)

例句：His wrath got out of hand.他怒不可遏。

例句：Oh, this is quickly getting out of hand.场面一下子就乱套了啊。

3. 翻译：如果我们把行动本身看作是好事，那么我们必须把一切势利感当作好事，因为它们全都能引起行动。如果我们和佛教徒一样，认为在这个虚幻的世界上一切行动都是坏事，那么我们就会立即谴责所有的势利感。

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Most of us, I suppose, take up our position somewhere between the two extremes. We regard some activities as good, others as indifferent or downright bad. Our approval will be given only to such snobberies as excite what we regard as the better activities; the others we shall either tolerate or detest.

4.  downright  adv. 完全地

5. detest  vt. 憎恨；厌恶

例句：She really did detest his mockery. 她真的非常讨厌他的嘲弄。

6. 翻译：我认为我们多数人所采取的立场是介于这两个极端之间的某个地方，我们把某些行动看作是好的，某些是无关紧要的，或彻底坏的。我们赞成的只能是那些激起我们认为是较好的行动的势利感，其余的我们只能或容忍、或憎恶。

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For example, most professional intellectuals will approve of culture-snobbery (even while intensely disliking most individual culture-snobs ), because it compels the philistines（n. 市侩,庸人） to pay at least some slight tribute to the things of the mind and so helps to make the world less dangerously unsafe for ideas than it otherwise might have been.

7. tribute  n. 贡物；颂词；礼物

pay a tribute to 称赞；歌颂

8. becuause后面的句子有点长，取掉一些词组并断句，就很容易理解了

it compels the philistines to pay （at least） some slight tribute to the things of the mind / and /so helps to make the world less dangerously unsafe for ideas / than it otherwise might have been.

9. 翻译：例如，多数专业知识分子会赞成文化势利感（即使他们十分讨厌大多数文化势利者个人），因为这迫使市侩庸人们至少对精神上的东西要稍加赞许，因此有助于使世界比没有这一点赞许时对精神可能少一点危险和不安全。

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A manufacturer of motor-cars, on the other hand, will rank the snobbery of possessions above culture-snobbery; he will do his best to persuade people that those who have fewer possessions, particularly possessions on four wheels, are inferior to those who have more possessions. And so on. Each hierarchy culminates in its own particular Pope.

10. hierarchy  /'haɪərɑːkɪ/ n. 等级制度；统治集团, 领导层

11. culminate vt. & vi. 达到极点

12. Pope  n. 教皇，罗马教皇

13. he will do his best to persuade people that those who have fewer possessions, particularly （have fewer) possessions on four wheels, are inferior to those who have more possessions.

14. 翻译：另一方面，一个汽车制造商会把财产势利感置于文化势利感之上，他会尽其所能使人们相信，占有东西少的人，特别是在四个轮子上的东西，低于占有东西多的人。依此类推。每一等级的人到头来终有自己具体最崇拜的教皇。