爱弥尔

卢梭是十八世纪法国大革命的思想先驱，杰出的民主政论家和浪漫主义文学流派的开创者，同时也是伟大的启蒙思想家、哲学家、教育家、文学家，他在政治哲学、教育、伦理和心理方面都做出了极为重要的贡献。爱弥尔是卢梭自己认为最好的作品，这部作品以虚构的“爱弥尔”不同阶段的教育作为主线，阐述卢梭本人的教育理念，卢梭希望通过此书的教育理念，探索什么样的教育能够解决他所关心的哲学问题，这个问题即“一个本来具备自然状态的自由人，如何能够进入社会系统，但又不会被社会所腐化”。

Locke's great maxim was that we ought to reason with children, and just now this maxim is much in fashion.

I think, however, that its success does not warrant its reputation, and I find nothing more stupid than children who have been so much reasoned with.

The noblest work of education is to make a reasoning man, and we expect to train a young child by making him reason! This is beginning at the end; this is making an instrument of a result.

In attempting to persuade your pupils to obedience you add to this alleged persuasion force and threats, or worse still, flattery and promises. Brought over in this way by interest, or constrained by force, they pretend to be convinced by reason. The reason for duty is beyond their age, and there is not a man in the world who could make them really aware of it; but the fear of punishment, the hope of forgiveness, importunity, the difficulty of answering, wrings from them as many confessions as you want; and you think you have convinced them when you have only wearied or frightened them.

What results from this? First of all, by imposing upon them a duty they do not feel as such, you set them against your tyranny, and dissuade them from loving you; you teach them to be dissemblers, deceitful, willfully untrue, for the sake of extorting rewards or of escaping punishments. Finally, by habituating them to cover a secret motive by an apparent motive, you give them the means of constantly misleading you, of concealing their true character from you, and of satisfying yourself and others with empty words when their occasion demands.

▍生词好句

maxim: n. 原则；准则

reason: vi. 推理；理性探讨

warrant: vt. 证明；确保

stupid: adj. 愚蠢的

persuade: vt. 说服；劝说

obedience: n. 顺从；服从

alleged: adj. 声称的；所谓的

flattery: n. 奉承；谄媚

constrain: vt. 强迫；驱使

importunity: n. 强求

confession: n. 忏悔

tyranny: n. 暴政；专横（本节指“父母的权威”）

dissuade: vt. 劝阻；劝止

dissembler: n. 伪善者；伪君子

deceitful: adj. 欺骗的；欺诈的

willfully: adv. 故意地

conceal: vt. 隐藏；隐瞒