The same appears to be true in the civil rights movement. The gains that have been made have led not to satisfaction but to increased tension and dissatisfaction, particularly among those benefiting from such gains. The discontent is higher in the North than in the South, higher in cities than in rural areas.
民权运动似乎也是如此。它赢得的胜利显然并未导致满足,反而造成紧张和不满的加剧。在那些因胜利而得益的人中间,更是如此。不满情绪,北方高于南方,城市高于乡村。
The disturbing paradox of social change is that improvement brings the need for more improvement in constantly accelerating demands. So, compared to what used to be, society is way ahead; compared to what might be, it is way behind. Society is enabled to feel that conditions arc rotten, because they are actually so good.
在社会变革令人不安的怪圈中,进步带来的是要求更多的进步。而这种要求在不断加速地提出来。所以,跟过去相比,社会已经前进了一大步,跟可能达到的目标相比,则又远远落在后面。大家觉得情况糟透了,恰恰是由于实际上情况是很好的缘故。
Another problem is that everything is temporary, nothing lasts. We have grown up with the idea that in order to develop personal security we need stability, roots, consistency, and familiarity. Yet we live in a world which in every respect is continually changing. Whether we are talking about sky-scrapers or family life, scientific facts or religious values, all are highly temporary and becoming even more so. If one were to plot a curve showing the incidence of invention throughout the history of man, one would see that change is not just increasing but actually accelerating. Changes are coming faster and faster — in a sense change has become a way of life. The only people who will live successfully in tomorrow's world are those who can accept and enjoy temporary systems.
另一个问题是,一切都是暂时的,短暂的。我们从小到大,一直怀着一种思想,这就是,为了增进个人的安全,我们需要稳定,需要有根基,需要前后一贯,需要熟悉了解。然而,我们生活在一个各方面都在不断变化的世界上。无论我们谈及摩天大楼还是家庭生活,科学事实还是宗教观念,一切都是极其短暂的,而且这种情况愈演愈烈。如果画一个曲线图,表示人类历史长河中发明创造的发生率,你就会看到变化不只是增多了,实际上是在加速发生着。变化越来越快——在某种意义上讲,变化已成了一种生活方式。只有那些能够接受并喜欢暂时体制的人才能在明天的世界上成功地生活。