在一定程度上 是必要的呢?to living a good life?"是否有可能"Why isn't it possible人们过着 完美的生活，for people to live perfectly good lives,满意的生活，道德的生活，decent lives,moral lives,同时却不必 参与到政治生活中？”without participating in politics?"对此，他给出了 两个回答。Well, he gives two answers to that question.他给了 一个不完整的回答，一个初步的答案，He gives a partial answer, a preliminary answer,在《政治学》第一卷中。in Book One of the Politics他告诉我们，只有生活在城邦中where he tells us that only by living in a polis,并且参与政治生活and participating in politics,才让我们完全实现，作为人类的我们的本性。do we fully realize our nature as human beings.人类，从本性上Human beings are, by nature,就意味着 要生活在一个城邦之中。meant to live in a polis.为什么？Why?因为只有在政治生活中，我们才可以真正锻炼到It's only in political life that we can actually exercise我们的 语言能力，our distinctly human capacity for language,亚里士多德认为，有了这种能力 才能 思考对与错，which Aristotle understands is this capacity to deliberate about right and wrong,思考 正义与不正义。the just and the unjust.而且，亚里士多德在《政治学》第一卷中写道，And so, Aristotle writes in Book One of the Politics,城邦、政治共同体，that the polis,the political community,先于个体 自然存在着，exists by nature and is prior to the individual.这不是说，它在个体出现以前 就存在Not prior in time,而是 其目的 先于个体but prior in its purpose.人类离开政治共同体，Human beings are not self-sufficient,单靠自己living by themselves,是不可能做到 自给自足的。outside a political community.“那些孤立的人，那些不能分享到 政治联合体的好处。"Man who is isolated, who is unable to share in the benefits of political association,那些不需要 分享的人or who has no need to share,因为他 已经自给自足，because he's already self-sufficient,这样的人，不是一头野兽，就是神。”such a person must be either a beast or a god."所以，我们要想全面实现 我们的天性So we only fully realize our nature,要想 全面发挥 我们的能力，we only fully unfold our human capacities,就必须 锻炼我们的语言能力，when we exercise our faculty of language,也就是说，要与 其他公民思考which means when we deliberate with our fellow citizens善与恶about good and evil,对与错，正义与不正义。right and wrong, just and the unjust.“但为什么，我们只能在政治共同体中，锻炼语言能力？”"But why can we only exercise our capacity for language in political community?"你也许会 这样问。you might ask.亚里士多德 在《尼各马可伦理学》中Aristotle gives a second part, a fuller part,给了一个更完整的回答of his answer in the Nichomachean Ethics;我们的阅读材料中，也其中的节选an excerpt of which we have among the readings.他解释说，政治的讨论、And there he explains that political deliberation,公民生活的行使、living the life of a citizen,统治与被统治之间的交替、权力的分享，ruling and being ruled in turn, sharing in rule,所有这些活动，对美德都是必须的。all of this is necessary to virtue.亚里士多德 把幸福定义为Aristotle defines happiness不是 最大程度的让 快乐超过痛苦，not as maximizing the balance of pleasure over pain而是作为一种活动，一种 与美德相一致的but as an activity,an activity of the soul灵魂的活动。in accordance with virtue.他说，每一个学政治的学生 必须研究灵魂，And he says that every student of politics must study the soul因为塑造灵魂，是在一个良好的城邦because shaping the soul is one of the objects of legislation立法的目标之一。in a good city.但是为什么 为了过上 有道德的生活，But why is it necessary to live in a good city必须生活在一个好的城市里?in order to live a virtuous life?我们为什么不能 从家庭中，学习好的道德，Why can't we just learn good moral principles at home或从哲学课堂，或从一本书里，or in a philosophy class or from a book,按照 那些原则live according to those principles,那些规则，那些准则those rules, those precepts,来生活呢？and leave it at that?亚里士多德说，那种方法是 学不到美德的。Aristotle says virtue isn't acquired that way.美德Virtue是只有通过实践，才能获得的is only something we can acquire by practicing,是只有通过运用，才能获得的。by exercising the virtues.它是只能 通过做，才能学到的。It's the kind of thing we can only learn by doing.它不能 从书本学到。It doesn't come from book learning.在这方面，它很像 长笛演奏的例子In this respect, it's like flute playing;学习演奏乐器，你不能够只靠you couldn't learn how to play a musical instrument well读一本书来学，just by reading a book about it.你必须练习，You have to practice,必须聆听，那些 有造诣的长笛手 的表演。and you have to listen to other accomplished flute-players.还有其他一些 实践也是如此，There are other practices and skills of this type.例如，烹调Cooking;我们有 烹调书there are cookbooks但从来没有一位大厨，是仅靠书本 来学习烹调的but no great chef ever learns how to cook by reading a cookbook only.它只能靠动手做 来学习。It's the kind of thing you only learn by doing.讲笑话 可能也是一个例子，Joke-telling is probably another example of this kind.但从来没有一位 伟大的喜剧演员，只靠读关于喜剧原则的书，No great comedian learns to be a comedian just by reading a book来学会成为一个喜剧演员。on the principles of comedy.那样是 不会成功的。It wouldn't work.为什么呢？Now, why not?讲笑话、烹调和演奏乐器，What do joke-telling and cooking这些事物 其共同点 就是and playing a musical instrument have in common我们不能完全靠 领会书籍和讲座上的such that we can't learn them just by grasping a precept or a rule准则或规则 来把它学会。that we might learn from a book or a lecture?它们的共同点是 需要What they have in common is that they are all concerned with熟练地 掌握它。getting the hang of it.当我们学习如何烹调、演奏乐器、或讲笑话时But also what is it we get the hang of when we learn how to cook,我们怎样精通它？or play a musical instrument, or tell jokes well?用心觉察细节，每种情况的特别之处。Discerning particulars, particular features of a situation.这里没有 没有规则，没有准则And no rule, no precept,可以告诉喜剧演员、厨师或音乐家could tell the comedian or the cook or the great musician如何培养 那种觉察细节、how to get in the habit of,the practice of,和每种情况的特别之处 的习惯。discerning the particular features of a situation.亚里士多德说，美德也是那样。Aristotle says virtue is that way too.它与政治生活 有什么关联？Now, how does this connect to politics?建立美好生活 所需要的美德，其获得的唯一方法The only way we can acquire the virtues that constitute the good life就是去运用美德，反复的教导，is to exercise the virtues, to have certain habits inculcated in us,然后与 其他公民们一起，and then to engage in the practice of deliberating with citizens讨论 关于善的本性。about the nature of the good.那是 政治生活 最终要达到的。That's what politics is ultimately about.公民美德的获得The acquisition of civic virtue,与他人研讨的能力 的获得of this capacity to deliberate among equals,这些都是 在政治生活之外，无法独自得到的。that's something we couldn't get living a life alone outside of politics.这就是为什么，为了实现我们的本性，And so, that's why, in order to realize our nature,我们不得不 参与政治生活。we have to engage in politics.这也是为什么，那些最具公民美德的人And that's why those who are greatest in civic virtue,比如 伯里克利（古希腊的伟大政治家）like Pericles, are the ones值得享有 最高国家官职和荣誉称号。who properly have the greatest measure of offices and honors.所以，关于 分配官职和荣誉称号 的争论So, the argument about the distribution of offices and honors不仅有这样 目的论的特征，has this teleological character,而且还是一个关于 彰显荣耀 的问题。but also an honorific dimension.因为政治的一部分目的，就是为了给 像伯里克利这样的人 以荣誉。Because part of the point of politics is to honor people like Pericles.这并不是说，伯里克利 之所以拥有 统治权It isn't just that Pericles should have the dominant say是因为他有 最好的判断力because he has the best judgment,能得出 最好的结果，and that will lead to the best outcomes,给公民们 带来最佳的结果。to the best consequences for the citizens.尽管 这也是对的，而且很重要。That's true, and that's important.但一个更深层的原因，人们觉得伯利克里But a further reason people like Pericles之所以 应该拥有最高的should have the greatest measure国家官职、荣誉称号和政治权力，of offices, and honors,and political authority,在城邦里具有 支配的能力and sway in the polis,是因为 政治的部分目的，就是要挑选 并把荣誉归于is that part of the point of politics is to single out and honor那些最具有 相关美德的those who possess the relevant virtue,最具有 公民美德、公民优点、实践性智慧 的人in this case civic virtue,civic excellence, practical wisdom, to the fullest extent.那就是 关于荣耀彰显 的这个方面That's the honorific dimension与 亚里士多德的政治观 之间的联系bound up with Aristotle's account of politics.这里有一个例子Here's an example当代的一场争论 体现了这种联系that shows the link in a contemporary controversy;它体现了， 亚里士多德 所要告诉我们的the link to which Aristotle draws our attention正义和权利，以及 社会生活的目的，between arguments about justice and rights on the one hand这两者之间的联系。and figuring out the telos or the purpose of a social practice on the other.不仅如此，Casey Martin 和他的高尔夫球车 一案中Not only that, the case of Casey Martin and his golf cart也体现了 另一种联系，also brings out the link between