一四、C. W. 論男女交際之禮

（二月三日）

C. W. 來(lái)書(shū)，摘錄其精華如下。此君思想不凡，真能超然塵表者也。

My habit, as you well know, is to consider what is right for the highest type of human being… The only "propriety" between those persons of the highest type—that is those who have had their eyes opened to the beauty of a still higher human development, and souls stimulated to the constant effort of realizing it—is propriety of thought．It is quite simple, isn't it? The things worthy of either of two people to be thought of at all, can worthily be thought of together….

When one thinks alone there are many things which one faces squarely and then casts away as unfit, and if one does this as promptly before speaking, surely there can be no impropreity．And in the association (or friendship) of man and woman, surely this all holds good, if the truth of sex attraction is clearly understood and valued for just so much as it is good for, and if, when it consciously appears not of use. it is consciously put away by wilful turning of the attention to the higher side of that friendship．And because of the possibility of this effort being called into action, should all the richness of communication between human beings whose real life after all is spiritual and not physical, be blocked by a "sense of propriety"? Surely some of the closest and most stimulating interaction of thought comes between two persons no more．It is true between two women, and I feel sure it is so between two men, and it is true between a man and a woman.…

〔中譯〕

我的習(xí)慣，正如你非常了解的，我一直在思考什么是對(duì)于最高層次合適的“禮儀”?！罡邔哟蔚娜耍麄兛偸亲非笕祟?lèi)更高發(fā)展的美，靈魂不斷受到激勵(lì)去力求實(shí)現(xiàn)這種美。對(duì)于這些人而言，他們之間的“禮儀”是一種屬于思想上的東西，這難道不是非常簡(jiǎn)單的嗎？對(duì)于雙方交往中任何一方值得去思考的東西，完全也值得雙方共同來(lái)思考?！?

有許多東西，當(dāng)你正視它之后便會(huì)知道它是不合適的而要放棄它。如果一個(gè)人在開(kāi)口說(shuō)話(huà)之前能這樣想一想的話(huà)，那就不可能有不合乎“禮儀”的行為了。這也適用于男女之間的交往。只要性吸引的真諦被清楚地了解，看重它本來(lái)的價(jià)值，自覺(jué)地拋開(kāi)它的實(shí)用性，自覺(jué)地將注意力轉(zhuǎn)向這種交往中的較高層次的一方面，要將這一切努力付之于行動(dòng)是完全可能的，那么，對(duì)于那些生活的本質(zhì)是精神性的而不是物質(zhì)性的人們來(lái)說(shuō)，他們之間的豐富的交往還會(huì)受到所謂“禮儀”的阻礙么？?jī)蓚€(gè)人之間最容易產(chǎn)生親近的、激發(fā)思想交流的欲望。兩個(gè)女人之間是如此，兩個(gè)男人之間是如此，一個(gè)女人和一個(gè)男人之間也同樣如此?！?

右論男女交際之“禮”，可謂卓識(shí)。此論即在所謂最自由放任之美國(guó)亦足駭人聽(tīng)聞。蓋此邦號(hào)稱(chēng)自由耳，其社會(huì)風(fēng)尚宗教禮俗，則守舊之習(xí)極深，其故家大族尤甚。C. W.，女子中之有革命眼光者也。其家庭中之守舊空氣，C. W. 對(duì)之如在囹圄，其遠(yuǎn)去紐約，終歲僅數(shù)歸，未嘗不為此故。此君蓋可謂為“divine discontent”者也。又曰：

Education—Choice—then Vital Activity—is not this the way a people should develope?

〔中譯〕

教育——選擇——然后是至關(guān)重要的行動(dòng)，這不正是人們應(yīng)該遵循的發(fā)展道路嗎？

此見(jiàn)道之言也。