Renata Salecl: Our unhealthy obsession with choice

翻译人员: Carlyle Shaw 校对人员: Justine Bai

When I was preparing for this talk,

我在准备这次演讲的时候

I went to search for a couple of quotes

搜索了几句名言

that I can share with you.

希望和大家分享

Good news: I found three

好消息是：我找到了三句

that I particularly liked,

我特别喜欢的句子

the first by Samuel Johnson, who said,

第一句是 塞缪尔·约翰逊的：

"When making your choice in life,

”当你在人生中抉择时

do not forget to live,"

别忘了过生活“

the second by Aeschylus, who reminded us that

第二句是 埃斯库罗斯的 他曾提醒我们：

"happiness is a choice that requires effort,"

“选择幸福你需要付出”

and the third is one by Groucho Marx

第三句是 格劳乔·马克斯的

who said, "I wouldn't want to choose to belong

他说：“我不愿意进入

to any club that would have me as a member."

任何一个希望我成为其中一员的俱乐部”

Now, bad news:

现在 坏消息是

I didn't know which one of these quotes

我不知道该选这三句中的哪一句

to choose and share with you.

来和大家分享

The sweet anxiety of choice.

心里有点甜美的选择焦虑

In today's times of post-industrial capitalism,

在当今的后工业社会中

choice, together with individual freedom

选择 个人自由

and the idea of self-making,

和自我造就

has been elevated to an ideal.

都被提升到理想层面

Now, together with this, we also have a belief

如今 与此一并 我们有了种信仰

in endless progress.

相信进展会永无止境

But the underside of this ideology

然而 这种意识形态的阴暗面

has been an increase of anxiety,

是愈来愈多的焦虑

feelings of guilt,

罪恶感

feelings of being inadequate,

对自身的不满

feeling that we are failing in our choices.

和愧于自己的选择

Sadly, this ideology of individual choice

悲哀的是 自由抉择的意识形态

has prevented us from thinking about social changes.

阻碍了我们对于社会改变的思考

It appears that this ideology was actually

看来 这种意识形态实际上

very efficient in pacifying us

能非常有效地安抚我们

as political and social thinkers.

这些政治和社会思想者

Instead of making social critiques,

我们不再批判社会

we are more and more engaging in self-critique,

反之 我们更着重于自我批判

sometimes to the point of self-destruction.

有时候还会达到自我毁灭的地步

Now, how come that ideology of choice

那么 为什么那种选择的意识形态

is still so powerful,

仍旧如此强大

even among people who have

即便是对于那些

not many things to choose among?

没有多少选择的人来说也是如此？

How come that even people who are poor

为何甚至连贫穷的人

very much still identify with the idea of choice,

也仍旧能分辨抉择

the kind of rational idea of choice

作出我们所信奉的

which we embrace?

理性选择？

Now, the ideology of choice is very successful

选择的意识有益于

in opening for us a space to think

为我们打开思维的空间

about some imagined future.

来想象未来

Let me give you an example.

让我给大家举个例子

My friend Manya,

我的朋友 马尼亚

when she was a student at university in California,

当时是加利福尼亚大学的学生

was earning money

同时为一个汽车营销商工作

by working for a car dealer.

来赚钱

Now, Manya, when she encountered

当马尼亚 遇到一些

the typical customer, would debate with him

典型的客户时 她便会和他们讨论

about his lifestyle,

其生活方式

how much he wants to spend,

其预算值

how many children he has,

有多少孩子

what does he need the car for?

买车的目的等问题

They would usually come to a good conclusion

通常他们都会得出一个不错的结论

what would be a perfect car.

决定好哪辆车最适合

Now, before Manya's customer would go home

不过 在马尼亚的客户回家

and think things through,

考虑购买之前

she would say to him,

她会跟客户说：

"The car that you are buying now is perfect,

你要买的这辆车对你来说简直完美

but in a few year's time,

但几年之后

when your kids will be already out of the house,

当你的孩子离开家

when you will have a little bit more money,

当你有稍多的储蓄

that other car will be ideal.

另一台车就更适合了

But what you are buying now is great."

但是你现在来买这辆很不错

Now, the majority of Manya's customers

随后 大部分马尼亚的客户

who came back the next day

第二天回来

bought that other car,

都会买另外那辆车

the car they did not need,

那辆他们不需要的

the car that cost far too much money.

而且花费太多的车

Now, Manya became so successful in selling cars

之后 由于马尼亚在汽车销售方面的成功

that soon she moved on to selling airplanes.

她转行去卖飞机了

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And knowing so much about the psychology of people

她丰富的人类心理学知识

prepared her well for her current job,

更让她很好地适应了现在的工作

which is that of a psychoanalyst.

她现在是一名心理分析学家

Now, why were Manya's customers so irrational?

为什么马尼亚的客户都如此不理性？

Manya's success was that she was able

马尼亚 的成功在于她能

to open in their heads an image

釋放客户的想象

of an idealized future,

去构想一个理想的未来

an image of themselves

想象一个客户们变得

when they are already more successful, freer,

更加成功 更加自由的未来

and for them, choosing that other car

而对客户们来说 选择更贵的那辆车

was as if they are coming closer to this ideal

似乎就让他们更接近自己的理想未来

in which it was as if Manya already saw them.

那个似乎已经被马尼亚看穿的未来

Now, we rarely make really totally rational choices.

其实 我们很少作出完全理性的选择

Choices are influenced by our unconscious,

选择被我们的潜意识

by our community.

被我们的社区所影响

We're often choosing

通常我们选择的方式

by guessing, what would other people

是猜测他人对

think about our choice?

自己选择的看法

Also we are choosing

同时 我们还会

by looking at what others are choosing.

观察其他人选择什么

We're also guessing what is socially acceptable choice.

抑或考虑社会接受哪个选择

Now, because of this, we actually

正因如此

even after we have already chosen,

即便我们已经选好了

like bought a car,

譬如说买哪辆车

endlessly read reviews about cars,

实际上还是会不断地查看汽车评论

as if we still want to convince ourselves

就好像我们在说服自己

that we made the right choice.

选对了的感觉

Now, choices are anxiety-provoking.

抉择会引起焦虑

They are linked to risks, losses.

并与风险 损失相关联

They are highly unpredictable.

而且极为不可预测

Now, because of this,

因此

people have now more and more problems

人们现在有越来越多的问题

that they are not choosing anything.

以至于他们不敢作出任何选择

Not long ago, I was at a wedding reception,

不久以前 我在一个婚礼接待上

and I met a young, beautiful woman

遇到了一位年轻 漂亮的女士

who immediately started telling me about her anxiety over choice.

她迫不及待地开始跟我说她的选择焦虑症

She said to me, "I needed one month

她对我说：我用了整整一个月

to decide which dress to wear."

来决定穿哪条裙子

Then she said, "For weeks I was researching

然后她说：我还用了几个星期搜索

which hotel to stay for this one night.

今晚该住哪间宾馆

And now, I need to choose a sperm donor."

现在 我要选个精子捐献者

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I looked at this woman in shock.

我惊讶地看着她

"Sperm donor? What's the rush?"

“精子捐献者？那么急干什么？”

She said, "I'm turning 40 at the end of this year,

她说：今年年底我就要40岁了

and I've been so bad in choosing men in my life."

而我完全不会选择人生伴侣

Now choice, because it's linked to risk,

由于选择与风险相关联

is anxiety-provoking,

所以它还会带来焦虑

and it was already the famous

曾经 著名的

Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard

丹麦哲学家索伦·奥贝·基尔克果

who pointed out that anxiety

指出焦虑

is linked to the possibility of possibility.

与“可能性”的出现有关

Now, we think today that we can prevent these risks.

现在我们认为自己能预防风险的发生

We have endless market analysis,

因为我们有无穷无尽的市场分析

projections of the future earnings.

和未来收入推测

Even with market, which is about chance,

即使在市场这个充满可能性

randomness, we think we can predict rationally

和随机性的地方里 我们仍旧认为自己能理性预测

where it's going.

将会发生什么事

Now, chance is actually becoming very traumatic.

现在 机会其实正变得十分让人痛苦

Last year, my friend Bernard Harcourt

上一年 我的朋友伯纳德· 哈考特

at the University of Chicago organized an event,

身处芝加哥大学 他组织了一场

a conference on the idea of chance.

有关机会的会议

He and I were together on the panel,

我和他一起在讨论小组上

and just before delivering our papers —

就在我们递交论文的前一刻——

we didn't know each other's papers —

同时又不知道对方论文内容时——

we decided to take chance seriously.

我们决定严肃对待这个“机会”

So we informed our audience

所以我们就告知观众

that what they will just now hear

接下来他们将听到的

will be a random paper,

会是乱序的论文

a mixture of the two papers

两份论文会混在一起

which we didn't know what each was writing.

但我们（两位作者）仍不知道对方的论文内容

Now, we delivered the conference in such a way.

当天我们就真的如此进行那场会议

Bernard read his first paragraph,

伯纳德读了他的第一段

I read my first paragraph,

我接着读我的第一段

Bernard read his second paragraph,

伯纳德 读第二段

I read my second paragraph,

我接着读第二段

in this way towards the end of our papers.

就这样一直到论文结束

Now, you will be surprised

你可能会讶异

that a majority of our audience

因为当时大部分观众

did not think that what they'd just listened to

并不认为他们听到的

was a completely random paper.

完全是乱序的文章

They couldn't believe that

他们不相信

speaking from the position of authority

像我们俩这样来自权威机构的

like two professors we were,

专业教授

we would take chance seriously.

会严肃地对待这次“机会”

They thought we prepared the papers together

他们认为我们一起准备了这些论文

and were just joking that it's random.

只是开玩笑说这些语段是乱序的

Now, we live in times with a lot of information,

如今 我们生活在信息爆炸的时代

big data,

大数据时代

a lot of knowledge about the insides of our bodies.

有很多关于我们身体内部的科学知识

We decoded our genome.

我们解码了自己的基因组

We know about our brains more than before.

我们比以前更了解大脑

But surprisingly, people are more and more

但令人惊奇的是 人们却越来越

turning a blind eye in front of this knowledge.

对这种知识视而不见

Ignorance and denial are on the rise.

无知和否认不断增加

Now, in regard to the current economic crisis,

面对当前的经济危机

we think that we will just wake up again

我们以为只要能再次醒来

and everything will be the same as before,

一切都会如初

and no political or social changes are needed.

也就不需要政治 社会改革

In regard to ecological crisis,

面对生态危机

we think nothing needs to be done just now,

我们也认为目前不需做任何事

or others need to act before us.

或者其他人会更先采取行动

Or even when ecological crisis already happens,

甚至当生态危机已迫在眉睫

like a catastrophe in Fukushima,

就像福岛核泄漏事件

often we have people living in the same environment

对于生活在同一个环境里

with the same amount of information,

并收到相同信息的人之中

and half of them will be anxious about radiation

有一半人会担心辐射

and half of them will ignore it.

而另一半会视而不见

Now, psychoanalysts know very well

心理分析学家很清楚地认识到

that people surprisingly don't have

人们出奇地追崇之物

passion for knowledge

并非知识

but passion for ignorance.

而是无知

Now, what does that mean?

什么意思呢？

Let's say when we are facing

假设我们患有

a life-threatening illness,

一种危及生命的疾病

a lot of people don't want to know that.

很多人不愿意知道自己得病

They'd rather prefer denying the illness,

他们宁愿否认自己患病

which is why it's not so wise to inform them

这也是为什么 病人不问

if they don't ask.

我们就不说是明智之举

Surprisingly, research shows that sometimes

出奇的是 研究表明 有时候

people who deny their illness

否认自身疾病的患者

live longer than those who are rationally choosing

比理性接受最佳治疗的患者

the best treatment.

要长寿

Now, this ignorance, however,

可是 这种无知

is not very helpful on the level of the social.

在社会水平却不是如此有助

When we are ignorant about where we are heading,

当我们不清楚前进的方向时

a lot of social damage can be caused.

就会带来一系列的社会损害

Now, on top of facing ignorance,

除了无知

we are also facing today

目前我们还面对

some kind of an obviousness.

一种“显而易见”的意识形态

Now, it was French philosopher

法国哲学家

Louis Althusser who pointed out

路易·阿尔都塞曾指出

that ideology functions in such a way

意识形态能够

that it creates a veil of obviousness.

产生一种“显而易见”的面纱

Before we do any social critique,

在作出任何社会批判之前

it is necessary really to lift that veil of obviousness

我们必须揭开那层面纱

and to think through a little bit differently.

并从稍微不同的角度思考

If we go back to this ideology

倘若我们回到这种意识形态上

of individual, rational choice

这种我们经常追崇的

we often embrace,

个人的 理性的选择上

it's necessary precisely here

就必定要在此

to lift this obviousness

揭开“显见”

and to think a little bit differently.

并改变思考角度

Now for me, a question often is

对我来说 我心里往往有一个问题

why we still embrace this idea of a self-made man

为什么我们仍旧推崇这种自我造就的思想

on which capitalism relied from its beginning?

这种起源于资本主义的思想？

Why do we think that we are really such masters

为什么我们认为自己真的是

of our lives that we can rationally

自己人生的理性主宰者

make the best ideal choices,

能够做出最理想的选择

that we don't accept losses and risks?

而且不接受损失和风险？

And for me, it's very shocking to see sometimes very poor people,

我很震惊 有时候看到一些很穷的人

for example, not supporting the idea

打个比方说 不认同

of the rich being taxed more.

富有的人应该多缴税

Quite often here they still identify

他们还经常性地

with a certain kind of a lottery mentality.

带有中彩票的心态

Okay, maybe they don't think that they will make it

好吧 他们或许会认为自己

in the future, but maybe they think,

在未来不会成功 但也许他们会想

my son might become the next Bill Gates.

我的儿子可能会成为下一个比尔·盖茨啊

And who would want to tax one's son?

谁会愿意自己的儿子被征税啊？

Or, a question for me is also,

或者 我的另一个问题是

why would people who have no health insurance

为什么没有健康保险的人

not embrace universal healthcare?

不追崇全民医疗保险？

Sometimes they don't embrace it,

有时候他们不追崇这方案的原因

again identifying with the idea of choice,

是鉴于对选择思考的不同

but they have nothing to choose from.

可是他们没得选了啊？

Now, Margaret Thatcher famously said

玛格丽特·撒切尔的一句名言是

that there is nothing like a society.

没有真正的“社会”

Society doesn't exist, it is only individuals

所谓的“社会”并不存在 有的只是个人

and their families.

和家庭

Sadly, this ideology still functions very well,

可悲的是 这种意识已经运作良好

which is why people who are poor might feel

这就是为什么穷人会

ashamed for their poverty.

因为其贫穷而感到羞愧

We might endlessly feel guilty that we are

我们会不断地内疚 认为自己

not making the right choices,

没有作出正确的选择

and that's why we didn't succeed.

所以自己没有成功

We are anxious that we are not good enough.

我们总担心自己不够好

That's why we work very hard,

正因如此 我们十分卖力地工作

long hours at the workplace

把长时间花在工作地点

and equally long hours on remaking ourselves.

花在重塑自我之上

Now, when we are anxious over choices,

当我们过于焦虑自身选择

sometimes we easily give our power of choice away.

有时候我们很容易就丧失了选择权

We identify with the guru

我们盲从着一些大师

who tells us what to do,

让他们告诉自己该做什么

self-help therapist,

或需求自助治疗師

or we embrace a totalitarian leader

或追逐一个

who appears to have no doubts about choices,

看上去对抉择毫不迟疑的 全知的

who sort of knows.

极权主义领导者

Now, often people ask me,

人们总会问我：

"What did you learn by studying choice?"

通过钻研抉择你选到了什么？

And there is an important message that I did learn.

我学到了一条十分重要的信息

When thinking about choices,

当思考抉择时

I stopped taking choices too seriously, personally.

我个人不会对选择过于看重

First, I realized a lot of choice I make

首先 我意识到自己很多决定

is not rational.

都并非理性

It's linked to my unconscious,

我的决定和我的潜意识相连

my guesses of what others are choosing,

我会猜测他人的选择

or what is a socially embraced choice.

或者社会的选择

I also embrace the idea

我同时推崇

that we should go beyond

我们应该越过

thinking about individual choices,

对个人抉择本身的思考

that it's very important to rethink social choices,

而重新思考社会选择 这一点很重要

since this ideology of individual choice has pacified us.

因为这种个人抉择的意识使我们释然

It really prevented us to think about social change.

阻碍了我们去考虑社会变革

We spend so much time choosing things for ourselves

我们花了太多时间为自我选择

and barely reflect on

很少仔细考虑

communal choices we can make.

我们能作出的公共选择

Now, we should not forget that choice

我们不应该忘记选择

is always linked to change.

总是与改变相关联的

We can make individual changes,

我们能作出个人改变

but we can make social changes.

但更能带来社会变革

We can choose to have more wolves.

我们可以选择有更多的狼

We can choose to change our environment

我们可以选择改变我们的环境

to have more bees.

有更多的蜜蜂

We can choose to have different rating agencies.

我们可以选择不一样的评级机构

We can choose to control corporations

我们可以选择控制企业

instead of allowing corporations to control us.

而不是让企业控制我们

We have a possibility to make changes.

我们有这么一个机会去改变

Now, I started with a quote from Samuel Johnson,

一开始 我引用了塞缪尔·约翰逊的话

who said that when we make choice in life,

他说 当我们在人生中抉择时

we shouldn't forget to live.

不应该忘了要生活

Finally, you can see

最终 你可以看到

I did have a choice

我做出了决定

to choose one of the three quotes

选了演讲开始时

with which I wanted to start my lecture.

三句名言中的一句

I did have a choice,

我做出了自己的选择

such as nations, as people,

而作为国家 作为人民

we have choices too to rethink

我们也有自己的选择 来重新思考

in what kind of society we want to live in the future.

在未来 我们想在怎么样的一个社会中生活

Thank you.

谢谢

(Applause)

（掌声）