James Geary, metaphorically speaking

140,651 views ・ 2009-12-18

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譯者: Wang-Ju Tsai 審譯者: Beatrice Lee
00:15
Metaphor lives a secret life all around us.
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譬喻隱密存在於我們生活周遭
00:19
We utter about six metaphors a minute.
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我們每分鐘大約會說六個譬喻
00:23
Metaphorical thinking is essential
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譬喻式的思考
00:25
to how we understand ourselves and others,
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對於了解自我和別人
00:28
how we communicate, learn, discover
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對於如何溝通、學習、發現
00:31
and invent.
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和發明都很重要
00:33
But metaphor is a way of thought before it is a way with words.
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但譬喻是一種思考的方式再轉化爲文字
00:38
Now, to assist me in explaining this,
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爲了説明這點
00:41
I've enlisted the help of one of our greatest philosophers,
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我找來一位偉大的哲學家協助
00:44
the reigning king of the metaphorians,
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他是譬喻領域的國王
00:48
a man whose contributions to the field
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他對譬喻的貢獻之大
00:50
are so great that he himself
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使得他自己
00:53
has become a metaphor.
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也成為一個譬喻
00:55
I am, of course, referring to none other
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我指的,當然,不作他人想
00:59
than Elvis Presley.
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是貓王艾維斯·普利斯萊
01:01
(Laughter)
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(笑聲)
01:02
Now, "All Shook Up" is a great love song.
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神魂顛倒(按:也作”上下搖動“解)“是一首經典情歌
01:05
It's also a great example of how
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同時也是一個相當好的例子
01:07
whenever we deal with anything abstract --
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當我們要描述抽象的事物
01:09
ideas, emotions, feelings, concepts, thoughts --
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想法、情緒、感覺、概念、思想
01:13
we inevitably resort to metaphor.
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無可避免地我們會用到譬喻
01:15
In "All Shook Up," a touch is not a touch, but a chill.
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在”神魂顛倒“裏,觸摸不是觸摸,而是一陣冷顫
01:20
Lips are not lips, but volcanoes.
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嘴唇不是嘴唇,而是火山
01:23
She is not she, but a buttercup.
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她不是她,而是金鳳花
01:26
And love is not love, but being all shook up.
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愛也不是愛, 而是上下搖動,神魂顛倒
01:31
In this, Elvis is following Aristotle's classic definition of metaphor
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在這裡,貓王遵循亞里斯多德給譬喻下的經典定義
01:35
as the process of giving the thing
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也就是“ 給予一件事物
01:38
a name that belongs to something else.
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另一件事物名稱”的程序
01:41
This is the mathematics of metaphor.
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這是譬喻的數學公式
01:44
And fortunately it's very simple.
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而很幸運地這很簡單
01:46
X equals Y.
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X等於Y
01:48
(Laughter)
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(笑聲)
01:51
This formula works wherever metaphor is present.
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當譬喻出現時這個公式就會成立
01:54
Elvis uses it, but so does Shakespeare
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“羅密歐與茱麗葉”裏有名的句子:
01:57
in this famous line from "Romeo and Juliet:"
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在他“羅密歐與茱麗葉”裏有名的句子:
01:59
Juliet is the sun.
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茱麗葉是太陽
02:02
Now, here, Shakespeare gives the thing, Juliet,
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在這裡,莎士比亞給予茱麗葉
02:06
a name that belongs to something else, the sun.
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另一個事物的名稱,也就是“太陽”
02:11
But whenever we give a thing a name that belongs to something else,
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但是一旦我們給予一件事物另一件事的名稱
02:14
we give it a whole network of analogies too.
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我們同時也建立了完整的類比關係網
02:17
We mix and match what we know about the metaphor's source,
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在這個例子裡
02:20
in this case the sun,
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我們將譬喻來源“太陽”
02:22
with what we know about its target, Juliet.
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與譬喻對象“茱麗葉”加以混合重組
02:25
And metaphor gives us a much more vivid understanding of Juliet
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譬喻讓我們對茱麗葉有更清晰的理解
02:28
than if Shakespeare had literally described what she looks like.
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這要比莎士比亞具體地描述她更為生動
02:33
So, how do we make and understand metaphors?
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所以,我們如何產生和理解這些譬喻呢?
02:35
This might look familiar.
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這看起來應該不陌生
02:37
The first step is pattern recognition.
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第一步是圖形模式的識別
02:39
Look at this image. What do you see?
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這張圖,你看到了什麽?
02:42
Three wayward Pac-Men,
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三個難搞的小精靈
02:44
and three pointy brackets are actually present.
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和三個尖角同時出現
02:47
What we see, however,
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事實上我們看到的
02:49
are two overlapping triangles.
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是兩個疊在一起的三角形
02:51
Metaphor is not just the detection of patterns;
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譬喻不只是圖形模式的察覺
02:54
it is the creation of patterns.
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譬喻也是圖形模式的創造
02:56
Second step, conceptual synesthesia.
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第二步,感官的牽連感覺(聯覺)
02:59
Now, synesthesia is the experience of a stimulus in once sense organ
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所謂牽連感覺, 是指對某一感官的刺激
03:04
in another sense organ as well,
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也對其它的感官產生作用
03:06
such as colored hearing.
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比如説色彩聽覺
03:08
People with colored hearing
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有色彩聽覺的人
03:10
actually see colors when they hear the sounds
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當他們聽到聲音時也會看到顔色
03:13
of words or letters.
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他們聽到的字或字母是有顔色的
03:15
We all have synesthetic abilities.
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我們都有牽連感覺的能力
03:17
This is the Bouba/Kiki test.
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接下來這是Bouba/Kiki測試
03:20
What you have to do is identify which of these shapes
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你要做的是去決定這兩個圖形
03:22
is called Bouba, and which is called Kiki.
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哪一個叫Bouba,哪一個叫Kiki
03:26
(Laughter)
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(笑聲)
03:27
If you are like 98 percent of other people,
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你如果跟其他98%的人一樣
03:29
you will identify the round, amoeboid shape as Bouba,
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那麽你會叫這個圓圓的,像變形蟲的圖形Bouba
03:33
and the sharp, spiky one as Kiki.
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叫這個尖尖的星狀的Kiki
03:36
Can we do a quick show of hands?
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大家擧個手讓我們看一看吧
03:38
Does that correspond?
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是不是這樣啊?
03:40
Okay, I think 99.9 would about cover it.
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OK,我想99.9%的人都是如此
03:44
Why do we do that?
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為什麽我們這樣做?
03:46
Because we instinctively find, or create,
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因爲我們本能地會去找到或連結
03:50
a pattern between the round shape
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圓形圖形和
03:52
and the round sound of Bouba,
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圓滑聲音Bouba之間的關聯模式
03:55
and the spiky shape and the spiky sound of Kiki.
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還有尖型圖形和尖銳聲音Kiki的關聯模式
04:00
And many of the metaphors we use everyday are synesthetic.
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在日常生活中我們所用的譬喻很多是牽連感覺的:
04:04
Silence is sweet.
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寂靜是甜美的
04:06
Neckties are loud.
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領帶是吵雜的
04:08
Sexually attractive people are hot.
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性感的人是火辣辣的
04:11
Sexually unattractive people leave us cold.
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不性感的人讓我們覺得冷冰冰的
04:14
Metaphor creates a kind of conceptual synesthesia,
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譬喻會產生類似的感官牽連感覺
04:17
in which we understand one concept
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從另一種語意的情境中
04:19
in the context of another.
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來理解一個概念
04:22
Third step is cognitive dissonance.
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第三步是認知的不協調
04:24
This is the Stroop test.
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這是Stroop測試
04:26
What you need to do here is identify
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你要做的是
04:28
as quickly as possible
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在最短的時間内辨別出
04:30
the color of the ink in which these words are printed.
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這些字體的顔色
04:33
You can take the test now.
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你可以開始做測試
04:37
If you're like most people, you will experience
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你如果跟一般人一樣
04:39
a moment of cognitive dissonance
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那麽你將會有認知的不協調
04:41
when the name of the color
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當顔色的名稱
04:44
is printed in a differently colored ink.
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是用不同的顔色列印出來時
04:46
The test shows that we cannot ignore the literal meaning of words
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這個測試證明了我們無法忽視字面上的意義
04:49
even when the literal meaning gives the wrong answer.
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即使字面上的意義是不正確的
04:52
Stroop tests have been done with metaphor as well.
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Stroop測試也用比喻作過
04:54
The participants had to identify, as quickly as possible,
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測試者被要求在最短的時間裏辨認出
04:58
the literally false sentences.
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字面上錯誤的句子
05:00
They took longer to reject metaphors as false
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結果他們要花較多的時間去辨認譬喻上的錯誤
05:03
than they did to reject literally false sentences.
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花較少的時間去辨認字面上的錯誤
05:06
Why? Because we cannot ignore
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爲什麽呢?因爲我們無法忽視
05:09
the metaphorical meaning of words either.
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譬喻上的意義
05:12
One of the sentences was, "Some jobs are jails."
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一個例子是“某些工作是監獄”
05:15
Now, unless you're a prison guard,
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除非你在監獄裏工作
05:18
the sentence "Some jobs are jails" is literally false.
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不然這樣的句子在字面上的意義是錯的
05:21
Sadly, it's metaphorically true.
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可是,在譬喻上來說卻是對的
05:24
And the metaphorical truth interferes with our ability
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所以譬喻上的真實性會干擾
05:27
to identify it as literally false.
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我們對字面上意義的判斷能力
05:29
Metaphor matters because
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譬喻很重要
05:31
it's around us every day, all the time.
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因爲每一天,它無所不在
05:34
Metaphor matters because it creates expectations.
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譬喻很重要,因爲它使你產生期待
05:37
Pay careful attention the next time you read the financial news.
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下次當你讀財政新聞時留意
05:41
Agent metaphors describe price movements
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擬人化的譬喻
05:43
as the deliberate action of a living thing,
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將價格的波動譬喻成生物的動作
05:45
as in, "The NASDAQ climbed higher."
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譬如說,”NASDAQ指數又向上爬升“
05:49
Object metaphors describe price movements
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擬物化的譬喻
05:52
as non-living things,
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將價格的波動譬喻成東西
05:54
as in, "The Dow fell like a brick."
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像“道瓊指數像磚塊直直落”
05:57
Researchers asked a group of people
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研究人員請一群人
05:59
to read a clutch of market commentaries,
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讀過一些市場的評論以後
06:01
and then predict the next day's price trend.
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去預測隔天的股價
06:04
Those exposed to agent metaphors
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是因爲擬人化的譬喻暗示
06:06
had higher expectations that price trends would continue.
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大多覺得未來股價會繼續上揚
06:09
And they had those expectations because
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他們之所以會這麽覺得
06:11
agent metaphors imply the deliberate action
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是因爲擬人化的譬喻暗示了
06:14
of a living thing pursuing a goal.
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生物追求一個目標的行動
06:17
If, for example, house prices
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假如說,房子的價格
06:19
are routinely described as climbing and climbing,
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總是被描述成“往上、再往上爬”
06:22
higher and higher, people might naturally assume
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人們會很自然地假設
06:24
that that rise is unstoppable.
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房價的上揚是停不下來的
06:26
They may feel confident, say,
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他們便有可能會去
06:28
in taking out mortgages they really can't afford.
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申請他們實際上負擔不起的貸款
06:31
That's a hypothetical example of course.
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這當然是一個假設性的例子
06:34
But this is how metaphor misleads.
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但這説明了比喻如何誤導我們
06:38
Metaphor also matters because it influences decisions
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譬喻之所以重要,因爲它也會激發類比機制
06:41
by activating analogies.
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而影響我們的決策
06:44
A group of students was told that a small democratic country
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一群學生被告知說
06:46
had been invaded and had asked the U.S. for help.
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有個民主小國被侵略並尋求美國的幫助
06:49
And they had to make a decision.
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他們必須做一個決定
06:51
What should they do?
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接下來該怎麽做?
06:53
Intervene, appeal to the U.N., or do nothing?
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介入干涉,向聯合國申訴,或者什麽也不做?
06:56
They were each then given one of three
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這群學生被分別告知下列
06:58
descriptions of this hypothetical crisis.
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三個假設性危機的敍述之一
07:00
Each of which was designed to trigger
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而每一個假設性危機的敍述
07:03
a different historical analogy:
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暗示著歷史上不同的類比事件:
07:05
World War II, Vietnam,
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二次世界大戰、越南
07:07
and the third was historically neutral.
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第三個則是中立的事件
07:10
Those exposed to the World War II scenario
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被告知二次世界大戰情節的
07:12
made more interventionist recommendations
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比起其它學生
07:14
than the others.
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更會建議採取干涉的手段
07:16
Just as we cannot ignore the literal meaning of words,
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正如我們不能對字面上的意義視而不見
07:19
we cannot ignore the analogies
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我們也不能忽視
07:21
that are triggered by metaphor.
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譬喻激發的類比機制
07:25
Metaphor matters because it opens the door to discovery.
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譬喻很重要因爲
07:28
Whenever we solve a problem, or make a discovery,
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當我們替問題找解答或發現新事物時
07:31
we compare what we know with what we don't know.
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我們總是把我們所已知的和未知的做比較
07:34
And the only way to find out about the latter
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而要更進一步了解未知的唯一方法
07:36
is to investigate the ways it might be like the former.
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只有去研究未知和已知之間可能相似的地方
07:40
Einstein described his scientific method as combinatory play.
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愛因斯坦曾經描述他的科學方法為組合式的遊戲
07:44
He famously used thought experiments,
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他應用想像實驗是有個名的例子
07:46
which are essentially elaborate analogies,
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基本上這樣的實驗要用到複雜的類比機制
07:49
to come up with some of his greatest discoveries.
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而他也由此得到了一些他最有名的發現
07:52
By bringing together what we know
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透過類比機制
07:54
and what we don't know through analogy,
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可以拉起已知和未知之間的關係
07:56
metaphorical thinking strikes the spark
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譬喻式的想法會激發火花
07:58
that ignites discovery.
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進一步點燃更多的發現
08:02
Now metaphor is ubiquitous, yet it's hidden.
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譬喻是無所不在的也是隱藏的
08:06
But you just have to look at the words around you
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你只需要看看你周遭的文字
08:09
and you'll find it.
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你就會看到它
08:11
Ralph Waldo Emerson described language
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名詩人艾默生把語言描述成
08:13
as "fossil poetry."
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”詩的化石“
08:15
But before it was fossil poetry
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但在語言成爲詩的化石之前
08:17
language was fossil metaphor.
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它會先成爲比喻的化石
08:20
And these fossils still breathe.
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而這些化石到現在還會呼吸呢
08:23
Take the three most famous words in all of Western philosophy:
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我們拿西方哲學裏最有名的三個字為例子
08:28
"Cogito ergo sum."
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“Cogito ergo sum”
08:30
That's routinely translated as, "I think, therefore I am."
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這一向被翻譯成“我思故我在”
08:34
But there is a better translation.
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但是有一個更好的翻譯
08:36
The Latin word "cogito"
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這個拉丁字"cogito"
08:38
is derived from the prefix "co," meaning "together,"
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可分成字首"co", 表示“一起”
08:41
and the verb "agitare," meaning "to shake."
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動詞"agitare"的原意是“搖動”
08:44
So, the original meaning of "cogito"
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所以"cogito"的原始意義是
08:47
is to shake together.
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”一起搖動“
08:49
And the proper translation of "cogito ergo sum"
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"cogito ergo sum"正確的翻譯應該是
08:52
is "I shake things up, therefore I am."
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“我把事物一起上下搖動,所以我存在”
08:56
(Laughter)
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(笑聲)
08:58
Metaphor shakes things up,
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比喻將不同的事物混”搖“在一起
09:00
giving us everything from Shakespeare to scientific discovery in the process.
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帶給了我們莎士比亞,科學發現
09:05
The mind is a plastic snow dome,
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我們的心靈是一個塑膠的雪花球
09:08
the most beautiful, most interesting,
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是最美,最有趣的
09:10
and most itself, when, as Elvis put it,
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尤其當它,如貓王所說
09:13
it's all shook up.
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被上下搖動(神魂顛倒)時。
09:15
And metaphor keeps the mind shaking,
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譬喻使我們的心靈時時搖動
09:17
rattling and rolling, long after Elvis has left the building.
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喋喋不休,上下起伏,即使貓王已退場很久了
09:20
Thank you very much.
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謝謝各位
09:22
(Applause)
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(掌聲)
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