Where joy hides and how to find it | Ingrid Fetell Lee

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Yanyan Hong

It's 2008,

時間是 2008 年，

and I'm just finishing my first year of design school.

我剛完成設計學院的第一年學業。

And I'm at my first year-end review,

到了我要面對 第一次年終審查的時候，

which is a form of ritual torture for design students,

這審查對於設計系學生來說， 是種儀式性的折磨，

where they make you take everything you made over the course of the year

他們會要你把在過去一年 做出的所有成果拿出來，

and lay it out on a table

攤開在桌面上，

and stand next to it while a bunch of professors,

站在一旁，等著一群教授，

most of whom you've never seen before,

大部分都是你從未見過的教授，

give you their unfiltered opinions of it.

把他們未經篩選的意見丟給你。

So it's my turn and I'm standing next to my table,

輪到我了，我站在我的桌子旁，

everything neatly lined up,

一切都整齊地擺好，

and I'm just hoping that my professors can see

我希望我的教授們能夠看見

how much effort I've put into making my designs practical

我投入了多少努力 才讓我的設計變得很實際、

and ergonomic and sustainable.

符合人體工學，且具有永續性。

And I'm starting to get really nervous,

我開始感到很緊張，

because for a long time, no one says anything.

因為有很長一段時間沒有人出聲，

It's just completely silent.

就只是一片寂靜。

And then one of the professors starts to speak, and he says,

接著，其中一名教授 開始說話，他說：

"Your work gives me a feeling of joy."

「你的作品帶給我喜悅的感覺。」

Joy?

喜悅？

I wanted to be a designer because I wanted to solve real problems.

我想要成為設計師， 是因為我想要解決真實的問題。

Joy is nice, I guess, but it's kind of light --

喜悅很好，我想是吧， 但它有點輕——

not substantial.

不怎麼實在。

But I was also kind of intrigued,

但我同時也感到好奇，

because joy is this intangible feeling,

因為喜悅是一種無形的感覺，

and how does that come from the stuff on the table next to me?

喜悅怎麼會來自 我旁邊桌上的這些東西？

I asked the professors,

我問了教授們：

"How do things make us feel joy?

「東西要如何讓我們感受到喜悅？

How do tangible things make us feel intangible joy?"

有形的東西要如何 讓我們感受到無形的喜悅？」

They hemmed and hawed and gestured a lot with their hands.

他們發出哼聲，發出呃聲， 手也不停地比著許多手勢。

"They just do," they said.

他們說：「反正就是會。」

I packed up my things for the summer,

我把東西打包去過暑假。

but I couldn't stop thinking about this question ...

但我無法停止去想這個問題……

and this launched a journey --

這就開啟了一段旅行——

one that I didn't know at the time would take me 10 years --

我當時並不知道這段旅行 會花我十年的時間——

to understand the relationship between the physical world

目的是要了解， 實體世界與被我們稱為

and the mysterious, quixotic emotion we call "joy."

「喜悅」的不切實際的 神秘情緒，有什麼關係。

And what I discovered is that not only are they linked,

我發現兩者之間不但有關聯，

but that the physical world can be a powerful resource to us

且那個實體世界還能夠 成為強大的資源，

in creating happier, healthier lives.

讓我們創造更快樂、更健康的生活。

After my review,

在我的審查之後，

I thought, "I know what joy feels like,

我心想：「我知道 喜悅的感受是怎樣的，

but what is it, exactly?"

但它到底是什麼？」

And I found that even scientists don't always agree,

我發現，即使是科學家 也不見得有共識，

and they sometimes use the words "joy" and "happiness" and "positivity"

他們有時在用「喜悅」這個詞時， 或多或少代表的是

more or less interchangeably.

「快樂」和「正面」的意思。

But broadly speaking, when psychologists use the word joy,

但廣泛來說，當心理學家 用喜悅這個詞時，

what they mean is an intense, momentary experience

指的是對於正面情緒有種強烈、

of positive emotion --

瞬間的體驗。

one that makes us smile and laugh and feel like we want to jump up and down.

這種情緒會讓我們微笑和大笑， 且會想要跳上跳下。

And this is actually a technical thing.

這其實是很技術性的。

That feeling of wanting to jump up and down

想要跳上跳下的感覺，

is one of the ways that scientists measure joy.

是科學家用來衡量喜悅的方式之一。

It's different than happiness,

它和快樂不同，

which measures how good we feel over time.

快樂所測量的是， 隨著時間我們的感覺有多好。

Joy is about feeling good in the moment,

喜悅則是在此刻、當下

right now.

感覺很好。

And this was interesting to me

這對我來說很有意思，

because as a culture, we are obsessed with the pursuit of happiness,

因為我們文化很迷戀「追求快樂」，

and yet in the process, we kind of overlook joy.

但在過程中，我們會忽視了喜悅。

So this got me thinking:

所以，這就讓我想著：

Where does joy come from?

喜悅從何而來？

I started asking everyone I knew,

我開始問每個我認識的人，

and even people I just met on the street,

甚至我在街上遇到的人，

about the things that brought them joy.

問他們什麼會帶給他們喜悅。

On the subway, in a café, on an airplane,

在地鐵上、在咖啡廳、在飛機上，

it was, "Hi, nice to meet you. What brings you joy?"

我會說：「嗨，很高興認識你。 什麼會帶給你喜悅？」

I felt like a detective.

我覺得自己像個偵探。

I was like, "When did you last see it?

我會問：「你上次見到它是何時？

Who were you with? What color was it?

當時還有誰在？它是什麼顏色？

Did anyone else see it?"

有其他人看到它嗎？」

I was the Nancy Drew of joy.

我是喜悅的「南茜茱兒」。 （註：虛構的偵探人物）

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And after a few months of this, I noticed that there were certain things

這麼做了幾個月之後， 我注意到有某些事物

that started to come up again and again and again.

會一而再，再而三地被提到。

They were things like cherry blossoms

這些事物包括盛開的櫻花、

and bubbles ...

泡泡、

swimming pools and tree houses ...

游泳池、樹屋、

hot air balloons and googly eyes --

熱氣球、卡通眼，

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

and ice cream cones, especially the ones with the sprinkles.

還有冰淇淋甜筒， 特別是上面還有點綴的那種。

These things seemed to cut across lines of age and gender and ethnicity.

這些事物似乎能夠跨越 年齡、性別，以及種族。

I mean, if you think about it,

你們可以想想看，

we all stop and turn our heads to the sky

我們都停下來，把頭轉向天空，

when the multicolored arc of a rainbow streaks across it.

多彩的彩虹橫跨在天際。

And fireworks --

還有煙火——

we don't even need to know what they're for,

甚至無須知道放煙火的目的，

and we feel like we're celebrating, too.

也會覺得我們一同在慶祝。

These things aren't joyful for just a few people;

並不是只有少數人覺得 這些事物會帶來喜悅；

they're joyful for nearly everyone.

幾乎人人都這麼覺得。

They're universally joyful.

它們會給全天下都帶來喜悅。

And seeing them all together,

看到他們全部在一起，

it gave me this indescribably hopeful feeling.

讓我有一種無法描述 但充滿希望的感覺。

The sharply divided, politically polarized world we live in

我們現在生活在政治兩極化、 嚴重分裂的世界中，

sometimes has the effect of making our differences feel so vast

這世界有時會讓我們的差異 感覺起來好巨大，

as to be insurmountable.

到了無法克服的程度。

And yet underneath it all,

然而，在這一切背後，

there's a part of each of us that finds joy in the same things.

我們每個人都有一部分， 會在同樣的事物中找到喜悅。

And though we're often told that these are just passing pleasures,

雖然常常有人告訴我們， 這些都是稍縱即逝的愉悅，

in fact, they're really important,

但事實上，它們其實很重要，

because they remind us of the shared humanity we find

因為它們提醒我們，在實體世界中，

在我們的共同經驗裡， 我們能夠找到共同的人性。

in our common experience of the physical world.

But I still needed to know:

但我仍然需要知道：

What is it about these things that makes them so joyful?

這些事物為什麼能 帶給我們如此的喜悅？

I had pictures of them up on my studio wall,

我在工作室的牆壁上， 貼滿了它們的圖片，

and every day, I would come in and try to make sense of it.

每天，我走進工作室， 都會試著理出頭緒來。

And then one day, something just clicked.

有一天，靈光就這麼一閃。

I saw all these patterns:

我看到了所有的模式：

round things ...

圓形的東西……

pops of bright color ...

明亮的顏色……

symmetrical shapes ...

對稱的形狀……

a sense of abundance and multiplicity ...

豐足和多樣性的感覺……

a feeling of lightness or elevation.

很輕或是升起的感受。

When I saw it this way,

用這種角度來看，

I realized that though the feeling of joy is mysterious and elusive,

我了解到，雖然喜悅的感覺 很神秘且難以理解，

we can access it through tangible, physical attributes,

我們仍然能夠透過有形、 實體的特徵來取得它，

or what designers call aesthetics,

或是說透過設計師 所謂的美感來取得它，

a word that comes from the same root as the Greek word "aísthomai,"

「美感」這個詞和希臘字 「aísthomai」有同樣的字根，

which means, "I feel," "I sense," "I perceive."

這個希臘字的意思是「我覺得」、 「我感覺」、「我感到」。

And since these patterns were telling me that joy begins with the senses,

因為這些模式讓我知道 喜悅始於感受，

I began calling them "Aesthetics of Joy";

所以我開始稱它們為 「喜悅的美感」，

the sensations of joy.

喜悅的知覺。

And in the wake of this discovery,

在發現了這些之後，

I noticed something that as I walked around,

我注意到一件事， 當我四處走動時，

I began spotting little moments of joy everywhere I went --

不論走到哪， 我都會看見喜悅的小時刻——

a vintage yellow car

一台黃色老爺車，

or a clever piece of street art.

或一件巧妙的街頭藝術作品。

It was like I had a pair of rose-colored glasses,

就好像我有一副玫瑰色的眼鏡，

and now that I knew what to look for,

既然我知道要找尋什麼了，

I was seeing it everywhere.

我到哪都能看到它。

It was like these little moments of joy were hidden in plain sight.

彷彿這些歡樂的小時刻 隱藏在明顯的景像中。

And at the same time,

同時，

I had another realization,

我有另一個領悟：

that if these are the things that bring us joy,

如果這些事物能帶給我們喜悅，

then why does so much of the world look like this?

為何絕大部分的世界卻像這樣？

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Why do we go to work here?

我們為何要到這裡來工作？

Why do we send our kids to schools that look like this?

我們為何要把孩子送到 看起來像這樣子的學校？

Why do our cities look like this?

為何我們的城市看起來會像這樣？

And this is most acute for the places that house the people

這個問題最嚴重的地方， 是收容我們當中

that are most vulnerable among us:

最脆弱的那些人的地方：

nursing homes,

護理之家、

hospitals,

醫院、

homeless shelters,

遊民收容所、

housing projects.

住房專案計畫。

How did we end up in a world that looks like this?

為什麼我們最後會生活在 像這樣的世界裡？

We all start out joyful,

我們都是帶著喜悅來到這個世界，

but as we get older,

但隨著我們長大，

being colorful or exuberant opens us up to judgment.

太多顏色或太生氣勃勃， 會讓我們被人評斷。

Adults who exhibit genuine joy are often dismissed as childish

展現出真誠喜悅的成人， 通常會被看貶成幼稚，

or too feminine

或是太女性化，

or unserious

或是不夠嚴肅，

or self-indulgent,

或自我放縱，

and so we hold ourselves back from joy,

所以我們控制自己不喜悅，

and we end up in a world that looks like this.

最後就生活在這樣的世界中了。

But if the aesthetics of joy can be used

但，如果喜悅的美感可以被用來

to help us find more joy in the world around us,

協助我們在周遭的世界中 找到更多喜悅，

then couldn't they also be used to create more joy?

那麼它們能不能被用來 創造更多喜悅呢？

I spent that last two years scouring the planet,

我過去兩年間都在到處搜索，

looking for different ways that people have answered this question.

尋找人們用來回答 這個問題的各種方式。

And this led me to the work of the artist Arakawa

這就將我引導到藝術家荒川

以及詩人瑪德琳琴斯的作品，

and the poet Madeline Gins,

who believed that these kinds of environments are literally killing us.

他們相信，這類的環境 真的是在扼殺我們。

And so they set out the create an apartment building

所以他們決定要創造出 一棟公寓大樓，

that they believed would reverse aging.

他們認為這棟大樓能夠逆轉老化。

And this is it.

就是它。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

(Applause)

（掌聲）

It's a real place, just outside Tokyo.

這是真實的地方，就在東京外圍。

I spent a night there, and it's a lot.

我在那裡住了一晚， 真的很多要消化的。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

The floors undulate,

地板是波浪起伏的，

so you don't end up walking around

所以其實在公寓裡，你並不會

so much as kind of bouncing around the apartment,

常常走來走去，更多是彈來彈去，

and there are bright colors in every direction.

且在每個方向都有很明亮的顏色。

I'm not sure I left any younger,

我不確定我離開時有變年輕，

but it's as if, by trying to create an apartment

但就好像他們試著創造一間

that would make us feel youthful,

讓我們感覺年輕的公寓，

they ended up creating one that was joyful.

最後卻創造出了喜悅的公寓。

And yes, this is a bit much for everyday life,

是的，對於日常生活來說， 這是有點過頭了，

but it made me wonder: What about the rest of us?

但它讓我納悶： 那麼我們剩下的人呢？

How do we bring these ideas back into the real world?

我們要如何把這些點子 帶回到真實世界中？

So I started finding people who were doing just that.

所以我開始找有誰在這麼做。

For example, this hospital, designed by the Danish artist Poul Gernes.

比如，這間醫院， 由丹麥藝術家波爾傑恩斯設計。

Or these schools,

或這些學校，

transformed by the non-profit Publicolor.

由非營利的 Publicolor 組織改造而成。

What's interesting is that Publicolor has heard from school administrators

有趣的是 Publicolor 聽到學校行政人員說，

who say that attendance improves,

出席率改善了，

graffiti disappears

牆上的塗鴉消失了，

and kids actually say they feel safer in these painted schools.

孩子們還說他們在這些 彩繪學校中感覺更安全。

And this aligns with research conducted in four countries,

有一項在四個國家進行的研究， 也有一致的結果，

which shows that people working in more colorful offices

該研究顯示，在比較多彩的 辦公室中工作的人，

are actually more alert,

真的會比較機靈、

more confident

比較自信，

and friendlier than those working in drab spaces.

也比較友善， 勝過在單調空間中工作的人。

Why would this be the case?

為什麼會這樣？

Well, as I started to trace back our love of color,

當我開始回溯我們對顏色的熱愛，

I found that some researchers see a connection to our evolution.

我發現，有些研究者看見了 與我們演化的關聯性。

Color, in a very primal way, is a sign of life, a sign of energy.

就很原始的層面來說， 顏色是生命的徵象、能量的徵象。

And the same is true of abundance.

豐富性也是一樣。

We evolved in a world where scarcity is dangerous,

在這個世界中， 少數是危險的，豐富代表生存，

and abundance meant survival.

而我們在這個世界中演化。

So, one confetto --

所以，一顆彩色點——

which happens to be the singular of confetti,

如果你納悶的話，

in case you were wondering --

它就是彩色點的複數——

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

isn't very joyful,

不是很讓人感到喜悅，

but multiply it,

但把它變多，

and you have a handful of one of the most joyful substances

你就會得到一堆地球上 最讓人感到喜悅的物質之一。

on the planet.

The architect Emmanuelle Moureaux uses this idea in her work a lot.

建築師伊曼紐爾 · 馬洛常常 在她的作品中用到這個想法。

This is a nursing home she designed,

這是她設計的護理之家，

where she uses these multicolored spheres to create a feeling of abundance.

她用多色的球體 來創造出豐富的感覺。

And what about all those round things I noticed?

那我注意到圓形東西 又是怎麼回事？

Well, it turns out neuroscientists have studied this, too.

結果發現， 科學家也研究過這一點。

They put people into fMRI machines,

他們把人放到功能性 磁共振成像機器中，

and they showed them pictures of angular objects and round ones.

讓他們看圖片，

圖片上是有角的物體和圓形的物體。

And what they found is that the amygdala,

結果發現，杏仁核，也就是

a part of the brain associated in part with fear and anxiety,

大腦中和恐懼與焦慮相關的部分，

lit up when people looked at angular objects,

在受試者看到有角的 物體時就會亮起來，

but not when they looked at the round ones.

但看到圓形的物體時卻不會。

They speculate that because angles in nature

他們推測，這是因為在大自然中，

are often associated with objects that might be dangerous to us,

「角」通常和會造成 危險的物體有關聯，

that we evolved an unconscious sense of caution around these shapes,

我們無意識地演化出了 對於這類形狀的警覺心，

whereas curves set us at ease.

曲線則會讓我們比較放鬆。

You can see this in action in the new Sandy Hook Elementary School.

在新的桑迪胡克小學 就可以看到實際應用。

After the mass shooting there in 2012,

在 2012 年發生槍擊案之後，

the architects Svigals + Partners

建築公司 Svigals + Partners

knew that they needed to create a building that was secure,

知道他們需要建立安全的建築物，

but they wanted to create one that was joyful,

但他們也想讓它帶來喜悅，

and so they filled it with curves.

所以他們用上了很多曲線。

There are waves running along the side of the building,

在建築的邊緣會有許多的波浪，

and these squiggly canopies over the entryway,

在入口上方有彎曲的頂篷，

and the whole building bends toward the entrance

整棟建築則是向入口處彎曲，

in a welcoming gesture.

這象徵著歡迎。

Each moment of joy is small,

每一個喜悅的時刻都很微小，

but over time, they add up to more than the sum of their parts.

但隨著時間，它們加總起來， 就會積少成多。

And so maybe instead of chasing after happiness,

也許，我們不該追求快樂，

what we should be doing is embracing joy

而是要去擁抱喜悅，

and finding ways to put ourselves in the path of it more often.

找到讓我們能更常發現喜悅的方法。

Deep within us,

我們內心深處，

we all have this impulse to seek out joy in our surroundings.

都有種衝動， 想在周圍的環境中找到喜悅。

And we have it for a reason.

人會有這種衝動是有理由的。

Joy isn't some superfluous extra.

喜悅並非多餘不必要的。

It's directly connected to our fundamental instinct for survival.

它和我們基本的生存直覺 有著直接的關聯。

On the most basic level,

在最基礎的層面上，

the drive toward joy is the drive toward life.

驅使我們找到喜悅的動因， 同樣驅動著生命。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

Thank you.

謝謝。

Thank you,

謝謝。

thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）