听力课堂TED音频栏目主要包括TED演讲的音频MP3及中英双语文稿，供各位英语爱好者学习使用。本文主要内容为演讲MP3+双语文稿:什么是“snollygoster”? 一堂极简政治演讲课，希望你会喜欢！

【演讲者及介绍】Mark Forsyth

Mark Forsyth在英语中漫步，讲故事，建立联系，驱逐妖怪。

【演讲主题】什么是“一个诡诈的政客？”一堂简短的政治演讲课

What's a snollygoster？A short lesson in political speak

【中英文字幕】

翻译者Bill Wang 校对者Yuguo Zhang

One of my favorite words in the whole of the Oxford English Dictionary is "snollygoster," just because it sounds so good. And what snollygoster means is "a dishonest politician." Although there was a 19th-century newspaper editor who defined it rather better when he said, "A snollygoster is a fellow who seeks office regardless of party, platform or principle, and who, when he wins, gets there by the sheer force of monumental talknophical assumnancy."

我很喜欢的词之一 在整个牛津英语词典里叫“snollygoster”。 不仅因为它听起来很不错。 而且它的意思是 “一个诡诈的政客”。 尽管这只是一个19世纪的 报纸编辑给出的一个很好的定义，他的原话： “‘snollygoster’是一个这样的家伙，他会为了谋求高位 而不在乎任何政党、任何舞台或任何原则， 他会用其三寸不烂之舌 口若悬河而赢得高位。”

Now, I have no idea what "talknophical" is. Something to do with words, I assume. But it's very important that words are at the center of politics, and all politicians know they have to try and control language.

我一点儿也不明白“talknophical”是什么意思。 大概是和言语词汇相关的词汇，我假设。 但是言语词汇对于政治中心之作用是非常重要的， 并且所有的政客都明白他们必须尝试着控制他们的话语言论。

It wasn't until, for example, 1771 that the British Parliament allowed newspapers to report the exact words that were said in the debating chamber.

举例来说，一直到1771年， 英国议会才允许新闻报纸报道 在辩论会上政客们说的真实话语。 而且实际上这全是因为一个勇敢的人， 这个伟大的名字叫布艾斯·克若斯比 (Brass Crosby)， 在议会上提议。

But to really show you how words and politics interact, I want to take you back to the United States of America, just after they'd achieved independence. And they had to face the question of what to call George Washington, their leader. They didn't know. What do you call the leader of a republican country?

不过为了真实的表明 词汇和政治怎样互相影响， 我想带你回到过去的美国， 在它刚刚宣布独立的时候。 那时他们有一个问题要面对 就是怎样称号乔治·华盛顿, 他们的领袖。 他们不知道， 应该尊称一个共和国的领袖为什么？

And this was debated in Congress for ages and ages. And there were all sorts of suggestions on the table, which might have made it. I mean, some people wanted him to be called "Chief Magistrate Washington," and other people, "His Highness, George Washington," and other people, "Protector of the Liberties of the People of the United States of America Washington." Not that catchy. Some people just wanted to call him king -- it was tried and tested. They weren't even being monarchical, they had the idea that you could be elected king for a fixed term. And, you know, it could have worked.

就这个问题在国会上争论了很久很久。 并且产生了很多建议， 这些建议貌似可行。 我的意思是，一些人想叫他为 首席行政官华盛顿， 而另一些人称他为乔治·华盛顿殿下， 还有人叫他美利坚联合政府自由解放的保卫者华盛顿。 没有一个朗朗上口的名字。 一些人只是想叫他国王。 他们认为是个称号是过去用过并经过考验的。 他们甚至并没有延续君主制， 他们的主意是你可以是选举的国王 有一个固定的任期。 你知道的，这样大概会可行。

And everybody got insanely bored, because this debate went on for three weeks. I read a diary of this poor senator who just keeps coming back, "Still on this subject." And the reason for the delay and the boredom was that the House of Representatives were against the Senate. The House of Representatives didn't want Washington to get drunk on power. They didn't want to call him "king," in case that gave him ideas, or his successor ideas.

而且每一个人都感到神经错乱似地厌烦了，事实上， 因为这场辩论持续了3个礼拜。 我读过一个当时可怜议员的日记， 里面持续的记录着，“竟然又是这个议题。” 而致使延期和厌倦的原因是 众议院对战参议院。 众议院不想让华盛顿 沉醉于权力。 他们不想称他为国王 以防万一他或他的继任者会产生什么想法。

So they wanted to give him the humblest, meagerest, most pathetic title that they could think of. And that title ... was "President." "President." They didn't invent the title. I mean, it existed before, but it just meant somebody who presides over a meeting. It was like the foreman of the jury. And it didn't have much more grandeur than the term "foreman" or "overseer." There were occasional presidents of little colonial councils and bits of government, but it was really a nothing title.

所以他们给他一个他们能够想到的，最低微的、最微不足道的、 最为可悲的头衔。 而这个头衔叫“President”。 President （会议主持，总统）。他们没有创造这个头衔。我的意思是，这个头衔以前就有， 但是它是指一个会议的主持人。 同陪审团主席的意思相似。 并且它一点也不显得非常极其地位显赫 比起“foreman(陪审团主席)”和“overseer(监工)”来。 虽然偶尔会有一些小型殖民地的会议主持人 并有一丝政府管理的意思，但是它真的是个什么都不是的头衔。

And that's why the Senate objected to it. They said, "That's ridiculous! You can't call him 'President.' This guy has to go and sign treaties and meet foreign dignitaries. Who's going to take him seriously if he's got a silly little title like 'President of the United States of America'?"

而且这也是为什么参议院反对这个头衔。 他们说这个真的很荒谬，你们不能叫他会议主持。 这个人还得去签条约和接见外宾。 谁还会认真对待他， 如果他只有一个这样愚蠢的小头衔 比如美利坚联邦政府主持（President of the United States of America）？

And after three weeks of debate, in the end, the Senate did not cave in. Instead, they agreed to use the title "President" for now. But they also wanted it absolutely set down that they didn't agree with it, from a decent respect for the opinions and practice of civilized nations, whether under republican or monarchical forms of government, whose custom it is to annex, through the office of the Chief Magistrate, titles of respectability -- not bloody "President." And that, in the intercourse with foreign nations, the majesty of the people of the United States may not be hazarded by an appearance of singularity -- i.e., we don't want to look like bloody weirdos.

之后经过三周的辩论， 最后参议院也没有屈服。 作为替代，他们同意先用着头衔“President”， 但他们也要求绝对确定下来 他们不同意这个头衔 是出于对文明国家的意见和做法的尊重， 无论是民主党还是共和党执政， 他们会自定义它， 通过首席行政官办公室，获得非常体面的头衔称号 - 而不是杯具的“President”- 还有在同外国交际时， 美利坚人们的威严 可能不会有被这个奇特头衔损害的危险， 即我们不想被后人看成一群杯具的变态。

Now, you can learn three interesting things from this. First of all -- and this is my favorite -- is that, so far as I've ever been able to find out, the Senate has never formally endorsed the title of President. The second thing you can learn is that, when a government says that this is a temporary measure -- you can still be waiting 223 years later.

现在从这个故事里你能够了解到三件有趣的事情。 首先，也是我最喜欢的地方， 到目前为止所有我能找到的资料里， 参议院从来没有正式的认可过“总统”这个头衔。 第二件事你可以了解到 当美国政府宣称这只是一项临时措施时 -- （笑声）-- 它会持续223年之久。

But the third thing you can learn -- and this is the really important one, the point I want to leave you on -- is that the title, "President of the United States of America," doesn't sound that humble at all these days, does it? The largest economy in the world and a fleet of drones and all that sort of stuff. Reality and history have endowed that title with grandeur. And so the Senate won in the end. They got their title of respectability. And also, the Senate's other worry, the appearance of singularity -- well, it was a singularity back then.

但第三件事你能了解到的， 而且也是非常重要的一件， 我很想让你们记住这个要点， 就是这个头衔，美利坚联邦政府总统（President of the United States of America）， 听起来从来也没有过地位低微的意思，不是吗？ 全世界最大的经济体， 还有一大群战机及其他军事力量。 现实和历史赋予了这个头衔高贵的含义。 所以最后参议院赢了。 他们得到了他们要的体面头衔。 而且，参议院担心的另一件事，这个头衔听起来很古怪 -- 哦，它曾经在那段时光听起来古怪。

And so, in the end, the Senate won and the House of Representatives lost ... because nobody's going to feel that humble when they're told that they are now the President of the United States of America. And that's the important lesson I think you can take away, and the one I want to leave you with. Politicians try to pick and use words to shape and control reality, but in fact, reality changes words far more than words can ever change reality.

所以到最后，参议院胜利了 众议院输了， 因为没有人会感到不体面 当他们被告知他们现在是 美利坚联邦政府总统。 而且这是很重要的一课我认为你们能够学到的， 也是我想留给你们的要点。 政客们小心翼翼地选择用词，并利用词汇塑造 和控制现实，但是事实上， 现实改变词汇远远超过 词汇能改变的现实。

Thank you very much.

非常感谢。