Who Are the Happiest People?

谁是世界上最幸福的人 （2）


只有傻瓜才不考虑别人的利益。
抛弃自己国家的传统来创造更好的社会是一种错误的方式。
一个民族失去了自己的神话，就失去了自我。

[6]We would call Hlynur a workaholic『工作狂』, but so are most of his compatriots『同胞』. It pays off. With a per-capita gross domestic product of $19,905 (the U.S. figure is $27,541), Icelanders are among the wealthiest people on earth. Their tax dollars buy them excellent education and medical care. Iceland has the lowest infant mortality rate『婴儿死亡率』in the world, and almost the highest longevity『长寿；长命』.

[6]我们可以把赫利纳称为“工作狂”，但是，冰岛人也大多和他一样。当然，他们劳有所得，冰岛国内人均生产总值为1.99万美元（美国是2.75万美元）。他们上缴的利税换来了良好的教育和医疗保障。冰岛的婴儿死亡率位于世界之末，而寿命位于世界之首。

[7]The dour『抑郁的；闷闷不乐的』Swiss have a well-run state and all their material needs met, too, yet no one could accuse them of a cheerful outlook.

[7]瑞士是一个秩序井然的国家，人民丰衣足食，生活富裕。可是，瑞士人却郁郁寡欢，闷闷不乐。

[8]Sociologist Thorolfur Thorlindsson of the University of Iceland believes the secret lies not in his country’s comforts, but in its age-old 『长期的；古老的』discomforts. They have taught Icelanders to enjoy what they have.

[8]冰岛大学社会学家索罗尔非·索林德森认为：冰岛人安命乐天的秘诀在于这个国家长期处于艰难困苦之中，而不在于它的舒适。这些艰难困苦教会了冰岛人“知足常乐”。

[9]Isolated『与外界隔绝的；孤立的』in the cold North Atlantic, buffeted『冲击；打击』by a hostile『敌对的；有敌意的』sea, condemned『责备；责怪』to 20 hours of darkness each day in winter, the people have for centuries lived on the vagaries『难以预测的情况』of the fish catch. “Our culture is colored『影响』by the harshness『严酷；艰苦』of nature,” says Thorlindsson. “That’s why Icelanders have a tolerant『宽容；容忍』attitude to the problems of life. They don’t expect the same sort of stability『安定；稳定』often expected in other nations.”

[9]冰岛位于寒冷的北大西洋，常年遭受着海水的无情冲击，冬天有20个小时是黑夜，人民世代以艰苦的捕鱼业为生。“我们的文化带着自然严酷的特色，”索林德森说，“这就是为什么冰岛人对生活中的问题宽容的原因。冰岛人并不像其他国家人民一样，希望得到常有的稳定。”

[10]And so it seems. Americans are considerably better off『更为富有/富裕』by material standards than ever before. Yet we seem less happy, less contented with our lot.

[10]与此相比，我们美国人今天的物质生活条件比以往任何时候都好，但是却没有以往的快乐和满足。

[11]Like Icelanders, Americans are individualists『个人主义者』. Where we seem to differ is in our sense of community『群体；团体』. Iceland, known as the land of “fire and ice,” is about living with opposing forces. It is one of the most active volcanic countries on earth, but has 4536 square miles of glacier—heat and cold, co-existing. No surprise them that its society can reconcile『使调和；使并存』another set of opposing forces: individualism and the needs of the community.

[11]美国人和冰岛人都是个人主义者，所不同的是各自的群体意识。冰岛以“火和冰”而闻名遐迩，人民生活在逆境之中。冰岛是世界上活火山最多的国家之一，还有4536平方英里的冰川，堪称冷热并存。无怪乎这个国家能很好地协调个人主义和群体需要这两种对立的观念，使之共存共容。

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