英语美文欣赏：《哈利·波特》中的人生哲理

英语美文欣赏：《哈利·波特》中的人生哲理
The mega1) popular Harry Potter books don't touch on religion, but they do teach lessons many religions would agree on: Don't kill and don't lie. But beyond that are more subtle2) life lessons. 
   非常流行的《哈利·波特》系列书中没有谈到宗教，但却确实教给了我们一些哲理。这些哲理为众多宗教所认可，即：不杀生、不撒谎。但除此之外，它还包含着一些更为微妙的生活哲理。 
   1. Beware of pompous3) people 
   No one would deny that the series' obvious villains4) — Voldemort5) and Draco Malfoy6)— are dangerous. But it's the conceited7) secondary characters — like Gilderoy Lockhart8), Percy Weasley9), and Cornelius Fudge10) — who often do just as much damage as the true bad guys. Their self-satisfied bumbling11) leaves Harry and his friends exposed to the Basilisk12), an impostor Mad-Eye Moody13), and Voldemort himself. 
   In Harry's world as in real life, serious evildoers14) are always a threat, but pompous people wreak15) plenty of havoc16). 
   1．小心自命不凡的人 
   任何人都不会否认，该系列书中最明显的恶棍——伏地魔和德拉科·马尔福——是危险人物。但还有一些自负的次要人物——比如吉德罗·洛哈特、珀西·韦斯莱和康奈利·福吉——也常会像真正的大坏蛋一样带来同样的破坏。他们自满的愚蠢错误把哈利和朋友们直接推到了蛇怪、假冒的“疯眼汉”穆迪以及伏地魔本人的面前。 
   哈利的魔法世界一如我们的现实生活，大坏蛋们固然是威胁，但自负之人也会带来浩劫。 
   2. Stay true to your nerdy17) friends 
    From the moment Harry first met hapless18), round-faced Neville who was searching for his lost toad, he's been kind to this timid Gryffindor19). Harry has been loyal to daffy20) Luna and to Dobby, the often irritating and unconventional21) elf. And Harry defended his best friend Ron when everyone else was furious with him for his poor Quidditch22) skills. All these characters have stuck by23) Harry in his hour of need, in some cases saving his life. 
   The lesson: Don't disown24) your true friends, even they are nerdy. 
   2．对不讨人喜欢的朋友也要保持真诚 
   哈利第一次遇到倒霉的圆脸纳威时，纳威正在寻找失踪的宠物蟾蜍。从那一刻起，哈利便一直友善对待这位羞涩的格兰芬多学员。哈利还一直真诚对待疯疯癫癫的卢娜以及时常发怒的古怪精灵多比。当挚友罗恩因魁地奇球球技不佳遭到其他人恼怒攻击时，哈利也总会挺身而出维护他。在哈利需要帮助的时候，所有的这些人也都忠诚地帮助他，甚至在某些情况下还救了哈利一命。 
   这就告诉我们：不要轻视你真正的朋友，即便他们并不是那么讨人喜欢。 
   3. Realize that your family is more important than you think 
   Ron's brothers overshadow him, and his parents often embarrass him. Harry's aunt, uncle, and cousin actively oppress him — and his parents are dead. Yet for both of them, family holds the key to mysteries. Ron's parents and brothers are in the Order of the Phoenix, protecting Ron and Harry in ways they learn only late in book five. Harry's parents died to save him, yet live on in important ways. And his nasty25) aunt is grudgingly26) part of a secret blood spell protecting him from Voldemort. 
   In other words, even when we feel distant from our families, they may be helping us in ways we don't know. 
   3．要认识到：家人远比你想象的更重要 
   罗恩被兄长们的光芒遮盖，父母也常令他感到难堪。而哈利则处于姨妈、姨夫和表弟的故意折磨之下——并且父母双亡。但对他们俩来说，家人是解开疑团的关键。罗恩的父母和兄长们是凤凰社的成员，竭尽全力保护罗恩和哈利，但他们俩到了第五部书中才知道这些情况。哈利的父母为救哈利牺牲了，不过依然以重要的方式存在着。而哈利那个讨厌的姨妈，虽然很不情愿，却还是成为了神秘血咒的一部分——正是这个咒语保护着哈利免受伏地魔的伤害。 
   也就是说，即便我们感到和家人心存隔阂，他们仍然可能正以某些不为我们所知的方式帮助着我们。 
   4. Speak your pain 
   Harry's refusal to share his fears and feelings, or ask for help, once seemed like a frustrating tic27). In the past few books, however, it's become clear that it's his tragic flaw. In the early books, it's worrisome when he doesn't alert Dumbledore that his scar is hurting; if he did, Dumbledore might know when Voldemort is plotting something. In Goblet of Fire, it's maddening when Harry doesn't tell Neville that he needs a way to survive under water, since Neville knows about a plant that makes humans grow gills28). And in Order of the Phoenix, it's heartbreaking to contemplate the alternate future lost when Harry doesn't use Sirius' mirror to talk to him — or warn him of danger. 29) 
   In every case, Harry would have saved time, trouble, and maybe even a life if he had opened up to those who care about him. In each book, despite the rising stakes30), he thinks that he'll just worry people or that they won't be able to help him anyway. Assuming31) he knows how people will react, and hiding the truth in a misguided attempt to protect them, is Harry's great failing. When Harry does talk to his friends, they often are able to help him or allay32) his fears. But when he keeps secrets, Harry makes himself and others miserable33) and more vulnerable34). 
   4．说出你的痛苦 
   哈利拒绝让别人分担自己的恐惧和感受，也拒绝寻求帮助，这种拒绝一度有些像令人恼火的痉挛。而前面的几部书已经很清楚地表明，这种拒绝正是哈利的可悲缺点。前几部书中，哈利额头的疤痕隐隐作痛，但他却不告诉邓不利多。这实在令人担忧；如果他说了，邓不利多校长或许在伏地魔策划阴谋时，就能有所察觉。在《火焰杯》中，哈利需要知道一种在水下存活的方法，但却没有告诉纳威。这真让人发狂，因为纳威知道有种植物能让人长出腮来。而在《凤凰社》中，哈利没有通过小天狼星的镜子和小天狼星交谈或是示警，结果眼睁睁让可以改变的未来消失不见。这简直令人心碎欲狂。 
   在所有这些事件中，如果哈利能向关心他的人敞开心扉，就可以省时省力，甚至还可能避免一个人的牺牲。可在每部书中，尽管风险在不断增加，哈利却认为自己只会让别人担忧，或是认为别人根本就帮不了自己。哈利以为自己知道别人会怎样反应，并出于保护别人的错误想法而把真相掩藏了起来，这正是哈利犯的最大错误。当哈利向朋友们倾诉时，他们常常能够帮助他或是减轻他的恐惧；而一旦严守秘密，哈利就只会让自己和他人痛苦万分，并且更容易受到伤害。