第 30 节
作者:这就是结局      更新:2021-04-30 15:46      字数:9322
  themselves are forced to reform it。
  THE DEVIL。 Precisely。 And these are the creatures in whom you
  discover what you call a Life Force!
  DON JUAN。 Yes; for now comes the most surprising part of the
  whole business。
  THE STATUE。 What's that?
  DON JUAN。 Why; that you can make any of these cowards brave by
  simply putting an idea into his head。
  THE STATUE。 Stuff! As an old soldier I admit the cowardice: it's
  as universal as sea sickness; and matters just as little。 But
  that about putting an idea into a man's head is stuff and
  nonsense。 In a battle all you need to make you fight is a little
  hot blood and the knowledge that it's more dangerous to lose than
  to win。
  DON JUAN。 That is perhaps why battles are so useless。 But men
  never really overcome fear until they imagine they are fighting
  to further a universal purposefighting for an idea; as they
  call it。 Why was the Crusader braver than the pirate? Because he
  fought; not for himself; but for the Cross。 What force was it
  that met him with a valor as reckless as his own? The force of
  men who fought; not for themselves; but for Islam。 They took
  Spain from us; though we were fighting for our very hearths and
  homes; but when we; too; fought for that mighty idea; a Catholic
  Church; we swept them back to Africa。
  THE DEVIL。 'ironically' What! you a Catholic; Senor Don Juan! A
  devotee! My congratulations。
  THE STATUE。 'seriously' Come come! as a soldier; I can listen to
  nothing against the Church。
  DON JUAN。 Have no fear; Commander: this idea of a Catholic Church
  will survive Islam; will survive the Cross; will survive even
  that vulgar pageant of incompetent schoolboyish gladiators which
  you call the Army。
  THE STATUE。 Juan: you will force me to call you to account for
  this。
  DON JUAN。 Useless: I cannot fence。 Every idea for which Man will
  die will be a Catholic idea。 When the Spaniard learns at last
  that he is no better than the Saracen; and his prophet no better
  than Mahomet; he will arise; more Catholic than ever; and die on
  a barricade across the filthy slum he starves in; for universal
  liberty and equality。
  THE STATUE。 Bosh!
  DON JUAN。 What you call bosh is the only thing men dare die for。
  Later on; Liberty will not be Catholic enough: men will die for
  human perfection; to which they will sacrifice all their liberty
  gladly。
  THE DEVIL。 Ay: they will never be at a loss for an excuse for
  killing one another。
  DON JUAN。 What of that? It is not death that matters; but the
  fear of death。 It is not killing and dying that degrade us; but
  base living; and accepting the wages and profits of degradation。
  Better ten dead men than one live slave or his master。 Men shall
  yet rise up; father against son and brother against brother; and
  kill one another for the great Catholic idea of abolishing
  slavery。
  THE DEVIL。 Yes; when the Liberty and Equality of which you prate
  shall have made free white Christians cheaper in the labor market
  than by auction at the block。
  DON JUAN。 Never fear! the white laborer shall have his turn too。
  But I am not now defending the illusory forms the great ideas
  take。 I am giving you examples of the fact that this creature
  Man; who in his own selfish affairs is a coward to the backbone;
  will fight for an idea like a hero。 He may be abject as a
  citizen; but he is dangerous as a fanatic。 He can only be
  enslaved whilst he is spiritually weak enough to listen to
  reason。 I tell you; gentlemen; if you can show a man a piece of
  what he now calls God's work to do; and what he will later on
  call by many new names; you can make him entirely reckless of the
  consequences to himself personally。
  ANA。 Yes: he shirks all his responsibilities; and leaves his wife
  to grapple with them。
  THE STATUE。 Well said; daughter。 Do not let him talk you out of
  your common sense。
  THE DEVIL。 Alas! Senor Commander; now that we have got on to the
  subject of Woman; he will talk more than ever。 However; I confess
  it is for me the one supremely interesting subject。
  DON JUAN。 To a woman; Senora; man's duties and responsibilities
  begin and end with the task of getting bread for her children。 To
  her; Man is only a means to the end of getting children and
  rearing them。
  ANA。 Is that your idea of a woman's mind? I call it cynical and
  disgusting materialism。
  DON JUAN。 Pardon me; Ana: I said nothing about a woman's whole
  mind。 I spoke of her view of Man as a separate sex。 It is no more
  cynical than her view of herself as above all things a Mother。
  Sexually; Woman is Nature's contrivance for perpetuating its
  highest achievement。 Sexually; Man is Woman's contrivance for
  fulfilling Nature's behest in the most economical way。 She knows
  by instinct that far back in the evolutional process she invented
  him; differentiated him; created him in order to produce
  something better than the single…sexed process can produce。
  Whilst he fulfils the purpose for which she made him; he is
  welcome to his dreams; his follies; his ideals; his heroisms;
  provided that the keystone of them all is the worship of woman;
  of motherhood; of the family; of the hearth。 But how rash and
  dangerous it was to invent a separate creature whose sole
  function was her own impregnation! For mark what has happened。
  First; Man has multiplied on her hands until there are as many
  men as women; so that she has been unable to employ for her
  purposes more than a fraction of the immense energy she has left
  at his disposal by saving him the exhausting labor of gestation。
  This superfluous energy has gone to his brain and to his muscle。
  He has become too strong to be controlled by her bodily; and too
  imaginative and mentally vigorous to be content with mere self…
  reproduction。 He has created civilization without consulting her;
  taking her domestic labor for granted as the foundation of it。
  ANA。 THAT is true; at all events。
  THE DEVIL。 Yes; and this civilization! what is it; after all?
  DON JUAN。 After all; an excellent peg to hang your cynical
  commonplaces on; but BEFORE all; it is an attempt on Man's part
  to make himself something more than the mere instrument of
  Woman's purpose。 So far; the result of Life's continual effort
  not only to maintain itself; but to achieve higher and higher
  organization and completer self…consciousness; is only; at best;
  a doubtful campaign between its forces and those of Death and
  Degeneration。 The battles in this campaign are mere blunders;
  mostly won; like actual military battles; in spite of the
  commanders。
  THE STATUE。 That is a dig at me。 No matter: go on; go on。
  DON JUAN。 It is a dig at a much higher power than you; Commander。
  Still; you must have noticed in your profession that even a
  stupid general can win battles when the enemy's general is a
  little stupider。
  THE STATUE。 'very seriously' Most true; Juan; most true。 Some
  donkeys have amazing luck。
  DON JUAN。 Well; the Life Force is stupid; but it is not so stupid
  as the forces of Death and Degeneration。 Besides; these are in
  its pay all the time。 And so Life wins; after a fashion。 What
  mere copiousness of fecundity can supply and mere greed preserve;
  we possess。 The survival of whatever form of civilization can
  produce the best rifle and the best fed riflemen is assured。
  THE DEVIL。 Exactly! the survival; not of the most effective means
  of Life but of the most effective means of Death。 You always come
  back to my point; in spite of your wrigglings and evasions and
  sophistries; not to mention the intolerable length of your
  speeches。
  DON JUAN。 Oh come! who began making long speeches? However; if I
  overtax your intellect; you can leave us and seek the society of
  love and beauty and the rest of your favorite boredoms。
  THE DEVIL。 'much offended' This is not fair; Don Juan; and not
  civil。 I am also on the intellectual plane。 Nobody can appreciate
  it more than I do。 I am arguing fairly with you; and; I think;
  utterly refuting you。 Let us go on for another hour if you like。
  DON JUAN。 Good: let us。
  THE STATUE。 Not that I see any prospect of your coming to any
  point in particular; Juan。 Still; since in this place; instead of
  merely killing time we have to kill eternity; go ahead by all
  means。
  DON JUAN。 'somewhat impatiently' My point; you marbleheaded old
  masterpiece; is only a step ahead of you。 Are we agreed that Life
  is a force which has made innumerable experiments in organizing
  itself; that the mammoth and the man; the mouse and the
  megatherium; the flies and the fleas and the Fathers of the
  Church; are all more or less successful attempts to build up that
  raw force into higher and higher individuals; the ideal
  individual being omnipotent; omniscient; infallible; and withal
  completely; unilludedly self…conscious: in short; a god?
  THE DEVIL。 I agree; for the sake of argument。
  THE STATUE。 I agree; for the sake of avoiding argument。
  ANA。 I most emphatically disagree as regards the Fathers of the
  Church; and I must beg you not to drag them into the argument。
  DON JUAN。 I did so purely for the sake of alliteration; Ana; and
  I shall make no further allusion to them。 And now; since we are;
  with that exception; agreed so far; will you not agree with me
  further that Life has not measured th