那喀索斯 论自恋

Narcissus; or Self-Love
By Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
Narcissus is said to have been a young man of wonderful 那喀索斯据说曾经是一个长相俊美的少年，但他令人难以忍beauty, but intolerably proud, fastidious, and disdainful.
受的骄傲、挑剔，而且倨傲无比。

Pleased with himself and despising all others, he led a
他只对自己感到满意，而蔑视他人，他在树林和猎场过着独solitary life in the woods and hunting grounds; with a few 居的生活。

他的身边跟着几个以他为中心的朋友。

无论走到companions to whom he was all in all; followed also
哪，他的身后，总跟着一位叫做Echo的女神。

wherever he went by a nymph called Echo.
Living thus, he comes by chance one day to a clear
这样生活着，有一天，他偶然的来到一个清泉,感受着午日的fountain, and (being in the heat of noon) lay down by it;
高温，他靠着清泉躺了下来。

当他被水中他自己的倒影吸引 when beholding in the water his own image, he fell into a 的时候，他陷入了一种研究，接着进入了一种对他自己的狂study and then into such a rapturous admiration of himself, 喜的欣赏，以至于他目不转睛的盯着倒影画面，难以自拔。

that he could not be drawn away from gazing at the
保持着生根一样的站着不动，盯着那画面，直到他死了。

shadowy picture, but remained rooted to the spot till sense 最后，他变成了一种具有他的名字的花-水仙。

这种花在初春left him; and at last he was changed into the flower that
开放,被献祭给地狱的三个女神：Pluto、Proserpine和Furies。

bears his name; a flower which appears in the early spring; and is sacred to the infernal deities, -Pluto, Proserpine, and the Furies.
In this fable are represented the dispositions, and the
这个寓言表达了那种意识到上天赋予自己以美貌，或者fortunes too, of those persons who from consciousness
其他天赋，因此而无需自己努力，因而陷入自恋自爱的either of beauty or some other gift with which nature
的人的性情与命运。

unaided by any industry of their own has graced them, fall in love as it with themselves.
For with this state of mind there is commonly joined and
具有这又精神状态的人，往往无意于抛头露面，或者忙于indisposition to appear much in public or engage in
生机，因为忙于生计会使他们暴露在他人的怠慢和蔑视中，business; because business would expose them to many
这样则会使他们沮丧失落。

neglects and scorns, by which their minds would be dejected and troubled .
Therefore they commonly live a solitary, private, and
因此，他们通常喜欢一种独处、私密、附有阴影的生活，shadowed life; with a small circle of chosen companions, 他们的交友圈子很小，通常彼此都是忠实的崇拜者，无论说all devoted admirers, who assent like an echo to
什么，他们都像是Echo一样赞成，随声附和。

everything they say, and entertain them with
只有阿谀奉承才能取悦他们。

直到这些恶习渐渐堕落、膨胀，mouth-homage; till being by such habits gradually
最后变成愚蠢的自恋。

他们陷入一种懒惰，精神萎靡，以至depraved and puffed up, and besotted at last with
于彻底变得愚蠢，并且丧失所有的活力和敏捷。

self-admiration, they fall into such a sloth and listlessness that they grow utterly stupid, and lose all vigour and alacrity.
And it was a beautiful thought to choose the flower of
选择水仙这一初春开的花作为这样一种特征的象征，是一个spring as an emblem of characters like this: characters
很好的想法。

具有这种特征的人，在他们事业的开始阶段，
which in the opening of their career flourish and are talked 很繁荣而让人津津乐道，但是等到他们年轻时的承诺到了of, but disappoint in maturity the promise of their youth.
成熟期，就开始变得让人失望。

The fact too that this flower is sacred to the infernal deities 水仙被献祭给地狱的神灵的事实也包含了一种同样地暗示。

contains an allusion to the same thing. For men of this
具有那种性情的人，最后会变得彻底的毫无用处，对任何disposition turn out utterly useless and good for nothing
事情都没有好处，做任何事都不会有成果，就像一支驶过海whatever; and anything that yields no fruit, but like the way 面的船，毫无痕迹。

这种人，就被古代人献祭给阴间地狱里of a ship in the sea passes and leaves no trace, was by the 神灵。

ancients held sacred to the shades and infernal gods.。