In the 4th century BCE, 在西元前第四世纪， a banker’s son threw the city of Sinope into scandal by counterfeiting coins. 一位银行家的儿子因为假造钱币而让锡诺普市陷入丑闻。 When the dust finally settled, the young man, Diogenes of Sinope, 等风波终于平息，这位年轻人， 锡诺普的戴亚吉尼斯， had been stripped of his citizenship, his money, and all his possessions. 失去了他的公民权、 金钱，和所有的财产。 At least, that’s how the story goes. 至少，故事是这样说的。 While many of the details of Diogenes’ life are shadowy, 虽然戴亚吉尼斯的 许多人生细节都很模糊， the philosophical ideas born out of his disgrace survive today. 从他的不光彩行为所产生的 哲学想法却存活至今。 In exile, Diogenes decided that by rejecting the opinions of others 被放逐的戴亚吉尼斯决定 不要在乎他人的意见 and societal measures of success, he could be truly free. 以及社会对于成功的衡量方式， 这样他才能真正获得自由。 He would live self-sufficiently, close to nature, without materialism, 他能够过着自给自足、 接近大自然的生活， vanity, or conformity. 没有唯物主义、虚荣，或顺从。 In practice, this meant he spent years wandering around Greek cities 实际上，这表示他数年间都 一直在希腊城市附近流浪， with nothing but a cloak, staff, and knapsack— 身上只有斗篷、拐杖、背包—— outdoors year-round, forgoing technology, baths, and cooked food. 整年都在户外，放弃科技、洗澡、熟食。 He didn’t go about this new existence quietly, 他并不是静静地过这种新生活， but is said to have teased passers-by and mocked the powerful, 据说他会取笑过路的人， 并嘲笑有权者， eating, urinating and even masturbating in public. 还会在大厅广众之下吃东西、 撒尿，甚至手淫。 The citizens called him a kyôn— a barking dog. 市民称他为 kyôn ——会吠的狗。 Though meant as an insult, dogs were actually a good symbol for his philosophy— 虽然称他为狗的本意是种侮辱， 却为他的哲学建立了好象征—— they’re happy creatures, free from abstractions like wealth or reputation. 狗是快乐的生物，不在乎 抽象的概念，像是财富和名声。 Diogenes and his growing number of followers 越来越多人追随戴亚吉尼斯， became known as “dog philosophers,” or kynikoi, 他们形成了一般所知的 “犬儒学派”，或称 kynikoi， a designation that eventually became the word “Cynic.” 这个名称后来变成了 “愤世嫉俗者”这个词。 These early Cynics were a carefree bunch, 早期这些犬儒学派的人 是群自由自在的人， drawn to the freedom of a wandering lifestyle. 喜爱漂泊的生活方式。 As Diogenes’ reputation grew, others tried to challenge his commitment. 随着戴亚吉尼斯的名声越传越广， 有人试着挑战他坚守的程度。 Alexander the Great offered him anything he desired. 亚历山大大帝愿提供他 任何他所想要的东西。 But instead of asking for material goods, 但戴亚吉尼斯并没有 索求实质的物品， Diogenes only asked Alexander to get out of his sunshine. 他只请亚历山大别挡住他的阳光。 After Diogenes’ death, 戴亚吉尼斯死后， adherents to his philosophy continued to call themselves Cynics 他的哲学的拥护者仍然 继续自称为犬儒学派， for about 900 years, until 500 CE. 持续了约九百年， 直到公元五百年为止。 Some Greek philosophers, like the Stoics, 有些希腊哲学家， 比如斯多葛学派学者， thought everyone should follow Diogenes’ example. 认为人人都应该遵从 戴亚吉尼斯的典范。 They also attempted to tone down his philosophy 他们也尝试将他的哲学稍做调整， to be more acceptable to conventional society— 让墨守成规的社会 比较能接受它—— which, of course, was fundamentally at odds with his approach. 当然，这么做就根本上 和他的方法有所抵触。 Others viewed the Cynics less charitably. 其他人就没有这么宽厚地 看待犬儒学派了。 In the Roman province of Syria in the 2nd century CE, 公元第二世纪， 在罗马帝国的叙利亚行省， the satirist Lucian described the Cynics of his own time as unprincipled, 讽刺作家琉善形容他那个时代的 犬儒学派是不道德的、 materialistic, self-promoting hypocrites, 实利主义的、自吹自擂的伪君子， who only preached what Diogenes had once actually practiced. 只会宣扬亚吉尼斯曾经做过的事。 Reading Lucian’s texts centuries later, 在数世纪后阅读琉善所写的文字， Renaissance and Reformation writers called their rivals cynics as an insult— 文艺复兴和宗教改革运动的作家 侮辱他们的对手为犬儒学派—— meaning people who criticized others without having anything worthwhile to say. 意指嘴里吐不出象牙 只会批判别人的人。 This usage eventually laid the groundwork for the modern meaning “犬儒学派”的这种用法， of the word “cynic:" 为现代“愤世嫉俗者” 一词的定义奠定了基础， a person who thinks everyone else is acting out of pure self-interest, 这词意指的人总认为别人即使 嘴上宣称有崇高的动机， even if they claim a higher motive. 其实仍单纯为了私利行事。 Still, the philosophy of cynicism had admirers, 不过，仍然有人欣赏 犬儒学派的哲学， especially among those who wished to question the state of society. 特别是想要质疑 社会状态的那些人。 The 18th-century French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau 十八世纪的法国哲学家尚雅克·卢梭 was called the “new Diogenes” when he argued that the arts, sciences, 被称为“新的希腊哲学家”， 当时他主张艺术、科学， and technology, corrupt people. 以及科技让人腐败。 In 1882, Friedrich Nietzsche reimagined a story 1882 年，弗里德里希·尼采 重塑了一个故事， in which Diogenes went into the Athenian marketplace with a lantern, 故事中的希腊哲学家 提着灯笼进入雅典市场， searching in vain for a single honest person. 找不到一个诚实的人。 In Nietszche’s version, a so-called madman rushes into a town square 在尼采的版本中，一名所谓的 疯子急着赶去小镇的广场， to proclaim that “God is dead.” 去宣告“神已死”。 This was Nietzsche’s way of calling for a “revaluation of values,” 尼采用这种方式来呼吁 “价值重新评估”， and rejecting the dominant Christian and Platonic idea 并驳斥主流的基督教和柏拉图式 of universal, spiritual insights beyond the physical world. 针对实体世界以外的宇宙、 灵性洞见的想法。 Nietzsche admired Diogenes for sticking stubbornly to the here-and-now. 尼采欣赏希腊哲学家 能够顽固坚持此时此地。 More recently, the hippies of the 1960s have been compared with Diogenes 更近期则有六○年代的嬉皮 as counter-cultural rebels. 将希腊哲学家比作反文化的反叛者。 Diogenes’ ideas have been adopted and reimagined over and over again. 希腊哲学家的想法 一再被采用、重塑。 The original cynics might not have approved of these fresh takes: 最原始的犬儒学派可能 不会认同这些新的形式： they believed that their values of rejecting custom 他们相信，他们排拒习俗， and living closely with nature were the only true values. 靠近大自然生活的价值观， 才是唯一真正的价值观。 Whether or not you agree with that, or with any of the later incarnations, 不论你是否认同这种价值观 或其后来的版本， all have one thing in common: they questioned the status quo. 它们都有一个共通点：它们都在质疑现状。 And that’s an example we can still follow: 而那是我们仍然能够遵循的典范： not to blindly follow conventional or majority views, 不要盲目地遵循传统 或者多数人的观点， but to think hard about what is truly valuable. 而是要用心思考什么 才是真正有价值的。
