外国人眼中的孔子是什么样的?

大约10年前，我在一个朋友的客厅第一次“见到”了孔子。当然了，我所说的孔子可不是蓄着白色胡须的中哲人的本尊，而是放在茶几上的出版物--孔子语录集。翻阅几页后，一个男人的样子便跃然出现在我的脑海中。

I first met Confucius in a friend's living room, nearly 10 years ago. OK, so it wasn't really the bearded Chinese philosopher. It was a collection of his most famous lines, printed and bound and resting on a coffee table. As I scanned the pages, a vision of the man began to form in my mind.

直到上周六，我才有机会将一个人名和这张脸对应上--香港明星周润发在新影片《孔子》中出演这一圣人角色。虽然对孔子的故事并不太了解，我还是去看了这部电影。总是止不住想到，如果能在现实生活中遇到他，不知我会怎么想。 

It wasn't until last Saturday, though, that I finally had a chance to put a name to the face-that of Hong Kong star Chow Yun-fat, who plays the sage in the new biopic Confucius. I went to see the film knowing very little of Confucius' personal story. I left wondering what I would have thought of the man if I really had met him in person.

我会不会像影片中的那个农民，无视前来问路的孔子及其弟子，继续收庄稼？会不会像片中卫灵公的姬妾南子(周迅饰)那样为了考验圣人的耐力而要求与之见面？又或者，我会不会像片中的年轻人那样抛弃一切随他前往那片荒野之地？

Would I have been like the farmer in the film who kept on bundling grain when Confucius and his disciples stopped and asked for directions? Would I have been like the alluring consort (played by Zhou Xun) who requested a meeting with the sage only to test his human mettle? Or would I have been one of the young men who left everything to follow him into the wilderness?

我想，这一切都取决于《孔子》导演胡玫对那段历史的深刻了解。

I suppose it all depends on the historical accuracy of director Hu Mei's Confucius.

影片中，我们看到的是一个集谦恭、博学、幽默、智慧、守纪、严格于一身的圣人形象。即便是周迅所扮演的南子几乎扑在孔子身上时，他的脸上闪过一丝欲望后便走开了。

In the movie, we see a man who is all at once humble and wise and humorous and intelligent and disciplined and firm and clever. Even when Zhou's character all but throws herself on Confucius, the philosopher walks away with barely a trace of desire on his face.