纽约举办《毛主席语录》50周年展

The prose of the "Quotations" was prosaic — "The masses have a potentially inexhaustible enthusiasm for socialism," one typical excerpt begins — and at times baffling. It is hard to know what lesson even the most ardent Communist might have drawn from this: "One can get a grip on something only when it is grasped firmly, without the slightest slackening. Not to grasp firmly is not to grasp at all. Naturally, one cannot get a grip on something with an open hand. When the hand is clenched as if grasping something but is not clenched tightly, there is still no grip."
《语录》中有的句子很乏味——“群众中蕴藏了一种极大的社会主义的积极性”——其中典型的一段是这么开始的；有时也让人困惑。“什么东西只有抓得很紧，毫不放松，才能抓住。抓而不紧，等于不抓。伸着巴掌，当然什么也抓不住。就是把手握起来，但是不握紧，样子象抓，还是抓不住东西。”最热忱的共产党员能够从中学到什么东西不得而知。

The words hardly mattered. The book held sway as a symbol, not a program of ideas, which is why it lent itself so readily to propaganda uses. Bold posters showed crowds holding the book aloft, their faces radiant with joy. At home, citizens could pour water from a "Little Red Book" carafe, wake up to a "Little Red Book” alarm clock with a soldier's arm waving the book back and forth, and watch as their children played with rubber "Little Red Book" dolls.
这些语言没有什么关系。挥舞这本书已经成为一种象征，而不是为了传达观念，所以它才那么容易就被作为政治宣传之用。醒目的招贴画上，可以看到人们高高举起这本书，脸上闪烁着快乐的光芒。在家里，人们用印有“红宝书”的水瓶倒水，伴随着“红宝书”闹铃声起床，闹钟上有个士兵高举着这本书，胳膊来回挥舞，孩子们则用橡胶的“红宝书”娃娃做游戏。

One of the more intriguing examples is a rosy-cheeked boy who holds a rifle in one hand, a red book in the other, and presses one foot firmly down on the head of an American soldier with a military policeman's helmet. "They squeak when you press them," Mr. Schiller said.
更有趣的是一个脸色红润的男孩，一手拿来复枪，一手举红宝书，脚下稳稳地踩着一个美国士兵的脑袋。士兵还戴着军警头盔，“一捏它就会发出吱吱声，希勒说。”

There is a book of songs, “Quotations of Chairman Mao Tse-tung Set to Music," that includes ditties like "A Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party." Mr. Schiller owns a “Quotations" LP that came with an exercise book, so that listeners could get a Party-endorsed workout while enjoying the music.
此外还有歌本，《毛主席语录歌曲集》中收入了《革命不是请客吃饭》等小曲。希勒有一张《语录》歌曲的黑胶唱片，还附有一个体操手册，听者可以一边欣赏音乐，一边做经党批准的体操锻炼。

In the West, the book commanded the attention of two audiences. The Maoist faithful, small in numbers but fervent, drank it in like a revolutionary elixir. Publishers saw it as an invitation to sell parody books, both satirical (“Quotations From Chairman L.B.J.") and serious ("Quotations From Chairman Jesus”). Such was the power of the brand that, decades after Mao's death, publishers churned out “Quotations" parodies for Jesse Ventura and Tony Blair.
在西方，这本书主要吸引两种读者。一种是忠诚的毛主义者，他们人数虽少，但却非常狂热，将之视为革命的灵丹妙药，照单全收。另外就是觉得可以趁此机会卖点戏仿书籍的出版商。这些戏仿有的是讽刺，如《林敦·约翰逊主席语录》(Quotations From Chairman L.B.J.)；有的是严肃的，如《耶稣主席语录》(Quotations From Chairman Jesus)。这就是品牌的力量，以至于毛去世几十年后，出版商还在炮制戏仿的杰西·文图拉(Jesse Ventura)和托尼·布莱尔(Tony Blair)语录。

Readers inclined to scoff at what is probably the world's most popular book, after the Bible, might take a look at the American best-seller lists in the mid-1960s, when the Cultural Revolution kicked into gear. While thousands of Red Guard zealots held the red book aloft, shouting revolutionary slogans, American readers thrilled to "Valley of the Dolls" and "How to Avoid Probate." There is no accounting for taste.
《毛主席语录》或许是这个世界上最畅销的书籍，仅次于《圣经》，倾向于嘲弄这本书的人不妨看看美国60年代中期的畅销书单，当时“文化大革命”刚刚开始。当成千上万狂热的红卫兵高举红宝书，高呼革命口号的时候，美国读者正在为《娃娃谷》(Valley of the Dolls)和《怎样避免遗嘱认证》(How to Avoid Probate)而着迷。品味这东西真是很难说。