林语堂 -生活的艺术 02 interesting formula

I have often thought of formulas by which the mechanism of human progress and historical change can be expressed. They seem to be as follows:

Reality - Dreams = Animal Being
Reality - Dreams = A Heart-ache (usually called Idealism)
Reality + Humour = Realism (also called Conservatism)
Dreams - Humour = Fanaticism
Dreams + Humour = Fantasy
Reality + Dreams + Humour = Wisdom

我时常想到一些机构公式，想把人类进步和历史变迁明确地表示出来。这些公式仿佛如下：

“现实”减“梦想”等于“禽兽”
“现实”加“梦想”等于“心痛”（普通叫做“理想主义”）
“现实”加“幽默”等于“现实主义”（普通叫做“保守主义”）
“梦想”减“幽默”等于“热狂”
“梦想”加“幽默”等于“幻想”
“现实”加“梦想”加“幽默”等于“智慧”[/cn]

先生写出了自己对各国人民的认识：

现三 梦二 幽二 敏一 等于英国人
现二 梦三 幽三 敏三 等于法国人
现三 梦三 幽二 敏二 等于美国人
现三 梦四 幽一 敏二 等于德国人
现二 梦四 幽一 敏一 等于俄国人
现二 梦三 幽一 敏一 等于日本人
现四 梦一 幽三 敏三 等于中国人

在一列国家里，中国最为现实也最缺梦想，没有之一，不知各位认同否？

 Human society would be like an idealistic couple for ever getting tired of one place and changing their residence regularly once every three months, for the simple reason that no one place is ideal and the place where one is not seems always better because one is not there.

人类好似一对理想主义的夫妻，对于他们的住所永远感到不满意，每三个月总要搬一次家，他们以为没有一块地方是理想的，而没有到过的地方似乎总是好的。

How can I tell whether the English ever feel anything— joy, happiness, anger, satisfaction— when they are determined to look so glum on all occasions?
英国人随时随地要露着那种忧郁的样子，我怎能知道他们究竟有什么感觉呢——欢笑？快乐？愤怒？满足？

we have R4 standing for intense realism, which means an attitude of accepting life as it is and of regarding a bird in the hand as better than two in the bush.
我们用“现四”来代表浓厚的现实主义，这种浓厚的现实主义就是指一种安于人生现状的态度，是一种认为“二鸟在林，不如一鸟在手”的态度。

The mature Chinese is always a person who refuses to think too hard or to believe in any single idea or faith or school of philosophy whole-heartedly.
中国人对任何一个哲学观念、信仰、派别，都不愿专心地相信，或过分起劲地去研究。

【注释】
1. 搬家—— change one's residence/ move house
2. 忧郁——glum; melancholy; gloom; heavyhearted; dejected…多么流行的心情词，记得多样化表达咯
例：  1.  他的性格中有少许忧郁的气质。
             There is a vein of melancholy in his character.
        2.  战败的消息给小城蒙上了一层忧郁。
             The news of defeat cast a gloom over the town.
3. 安于人生现状—— accept life as it is
4. 这句话充分体现的简易词的强大功能，hard/idea/school, 我大概上来就是perception/faction啥的，为了映衬这高级散文…果然自书自译比较原汁原味~