事业 · 创业者自述
塞缪尔·斯迈尔斯：自助论·摘录 200
塞缪尔·斯迈尔斯《自助论》· Self-Help · 领导
Mr. Hume hit the mark when he once stated in the House of Commons—though his words were followed by “laughter”—that the tone of living in England is altogether too high. Middle-class people are too apt to live up to their incomes, if not beyond them: affecting a degree of “style” which is most unhealthy in its effects upon society at large. There is an ambition to bring up boys as gentlemen, or rather “genteel” men; though the result frequently is, only to make them gents. They acquire a taste for dress, style, luxuries, and amusements, which can never form any solid foundation for manly or gentlemanly character; and the result is, that we have a vast number of gingerbread young gentry thrown upon the world, who remind one of the abandoned hulls sometimes picked up at sea, with only a monkey on board.
出处：
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/935
定位：Excerpt 200 · 核对日期：2026-10-19 · 核验：短摘录
白话
休谟先生在下议院说过，英国的生活格调太高了——虽然他的话引来笑声。中产阶级太容易按收入甚至超收入生活，追求一种“派头”，对社会风气影响很不健康。人们渴望把男孩培养成绅士，或说“体面人”，结果往往只培养成“小开”。他们养成讲究穿着、派头、奢侈品和娱乐的品味，这绝不能构成男子汉或绅士品格的坚实基础。结果大量“姜饼式”的年轻绅士被抛到世上，让人想起海上有时捞到的空船壳，上面只有一只猴子。
上下文
斯迈尔斯《自助》批评19世纪英国中产阶级盲目攀比、追求体面的风气。
今日一问
你身边有没有为了“面子”而超支消费的例子？你自己会怎么避免？
公版作品；原文逐字取自 Project Gutenberg，仅摘录段落并附全书链接。
你的邮箱
只用于发送原典。不发广告，不卖名单。
本文本为公版；底本与原文链接见上。 版权