ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Maira Kalman - Illustrator, author
Maira Kalman's wise, witty drawings have appeared on numberless New Yorker covers, in a dozen children's books, and throughout the pages of the Elements of Style. Her latest book, The Principles of Uncertainty, is the result of a year-long illustrated blog she kept for the New York Times.

Why you should listen

Children know Maira Kalman for her series of Max storybooks, adults for her New Yorker covers and the gotta-have-it illustrated version of the Elements of Style -- simple proof that her sensibility blends a childlike delight with a grownup's wry take on the world.

With her husband, the legendary designer and art director Tibor Kalman, Maira spent several decades designing objets and assembling books like (un)FASHION. But after Tibor's untimely death in 1999, Maira herself became a cultural force. Her colorful, faux-naif illustrations -- and her very perspective -- tap a desire in all of us to look at the world the way she does.

Her latest book, The Principles of Uncertainty, is perhaps the most complete expression of Maira's worldview. Based on a monthly blog she kept for the New York Times website for one year, it is filled with carefully observed moments and briskly captured thoughts, an omnivore's view of life in the modern world.

More profile about the speaker
Maira Kalman | Speaker | TED.com
TED2007

Maira Kalman: The illustrated woman

Maira Kalman, 插图释我心

Filmed:
805,010 views

作家及插图画家 Maira Kalman 讲述了她的人生和工作, 从为《纽约客》设计封面到她为儿童和成人设计的图书. 她是一名美丽,睿智,芬香跃然于纸上的女人.
- Illustrator, author
Maira Kalman's wise, witty drawings have appeared on numberless New Yorker covers, in a dozen children's books, and throughout the pages of the Elements of Style. Her latest book, The Principles of Uncertainty, is the result of a year-long illustrated blog she kept for the New York Times. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:25
What I am always thinking思维 about
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我一直在想
00:28
is what this session会议 is about, which哪一个 is called simplicity简单.
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这个演讲的主题应该叫什么,就叫简单吧.
00:32
And almost几乎, I would almost几乎 call it being存在 simple-minded傻呵呵,
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差不多是这样,我几乎叫它头脑简单,
00:36
but in the best最好 sense of the word.
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但用更确切的词汇来形容.
00:38
I'm trying to figure数字 out two very simple简单 things:
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我试图弄清两个非常简单的事情:
00:42
how to live生活 and how to die, period.
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如何去生活,如何去死,结束.
00:44
That's all I'm trying to do, all day long.
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这是我整日尝试去弄明白的事.
00:46
And I'm also trying to have some meals, and have some snacks小吃,
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然而我也想想饭菜啊和零食啊什么的
00:49
and, you know, and yell叫喊 at my children孩子, and do all the normal正常 things
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还有,你知道,对着我的孩子大声责骂并做日常的事情
00:53
that keep you grounded接地.
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这些让你活在现实里
00:56
So, I was fortunate幸运 enough足够 to be born天生 a very dreamy梦想的 child儿童.
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事实上,我有幸生来就是爱空想的孩子.
01:03
My older旧的 sister妹妹 was busy torturing折磨 my parents父母,
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比我大的姐姐非常喜欢折腾我的父母,
01:07
and they were busy torturing折磨 her.
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他们也正忙着折腾她.
01:09
I was lucky幸运 enough足够 to be completely全然 ignored忽视,
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我有幸被完全忽略了--
01:12
which哪一个 is a fabulous极好 thing, actually其实, I want to tell you.
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这是很微妙的东西,事实上,我想告诉你一件事.
01:14
So, I was able能够 to completely全然 daydream梦话 my way through通过 my life.
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我可以完用通过白日梦的方式过着自己的生活.
01:20
And I finally最后 daydreamed做白日梦 my way into NYUNYU, at a very good time, in 1967,
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最终在一个很好的时期,我做着白日梦进了纽约大学. 那是1967年,
01:27
where I met会见 a man who was trying to blow打击 up the math数学 building建造 of NYUNYU.
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在那里我遇到了一个人,他试图炸毁纽约大学的数学教学楼.
01:33
And I was writing写作 terrible可怕 poetry诗歌 and knitting针织 sweaters毛衣 for him.
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然而我写了糟糕的诗,还织毛衣给他.
01:37
And feminists女权主义者 hated us, and the whole整个 thing was wretched可怜
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女权主义者恨我们,并且整个事情是个杯具
01:42
from beginning开始 to end结束.
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从头到尾.
01:44
But I kept不停 writing写作 bad poetry诗歌, and he didn't blow打击 up the math数学 building建造,
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但我仍然坚持写着糟糕的诗,他也没有炸毁教学楼,
01:48
but he went to Cuba古巴.
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但他去了古巴.
01:49
But I gave him the money, because I was from Riverdale里弗代尔
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我给了他钱因为我从Riverdale区回来
01:51
so I had more money than he did.
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所以我比他有钱.
01:53
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
01:54
And that was a good thing to help, you know, the cause原因.
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去帮助别人的事业,你知道,是件好事.
01:58
But, then he came来了 back, and things happened发生,
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但是, 之后他回来了, 然后出事了,
02:02
and I decided决定 I really hated my writing写作,
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我真的恨透了我写的东西,
02:05
that it was awful可怕, awful可怕, purple紫色 prose散文.
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真是很糟很糟的空洞修辞.
02:09
And I decided决定 that I wanted to tell --
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并且我决定我要去倾诉
02:11
but I still wanted to tell a narrative叙述 story故事
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但我仍然想讲故事
02:13
and I still wanted to tell my stories故事.
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我仍然想倒出我的故事.
02:15
So I decided决定 that I would start开始 to draw. How hard could that be?
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所以我决定开始画画. 这能有多难啊
02:18
And so what happened发生 was that I started开始
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所以我开始
02:23
just becoming变得 an editorial社论 illustrator插画 through通过, you know,
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慢慢变为一名编辑-插图画家, 这个你知道,
02:26
sheer绝对 whatever随你, sheer绝对 ignorance无知.
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十分无所谓,十分愚昧.
02:29
And we started开始 a studio工作室.
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我们开了一个工作室 --
02:31
Well, Tibor蒂博尔 really started开始 the studio工作室, called M&Co有限公司.
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好吧, Tibor 开了一个工作室, 叫 M&公司.
02:33
And the premise前提 of M&Co有限公司 was, we don't know anything,
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M&公司的基本状况就是:我们什么都不懂.
02:37
but that's all right, we're going to do it anyway无论如何.
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但没有关系,我们照样做.
02:39
And as a matter of fact事实, it's better not to know anything,
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事实上, 一无所知其实更好,
02:41
because if you know too much, you're stymied陷入困境.
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因为知道太多反而影响你的思路.
02:44
So, the premise前提 in the studio工作室 was,
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所以,这个工作室的前提是,
02:47
there are no boundaries边界, there is no fear恐惧.
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无所不为,无所畏惧.
02:50
And I -- and my full-time全职 job工作, I landed登陆 the best最好 job工作 on Earth地球,
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而我, 和我的全职工作, 我有了地球上最好的工作,
02:53
was to daydream梦话, and to actually其实 come up with absurd荒诞 ideas思路
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就是做白日梦, 然后提出各种荒谬的创意
02:58
that -- fortunately幸好, there were enough足够 people there,
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幸运的是我们有足够多的人
03:00
and it was a team球队, it was a collective集体,
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形成一个团队, 一个集体,
03:02
it was not just me coming未来 up with crazy ideas思路.
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不只是我提出疯狂的创意.
03:04
But the point was that I was there as myself, as a dreamer梦想家.
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那时的意义是,我可以做真正的自己 -- 一个梦想家.
03:09
And so some of the things -- I mean, it was a long history历史 of M&Co有限公司,
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我的意思是说这是M&公司漫长历史的一部分,
03:12
and clearly明确地 we also needed需要 to make some money,
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当然我们也需要赚钱,
03:16
so we decided决定 we would create创建 a series系列 of products制品.
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所以我们决定我们要创造一系列的产品.
03:20
And some of the watches手表 there,
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例如这些手表,
03:23
attempting尝试 to be beautiful美丽 and humorous幽默 --
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尝试设计的更美丽更幽默 --
03:25
maybe not attempting尝试, hopefully希望 succeeding下一.
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也许不是尝试,而是希望成功 --
03:28
That to be able能够 to talk about content内容,
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才能去思索内容是什么,
03:31
to break打破 apart距离 what you normally一般 expect期望, to use humor幽默 and surprise,
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跳出你的思维定势,幽默和惊喜,
03:35
elegance优雅 and humanity人性 in your work was really important重要 to us.
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高雅的美感和人文内涵对我们非常重要.
03:40
It was a very high, it was a very impersonal非人的 time in design设计
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设计的要求极高,完全摒除个人喜好
03:45
and we wanted to say, the content内容 is what's important重要,
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内容的本身才是最重要的,
03:49
not the package, not the wrapping包皮.
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不是周边配件,也不是包装材料.
03:51
You really have to be journalists记者, you have to be inventors发明家,
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你必须成为记者,成为发明家
03:54
you have to use your imagination想像力 more importantly重要的 than anything.
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你的想像力胜于一切
03:58
So, the good news新闻 is that I have a dog
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所以, 好消息是我有一条狗
04:03
and, though虽然 I don't know if I believe in luck运气 --
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虽然我知道我不并相信运气 --
04:05
I don't know what I believe in, it's a very complicated复杂 question,
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我也不知道自己信仰什么, 这个问题很复杂.
04:07
but I do know that before I go away, I crank曲柄 his tail尾巴 seven times.
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但我知道我每次离开之前,都要摇七次他的尾巴.
04:11
So, whenever每当 he sees看到 a suitcase手提箱 in the house,
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所以无论什么时候他看到小提箱的时候
04:13
because everybody's每个人的 always, you know, leaving离开,
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因为所有人离开的时候
04:16
they're always cranking起动 this wonderful精彩 dog's小狗 tail尾巴,
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他总是摇狗尾巴
04:18
and he runs运行 to the other room房间.
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然后跑进其它房间.
04:20
But I am able能够 to make the transition过渡 from working加工 for children孩子 and --
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但我可以从为儿童或成人工作之间
04:25
from working加工 for adults成年人 to children孩子, and back and forth向前,
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来来回回的转换角色,
04:28
because, you know, I can say that I'm immature未成熟的,
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因为,我可以说我不成熟,
04:30
and in a way, that's true真正.
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从某种角度来说,这是真的
04:33
I don't really -- I mean, I could tell you that I didn't understand理解,
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我不懂, 我真不理解那些 --
04:38
I'm not proud骄傲 of it, but I didn't understand理解
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我并不是以此为荣, 但我真的不懂.
04:40
let's say 95 percent百分 of the talks会谈 at this conference会议.
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这个大会的95%的内容我都不懂.
04:43
But I have been taking服用 beautiful美丽 notes笔记 of drawings图纸
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但我曾经讲过美丽的画做笔记,
04:45
and I have a gorgeous华丽 onion洋葱 from Murray穆雷 Gell-Mann's盖尔曼的 talk.
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我在Murray Gell-Mann讲座里完成了一个很酷的洋葱插图.
04:48
And I have a beautiful美丽 page of doodles涂鸦 from Jonathan乔纳森 Woodham's伍德姆的 talk.
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Jonathan Woodham的演讲里我也画了美丽的一页.
04:52
So, good things come out of, you know, incomprehension不理解 --
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于是, 美好的事情接连出现, 无法解释 --
04:55
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
04:57
-- which哪一个 I will do a painting绘画 of, and then it will end结束 up in my work.
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-- 我要画画的时候, 它会结束我的工作.
05:00
So, I'm open打开 to the possibilities可能性 of not knowing会心
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所以,我打开思想,用无知无畏的心态
05:04
and finding发现 out something new.
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来寻找一些创新的东西.
05:06
So, in writing写作 for children孩子, it seems似乎 simple简单, and it is.
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儿童创作, 看起来简单做起来也简单.
05:11
You have to condense凝结 a story故事 into 32 pages网页, usually平时.
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你通常需要将一个故事简化到32页以内,
05:15
And what you have to do is, you really have to edit编辑 down to what you want to say.
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而你需要做的就是你要编辑故事的精华来呈现你想表达的东西,
05:18
And hopefully希望, you're not talking down to kids孩子
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还好,你不是以居高临下的口气对着孩子说话
05:21
and you're not talking in such这样 a way that you,
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你也不用自己的方式去表达
05:23
you know, couldn't不能 stand reading it after one time.
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孩子们看完一次就再也无法忍受的东西.
05:26
So, I hopefully希望 am writing写作, you know,
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所以,我满怀希望的写作
05:28
books图书 that are good for children孩子 and for adults成年人.
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书将有得于孩子和成人.
05:30
But the painting绘画 reflects反映 --
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但绘画所反映的,
05:32
I don't think differently不同 for children孩子 than I do for adults成年人.
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我不认为孩子和成人的内容有所差别.
05:34
I try to use the same相同 kind of imagination想像力, the same相同 kind of whimsy怪念头,
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我试图用相同的想像力,相同的古怪念头,
05:37
the same相同 kind of love of language语言.
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相同的爱的语言.
05:40
So, you know, and I have lots of wonderful-looking精彩好看 friends朋友.
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我有很多很漂亮的朋友们.
05:44
This is Andrew安德鲁 Gatz盖兹, and he walked in through通过 the door and I said,
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这是Andrew Gatz, 他走进门.
05:46
"You! Sit down there." You know, I take lots of photos相片.
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"你,坐这儿" 你知道,我拍很多照片.
05:49
And the BertoiaBertoia chair椅子 in the background背景 is my favorite喜爱 chair椅子.
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画面背景上的Bertoia椅子,是我最喜欢的椅子.
05:52
So, I get to put in all of the things that I love.
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我将喜欢的东西全部都放在一起,
05:55
Hopefully希望, a dialog对话 between之间 adults成年人 and children孩子 will happen发生 on many许多 different不同 levels水平,
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还好成人与儿童之间的对话会发生在很多层面上.
05:59
and hopefully希望 different不同 kinds of humor幽默 will evolve发展.
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并且将有更多不同形式的各种乐趣出现其中.
06:03
And the books图书 are really journals期刊 of my life.
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这些书是我的人生的日记.
06:05
I never -- I don't like plots地块.
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我不喜欢情节,
06:07
I don't know what a plot情节 means手段.
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我不知道情节的意义.
06:09
I can't stand the idea理念 of anything that starts启动 in the beginning开始,
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我无法忍受任何事情都必须有开场,
06:12
you know, beginning开始, middle中间 and end结束. It really scares恐慌 me,
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开场, 中间和结局, 我真害怕.
06:14
because my life is too random随机 and too confused困惑,
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由于我的生活变数太多并且太迷茫,
06:17
and I enjoy请享用 it that way.
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但我很喜欢这样的生活.
06:18
But anyway无论如何, so we were in Venice威尼斯,
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这是我们在威尼斯,
06:23
and this is our room房间. And I had this dream梦想
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这是我们的房间,我有这样的一个梦想
06:25
that I was wearing穿着 this fantastic奇妙 green绿色 gown,
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我装着无比漂亮的绿色礼服,
06:27
and I was looking out the window窗口,
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我正在朝窗外看,
06:29
and it was really a beautiful美丽 thing.
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那感觉好极了.
06:31
And so, I was able能够 to put that into this story故事, which哪一个 is an alphabet字母,
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这样的故事,我才能把它放进文字中
06:34
and hopefully希望 go on to something else其他.
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继续发展其它的东西.
06:37
The letter C had other things in it.
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字母C有其它的含义.
06:39
I was fortunate幸运 also, to meet遇到 the man who's谁是 sitting坐在 on the bed,
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我很幸运,遇到一个男人坐在床上,
06:42
though虽然 I gave him hair头发 over here and he doesn't have hair头发.
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尽管我给他画了头发,实际上他是个秃子 --
06:45
Well, he has some hair头发 but -- well, he used to have hair头发.
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好吧, 他有点头发, 或者, 他过去曾有头发.
06:48
And with him, I was able能够 to do a project项目 that was really fantastic奇妙.
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跟他一起我能做一些非常有趣的项目.
06:53
I work for the New Yorker纽约客, and I do covers盖子, and 9/11 happened发生
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我为《纽约客》设计封面, 然后9/11发生了
06:58
and it was, you know, a complete完成 and utter说出 end结束 of the world世界 as we knew知道 it.
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我们都知道, 这跟世界末日一样.
07:03
And Rick干草堆 and I were on our way to a party派对 in the Bronx布朗克斯,
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Rick和我在去参加晚会,在去布朗克斯区的路上,
07:07
and somebody said BronxistanBronxistan,
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有些人说是布朗克西斯坦
07:09
and somebody said FerreristanFerreristan,
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有些人说是法瑞里斯坦
07:10
and we came来了 up with this New Yorker纽约客 cover,
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我们拿起来《纽约客》的封面,
07:13
which哪一个 we were able能够 to -- we didn't know what we were doing.
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我们不知道我们正在做的是这样,
07:15
We weren't trying to be funny滑稽, we weren't trying to be --
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我们也没刻意这样有趣, 并不是这么设计的.
07:18
well, we were trying to be funny滑稽 actually其实, that's not true真正.
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实际上我们希望设计变的有趣,这是真的.
07:20
We hoped希望 we'd星期三 be funny滑稽, but we didn't know it would be a cover,
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我们希望我们变的更有乐趣,但我们没有预料到它会成为封面,
07:23
and we didn't know that that image图片, at the moment时刻 that it happened发生,
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我们不知道那个图像,在那个时刻, 居然发生了,
07:27
would be something that would be so wonderful精彩 for a lot of people.
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成为很多人喜欢浏览的插图.
07:31
And it really became成为 the -- I don't know, you know,
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它真的变成了.... 我不知道.
07:33
it was one of those moments瞬间 people started开始 laughing at what was going on.
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从那时起, 人们开始笑正在发生的事情.
07:36
And from, you know, FattushisFattushis, to TaxistanTaxistan to, you know,
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从“肥油西斯”到“的士斯坦”,你知道的
07:41
for the FashtoonksFashtoonks, BotoxiaBotoxia, Pashmina羊绒, KhlintunisiaKhlintunisia, you know,
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还有“发酵臭桶工业废墟区”,“肉毒素西亚”,“波斯羊毛区”,“克林顿尼西亚”等纽约客斯坦的地名
07:45
we were able能够 to take the city
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我们拿这个城市
07:47
and make fun开玩笑 of this completely全然 foreign国外, who are -- what's going on over here?
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胡乱的把它变的像那些友好或不友好的其它国家 -- 这儿发生过什么事?
07:51
Who are these people? What are these tribes部落?
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谁是这些人? 谁是这些部落?
07:54
And David大卫 Remnick雷姆尼克, who was really wonderful精彩 about it,
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David Remnick, 一个真正喜欢它的人,
07:57
had one problem问题. He didn't like Al ZheimersZheimers,
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有一点反对意见: 他不喜欢阿尔•芝海默(Al Zheimer两个词每空格就是老年痴呆症的意思)
08:02
because he thought it would insult侮辱 people with Alzheimer's老年痴呆症.
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因为他认为这会侮辱老年痴呆症患者
08:05
But you know, we said, "David大卫, who's谁是 going to know?
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但我们说:"David,你想想谁会晓得呢?"
08:07
They're not."
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没人知道.
08:09
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
08:11
So it stayed in, and it was, and, you know, it was a good thing.
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所以还保留着, 这是件好事.
08:19
You know, in the course课程 of my life, I never know what's going to happen发生
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在我的生命里,我永远不知道接下来会发生什么
08:22
and that's kind of the beauty美女 part部分.
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这也是生命的美好所在.
08:24
And we were on Cape Cod鳕鱼, a place地点, obviously明显, of great inspiration灵感,
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我们在鳄鱼角,一个明显有很强的灵感的地方,
08:28
and I picked采摘的 up this book, "The Elements分子 of Style样式," at a yard sale拍卖.
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在一次二手书清仓甩卖中, 我挑选了这本书, 《风格元素》(一本知名写作参考书)
08:32
And I didn't -- and I'd never used it in school学校,
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我从来没在学校里用过它,
08:34
because I was too busy writing写作 poems, and flunking及格。 out,
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因为我一直忙于写诗和补考
08:37
and I don't know what, sitting坐在 in cafes咖啡馆.
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坐在咖啡厅.
08:39
But I picked采摘的 it up and I started开始 reading it and I thought, this book is amazing惊人.
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我开始读它,然后我发现,这本书真棒.
08:42
I said, people should know about this book.
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大家应该来读读这本书.
08:45
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
08:48
So I decided决定 it needed需要 a few少数 -- it needed需要 a lift电梯, it needed需要 a few少数 illustrations插图.
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所以我想, 如果加一些点缀, 加点少许的插画
08:51
And basically基本上, I called the, you know, I convinced相信 the White白色 Estate房地产,
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然后, 我说服了White Estate,
08:55
and what an intersection路口 of like, you know,
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然后还真是物以类聚啊
08:57
Polish抛光 Jew, you know, main主要 WASP黄蜂 family家庭. Here I am, saying,
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波兰裔犹太人, 白种盎格鲁撒克逊新教徒
09:03
I'd like to do something to this book.
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我想为这本书做点什么.
09:05
And they said yes, and they left me completely全然 alone单独,
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他们说可以, 然后他们让我完全自主发挥,
09:07
which哪一个 was a gorgeous华丽, wonderful精彩 thing.
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这简直太棒了,无敌了.
09:10
And I took the examples例子 that they gave,
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我完成了他们给我的例子
09:14
and just did 56 paintings绘画, basically基本上.
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基本上只需要画56张图.
09:16
So, this is, I don't know if you can read this.
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所以, 我不知道你能不能看到图上的字.
09:18
"Well, Susan苏珊, this is a fine mess食堂 you are in."
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"Susan, 这次你糟蹋得真棒"
09:20
And when you're dealing交易 with grammar语法,
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当你关注语法的时候,
09:22
which哪一个 is, you know, incredibly令人难以置信 dry,
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你会发现超级干涩,
09:24
E.B. White白色 wrote such这样 wonderful精彩, whimsical怪诞的 -- and actually其实, Strunk斯特伦克 --
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E.B. White写的这么优美,异想天开,
09:28
and then you come to the rules规则 and, you know,
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你会深深投入在角色里,
09:30
there are lots of grammar语法 things. "Do you mind心神 me asking a question?
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这里有很语法问题, 比如-- "Do you mind me asking a question?
09:33
Do you mind心神 my asking a question?"
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Do you mind my asking a question?"
09:36
"Would, could, should, or would, should, could."
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"Would, could, should, 还是 would, should, could."
09:38
And "would" is Coco可可 Chanel'sChanel的 lover情人, "should" is Edith伊迪丝 Sitwell希特维尔,
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would 是Coco Chanel最喜欢用的词, Should 是Edith Sitwell最爱用的词,
09:42
and "could" is an August八月 Sander桑德 subject学科.
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而Could 是August Sander的专利.
09:45
And, "He noticed注意到 a large stain弄脏 in the center中央 of the rug地毯."
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还有, "He noticed a large stain in the center of the rug."
09:47
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
09:49
So, there's a kind of British英国的 understatement轻描淡写, murder-mystery谋杀之谜 theme主题
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这样有点英国式轻描淡写,神秘谋杀案的主题
09:52
that I really love very much.
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我真的是非常喜欢.
09:54
And then, "Be obscure朦胧 clearly明确地! Be wild野生 of tongue in a way we can understand理解."
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要清楚, 要用人类能够理解的方式去表达.
09:58
E.B. White白色 wrote us a number of rules规则,
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E.B. White 给我们定了一系列规则,
10:00
which哪一个 can either paralyze瘫痪 you and make you loathe厌恶 him
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这些规则让我们呆若木鸡并且在接下来的时间里恨他,
10:02
for the rest休息 of time, or you can ignore忽视 them, which哪一个 I do,
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或者你可以像我一样忽略它,
10:07
or you can, I don't know what, you know, eat a sandwich三明治.
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或者,如果你能, 你可以选择吃一个三明志.
10:10
So, what I did when I was painting绘画 was I started开始 singing唱歌,
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我做的是我会在画画的时候唱歌,
10:13
because I really adore崇拜 singing唱歌,
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因为我真的喜欢唱歌,
10:15
and I think that music音乐 is the highest最高 form形成 of all art艺术.
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我认为音乐在是艺术的最高表达形式.
10:18
So, I commissioned委托 a wonderful精彩 composer作曲家, Nico尼科 MuhlyMuhly,
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所以我找到了优秀的作曲家, Nico Muhly,
10:21
who wrote nine songs歌曲 using运用 the text文本,
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用文字写了九首歌,
10:25
and we performed执行 this fantastic奇妙 evening晚间 of --
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并且我们用他写的歌演奏了整个美妙的夜晚--
10:29
he wrote music音乐 for both amateurs业余 and professionals专业人士.
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他的音乐真是雅俗共赏.
10:32
I played发挥 the clattering作响 teacup茶碗 and the slinky紧身
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我用杯子和衣服在纽约公共图书馆的
10:34
in the main主要 reading room房间 of the New York纽约 Public上市 Library图书馆,
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主阅览室也演奏了音乐,
10:37
where you're supposed应该 to be very, very quiet安静,
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在这个本该非常安静的图书馆,
10:39
and it was a phenomenally惊人 wonderful精彩 event事件,
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这是一场非常美妙的活动.
10:41
which哪一个 we hopefully希望 will do some more.
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我喜欢希望有更多这样的活动.
10:45
Who knows知道? The New York纽约 TimesSelect时报精选, the op-ed专栏 page,
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猜猜下面发生什么? 纽约时报的特稿专页,
10:49
asked me to do a column, and they said, you can do whatever随你 you want.
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邀请我去做一个专栏,他们说, 你想怎么做都可以.
10:52
So, once一旦 a month for the last year,
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所以,去年的一个月,
10:53
I've been doing a column called "The Principles原则 of Uncertainty不确定,"
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我都在做"不确定原则"的专栏.
10:57
which哪一个, you know, I don't know who Heisenberg海森堡 is,
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我不知道谁是海森堡.
10:59
but I know I can throw that around now. You know,
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但我知道我现在也很迷惑,
11:01
it's the principles原则 of uncertainty不确定, so, you know.
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这就是不确定原则.
11:04
I'm going to read quickly很快 -- and probably大概 I'm going to edit编辑 some,
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我会读的很快 -- 大概我会编辑一些.
11:07
because I don't have that much time left -- a few少数 of the columns.
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因为我没有太多时间了 -- 几个专栏.
11:10
And basically基本上, I was so, you know, it was so amusing有趣,
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但基本上, 我就是这样, 仍然很搞笑.
11:13
because I said, "Well, how much space空间 do I have?"
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但我说:"好吧, 我们有多大的空间?"
11:14
And they said, "Well, you know, it's the Internet互联网."
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他们说,"你知道,这是互联网."
11:16
And I said, "Yes, but how much space空间 do I have?"
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然后我说,"我知道是互联网,但是我有多大的空间呀?"
11:18
And they said, "It's unlimited无限, it's unlimited无限."
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他们接着说."网络是无限的无限的呀."
11:20
OK. So, the first one I was very timid胆小, and I'll begin开始.
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刚开始的话我非常的胆小, 但我开始了.
11:25
"How can I tell you everything that is in my heart?
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"我怎么能告诉你,所有事情都是在我心中?
11:27
Impossible不可能 to begin开始. Enough足够. No. Begin开始 with the hapless倒霉蛋 dodo渡渡鸟."
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不可能开始. 够了,我们从渡渡鸟开始."
11:30
And I talk about the dodo渡渡鸟, and how the dodo渡渡鸟 became成为 extinct绝种,
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我开始讲渡渡鸟的故事, 渡渡鸟是如何绝种的,
11:34
and then I talk about Spinoza斯宾诺莎.
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之后我又讲哲学家斯宾诺莎.
11:36
"As the last dodo渡渡鸟 was dying垂死, Spinoza斯宾诺莎 was looking for a rational合理的 explanation说明
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在最后时刻,渡渡鸟死去的时候, 斯宾诺莎正在为所有的事情寻找一个合理的解释.
11:40
for everything, called eudaemoniaeudaemonia.
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一个被称为eudemonia(亚里士多德的幸福说)的理论.
11:42
And then he breathed无声 his last, with loved喜爱 ones那些 around him,
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然后他在爱人的怀抱里吐出最后一口气.
11:45
and I know that he had chicken soup also, as his last meal膳食."
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我知道他最后一餐吃的是鸡汤.
11:47
I happen发生 to know it for a fact事实.
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我是碰巧知道这件事的.
11:49
And then he died死亡, and there was no more Spinoza斯宾诺莎. Extinct绝种.
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然后他死了, 于是就再也没有斯宾诺莎大师了, 绝种了.
11:53
And then, we don't have a stuffed填充的 Spinoza斯宾诺莎,
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然后我们就失去自大的斯宾诺莎
11:55
but we do have a stuffed填充的 Pavlov's巴甫洛夫的 dog,
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但我们却有了一只被填充了的巴普洛夫的实验狗
11:57
and I visited参观 him in the Museum博物馆 of Hygiene卫生 in St. Petersburg圣彼得堡, in Russia俄国.
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我在俄国的卫生博物馆访问他.
12:01
And there he is, with this horrible可怕 electrical电动 box on his rump臀部
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他在那, 尾巴上带着可怕的电子方盒.
12:06
in this fantastic奇妙, decrepit衰老 palace.
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在一个雄伟的,古老的宫殿里.
12:10
"And I think it must必须 have been a very, very dark黑暗 day
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"我觉得,布尔什维克到达的那天,
12:12
when the Bolsheviks布尔什维克 arrived到达.
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一定是非常黑暗的一天.
12:13
Maybe amongst其中包括 themselves他们自己 they had a few少数 good laughs,
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因为他们之间曾闹过一些大笑话.
12:15
but Stalin斯大林 was a paranoid偏执 man, even more than my father父亲."
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但斯大林就是一偏执狂, 比我父亲还偏执."
12:19
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
12:20
You don't even know.
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你都不知道.
12:21
"And decided决定 his top最佳 people had to be extinctifiedextinctified."
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"他决定他的顶尖人才必须被区别对待."
12:26
Which哪一个 I think I made制作 up, which哪一个 is a good thing.
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这个我同意,是件好事.
12:28
And so, this is a chart图表 of, you know, just a small chart图表,
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但这是只是一张图.
12:31
because the chart图表 would go on forever永远 of all the people that he killed杀害.
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因为这张图会为那些被他杀害的人们永远的保存下来,.
12:33
So, shot射击 dead, smacked轰出 over the head, you know, thrown抛出 away.
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枪杀, 爆头, 然后弃尸.
12:39
"Nabokov's纳博科夫 family家庭 fled逃离 Russia俄国. How could the young年轻 Nabokov纳博科夫,
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"纳博科夫全家逃亡俄国,
12:42
sitting坐在 innocently傻傻 and elegantly优雅 in a red chair椅子,
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年轻的纳博科夫怎么会天真文雅的坐在红沙发上,
12:44
leafing翻阅 through通过 a book and butterflies蝴蝶,
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翻着书和蝴蝶标本,
12:46
imagine想像 such这样 displacement移位, such这样 loss失利?"
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想像一下如此的逃亡,如此的丧失."
12:50
And then I want to tell you that this is a map地图.
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我要告诉你,这是一张地图.
12:52
So, "My beautiful美丽 mother's母亲 family家庭 fled逃离 Russia俄国 as well.
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我的漂亮妈妈一家也是从俄国逃亡的,
12:56
Too many许多 pogroms大屠杀.
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那里有着太多的大屠杀.
12:58
Leaving离开 the shack窝棚, the wild野生 blueberry蓝莓 woods树木, the geese, the River SluchSluch,
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离开小木屋, 蓝莓森林,天鹅和斯卢奇河,
13:01
they went to Palestine巴勒斯坦 and then America美国."
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他们逃到了巴勒斯坦,后来又到了美国."
13:04
And my mother母亲 drew德鲁 this map地图 for me of the United联合的 States状态 of America美国,
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然后我妈妈画了这张美国地图给我,
13:06
and that is my DNA脱氧核糖核酸 over here, because that person who I grew成长 up with
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这就是我的DNA, 因为陪我长大的这位母亲
13:15
had no use for facts事实 whatsoever任何.
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从来不需要任何真相.
13:17
Facts事实 were actually其实 banished放逐 from our home.
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真相就是我们是从家园被放逐.
13:20
And so, if you see that Texas德州 -- you know, Texas德州 and California加州
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你在图上,能看到得克萨斯和加利福尼亚
13:24
are under Canada加拿大, and that South Carolina卡罗来纳州 is on top最佳 of North Carolina卡罗来纳州,
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是在加拿大的下面,然后南加利福尼亚是在北加的上面,
13:27
this is the home that I grew成长 up in, OK?
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这就是我成长的家, 对吗?
13:29
So, it's a miracle奇迹 that I'm here today今天.
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所以, 我今天能站在这里,真是个奇迹.
13:31
But actually其实, it's not. It's actually其实 a wonderful精彩 thing.
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事实上,不算是奇迹,但确实是一件很发简单的事情.
13:35
But then she says Tel联系电话 Aviv特拉维夫 and Lenin列宁,
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然后她给我讲特拉维夫和列宁,
13:37
which哪一个 is the town they came来了 from, and, "Sorry, the rest休息 unknown未知, thank you."
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说他们来自于同一个镇子, 然后是抱歉, 无可奉告, 谢谢.
13:40
But in her lexicon词库, "sorry, the rest休息 unknown未知, thank you" is
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在她的字典里,抱歉无可奉告是意味着
13:42
"sorry, the rest休息 unknown未知, go to hell地狱,"
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其他的我就不知道了,下地狱吧,
13:44
because she couldn't不能 care关心 less.
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但他没办法做到无所谓.
13:45
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
13:46
"The Impossibility不可能的事 of February二月"
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二月的不可能性
13:48
is that February's二月份的 a really wretched可怜 month in New York纽约
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是二月是纽约的最难过的一个月.
13:51
and the images图片 for me conjure变戏法 up these really awful可怕 things.
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这张图片对我来说真是一件可怕的事情.
13:54
Well, not so awful可怕.
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嗯, 其实没那么可怕.
13:56
I received收到 a box in the mail邮件 and it was wrapped包裹 with newspaper报纸
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我收到了一封报纸包装的邮件.
13:59
and there was the picture图片 of the man on the newspaper报纸 and he was dead.
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报纸上有张照片, 印着一个死去的男人.
14:03
And I say, "I hope希望 he's not really dead,
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我说:"我希望他不是真的死了,
14:05
just enjoying享受 a refreshing清爽 lie-down躺下 in the snow,
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只是喜欢躺在雪地上玩,
14:07
but the caption标题 says he is dead."
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但文字解释说,他死了.""
14:09
And actually其实, he was. I think he's dead, though虽然 I don't know,
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但实际上, 我认为他死的,虽然我并不知道.
14:12
maybe he's not dead.
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也许他没有死.
14:14
"And this woman女人 leans斜靠 over in anguish痛苦, not about that man,
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"这个女人极度悲伤的靠在那里,并不是因为那个男人
14:16
but about all sad伤心 things. It happens发生 quite相当 often经常 in February二月."
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而是二月中所有悲伤的事情."
14:21
There's consoling安慰.
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这里有少许安慰.
14:23
This man is angry愤怒 because somebody threw onions洋葱 all over the staircase楼梯,
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画面上的男子很生气,因为有人把洋葱扔的满皮箱都是,
14:27
and basically基本上 -- you know, I guess猜测 onions洋葱 are a theme主题 here.
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基本上, 我猜这是以洋葱为主题的 --
14:30
And he says, "It is impossible不可能 not to lie谎言.
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他说: 不撒谎是不可能的.
14:32
It is February二月 and not lying说谎 is impossible不可能."
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现在是二月份,不可能不撒谎."
14:34
And I really spend a lot of time wondering想知道,
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我确实花很多时间去想,
14:36
how much truth真相 do we tell?
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我们到底说过多少实话?
14:38
What is it that we're actually其实 -- what story故事 are we actually其实 telling告诉?
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我们到底在讲一些什么样的故事?
14:41
How do we know when we are ourselves我们自己?
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我们怎么知道什么时候是真正的自我?
14:43
How do we actually其实 know that these sentences句子 coming未来 out of our mouths嘴巴
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我们怎么知道自己口中讲述的故事是真实的?
14:46
are real真实 stories故事, you know, are real真实 sentences句子?
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这些都是真实的吗?
14:48
Or are they fake sentences句子 that we think we ought应该 to be saying?
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或者我们只是在说我们应该说的假话?
14:51
I'm going to quickly很快 go through通过 this.
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我带着你快速过一遍这个.
14:54
A quote引用 by Bertrand贝特朗 Russell罗素,
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引用勃特兰•罗素的话,
14:56
"All the labor劳动 of all the ages年龄, all the devotion忠诚, all the inspiration灵感,
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"任何年龄的劳动者,任何忠诚,任何灵感,
15:00
all the noonday brightness亮度 of human人的 genius天才
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所有天才的正午光明
15:03
are destined注定 to extinction灭绝.
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都注定湮没.
15:05
So now, my friends朋友, if that is true真正,
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现在,朋友们呐, 如果这是真的,
15:07
and it is true真正, what is the point?"
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都是真的, 这意味着什么?"
15:10
A complicated复杂 question.
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这个问题太复杂.
15:11
And so, you know, I talk to my friends朋友
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我跟我的朋友说
15:14
and I go to plays播放 where they're singing唱歌 Russian俄语 songs歌曲.
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我要去看俄国话剧--
15:17
Oh my God, you know what?
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我的上帝呀,你猜怎么着?
15:19
Could we have -- no, we don't have time.
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我们有没有 -- 不,我们没时间.
15:21
I taped录音 my aunt姑妈. I taped录音 my aunt姑妈 singing唱歌 a song歌曲 in Russian俄语 from the --
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我录了一首我阿姨唱的俄国歌曲 --
15:23
you know, could we have it for a second第二?
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能让我们听一会吗?
15:26
Do you have that?
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(向工作人员说)可以给我们播放一下吗?
15:28
(Music音乐)
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(音乐)
15:47
OK. I taped录音 my -- my aunt姑妈 used to swim游泳 in the ocean海洋
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好了, 我的阿姨曾经坚持每天在海中游泳
15:50
every一切 day of the year until直到 she was about 85.
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直到85岁.
15:57
So -- and that's a song歌曲 about how everybody's每个人的 miserable
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这是一首关于每个人都是一场杯具的歌,
15:59
because, you know, we're from Russia俄国.
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因为,你知道,我们都来自俄国来的嘛.
16:01
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
16:02
I went to visit访问 Kitty猫咪 Carlisle卡莱尔 Hart牡鹿, and she is 96,
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我曾拜访过Carlisle Hart, 她有96岁了.
16:04
and when I brought her a copy复制 of "The Elements分子 of Style样式,"
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我带给她了一本《风格元素》
16:07
she said she would treasure宝藏 it.
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她说她会珍藏起来.
16:09
And then I said -- oh, and she was talking about Moss苔藓 Hart牡鹿, and I said,
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然后她正在讲Moss Hart的故事,
16:11
"When you met会见 him, you knew知道 it was him."
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然后我说, 你见到他时你能认出他吧,
16:13
And she said, "I knew知道 it was he."
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她说, 我知道就是他.
16:14
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
16:17
So, I was the one who should have kept不停 the book, but it was a really wonderful精彩 moment时刻.
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所以,我才是应该保存这本书的人,但这真的是不寻常的时刻.
16:20
And she dated过时的 George乔治 Gershwin格什温, so, you know, get out.
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他跟乔治•格什温曾约会过, 一起出去.
16:23
Gershwin格什温 died死亡 at the age年龄 of 38.
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格什温 在38岁的时候就去世了.
16:26
He's buried隐藏 in the same相同 cemetery公墓 as my husband丈夫.
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他跟我的丈夫埋在了同一个公墓.
16:29
I don't want to talk about that now.
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我现在不打算说这个.
16:31
I do want to talk -- the absolute绝对 icing刨冰 on this cemetery公墓 cake蛋糕
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但我想说 -- 公墓所用蛋糕的糖衣部分
16:33
is the BarriciniBarricini family家庭 mausoleum nearby附近.
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是在Barricini 家族的陵墓附近.
16:36
I think the BarriciniBarricini family家庭 should open打开 a store商店 there and sell chocolate巧克力.
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我想Barricini家族应该在那儿开家商店卖巧克力.
16:39
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
16:40
And I would like to run it for them.
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我真想替他们打理生意.
16:41
And I went to visit访问 Louise路易丝 Bourgeoise资产阶级,
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然后我去拜访了Louise Bourgeoise,
16:43
who's谁是 also still working加工, and I looked看着 at her sink水槽,
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看她的洗脸池,
16:45
which哪一个 is really amazing惊人, and left.
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真的很漂亮,
16:47
And then I photograph照片 and do a painting绘画 of a sofa沙发 on the street.
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我拍了照片并且画了街边的一个沙发.
16:50
And a woman女人 who lives生活 on our street, Lolita洛丽塔.
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在街上住的一个女人, 叫洛丽塔(Lolita).
16:53
And then I go and have some tea.
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然后我去喝了一些茶.
16:55
And then my Aunt姑妈 Frances弗朗西丝 dies, and before she died死亡,
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然后我的阿姨弗朗西斯去世了, 在去世之前
16:58
she tried试着 to pay工资 with Sweet'NSweet'N Low packets for her bagel面包圈.
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她试图用她放面包圈的小方盒子付钱.
17:01
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
17:03
And I wonder奇迹 what the point is and then I know, and I see
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我很好奇她的意义是什么, 然后我明白了.
17:05
that Hy海兰 Meyerowitz迈耶罗维茨, Rick干草堆 Meyerowitz's迈耶罗维茨的 father父亲,
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Rick Meyerowitz(Kalman的合作伙伴,上文的Rick)的父亲叫HY
17:07
a dry-cleaning干洗 supply供应 salesman推销员 from the Bronx布朗克斯,
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一个布朗克斯来的干洗店的销售员,
17:09
won韩元 the Charlie查理 Chaplin卓别林 look-alike看起来像 contest比赛 in 1931.
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赢的了1931年的一个卓别林模仿秀大奖.
17:14
That's actually其实 Hy海兰.
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那确实是HY.
17:16
And I look at a beautiful美丽 bowl of fruit水果,
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我看了一下美丽的水果盘,
17:19
and I look at a dress连衣裙 that I sewed for friends朋友 of mine.
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我看我为朋友缝制的一件衣服.
17:22
And it says, "IchICH habeHABE genuggenug," which哪一个 is a Bach过独身生活 cantata,
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上面写着, Ich habe genug 其实是一个巴赫清唱剧,
17:24
which哪一个 I once一旦 thought meant意味着 "I've had it, I can't take it anymore,
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我曾经认为不好听, 我已经听过了, 不想再听了.
17:27
give me a break打破," but I was wrong错误.
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让我歇歇吧, 但我错了.
17:30
It means手段 "I have enough足够." And that is utterly完全 true真正.
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我是说, 我已经够了 -- 是真的.
17:33
I happen发生 to be alive, end结束 of discussion讨论. Thank you.
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我居然还活着, 结束. 谢谢你们.
17:35
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
Translated by Chunlei Chang
Reviewed by Miao Li

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Maira Kalman - Illustrator, author
Maira Kalman's wise, witty drawings have appeared on numberless New Yorker covers, in a dozen children's books, and throughout the pages of the Elements of Style. Her latest book, The Principles of Uncertainty, is the result of a year-long illustrated blog she kept for the New York Times.

Why you should listen

Children know Maira Kalman for her series of Max storybooks, adults for her New Yorker covers and the gotta-have-it illustrated version of the Elements of Style -- simple proof that her sensibility blends a childlike delight with a grownup's wry take on the world.

With her husband, the legendary designer and art director Tibor Kalman, Maira spent several decades designing objets and assembling books like (un)FASHION. But after Tibor's untimely death in 1999, Maira herself became a cultural force. Her colorful, faux-naif illustrations -- and her very perspective -- tap a desire in all of us to look at the world the way she does.

Her latest book, The Principles of Uncertainty, is perhaps the most complete expression of Maira's worldview. Based on a monthly blog she kept for the New York Times website for one year, it is filled with carefully observed moments and briskly captured thoughts, an omnivore's view of life in the modern world.

More profile about the speaker
Maira Kalman | Speaker | TED.com