Well, the main thing is to teach people how to make a living.

恩，最主要的目的在於教導人們如何謀生

Educating the young to be engineers, biochemists or economists.

教育年輕人成為工程師，生物化學家，或是經濟學家

But there is another, stranger, bigger ambition, lurking away there somewhere in the background.

但還有一個更奇怪、更遠大的目的潛藏其後

And it sometimes comes out during Commencement addresses, or

而這個目的常常在畢業演講內容中

at the lyrical moments of graduation ceremonies.

或是畢業典禮中的動人時刻出現

And that's the idea,

而這個目的是

that universities might teach us how to live.

大學可能教我們如何生活

That is, that these might be places to go and study in order to work out what really matters

也就是，大學是讓我們摸索真正重要的問題的地方

Who we are, where our societies should be headed, and how we can be happier and more fulfilled

我們是誰？我們的社會該被帶領往何處？我們要如何更快樂、實現自我？

Not coincidentally, a great many universities were founded in the mid 19th century.

絕非偶然地，許多有名的大學都是在十九世紀創立的

At exactly the time

正是

when belief in religion was undergoing a severe, and in the eyes of many, alarming decline.

人們對宗教的信仰正歷經嚴重下滑的時期，對許多人來說，也是令人擔憂的時期

At that time, a lot of questions were asked

當時，人們提出許多關於

about where people were going to go and find meaning, consolation, wisdom and a sense of community

人們將要前往何處，並尋找人生的意義、安慰、智慧、及歸屬感的問題

All the things they once found in a church.

一切他們曾經在教堂裡找到答案的問題

And to certain educationalists there was one answer above all others.

而對某些教育家，有一個重要於一切的答案

What people had once found in churches, they would now be able to discover in things like

曾經能夠以宗教解答的問題，在當代能夠在

the dialogues of Plato, the plays of Shakespeare, the novels of Jane Austen,

柏拉圖的對話、莎士比亞的戲劇、珍．奧斯丁的小說

The paintings of Botticelli or Titian.

以及波堤切利或提香的畫中找到答案

In other words, in a secularizing age, culture would replace Scripture.

也就是說，在一個世俗化的時代，文化取代了聖經的地位

That's a beautiful, moving idea.

那是個美麗而動人的理念

And it's been responsible, for the construction of so many universities,

也是促使許多大學設立

as well as museums, concert halls and libraries.

以及博物館、音樂廳、博物館成立的原因

But there is a problem.

但有一個問題

Picture up at any actual university, more or less anywhere in the world,

在世界各地的大學中出現

and start asking big questions, like,

而且一些關於人生的大問題陸續被提出，比如

where should I go with my life? Where is meaning to be found?

我的人生方向在哪裡？我們可以在哪裡找到人生的意義？

How can we change things in this troubled world?

我們要如何改變這個充滿問題的世界？

And the stunned teaching staff will either call for the police or an insane asylum.

而被嚇到的教學人員不是呼叫警察，就是將他們送到精神病院

It's just not what you're allowed to ask.

反正這些不是你可以問的問題

The really big questions, and inner dramas that people used to take to religion

一些人們曾經在宗教裡找到答案的人生難題及內心的迷惘

seem strangely out of place in the average university setting.

看似和一般大學的教育目的格格不入

Where the mood is far cooler, more abstract and oddly removed from anything too practical or urgent.

大學應該是討論更加冷靜科學、更抽象、遠離太世俗或太急切應用的一些議題

Big questions that many students in the humanities have, like

學生們在人文方面所提出的問題，像是

how can I learn about relationships? What should I do with my life?

我如何學習人與人的相處關係？我如何過生活？

How can I reconcile my demand for money with my requirement for meaning?

我如何在麵包與理想之中取捨？

How does power work out there in the world?

世界上各種權力之間如何斡旋？

Such questions aren't necessarily very well addressed or answered.

這些問題並沒有被好好地提出及解答

Currently, universities have departments named after big academic disciplines, like

最近，大學中出現了教授領域十分龐大的科系

history, or literature, or philosophy.

像是歷史、文學，或是哲學

But such titles really just reflect pretty arcane priorities

而這些名稱代表了神祕難解的領域

rather than accurately picking up on issues that actually trouble people in their lives.

而非一些具體的困擾人們生活的事務

In the ideal university of the future, that original dream, that culture could replace Scripture,

在未來的大理想規劃中，人們的想法、文化將取代聖經

would be taking so seriously that departments would be reorganized

而人們將會認真看待這件事並因此重新組織各個科系

to reflect the actual priorities of our lives.

去反映人們生活中的真正重要的需求

So, for example, there might be a department for relationships, and another for death.

所以，舉例來說，可能會出現人際關係科系，和討論死亡的科系

A center for anxiety and an academy for career self-knowledge.

焦慮研究中心，和職涯自我認識研究學會

You wouldn't study 18th century history or the picaresque novel.

你不用研讀十八世紀歷史或傳奇小說

You'd study how to be less anxious, or how to be more compassionate.

而是研究如何減緩焦慮，或是更有同情心

Complaining about how many universities are today

抱怨現今大學的狀況

isn't a way of giving up on them, it's an attempt to get them to live up to their original promise,

並不是放棄大學的可能性，而是嘗試要讓他們回歸他們最原始的本質

which is, in a busy world, where most of us are just scrabbling around full-time trying to make a living,

在繁忙的世界，大部分的人們只是成天庸庸碌碌以求溫飽

to act as centers which can generate those ideas that we'll truly help us to live and to die well.

而這個本質則是扮演著真正幫助我們如何好好生活及死去的重要核心