2024年3月18日发(作者：)

Unit One

And if you change your mind—from pessimism to optimism—you can

change your life

如果你改变想法——从悲观变为乐观——你就可以改变自己的生活

You Are What You Think

你认为自己是什么样的人，那你就是什么样的人

Claipe Safran

卡勒普·撒弗兰

[ 1 ] Do you see the glass as half full rather than half empty? Do you keep your eye

upon the doughnut, not upon the hole? Suddenly these clichés are scientific

questions, as researchers scrutinize the power of positive thinking.

[1] 你看酒杯是半杯有酒而不是半杯空着的吗？你的眼睛是盯着炸面圈，而不是它中间的孔

吗? 当研究者们仔细观察积极思维的作用时，这些陈词滥调突然间都成了科学问题。

[ 2 ] A fast-growing body of research—104 studies so far, involving some 15 000

people—is proving that optimism can help you to be happier, healthier and more

successful. Pessimism leads, by contrast, to hopelessness, sickness and failure, and is

linked to depression, loneliness and painful shyness. "If we could teach people to

think more positively," says psychologist Craig A. Anderson of Rice University in

Houston，"it would be like inoculating them against these mental ills."

[2] 迅速增多的大量研究工作——迄今已有104 个研究项目，涉及大约15 000人——证明乐

观的态度可以使你更快乐、更健康、更成功。与此相反，悲观则导致无望、疾病以及失败，

它与沮丧、孤独、令人苦恼的腼腆密切相关。休斯敦莱斯大学的心理学家克雷格·A· 安德

森说：“如果我们能够教会人们更积极地思考，那就如同为他们注射了预防这些心理疾病的

疫苗。”

[ 3 ] "Your abilities count," explains psychologist Michael F. Scheier of Carnegie

Mellon University in Pittsburgh, "but the belief that you can succeed affects whether

or not you will." In part , that's because optimists and pessimists deal with the same

challenges and disappointments in very different ways.

[3] “你的能力固然重要,”匹兹堡卡内基–梅隆大学的心理学家迈克尔·F·沙伊尔说，“但

你成功的信念影响到你是否真能成功。”在某种程度上，这是由于乐观者和悲观者以截然不

同的方式对待同样的挑战和失望。

[ 4 ] Take, for example, your job. In a major study, psychologist Martin E. P.

Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania and colleague Peter Schulman surveyed

sales representatives at the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. They found that the

positive-thinkers among longtime representatives sold 37-percent more insurance

than did the negative-thinkers. Of newly hired representatives, optimists sold

20-percent more.

[4] 以你的工作为例。宾夕法尼亚大学的心理学家马丁·E·P· 塞利格曼与同事彼得· 舒

尔曼在一项重要研究中对大都会人寿保险公司的推销员进行了调查。他们发现，在工龄较长

的推销员中，积极思考者比消极思考者要多推销37% 的保险额。在新雇用的推销员中，乐观

主义者则多销了20%。

[ 5 ] Impressed, the company hired 100 people who had failed the standard

industry test but had scored high on optimism. These people, who might never

have been hired, sold 10 percent more insurance than did the average

representative.

[5] 公司受到了触动，便雇用了100 名虽未通过标准化行业测试但在态度乐观一项得分很高

的人。这些本来可能根本不会被雇用的人售出的保险额高出一般的推销员10%。

[ 6 ] How did they do it? The secret to an optimist's success, according to Seligman,

is in his "explanatory style". When things go wrong the pessimist tends to blame

himself. "I'm no good at this, " he says, "I always fail." The optimist looks for

loopholes. He blames the weather, the phone connection, even the other person.

That customer was in a bad mood, he thinks. When things go right, the optimist takes

credit while the pessimist sees success as a fluke.

[6] 他们是如何做到的呢？据塞利格曼说，乐观主义者成功的秘诀就在于他的“解释方式”。

出了问题之后，悲观主义者倾向于自责。他说：“我不善于做这种事，我总是失败。”乐观

主义者则寻找漏洞，他责怪天气，抱怨电话线路，甚至怪罪别人。他认为，是那个客户当时

情绪不好。当一切顺利时，乐观主义者居功自傲而悲观主义者只把成功视为侥幸。

[ 7 ] Craig Anderson had a group of students phone strangers and ask them to

donate blood to the Red Cross . When they failed on the first call or two, pessimists

said, "I can't do this." Optimists told themselves, "I need to try a different approach."

[7] 克雷格·安德森让一组学生给陌生人打电话，请他们为红十字会献血。当他们的第一、

二个电话未能得到对方同意时，悲观者说：“我干不了这事。”乐观主义者则对自己说：“我

需要试试另一种方法。”

[ 8 ] Negative or positive, it was a self-fulfilling prophecy. "If people feel hopeless,

"says Anderson, "they don't bother to acquire the skills they need to succeed."

[8] 无论是消极还是积极，都是一种本身会成为事实的预言。安德森说：“如果人们感到没

有希望，他们就不会费事去获得成功所需的技能。”

[9] A sense of control, according to Anderson, is the litmus test for success. The

optimist feels in control of his own life. If things are going badly, he acts quickly,

looking for solutions, forming a new plan of action, and reaching out for advice. The

pessimist feels like fate's plaything and moves slowly. He doesn't seek advice, since

he assumes nothing can be done.

[9] 据安德森看来，有无控制感是成功的试金石。乐观者能够掌握自己的命运。如果事情不

顺利，他立刻做出反应，寻找解决办法，制定新的行动计划，并且主动寻求指点。悲观者则

感到自己只能由命运摆布，行动拖拉。既然认为毫无办法，他便不去寻求指点。

[ 10 ] Optimists may think they are better than the facts would justify—and

sometimes that's what keeps them alive. Dr. Sandra Levy of the Pittsburgh Cancer

Institute studied women with advanced breast cancer. For the women who were

generally optimistic, there was a longer disease-free interval, the best predictor of

survival. In a pilot study of women in the early stages of breast cancer, Dr. Levy found

the disease recurred sooner among the pessimists.

[10] 乐观主义者也许认为自己比事实能够证明的要强——有时正是这一点使他们充满生

机。匹兹堡肿瘤研究所的桑德拉·利维博士对患晚期乳腺癌的妇女进行了研究。对那些通常

持乐观态度的妇女来说，两次发病间隔的时间比较长，而这是生存下去的最好预兆。在一次

对早期乳腺癌妇女的初步研究中，利维博士发现这一疾病在悲观病人身上复发更早。

[ 11 ] Optimism won't cure the incurable, but it may prevent illness. In a long term

study, researchers examined the health histories of a group of Harvard graduates, all

of whom were in the top half of their class and in fine physical condition. Yet some

were positive thinkers, and some negative. Twenty years later, there were more

middle-age diseases—hypertension, diabetes, heart ailments —among the

pessimists than the optimists.

[11] 乐观态度不会使不治之症痊愈，却有可能预防疾病。在一项长期研究中，研究人员跟

踪观察了一组哈佛大学毕业生的健康史。所有这些人都是班上的好学生，并且健康状况良好。

他们之中有的是积极思考者，有的是消极思考者。20年后，悲观者中患有中年常见病——高

血压、糖尿病、心脏病——的人数要比乐观者多。

[ 12 ] Many studies suggest that the pessimist's feeling of helplessness undermines

the body's natural defenses, the immune system. Dr. Christopher Peterson of the

University of Michigan has found that the pessimist doesn't take good care of himself.

Feeling passive and unable to dodge life's blows, he expects ill health and other

misfortunes, no matter what he does. He munches on junk food，avoids exercise,

ignores the doctor, has another drink.

[12] 许多研究显示，悲观者的无助感会损害人体的自然防御体系，即免疫系统。密执安大

学的克里斯托弗· 彼德森博士发现悲观主义者不能很好地照顾自己。他消极被动，无法避

开生活中的打击，无论做什么都会担心身体不好或其他灾难将临。他大嚼不利于健康的垃圾

食品，逃避体育锻炼，不听医生的劝告，还总是要再贪一杯。

[ 13 ] Most people are a mix of optimism and pessimism, but are inclined in one

direction or the other. It is a pattern of thinking learned “at your mother‘s knee”，

says Seligman. It grows out of thousands of cautions or encouragements, negative

statements or positive ones. Too many “don’ts” and warnings of danger can make

a child feel incompetent, fearful—and pessimistic.

[13] 在多数人身上，乐观主义和悲观主义兼而有之，但总是更倾向于其中之一。塞利格曼

说，这是一种早在“ 母亲膝下” 就开始形成的思维模式，来自千万次警告或鼓励，消极的

或积极的话语。过多的“ 不许” 及危险警告会使一个孩子感到无能、恐惧以及悲观。

[ 14 ] As they grow, children experience small triumphs, such as learning to tie

shoelaces﹡. Parents can help turn these successes into a sense of control, and that

breeds optimism.

[14] 随着年龄的增长，儿童能体会到许多小小的成就感，如学会系鞋带等。家长可以促使

这类成功转变为控制感，从而培养出乐观主义。

[ 15 ] Pessimism is a hard habit to break—but it can be done. In a series of

landmark studies, Dr. Carol Dweck of the University of Illinois has been working with

children in the early grades of school. As she helps floundering students to change

the explanations for their failures—from "I must be dumb" to "I didn't study hard

enough“—their academic performance improves.

[15] 悲观是一种很难克服的习惯，但并非不能克服。在一系列具有重大突破的研究中，伊

利诺伊大学的卡罗尔· 德韦克博士对小学低年级儿童做了一些工作。她帮助那些屡屡出错

的学生改变对失败原因的解释——从“ 我准是很笨”变成“ 我学习还不够努力”——因

此他们的学习成绩提高了。

[ 16 ] Pittsburgh's Dr. Levy wondered if turning patients into optimists would

lengthen their lives. In a pilot study, two groups of colon-cancer patients were given

the same medical treatment, but some were also given psychological help to

encourage optimism. Results showed that this worked. Now a major study is planned

to determine whether this psychological change can alter the course of the disease.

[16] 匹兹堡的利维博士想知道把病人变成乐观主义者是否会延长他们的生命。在一次试验

性研究中，两组结肠癌病人受到同样方式的治疗，但其中一些人还得到了鼓励乐观态度的心

理帮助。试验结果表明这一做法有一定的效果。现在已在计划实施一项重大研究，以确定这

一心理变化是否会改变病情的发展。

[ 17 ] So, if you're a pessimist, there's reason for optimism. You can change. Here's

how, says Steve Hollon, a psychologist at Vanderbilt University:

[17] 因此，如果你是个悲观主义者，你完全有理由乐观起来。你能改变自己。以下就是范

德比尔特大学的心理学家史蒂夫· 霍朗指出的方法：

[ 18 ] 1. Pay careful attention to your thoughts when bad things happen. Write

down the first thing that comes to mind, unedited and uncensored.

[18] 一、当坏事发生时，仔细留意自己的想法，把你最初的想法原原本本地记下来，一字

不改。

[ 19 ] 2. Now try an experiment. Do something that's contrary to any negative

reactions. Let's say something has gone wrong at work. Do you think, I hate my job,

but I could never get a better one? Act as if that weren't so. Send out resumés. Go to

interviews. Look into training and check job leads.

[19] 二、然后，来做一个试验。做一件同任何消极反应相反的事。比如说，你工作中出了

问题。你是这么想的吗：我讨厌我的工作，可我再也不会找到比这更好的工作了? 这时你应

该采取行动，就像完全不是这么回事一样：向外寄发个人简历、去参加面试、看看有没有培

训项目并寻找工作门路。

[ 20 ] 3. Keep track of what happens. Were your first thoughts right or wrong? "If

your thoughts are holding you back, change them," says Hollon. "It's trial and error,

no guarantees, but give yourself a chance."

[20] 三、继续关注事情的发展。你最初的想法是对还是错? 霍朗说：“ 如果你的想法使你

裹足不前，那就改变这些想法。这是一种试错法，不能确保成功，但应给你自己一个机会。”

[ 21 ] Positive thinking leads to positive action, and reaction. What you expect from

the world, the evidence suggests, is what you're likely to get.

[21] 积极的思维导致积极的行动以及积极的反应。有证据表明，你对世界抱有什么样的希

望，你就很可能得到什么样的结果。

Key to the Exercises

Exercise A

Ⅰ. Comprehension

A. 1. A 2. B 3. B 4. D 5. D 6. C 7. B 8. B 9. A 10. D

B. 1. The writer begins the article with well-known clichés, without which

the beginning would sound much more technical; it would not have such immediate

appeal to the intended general audience.

2. The writer seems to be talking to you individually by addressing the readers in

second person; using the language everyone can understand, he introduces psychology

to the general readers.

3. Use of expert opinion to support the argument by citing direct quotes

from authorities in the field (psychologists); well-chosen examples.

4. The last paragraph summarizes the main idea of the article by rewording the title

(and subtitle), thus reinforcing the argument; the parenthesis (as the evidence

suggests) indicates it is a conclusion drawn from the examples above; its style and

tone well matches those of the entire article.

Ⅱ. Vocabulary

A. 1. C 2. B 3. D 4. A 5. C 6. A 7. A 8. B 9. D 10. C

B. 11. D 12. D 13. C 14. A 15. B 16. D 17. A 18. B 19. C 20. C

Ⅲ. Cloze

1. B 2. A 3. C 4. C 5. A 6. D 7. C 8. A 9. D 10. D 11. D 12. A 13. B 14. B 15. B

Ⅳ. Translation

A. 有没有一种 “成功性格”，即几乎必然使人取得成就的某些性格特征的结合？如果有

的话，这一成功的秘诀究竟是什么？并且，这种性格是否能培养出来？

在盖洛普公司中，我们最近集中深入研究了成功现象，探查了1 500 名杰出人物的态度

和性格特征。他们是从《美国名人录》中随机抽取的。被收入《名人录》的主要标准不是财

富或社会地位，而是一个人当前在某个领域中的成就。我们的研究确认了一些在成就最显著

的人身上总是出现的性格特征，其中最重要的五点是：由生活经验得出的判断力、专业知识、

自力更生的精神、总的智力水平以及把事情完成的能力。如果你培养这些性格特征，你就很

可能会成功。而且，你甚至可能会发现自己的名字有一天也被收进《名人录》。

B. 1. What you said to him can hardly justify such conduct of yours.

2. Do you think he would be immune from religious persecution by reason of his

personal relation with the Bishop?

3. Your attitude towards the advice of the psychiatrist will affect whether

or not your bad dream recurs.

4. The secret to the success of optimists is that they deal with disappointments

and failures in a positive way.

5. The reason that a pessimist tends to fail is, in part, that a person’s

opinion about himself is often a self-fulfilling prophecy.

6. In very young children, before traits have had much chance to develop,

behaviour is less consistent than it is in most adults. A child’s changing behaviour

may show his changing concern with different features of his activity. His interest

always focuses on the business at hand. The person with strong traits and interests

persists in what he is doing. Only a major situational change can disturb the

direction or purpose of his behaviour.

Ⅴ. Writing

Suggested passage:

The proverb “Habit is second nature” is so often quoted that it has

almost become a cliché, yet we all know how true it is. A habit is a form of

learned, automatic behaviour that provides pleasure and comfort. A bad

habit has long-term negative consequences, but it still gives immediate

comfort. Once formed, it seems to stick to you, no matter how hard you

try to shake it off. For example, we have all heard of stories of determined

individuals trying to give up smoking, but after strenuously resisting all

temptations for months, only to find themselves reverting to cigarettes

again on the threshold of success.

So swearing off a bad habit is only half the battle; staying off requires

good planning. To permanently rid yourself of a bad habit, whether it is

smoking, drinking, gambling or overeating, you have to simultaneously

unlearn certain behaviours and replace them with new ones that also

provide gratification. If you smoke because cigarettes give you something

to do with your hands, learn to play a music instrument instead. With

a strong will-power and good strategy, you can surely break any bad

habit.

Exercise B

Ⅰ

. 1. fore 2. fasteners 3. Elderly 4. poster 5. fable 6. Guy 7. hoses 8. elevation

9. Historic 10. efficiency 11. effectiveness 12. Imaginative 13. grocery, grocery

14. relativity 15. historical

Ⅱ

. 1. call 2. belongs to 3. exemplified (exemplifies) 4. freshened (freshen) up

5. were carried off 6. burned up 7. be carried through 8. to quit 9. fled 10. change,

accommodate 11. gazing at 12. was (will be, has been) brought into 13. to escape,

was frustrated 14. will prosecute (prosecuted), polluting 15. integrated, to

facilitate

Ⅲ

. 1. (discontent) with 2. (detached) from 3. (hesitate) about 4. (deviation) from

5. (exposure) to 6. before, (putting) to 7. (fantasies) about 8. (full) of, of

9. (hostility) towards, by 10. in (gratitude) for 11. Without, (pretensions) to 12.

(hiked out) to 13. with (exclamation) at 14. (proportional) to 15. without

(discrimination) as to

Exercise C

Ⅰ

. 1. A 2. B 3. C 4. B 5. in/into

6. For example: inactive, inadequate, incapable, invisible, insane, insincere,

inconvenient.

7. Yes. Showing or suggesting.

8. No; it is derived from Latin color.

9. For example: co-worker, co-authors, copilot.

Ⅱ

. 1. B 2. C 3. D 4. E 5. A 6. J 7. H 8. I 9. F 10. G

►Supplementary Reading

Ⅰ.

1. B 2. A 3. C 4. C 5. A

6. B 7. D 8. A 9. D 10. D

Ⅱ.

1. 如果这些想法意味着黑暗和毁灭，那你就会走进黑暗和被毁灭，因为贬

低的话语会摧毁你的信心，而不会鼓励你、支持你。

2. 苏的理疗医生在初诊时告诉她，草草记录下她的思想活动，特别是夜里

她不能入睡时的思想情况。

3. 温森特和他的父亲感情很好，但父亲很溺爱他，灌输他满脑子的烦心事。

4. 如果你害怕坐飞机，那么在飞机起飞或降落时，你就聚精会神地观看机

场附近的灯光和道路吧。

5. 应该养成一个习惯，即记住自己最美好的时刻，也就是记住你想做的那

种人。