享受语言的魅力，追寻生命的意义-- Day 1
                    “I’m So Wonderful ... And Modest, Too!”

  “Nothingis moredeceitful than the appearance of humility (谦虚). It is often only carelessness of opinion, and sometimes an indirect boast,” said Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen’s Prideand Prejudice. It

seems that the “art” of humblebragging is taking hold in China. Over the past few months, some bloggers have been posting photos along with contrived (矫揉造作的) words to show off their wealth, ability or beauty while, at the same time, trying to give the impression that they are just ordinary folks.

The term “Versailles literature” was coined to describe this humblebragging. It stems from The

Rose of Versailles, a Japanese manga series about Marie Antoinette. The queen of France was believed to have said “let them eat cake” to the masses of starving protesters who had surrounded the Palace of Versailles asking for bread. It is a typical example of the condescending (居高临下的) attitude the rich and privileged have towards the poor and powerless. Unfortunately for Marie, that attitude ended up costing her head.

Today’s “Maries” are not so condescending, but they still want to be admired for their status or talent while downplaying (对……轻描淡写) their sense of superiority. There are examples of humblebragging which we see every day, such as the person who complains, “I’ve lost so much weight that my clothes don’t fit me anymore” or the student who regrets, “I only got 95 percent of the answers correct on my English test. Next time, I’ll work hard.” Psychologists tell us that this type of bragging is a way to hide our shame because society teaches us that we should downplay our successes. This is probably true, but with the popularity of social media today, more people feel the need to get “likes” and followers, so they end up posting things which will be able to bring them attention but, hopefully, not criticism.

Unfortunately, this strategy does not work very well for most of us, as humblebraggers tend to be seen as hypocritical (虚伪的) and insincere. The wiser thing to do, perhaps, is simply be honest about your achievements, because as an old teacher of mine used to say, “Flaunt (炫耀) it if you’ve got it.”