The Political Problem-1
Observe here the passing reference to the control of population (by infanticide, presumably), to vegetarianism, and to a "return to nature," to the primitive simplicity which Hebrew legend pictures in the Garden of Eden.
Observe，恪守
infanticide，杀婴儿
vegatarianism，素食主义者
primitive，原始的
hebrew，希伯来
Garden of Eden，伊甸园
The whole has the sound of Diogenes the "Cynic," who, as the epithet implied, thought we should "turn and live with the animals, they are so placid and self-contained"; and for a moment we are likely to classify Plato with St. Simon and Fourier and William Morris and Tolstoi.
Cynic，犬儒派
epithet，修饰语
placid，平静的
But he is a little more sceptical than these men of kindly faith; he passes quietly on to the question,
Why is it that such a simple paradise as he has described never comes?
-why is it that these Utopias never arrive upon the map?
He answers, because of greed and luxury.
Men are not content with a simple life: they are acquisitive, ambitious, competitive, and jealous; they soon tire of what they have, and pine for what they have not; and they seldom desire anything unless it belongs to others.
acquisitive，贪得的
pine，渴望
The result is the encroachment of one group upon the territory of another, the rivalry of groups for the resources of the soil, and then war.
encroachment，侵蚀
[ 00’32” ] observe (恪守)
[ 00’51” ] infanticide (杀婴，杀婴者)
[ 01’57” ] vegetarianism (素食主义者)
[ 02’23” ] Hebrew (希伯来人是犹太人的祖先。他们最早的神话和传说保留在《旧约全书》中，包括《创世记》头11章记载的创造天、地、人和伊甸乐园等神话。)
[ 03’04” ] Diogenes (第欧根尼，约公元前 412 ― 前 324 ，最著名的犬儒主义者。他追求“德行”，认为和德行比较起来，俗世的财富是无足计较的。)
[ 04’56” ] epithet (修饰语)
[ 05’26” ] St. Simon (圣西蒙， 1675 ― 1755 年，法国的政治家，作家，著有长篇《回忆录》，尽管他将路易十四描绘成一个一无是处之人，路易十四还是十分欣赏他。)
[ 05’54” ] Fourier (约瑟夫·傅里叶， 1768 ― 1830 年，法国数学家、物理学家。)
[ 06’22” ] William Morris (威廉·莫里斯， 1834 ― 1896 年，英国维多利亚时代的设计师，工匠。)
[ 07’00” ] Tolstoi (列夫·托尔斯泰， 1828 ― 1910 年，俄国批判现实主义作家、思想家，哲学家。)
[ 07’13” ] sceptical (怀疑的；怀疑论的，美式英语：skeptical)
[ 07’21” ] faith (信仰)
[ 08’53” ] acquisitive (贪得的，有占有心的。)
[ 09’49” ] tire of (厌倦)
[ 09’55” ] pine for (渴望)
[ 10’30” ] encroachment (侵蚀)
[ 10’43” ] rivalry (competition，竞争，对立)
