The Two Drives in Man
佚名 / Anonymous
Man is, at one and the same time, a solitary being and a social being. As a solitary being, he attempts to protect his own existence and that of those who are closest to him, to satisfy his personal desires, and to develop his innate abilities. As a social being, he seeks to gain the recognition and affection of his fellow human beings, to share in their pleasures, to comfort them in their sorrows, and to improve their conditions of life. Only the existence of these varied, frequently conflicting, strivings accounts for the special character of a man, and their specific combination determines the extent to which an individual can achieve an inner balance and can contribute to the well-being of society.
It is quite possible that the relative strength of these two drives is, in the main, fixed by inheritance. But the personality that finally emerges is largely formed by the environment in which a man happens to find himself during his development, by the structure of the society in which he grows up, by the tradition of that society, and by its evaluation of particular types of behavior. The abstract concept “society” means to the individual human being the sum total of his direct and indirect relations to his contemporaries and to all the people of earlier generations. The individual is able to think, feel, strive, and work by himself; but he depends so much upon society — in his physical, intellectual, and emotional existence — that it is impossible to think of him, or to understand him, outside the framework of society. It is “society” which provides man with food, clothing, home, the tools of work, language, the forms of thought, and most of the content of thought; his life is made possible through the labor and accomplishments of the many millions past and present who are all hidden behind the small word “society”.
人类既具有独立性，又具有群居性。作为一个独立的个体，他试图保护自己以及身边最亲近的人的生活，同时满足自己个人的愿望，发展自身的内在潜能；作为群居者，他试图获得其他人的认同和友爱，希望他们分享自己的快乐，安慰他们受伤的心灵，同时改善他们的生活条件。一个人的个性正是在这些复杂多变、冲突频繁的抗争中显现出来的。两者的特定结合决定了一个人维持内心平衡的程度，以及他对社会作出贡献的大小。
遗传很可能是决定这两种驱动力相对强度的最主要因素。一个人最终的个性，大部分取决于他在自我发展期间所处的环境，他成长时的社会结构、所在社会的传统，以及社会对于某种特定行为的评价。对于个人来说，“社会”这个抽象的概念，意味着他与当代人和所有上代人之间直接或间接关系的总和。个体都能独立思考、感受、奋斗和工作，但是，他对社会的依赖性也非常强——在他的身体、思想和情感方面——如果他脱离了社会的结构，就不可能对自身有所思考或者了解。“社会”为人类提供了食物、衣服、家、劳动工具、语言、思维模式和大部分思考内容。正是小小的“社会”二字背后，所隐藏的过去和现在成千上万人的劳动成就，才使人的生活成为可能。
1. As a social _________ , he seeks to gain the recognition and affection of his fellow _________beings, to share in their pleasures, to comfort them in their_________ , and to improve their conditions of life.
2. But the personality that _________emerges is largely formed by the environment ______ which a man happens to find himself_________his development, by the structure of the_________in which he grows up, by the tradition of that society, and by its evaluation of particular _________of behavior.
1. 人类既具有独立性，又具有群居性。
2. 对于个人来说，“社会”这个抽象的概念，意味着他与当代人和所有上代人之间直接或间接关系的总和。
3. 正是小小的“社会”二字背后，所隐藏的过去和现在成千上万人的劳动成就，才使人的生活成为可能。
1. It is quite possible that the relative strength of these two drives is, in the main, fixed by inheritance.
it is possible that...：有可能
2. ...but he depends so much upon society—in his physical, intellectual, and emotional existence—that it is impossible to think of him, or to understand him, outside the framework of society.
depend upon：依赖；靠；取决于；依赖于
