Narrator：Listen to a conversation between a student and a professor.

旁白：听一段学生和教授的对话

MALE STUDENT: So the reason I came in, Professor Williams, it's about what you are explaining in your philosophy class today.

学生：教授，我来是想问一下您今天在哲学课上讲的内容。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: Yes.

教授：好的。

MALE STUDENT: The whole thing about simulations, would you mind going over that with me again?

学生：关于模拟理论的部分，您能再给我解释一遍吗？

FEMALE PROFESSOR: No problem. The main point of the book I was referring to is that well, in a post-modern world, we live in a world of unreal images of simulations.

教授：没问题。我提到的那本书的主要观点是在后现代世界中，我们生活在一个由不真实的图像和模拟构成的世界里。

For example, the things we see on TV become a reality for us, even though they're not in fact real. They’re representations, simulations of reality.

教授：例如，我们在电视上看到的东西对我们来说成为了现实，尽管它们实际上并不真实。它们是现实的代表，是模拟。

MALE STUDENT: Post-modern world?

学生：后现代？

FEMALE PROFESSOR: Right. It came after the modern one.

教授：对，就是紧随现代之后的那个时期。

MALE STUDENT: Geez. Thanks a lot.

学生：非常感谢。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: No, sorry, you're right. Post-modern, well,that's a sticky term that covers a lot of things. Let's save that for later. But back to my point about simulation, it leads to hyperrealism, a feeling that something is more real than real.

教授：不，抱歉，你说得对。后现代这个词涵盖了太多内容，我们留待以后再讨论。但回到我关于模拟的观点，它会导致超现实主义，一种比真实还真实的感觉。

MALE STUDENT: Wow, I'm sorry, but all this is… I just don't get it.

学生：哇，对不起，但我真的……我就是不明白。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: Video games, virtual reality, theme parks? All of these remove us from reality.

教授：视频游戏、虚拟现实、主题公园？这些都让我们远离现实。

Worse yet, we can begin to think these simulations, these fake experiences are real. Or we don't know the difference anymore.

教授：更糟糕的是，我们开始认为这些模拟，这些虚假的经历是真实的。或者我们不再知道其中的区别。

MALE STUDENT: Well, actually, I'm starting to think this class is not for me. In fact, I wonder if I might not… do better just to drop the course.

学生：实际上，我开始觉得这门课可能不太适合我。事实上，我在考虑是否应该退掉这门课程。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: You're still having trouble following this.

教授：你还是很难理解这些内容。

MALE STUDENT: I just don't think I'm cut out for philosophy. I signed up because my academic adviser, well, I feel like my advisor sort of pushed me into it.

学生：我不认为自己适合学哲学。我选这门课是因为我的学术顾问，嗯，我觉得我的顾问有点逼我选的。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: I see. If I may ask, what are you interested in?

教授：我明白了。如果可以的话，我想问一下你感兴趣的是什么？

MALE STUDENT: I wanna be a lawyer.

学生：我想成为一名律师。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: Well, then, you need a firm base in logic and argumentation, so this philosophy course is basically a necessity for you.

教授：那么你需要在逻辑和辩论方面打下坚实的基础，所以这门哲学课程对你来说基本上是必需的。

MALE STUDENT: I hope not. I could only get maybe half the lecture.

学生：我希望不是这样。我可能只能理解一半的课程内容。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: That's pretty good then. I covered a lot, probably too much. And these were only some opening remarks for the first day of class.

教授：那已经很不错了。我讲了很多，可能太多了。这只是开学第一天的部分开场白。

I was just skimming through some contemporary ideas, in more cultural theory than actual philosophy, so you needn't worry.

教授：我只是浏览了一些当代思想，更多的是文化理论而不是真正的哲学，所以你不需要担心。

Starting next week, we're going to read some real philosophy, primary sources like Plato, Rousseau, Emerson, and you'll be able to talk about them in small discussion groups led by graduate assistants.

教授：从下周开始，我们将阅读一些真正的哲学作品，如柏拉图、卢梭、爱默生等人的原著，你可以在研究生助教带领的小组讨论中讨论它们。

MALE STUDENT: Well, I don't know.

学生：我不确定。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: I understand you're uneasy about this course. But,well, give it another chance. Attend a few more sessions, get into your signed discussion group, then see how you feel.

教授：我明白你对这门课程感到不安。好吧，再给它一个机会。参加几次更多的课程，加入你的小组讨论，然后再看看感觉如何。

Look, these ideas like what post-modernism really is, they are ideas that people develop over years, careers, lifetimes. I didn't mean to scare you.

教授：看，像什么是真正的后现代主义这样的想法，都是人们经过多年、职业生涯甚至一生发展出来的。我无意吓唬你。

MALE STUDENT: I guess I should have just taken it in the spirit that it’s intended as an intro.

学生：我想我应该以一种介绍性课程的精神来接受它。

You are right that instead of trying to wrap my mind around every little detail all at once, I need to work on… seeing the bigger picture and not getting so stressed out.

学生：您说得对，与其试图一下子理解每一个细节，我需要做的是着眼于大局，不要给自己太大压力。

FEMALE PROFESSOR: Don't think you're going to learn all of law right away either. Have you looked at the law library lately?

教授：也不要指望一下子就能学到所有的法律知识。你最近有去看过法律图书馆吗？

MALE STUDENT: Yeah, talk about scary.

学生：是啊，那才叫吓人呢。