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The oldest philosophical problem, we have noted, is the relationship between the one and the many. Surely the basic conflict of our times is precisely the conflict between those who would reduce the world to one and those who see the world as many-between those who believe that the world is evolving in a single direction, along a single predestined line, toward a single predestined conclusion, and those who think that humanity in the future, as in the pask will continue to evolve in diverse directions, toward diverse conclusions according to the diverse traditions, values, and purposes of diverse peoples. It is a choice, in short, between dogmatism and pragmatism, between the theological society and the experimental society.
我们曾经提到过，最古老的问题是“一”与“多”关系的问题。我们可以确定无疑地说，我们这个时代的根本矛盾恰恰是那些想要把世界简化成“一”的人与那些认为世界是“多”的人之间的冲突——那些相信世界会朝着一个方向进化、经过单一预先设定好的路线、奔着单一预设的结局的人与那些相信人类的未来就像过去一样，根据多元化的传统、价值、目标继续朝着多个方向、奔着多种结局的人之间的冲突。简而言之，它是教条主义和实用主义、理论社会和经验社会之间的选择。
Ideologists are afraid of the free flow of ideas, even of deviant ideas within their own ideology. They are convinced they have a monopoly on the Truth. Therefore they always feel that they are only saving the world when they slaughter the heretics. Their objective remains that of making the world over in the image of their dogmatic ideology. The goal is monolithic world, organized on the principle of infallibility—but the only certainty in an absolute system is the certainty of absolute abuse.
意识形态主义者害怕思想的自由流动，甚至害怕在自己思想体系内偏离主流思想。他们确信他们独占真理，因此他们总是觉得屠杀异端者是在拯救世界。他们的追求依然是根据他们的意识形态体系改造世界。他们的目标是按照确定可靠的理论，建造一个铁板一块的世界绝对的权力必然导致权利的滥用。
The goal of free men is quite different. Free men know many truths, but they doubt whether any mortal man knows the Truth. Their religious and their intellectual heritage join in leading them to suspect fellow men who lay claim to infallibility. They believe that there is no greater delusion than for man to mistake himself for God. They accept the limitations of the human intellect and the infirmity of the human spirit. The distinctive human triumph, in their judgement, lies in the capacity to understand the frailty of human striving but to strive nonetheless.
自由人的目标与此大相径庭。自由人掌握许多具体的真理，但他们认为没有一个凡人能够掌握绝对真理。他们宗教和理性的传统致使他们怀疑那些声称永无谬误的人。他们认为对于一个人来说，没有比把自己当成神更荒唐的了。他们承认人的智力是有限的，人的心灵是脆弱的，人类在判断力上是各具特色的。他们懂得人类奋斗是存在缺憾的，但仍然奋斗不息。
