ABOUT THE SPEAKER
David Peterson - Language creator, writer, artist
David Peterson creates languages for television shows, for films and for fun.

Why you should listen

Best known for creating the Dothraki and Valyrian languages for HBO's Game of Thrones, David Peterson continues to work in Hollywood, though primarily out of his home in Orange County, where he lives with his wife, daughter and two cats. He's appeared previously on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (2016) and given talks at Google (2014 and 2015) and EG (2016). He has written two books, Living Language Dothraki (2014) and The Art of Language Invention (2015), and some of his upcoming work includes Netflix's The Witcher and Legendary's Dune.

More profile about the speaker
David Peterson | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxBerkeley

David Peterson: Why language is humanity's greatest invention

大卫.彼得斯: 为什么语言是人类最伟大的发明

Filmed:
1,262,839 views

语言创造家,大卫.彼得斯说“文明依附于语言的存在之上。”在这场既热情又幽默的演讲中,他展示了学习、保留和发明新语言是如何帮助我们理解共同的人性——并简要介绍了高瓦里安语,这是他为《权力的游戏》(Game of Thrones)(以及多斯拉克语)创造的两种语言之一。“语言不仅仅是一种工具,”他说。“这是我们的遗产,是我们表达身为人类的意义的方式。”
- Language creator, writer, artist
David Peterson creates languages for television shows, for films and for fun. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
Spoons.
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勺子。
00:16
Cardboard纸板 boxes盒子.
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纸箱。
00:19
Toddler-size幼儿尺寸 electric电动 trains火车.
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儿童电动小火车。
00:22
Holiday假日 ornaments饰品.
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节日装饰品。
00:24
Bounce反弹 houses房屋.
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充气城堡。
00:26
Blankets毯子.
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毛毯。
00:27
Baskets篮子.
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篮子。
00:29
Carpets地毯.
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地毯。
00:30
Tray托盘 tables.
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小桌板。
00:31
Smartphones智能 手机.
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智能手机。
00:33
Pianos钢琴.
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钢琴。
00:35
Robes长袍.
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礼服长袍。
00:36
Photographs照片.
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照片。
00:38
What do all of these things
have in common共同,
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这些东西有什么共同点?
00:40
aside在旁边 from the fact事实 they're photos相片
that I took in the last three months个月,
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除了它们是我在过去
三个月中拍的照片
00:43
and therefore因此, own拥有 the copyright版权 to?
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并且拥有著作权外?
00:45
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
00:47
They're all inventions发明
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它们是发明的产物,
00:48
that were created创建
with the benefit效益 of language语言.
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得益于语言,它们被创造出来。
00:52
None没有 of these things
would have existed存在 without language语言.
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如果没有语言这些东西
都不会被创造出来。
00:55
Imagine想像 creating创建 any one of those things
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试想创造任何一个这些东西
00:57
or, like, building建造
an entire整个 building建造 like this,
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或像建造这样一个完整的大楼,
01:00
without being存在 able能够 to use language语言
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没有语言沟通
01:02
or without benefiting受益 from any knowledge知识
that was got by the use of language语言.
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或不借助因使用语言而获得的知识。
01:06
Basically基本上, language语言
is the most important重要 thing
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从大体上来说,语言是这个世界上
01:11
in the entire整个 world世界.
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最重要的东西。
01:12
All of our civilization文明 rests休息 upon it.
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我们所有的文明都依存于语言之上。
01:15
And those who devote奉献
their lives生活 to studying研究 it --
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那些终生致力于研究语言的人——
01:17
both how language语言 emerged出现,
how human人的 languages语言 differ不同,
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语言是怎么出现的,
人类的语言为什么有差异,
01:22
how they differ不同 from
animal动物 communication通讯 systems系统 --
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与动物的交流系统有什么不同——
01:25
are linguists语言学家.
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是语言学家。
01:27
Formal正式 linguistics语言学 is a relatively相对
young年轻 field领域, more or less.
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正统的语言学,或多或少仍是
个比较新的领域。
01:33
And it's uncovered裸露 a lot
of really important重要 stuff东东.
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并且它揭示了许多真正重要的信息。
01:35
Like, for example, that human人的
communication通讯 systems系统
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例如,人类的交流系统
01:38
differ不同 crucially关键 from animal动物
communication通讯 systems系统,
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与动物的交流系统有相当大的差异,
01:40
that all languages语言 are equally一样 expressive表现的,
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所有的语言都有相当的表现力,
01:43
even if they do it in different不同 ways方法.
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即便他们的表达方式不同。
01:45
And yet然而, despite尽管 this,
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当然,尽管如此,
01:49
there are a lot of people
who just love to pop流行的 off about language语言
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还是许多随便谈论语言的人,
01:53
like they have an equal等于
understanding理解 of it as a linguist语言学家,
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就像有语言学家那样高的理解似的,
01:57
because, of course课程, they speak说话 a language语言.
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当然,他们会说某种语言。
01:59
And if you speak说话 a language语言,
that means手段 you have just as much right
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如果你会讲一种语言,
那就意味着你有同样多的权利
02:02
to talk about its function功能
as anybody任何人 else其他.
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像其他人一样去谈论它的功能。
02:04
Imagine想像 if you were talking to a surgeon外科医生,
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想像一下假如你对一个外科医生说,
02:06
and you say, "Listen, buddy伙伴.
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“听着,哥们儿。
02:08
I've had a heart for, like, 40 years年份 now.
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我活了四十年了。
02:10
I think I know a thing or two
about aortic主动脉 valve replacements替代品.
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我觉得我了解一些
主动脉瓣置换术的事情。
02:13
I think my opinion意见
is just as valid有效 as yours你的."
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我认为我的观点和你的一样有效。”
02:15
And yet然而, that's exactly究竟 what happens发生.
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是的,事情确实就是这样的。
02:17
This is Neil尼尔 deGrassedeGrasse Tyson泰森,
saying that in the film电影 "Arrival到来,"
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这是尼尔.德格拉塞.泰森
对电影《降临》的评论,
02:21
he would have brought a cryptographer密码学家 --
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他原本可以带一个密码专家——
02:24
somebody who can unscramble解读 a message信息
in a language语言 they already已经 know --
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能够用他们已经知道的语言解读信息的人
02:27
rather than a linguist语言学家,
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而不是一名语言学家,
02:29
to communicate通信 with the aliens外星人,
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去和外星人对话,
02:30
because what would a linguist语言学家 --
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因为为什么一名语言学家——
02:33
why would that be useful有用
in talking to somebody
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为什么语言学家跟说我们完全不知道
02:35
speaking请讲 a language语言 we don't even know?
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的语言的人会有用?
02:37
Though虽然, of course课程, the "Arrival到来" film电影
is not off the hook.
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当然,《降临》这部电影
并没有摆脱困境。
02:40
I mean, come on --
listen, film电影. Hey, buddy伙伴:
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我的意思是,瞧这部电影:
02:42
there are aliens外星人 that come down
to our planet行星 in gigantic巨大 ships船舶,
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外星人坐在巨大的飞船里
降临到我们地球,
02:45
and they want to do nothing
except for communicate通信 with us,
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然后他们除了想和我们交流之外
什么都不想做,
02:48
and you hire聘请 one linguist语言学家?
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于是你就雇了一名语言学家?
02:51
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
02:52
What's the US government政府
on a budget预算 or something?
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美国政府都在搞什么预算?
02:55
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
02:56
A lot of these things can be
chalked粉笔 up to misunderstandings误解,
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许多这样的事情可以人们对
02:59
both about what language语言 is
and about the formal正式 study研究 of language语言,
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什么是语言,什么是正式的语言学习,
03:03
about linguistics语言学.
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什么是语言学存在误区。
03:05
And I think there's something that
underliesunderlies a lot of these misunderstandings误解
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我认为支撑这些误区之下的东西
03:10
that can be summed总结 up
by this delightful愉快 article文章 in "Forbes福布斯,"
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可以由这篇发表在《福布斯》
上的令人愉悦的文章概括,
03:14
about why high school学校 students学生们
shouldn't不能 learn学习 foreign国外 languages语言.
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这是一篇为什么高中生
不应当学习外语的文章。
03:18
I'm going to pull out
some quotes报价 from this,
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我会从中抽取一些文段,
03:20
and I want you to see
if you can figure数字 out
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我想让你们看看,
你们是否能够搞清
03:22
what underliesunderlies some
of these opinions意见 and ideas思路.
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这些观点和想法的基础是什么。
03:26
"Americans美国人 rarely很少 read the classics,
even in translation翻译."
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“美国人很少读原著,即便是译本。”
03:31
So in other words, why bother
learning学习 a foreign国外 language语言
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所以,换句话说,为什么
要为学一门外语而烦恼呢,
03:33
when they're not even going to read
the classic经典 in the original原版的 anyway无论如何?
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既然他们无论如何都
不去阅读原著典籍?
03:37
What's the point?
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有什么意义呢?
03:38
"Studying研究 foreign国外 languages语言 in school学校
is a waste浪费 of time,
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“与其他可以在学校做的事情相比,
03:41
compared相比 to other things
that you could be doing in school学校."
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在学校里学习外语是浪费时间。”
03:45
"Europe欧洲 has a lot of language语言 groups
clustered集群 in a relatively相对 small space空间."
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“欧洲有许多语种聚集在
一个相对狭小的空间里。”
03:49
So for Americans美国人, ah, what's the point
of learning学习 another另一个 language语言?
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所以对于美国人,
学一门外语的意义何在呢?
03:53
You're not really going to get
a lot of bang for your buck降压 out of that.
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你真不会从那得到什么大的好处。
03:56
This is my favorite喜爱,
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这是我最爱的,
03:57
"A student学生 in Birmingham伯明翰
would have to travel旅行
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“一名在伯明翰的学生可能会旅行
04:00
about a thousand miles英里
to get to the Mexican墨西哥人 border边境,
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大约一千英里来到墨西哥边界,
04:02
and even then, there would be enough足够
people who speak说话 English英语 to get around."
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即使这样,那里也有足够多
讲英语的人在周围。”
04:06
In other words, if you can
kind of wave your arms武器 around,
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换句话说,如果你能稍微招招手,
04:09
and you can get to where you're going,
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你就能到达任何你想去的地方。
04:11
then there's really no point
in learning学习 another另一个 language语言 anyway无论如何.
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所以真没有意义去学一门外语。
04:14
What underliesunderlies a lot of these attitudes态度
is the conceptual概念上的 metaphor隐喻,
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这些看法的基础是这种概念隐喻,
04:19
language语言 is a tool工具.
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语言是一种工具。
04:20
And there's something that rings戒指
very true真正 about this metaphor隐喻.
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这个隐喻听起来非常真实。
04:23
Language语言 is kind of a tool工具
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语言是一种工具,
04:25
in that, if you know the local本地 language语言,
you can do more than if you didn't.
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如果你懂当地的语言,你可以
做更多之前不能做的事情。
04:28
But the implication意义 is that
language语言 is only a tool工具,
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但是这暗示了语言只是一种工具,
04:31
and this is absolutely绝对 false.
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这是绝对错误的。
04:33
If language语言 was a tool工具,
it would honestly老老实实 be a pretty漂亮 poor较差的 tool工具.
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如果语言是一种工具,
老实说,这是种相当不好用的工具。
04:37
And we would have abandoned it long ago
for something that was a lot better.
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我们会在很久以前就抛弃它
而去使用更好的工具。
04:40
Think about just any sentence句子.
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随便想一个句子。
04:42
Here's这里的 a sentence句子 that I'm sure I've said
in my life: "Yesterday昨天 I saw KynKyn."
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这里有个我确信在生活中说过的句子:
“昨天我看见肯了。”
04:46
I have a friend朋友 named命名 KynKyn.
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我有一位叫肯的朋友。
04:47
And when I say this sentence句子,
"Yesterday昨天 I saw KynKyn,"
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当我说这句话,“昨天我看见肯了,“
04:50
do you think it's really the case案件
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你觉得我脑海中的东西
04:51
that everything in my mind心神
is now implanted植入 in your mind心神
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通过这句话就植入你的大脑
04:55
via通过 this sentence句子?
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的这个场景真实吗?
04:56
Hardly几乎不, because there's a lot
of other stuff东东 going on.
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当然不是,因为还有许多其它的东西。
04:58
Like, when I say "yesterday昨天,"
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例如,当我说“昨天”,
05:00
I might威力 think what the weather天气
was like yesterday昨天 because I was there.
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我可能会想到昨天的天气怎么样,
因为我在那里。
05:03
And if I'm remembering记忆,
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然后如果我继续回忆,
05:04
I'll probably大概 remember记得 there was something
I forgot忘记 to mail邮件, which哪一个 I did.
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我将可能会回忆起我忘记发快递了,
05:08
This was a preplanned预先计划 joke玩笑,
but I really did forget忘记 to mail邮件 something.
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这是一个预先计划的笑话,
但我确实忘记发快递了。
05:11
And so that means手段
I'm going to have to do it Monday星期一,
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所以那意味着我将不得不在周一邮寄它,
05:14
because that's when
I'm going to get back home.
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因为那是我要回家的时候。
05:16
And of course课程, when I think of Monday星期一,
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当然,当我想起周一,
05:18
I'll think of "Manic躁狂 Monday星期一"
by the Bangles手镯. It's a good song歌曲.
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我将会想起手镯乐队的
“炸裂的星期一”,这是首不错的歌。
05:21
And when I say the word "saw,"
I think of this phrase短语:
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当我说单词“看见”,我想起了这个句子:
05:24
"'I'一世 see!' said the blind man
as he picked采摘的 up his hammer锤子 and saw."
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“‘我看见了’,瞎子边说边拿起
锤子和锯子。”
05:27
I always do.
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我总是这样。
05:29
Anytime任何时候 I hear the word "saw" or say it,
I always think of that,
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无论何时我听见单词“看”或者说它时,
我总会像这样去想,
05:32
because my grandfather祖父
always used to say it,
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因为我的祖父过去总是这样说,
05:34
so it makes品牌 me think of my grandfather祖父.
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所以它使我想起了我的祖父。
05:36
And we're back to "Manic躁狂 Monday星期一"
again, for some reason原因.
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现在我们再次回到“炸裂的星期一”,
因为某些缘故。
05:38
And with KynKyn, when I'm saying
something like, "Yesterday昨天 I saw KynKyn,"
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伴随着肯,当我说:
“昨天我看见肯了,”
05:42
I'll think of the circumstances情况
under which哪一个 I saw him.
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我会想起我看见他的场景。
05:45
And this happened发生 to be that day.
Here he is with my cat.
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就在那天,他和我的猫在一起。
05:48
And of course课程, if I'm thinking思维 of KynKyn,
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当然,如果我想到肯,
05:49
I'll think he's going to
Long Beach海滩 State right now,
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我会想起他现在将去长滩市,
05:52
and I'll remember记得 that
my good friend朋友 John约翰 and my mother母亲
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并且我会记起我的好朋友
约翰和我妈妈
05:55
both graduated毕业 from Long Beach海滩 State,
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都是从长滩州立大学毕业的,
05:56
my cousin表姐 Katie凯蒂 is going to
Long Beach海滩 State right now.
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我的姐姐凯特现在也将去这所大学念书。
05:59
And it's "Manic躁狂 Monday星期一" again.
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然后又是“炸裂的星期一”
06:01
But this is just a fraction分数
of what's going on in your head
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但这一切都只是在
你说话的任何时候
06:03
at any given特定 time while you are speaking请讲.
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发生在我脑海里的一些碎片。
06:06
And all we have to represent代表
the entire整个 mess食堂
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我们所要做的就是把我们脑子里
06:08
that is going on in our head, is this.
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发生的一切都表现出来,就是这个。
06:11
I mean, that's all we got.
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我的意思是,那就是全部东西。
06:13
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
06:14
Is it any wonder奇迹
that our system系统 is so poor较差的?
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难怪我们的系统这么差?
06:16
So imagine想像, if I can give you an analogy比喻,
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想象一下,如果我给你一个类比,
06:19
imagine想像 if you wanted to know
what is it like to eat a cake蛋糕,
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试想如果你想知道
吃蛋糕是什么感觉,
06:22
if instead代替 of just eating the cake蛋糕,
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如果不只是吃蛋糕,
06:25
you instead代替 had to ingest摄取
the ingredients配料 of a cake蛋糕,
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而是你必须咽下这个蛋糕的原料,
06:28
one by one,
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一个接一个的,
06:29
along沿 with instructions说明
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按照说明书说的
06:31
about how these ingredients配料
can be combined结合 to form形成 a cake蛋糕.
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将这些材料组合成一个蛋糕来。
06:34
You had to eat the instructions说明, too.
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你也必须也把说明书吃掉。
06:36
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
06:37
If that was how we had to experience经验 cake蛋糕,
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如果我们是这样品尝蛋糕的,
06:39
we would never eat cake蛋糕.
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我们将绝不会再吃蛋糕了。
06:42
And yet然而, language语言 is
the only way -- the only way --
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然而,语言是唯一一种,
唯一一种
06:46
that we can figure数字 out
what is going on here, in our minds头脑.
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我们能理解大脑中发生什么的方式。
06:50
This is our interiority内在,
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这是我们的内在,
06:52
the thing that makes品牌 us human人的,
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是使我们成为人类的东西,
06:53
the thing that makes品牌 us different不同
from other animals动物,
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是使我们与其他动物有区别的东西,
06:56
is all inside here somewhere某处,
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都在这里面某个地方,
06:58
and all we have to do to represent代表 it
is our own拥有 languages语言.
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我们所要做的是用自己
的语言来表达它。
07:02
A language语言 is our best最好 way of showing展示
what's going on in our head.
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语言是展示我们头脑想法的最好方式。
07:05
Imagine想像 if I wanted to ask
a big question, like:
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试想如果我要问一个重要的问题:
07:08
"What is the nature性质 of human人的
thought and emotion情感?"
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“人类思想和情感的本质是什么?”
07:10
What you'd want to do
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你要做的就是
07:11
is you'd want to examine检查
as many许多 different不同 languages语言
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尽可能多地研究不同
07:14
as possible可能.
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的语言。
07:16
One isn't just going to do it.
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一种并不足以回答。
07:18
To give you an example,
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举个例子
07:19
here's这里的 a picture图片 I took of little Roman罗马,
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这有一张我从罗马拍的照片,
07:22
that I took with a 12-megapixel万像素 camera相机.
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用了1200万像素的相机。
07:25
Now, here's这里的 that same相同 picture图片
with a lot fewer pixels像素.
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现在,这有一张相同的低像素的照片。
07:29
Obviously明显, neither也不
of these pictures图片 is a real真实 cat.
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当然,这两张照片拍的都不是真正的猫。
07:33
But one gives you a lot better sense
of what a cat is than the other.
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但其中一张比另一张让你感觉更像猫。
07:38
Language语言 is not merely仅仅 a tool工具.
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语言不仅仅是一种工具。
07:40
It is our legacy遗产,
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是我们的遗产,
07:41
it's our way of conveying输送
what it means手段 to be human人的.
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这是我们表达身为人
的意义的方式。
07:44
And of course课程, by "our" legacy遗产,
I mean all humans人类 everywhere到处.
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当然,“我们”的遗产,
我指的是任何地方的人。
07:48
And losing失去 even one language语言
makes品牌 that picture图片 a lot less clear明确.
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即使是失去一种语言,
也会使这幅图景变得模糊。
07:53
So as a job工作 for the past过去 10 years年份
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所以过去十年我做的工作
07:57
and also as recreation娱乐, just for fun开玩笑,
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也是一种消遣,仅仅是因为乐趣,
08:01
I create创建 languages语言.
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我创造语言。
08:02
These are called "conlangs康朗斯,"
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它们被称作“造语”
08:04
short for "constructed languages语言."
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“人造语言”的简称。
08:06
Now, presenting呈现 these facts事实 back to back,
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现在,我一件件地阐述这些事实,
08:09
that we're losing失去 languages语言 on our planet行星
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在地球上我们正在遗失自己的语言,
08:11
and that I create创建 brand-new全新的 languages语言,
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所以我创造了全新的语言,
08:12
you might威力 think that there's
some nonsuperficial非表面 connection连接
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你可能认为它们之间有某种
08:15
between之间 these two.
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非表面的联系。
08:16
In fact事实, a lot of people have drawn a line线
between之间 those dots.
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事实上,许多人已经在
这两点间画了一条线。
08:19
This is a guy who got
all bent弯曲 out of shape形状
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有个人对詹姆斯·卡梅隆执导的
08:21
that there was a conlang康朗
in James詹姆士 Cameron's卡梅伦 "Avatar阿凡达."
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《阿凡达》中的某个人造语言大为恼火。
08:24
He says,
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他说,
08:26
"But in the three years年份
it took James詹姆士 Cameron卡梅伦
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“在三年时间内詹姆斯·卡梅隆
08:28
to get Avatar阿凡达 to the screen屏幕,
a language语言 died死亡."
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把《阿凡达》搬上银幕,
一种语言消亡了。”
08:30
Probably大概 a lot more than that, actually其实.
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也许事实上还远不止这样。
08:32
"Na'vi纳维, alas, won't惯于 fill the hole
where it used to be ..."
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“纳美人,唉,填补不了曾经的空白…”
08:36
A truly profound深刻 and poignant凄美 statement声明 --
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一个真正深远且深刻的观点——
08:38
if you don't think about it at all.
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如果你不去想的话。
08:41
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
08:42
But when I was here at Cal卡尔,
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但当我在加州大学时,
08:44
I completed完成 two majors专业.
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我修完了两门专业。
08:46
One of them was linguistics语言学,
but the other one was English英语.
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一门是语言学另一门是英文。
08:48
And of course课程, the English英语 major重大的,
the study研究 of English英语,
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当然,英文专业,研究英文,
但并不是真正的像我们
认为的那样研究英语,
08:51
is not actually其实 the study研究
of the English英语 language语言, as we know,
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是研究英国文学。
08:54
it's the study研究 of literature文学.
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文学是很美妙的,
08:55
Literature文学 is just a wonderful精彩 thing,
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因为基本上讲,文学非常广博,
有些像艺术那样;
08:57
because basically基本上, literature文学,
more broadly宽广地, is kind of like art艺术;
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09:01
it falls下降 under the rubric专栏 of art艺术.
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它属于艺术范畴。
09:03
And what we do with literature文学,
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当我们研究文学时发现,
09:04
authors作者 create创建 new,
entire整个 beings众生 and histories历史.
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作者创造了全新的生物和历史故事。
09:09
And it's interesting有趣 to us to see
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而且我们很高兴看到
09:12
what kind of depth深度 and emotion情感
and just unique独特 spirit精神
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作者可以授予这些虚构的众生
09:18
authors作者 can invest投资
into these fictional虚构 beings众生.
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各种不同深度的情感
和独特的精神。
09:20
So much so, that, I mean --
take a look at this.
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所以,看看这些。
09:23
There's an entire整个 series系列 of books图书
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有一系列的书
09:25
that are written书面
about fictional虚构 characters人物.
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来完整地描绘这些虚拟人物。
09:27
Like, the entire整个 book is just about one
fictional虚构, fake human人的 being存在.
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就像,整本书只是描述一个虚幻的故事,
一个不存在的人。
09:31
There's an entire整个 book
on George乔治 F. Babbitt巴比特
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这有一整本辛克莱·刘易斯写的《巴比特》,
09:34
from Sinclair辛克莱 Lewis's刘易斯的 "Babbitt巴比特,"
215
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关于乔治·F·巴比特的书,
09:35
and I guarantee保证 you,
that book is longer than "Babbitt巴比特,"
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并且我向你保证,那书比“巴比特”长,
09:38
which哪一个 is a short book.
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是一篇短篇书。
09:39
Does anybody任何人 even remember记得 that one?
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有人记得这本书吗?
09:41
It's pretty漂亮 good, I actually其实 think
it's better than "Main主要 Street."
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那本书非常好,我其实
觉得它比《大街》还好。
09:44
That's my hot take.
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这是我的最爱。
09:46
So we've我们已经 never questioned质疑 the fact事实
that literature文学 is interesting有趣.
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所以我们绝不会质疑文学
的趣味性这个事实。
09:50
But despite尽管 the fact事实,
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但除了这个事实,
09:52
not even linguists语言学家 are actually其实 interested有兴趣
in what created创建 languages语言 can tell us
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事实上,即使是语言学家也没有兴趣知道,
09:56
about the depth深度 of the human人的 spirit精神
just as an artistic艺术的 endeavor努力.
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究竟是什么创造了语言,
才能够告诉我们人类精神的深度。
10:00
I'll give you a nice不错 little example here.
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我给你举一个小例子。
10:03
There was an article文章 written书面 about me
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前阵子在加州校友的杂志中
10:06
in the California加州 alumni校友
magazine杂志 a while back.
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有一篇关于我的文章。
10:09
And when they wrote this article文章,
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当他们写这篇文章时,
10:10
they wanted to get somebody
from the opposing反对 side,
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他们却想找一个与我对立的人,
10:13
which哪一个, in hindsight事后,
seems似乎 like a weird奇怪的 thing to do.
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事后看来,这很奇怪。
10:15
You're just talking about a person,
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你是在谈论一个人,
10:17
and you want to get somebody
from the opposing反对 side of that person.
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但你想找一个与他完全不同阵营的人。
10:20
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
10:21
Essentially实质上, this is just
a puff piece, but whatever随你.
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尤其是,这还是一篇吹捧性文章。
10:24
So, they happened发生 to get
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他们碰巧找到了
10:26
one of the most brilliant辉煌
linguists语言学家 of our time,
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我们这个时代最杰出的语言学家之一,
10:29
George乔治 Lakoff拉科夫, who's谁是 a linguist语言学家
here at Berkeley伯克利.
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乔治·莱考夫,在伯克利的语言学家。
10:32
And his work has basically基本上 forever永远 changed
the fields领域 of linguistics语言学
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他的作品基本上永久
改变了语言学领域
10:35
and cognitive认知 science科学.
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和认知科学。
10:37
And when asked about my work
and about language语言 creation创建 in general一般,
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当他被问起关于我的作品
和大体的语言创造时,
10:40
he said, "But there's a lot of things
to be doneDONE in the study研究 of language语言.
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他说:“但是在语言研究方面
还有很多事情要做。
10:44
You should spend the time
on something real真实."
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2756
你应当在一些实事上花时间。”
10:47
Yeah.
243
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没错。
10:48
"Something real真实."
Does this remind提醒 you of anything?
244
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“一些实事。”,它有使你回想起什么了吗?
10:50
To use the very framework骨架
that he himself他自己 invented发明,
245
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用他自己发明的框架,
10:54
let me refer参考 back
to this conceptual概念上的 metaphor隐喻:
246
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让我回顾一下这个概念隐喻:
10:57
language语言 is a tool工具.
247
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语言是一种工具。
10:58
And he appears出现 to be laboring劳动
under this conceptual概念上的 metaphor隐喻;
248
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而且他像是在这个隐喻概念下
努力工作;
11:02
that is, language语言 is useful有用
when it can be used for communication通讯.
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也就是说,当语言可以被
用来交流时它是有用的。
11:06
Language语言 is useless无用
when it can't be used for communication通讯.
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当语言不能被用来交流时是无用的。
11:09
It might威力 make you wonder奇迹:
What do we do with dead languages语言?
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这也许会令你想知道:
对于消亡的语言我们应该做什么?
11:12
But anyway无论如何.
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但无论如何。
11:13
So, because of this idea理念,
253
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因为有了这样的想法,
11:15
it might威力 seem似乎 like
the very height高度 of absurdity荒谬
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这可能看起来像非常荒谬,
11:18
to have a Duolingo听歌 course课程
on the High Valyrian瓦利安 language语言
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3413
对我在HBO的《冰与火之歌》中所创造
的高级瓦雷利亚语言
11:22
that I created创建 for HBO'sHBO 的
"Game游戏 of Thrones权力."
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2548
开设一门“多邻国”课程。
11:24
You might威力 wonder奇迹 what, exactly究竟,
are 740,000 people learning学习?
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3624
你可能会好奇,
这74万人到底在学什么?
11:29
(Laughter笑声)
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2262
(笑声)
11:31
Well, let's take a look at it.
259
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2063
让我们看看这个。
11:33
What are they learning学习?
260
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1635
他们在学什么?
11:35
What could they possibly或者 be learning学习?
261
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他们可能在学什么?
11:37
Well, bearing轴承 in mind心神 that
the other language语言 for this --
262
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记住这一点,另一种语言是——
11:40
it's for people that speak说话 English英语 --
263
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2534
针对说英语的人而言——
11:43
English英语 speakers音箱 are learning学习 quite相当 a bit.
264
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学英语的人要学习不少东西。
11:45
Here's这里的 a sentence句子 that they will probably大概
never use for communication通讯
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3314
有一句话他们可能一生中都不会
11:48
in their entire整个 lives生活:
266
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1164
用在对话中:
11:49
"Vala瓦拉 ābre布雷 urnes乌尔内斯."
267
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1566
“Vala ābre urnes.”
11:51
"The man sees看到 the woman女人."
268
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1373
“那个男人看见了那个女人。”
11:52
The little middle中间 line线 is the gloss掩饰,
269
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1890
中间的小线是注释,
11:54
so it's word for word,
that's what it says.
270
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2216
所以这是逐字对应的,这是它的意思。
11:56
And they're actually其实 learning学习
some very fascinating迷人 things,
271
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2789
并且他们确实学到了
一些超级棒的东西,
11:59
especially特别 if they're English英语 speakers音箱.
272
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尤其是如果他们是说英语的人。
12:01
They're learning学习 that a verb动词 can come
at the very end结束 of a sentence句子.
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他们能学到动词是可以
放在一句话的末尾的。
12:04
Doesn't really do that in English英语
when you have two arguments参数.
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2968
在英语中,当你有两个论点时
并不会这样用。
12:07
They're learning学习 that sometimes有时
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1738
他们学习到有时候
12:09
a language语言 doesn't have an equivalent当量
for the word "the" -- it's totally完全 absent缺席.
276
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3858
一门语言中没有“the”这个词的对应词,
它是完全不存在的。
12:13
That's something language语言 can do.
277
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1619
这是语言可以做到的。
12:15
They're learning学习 that a long vowel元音
can actually其实 be longer in duration持续时间,
278
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3785
他们学习到长元音的持续时间可能更长,
12:18
as opposed反对 to different不同 in quality质量,
279
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1961
用于和其它音加以区别,
12:20
which哪一个 is what our long vowels元音 do;
they're actually其实 the same相同 length长度.
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这就是我们的长元音的作用;
它们实际上是一样长的。
12:24
They're learning学习 that
there are these little inflections变形.
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他们学习到有这些微小的变化。
12:27
Hmm? Hmm?
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嗯?
12:28
There are inflections变形 called "cases"
on the end结束 of nouns名词 --
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名词后面有人称“格”的屈折变化——
12:32
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
12:33
that tell you who does what
to whom in a sentence句子.
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那在一句话中告诉你
谁对谁做了什么。
12:36
Even if you leave离开 the order订购
of the words the same相同
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即使你保持单词的顺序不变
12:39
and switch开关 the endings结局,
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并改变词尾,
12:41
it changes变化 who does what to whom.
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它也会改变谁对谁做了什么。
12:44
What they're learning学习 is that languages语言
do things, the same相同 things, differently不同.
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他们正在学习的是,语言做的事情,
一样的事情,不同的方式。
12:50
And that learning学习 languages语言 can be fun开玩笑.
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像这样学语言会很有趣。
12:53
What they're learning学习 is respect尊重
for Language语言: capital首都 "L" Language语言.
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他们正在学的是尊重语言
:“L”开头的单词,语言。
12:57
And given特定 the fact事实 that 88 percent百分
of Americans美国人 only speak说话 English英语 at home,
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鉴于88%的美国人在国内
只说英语的事实,
13:01
I don't think that's
necessarily一定 a bad thing.
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我认为这并不是一件坏事。
13:04
You know why languages语言 die on our planet行星?
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你们知道为什么语言会在
我们的星球消亡吗?
13:08
It's not because government政府 imposes强加
one language语言 on a smaller group,
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不是因为政府将一种语言
强加在一个小群体上,
13:14
or because an entire整个 group
of speakers音箱 is wiped out.
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或者是某一群讲这种语言
的人灭亡了。
13:16
That certainly当然 has happened发生 in the past过去,
and it's happening事件 now,
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那种事情过去发生过,
并且现在也正在发生,
13:19
but it's not the main主要 reason原因.
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但那并不是主要原因。
13:22
The main主要 reason原因 is that
a child儿童 is born天生 to a family家庭
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主要原因是一个孩子出生在一个
13:25
that speaks说话 a language语言 that
is not widely广泛 spoken in their community社区,
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说一种在他们的社区并不广泛
使用的语言的家庭,
13:28
and that child儿童 doesn't learn学习 it.
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而且孩子不学它。
13:30
Why?
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为什么?
13:31
Because that language语言 is not valued价值
in their community社区.
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因为那种语言在他们社区中没有任何价值。
13:36
Because the language语言 isn't useful有用.
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因为那种语言没有用。
13:38
Because the child儿童 can't go and get a job工作
if they speak说话 that language语言.
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因为如果孩子说那种语言
就不能出行,找工作。
13:43
Because if language语言 is just a tool工具,
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因为语言仅仅是一种工具,
13:47
then learning学习 their native本地人 language语言
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那么学习他们的土著语
13:49
is about as useful有用
as learning学习 High Valyrian瓦利安,
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就和学习高瓦里安语一样,
13:51
so why bother?
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所以为什么要去学呢?
13:55
Now ...
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现在……
13:58
Maybe language语言 study研究 isn't going to lead
to a lot more linguistic语言 fluency流畅.
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也许学习语言并不会
让语言更加流利。
14:02
But maybe that's not such这样 a big deal合同.
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但这也许没什么大不了的。
14:05
Maybe if more people
are studying研究 more languages语言,
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也许如果更多的人
学习更多的语言,
14:08
it will lead to more linguistic语言 tolerance公差
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将会导致更多的语言包容
14:11
and less linguistic语言 imperialism帝国主义.
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和更少的语言专制。
14:13
Maybe if we actually其实 respect尊重
language语言 for what it is --
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也许如果我们确实尊重语言——
14:16
literally按照字面, the greatest最大 invention发明
in the history历史 of humankind人类 --
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因为语言是人类历史上最伟大的发明——
14:21
then in the future未来,
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那么在将来,
14:23
we can celebrate庆祝 endangered濒危 languages语言
as living活的 languages语言,
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我们可以把濒临灭绝的语言
当作活的语言来庆祝,
14:27
as opposed反对 to museum博物馆 pieces.
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而非博物馆里的展品。
14:29
(High Valyrian瓦利安) Kirimvose基里姆沃舍.
Thank you.
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(高瓦里安语)Kirimvose谢谢。
14:30
(Applause掌声)
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(鼓掌)
Translated by 宸煜 赵
Reviewed by psjmz mz

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
David Peterson - Language creator, writer, artist
David Peterson creates languages for television shows, for films and for fun.

Why you should listen

Best known for creating the Dothraki and Valyrian languages for HBO's Game of Thrones, David Peterson continues to work in Hollywood, though primarily out of his home in Orange County, where he lives with his wife, daughter and two cats. He's appeared previously on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (2016) and given talks at Google (2014 and 2015) and EG (2016). He has written two books, Living Language Dothraki (2014) and The Art of Language Invention (2015), and some of his upcoming work includes Netflix's The Witcher and Legendary's Dune.

More profile about the speaker
David Peterson | Speaker | TED.com