潘维廉教授：用有趣的方式向世界讲述中国

　　4月21日下午，由人民出版社出版的《用英语讲中国故事》丛书出版座谈会在北京钓鱼台国宾馆成功举办！《用英语讲中国故事》副主编、厦门大学MBA中心美籍导师潘维廉教授也出席了此次会议，并做了精彩致辞，以下是致辞全文：

　　《用英语讲中国故事》副主编、厦门大学MBA中心美籍导师潘维廉教授

　　I am delighted and honored today to share a few words about Stories of China Retold In English because this beautifully crafted collection of stories, which is certain to be an instant classic, serves two great purposes: 1) telling the world about China (Xi Jinping’s desire for us all to 好好讲中国故事; and 2) providing an exciting way to encourage foreigners to help Chinese master English!

　　很高兴，也很荣幸有此机会与大家分享《用英语讲中国故事》丛书。这套精心打磨的新经典有两个目标：1.向世界介绍中国（正如习近平总书记对我们的殷切期望）2.用有趣的方式鼓励外国人帮助中国人掌握英语。

　　Almost 20 years ago, when Xi Jinping was our Fujian governor, we discussed the problem that Chinese had learned much about the world but the world still knew far too little about China. So Xi Jinping said to me, “You’ve written about Xiamen, your second home; you should write about Quanzhou, your third home!” He suggested I start with Quanzhou because it was the start of the Maritime Silk Road—which gave Chairman Xi the idea for the modern Belt and Road Initiative.

　　大约在20年前，习近平总书记还在福建时，他就同我探讨过“中国十分了解世界，但世界对中国却不甚了解”的问题，而后他对我说道：“你已经写了你的第二故乡厦门，你也应该写写你的第三故乡泉州。”作为海上丝绸之路的起点，泉州也给习近平总书记提出“一带一路”倡议注入了灵感。

　　I did write the Quanzhou book, and a dozen others, as well as developed English websites, and wrote and co-hosted over 400 TV episodes. Some Chinese say I am “Zhongguo Tong” (a China Hand), but I always reply that this is impossible. In a country this large, and changing so fast, not even a Chinese can be Zhongguo Tong! And, in fact, the more I learned about China, the more I realized how little I really knew. What really amazed me is that I discovered that China’s great accomplishments since I arrived in Xiamen University in 1988 were merely the latest of thousands of years of amazing accomplishments!

　　除了写泉州，我还写了十几本其它的书、搭建英语网站、参与到400多集电视节目的编写和合作主持。人们说我是“中国通”，但我却回答“这是不可能的”。在一个这么大的国家，即使土生土长的中国人都难以称之为“中国通”！事实上，当我愈加了解中国，我就愈加清楚地认识到我对它的了解之少。而更令我震惊的是，自1988年我到厦门大学后所见到的中国发展和变化仅是中国几千年浩瀚历史长河的缩影！

　　The ancient world witnessed the greatness of Rome, Egypt, Greece and China, but the only nation that has remained strong and vibrant for these thousands of years is China—and that is because Chinese have throughout history sought the Chinese Dream of peace and prosperity. Most importantly to me, as a former military man, is that China is the only great nation to have relied entirely on economic means to prosper! No war with distant nations, no colonialism, no nationalized opium sales and slavery—just pure economics and trade. So why are Chinese so different? CEO Hu Min’s books hold the answer to China’s success— past, present and future.

　　在古代，出现了罗马文明、埃及文明、希腊文明、中华文明，但数千年后，仅有中华文明依旧充满勃勃生机。这是因为中华民族历来追求和平发展的中国梦。作为一名退役军人，最令我惊奇的是中国是世界上独一一个依靠经济方式走向繁荣的国家——没有发动远攻，没有对其它国家进行殖民主义，也未以国家的名义对外进行鸦片贸易和奴隶贩卖。中国为何如此不同呢？打开这套《用英语讲中国故事》丛书，你将找到中国在过去、现在、将来繁荣的原因。

　　China has been great for thousands of years because it has had a solid Confucian educational and cultural foundation that has emphasized morality and responsibility to family and nation, and peaceful coexistence. Even the celebrated Art of War views war as the last resort. But though I’ve read many books about this great country, I’ve never seen so many fascinating stories, both ancient and modern, about the soul of China as I encountered while reading Hu Min’s China Stories.

　　中国的富强延续了数千年，因为它有着坚实的儒家文化基石，强调对家国的道德和责任，以及和远邦近邻和平共处的理念，即使闻名于世的《孙子兵法》也认为战争为不得已而为之举。尽管我读了许多有关这个伟大国家的书籍，但在《用英语讲中国故事》系列里我The first次读到如此之多有趣故事，它们从古至今有着宽广的时间跨度，向世界展示最真实的中国。

　　These masterfully selected stories cover everything from romance and love of family (the Cowherd and the Girl Weaver, for example) to love of country and patriotism—such as Yue Fei, a military hero who 1000 years ago, as a youth, had his mother tattoo on his back his lifelong motto, “Serve the country with supreme loyalty.” There’s also the story of “The Masterpiece of a Humiliated Master,” about Sima Qian, who lived 2200 years ago, and the amazing story of Lin Zexu, who tried to end the West’s opium trade.  These stories also tell how paper, pen and ink and inkstick were invented.

　　这些精心挑选的故事题材广泛，从牛郎织女的浪漫的爱情故事到精忠报国的岳飞，从成就史家之绝唱的司马迁到试图制止西方鸦片贸易的林则徐。从这些故事中，还能了解到笔墨纸砚的发明。

　　As a former military person, I loved the story of how Mozi saved the State of Song by emphasizing “mutual love and restraint of strife”, thus avoiding a war, and reinforcing Chinese’ love of peaceful coexistence. But other stories of ancient and modern martyrs show that the peace-loving Chinese are also heroic and fearless warriors when their nation is threatened.

　　我也很喜爱墨子救宋的故事，他强调“兼爱非攻”，不主张发动武力，这也印证了中华民族对和平共存的追求。但从其它的故事，我们也了解到，在民族存亡时刻热爱和平的中华儿女也有着大无畏的英勇气概。

　　I also liked the modern tales showing how Chinese braved the tundra to build the world’s highest railway in Tibet, or to work the oil fields of N.E. China, developed hybrid rice to alleviate poverty, or worked around the clock to get their first manned rocket into space.

　　我还喜欢阅读讲述现代发展的故事。中国人民攻克难关，在青藏高原的冻土上修建了世界上海拔The highest的高铁，在中国东北开采了The first座油田；它培育出杂交水稻为世界人民极大地解决了粮食问题，它的科学家夜以继日的研发成功发射本国The first艘载人航天飞船。

　　I also appreciated the story, Running Like the Wind, about how Chinese lives have been changed by bullet trains—a miracle I’ve witnessed myself over the past few decades. In 1994, it took me 10 days to drive from Xiamen to Beijing. Today, you can take a train from Hong Kong clear across the country to Beijing in only about 9 hours!

　　我也很喜欢《像风一样的高铁》这则故事，讲述了高铁如何改变中国人民的生活。这个奇迹我在过去几十年有着亲身经历。1994年，从厦门到北京，我用了10天时间；今天，从香港出发一路北上抵达北京，只需大约9小时。

　　The diversity of Hu Min’s stories is astonishing. The way in which the stories have been selected, edited and organized is as much of a masterpiece as the tales they relate. It is impossible to read these stories and not marvel at the rich culture and character that have allowed China, of all ancient nations, to remain vibrant to this day. And China continues to this day to engage in historically unprecedented engineering feats to raise the living standard of people not just in China but in Africa and other areas of the world. I look forward to CEO Hu Min’s next collection of stories!

　　《用英语讲中国故事》这套丛书选材包罗万象，令人称赞。它的挑选、编辑和组织方式和故事本身一样，力求精益求精。当你读完这些故事，你会为其所展现的丰富文化，以及让中华文明永葆生机的品格为之惊叹。今天，不仅在中国，在非洲以及世界其它地区，中国正绝无二次地投入到当地工程建设中，大大改善了人们的生活水平。因此，我十分期待胡敏先生的下一个故事系列！

　　The second reason I love Stories of China Retold in English is that they are the perfect way to get foreigners to help you learn English!

　　我喜爱《用英语讲中国故事》丛书的第二个理由是，它们用完美的方式让外国人帮助中国朋友学习英语！

　　One of the best ways to master English is to practice with native speakers, but it gets old hearing the same questions everyday from everyone: “Where are you from? Where do you work? How much do you earn? Do you like Chinese food?” I got so tired of these questions that I printed up cards to give my interrogators. On the cards were printed,“Hi, I’m Bill Brown. I’m from the U.S. I teach at Xiamen University MBA Center. I earn enough money to pay taxes but not enough money to avoid taxes! Goodbye!”

　　掌握英语的很不错方式就是和以英语为母语的人进行交流、练习，但每天都是“你从哪儿来，你做什么工作，你赚多少，你喜爱中国的食物吗”这类问题，也太无新意，像我就不太爱回答这些问题，于是打印一些小卡片，每有“好奇者”我就给上一张，上面写着：“你好，我叫比尔·布朗，目前就职于厦门大学MBA中心，我的收入足够缴税，但尚未多到需要避税！再见！”

　　But I suspect all foreigners in China are keen on learning more about this ancient and vast nation.  If you can share some of China’s history and culture in English to foreign visitors, you’ll always have an enthusiastic audience. Therefore, English learners will no longer have to worry about a lack of materials to practise the language, and I will no longer be bothered by people wanting me to issue little cards for the same purpose.

　　但我相信，在这片土地上，外国人其实非常渴望了解这个古老又广阔的国度。因此，如果能用英语向海外来访者分享中国的文化历史，你将收获大量听众。这样一来，英语学习者再也不用担心缺少练习英语的素材了，我也不用在别人找我练习英语时分发小卡片了。

　　On Feb. 1st, I was astonished, and greatly honored, to receive a letter from Chairman Xi Jinping. Near the end of the letter, he wrote that he was confident that the best was yet ahead—that I’d write even better stories about China in the future. That was a great encouragement to me to continue my efforts to share China’s Story. But my own China Stories are just those from one foreigner’s perspective. Mr. Hu Min’s China Stories capture the heart and soul of China, ancient and modern, in a way that has never been done before. I cannot imagine a more rewarding way for Chinese to master English than by sharing with foreigners a collection that showcases thousands of years of Chinese culture and history.

　　今年2月1日，我收到了习近平总书记的来信，为此感到十分震惊，也十分荣幸。在信的结尾，他写道：“我相信，你将会见证一个更加繁荣进步、幸福美好的中国，一个更多造福世界和人类的中国，你笔下的中国故事也一定会更精彩。”这是一份莫大的鼓励，鼓励我继续同世界分享中国故事。但我的中国故事仅是一个外国人的视角，胡敏先生的中国故事却能抓住中国故事的灵魂，从古至今，这是一种前所未有的方式。通过用英语向外国人讲述中国几千年的文化历史，这是我能想到的很不错的英语学习方式。

　　And Mr. Hu Min showed great foresight by producing China Stories in English for 3 stages of English learners, from elementary to intermediate to more advanced, with each level telling the stories from subtly different perspectives —many of which I’d never thought of before. And each story ends with an enlightening conclusion or insight about China and Chinese that helps us understand how the nation’s rich past promises an even richer future—for both China and the world, thanks to the age-old Chinese Dream of prosperity and peaceful coexistence with neighbors near and far.

　　胡敏先生为英语学习者从基础、提高、熟练三个级别编写了《用英语讲中国故事》，可谓极具远见。不同级别的故事有着不同的阐释角度，甚至有许多角度是我不曾想到的。在每个故事的结尾都配有令人启发的总结或对中华民族精神的深刻见解，这有助我们理解历久弥新的 “繁荣与和平共处”的中国梦在现代中国和世界走向富强的过程中所发挥的重要作用。

　　Thank you, Mr. Hu Min, for an instant classic that I’m confident will kindle the imagination of the world—both Laowai and Laonei!

　　谢谢胡敏先生！我相信，这套新经典将点燃世界的想象，不管是对老内还是老外！

　　I hope the series will be used widely, both here in Chinese schools and overseas—especially in the hundreds of Confucian Institutes around the world that are helping to 好好讲中国故事.

　　我更希望这套书能得到广泛应用，无论是在中国的学校还是海外的学校，尤其是遍布世界的几百所孔子学院，都得到广泛使用，让我们一起“好好讲中国故事”。

　　Thank you!

　　谢谢大家！