Sunday, August 30, 2020
How to Identify Authentic Chinese Antique Porcelain or Ceramics
"Antiques are the Jewels sedimented in history" -- by TrueOrDie Antique
Qianlong Imperial Fencai Shang Vase of the Great Qing Dansty
Beauty
Antiques are precious because of their beauty, much less of their age. Because of their beauty they are preserved for generations, therefore become aged antiques. Beauty is the single most important thing I learned from my antique mentor Dr Chuck Jia. This cannot be emphasized enough. Now you are better than 90 percent of the antique collectors because you are reading this!
Beauty is so important that when it reaches a certain level even authenticity becomes less important. In fact, Beauty and authenticity often goes together. Beauty is the hardest or most expensive thing to imitate.
There are 3 elements to the value of an antique: artistic, cultural and historical. Beauty mainly belong to the artistic aspect. Of course age itself can contribute to beauty.
Do you see beauty in this 2000 years old ram?
Some people have sharp sense of beauty while others are indifferent I have an antique collector friend whose sense of beauty is very poor. However his daughter has a very sharpe sense of beauty. I do not know how much of this is due to inheritance (gene) vs learning through experience.
How do you think about these two pictures? Which one do you like more, the carved wood plate or red Jun kiln bowl? Think about these and see my comments at the end (Note*).
Aged Signs
1) Chick Feet Crack/Crazing
Export Qinghua plate of the 1700s.
Zhengde Reign Qinghua Jar of the Ming Dynasty.
Chongzhen Reign Qinghua Lotus Seed Jar of the Ming Dynasty
This is one of the most reliable aged signs and very hard to fake. It takes at least a few hundred years to form. It most often happens in the middle of a plate or inside in the middle of a jar. When you swipe with your finger, you should not feel scratched by its surface.
2) Aged or Dead Bubbles
Qinghua Dragon Yuhuchun Vase of the Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368)
Under 30x or more magnification, Some porcelains show discolored or blacked or even broken bubbles. It usually takes 600 years or more for this to be obvious. This happens often to some porcelains of the Ming, Yuan or Song dynasties. This is a sufficient but not necessary indication - which means whenever you see dead bubbles, it can certify its authenticity. But Not all genuine old porcelains has dead bubbles.
3) Iridescence (蛤蜊光)
At a certain angel, you can a light spectrum for certain old porcelain glaze. This happens more often to Wucai especially green dye. Normally it needs 150 years or more to form.
Qingbai Bowl of the Song Dynasty
Wucai Elephant Ear Vase of the Yuan Dynasty
Hongzhi Reign Yellow Plate of the Ming Dynasty
4) "Treasure Light" (宝光）
It is the glossy or shining from the inside appearance. It is very comfortable to watch. When you touch the glaze, it feels like baby skin. However, for fake porcelain either the light is too strong or too dull (due to acid treatment).
A Good Reproduction (left) versus a Real Yuan Qinghua porcelain Jar (right)
A Good Reproduction (left) vs an Authentic (right) Kid Bell Vase of the Ming Ware.
*Note if you see the beauty of the Carved wooden plate, you have a good sense of appreciation of beauty. If you think the Red Bowl is more beautiful, you sense of beauty is unusually sharpe.
Introduction to Yixing Zisha Teapot
Skip to end of metadataGo to start of metadata"Antiques are the Jewels sedimented in history" -- by TrueOrDie Antique
Yixing Zisha teapots are a special kind of teapot made of Yixing Zisha. They are unique in that they are enjoyed both by their art work and usage. What's more appealing is that "the more and longer it is being used, the better it looks". We call this property as "the Yixing Zisha appeal".
Over the years, I have collected over hundreds of Yixing Zisha teapots (majority of them are fine artwork and quite a few are masterpieces). According to my experiences, Yixing Zisha teapots can be divided into the following 5 categories:
Chemical teapots
None Zisha (most modern produced commodity) teapots
Old (Commodity) Zisha teapots
Zisha teapots of Fine Artwork
Masterpieces
Type 1 Chemical Teapots
Chemical teapots are made of clay added with modern chemicals, usually have very bright colors. These chemicals are added to cover the bad appearances of the original clays. These teapots are toxic and cannot be used.
Type 2 None Zisha Teapots
(most modern produced commodity after 1990s) teapots do not have modern chemicals added, but do not have Yixing Zisha clay either. They are not toxic, but do not have the Zisha appeal either. The reason why I put modern commodity so called Yixing Zisha teapots into the None-Zisha category is the high cost of the Yixing Zisha clay. In the year 2014, my antique mentor went to a famous Yixing Zisha clay provider. The cheapest costs $300/pound. What kind of teapots can you buy below $100? In 2015, I went to a Yixing Zisha shop owned by a craftsman. $130-180 are cookie-cut made. $220 are semi-cookie-cut.
None-Zisha Teapot
Type 3 Old Commodity Zisha Teapots
Type 3 Old (Commodity) Zisha teapots are those made before 1980s. At that time and most of the time before, Yixing Zisha teapots were cheap. There are no reason for counterfeiters to make Type 1 or Type 2 teapots. They may not look as beautiful as those of Fine Artwork or masterpiece. But they are made of Yixing Zisha nonetheless, and therefore have the Yixing Zisha appeal.
Color Teapot of the Late Qing Dynasty
Color Teapot of the Late Qing Dynasty
Type 4 Fine Art Work
Type 4 are pieces of fine artwork made in the past or modern times. They are usually made of top quality Yixing Zisha clay, aesthetically appealing.
WU Yueting Teapot
QingDeTang Teapot of Zhu Clay
Type 5 Masterpieces that Transcends Times
We recommend collectors collect old Yixing Zisha teapots. There are a few reasons for this. Firstly, compared to modern artwork, old pieces are not really that expensive. Secondly, old teapots usually have very good quality Yixing Zisha clay, which would have a good appeal property. Lastly, old teapots have high historical and cultural value.
Masterpiece by XU Hantang
Masterpiece by ZHU Kexin
Masterpiece by PAN Yiyuan
Masterpiece by YANG Jichu
Peerless Treasure by YANG Pengnian
Peerless Treasure of "Da Qing Qianlong Nian Zhi"
How do we tell old from new ones?
By Yixing Zisha clay - old teapots usually have darker color, bigger and rougher sand particle size, particle of different sizes.
By craftsmanship - old teapots use fewer tools and therefore not perfectly made and have more clues of how it is made.
By marks
What kind of Yixing Zisha clay are good clay?
They are easy to have the Yixing Zisha appeal. Some top clays can show you the difference within a couple of week's usage.
They have a strong sand appearance.
They are beautiful
After a longer period of times (usually 5 years or more), they can have some kind of semi-transparent appearance, like jade or precious stone. By that time, the clues and marks left by handcrafting are readily available to be spotted by your eyes.
What are top Yixing Zisha teapot?
Beautiful teapots: beauty of clay, craftsmanship, shape, artwork, spirit and soul.
What is beauty?
There are several kind of beauty. In the order of importance they are:
Gu1Zhuo2 （古拙） -- ancient looking.
Da4Du4 （大度）-- grandiose or magnificent
Qing1Xiu4 （清秀）-- handsome or pretty
Qv4Wei4 （趣味）-- interesting
Handmade vs Cookie-cutter
Handmade teapots are of art work. Everyone is different or unique. It takes times, craftsmanship, and creativity. They are made of top quality Yixing Zisha clay. It has soul. They are beautiful.
Cookie cutter are commodity. All are similar or even identical. They can be mass-produced. They are made of cheap or non Zisha clay. They do not have souls. They are boring.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
The Market Braces for the Boomers
http://finance.yahoo.com/focus-retirement/article/104263/The-Market-Braces-for-the-Boomers?mod=retirement-preparation
The Market Braces for the Boomers
Sponsored by
by Alan Murray
Sunday, January 6, 2008
provided by
Will the baby boomers' retirement cause the stock market to go bust?
That question, studied and debated for more than a decade, is no longer hypothetical. Kathleen Casey-Kirschling, the former New Jersey teacher who was born one second after midnight on January 1, 1946, became eligible for Social Security benefits this New Year's day, making her the first splash of a demographic tsunami. Over the next three decades, nearly 80 million boomers will join her.
To some prognosticators, the prospect of this swollen generation stepping down is a fright -- many times worse than the stock market's tumble last week. If the baby boomers stop working, they ask, who will produce the goods and services to keep the economy growing? If they stop earning, who will pay taxes to fund their Social Security and Medicare checks? And if they sell off stocks and bonds to finance their golden years, who will buy?
More from The Wall Street Journal Online:
• How to Share Less With Uncle Sam
• Grandma Needs Money. Now What?
• Money to Grandma? The Readers Vent
The answers to those questions remain covered in fog. Only this is absolutely clear: The generation that was first raised by Dr. Spock, first mesmerized by television and first serenaded by the Beatles is about to redefine retirement, just as it has every other stage of American life.
Threat to Stocks
At the core of concerns about the baby boomers' retirement is something economists call the "life-cycle hypothesis" of economic behavior: Most people tend to save little when young, build up savings during middle age, and then spend those savings in retirement.
That leads some savvy analysts to fret that the boomers' retirement will be marked by widespread selling of stocks and bonds. Jeremy Siegel, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, has said his computer model shows that, absent help from overseas investors -- buying he does expect to cushion the blow -- the boomers' retirement could cause stock prices to fall 40% to 50%.
"We have never witnessed anything like this," Dr. Siegel says of the huge exodus from the work force and its potential market effects.
But don't short the stock market just yet. There are reasons to think the future won't be so dire.
To begin with, a boomer-driven sell-off is unlikely to begin in the next decade or so. Many boomers are just reaching their peak earning years, and, for a while at least, their increased savings will offset any securities sales by others like Ms. Casey-Kirschling who opt for early retirement.
Moreover, while the baby boomers' rapid ramping up of savings helped fuel the soaring stock market of the '80s and '90s, the data suggests the "dissaving" after retirement happens much more slowly -- less a hill than a gently sloping plateau.
Assist From Abroad
Then there's the fact that the U.S. is, increasingly, an integrated part of a global economy. Even if boomers want to sell, Dr. Siegel argues, there will be plenty of younger and newly wealthy people in China, India and other emergent countries who will be ready to buy all the securities that the boomers want to dump.
"We can sell our assets to the rest of the world," Dr. Siegel says, "and they can ship us their goods." To some extent, of course, that's already happening.
Complicating the picture is the problem of how to pay for the government benefits that boomers are entitled to in retirement. The Congressional Budget Office projects that Social Security spending, absent changes, will grow from about 4% to 6% of the U.S. economy in the next 25 years, while Medicare and Medicaid will grow from 4% to 8%. By 2050, programs for the elderly are likely to eat up as big a share of the economy as the entire government does today -- forcing working Americans to face a possible 50% increase in their taxes.
David Walker, the U.S. comptroller general, thinks failure to come to grips with that fundamental fiscal problem could hold the seeds of the U.S.'s demise. "The Roman Republic fell for many reasons," he has said, "but three reasons are worth remembering: declining moral and political civility at home, an overconfident and overextended military in foreign lands, and fiscal irresponsibility by the central government."
Still, while demography may be destiny, that destiny is not unalterable. There are several economic developments that could lessen the burden of the boomers' sunset years.
One is more rapid growth in productivity. Once the boomers retire, the U.S. will have only two workers for every one person in retirement -- compared with four today. But if those workers are more productive than their predecessors -- perhaps because of better technology -- they can earn enough to finance the boomers' retirement and maintain the nation's wealth. The prospects for technology and productivity rescuing the day, however, have dimmed in the past year, as the government's measures of productivity growth have slowed.
Importing Workers
Another possibility is immigration. The U.S. can allow in more, younger workers from overseas. While that may be economically attractive, however, it's politically deadly -- as candidates are learning in this year's presidential campaign.
Finally, there is the possibility that baby boomers learn that work doesn't end at 62 or 65 or 66, but rather at 70, 75 or even 80. When Social Security was created, the average American had no reason to expect to live to the age of 65. Today, thanks to improvements in health care, he or she has every reason to expect to live to 75 or 80 or beyond. If so, shouldn't we remain productive members of the work force for longer?
If the answer to that question is yes, it would go a long way toward ensuring that grim economic and market forecasts for the baby boomers' final years never come to pass.
Write to Alan Murray at Alan.Murray@wsj.com
Copyrighted, Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Charlie Munger's 10 Rules for Investment Success
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2007/12/13/charlie-mungers-10-rules-for-investment-success.aspx?source=iflfollnk0000003
Charlie Munger's 10 Rules for Investment Success
By Morgan Housel December 13, 2007
88 Recommendations
Those of you lucky enough to attend a Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) annual shareholder meeting have undoubtedly heard Charlie Munger say, "I have nothing to add."
In reality, the guy has quite a bit to add. Thankfully for us, Munger is almost as forthcoming with his investment thoughts as his pal Warren Buffett. In his must-read book, Poor Charlie's Almanac, Munger puts forth a 10-step checklist that even the most inexperienced investors could benefit from.
1. Measure risk
All investment evaluations should begin by measuring risk, especially reputational.
It's crucially important to understand that from time to time, your investments won't turn out the way you wanted. To protect your portfolio, don't set yourself up for complete failure in the first place. Giving yourself a large margin of safety, avoiding people of questionable character, and only taking on risk when you can be sure you'll be satisfactorily rewarded are all steps in the right direction. Companies like Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) might have perfectly bright futures, but when their shares are priced for perfection, they might nonetheless prove too risky for savvy investors.
2. Be independent
Only in fairy tales are emperors told they're naked.
With stockbrokers often rewarded for activity, not successful investments, it's critically important to make sure you believe that what you're doing is right. Chasing others' opinions may seem logical, but investors like Munger and Buffett often succeed by going against the grain. Big Berkshire investments such as Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), and more recently Petrochina (NYSE: PTR), were largely ignored by the masses when they were first made.
3. Prepare ahead
The only way to win is to work, work, work, and hope to have a few insights.
It shouldn't surprise you that the best investments aren't the ones we typically read about in the paper. The diamonds in the rough are out there, but finding them requires effort. Buffett reads thousands of annual reports to cultivate ideas -- even if he only comes up with a few candidates each year. Munger advocates a constant curiosity for nearly everything in life. If you never stop asking the "whys" in what you do, you won't have trouble staying motivated.
4. Have intellectual humility
Acknowledging what you don't know is the dawning of wisdom.
Perhaps most crucially to Berkshire's success, its leaders never stray away from their comfort zones. In investing, a clear idea of what the business will look like in the future counts most. If you struggle to comprehend what the business does today, you might as well be throwing darts. While companies like Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) and Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) are certainly titans in their own right today, they might look drastically different in five to 10 years.
5. Analyze rigorously
Use effective checklists to minimize errors and omissions.
The numbers don't lie. When researching investments, Buffett and Munger like to try to estimate the security's worth before they even look at its price. They are businessmen, not stock-market junkies. They focus their brainpower on the value of businesses, not convoluted economic forecasts or intricate market-timing techniques. Munger is incredibly brilliant, but the analytical rigor of his investment decisions is based around simplicity, not complexity.
6. Allocate assets wisely
Proper allocation of capital is an investor's No. 1 job.
In the early days of Munger's investment partnership, he held very few securities. When good ideas came, he poured significant capital into them; otherwise, he simply enjoyed the California sun. The amount of money employed in each of your investments should relate directly to its attractiveness. When you find a great investment, don't be afraid to bet big on it.
7. Have patience
Resist the natural human bias to act.
Munger said it best himself: "Half of Warren's time is sitting on his ass and reading; the other half is spent talking on the phone or in person to a highly gifted person that he trusts and trust him." While it can be tempting to jump in and out of the market, true fortunes are made from big commitments in quality companies, held indefinitely. When you're done with that, find a hobby. Spending all day watching stock tickers won't do you much good.
8. Be decisive
When proper circumstances present themselves, act with decisiveness and conviction.
This also goes back to not following the herd. When others are jubilant, you should be scared, and vice versa. Don't let others' emotions sway you; the market masses should help you find opportunities in their absence, not guide you down their own path to mediocrity.
9. Be ready for change
Accept unremovable complexity.
Investing success requires us to accept inevitable changes. Munger and Buffett hated railroads for decades, but as the times changed, they threw their old thoughts out the door and invested billions. The world around us won't always conform to our preferences and prejudices, and sometimes our best ideas will prove incorrect. If you aren't willing to roll with a changing market, you may find yourself fighting a lost cause.
10. Stay focused
Keep it simple and remember what you set out to do.
In chasing little, unimportant things, we often overlook huge and critical factors. But by keeping it simple, we can fixate on what really matters: buying good companies at a good price, and holding them until they're fully priced.
Charlie Munger often gets overshadowed by his more famous partner, but don't assume that's any reflection of Munger's own genius. He's undoubtedly been a guiding light for Buffett himself, and by any count, he should go down as one of the greatest investors of all time.
For related Munger-esque Foolishness:
Monday, September 17, 2007
Global Luxury Survey
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1659346_1659333_1659187,00.html
Call it a reaction to years of austerity, but China is the world's third largest consumer of luxury goods, accounting for 12% of global sales, according to a December 2004 Goldman Sachs report. If this trend continues, China could surpass the U.S. to become, along with Japan, the world's largest purchaser of luxury items by 2015. Chinese yuppies are driving the demand, buying everything from expensive watches to imported cars. And luxury purveyors are responding: Armani plans to open 24 stores in China in 2008.
Most often mentioned luxury brands:In this society of sudden economic freedom, newly rich capitalists are eager to clarify their social standing, so they turn to the obvious luxury must-haves: traditional French labels and expensive watches. That explains why Chanel, Lacoste and Dior rank in the top five brands with the highest level of recognition.
Watch Out22% of affluent consumers in China own a Rolex. 66% of affluent Chinese men have bought at least one watch in the past six months and have paid an average of $2,253 per watch.
Top Five Watch Brands:1. Rolex2. Omega3. Cartier4. Vacheron Constantin5. Breitling
Conspicuous ConsumptionChinese consumers who buy luxury goods do so to show off or to help define their identity. The Asian concept of face—or pride and dignity—is a key reason they invest in expensive brands. In a fast-growing economy, status symbols are the easiest way to demonstrate wealth and power.
Most widely owned luxury brands:1. Lacoste2. Valentino3. Chanel / Bally
Top luxury beauty brands:The three most popular foreign beauty brands in China are Estée Lauder, Lancôme and Guerlain. More than 50% of affluent Chinese consumers own either a Lancôme or an Estée Lauder product.
On average, affluent Chinese consumers will spend up to $280 on a single skin-care product
Friday, September 14, 2007
The Subtle Art of Self-Promotion on the Job
The Subtle Art of Self-Promotion on the Job
by Marshall LoebThursday, September 13, 2007 provided by
MarketWatch.com: •
What Not to do When Asking for a Raise •
Don't Treat Your Boss Like the Enemy •
The ABCs of Online Networking Educate up. If your boss is too busy to stay abreast of your activities, make it your job to keep her up-to-date. Schedule a weekly meeting or send regular emails detailing your accomplishments and addressing any issues. But keep the remarks concise, informative and balanced. "Don't talk about you, talk about the broader organizational impact of your actions," says Trovas.
Expand your network. Say good-bye to the old bunker mentality and make an effort to reach out to people outside your department. You can ask them to participate in a cross-departmental project or simply sit in on a meeting. Not only does this encourage collaboration, but also it's a natural way to spread the word about what you're working on. "By inviting new people into the fold, you're creating more visibility for yourself and your team," says Trovas.
Tap other people's expertise. Many of us assume that asking for help makes us look weak or incompetent. In fact, tapping other people's expertise can help you build a stronger network. By asking for help, you're not signifying that you don't know what you're doing; you're simply acknowledging that your colleagues have complementary skills -- a gesture they're sure to appreciate and remember.
Acknowledge your team. If you tend to underplay your own accomplishments out of modesty, one of the most comfortable means to gain visibility is to acknowledge the efforts of your team. "In this way, you're talking about a collective effort and taking the focus off the individual," says Trovas.
Celebrate success. If your team or department has just made a big sale or completed a long-term project, don't be shy about it. Give a party, print some t-shirts or send out an office-wide email praising everyone's efforts. Celebrating will help you advertise your achievements and set the office abuzz.
Copyrighted, MarketWatch. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of MarketWatch content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of MarketWatch. MarketWatch shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.
Friday, June 22, 2007
AFI TOP 100 U.S. FILMS
AFI TOP 100 U.S. FILMS
1. "Citizen Kane," 1941. 2. "The Godfather," 1972. 3. "Casablanca," 1942. 4. "Raging Bull," 1980. 5. "Singin' in the Rain," 1952. 6. "Gone With the Wind," 1939. 7. "Lawrence of Arabia," 1962. 8. "Schindler's List," 1993. 9. "Vertigo," 1958. 10. "The Wizard of Oz," 1939. 11. "City Lights," 1931. 12. "The Searchers," 1956. 13. "Star Wars," 1977. 14. "Psycho," 1960. 15. "2001: A Space Odyssey," 1968. 16. "Sunset Blvd.", 1950. 17. "The Graduate," 1967. 18. "The General," 1927. 19. "On the Waterfront," 1954. 20. "It's a Wonderful Life," 1946. 21. "Chinatown," 1974. 22. "Some Like It Hot," 1959. 23. "The Grapes of Wrath," 1940. 24. "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," 1982. 25. "To Kill a Mockingbird," 1962. 26. "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," 1939. 27. "High Noon," 1952. 28. "All About Eve," 1950. 29. "Double Indemnity," 1944. 30. "Apocalypse Now," 1979. 31. "The Maltese Falcon," 1941. 32. "The Godfather Part II," 1974. 33. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," 1975. 34. "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937. 35. "Annie Hall," 1977. 36. "The Bridge on the River Kwai," 1957. 37. "The Best Years of Our Lives," 1946. 38. "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre," 1948. 39. "Dr. Strangelove," 1964. 40. "The Sound of Music," 1965. 41. "King Kong," 1933. 42. "Bonnie and Clyde," 1967. 43. "Midnight Cowboy," 1969. 44. "The Philadelphia Story," 1940. 45. "Shane," 1953. 46. "It Happened One Night," 1934. 47. "A Streetcar Named Desire," 1951. 48. "Rear Window," 1954. 49. "Intolerance," 1916. 50. "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," 2001. 51. "West Side Story," 1961. 52. "Taxi Driver," 1976. 53. "The Deer Hunter," 1978. 54. "M-A-S-H," 1970. 55. "North by Northwest," 1959. 56. "Jaws," 1975. 57. "Rocky," 1976. 58. "The Gold Rush," 1925. 59. "Nashville," 1975. 60. "Duck Soup," 1933. 61. "Sullivan's Travels," 1941. 62. "American Graffiti," 1973. 63. "Cabaret," 1972. 64. "Network," 1976. 65. "The African Queen," 1951. 66. "Raiders of the Lost Ark," 1981. 67. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", 1966. 68. "Unforgiven," 1992. 69. "Tootsie," 1982. 70. "A Clockwork Orange," 1971. 71. "Saving Private Ryan," 1998. 72. "The Shawshank Redemption," 1994. 73. "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," 1969. 74. "The Silence of the Lambs," 1991. 75. "In the Heat of the Night," 1967. 76. "Forrest Gump," 1994. 77. "All the President's Men," 1976. 78. "Modern Times," 1936. 79. "The Wild Bunch," 1969. 80. "The Apartment, 1960. 81. "Spartacus," 1960. 82. "Sunrise," 1927. 83. "Titanic," 1997. 84. "Easy Rider," 1969. 85. "A Night at the Opera," 1935. 86. "Platoon," 1986. 87. "12 Angry Men," 1957. 88. "Bringing Up Baby," 1938. 89. "The Sixth Sense," 1999. 90. "Swing Time," 1936. 91. "Sophie's Choice," 1982. 92. "Goodfellas," 1990. 93. "The French Connection," 1971. 94. "Pulp Fiction," 1994. 95. "The Last Picture Show," 1971. 96. "Do the Right Thing," 1989. 97. "Blade Runner," 1982. 98. "Yankee Doodle Dandy," 1942. 99. "Toy Story," 1995. 100. "Ben-Hur," 1959.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
华夏快递 : 胡涣：介绍《寻找生命的意义》
·胡 涣· 弗兰克尔（Ｖｉｋｔｏｒ Ｆｒａｎｋｌ，１９０５－１９９７）是奥地利著名心理学家。二战中被投入纳粹集中营，历经九死一生，其父母、兄弟、妻子皆死于集中营。弗兰克尔凭着坚强的毅力得以生还，出狱后就其集中营经历写出《寻找生命的意义》（“Ｍａｎ’ｓ Ｓｅａｒｃｈ ｆｏｒ Ｍｅａｎｉｎｇ”），广受欢迎，被多次重印和再版。我在书店买到的这一本是其英译本的第７３次印刷。出版六十年后仍能在书店的书架上找到，足见其思想的生命力。 弗兰克尔作为心理学家和大屠杀幸存者的双重经历让他对人生有了常人体会不到的感悟。Ａｌｌｐｏｒｔ教授在本书序言中写道，“他失去了所有的亲人和财产，他所有的价值观都被践踏得粉碎，他每天都面临饥饿、寒冷和暴行，他每时每刻都可能被拉出去处死。在这样的环境中，他怎么还能觉得生活值得继续下去呢？一位亲身经历了这样极端环境的心理医生的话是值得一听的。” 支持弗兰克尔在这样的绝望中活下去的，是他的发现：人有一样东西，是永远丢失不了的，是在丢失了所有别的东西之后还有的。这就是，人在任何一个给定的环境下，都有选择自己心态（Ａｔｔｉｔｕｄｅ）的自由。他为自己选择的心态是：接受现实；在今天、在囹圄之内发现生活的意义，而不是寄希望于明天。 弗兰克尔认为，人生的意义有三个层面：创造、经历与心态。 首先，人通过创造出自己以前没有的东西来证明自己的能力。多数人的理想，比如当个成功的企业家、科学家、艺术家，拥有一所大房子，培养一个好孩子，在公司得到认可、获得提拔，等等，所追寻的人生意义就是在这个层面。也即马斯洛所谓的“自我实现”。在创造层面，人是个演员，扮演着主动的角色。 其次，生命的意义还体现在经历的层面。在这个层面，人是个观众，是个被动的角色。旅游、看电影、读书、体验被爱的感觉，就是在经历层面追寻人生意义的种种体现。 第三个，也是最高的层面，是心态层面。弗兰克尔解释道：“即使是一个最绝望无助的人，在面对着一个他无法改变的命运时，他还是可以超越自己、战胜自己，进而改变自己。他可以把一个人生悲剧转变为辉煌的胜利。”在这个层面，人既是演员，也是观众。但这个观众不是在看着别人表演的观众，而是在看着自己表演的观众。正因为看到了自己的表演，所以才能耻于自己的表演，才能让自己的表演更尽善尽美。 由此我想到了一位面对死亡的人和另一群面对死亡的人。一位是“死得其所，快哉快哉”的谭嗣同。一群是河南艾滋病晚期病人。我被网上那些艾滋病人的照片震惊了。震惊之一是病人症状之恐怖。虽然以前也有耳闻，但百闻不如一见。震惊之二是病人的表情之干枯、绝望与无助。同样是面对死亡，我对前者的感情是敬，是自惭形秽；对后者的感情是悲、怜、和一种想要施舍点什么给他们的欲望。这鲜明的对比，大概可以作为对生命意义之最高层面的注解吧？ 弗兰克尔对快乐的论述也很精彩，翻译一段如下： “在欧洲人看来，美国文化的一大特点是人被要求必须快乐。但是快乐不是能直接追求得到的。人只能去追求因，而快乐是果。人要快乐必须有一个理由，而理由一旦找到，快乐就会不请自来。所以，人不是去寻找快乐，而是去寻找让他快乐的理由——通过发现在当下的环境中蛰伏着的意义。 “快乐对理由的需要与另外一个为人类所独有的现象很相似：笑。如果你想让别人笑，你必须给他一个理由，比如说，你得给他讲个笑话。强求他笑，或让他强求自己笑，都不可能让他真的笑出来。这样做就像照相时让人说“起士”，结果发现照出来的是僵硬的假笑。” 用这段话我们可以来理解，弗兰克尔所说的“把一个人生悲剧转变为辉煌的胜利”是不是鲁迅所鄙夷的“精神胜利法”呢？鲁迅所鄙夷的是没有理由的、空洞的精神胜利，而弗兰克尔描述的是有理由的、真实的胜利。这胜利不是打败了别人的胜利，而是战胜了自己的胜利。陶渊明的退隐田园与阿Ｑ的虚妄，都可以说是精神胜利，但胜利表面之下实质的不同是显而易见的。 弗兰克尔曾治疗过无数有自杀倾向的心理病人。很多病人告诉他，他们多么庆幸自杀没有成功，他们现在觉得多么快乐。看来，对于很多人，只有当死神真正逼近时，生活的意义才彰显出来。况且，没有亲眼见过死神面孔的人，谁又敢夸口说已经了解了生命的意义呢？弗兰克尔于１９９７年去世，享年９２岁。他曾每天都仰仗死神的鼻息而生存，却因此无比清晰地认识到了生命的意义。他的长寿也许是对他的理论的一个最好的旁证吧。
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