耶鲁大学开放课程—哲学：死亡.26.Open.Yale.course—Philosophy：Death.DivX-YYeTs人人影视

上次我们讲到自杀的道德问题Last time we turned to questions about the morality of suicide,
我提到了两个and I started with two arguments that
我称为草率随性的观点I called quick and dirty arguments.
我认为公平地讲I suppose it would have been fairer to say
它们其实都是神学观点that they were really theological arguments,
或者说是某种程度上采用了神学前提的or they were moral arguments that used, in part,
道德观点theological premises.
我觉得至少这种I suggested that, at least if we look at them
草率随意的观点in their quick and dirty versions,
不足以说明问题they were inadequate,
如果我们想仔细研究and if we're going to make a more careful argument
自杀的道德问题about the morality of suicide,
我们需要一些更系统化的we need to turn to a more systematic view
道德理论about the contents of morality.
我们需要根据We need to look at suicide
基本的道德准则来评判自杀in terms of the basic moral principles.
这不是我们有机会仔细探讨的事情Now, that's not something we've got the chance to do in detail,
但我们至少能讲清楚but I think we can at least say enough
一些基本的道德准则about a couple of basic approaches to the contents of morality,
或是基本的道德尺度or the basic moral rules,
让我们有个概念 知道to get the beginnings of an understanding of
更仔细地研究自杀的道德问题what might emerge about the morality of suicide
会得到什么if we were to do that more carefully.
先不谈自杀问题So, holding off on suicide for the moment,
我们先问一下let's ask ourselves,
是什么决定了一个行为what is it that makes an action
是否符合道德morally acceptable or morally forbidden?
毋庸置疑This is, unsurprisingly,
不同道德理论对此存在争议something that different moral theories disagree about.
但至少有一个要素或特征 是所有But there's at least one factor or one feature that all,
或者说大部分道德理论所接受的or almost all, moral theories agree about.
那就是行为造成的后果很关键And that is that the consequences of your action matter.
我们或许可以 或许不可以That is, we might or might not
只把行为的后果当作道德评判的标准think that consequences are the only things that are morally relevant
来考察行为是否道德when we think about the morality of your action,
但行为造成的后果but surely it is one thing that's morally relevant--
肯定是其中一个标准what are the consequences of your action going to be.
因此 下面我们从后果的角度So, let's think about the morality of suicide
来思考自杀的道德问题with an eye towards consequences,
因为我们讨论的是道德问题bearing in mind that since we're talking about a moral point of view
所以我们要考虑we need to take into account
行为的后果对所有人造成的

影响the consequences as they affect everybody.
那么 受自杀行为影响最大的人Now, the person who, of course, is most affected by suicide is,
当然就是自杀者自己of course, the person who is killing themselves.
似乎我们的第一印象很清楚And at first glance it might seem pretty clear
自杀对其本人是不好的that the consequences of suicide are bad for that person.
毕竟这个人之前活着而现在死了After all, the person was alive and now they're dead,
我们通常将死亡造成的结果看做坏的and we normally would take death to be a bad result.
假如我告诉你If I were to tell you,
墙上有个开关"Oh, here's a switch on the wall.
只要你按动开关If you were to flip the switch,
一千个活着的人a thousand people who would otherwise be alive
就会立即死亡would end up dead,"
一般情况下你一定会同意you would normally take that to be a pretty compelling argument
不能按开关against flipping the switch.
为什么呢 因为结果是坏的Why? Because the result would be bad.
为什么呢 因为一千个人会死去Why? Because a thousand people would end up dead.
也许一个人死亡的坏处Well, one person ending up dead
并不比一千个人死亡的坏处更大isn't as bad as a thousand people ending up dead,
但即便如此but for all that
我们不是仍然可以说结果是坏的吗shouldn't we still say it's a bad consequence?
由此我们不是可以说And as a result of that, shouldn't we say that
无论结果在道德评判中的however far appeal to consequences goes
作用有多大in terms of giving us our moral theory,
我们难道不应认为 从结果来看don't we have to say in terms of consequences,
或者说考虑到结果or with regard to consequences,
自杀是不道德的suicide is immoral?
但先别急But not so quick!
尽管死亡通常是坏事Even though it's true that normally death is a bad thing,
但并非总是坏事it's not always a bad thing.
我们在讨论死亡的主要坏处时This is the sort of thing that we've learned by thinking about
学习过这个问题what does the badness of death consist in.
平常情况下Typical cases are ones in which
死亡剥夺了人们the person's dying robs them of a chunk of life
本来会有的幸福生活that would've been good for them overall,
因此死亡对他们来说是坏事and because of that dying then is bad for them.
但在我们后来的例子里But in the kinds of cases that we're thinking about,
有理由自杀的那些例子里cases where suicide would be rationally acceptable,
我们现在讨论那些自杀是否符合道德and we're now asking whether or not it's morally acceptable--
在那些例子里 至少在那些in those sorts of cases, at least the kind of paradigm examples
我们关注的例子里that we've been focused on,
那些人死了会更好the person is better off dead.
他们生不如死They're better off dead,
生活给

予他们的meaning that what life now holds out for them--
也许并非一直是坏的although perhaps not negative through and through--
但总的来说是坏的is negative on balance.
总和是负数It's negative on balance;
他们最好不要再活下去they're not better off continuing to live.
最好选择死亡They're better off dying.
也就是说And that means, of course,
死亡对他们来说不是坏事而是好事that dying isn't bad for them, but rather good for them,
因此他们死亡造成的结果不是坏的and so their death is not a bad consequence,
而是好的but rather a good consequence.
假设你愿意相信有这种情况Provided that you're prepared to accept the possibility of cases
某些人早死比晚死in which somebody would be better off if their life ended sooner
会更好rather than later,
我们便可得出结论we're led to the conclusion that--
从道德上看from the moral point of view
只关注于结果时as far as focusing on consequences goes--
如果一个人自杀 实际上the consequences might actually be good rather than bad
结果可能是好的而不是坏的if the person were to kill themselves.
或许他们能够They will free themselves, let's suppose,
从痛苦中得到解脱of the suffering they would otherwise have to undergo.
那么 第一印象在说Well, that's--first glance said,
从结果看自杀是错的consequences says suicide's wrong.
第二个印象在说 从结果看Second glance says, consequences says,
自杀在某些情况下是对的as least in certain circumstances, suicide's right.
当然 第三印象便是Of course, third glance suggests,
我们不能只关注自杀对we can't just focus on consequences for the person
自杀者本人的影响who is contemplating suicide.
因为从道德的角度出发Because from the point of view of morality
应该考虑对所有人造成的影响we have to look at the consequences for everybody.
哪些人会受到Who else might get affected
这个人自杀的影响by the death or suicide of the person?
我们最先想到的Well, the most obvious people for us to think about
就是死者的家属和亲人at that point then are the family and loved ones--
以及那些认识他the people who most directly know about
并且关心他的人and care about the person who is contemplating suicide.
然后 我的印象快不够用了And again--I'm running out of glances,
第一印象 你会说but at first glance you might say,
结果明显是坏的well, there the consequences are clearly bad.
这个人自杀 一般来讲When the person kills themselves that causes, typically,
会对其家属和朋友a great deal of distress for the family
造成沉重打击and friends of the person who has killed themselves.
即便这是真的 我们仍要问Even if that's true, we now have to ask,
如何衡量这些结果how do the consequences weigh out?
毕竟我们生存的世界没有一件事After all, we live

in a world in which no single act typically
只会导致好的结果has only good consequences,
也没有一件事只会造成坏的结果or no single act has bad consequences and only bad consequences.
我们的选择通常有利有弊Often our choices are mixed packages
我们需要评估这样做或者那样做where we have to ask whether the good that we can do is greater than
或者怎样做 才能利大于弊the bad that we'd be doing with this act or that act or some third act.
但即便如此Even if there are, then,
自杀对其家属negative consequences in terms of distress to the family,
朋友或爱人的负面影响friends, and loved ones, of the person who kills themselves,
仍可能超过that might still be outweighed
对自杀者本人的好处by the benefit to the person himself or herself,
如果自杀者if it was really the case
死了真能更好的话that he or she would be better off dying.
但值得注意的是But it's also worth bearing in mind
当我们想到那些that insofar as we're thinking about people
关心爱护他的人who love and care about the person who is considering dying,
总的来说他们其实then they may actually overall, on balance,
或许得到了解脱be relieved that the
因他们的亲人不用再忍受痛苦了suffering of their loved one has come to an end.
当然 我们都很震惊和沮丧We will, of course, all be horribly distressed
看到大自然that nature,
或者说命运 或者什么别的or the Fates, or what have you,
导致人们面临的选择竟然是has brought it about that this person's choices
或者杀死自己are now reduced to killing themselves on the one hand,
或者继续活在病魔缠绕or continuing the terminal stages of some illness
虚弱不堪的痛苦中where they're incapacitated and in pain.
我们当然希望他有治愈的机会We will, of course, wish there was a serious prospect of a cure,
重获健康的可能some chance of recovery,
更希望他们从一开始就没生病wish they'd never gotten ill in the first place.
而现在只有两个选择But given the limited choices,
继续痛苦地活着continued suffering and pain, on the one hand,
还是终结这种苦难的生活or having an end to that suffering and pain,
如果这个人能理性地评估未来if the person can rationally assess their prospects
并且合理地认为选择死亡会更好and reasonably come to believe they're better off dead,
那么这一判断then that's a judgment
会得到他们亲人的认可their loved ones can come to share as well.
也许他们会懊恼They may well regret the fact--
不止懊恼 他们会咒骂more than regret, curse the fact--
因为他们只有这些选择that these are the only choices they've got,
但由于只有这些选择but still, given the limited choices they may agree,
他们可能会同意 结束痛苦会更好they may come to agree, better to put an end to the suffering.
所以当这个人自

杀时And so when the person kills themselves,
他们会支持这个决定they may second that choice.
他们会说They may say,
至少他不再忍受痛苦的折磨"At least they're not in pain and agony anymore."
所以 如果我们从结果的角度看So, if we look at it from the point of view of consequences--
事实上 有的道德观念认为in fact, suppose we had a moral view that said
结果并不是衡量行为consequences aren't just one thing that was morally relevant
是否符合道德的唯一标准in thinking about what makes an action right or wrong.
假设我们极端地认为Suppose we took the bold claim that
结果是道德评判的唯一标准consequences are the only thing that's morally relevant.
有一个道德观念便是如此There are moral views that take this position.
我估计最著名的I suppose the best-known
认为结果是道德评判的唯一标准example of this kind of consequence-only approach to morality
就是功利主义is utilitarianism.
功利主义是一种道德学说Utilitarianism is the moral doctrine
认为对与错that says right and wrong is
取决于能否使a matter of producing
所有人尽可能幸福as much happiness for everybody as possible,
平等地计算每个人的幸福counting everybody's happiness equally.
假如你无法获得幸福And when you can't produce happiness,
那就至少应该将痛苦最小化then at least trying to minimize the misery and suffering,
平等地计算每个人的痛苦counting everybody's misery and suffering equally.
假设我们接受功利主义的立场So, suppose we accept this utilitarian position.
我们可以对自杀的道德问题What conclusions would we come to
得到怎样的结论then about the morality of suicide?
我认为结论会是中立的I suppose the conclusion would be a kind of moderate one.
一方面我们可以推翻极端的说法On the one hand, we'd be rejecting the extreme that says
认为自杀绝对不符合道德suicide is never morally acceptable,
因为要这样说because to say that,
你就必须承认自杀总是you'd have to be claiming suicide always
产生坏的结果has bad consequences overall.
尽管这是经验之谈And that strikes me, although it's an empirical claim,
但我不认可这种经验之谈it strikes me as a rather implausible empirical claim.
因为 很遗憾It's, sadly enough,
很容易找出一个例子not too difficult to describe cases in which
证明某人通过自杀the results may actually be better if the person kills themselves
以避免痛苦的折磨会更好rather than having their suffering continue.
对其本人和家属都会更好It may be better for them and better for their family.
另一方面也不应该On the other hand, we certainly wouldn't want--
假如我们是功利主义者if we were utilitarians--
我们也不应该走入另一个极端we also wouldn't want to go to the other extreme
说自杀总是符合道德的and say suici

de is always morally acceptable,
因为要说自杀总是符合道德because, of course, to say that it's always morally acceptable
就必须要说is to say that
自杀的结果总是好的the consequences are never bad when you kill yourself.
这点明显没有说服力And that's also pretty obviously an implausible thing to claim.
你们都很年轻 很健康You guys are young, you're healthy,
你们有光明的前途you've got a great future in front of you.
如果你们自杀 结果肯定是不好的If you were to kill yourself, the results wouldn't be good.
自杀的结果肯定比The results would be worse overall
不自杀的结果要坏than if you had refrained from killing yourself.
因此功利主义的立场是中立的So, the utilitarian position is in the middle.
它不认为自杀从来都是错的It doesn't say suicide's never acceptable,
也不认为自杀从来都是对的doesn't say suicide is always acceptable.
也许不出意料It says, perhaps unsurprisingly,
它认为有些时候自杀是可接受的it's sometimes acceptable;
这取决于现实情况it depends on the facts.
取决于自杀的结果It depends on the results.
取决于这个结果It depends on comparing the results of this action,
和其它可能的结果的比较killing yourself, to the alternatives open to you.
我们要问 你真的生不如死吗We have to ask, is your life worse than nothing?
有没有一些医疗手段Is there some medical procedure
能够治愈你呢available to you that would cure you?
如果有 即使你现在过得生不如死If there is, and even if your life is worse than nothing,
但就结果而言that still doesn't make it
自杀仍然不是最好的选择the best choice in terms of the consequences.
就结果而言 医疗救治Getting medical help is a preferable choice
是更好的选择in terms of the consequences.
我们还可以想像We can even think of cases where
假如你生不如死your life is worse than nothing,
你死了会更好you'd be better off dead,
而且任何医疗手段都无法治愈你and there is no medical alternative of a cure available to you,
但即便如此 按照功利主义观点but for all that, it still isn't morally legitimate
自杀仍然可能是不道德的to kill yourself in terms of the utilitarian outlook.
因为 一如既往Because, as always,
我们还要考虑对他人造成的影响we have to think about the consequences for others.
也许你的死亡对某些人And there may be others
产生了非常不利的影响who'd be so adversely affected by your death
其损害已经超过了that the harm to them outweighs
你活着付出的代价the cost to you of keeping yourself alive.
假设 比如Suppose, for example,
你的孩子们只有你一人抚养that you're the single parent of young children.
在道德上你有义务抚养他们You've got a kind of moral obligation to look after them.
如果你死了If you were to die,
对他们

来说会非常可怕they'd really have it horribly.
毋庸置疑 在这种情况下It's conceivable then, in cases like that,
你自杀对孩子造成的痛苦the suffering of your children, were you to kill yourself,
将超过你为孩子而活在世上would outweigh the suffering that you'd have to undergo
所忍受的痛苦were you to keep yourself alive for the sake of your children.
因此这取决于实际情况So, it all depends on the facts.
如果我们站在功利主义一边Still, if we accept the utilitarian position,
我们会得到一个中立的结论we do end up with a moderate conclusion.
在特定情况下自杀是符合道德的In certain circumstances suicide will be morally justified--
大致说来 就是在你死了会更好roughly speaking, in those cases where you're better off dead
并且对他人的影响不会过大的情况下and the effects on others aren't so great as to outweigh that.
那些就是典型的Those will be the paradigm cases in which
从功利主义的角度来判断suicide makes sense or is legitimate,
自杀是有意义的或者说是正当的例子morally speaking, from the utilitarian perspective.
但当然 这也不是说这时自杀But of course, that doesn't mean that suicide
永远都符合道德is indeed ever morally legitimate.
因为我们不一定必须Because we don't necessarily want
接受功利主义的道德观to embrace the utilitarian theory of morality.
大体上说 当我们认为结果重要Utilitarianism is what you get, roughly speaking,
而且只有结果重要时when we say consequences matter
我们就得到了功利主义观点and they're all that matters.
但大部分人倾向认为But most of us are inclined to think
道德评判不应只关注结果that there's more to morality than consequences.
大部分人倾向于认为Most of us are inclined to think that
有些行为会导致坏的结果there are cases in which actions can have bad results--
或者 有些行为的结果是好的rather, actions can have good results and yet,
但尽管如此 仍然是不道德的for all that, be morally forbidden.
或者说尽管有些行为结果是坏的Or actions could have bad results and yet,
但仍然是道德的for all that, still be morally required.
这并不是说结果对道德无关紧要That's not to say that consequences don't matter morally;
而是说结果it's to claim, rather, that consequences
不是道德评判的唯一标准aren't the only thing that matters morally.
结果可能因其它的道德标准而变得不重要Consequences can be outweighed by other morally relevant factors.
这是道德理论的一个分支Well, that's the position that's held
义务论的观点by the branch of moral theory known as deontology.
义务论者认为So deontologists say other
除结果以外还有其它道德标准things matter morally besides consequences.
要判断你的行为是否正确In deciding whether your action is right or w

rong,
你需要关注行为的结果you have to pay attention to the consequences,
但还要关注一些别的事情but you have to pay attention to other things as well.
什么事情呢 不出所料What other things? Well, unsurprisingly,
在这个领域不同的义务论者this is an area then in which different deontologists
对这些其它的道德评判标准will disagree one to the next in terms of what else they want
抱有不同意见to add to the list of morally relevant factors.
但有一个标准But there's one kind of additional factor
是大部分义务论者that most of us in our deontological moods
都同意的would want to add to the list,
那就是 无论如何 我认为它and that's this--so one, at any rate, that's relevant I think,
和自杀话题直接相关most directly relevant for thinking about suicide.
这个标准便是That factor is the factor
不仅要关注行为的结果of not just what was the upshot of your action
还要关注你如何达成这个结果but how you produced that upshot;
不仅是结果是什么not just what the results were,
还有你达到这种结果的手段but what was your means of getting those results
特别是and more particularly still,
为了达到这个结果你是否必须伤害别人did you have to harm anybody to produce the results?
大部分人认为伤害别人是不对的Most of us are inclined to think it's wrong to harm people,
或者至少是无辜的人or at least innocent people.
伤害无辜的人一定是错的It's wrong to harm innocent people
即使这样做的结果是好的even if the results of doing that might be good.
我特意强调无辜的人是因为Now, I threw in the qualification about innocent people because,
我们大部分人倾向认为of course, it's also true that most of us are inclined to think that
自卫是正当的self-defense might be justified.
伤害那些攻击你Harming people who are attacking you
或者你的朋友or your friends
或者你的同胞的人应该是正当的or your fellow countrymen--that may be legitimate.
因此我们不是在说And so it's not as though we want to say
伤害别人总是错的it's never legitimate to harm somebody.
只要那些人有罪 他们是侵略者But those people are guilty; they're aggressors.
在义务论中 大部分人What most of us in our deontological moods
都倾向认为are inclined to think is
伤害无辜者总是不对的it's never legitimate to harm an innocent person.
而且关键在于And the crucial point is
即便这样做结果是好的that's true even if the results would be better.
看 一般情况下Look, there's no debate
义务论者和功利主义者between deontologists and utilitarians about
对不应伤害无辜者这点上没有争议harming innocent people in the normal case,
因为正常情况下 假设我because normally of course--you know, suppose I,
举个例子 用枪声结束这堂课to make an example--to end the clas

s with a nice big bang,
我拿着乌兹冲锋枪right--I brought my Uzi sub-machine gun.
然后砰砰砰地杀了个人I now take it and go rat-a-tat-tat, killing of you.
这不会是什么有好结果的事情Well, that would not be something that would have good results.
很明显And so, clearly,
功利主义者和义务论者the utilitarian is going
都拒绝这种行为to reject that as well as the deontologist.
他们看法一致They're in agreement about that.
一般说来 杀死无辜者的结果是坏的In the typical case, killing an innocent person has bad results,
伤害他们是错误的 毫无疑问harms them. It's wrong, full stop, we're done.
但假如杀死无辜者But what should we say about cases
会有好的结果又当如何where killing an innocent person has better results?
现实中 很难找到这样的例子In real life, it's hard to think of cases like that,
但我们可以在but we can at least go
"科幻实验室"里找到一个例子"Science-fictiony" And tell an example.
这是个在伦理学中我最喜欢的例子So, here is one of my favorite examples in moral philosophy.
假设有五个病人在医院快死了Suppose that we have five patients in a hospital who are going to die
都是因为各种器官损坏because of organ failures of one sort or another.
一个人需要心脏移植One of them needs a heart transplant,
另一个需要肾脏移植one of them needs a kidney transplant,
还有人需要肝脏移植 等等one of them needs a liver transplant, and so forth and so on.
不幸的是 由于排异问题Unfortunately, because of tissue incompatibilities,
即使他们开始死亡even as they begin to die
我们也无法用先死之人的器官we can't use the organs from the ones that have died
来拯救剩下的人to save the others.
与此同时 约翰在医院进行例行体检Meanwhile, here in the hospital for a routine check-up is John.
他非常健康John's perfectly healthy.
在检查过程中你发现And as you're doing your exams on him you discover
他的器官非常适合捐献给that he's exactly suitable to be an organ donor
那五个病人for all five of the patients.
你开始思考 如果你能杀掉他And it occurs to you that if you were to find some way to kill him,
并且掩盖死因but cover up the cause of death
让他看上去像死于突发疾病so it looked like he died of some unexpected freak seizure,
你就能用他的器官去救那五个人you could then use his organs to save the five.
这个人得到一个肾脏This one gets the kidney,
另一个人得到另一个肾脏that one gets the other kidney,
有人得到心脏that one gets the heart,
有人得到肝脏 有人得到肺that one gets the liver, and that one gets the lungs.
所以你的选择 大概是So your choice, roughly, is this.
或者为约翰做完例行体检Just give John his routine medical exam,
这样的话五个病人会死掉in which case the five other pa

tients die,
要么解剖了约翰or chop up John,
杀死之后解剖了他kill him and chop him up,
用他的器官救活五个病人using his organs to save the five patients.
那么 在这个器官移植的案例中Well, what should we say is the right thing to do
我们怎么做是正确的the organ transplant case?
就结果而言 看起来In terms of consequences it looks as though,
如果故事讲得没错if we tell the story right at least,
杀死约翰似乎会更好the results would be better if we chop up John.
毕竟是以一换五After all, it's one versus five.
尽管约翰的死是很坏的结果And although the death of John is a horrible bad result,
但五个人的死是更坏的结果the death of the five is a horrible bad result.
因此杀死无辜的约翰And so the results would be better
似乎会有更好的结果if we were to kill innocent John.
好的 假如有更多时间我们会讨论Well, if we had more time we could argue about
结果是否真的会更好are the results really going to be better,
这件事是不是真能发生 或者什么is that a realistic story--what have you--
是不是有些其它医学方面的问题are there other long-term effects on the healthcare profession
我们没有考虑周全that we haven't taken into account?
但我们没时间考虑太多细节But we don't have time to really pursue this story in detail.
假设情况就是如此Let's just suppose we could eventually get the details right;
杀死约翰结果会更好the results really would be better if we chopped up John.
但这么做真的对吗Is that the right thing to do?
也许功利主义者会说这么做没错Well, maybe utilitarianism says it's the right thing to do,
但我们大多数人but it's precisely for that reason
对此都会说that most of us would then say,
还存在功利主义之外的道德原则you know, there's more to morality than what utilitarianism says.
那么 这个反对理由是否成立Now, whether that objection is a good one
是一个非常非常复杂的问题is a very, very complicated question,
如果你想了解更多and if you want--if you'd like to pursue it--
如果你想更深入地探讨它 我建议你if you want to pursue it--then I invite you
可以选择一门伦理学的导论课to take an introductory class in moral philosophy.
就我们而言 我们假设大部分同学For our purposes, let's just suppose that most of us
都站在义务论一边are on board with the deontologists
认为的确有超出功利主义之外的when they say there's more to morality
道德标准than what the utilitarian has,
这个例子就说明了这一点and this example brings it out.
杀死无辜者是错的 即使It's wrong to kill somebody who is innocent even though
以一换五的结果是好的by hypothesis the results would be better--it's five to one.
人有生存权 有不被杀死的权利People have a right to life, a right not to be killed.

在我们决定如何做符合道德时And that right weighs in when we're deciding
要考虑这个权利what to do morally,
所以杀死无辜者是错的so that it's wrong to kill an innocent person
即使结果真的会更好even if the results really would be better.
好吧 假设我们同意这个观点All right, let's suppose we agree with that--accept that.
其实在内容更丰富的伦理学课上Again, in a fuller class on moral philosophy
我们还要问这个权利的基础是什么we'd have to ask ourselves what is the basis of that right,
在义务论中 人还有什么其它权利what other deontological rights do people have,
这些权利的权重又是多少what exactly are the contours of that right?
但现在我们只要问But here we can just ask,
假设我们接受这种权利suppose we accept a right like that,
它对自杀的道德问题有何影响what are the implications of that for the morality of suicide?
现在 似乎我们只好说And now, it seems what we have to say is,
自杀是错的suicide is wrong.
自杀是不道德的Suicide is morally unacceptable.
因为当我自杀时Because when I kill myself,
我就杀了一个人well, I'm killing somebody.
我刚才不是说 根据义务论者的说法And didn't we just say as deontologists
杀死一个无辜者that killing an innocent person--
现在我就是无辜者and I'm an innocent person--
杀死无辜者是不道德的killing an innocent person is morally wrong?
那么我就是 所以杀死我不道德Well, I'm a person. So, killing me is morally wrong.
再回头说什么And it's not really any help to come back and say,
看 我们已经假设了but look, we've stipulated that this is a case
他死了会更好 也无济于事where the person is better off dead.
如果他自杀 总体来讲结果会更好The results will really be better overall if he kills himself.
好的 这没错 也许这是对的Yeah, that's right. Maybe that is right.
但无关紧要 因为义务论者认为It doesn't matter--because as deontologists we said
生存的权利已经超越了所有结果the right to life is so powerful it outweighs consequences.
就像说杀死约翰不对Just as it was wrong to chop up John,
即使结果很好 五人对一人even though the results would be better--five versus one--
自杀同样是错的it's wrong to kill yourself,
即使能导致好的结果even if the results would be better.
即使那是你从痛苦中解脱的唯一出路Even if that's the only way to put yourself out of pain,
即使结果是好的 也于事无补and those are good results, it doesn't matter.
生存的权利超越了结果The right to life outweighs the appeal to consequences.
那么按照义务论者的说法 似乎是So as deontologists, it seems,
自杀应该完全禁止 证明完毕we have to say suicide is forbidden--full stop.
然而 在哲学中通常没那么简单Well, as usual in philosophy, it's not quite as s

imple as that.
其中一个回应便是One possible response somebody might make is,
但是 看but look,
道德只关注我如何对待他人morality is only about how I treat others.
而不关注我如何对待自己It's not about how I treat myself.
如果我们接受这一说法And if we were to accept that claim,
我们就可以说then we could say
生存的权利只关注the right to life only covers
我如何对待他人how I treat others.
特别是 它禁止我杀死别人In particular, it rules out my killing other people
即使结果很好even when the results would be good.
但这种说法不关注我如何对待自己But it doesn't have any implications for how I treat myself.
尤其是And in particular then,
如果生存的权利不排除自杀if the right to life doesn't exclude self-killing,
那么自杀便可以接受well then, suicide is acceptable.
可能会有这种道德观念That's a possible moral view,
但我认为它完全错误but I find it rather implausible.
如果我们是用你会受到的影响If we were to start to explain what it is about you
来解释 为何我杀死你是错的that explains why it's wrong for me to kill you,
我们首先讲到 你是个人we'd start saying things about how, well, you're a person and,
你有各种各样的计划什么的as such, you've got all these plans and so forth and so on.
作为人 你有某些权力And as a person, you've got certain rights,
某些事不应该发生在你身上certain things that shouldn't be done to you.
你并不仅是You're not just, --
这是义务论背后的思想 对吧This is the thought that lies behind much deontological thinking, right?
人不是物体People aren't objects.
不能为了得到更好的结果而杀死他们We can't just destroy them for the sake of better results.
没错 人的确不是物体Well, that's right; people aren't objects.
那么当然 我也是人But of course, I'm a person too.
所以当我自杀时And so when I contemplate killing myself,
我也是在杀人I'm contemplating destroying a person.
因此 很难看出为什么我们要说So, it's at least difficult to see why we would accept the claim
道德只关注你如何对待他人that morality only governs how I treat other people.
虽然这是个复杂的问题It seems--although the issue is a complicated one,
我们没有时间继续深究which we don't have time to pursue further today--
但在我看来 更合理的说法是it seems to me more plausible to say
道德不仅关注我如何对待他人morality includes rules not only governing how I treat others
也关注我如何对待自己but also how I treat myself.
然而 如果这样说没错Yet, if that's right,
而且 如果道德原则里包括生存权and if among the moral rules are a right to life,
禁止对人造成伤害a prohibition against harming people,
那我们不是就可以说 看then don't we have to say, look,
按照义务论的观点自

杀是错的it's wrong from the deontological perspective to kill yourself.
当然Well, of course,
对这种想法常见的回应是说the natural response to this line of thought is to say,
当我自杀时 不同于杀死约翰but look, when I kill myself--unlike the case of chopping up John
是为了救其他五人 我自杀to save five others--when I kill myself,
是为了我自己I'm doing it for my own sake.
我为了自己而伤害自己I'm harming myself for my own sake.
这似乎与自杀的道德问题密切相关That seems highly relevant in thinking about the morality of suicide.
确实是相关的It does seem relevant,
但我们并不%确定如何解释这一说法though it's not % clear what to do with that thought.
我们有两种可能的解释Here are two possible interpretations of that thought.
首先 说我为了自己而伤害自己First of all, you might think that the relevance of saying
这种说法是在说that I'm harming myself for my own sake is this.
如果我伤害自己是为了自己If I'm harming myself for my own sake,
我是在说what I'm saying is,
除了对自己造成伤害外despite the fact that I'm harming myself,
其实我更好了I'm better off.
毕竟 我们假设在那些After all, we stipulated that we were focusing on cases
有理由自杀的例子中in which suicide was rational.
那个人死了会更好So, the person is better off dead.
如果他死了会更好If they're better off dead,
那么虽然在某种程度上then although it's certainly true that there's a sense
他的确伤害了自己in which they're harming themselves--
我的意思是杀死自己I mean killing yourself
的确伤害了自己is doing harm to yourself--
但总的来说不是伤害still it's not harm overall.
我们的底线 我们假设The bottom line, we were imagining,
自杀对你有利is positive when you kill yourself.
但是 尽管And so, although,
与约翰的例子不同unlike the case of John
那时是你杀死他来使别人获利where you've harmed him and benefited others--
所以总的来说伤害了他so you have harmed him overall--
而在自杀的例子中in the case of suicide,
当我伤害自己以避免when I harm myself to avoid
继续遭受痛苦the suffering I would otherwise go through,
我们可以说I'm not really, as we might say,
总的来讲我没有伤害自己harming myself overall.
所以 也许义务论中所禁止的伤害So, perhaps the deontological prohibition against harm
是从总体上禁止对人伤害is really a prohibition against harming people overall.
看 假设你得了某种疾病Look, you've got some sort of a disease in your--
大腿发生感染并且扩散infection in your leg that has now spread
只有截肢才能救你and it's going to kill you unless we amputate your leg.
所以 外科医生为你做了截肢手术So, you go into surgery and the surgeon chops off your leg.
他做了什么不道德的事吗Has he done s

omething immoral?
他似乎没有It doesn't seem as though he has.
但毕竟 他锯了你的腿But after all, he chopped off your leg!
他伤害了你He harmed you!
你以前有腿但现在没有了You used to have a leg and now you don't have one.
但是 我们要说的是Well, what we want to say is
总的来说他没有伤害你he didn't harm you overall.
他伤害你的方式He harmed you in such a way that
是使你能好起来的唯一方式it was the only way to leave you better off bottom line,
因此它没有违反禁止伤害的原则and that's not a violation of the rule against harming.
至少这是一种可能的解释At least, that's a possible thing to say.
如果这种解释是对的And if that's the right thing to say,
也许我们又可以这样去解释自杀了then maybe that's what we should say about the suicide case yet again.
没错 道义上的确禁止Yeah, there's a deontological prohibition against
伤害无辜的人harming innocent people,
但这实际上是禁止but what it's really a prohibition against,
在总体上使他们情况变差is leaving them worse off overall.
而当我自杀时And when I kill myself,
总的来说我的情况没变差I'm not leaving myself worse off overall.
如果这样说没错And if that's right,
那么即使从义务论的角度来看then even from the deontological perspective
自杀也有可能是符合道德的suicide may be morally legitimate.
这至少是一种可能的方式Well, that's at least one possible way
采用义务论的观点to carry out the deontological stand,
来解释one possible way of interpreting the remark,
但是看 当我自杀时"But look, when I kill myself,
我是在做对自己有益的事I'm doing it for my own benefit."
下面是另一种可能的解释Here's another possible way of interpreting that thought.
我自杀的前提是对自己有益When I kill myself, given that I'm doing it for my own benefit,
我显然得到了自己的同意I've obviously got my own agreement.
我不可能违背自己的意愿自杀I can't kill myself against my will.
自杀是对自己做的事Suicide is something you do to yourself.
所以 我同意自己这么做And so, I have my own consent to what I'm doing.
这似乎很重要That seems pretty important.
注意这与约翰例子的不同Notice how different it is from the case of John.
当我杀死约翰时When I chopped up John,
我假设我并没征得他的同意I imagine I don't have John's approval.
在自杀时我征得了同意Consent seems to be present in the case of suicide
但杀死约翰时没有but not in the case of chopping up John.
也许这是一个道德原则Maybe that's morally relevant as well.
要接受这个观点 当然Now, to accept that view is, of course,
我们就必须在义务论中to say we need to add yet
增加另一个道德原则another factor into our deontological theory.
我们已经有了结果原则We have consequences,
有了

禁止伤害原则we have harm doing,
现在还要加上同意原则but we also have the factor of consent.
那么我们在思考道德问题时And so we need to think about the moral relevance
就要同时考虑受害者是否同意of having the consent of the victim.
一旦我们开始考虑这个问题And once we start thinking about that,
我相信大部分人都会认可I think most of us would be inclined to accept the conclusion
征得同意可以使我们做一些that consent can make it acceptable to do to someone
一般情况下没征得同意时是错误的事what would normally be wrong in the absence of their consent.
顺便提一下 你会注意到By the by, you'll notice that
这似乎是一件that seems to be one of the things
和手术例子有关的事情that's relevant in thinking about the surgery case,
不是器官移植的例子not the organ transplant case
而是那个通过截肢but the performing the amputation of the leg,
救人一命的例子to save the person who would otherwise die.
显然病人已经Surely it seems relevant that the patient
允许你为他动手术has given you permission to operate on them.
还有一个有关征得同意的例子Here's another example that shows you the relevance of consent.
如果我走过去一拳打你鼻子上It would not be okay--it would not be morally acceptable
这样做应该不符合道德for me to go up and hit you in the nose.
就像你不能走过来Just like it wouldn't be okay
打我的脸或者肚子for you to go up and hit me in the face or the gut.
可是在拳击比赛中 我认为And yet, boxing matches are, I suppose,
这就符合道德 为什么morally acceptable. Why is that?
从义务论的角度出发 答案是Because from a deontological perspective the answer is,
拳击比赛中 他们都同意这样做when people are boxing they've agreed to it.
我允许你打我I give you permission to hit me,
至少允许你尝试打我or at least to try to hit me,
作为交换 你也允许我打你in exchange for your giving me permission to hit you,
或者至少尝试打你or at least to try to hit you.
这便是同意原则And it's the presence of that consent
允许你可以伤害我that makes it permissible for you to harm me,
这需要你拳打得比我更好assuming that you're a better boxer than I am,
但我估计这显而易见which I'm confident would have to be the case.
所以 征得同意后So, consent makes it legitimate
伤害别人变得正当to harm people,
即使在没征得同意前 这样做不正当even though in the absence of consent it wouldn't be legitimate.
好的 如果这是对的 那么All right, if that's right, then
我们据此来考虑自杀问题bring that thought home to thinking about the case of suicide.
表面上看自杀可能是错的Suicide might be wrong,
因为毕竟我是一个人because after all I'm a person, at first glance.
但我自杀时 我征得了自己的同意But

since I'm killing myself, I've given myself permission.
我同意自己伤害自己I've given myself consent to harm myself.
如果征得同意以后And if consent makes it
就可以做通常被禁止做的事permissible to do what would normally be forbidden,
那么征得同意以后then consent makes it permissible for me
我就可以杀死自己to kill myself.
因此我们又得到了同一结论And so, now we're led again to the conclusion
从更全面的义务论观点出发that from a more fully developed deontological perspective
我们应该说自杀是允许的we ought to say suicide is permissible,
至少当我们准备at least if we're prepared
引入这类同意原则to throw in this kind of factor of consent
并且认为这一原则可以and think that it can just wipe out
让我们做通常情况下不能做的事情the protections that would otherwise normally be in place.
实际上 如果我们这样想Indeed, if we think that,
我们将会得到一个非常极端的we're going to be led to a rather bold and extreme conclusion
关于自杀道德问题的结论about the morality of suicide.
某人杀死自己The person has killed himself,
他肯定获得了自己同意so he's clearly consented,
所以在所有情况下and so in every case
他这么干都是正当的what he's done is acceptable.
或许这是对的 如果我们打算Well, maybe that's right--if we're prepared to go
如此狂热地认同同意原则that far with the principle of consent.
但也许我们不该But maybe we shouldn't go
这么极端地认同同意原则that far with the principle of consent.
假如下课后你对我说Suppose we're talking after class and you say to me,
雪莱 我允许你杀了我"Shelly, you've got my permission to kill me."
然后我就掏出枪把你杀了And so I get out my gun and I shoot you to death.
这样做好像不符合道德It doesn't seem morally acceptable,
即使你允许我这么做even though you gave me your permission,
再来想个更怪的例子especially--Think of even weirder cases.
假如你觉得自己该死Suppose that you are feeling like you want to killed
因为你满心愧疚because you're overcome with guilt
因为你相信自己杀了约翰·史密斯because you believe you killed John Smith.
但其实你疯了 你没杀约翰·史密斯But you're crazy. You didn't kill John Smith.
约翰·史密斯根本没死John Smith's not even dead.
但你疯狂地认为自己杀了他But in your insanity you think you did do it,
所以你说 雪莱 请杀了我and so you say, "Shelly, please kill me."
而我知道你疯了 但你看And I know that you're insane, but hey, you know,
同意就是同意 因此我杀了你consent's consent, and so I kill you.
这很明显难以接受Well, that clearly isn't acceptable.
再假设你跟三岁的侄子玩Or suppose you're playing with your three-year-old nephew.
他说 噢He says, "Oh yeah,
我实在不想活了 杀了我

吧I don't really like being alive. Kill me."
很明显 这不意味着可以杀死他/她Well, that clearly doesn't make it acceptable to kill him or her--
喔 侄子 应该是他well, nephew, it's a him.
所以 如果我们接受同意原则So, if we start accepting this consent principle,
又会得到一些难以置信的结论we're led to some pretty implausible conclusions.
或许我们应该抛弃它So, maybe we should throw it out.
也许我们应该说Maybe we should say,
不 同意原则并非像一分钟之前no, consent really doesn't have the kind of power
看上去的那么有道理that a minute ago it looked like it did.
但我觉得我们不要太极端But I'm inclined to think we shouldn't go that far
不要将同意原则全部抛弃and throw away the consent principle altogether.
因为一旦抛弃同意原则Because if we do throw out the consent principle,
我们会发现自己无法再谈论一些we're going to find ourselves unable to say some things
对我们来讲十分重要的事情that I think it's pretty important to us to say.
考虑下面的例子Consider the following example.
假设战争中 我们在一个散兵坑Suppose that we're in war and we're in the foxhole
一枚手榴弹掉进坑里and a hand grenade has been thrown into the foxhole.
除非你很快做些什么And unless something happens quick,
否则手榴弹会爆炸the hand grenade is going to blow up
并且杀死在它近旁的五个战友and it will kill my five buddies who are near the hand grenade.
不幸的是 他们可能在打扑克什么的Unfortunately, because they're playing cards or whatever,
没看见手榴弹 而我看见了they don't see it. But I see it.
但时间不足以提醒他们But I don't have time to warn them.
等到我告诉他们会发生什么By the time I tell them what's going on,
他们也没时间做反应了they won't have time to react.
是袖手旁观 让他们炸死Really, it's do nothing, let them get killed
而且我也不会受什么伤but I probably won't be hurt very much,
或者我可以扑到手榴弹上or throw myself on the hand grenade,
用身体吸收爆炸 牺牲自己拯救战友my body absorbs the blow, saves my buddies, kills me.
假设我现在扑到了手榴弹上Imagine what happens is that I throw myself on the hand grenade.
我为他们牺牲了自己I've sacrificed myself for them.
我做了件了不起的事I've done something amazing.
很少有人有这种品质做这件事Few of us would have it within ourselves to do this,
但令人敬仰的是 的确有人会这么做but amazingly enough some people do.
我们钦佩 赞扬那些人And we admire and praise these people.
他们完成了They've committed--they've undertaken
非同凡响的英雄般的自我牺牲an incredible act of heroic self-sacrifice--
道德上值得赞扬morally commendable,
超越了应承担的义务 值得赞扬above and beyond the call of duty we want to say, praisewo

rthy.
但是等一下 这为什么值得赞扬But wait a minute, how could it be praiseworthy?
这个人扑到手榴弹上The person threw himself on a hand grenade,
他知道他会死去knowing the result of this was that he was going to die.
因此他就杀了一个人And so he killed a person,
因此 很明显thereby, apparently,
这侵犯了义务论里的权利violating the deontological right
不应该杀害无辜的人not to have innocent people be killed.
别和我说 结果会更好Don't talk about "The results are better."
显然 五个人获救 结果肯定更好Yeah, of course, five buddies saved; the results are better.
但这在义务论里不足以说明问题But that doesn't seem enough to use in our deontological moods.
毕竟 假设我看到手榴弹After all, suppose that I see the hand grenade,
我做的是 我把琼斯仍在了手榴弹上and so what I do is I take Jones and throw him on the grenade.
这似乎做得不对Well, that's not okay,
即使结果一样even though the results are the same.
两者有何不同呢What makes the difference?
为什么琼斯把自己扔在手榴弹上Why is it morally legitimate for Jones
就符合道德to throw himself on the grenade?
我能想到的唯一答案是The only answer that I can see is,
因为他同意了because he agrees to it.
他对自己做了这件事He did it to himself;
他是自愿的 他得到了自己的批准he volunteered, it has his consent.
如果我们抛弃同意原则If we throw away the consent principle,
我们就只能说we're forced to say
琼斯的行为在道德上不值得称赞what Jones did isn't morally admirable.
这件事道德败坏It's morally appalling,
道德上是禁止的it's morally forbidden.
我不这么认为I can't believe that.
因此我们需要同意原则So, we need a consent principle.
但另一方面But on the other hand,
我们又不用we don't want to go with
将同意原则绝对化such a strong consent principle that we say,
哦 杀死疯子或小孩都没问题oh, it's okay to kill crazy people, or kill children,
因为他们说 噢 杀了我just because they say, "Oh, kill me."
因此我们需要So we need something--
一个更适度的同意原则a more moderate form of the consent principle.
应该说同意原则只能在We need to say consent can do its thing,
某些条件下成立but only under certain conditions.
都有哪些条件呢What exactly are the relevant conditions?
这是另一个可以讨论话题Well, this is, of course, one more topic open for debate.
我们可能坚持认为 看We might insist that, look,
同意必须出于自愿the permission has got to be given freely.
必须知道它的后果It's got to be given knowing what the upshots are going to be.
此人必须心智正常It's got to be given by somebody who is sane,
有理性 有担当who is rational, who is competent,
是一位 这就解决了小孩的例子who's--and that may deal with th

e child case as well,
他还没有资格做出这种决定who is not yet competent to make this sort of decision.
我们有空间来争论There's room for disagreement about
都需要哪些限制条件what exactly are the relevant conditions
来得到一个比较适度的同意原则to put into a proper version of the consent principle.
我们还需要引入一些要求We might also want to throw in some requirement
某人需要有合适的理由来要求你这样做that the person have good reasons for his giving you permission.
可以用这点来解释那个例子That might deal with the case
你下课后来找我然后说where you just come up to me after class and say,
杀了我 我的意思是你没疯"Kill me." I mean you're not insane.
至少可能没疯Well, at least you might not be insane.
你知道即将发生什么You know what's going to happen.
而且你已经到了能为自己负责的年龄In some sense, you've reached the age of competence,
但你没有合适的理由but you don't have any good reasons for it.
也许有这些对同意原则的限制就足够了Maybe that's enough to undermine the force of consent.
那么 假设我们有了这种Well, suppose we've got some
同意原则的升级版kind of modified consent principle.
接下来该怎样评判自杀What should we say about suicide then?
在我看来我们又一次得到了Well, it seems to me what we're led to is, once again,
一个中立观点a modest view about suicide.
仅从自杀这个事实The mere fact that the person killed themselves won't show
无法看出它是否道德 因为that it was morally legitimate because, of course,
即使他们得到自己的许可even though they've given themselves permission,
他们也可能没有they may not have had,
比如 合适的理由for example, good reason,
或者 他们也许疯了or they might be insane.
但即便如此 如果某人But for all that, if we can have cases--
我认为会有这种情况and I take it we can have cases--
理性地评估了自己的处境where somebody rationally assesses their situation,
发现自己死了会更好sees that they're better off dead,
他全盘考虑 而非仓促行动thinks the case through, doesn't rush into it,
深思熟虑后makes an informed
心甘情愿做出一个决定and voluntary decision,
有很好的理由的决定with good reason behind it--
在这种情况下 在我看来in a situation like that it seems to me
同意原则就会起到作用the consent principle might well come into play,
同意原则in which case consent
取消了义务论禁止will trump or nullify the force of the deontological prohibition
伤害无辜者的限制against harming innocent people.
因此 自杀在某些情况下可以接受So, suicide will again be acceptable in some cases,
尽管不是所有情况下though not in all.
在我看来 这是一个正确的结论And that's the conclusion that seems to me to be the right one,
无

论我们站在功利主义立场whether we accept the utilitarian position
还是站在义务论立场or one of these deontological positions.
自杀并非总是正当的Suicide isn't always legitimate,
但有时是正当的but it's sometimes legitimate.
由此引出一个问题It still leaves the question,
我们应该怎样做what should we do
当我们看到某人试图自杀时when we see, when we come across, somebody trying to kill themselves?"
我认为你应该问问自己And there I think there is good reason to ask yourself,
你确定这个人满足are you confident that the person has satisfied
同意原则的所有限制条件吗the conditions on the consent principle?
也许我们应该慎之又慎Perhaps we should err on the side of caution,
可以假定此人悲伤过度and assume that the person may be acting under distress,
以致无法清晰思考 一叶障目not thinking clearly, not informed,
丧失正确的判断能力not altogether competent,
缺乏合适的理由not acting for good reasons.
但这样做But to accept that is not to
并不是说应该接受极端的结论 说accept the stronger conclusion
我们绝对不能允许别人自杀that we must never permit somebody to kill themselves.
在我们能够确认If we become convinced
他们经过深思熟虑that they have thought it through,
有充分的理由 对结果有足够了解that they do have good reason, that they are informed,
并且出于自愿that they are acting voluntarily,
那么在这种情况下in some such cases
自杀也许是正当的it may be legitimate for them to kill themselves,
我们不应阻拦他们and for us to let them.
好了 快没时间了All right, almost out of time.
我最后一次加快进度So, let me shift gears for the very last time,
迅速回顾一下我们讲过的内容and take a quick look at where we've been.
这学期开始的时候At the start of the semester,
我要求你们认真思考死亡的本质I invited you to think hard about the nature of death
或者说 生命与死亡的真相or the facts about life and death.
大多数人Most of us
非常努力地逃避认真思考死亡try very hard to not think hard about death.
它看上去是个令人不快的话题It seems to be an unpleasant topic,
我们把它抛诸脑后and we put it out of our mind.
我们不去想它We don't think about it,
即使死到临头也不去想它even when there's a sense in which it's staring us in the face.
这学期的每堂课Every single class of this semester,
这学期的每一天every single day of this semester,
你进入这栋大楼之前you've come into this building
都会经过路边的一片墓地and have walked past a cemetery right across the street.
多少次你会注意到它How many times did you notice it?
多少次这一场景会使你停下来思考How many times did you stop to think about the complete visual reminder
我们只是这个世界的过客that we are on this