Of Dogs and Men
Chester was my window on the mysterious bond between canines and humans.
译者点评：普罗泰格拉说，人类胜过动物，全恃道德。如是，道德就成了衡量人与动物的一把尺子。其实，人与动物之间的关系不仅仅能反映人的道德观，也反映动物的道德观。人狗之间与人猫之间所反映的就是两种不同的动物的道德观：忠诚与奸诈。这决定了人对动物的不同态度：忠诚博得了宠爱，奸诈遭到了疏远。结果也导致了狗猫之间的频频战事。而事实上，人与人，人与动物，动物与动物，未必不能和睦相处：关键在于理解和爱。
The way I see it dogs had this big meeting. Oh maybe 20,000 years ago. A huge meeting—an international convention with delegates from everywhere. And that’s when they decided that humans were the up and coming species and dogs were going to throw their lot in with them. The decision was obviously not unanimous. The wolves and dingoes walked out in protest.
Cats had an even more negative reaction. When they heard the news they called their own meeting—in Paris of course—to denounce canine subservience to the human hyperpower.Their manifesto—La Condition Féline—can still be found in provincial bookstores.
Cats, it must be said, have not done badly. Using guile and seduction they managed to get humans to feed them thus preserving their superciliousness without going hungry. A neat trick. Dogs being guileless signed and delivered. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
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