Pessimism
“Pessimism”是名词,指对世界、未来或某事持消极、悲观的态度,预期坏结果而非好结果。可用于哲学思潮(philosophical pessimism 哲学悲观主义),也可描述个人性格倾向(a mood of pessimism 悲观情绪)。
- “A wave of pessimism spread through the market after the news.” (消息传出后,一股悲观情绪在市场蔓延。)
- “His pessimism made it hard for him to enjoy small successes.” (他的悲观让他难以享受小小的成功。)
- “The report balanced optimism about technology with realism and some pessimism about inequality.” (报告在看好技术的同时,也以现实主义态度谈及对不平等的担忧。)
由拉丁语 pessimus(最坏的)加后缀构成,与 “optimism”(乐观主义)中的 optimus(最好的)形成对照。19 世纪由哲学家引入现代英语,作为与乐观主义相对的概念。
“-ism” 表示主义、学说或倾向。词根 pessim- 来自 pessimus(最坏)。无前缀。
“Pessimism” 在哲学史上有深厚传统,如叔本华、加缪等常被与悲观主义关联。日常用法则较轻松,指“总往坏处想”的心态。经济学中 “pessimism about the economy” 是描述消费者信心的常用表达。
- 固定搭配: “widespread pessimism” (普遍的悲观情绪), “deep pessimism” (深深的悲观), “pessimism about the future” (对未来的悲观)
与 optimism(乐观)相对:optimus 是最好的,pessimus 是最坏的——持最坏预期的主义,就是 pessimism。
“Despite the team’s early lead, a quiet pessimism lingered in the stands as fans remembered last season’s collapse.” (尽管球队早早领先,看台上仍弥漫着低调的悲观——球迷们还记得上赛季的崩盘。)