Words of Advice at Graduating 畢業(yè)贈言
Graduates and my fellow students,
You all are leaving your Alma Mater now. I have no gift to present you all except a piece of advice.
What I would like to advise is that "Don't give up your study." Most of the courses you have taken are partly for your certificate. You had no choice but to take them. From now on, you may study on your own. I would advise you to work hard at some special field when you are still young and vigorous. Your youth will be gone that will never come back to you again. When you are old, and when your energy are getting poorer, you will not be able to as you wish to. Even though you have to study in order to make a living, studies will never live up to you. Making a living without studying, you will be shifted out in three or five years. At this time when you hope to make it up, you will say it is too late. Perhaps you will say, "After graduation and going into the society, we will meet with an urgent problem, that is, to make a living. For this we have no time to study. Even though we hope to study, we have no library nor labs, how can we study further?"
I would like to say that all those who wait to have a library will not study further even though they have one and all these who wait to have a lab will not do experiments even though they have one. When you have a firm resolution and determination to solve a problem, you will naturally economize on food and clothing.
As for time, I should say it's not a problem. You may know that every day he could do only an hour work, not much more than that because Darwin was ill for all his life. You must have read his achievements. Every day you spend an hour in reading 10 useful pages, then you will read more than 3650 pages every year. In 30 years you will have read 110,000 pages.
My fellow students, reading 110,000 pages will make you a scholar. But it will take you an hour to read three kinds of small-sized newspapers and it will take you an hour and a half to play four rounds of Mahjian pieces. Reading small-sized newspapers or playing Mahjian pieces, or working hard to be a scholar? It's up to you all.
Henrik Ibsen said, "It is your greatest duty to make yourself out."
Studying is then as tool as casting. Giving up studying will destroy yourself.
I have to say goodbye to you all. Your Alma Mater will open her eyes to see what you will be in 10 years. Goodbye!
諸位畢業(yè)生同學(xué)：
你們現(xiàn)在要離開母校了，我沒有什么禮物送給你們，只好送你們一句話吧。這句話是："不要拋棄學(xué)問"。以前的功課也許有一大部分是為了這張文憑，不得已而做的。從今以后，你們可以依自己的心愿去研究了。趁著現(xiàn)在年富力強(qiáng)時(shí)候，努力做一種專門的學(xué)問。少年是一去不返的，等到精力衰退時(shí)，要做學(xué)問也來不及了。既為吃飯計(jì)，學(xué)問絕不會辜負(fù)人的。吃飯而不求學(xué)問，三年五年之后，你們都要被先進(jìn)的少年淘汰掉的。到那時(shí)再想做點(diǎn)學(xué)問來補(bǔ)救，恐怕已晚了。
有人說："出去做事之后，生活問題急需解決，哪有功夫去讀書？即使要做學(xué)問，既沒有圖書館，也沒有實(shí)驗(yàn)室，哪能做學(xué)問？"
我要對你們說：凡是要等到有了圖書館才讀書的，有了圖書館也不肯讀書；凡是要等到有了實(shí)驗(yàn)室才做研究的，有了實(shí)驗(yàn)室也不肯做研究。你有了決心要解決一個(gè)問題，自然會節(jié)衣縮食去買書，自然會想出法子來購置儀器。
至于時(shí)間，更不成問題。達(dá)爾文一生多病，不能多做工，每天只能做一小時(shí)的工作。你們看他的成績！每天花一小時(shí)看十頁有用的書，每年可看三千六百多頁書，三十年讀十一萬頁書。
諸位，十一萬頁的書可以使你成為一個(gè)學(xué)者了�？墒�，每天看三種小報(bào)也得費(fèi)你一小時(shí)的功夫；四圈麻將也得費(fèi)你一個(gè)半小時(shí)的光陰�？葱�(bào)呢？打麻將呢？還是努力做一位學(xué)者？全靠你自己選擇！
易卜生說："你的最大責(zé)任是把你這塊材料鑄成器。"
學(xué)問便是鑄器的工具。拋棄了學(xué)問便是毀了你自己。
再會了！你們的母校眼睜睜地要看你們十年之后成什么器。