雙語智慧書·不要固執(zhí)己見

183．不要固執(zhí)己見
　　不要固執(zhí)己見。愚蠢的人都堅信自己正確，堅信自己正確的人都很愚蠢。他們的判斷越是錯誤，越是執(zhí)迷不悟。即使事情明顯是正確的，作出點讓步也不妨：人們不會忽視我們所持觀點的理由，而且會更認可我們讓步所表現(xiàn)出來的優(yōu)雅風度。否則，我們因固執(zhí)而招致的損失，將遠遠超過我們因勝利而得到的--固執(zhí)己見不是維護真理，而是粗魯無禮。有些人的頑固腦袋，很難轉過彎來，固執(zhí)己見再加上異想天開，則生成一個令人厭煩的笨蛋。你的堅定應該表現(xiàn)在意志上，而不是心智上。但是，也有一個例外--你不能既在判斷上讓步，又在行動中讓步，這樣會導致雙重的失敗。


183．Do not hold your views too firmly
　Do not hold your views too firmly. Every fool is fully convinced, and every one fully persuaded is a fool: the more erroneous his judgment the more firmly he holds it. Even in cases of obvious certainty, it is fine to yield: our reasons for holding the view cannot escape notice, our courtesy in yielding must be the more recognized. Our obstinacy loses more than our victory yields: that is not to champion truth but rather rudeness. There be some heads of iron most difficult to turn: add caprice to obstinacy and the sum is a wearisome fool. Steadfastness should be for the will, not for the mind. Yet there are exceptions where one would fail twice, owning oneself wrong both in judgment and in the execution of it.