1、1General Douglas MacArthurs Farewell SpeechGiven to the Corps of Cadets at West PointMay 12, 1962General Westmoreland, General Groves, distinguished guests, and gentlemen of the Corps. As I was leaving the hotel this 2morning, a doorman asked me, “Where are you bound for, General?“ and when I replie
2、d, “West Point,“ he remarked, “Beautiful place, have you ever been there before?“No human being could fail to be deeply moved by such a tribute as this, coming from a profession I have served so long and a people I have loved so well. It fills me with an emotion I cannot express. But this award is n
3、ot intended primarily for a personality, but to symbolize a great moral code - the code of conduct and chivalry of those who guard this beloved land of culture and ancient descent. That is the meaning of this medallion. For all eyes and for all time, it is an expression of the ethics of the American
4、 soldier. That I should be integrated in this way with so noble an ideal arouses a sense of pride and yet of humility which will be with me always.“Duty,“ “Honor,“ “Country“ - those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you want to be, what you can be, what you will be. They are your rallying
5、 point to build courage when courage seems to fail, to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith, to create hope when hope becomes forlorn. Unhappily, I possess neither that eloquence of diction, that poetry of imagination, nor that brilliance of metaphor to tell you all that they m
6、ean.The unbelievers will say they are but words, but a slogan, but a flamboyant phrase. Every pedant, every demagogue, every cynic, every hypocrite, every troublemaker, and, I am sorry to say, some others of an entirely different character, will try to downgrade them even to the extent of mockery an
7、d ridicule.But these are some of the things they do. They build your basic character. They mold you for your future roles as the custodians of the nations defense. They make you strong enough to know when you are weak, and brave enough to face yourself when you are afraid.They teach you to be proud
8、and unbending in honest failure, but humble and gentle in success; not to substitute words for action; not to seek the path of comfort, but to face the stress and spur of difficulty and challenge; to learn to stand up in the storm, but to have compassion on those who fall; to master yourself before
9、you seek to master others; to have a 3heart that is clean, a goal that is high; to learn to laugh, yet never forget how to weep; to reach into the future, yet never neglect the past; to be serious, yet never take yourself too seriously; to be modest so that you will remember the simplicity of true g
10、reatness; the open mind of true wisdom, the meekness of true strength.They give you a temperate will, a quality of imagination, a vigor of the emotions, a freshness of the deep springs of life, a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity, an appetite for adventure over love of ease. They c
11、reate in your heart the sense of wonder, the unfailing hope of what next, and the joy and inspiration of life. They teach you in this way to be an officer and a gentleman.And what sort of soldiers are those you are to lead? Are they reliable? Are they brave? Are they capable of victory?Their story i
12、s known to all of you. It is the story of the American man at arms. My estimate of him was formed on the battlefields many, many years ago, and has never changed. I regarded him then, as I regard him now, as one of the worlds noblest figures; not only as one of the finest military characters, but al
13、so as one of the most stainless.His name and fame are the birthright of every American citizen. In his youth and strength, his love and loyalty, he gave all that mortality can give. He needs no eulogy from me, or from any other man. He has written his own history and written it in red on his enemys
14、breast.But when I think of his patience under adversity, of his courage under fire, and of his modesty in victory, I am filled with an emotion of admiration I cannot put into words. He belongs to history as furnishing one of the greatest examples of successful patriotism. He belongs to posterity as
15、the instructor of future generations in the principles of liberty and freedom. He belongs to the present, to us, by his virtues and by his achievements.In twenty campaigns, on a hundred battlefields, around a thousand campfires, I have witnessed that enduring fortitude, that patriotic self-abnegatio
16、n, and that invincible determination which have carved his statue in the hearts of his people.4From one end of the world to the other, he has drained deep the chalice of courage. As I listened to those songs of the glee club, in memorys eye I could see those staggering columns of the First World War
17、, bending under soggy packs on many a weary march, from dripping dusk to drizzling dawn, slogging ankle deep through mire of shell-pocked roads; to form grimly for the attack, blue-lipped, covered with sludge and mud, chilled by the wind and rain, driving home to their objective, and for many, to th
18、e judgment seat of God.I do not know the dignity of their birth, but I do know the glory of their death. They died unquestioning, uncomplaining, with faith in their hearts, and on their lips the hope that we would go on to victory. Always for them: Duty, Honor, Country. Always their blood, and sweat
19、, and tears, as they saw the way and the light.And twenty years after, on the other side of the globe, against the filth of dirty foxholes, the stench of ghostly trenches, the slime of dripping dugouts, those boiling suns of the relentless heat, those torrential rains of devastating storms, the lone
20、liness and utter desolation of jungle trails, the bitterness of long separation of those they loved and cherished, the deadly pestilence of tropic disease, the horror of stricken areas of war.Their resolute and determined defense, their swift and sure attack, their indomitable purpose, their complet
21、e and decisive victory - always victory, always through the bloody haze of their last reverberating shot, the vision of gaunt, ghastly men, reverently following your password of Duty, Honor, Country.The code which those words perpetuate embraces the highest moral laws and will stand the test of any
22、ethics or philosophies ever promulgated for the uplift of mankind. Its requirements are for the things that are right, and its restraints are from the things that are wrong. The soldier, above all other men, is required to practice the greatest act of religious training - sacrifice. In battle and in
23、 the face of danger and death, he discloses those divine attributes which his Maker gave when he created man in his own image. No physical courage and no brute instinct can take the place of the Divine help which alone can sustain him. However 5horrible the incidents of war may be, the soldier who i
24、s called upon to offer and to give his life for his country, is the noblest development of mankind.You now face a new world, a world of change. The thrust into outer space of the satellite, spheres and missiles marked the beginning of another epoch in the long story of mankind - the chapter of the s
25、pace age. In the five or more billions of years the scientists tell us it has taken to form the earth, in the three or more billion years of development of the human race, there has never been a greater, a more abrupt or staggering evolution. We deal now not with things of this world alone, but with
26、 the illimitable distances and as yet unfathomed mysteries of the universe. We are reaching out for a new and boundless frontier. We speak in strange terms: of harnessing the cosmic energy; of making winds and tides work for us; of creating unheard synthetic materials to supplement or even replace o
27、ur old standard basics; of purifying sea water for our drink; of mining ocean floors for new fields of wealth and food; of disease preventatives to expand life into the hundred of years; of controlling the weather for a more equitable distribution of heat and cold, of rain and shine; of space ships
28、to the moon; of the primary target in war, no longer limited to the armed forces of an enemy, but instead to include his civil populations; of ultimate conflict between a united human race and the sinister forces of some other planetary galaxy; of such dreams and fantasies as to make life the most e
29、xciting of all time.And through all this welter of change and development your mission remains fixed, determined, inviolable. It is to win our wars. Everything else in your professional career is but corollary to this vital dedication. All other public purpose, all other public projects, all other p
30、ublic needs, great or small, will find others for their accomplishments; but you are the ones who are trained to fight.Yours is the profession of arms, the will to win, the sure knowledge that in war there is no substitute for victory, that if you lose, the Nation will be destroyed, that the very ob
31、session of your public service must be Duty, Honor, Country.6Others will debate the controversial issues, national and international, which divide mens minds. But serene, calm, aloof, you stand as the Nations war guardians, as its lifeguards from the raging tides of international conflict, as its gl
32、adiators in the arena of battle. For a century and a half you have defended, guarded and protected its hallowed traditions of liberty and freedom, of right and justice.Let civilian voices argue the merits or demerits of our processes of government. Whether our strength is being sapped by deficit fin
33、ancing indulged in too long, by federal paternalism grown too mighty, by power groups grown too arrogant, by politics grown too corrupt, by crime grown too rampant, by morals grown too low, by taxes grown too high, by extremists grown too violent; whether our personal liberties are as firm and compl
34、ete as they should be.These great national problems are not for your professional participation or military solution. Your guidepost stands out like a tenfold beacon in the night: Duty, Honor, Country.You are the leaven which binds together the entire fabric of our national system of defense. From y
35、our ranks come the great captains who hold the Nations destiny in their hands the moment the war tocsin sounds.The long gray line has never failed us. Were you to do so, a million ghosts in olive drab, in brown khaki, in blue and gray, would rise from their white crosses, thundering those magic word
36、s: Duty, Honor, Country.This does not mean that you are warmongers. On the contrary, the soldier above all other people prays for peace, for he must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war. But always in our ears ring the ominous words of Plato, that wisest of all philosophers: “Only the
37、 dead have seen the end of war.“The shadows are lengthening for me. The twilight is here. My days of old have vanished - tone and tints. They have gone glimmering through the dreams of things that were. Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears and coaxed and caressed by the smiles of
38、 yesterday. I listen vainly, but with thirsty ear, for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing reveille, of far drums beating the long roll.7In my dreams I hear again the crash of guns, the rattle of musketry, the strange, mournful mutter of the battlefield. But in the evening of my memory I com
39、e back to West Point. Always there echoes and re-echoes: Duty, Honor, Country.Today marks my final roll call with you. But I want you to know that when I cross the river, my last conscious thoughts will be of the Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.I bid you farewell.五星上将道格拉斯 .麦克阿瑟 82 岁时 的西点告 别 演 说今
40、天早晨，当我走出旅 馆时 ，看 门 人 问 道： “将 军 ，您上哪去？ “一听说 我要去西点，他 说 ：“那是个好地方，您从前去 过吗 ？ “ 这样 的荣誉是没有人不深受感 动 的。 长 期以来，我从事 这 个 职业 ，又如此 热爱这 个民族，能 获 得 这样 的荣誉 简 直使我无法表达我的感情。然而， 这 种 奖赏 主要并不意味着 对 个人的尊崇，而是象征一个 伟 大的道德准 则 捍 卫这块 可 爱 土地上的文化与古老 传统 的那些人的行 为 与品质 的准 则 。这 就是 这 个大 奖 章的意 义 。无 论现 在 还 是将来，它都是美国军 人道德 标 准的一种体 现 。我一定要遵循 这 个
41、 标 准， 结 合崇高的理想，唤 起自豪感，同 时 始 终 保持 谦 虚 责 任一荣誉一国家。 这 三个神圣的名 词 庄 严 地提醒你 应该 成 为 怎 样的人，可能成 为 怎 样 的人，一定要成 为 怎 样 的人。它 们 将使你精神振 奋 ，在你似乎 丧 失勇气 时 鼓起勇气，似乎没有理由相信 时 重建信念，几乎 绝8望 时产 生希望。 遗 憾得很，我既没有雄 辩 的 词 令、 诗 意的想象，也没有华丽 的 隐喻 向你 们说 明它 们 的意 义 。怀 疑者一定要 说 它 们 只不 过 是几个名 词 ，一句口号，一个浮夸的短 词 。每一个迂腐的学究，每一个 蛊 惑人心的政客，每一个玩世不恭的人
42、，每一个 伪 君子，每一个惹是生非之徒，很 遗 憾， 还 有其他个性不甚正常的人，一定企 图贬 低它 们 ，甚至 对它 们进 行愚弄和嘲笑。 但 这 些名 词 确能做到：塑造你的基本特性，使你将来成 为 国防 卫 士；使你 坚强 起来， 认 清自己的懦弱，并勇敢地面 对 自己的胆怯。它 们 教 导你在失 败时 要自尊，要不屈不 挠 ；胜 利 时 要 谦 和，不要以言 语 代替行 动 ，不要 贪图 舒适；要面 对 重 压 和困 难 ，勇敢地接受挑 战 ；要学会巍然屹立于 风 浪之中，但 对 遇 难 者要寄予同情；要先律己而后律人；要有 纯洁 的心灵和崇高的目 标 ；要学会笑，但不要忘 记 怎么哭
43、；要向往未来，但不可忽略 过 去；要 为 人持重，但不可 过 于 严肃 ；要 谦 虚， 铭记 真正 伟 大的 纯 朴，真正智慧的虚心，真正 强 大的温 顺 。它 们赋 予你意志的 韧 性，想象的 质量，感情的活力，从生命的深 处焕发 精神，以勇敢的姿 态 克服胆怯，甘于冒 险 而不 贪图 安逸。它 们 在你 们 心中 创 造奇妙的意想不到的希望，以及生命的灵感与 欢乐 。它 们 就是以 这 种方式教 导 你 们 成 为军 人和君子。 你所率 领 的是哪一 类 士兵？他可靠 吗 ？勇敢 吗 ？他有能力 赢 得 胜 利吗 ？他的故事你全都熟悉，那是一个美国士兵的故事。我 对 他的估价是多年前在 战
44、场 上形成的，至今没有改 变 。那 时 ，我把他看作是世界上最高尚的人； 现 在，我仍然 这样 看他。他不 仅 是一个 军 事品德最 优 秀的人，9而且也是一个最 纯洁 的人。他的名字与威望是每一个美国公民的 骄 傲。在青壮年 时 期，他献出了一切人 类 所 赋 予的 爱 情与忠 贞 。他不需要我及其他人的 颂扬 ，因 为 他已用自己的 鲜 血在 敌 人的胸前 谱 写了自 传 。可是，当我想到他在灾 难 中的 坚 忍，在 战 火里的勇气，在 胜 利 时 的 谦 虚，我 满怀 的 赞 美之情不禁油然而升。他在 历 史上已成 为 一位成功 爱 国者的 伟大典范；他在未来将成 为 子 孙认识 解放与
45、自由的教 导 者； 现 在，他把美德与成就献 给 我 们 。在数十次 战 役中，在上百个 战场 上，在成千堆 营 火旁，我 亲 眼目睹他 坚韧 不拔的不朽精神， 热爱 祖国的自我克制以及不可战胜 的 坚 定决心， 这 些已 经 把他的形象 铭 刻在他的人民心中。从世界的这 一端到另一端，他已 经 深深地 为 那勇敢的美酒所陶醉。 当我听到合唱 队 唱的 这 些歌曲，我 记忆 的目光看到第一次世界大 战中步履 蹒 跚的小分 队 ，从湿淋淋的黄昏到 细 雨蒙蒙的黎明，在透湿的背包的重 负 下疲 惫 不堪地行 军 ，沉重的脚踝深深地踏在炮 弹轰 震 过 的泥泞 路上，与 敌 人 进 行你死我活的 战
46、 斗。他 们 嘴唇 发 青， 浑 身 污 泥，在 风雨中 战 抖着，从家里被赶到 敌 人面前， 许 多人 还 被赶到上帝的 审 判席上。我不了解他 们 生得高 贵 ，可我知道他 们 死得光荣。他 们 从不犹豫，毫无怨恨， 满怀 信心，嘴 边 叨念着 继续战 斗，直到看到 胜 利的希望才合上双眼。 这 一切都是 为 了它 们 责 任一荣誉一国家。当我 们瞒 珊在 寻 找光明与真理的道路上 时 ，他 们 一直在流血、 挥 汗、洒泪 . 20 年以后，在世界的另一 边 ，他 们 又面 对 着黑黝黝 肮脏 的散兵坑、阴森森 恶 臭的 战 壕、湿淋淋 污浊 的坑道， 还 有那酷 热 的火辣辣的阳光、疾
47、风 狂暴的 倾 盆大雨、10荒无人烟的 丛 林小道。他 们 忍受着与 亲 人 长 期分离的痛苦煎熬、 热带 疾病的猖獗蔓延、兵桌要地区的恐怖情景。他 们坚 定果敢的防御，他 们 迅速准确的攻 击 ，他 们 不屈 挠 的目的，他 们 全面 彻 底的 胜 利 永恒的 胜利 永 远 伴随着他 们 最后在血泊中的 战 斗。在 战 斗中，那些 苍 白憔悴的人 们 的目光始 终 庄 严 地跟随着 责 任一荣誉一国家的口号。 这 几个名 词 包合着最高的道德准 则 ，并将 经 受任何 为 提高人 类 道德水准而 传 播的 伦 理或哲学的 检验 。它所提倡的是正确的事物，它所制止的是 谬误 的 东 西。高于众
48、人之上的 战 士要履行宗教修 炼 的最 伟 大行 为牺 牲。在 战 斗中，面 对 着危 险 与死亡，他 显 示出造物主按照自己意愿 创 造人 类时 所 赋 予的品 质 。只有神明能帮助他、支持他， 这 是任何肉体的勇敢与 动 物的本能都代替不了的。无 论战 争如何恐怖，召之即来的战 士准 备为 国捐躯是人 类 最崇高的 进 化。 现 在，你 们 面 临 着一个新世界 一个 变 革中的世界。人造 卫 星 进入星 际 空 间 。卫 星与 导弹标 志着人 类 漫 长 的 历 史 进 入了另一个 时 代 太空 时 代。自然科学告 诉 我 们 ，在 50 亿 年或更 长 的 时 期中，地球形成了； 300 万年或更 长 的 时 期中，人 类 形成了；人 类历 史 还 不曾有 过 一次更巨大、更令人惊 讶 的 进 化。我 们 不 单 要从 现 在 这 个世界，而且要从无法估算的距离，从神秘莫 测 的宇宙来 论 述事物。我 们 正在 认识 一个 崭 新的无 边 无 际 的世界。我 们谈论 着不可思 议 的 话题 ：控制宇宙的能源； 让风力与潮汐 为 我 们 所用； 创 造空前的合成物 质 以 补 充甚至代替古老的基本物 质 ；净 化海水以供我 们饮 用；开 发 海底以作 为财 富与食品的新基地； 预
