112 年 國立中山大學外國文學系碩士班《英文作文與閱讀》
第 1 題
Please read this excerpt from Sir Thomas More's Utopia and answer the essay question below. (100%)
The other hours of the day, when they are not working, eating, or sleeping, are left to each person's individual discretion, provided that free time is not wasted in roistering or sloth, but used properly in some chosen occupation. Generally these periods are devoted to intellectual activity. For they have an established custom of giving public lectures before daybreak; attendance at these lectures is required only of those who have been specially chosen to devote themselves to learning, but a great many other people, both men and women, choose voluntarily to attend. Depending on their interests, some go to one lecture, some to another. But if anyone would rather devote his spare time to his trade, as many do who don't care for the intellectual life, this is not discouraged; in fact, such persons are commended as especially useful to the commonwealth.
After supper, they devote an hour to recreation, in their gardens when the weather is fine, or during winter weather in the common halls where they have their meals. There they either play music or amuse themselves with conversation. They know nothing about gambling with dice, or other such foolish and ruinous games. They do play two games not unlike our own chess. One is a battle of numbers, in which one number captures another. The other is a game in which the vices fight a battle against the virtues. The game is set up to show how the vices oppose one another, yet readily combine against the virtues; then, what vices oppose what virtues, how they try to assault them openly or undermine them insidiously; how the virtues can break the strength of the vices or turn their purposes to good; and finally, by what means one side or the other gains the victory.
But in all this, you may get a wrong impression, if we don't go back and consider one point more carefully. Because they allot only six hours to work, you might think the necessities of life would be in scant supply. This is far from the case. Their working hours are ample to provide not only enough but more than enough of the necessities and even the conveniences of life. You will easily appreciate this if you consider how large a part of the population in other countries exists without doing any work at all.
In your view, what is the Utopians' attitude toward life and work, game and play? What is the nature of their mental pleasure? How does this excerpt reflect the ways we live now? Please write a 500-word argumentative essay on this topic.
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這是一篇要求考生根據提供的《烏托邦》選文，就烏托邦居民對生活、工作、遊戲和娛樂的態度，以及他們精神享樂的本質，並結合當代生活進行論述的英文寫作題。
解題思路：
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理解文章核心內容：
- 時間分配： 烏托邦居民每天工作六小時，其餘時間自由支配，但強調不能浪費於遊蕩或懶惰，而應投入「選擇的職業」或「智力活動」。
- 智力活動： 普遍有在清晨聽公開講座的習慣，雖非強制，但許多人自願參加。
- 個人選擇： 對於不熱衷智力生活者，可選擇投入技藝，這不僅被鼓勵，還被讚揚為對社會有用。
- 娛樂活動： 晚餐後有一小時的休閒時間，天氣好時在花園，天氣不好時在公共廳。活動包括音樂、談話，但禁止賭博。
- 特殊遊戲： 介紹了兩種非傳統的棋類遊戲。一種是數字戰，一種是「惡德對抗美德」的遊戲，後者旨在展示惡德如何相互對立、聯合對抗美德，以及美德如何克服惡德。
- 工作與生活平衡： 強調六小時工作足以滿足甚至超過生活所需，並對比了其他國家存在大量不工作卻生活無虞的人口。
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分析烏托邦居民的態度與精神享樂：
- 對生活： 烏托邦的生活是經過精心設計的，強調理性、自律和有目的性。自由時間不等於放縱，而是用於個人成長和社會貢獻。
- 對工作： 工作被視為滿足基本需求、貢獻社會的方式，且時間被限制在「剛剛好」的程度，避免過度勞累。工作與個人興趣（技藝）結合，能獲得社會認可。
- 對遊戲與娛樂： 娛樂是為了休閒和社交，而非逃避現實或損害身心（如賭博）。遊戲（特別是「惡德對美德」）本身就帶有教育和反思的性質，是精神層面的鍛鍊。
- 精神享樂的本質： 烏托邦的精神享樂來自於智力活動（學習、聽講座）、有意義的休閒（談話、音樂、教育性遊戲）以及對社會的貢獻。這是一種內在的、理性的、具有啟發性的快樂，而非感官或物質上的滿足。
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連結當代生活：
- 對比與反思：
- 工作時長與意義： 當代許多人面臨工時過長、工作壓力大、工作與生活失衡的問題。烏托邦的六小時工作制和對閒暇時間的合理利用，與此形成鮮明對比。
- 娛樂方式： 當代社會充斥著各種娛樂（網路遊戲、社交媒體、影視），其中許多可能具有消磨時間、逃避現實的特質，甚至如網路賭博等。烏托邦對娛樂的選擇（談話、音樂、教育性遊戲）更顯得有深度。
- 智力活動的價值： 當代社會雖然資訊發達，但真正投入深度學習和智力活動的人相對較少，更多人追求速食資訊或被動娛樂。
- 社會價值觀： 烏托邦讚揚對技藝的投入和對社會的有用性。當代社會則可能更看重物質財富或特定職業的聲望。
- 精神追求： 烏托邦強調精神層面的滿足，而當代社會可能過度追求物質和外在的成功。
- 對比與反思：
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構建論證結構（Argumentative Essay）：
- Introduction (引言):
- 簡要介紹《烏托邦》選文的主題。
- 提出論點：烏托邦居民對生活、工作、遊戲的態度體現了一種高度理性、自律且注重精神成長的價值觀，這與當代社會許多過度追求物質、缺乏深度休閒和反思的現象形成鮮明對比，值得我們反思。
- Body Paragraph 1: Attitude towards Life and Work (生活與工作的態度):
- 闡述烏托邦如何將自由時間用於智力活動和個人成長，而非放縱。
- 分析六小時工作制如何確保基本需求，並避免過度勞累，實現工作與生活的平衡。
- 對比當代社會的工時長、壓力大、工作意義的缺失。
- Body Paragraph 2: Attitude towards Game and Play (遊戲與娛樂的態度):
- 描述烏托邦的娛樂方式（音樂、談話、教育性遊戲），強調其健康、有益的特點。
- 分析「惡德對美德」遊戲的教育和反思功能。
- 對比當代社會的被動、碎片化、甚至有害的娛樂形式。
- Body Paragraph 3: The Nature of Mental Pleasure (精神享樂的本質):
- 總結烏托邦的精神享樂來源：學習、有意義的互動、個人成長、社會貢獻。
- 強調這種快樂的內在性和深度。
- Introduction (引言):