《道德情操论·卷五·论习惯与风尚对道德情感的影响·二·论习惯与风尚对道德情感的影响》第2节
Fashion, too, will sometimes give reputation to a certain degree of disorder, and, on the contrary, discountenance qualities which deserve esteem. In the reign of Charles II. a degree of licentiousness was deemed the characteristic of a liberal education. It was connected, according to the notions of those times, with generosity, sincerity, magnanimity, loyalty, and proved that the person who acted in this manner, was a gentleman, and not a puritan. Severity of manners, and regularity of conduct, on the other hand, were altogether unfashionable, and were connected, in the imagination of that age, with cant, cunning, hypocrisy, and low manners. To superficial minds, the vices of the great seem at all times agreeable. They connect them, not only with the splendour of fortune, but with many superior virtues, which they ascribe to their superiors; with the spirit of freedom and {178} independency, with frankness, generosity, humanity, and politeness. The virtues of the inferior ranks of people, on the contrary, their parsimonious frugality, their painful industry, and rigid adherence to rules, seems to them mean and disagreeable. They connect them, both with the meanness of the station to which those qualities do commonly belong, and with many great vices which, they suppose, very usually accompany them; such as an abject, cowardly, ill-natured, lying, and pilfering disposition.
注释摘要
史密斯在这一段里讨论的不是时尚如何败坏个人的道德感，而是时尚如何使某些品质获得它本不该拥有的道德声誉。他的论述建立在一个更细致的观察之上：人们很少孤立地看待一种行为或一种性格特征，而是习惯性地把它们与某种社会地位、某种阶层整体的形象捆绑在一起。这种联想一旦被习惯固定下来，就会扭曲我们对品质本身的判断——我们赞许的已经不是那个品质，而是它被时尚贴上的标签。 …