評論
打印
Years ago in America, it was customary for families to leave their doors unlocked, day and night. In this essay, Greene regrets that people can no longer trust each other and have to resort to elaborate security systems to protect themselves and their possessions.
許多年前，在美國，家家戶戶白天黑夜不鎖門是司空見慣的。在本文中，格林嘆惜人們不再相互信任，不得不憑借精密的安全設備來保護自己和財產。
The Land of the Lock
Bob Greene
1 In the house where I grew up, it was our custom to leave the front door on the latch at night. I don't know if that was a local term or if it is universal; "on the latch" meant the door was closed but not locked. None of us carried keys; the last one in for the evening would close up, and that was it.
鎖之國
鮑伯·格林
小時候在家里，我們的前門總是夜不落鎖。我不知道這是當地的一種說法還是大家都這么說；"不落鎖"的意思是掩上門，但不鎖住。我們誰都不帶鑰匙；晚上最后一個回家的人把門關上，這就行了。
2 Those days are over. In rural areas as well as in cities, doors do not stay unlocked, even for part of an evening.
那樣的日子已經一去不復返了。在鄉下，在城里，門不再關著不鎖上，哪怕是傍晚一段時間也不例外。
3 Suburbs and country areas are, in many ways, even more vulnerable than well-patroled urban streets. Statistics show the crime rate rising more dramatically in those allegedly tranquil areas than in cities. At any rate, the era of leaving the front door on the latch is over.
在許多方面，郊區和農村甚至比巡查嚴密的城市街道更易受到攻擊。統計顯示，那些據稱是安寧的地區的犯罪率上升得比城鎮更為顯著。不管怎么說，前門虛掩不落鎖的時代是一去不復返了。
4 It has been replaced by dead-bolt locks, security chains, electronic alarm systems and trip wires hooked up to a police station or private guard firm. Many suburban families have sliding glass doors on their patios, with steel bars elegantly built in so no one can pry the doors open.
取而代之的是防盜鎖、防護鏈、電子報警系統，以及連接警署或私人保安公司的報警裝置。郊區的許多人家在露臺上安裝了玻璃滑門，內側有裝得很講究的鋼條，這樣就沒人能把門撬開。
5 It is not uncommon, in the most pleasant of homes, to see pasted on the windows small notices announcing that the premises are under surveillance by this security force or that guard company. 在最溫馨的居家，也常常看得到窗上貼著小小的告示，稱本宅由某家安全機構或某個保安公司負責監管。
6 The lock is the new symbol of America. Indeed, a recent public-service advertisement by a large insurance company featured not charts showing how much at risk we are, but a picture of a child's bicycle with the now-usual padlock attached to it.
鎖成了美國的新的象征。的確，一家大保險公司最近的一則公益廣告沒有用圖表表明我們所處的危險有多大，而是用了一幅童車的圖片，車身上懸著如今無所不在的掛鎖。
