評論
打印
Many people in the United States spend most of their free time watching television. Certainly, there are many worthwhile programs on television, including news, educational programs for children, programs on current social problems, plays, movies, concerts, and so on. Nevertheless, perhaps people should not be spending so much of their time in front of the TV. Mr. Mayer imagines what we might do if we were forced to find other activities.
在美國，許多人把大部分空閑時間花在看電視上。的確，電視里有很多值得一看的節目，包括新聞、兒童教育節目、討論當前社會問題的節目、戲劇、電影、音樂會等等。然而，人們也許不該在電視機前花費那么多的時間。如果我們被迫要找一些其他的活動，那我們可以做些什么呢？對這一問題，梅耶先生做了一番想像。
Turning Off TV: fi Quiet Hour
關上電視機：清凈一小時
I would like to propose that for sixty to ninety minutes each evening, right after the early evening news, all television broadcasting in the United States be prohibited by law.
我想建議每天晚上一播完晚間新聞，美國所有的電視臺都依法停播六十至九十分鐘。
Let us take a serious, reasonable look at what the results might be if such a proposal were accepted. Families might use the time for a real family hour.
讓我們認真而通情達理地看一下，如果這一建議被采納的話，會有什么樣的結果。千家萬戶也許會利用這段時間真正地團聚一番。
Without the distraction of TV, they might sit around together after dinner and actually talk to one another. It is well known that many of our problems — everything, in fact, from the generation gap to the high divorce rate to some forms of mental illness — are caused at least in part by failure to communicate. We do not tell each other what is disturbing us. The result is emotional difficulty of one kind or another. By using the quiet family hour to discuss our problems, we might get to know each other better, and to like each other better.
沒有電視機的干擾，他們晚飯后也許會圍坐在一起，當真交談起來。眾所周知，我們的許多問題——事實上是所有的問題，從代溝、高離婚率到某些精神病——至少部分地是由于沒能交流思想而引起的。我們誰也不把自己心頭的煩惱告訴別人，結果感情上便產生了這樣那樣的問題。利用這安靜的、全家聚在一起的時刻來討論我們的各種問題，我們相互之間也許會更加了解，更加相愛。
On evenings when such talk is unnecessary, families could rediscover more active pastimes. Freed from TV, forced to find their own activities, they might take a ride together to watch the sunset. Or they might take a walk together (remember feet?) and see the neighborhood with fresh, new eyes.
有些晚上，如果沒有必要進行這種交談，那么各家各戶也許會重新發現一些更為積極的消遣活動。如果他們掙脫開電視機的束縛而不得不另尋自己的活動，他們也許會合家驅車去看日落。或者也許會全家一起去散步（還記得自己長有雙腳嗎？），用新奇的目光觀察住處周圍的地區。
