OK——小词大来头

文/杰里米·麦卡特 译/刘建稳 审订/文力

OK
——小词大来头

文/杰里米·麦卡特 译/刘建稳 审订/文力

Allan Metcalf’s new book claims that the word “OK” is America’s greatest invention. This offers a pair of provocations. How can “OK” be an invention? On a certain day， a certain guy just dreamed up the expression that has become the most frequently spoken word on the planet? And even if it is an invention， can one little word really be greater than jazz， baseball，and the telephone? Is it better than The Simpsons?

[2] The answer to the first question，implausible as it sounds， is yes. In OK:The Improbable Story of America’s Greatest Word， Metcalf locates the fi rst use of OK in an obscure corner of a Boston newspaper on March 23， 1839.As for the reputed greatness of the word， Metcalf’s slim volume doesn’t entirely persuade you that OK is a more valuable invention than， say， electric light. But the fact that he even raises the question is intriguing. If it does nothing else， Metcalf makes you acutely aware of how ubiquitous and vital the word has become. Once you start noticing OK， you risk becoming like the knights in Monty Python and the Holy Grail1英国著名导演特里·吉列姆（Terty Gilliam）于1975 年拍摄的一部奇幻电影，以调侃的方式讲述了亚瑟王和圆桌骑士们接受上帝的旨意去寻找圣杯，其间历经了对勇敢、圣洁、智慧和忠诚的种种考验并受到巫师指引，前往卡那巴诺格之洞破解圣杯的秘密。who erupt every time somebody says the word “it.”

[3] True story: the world’s most popular word began as a joke. In the late 1830s， America’s newspapers had a mania for abbreviations—also， to judge by Metcalf’s account， a sorry sense of humor. He devotes a chapter to trying to explain why readers of the Boston Morning Post might have been amused to see “o. k.” used as a jokey abbreviation for “oll korrect”， an intentional misspelling of “all correct”.Apparently you had to be there. But the word soon got an enormous boost from Andrew Jackson—or his enemies，anyway. They circulated the rumor that the man of the people was barely literate and approved papers with the initials “O.K.” for “oll korrect.” It was a hoax， Metcalf concludes， “but without it there’d be no OK.”

[4] The word didn’t remain a joke for long. Telegraph operators began using it as a way to say “all clear.” It became ubiquitous， turning up in all corners of the world， and beyond. Metcalf points out that OK was technically the fi rst word spoken on the surface of the moon; it also immediately preceded Todd Beamer2’s heroic charge on 9/11 (“OK， let’s roll.”). To stand out in conversation now， it needs some frippery， like Ned Flander’s “okely dokely”.

[5] What gives this little word its immense and polymorphous appeal?Metcalf offers a couple of explanations，like its aesthetic contrasts: “A circle with an asterisk. Smooth oval， cluster of sticks. Feminine O， masculine K.” It also consists of a series of sounds that can be uttered in almost every language.Meanwhile technology continues to urge it along. Early Apple programmers let users click on two buttons: “Do It”or “Cancel”. When a tester pointed to“Do It” and asked why the computer was calling him a dolt， the “OK”button was born. Now， in the world of the ubiquitous text message， it’s increasingly just “k”.

[6] When you pause to consider what a weird and wonderful little word OK is， the most remarkable thing isn’t that it’s so great or that it was invented but that it’s American. To foreigners in the 20th century， Metcalf writes， the word embodied “American simplicity， pragmatism， and optimism.”To us today， the word encapsulates “a whole two-letter American philosophy of tolerance， even admiration for difference.” Metcalf’s book could use more among these lines. In a time as fractious as this， it’s encouraging to think that two little syllables can help us bridge our differences. Are there worse sayings to rally behind? You betcha. ■

艾伦·梅特卡夫在其新作中声称，OK一词是美国最伟大的发明。此言一出，顿时引发热议。OK怎么算得上是发明？莫非有那么一天，某个家伙凭空就想到了这种表达，而这后来就成为地球上使用频率最高的口语？即使算得上是个发明，这么个小词难道真比爵士乐、棒球和电话还伟大？比喜剧《辛普森一家》还精彩？

[2]虽然听起来不可思议，但第一个问题的答案就是——没错。在《OK：美国最伟大单词的传奇故事》一书中，梅特卡夫指出，OK一词最早出现在1839年3月23日波士顿一家报纸一个不起眼的角落里。至于该词所谓的伟大，梅特卡夫这本小册子还不足以使你相信，OK是一项比电灯之类更有价值的发明。但是他提出这个问题本身就很吸引人。别的不提，至少梅特卡夫使你强烈意识到OK已经无处不在、不可或缺了。一旦你开始关注OK，就可能变得像《巨蟒与圣杯》中寻找圣杯的骑士，每每有人提到it这个词，就热血沸腾。

[3]真相是：这个最受世人喜爱的表达始于一个玩笑。19世纪30年代末，美国报业热衷于使用缩略词，在梅特卡夫看来，这种幽默的效果也令人遗憾。《波士顿早报》将all correct有意错拼为oll korrect，并缩写成o.k.。梅特卡夫用整章篇幅说明为何当时的读者会为此发笑。显然，生活在那会儿的人才能够理解。但是很快，该词经由（美国总统）安德鲁·杰克逊——或许是其政敌——得到大力推广。政敌散布谣言，宣称总统没有什么文化，用oll korrect的首字母O.K.批阅文件。梅特卡夫总结说，虽然这是一个恶作剧，“但倘若没有它，就不会有OK这个词了”。

[4] OK一词没过多久就不再是玩笑了。电报员开始用它来表示all clear（警报解除）。渐渐地，该词出现在世界各地，为世人所接受，产生了深远的影响。梅特卡夫指出，严格来说，人类登上月球表面时说的第一个词就是OK，它也是“9·11”那天，托德·比默英勇冲向恐怖分子前说的第一个词（“OK，我们行动吧！”）。如今，要在谈话中引人注意，就得像喜剧《辛普森一家》中的内德·弗兰德那样加点料，将OK夸张成okely dokely。

[5]到底是什么赋予OK这个小词如此巨大而多样的魅力？对此梅特卡夫做出了几点解释，比如几组审美对比：“一个圆加一颗星。光滑的椭圆加条棒的组合。阴性的O加阳性的K。”而且，几乎每一种语言都能读出这个词。与此同时，技术行业也不断推进OK的使用。早期，苹果公司的程序员要求用户点击Do It（执行）或Cancel（取消）两个键。有一次，一个测试员指着Do It键，询问计算机为什么称他为笨蛋（dolt），于是OK键诞生了。现在，在这个短信息充斥的世界里，使用单个k的人越来越多。

2 2001年“9·11”事件中的平民英雄。劫机的恐怖分子原本要劫持这架航班去撞击白宫，但是飞机上包括托德在内的众多乘客奋勇反击，与凶残的恐怖分子展开殊死搏斗，最终全体乘客和恐怖分子同归于尽，换来了更多无辜民众的幸存。

[6]当你驻足思考OK是多么怪异、多么奇妙时，最值得注意的并非它是何其伟大或是人为创造的，而是它原产美国。梅特卡夫写道，对20世纪的外国人来说，这个词体现了“美国的简单朴素、实用主义和乐观主义”。对今天的我们而言，该词浓缩了“美国整套的双字母宽容哲学，甚至是对差异的推崇”。梅特卡夫的书可能还有许多类似的言论。在如今这个冲突易起的时代，两个小小的音节能起到消除分歧的作用，想起来就令人鼓舞。还有比这更糟的赞辞吗？当然有。 □（译者单位：武汉轻工大学外国语学院）

Most Famous Dogs in History (5)Capitan, a Dog in Mourning

In 2012， ABC News reported that a German shepherd named Capitan had returned to its owners’ grave every day for six years. After Manuel Guzman died in 2006， his family returned home from the funeral to fi nd that the dog had run away.A few days later， while visiting Mr. Guzman’s grave， they found Capitan grieving at the gravesite. The dog goes home for a short time every day to visit his family， but then returns to the grave by evening， the cemetery director told reporters.

The Little Word That Could

By Jeremy McCarter