國外版“從前慢”：爲了鼓勵社交，冰島週四沒電視

北歐國家向來在人類發展指數、性別平等、社會福利待遇等方面在世界範圍內名列前茅。

但如果有“社恐指數”這回事，它們可能也會拔得頭籌。

傳聞說1987年以前，冰島每個週四都沒有電視可以看，因爲政府希望人們多出去社交。

也是，寒天凍地的，誰願意沒事兒在外頭溜達啊，得用政策工具把人們逼出去才行。

Thursdays in Iceland were traditionally a day to connect with family and friends. This may sound strange, but until 1987, there was no TV broadcast in Iceland on a Thursday.

冰島的星期四傳統上來說是與家人和朋友聯絡感情的日子。聽起來可能有點奇怪，但1987年之前，冰島都沒有周四的電視轉播。

It’s believed that this came from a desire not to have a nation filled with TV-addicted zombies. As a result, many Icelanders born before 1987 joke that they were most likely conceived on a Thursday.

人們認爲這是因爲這個國家不能全都變成沉迷電視的殭屍。因此，許多1987年以前出生的冰島人都開玩笑說，他們很有可能是在星期四被懷上的。

還有一種說法是，不止週四，過去有段時間中整個7月份都是沒有電視可以看的。

If you were to visit Iceland in 1966, you would have noticed that nothing was shown on the country’s only state-run television station on Thursdays. The idea behind the decision was to reserve Thursdays as a day for socializing.

如果你1966年去冰島，就會注意到冰島唯一的國營電視臺在星期四不會播放任何節目。這個決定背後的想法是把星期四定爲社交日。

The ban expanded to the month of July when it was decided that nothing would be shown on television during the whole month. As July was considered a vacation month, it was also expected for locals to spend their days outdoors. Luckily the Thursday ban ended in 1983 while the July ban lasted until 1987.

隨後，禁令擴大到整個7月份，當時決定在整個7月內都不在電視上播放任何節目，因爲7月被視爲休假月，當地人也希望在戶外度過這個月。幸運的是，週四的禁令在1983年結束，而7月份的禁令一直持續到1987年。

這些可能都只是人們的猜測。不過，北歐人民的社交距離的確一直是被調侃的對象。比方說，芬蘭就常常被人稱爲“社恐福音”。

Certain things you do at one place are totally OK and understood. You do the same thing in another place and it does not come through at all or it might even be totally misunderstood.

某個地方的習俗在當地是完全沒問題的，但一旦到了另一個地方，就行不通甚至會被完全誤解。

1 排隊隔老遠

To start with an easy one: personal space. Finns respect the personal space of each other a lot. You might have seen this funny picture already about Finns waiting at the bus stop.

就拿個簡單的說：私人空間。芬蘭人非常尊重彼此的私人空間。你可能已經看過這張關於芬蘭人在公共汽車站等車的照片了，真的很有趣。

2 對話別對視

People do not like to make eye contact with strangers and, even when talking to friends and family, constant eye contact is not very common. It might be a sign of rudeness in other cultures not to look each other in the eye when talking—in Finland it is simply just the opposite.

人們不喜歡與陌生人進行眼神交流，即使在與朋友和家人交談時，持續的眼神交流也不常見。在其他文化中，交談時不直視對方的眼睛可能是粗魯的表現——在芬蘭，情況恰恰相反。

If you are standing too close to someone while talking you will notice that the other person is trying to get a bit further from you. You should notice and respect it and leave as much personal space for the other person so that he or she can feel comfortable.

如果你說話時站得離某人太近，你會注意到對方會試圖離你更遠一點。你應該注意並尊重這一點，給對方留下儘可能多的私人空間，讓他/她感到舒適。

3 動口別動手

Also, touching strangers while talking to them might feel awkward to the other person. In more southern cultures it is acceptable, for example, to tap someone`s shoulder or hold his arm for a second as a sign of sympathy.

另外，與陌生人交談時碰到他們可能會讓對方感到尷尬。在很多歐洲南部的文化中，輕拍對方的肩膀或握一下對方的手臂表示共情是可以接受的。

In Finland, for most people physical contact while talking even among friends is not so common. Finns do not give kisses on the cheek when greeting each other. Mostly the greeting is saying hi or shaking hands (even with women). People who know each other and are friends or family greet each other with a hug.

不過在芬蘭，對大多數人來說，即使是朋友之間交談，身體接觸也不常見。芬蘭人互相問候時不會親吻臉頰。大多數的問候就是打打招呼或者握手（哪怕是問候女性）。互相之間認識的朋友或家人問候時會擁抱。

4 隱私別探問

People do not talk about their salaries or financial status and it is very uncommon (and sometimes even considered rude) to ask even friends about how much they earn. It is simply considered a part of their personal space. No one comments about each other’s appearance or clothes unless it is something positive or someone asks for an opinion.

芬蘭人不會談論他們的薪水或經濟狀況，甚至連朋友之間都很少見問對方掙多少錢。這是個人空間的一部分。也沒有人評價對方的外表或者衣着，除非是積極的評論或者是對方在認真地徵求意見。

In the same way, it is totally unacceptable to ask married friends or couples about if and when they want to have children and how many of them they want. The logic behind this is that people will tell things themselves anyways if they want to talk about them. A lot of unwritten social rules in the Finnish society represent the principle of “Live and Let Live”.

同樣，詢問已婚的朋友或情侶是否會要孩子、想什麼時候生孩子、以及想生幾個孩子是完全不可以接受的。這背後的邏輯是，如果人們真的想談論這些事情的話，他們反正都會說的。芬蘭社會有許多不成文的社會規矩，而且都代表着這樣一個原則：各自安好，別管閒事。

5 心情自己知

Finns tend to keep to themselves and not discuss their personal life. Talking about feelings is seen as socially unacceptable. Only the very necessary is uttered. When Finns receive a gift, they will very briefly thank the gift-giver but are not expected to tell whether they like the gift or not.

芬蘭人喜歡自己待着，也不太談論他們的個人生活。在社交場合傾訴情緒被認爲是不可接受的。一般只在非常必要的情況下才表露情緒。當芬蘭人收到禮物時，他們會非常簡短地感謝送禮人，但不會告訴他們自己是否喜歡這個禮物。

This type of behavior is often seen as sullen by Central Europeans and easily mistaken for unfriendliness. Finns rarely smile or laugh, and for this reason, they are often seen as hostile by more sophisticated folks.

這種行爲常被中歐人認爲對方是在生悶氣，很容易被誤認爲不友好。而且芬蘭人也很少微笑或大笑，因此，世故的人也經常覺得芬蘭人有敵意。

另外，芬蘭的性別平等狀況也經常被拿來討論。

There is a high degree of equality between the genders in Finland, as can be seen in the relatively high number of women holding advanced positions in politics and other areas of society.

芬蘭的性別平等程度很高，在政治和社會其他領域擔任高級職務的女性人數相對較多。

Chauvinistic or patronizing attitudes toward women are generally considered unacceptable, although such attitudes do persist in practice. Women are usually independent financially and may offer to pay their share of a restaurant bill, for instance. A man may politely refuse such an offer, but it is equally polite to accept it.

大男子主義或者性別傲慢通常是不可接受的，雖說這種事情在現實中也確實存在。女性通常經濟獨立，她們也願意吃飯後AA。男性一般會禮貌地表示願意請客，但跟女性AA同樣也是禮貌和可接受的。

芬蘭的這些特質經常被歸結爲氣候因素的影響——道路結冰，人們不願出門社交；空氣太冷，講話要短要快要精煉；極夜太長，要少加班，多福利，等等。

芬蘭的鄰居瑞典和挪威也或多或少分享了這些特點。

想一想，不需要無謂社交，也挺讓人動心的。

Notes

sympathy /ˈsɪmpəθi/ n贊同；支持

utter /ˈʌtər/ v出聲；說；講

sullen /ˈsʌlən/ adj面有慍色的；悶悶不樂的

sophisticated /səˈfɪstɪkeɪtɪd/ adj見多識廣的；老練的

chauvinistic /ʃəʊv(ɪ)ˈnɪstɪk/ adj沙文主義的（此處指認爲某一性別優於另一性別的）

patronizing / ˈpeɪtrənaɪzɪŋ / adj自認爲高人一等的