一个东方人有能力判断另外一个东方人的国籍，而且八九不离十；如果把范围再缩小一些，一个中国人更是有能力单凭长相和外表就判断出另外一个中国人是南方人还是北方人、城市人还是农村人、体力劳动者还是脑力劳动者、穷还是富、聪明还是愚笨、内向还是外向、天真还是成熟、高兴还是悲伤等等。

       这就是每个国家的人每天都在大量进行的一种秘密活动：以貌取人。之所以说"秘密"是因为：从社会舆论的角度来说"以貌取人"不是一种高尚的行为，因此，没有人会公开承认自己在以貌取人。

       但实际上大家却都在这么干，而且，理由也很充分：每天要见很多人，没时间、没必要、也没办法去关注每个人的内心，还是以貌取人来得更快捷、更实际、更有可操作性。久而久之，"以貌取人"就成了一种能力，一种能干但不能说的能力，一种隐形的能力。

       没出国以前我从未想到过"以貌取人"竟然能获得这么多的信息，更不用说把这看成是一种能力了。然而，一出国才发现：外国的面孔是那么的陌生、那么的不可理喻、那么的读不懂，在缺乏背景信息和判断标准的情况下，老外们统统都成了"不可貌相"之人。

       比如：在国内，你完全可以根据一个人外貌特征判断出这个人的大约年龄而且基本准确，而这一点到了国外就没那么高的准确率了。记得我刚到国外的时候经常把老外的年龄猜得比实际大很多，后来才知道：和中国人相比，中青年的西方人普遍会显得老一些。（有意思的是：西方人到了老年又会比中国的老人显得更年轻一些）。

       连年龄这么基本的信息都拿不准，就更不用说能够对一个老外的社会阶层、文化水平、性格特点、聪明程度、品质特征、表情含义、情感反应等等有比较正确的感觉了。这些在中国人脸上可以一目了然的东西到了外国人的脸上却统统被蒙上了一层神秘主义的色彩，让你干着急却无能为力。

       失去了才知道珍贵，突然丧失了"以貌取人"的能力，那种感觉只能用一句著名的台词来形容，那就是："曾经有一种能力在我身上，我却没有珍惜；到了外国才追悔莫及；如果上天再给我一次机会，我一定会公然宣称：我就是要以貌取人，然后，再加上一个期限：一辈子。"

An eastern has the ability to know the nationality of another easterner and most of the time, he is right. If the scope is reduced, a Chinese is capable of knowing if another Chinese is from south or from north, from city or from country, a manualworker or a mental worker, rich or poor, smart or stupid, conserved or outgoing, innocent or mature, happy or sad etc.
Everyday people in every country are doing a secret activity: to judge people from appearance. It is a secret activity because: it is not a noble deed to judge a person from appearance from the perspective of public opinions. Therefore, nobody will admit that they are judging people from appearance.
But in fact everybody is doing this. And there are plenty of reasons to do so: everyday we will meet so many people. We have no time, no need and no methods to care about the innermost being of every one. To judge a person from appearance is much faster, much more practical and much more operational. As time passes, "to judge a person from appearance," has become an ability, which one can use but should not talk about. It is an invisible ability.
Before I went abroad, I never knew that one could get so much information from appearance. Let alone that I would think it is a skill. However, after I went abroad, I suddenly realized: foreign faces are so strange, so impenetrable and so incomprehensible, without background information and judgment standards, foreigners all become so difficult to judge from appearance.
For example: in China, you can roughly know about a person's age from his or her appearance and you guess is normally correct. However, the percentage of right guesses is not so higher when you are abroad. I remember, when I first went abroad, I always guessed wrong. A foreigner looked older to me than they were. Then I came to know: comparing with Chinese people, middle aged or young westerner look older. (The interesting thing is: when they grow old, they might look younger than a Chinese of the same age.)
Even a piece of simple and basic information like age cannot be easily guessed out. How can we have the right feelings for the social class, education level, personalities, smartness, characters, expressions, emotional reactions of a westerner? What can be so obvious seen from a face of a Chinese become so obscure in a face of a foreigner? You might feel anxious, but there is nothing you can do.
After losing this ability, you will know how precious it is. Suddenly we cannot judge a person from his or her appearance. This feeling can only be described by a famous line. That is "Once I had a skill, but I did not cherish. When I went abroad, I cannot help regretting. If the heaven can give me another chance, I will definitely claim: I will judge a person from appearance. Then I want to add a time limit, which is as long as I live."

本文转载自张叶的个人空间，要阅读更多作者文章，请移步作者个人空间http://i.myechinese.com/index.php?s=/space/1253  。

• ability [ə´biliti]   n.(办事)能力；才干   (初中英语单词)
• capable [´keipəbəl]   a.有能力；能干的   (初中英语单词)
• knowing [´nəuiŋ]   a.会意的，心照不宣的   (初中英语单词)
• worker [´wə:kə]   n.工人；劳动者；工作者   (初中英语单词)
• mental [´mentl]   a.精神的；心理的   (初中英语单词)
• stupid [´stju:pid]   a.愚蠢的；糊涂的   (初中英语单词)
• innocent [´inəsənt]   a.无罪的；单纯的   (初中英语单词)
• therefore [´ðeəfɔ:]   ad.&conj.因此；所以   (初中英语单词)
• invisible [in´vizəbəl]   a.看不见的；无形的   (初中英语单词)
• abroad [ə´brɔ:d]   ad.海外；到处；广泛   (初中英语单词)
• background [´bækgraund]   n.背景；经历；幕后   (初中英语单词)
• percentage [pə´sentidʒ]   n.百分数；比例；部分   (初中英语单词)
• foreigner [´fɔrinə]   n.外国人   (初中英语单词)
• emotional [i´məuʃənəl]   a.易动感情的；情感的   (初中英语单词)
• obvious [´ɔbviəs]   a.明显的；显而易见的   (初中英语单词)
• anxious [´æŋkʃəs]   a.担忧的；渴望的   (初中英语单词)
• definitely [´definitli]   ad.明确地；绝对   (初中英语单词)
• mature [mə´tjuə]   a.成熟的 v.(使)成熟   (高中英语单词)
• everyday [´evridei]   a.每日的，日常的   (高中英语单词)
• roughly [´rʌfli]   ad.粗糙地；毛糙地   (高中英语单词)
• cherish [´tʃeriʃ]   vt.珍爱；怀有(感情)   (高中英语单词)
• nationality [,næʃə´næliti]   n.国籍；民族   (英语四级单词)
• manual [´mænjuəl]   a.用手(操作)的 n.手册   (英语四级单词)
• perspective [pə´spektiv]   n.望远镜 a.透视的   (英语六级单词)
• normally [´nɔ:məli]   ad.正常情况下；通常   (英语六级单词)