Making Senseof the World— Wisdom Through Knowledge —François de Soete

著者紹介
Dr. François de Soete（政治学博士）
政治学を専門とし、これまで日本と北米の複数の大学で国際関係論や政治哲学、および英語の授業を担当している。本書と同じく成美堂から出版したテキスト『Democracy Around theWorld 』のほか、多数の学術論文や国際学会における報告経験を持つ。

About the Author
Dr. François de Soete has a Ph.D. in political science, and he has taught
university courses in Japan and in North America. In addition to histextbook titled Democracy Around the World, also published with Seibido,
he has published several research articles in academic journals and haspresented papers at numerous international conferences.

Photographs byThe Author
NASA

Making Sense of the World—Wisdom Through Knowledge—
Copyright © 2014 by François de Soete, Katsunosuke Namita
All rights reserved for Japan.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form
without permission from Seibido Co., Ltd.

はしがき
何百年も前のはるか昔は、今よりも物事を理解することが容易な時代であった。人々は生まれ育った地域からほとんど移動することがなく、外から入ってくる情報も限られており、ほとんどすべての事柄は神話や宗教などに基づいた信念や信仰によって説明されていたからだ。しかし、現代の私たちは多様性に富んだ社会で、情報へのアクセスも増え、さらに科学的発見によって物事の原理が説明される時代に生きている。人が世界中を移動するようになりほかの国や地域の人々や文化に直接触れる機会が増えたことに加え、メディアからも間接的に多くの情報を得ている。また科学が発展したことにより、人間の起源、あるいは宇宙全体における地球の位置といった世界観は、科学的発見に基づいて理解されるようになった。
本書は、このように非常に複雑な現代社会を分かりやすく理解するために書かれたテキストである。英語はこのグローバル時代において、広く世界中で使われていることから世界言語とされているが、しかし英語ができるというだけではもはや十分とはいえない。
上述の通り、昔に比べて非常に複雑になった現代社会においては、さまざまな知識や情報を広く持つことも重要である。したがって、本書は日本の大学生が英語の力を伸ばしながら、同時に世界を理解するのに役立つ知識も身に付けることを目的としている。
学生のみなさんが興味を持ちながらさまざまなテーマについて学ぶことができるように、分かりやすいテキストにすることに努めた。各章ともメインのリーディング本文には、長年日本の大学英語教育に携わってきた北海道大学名誉教授の浪田克之介先生による、丁寧な注釈が付けられている。また、各章とも読みやすい平易な英文で書いてあり、内容に関しても予備知識がまったくなくとも十分に理解できるようになっている。全体を4つのセクションに分け、日常生活で接する機会の多い文化や社会問題に関するテーマから、環境やエネルギー、国際ニュースや政治、科学や人間・宇宙の起源まで、幅広いトピックを扱っている。このテキストを通して英語力を伸ばすと同時に、本書のタイトルにあるように、少しでも世界のことが理解できるようになってくれれば幸いである。
最後に、本書の企画・編集に当たり、成美堂編集部の菅野英一部長および佐藤公雄氏に謝意を表したい。

François de SoeteiiiPreface
The world was in some ways much easier to understand hundreds ofyears ago. After all, people did not move around very much, so different cultures
did not frequently interact with each other much, and simple beliefs based onmyths and religion explained just about everything. Today, however, we live
in a world characterized by increasing diversity, access to information, andscientific discovery. Cultural exchange is increasingly common, which includes
direct contact as people move to different countries and indirect contact bymeans of frequent exposure to media from all over the world. Similarly,
scientific explanations now shape our understanding of the world, from theorigins of human beings, to our planet’s place in the universe.
This book can help readers make sense of this increasingly complex
world. For one thing, this book covers a wide variety of topics ranging fromthe sciences to international relations. More importantly, however, all of thechapters in this book are written in a very straightforward way, which meansthat readers do not need any prior knowledge of the topics covered in thisbook. In addition, each chapter features many carefully researched Japaneseannotations by Katsunosuke Namita, who is an active researcher in the field oflinguistics and is now professor emeritus at Hokkaido University.
While English is often hailed as a global language, which seems
appropriate given how widespread it has become, speaking this language is in
itself no longer sufficient for interacting with the global community. Today, weare not only living in a global era, but we are also living in the information age.
People must therefore now be able to also speak the language of knowledge andinformation, and more than ever critical thinking skills and what might simply
be called wisdom are necessary for achieving success in life. The acquisition ofknowledge cannot in itself lead to wisdom of course, but this book is designed tohelp readers acquire more knowledge about a diverse range of topics in hopesthat this will serve as an important step toward developing greater wisdom. Inthe process, this book aims to live up to its title by helping readers make senseof the world.
iv

François de Soete本書の使い方
各章の構成は以下の通りとなっている。
要旨
各章の冒頭に本文の内容が分かりやすく日本語で要約されている。これまであまりなじみのないテーマであったとしても、この日本語による簡単な解説を読むことで準備ができる。
Getting Started
このセクションは、本文を読み始める前に、その準備として関連内容について学生が各自で考えることのできる質問を用意してある。個人の意見を問うものであるので、下調べ等の必要はない。授業内でディスカッションのテーマとして利用することも可能である。
Reading
分かりやすい英文で書かれた本文は、文化や社会問題、環境やエネルギー、国際ニュースや政治、科学や人間・宇宙の起源まで、幅広いトピックを扱っている。予備知識がなくても十分に理解できる内容となっている。また、『大学英語教育学会 基本語リスト』（通称JACET 8000）の基本的には5000語レベル以上および固有名詞に注釈をつけている。
Vocabulary
本文で使用された語について、それぞれの意味を選択する問題。知らない単語であっても、辞書を使うのではなく、文中で使用されている箇所を読みながら解答を推測するように学生に指示している。また、単語の意味を英語で説明できるようになるための訓練としても使うことができる。
Comprehension Questions
本文の内容理解を問う問題。本文の該当箇所を特定すれば答えられるやさしめの問題だけではなく、本文の内容と問題文の意味をよく理解していなければ解答できない難しめのものも用意してあるので、内容分析の力も養うことができる。
Listening
CDを聴きながら空欄になっている単語を埋める問題。単語や語尾の変化の聞き取りとつづりの練習になっている。リスニングの文章は、本文の要旨になっており、本文の内容理解のチェックにも利用することができる。
Points of Interest本文で扱っているテーマや人物に関連した、おもしろい豆知識を平易な英文でまとめたコラム。本文の関連個所に、日本語でこの欄への参照指示が掲載されており、関心に応じて読み進めることができる。問題や試験等には、このコラムの内容は含まれていないが、楽しみながら各章のテーマに関する知識や理解を広げるのに役立つ。

v

Table of ContentsSection I: Culture and Society

1. The Hollywood effect: How does popular entertainment influence		 society?			 ハリウッド効果：ポップカルチャーは社会にどのような影響を与えているのか

1

2. Learning to learn: Why is university education important?		 学び方を学ぶ：大学教育はなぜ重要なのか

6

3. Competing worldviews: What causes group conflict?		 競合する世界観：なぜ集団間紛争は起きるのか

11

4. Population changes: How does immigration change a country?				 人口の変化：移民の受け入れは国をどう変えるのか

16

5. A global language: How did the use of English become so		 widespread?		 グローバル言語：英語はなぜこれほど普及したのか

21

Section II: People and the Environment

6. Natural wonders: Where is the most beautiful place on Earth?		 自然の驚異：地球で最も美しい場所はどこか

26

7. Animal rights: Why do we treat different types of animals differently?		 動物の権利：動物の種別が異なればなぜ扱いを変えるのか

31

8. The human impact: How much more environmental damage can		 Earth handle?		 人的影響：地球はこれ以上の環境破壊に耐え得るのか 36

9. Renewable energy: When will we finally use only clean energy?				 再生可能エネルギー：クリーンエネルギー だけを使用する日はくるのか

10. The final frontier: Will people eventually travel to distant planets?		 最後のフロンティア：人間はいつか遠くの惑星へ旅するようになるのか

41

46

Section III: International Relations and Politics

11. Democratic government: What is democracy?		 民主政治：民主主義とは何か

51

12. Aung San Suu Kyi is free: Is Myanmar becoming democratic?		 アウン・サン・スー・チーの釈放：ミャンマーは民主化しているのか

56

13. The last superpower: Is American power declining?		 最後の超大国：米国の力は陰りを見せているのか

61

14. The rise of China: How will China’s growing power affect East Asia?		 中国の台頭：中国の台頭は東アジアにどのような影響を与えるのか

66

15. Global governance: Will people one day create a world government?		 グローバル・ガバナンス：世界政府は将来生まれるか

71

Section IV: Science and Philosophy

16. The origin of the universe: Where did everything come from?		 宇宙の起源：すべては何から始まったのか

76

17. The evolution of life: Where did human beings come from?		 生命の進化：人間はどこから来たのか

81

18. The butterfly effect: Why is it so hard to accurately predict the future?		 バタフライ効果：未来を正確に予測するのが難しいのはなぜか

86

19. The ultimate quest: Will people one day be able to live forever?		 究極の探求：人間はいつか永遠に生きることができるようになるか

20. So this is how it ends: What is the future of the universe?		 終焉：宇宙の未来とは

91

96

Chapter

The Hollywood Effect
How does popular entertainment
influence society?

1

私たちは日常生活において、書籍、新聞、デジタル音楽ファイル、映画、インターネットなど、さまざまな種類のメディアに囲まれている。無限と言っていいほど大量の情報にアクセスすることができるという点では便利だが、それほどたくさんの情報をいったいどのように理解するのかという疑問も浮かぶ。例えば本や映画の制作過程において、著者や制作者個人の生い立ちや経験が何らかの影響を及ぼしている。ゆえに、テレビを見るときや本や記事を読むとき、読者や視聴者はこの点を心に留めておく必要がある。
さもなければ、制作者の個人的な見解に知らず知らずのうちに影響されてしまうこともあるかもしれないからだ。

NASA’s Apollo 8 crew took this photo of Earthwhile orbiting the Moon. The world seems sosimple from this distance, but as this chapter
and the others that follow will show, the worldis actually quite complicated. However, thatis part of what makes it so interesting, and as
you will see, making sense of the world is aworthwhile endeavor.
Photo Credit: NASAGETTING STARTED
Think about each statement or question below, and circle the option withwhich you agree most. There is no right or wrong answer here—it is youropinion!
Music, movies, and/or video games are a big part of life for most people.
a. Strongly Agreeb. Agreec. Disagreed. Strongly Disagree

Where do you usually find out about what is happening in the news?
a. The Internetb. Televisionc. Newspapers

d. OtherCelebrities have a big influence on people’s fashion choices.
a. Strongly Agreeb. Agreec. Disagree

d. Strongly Disagree1

① 2〜7

reading
CD 1 - 2

Making sense of the world should in some ways be easier than ever.

After all, the proliferation of media gives people access to virtually limitless
amounts of information by means of print media like books and newspapers,
audio media like radio and digital music files, video media like movies and5

television programs, gaming media like console-based games and portable
games, and Internet-only media like social networking
and blogs. The Internet now also includes all of the otherforms of media, and so we can read, watch, and listen tojust about anything with just a few taps of our fingertips.

10

インターネットの由来について、章末のPoint of Interest を読んでみよう。

Having access to so much information may seem like a good thing, but it does
raise the question: how can we make sense of so much information?
CD 1 - 3

At the root of this problem is the reality that people’s personal experiences
1and views about the world often influence the way that they conduct researchor produce works of art. Concerns about the influence of entertainment on society
15

have been around for thousands of years. An ancient Greek philosopher named2

Plato, for example, warned about the potential negative influence of poetry
on children. Plato pointed out that some poets may espouse undesirable values,and children could end up adopting these values when they are presented in
an appealing way.
20

CD 1 - 4The dramatic rise of the film and music industry over the course of thelast century has made Plato’s concern more important than ever. Hollywood,
which is in Los Angeles, California, is of course the most famous place associatedwith the movie industry, for it is here that the film industry began to reallytake off during the early twentieth century. The film industry today, however,25

is a global industry and many countries around the world have their own
large-scale film production facilities. The music industry has also become
a global industry, and many hit artists have a notable presence in markets
all over the world. Both industries now have tremendous influence on socialvalues, fashion, and lifestyles throughout the world.

30

CD 1 - 5

Popular entertainment can have a positive or a negative influence onsociety. For example, celebrities sometimes use their fame to raise awarenessabout social issues or to raise money when natural disasters occur. On theother hand, the entertainment industry can influence people in negative ways.
2

Chapter 1 The Hollywood EffectSome of the characters in movies, for example, seem so cool that some people inreal life imitate some of their behaviors and their fashion choices. This kind of
influence is of great concern since many of the most popular movies feature lotsof violence, and they also feature frequent alcohol and tobacco consumption.
3

Moreover, the entertainment industry as a whole seems to promote a more

5

selfish lifestyle in general, given that many celebrities have openly lavish
lifestyles—even though countless people around the world struggle to earnenough for food and shelter. Yet, many people clearly admire these celebrities,
given the fact that some celebrities have millions of followers on their social
networking accounts and have millions of people tune in to watch them being

10

interviewed on talk shows or at awards ceremonies.
CD 1 - 6

In the past, part of the problem with the media industry was the factthat it was quite closed in. Relatively few movie studios, recording labels,
and publishers could produce media that could reach large-scale audiences.
4

A handful of studios and publishers therefore exerted a lot of control over15

the values disseminated in the media. This brings us back to the point raisedat the start of this chapter, which is the dissemination of media by means of
the Internet. Almost anyone today can make a film, publish a book or write
an article, or record music, and then upload this work on the Internet. This is5

undoubtedly beneficial insofar as this can help diversify and decentralize the20

influences on social values and lifestyles.
CD 1 - 7

At the same time, if media in the past was too closed in, then theproblem today is that there is simply too much media. Anyone can produce anddisseminate media—meaning that it is getting more and more difficult to sort
through what is worth watching or reading. For example, people who lack the25

relevant expertise may write blogs that include erroneous information, or hategroups can post content online designed to recruit new members. More thanever, then, it is vitally important that people become critical viewers, listeners,and readers. That is, people should always ask themselves a few basic questions
when reading or watching something: who is creating this work; what is this30

person’s background; and how might this affect the contents? Therefore, theproliferation of media is clearly a serious concern for society, but when people
carefully scrutinize what they watch, read, and hear, then media can become
extremely helpful when trying to make sense of the world.
35

3

notesproliferation「急増」
Plato「プラトン (428/427-348/347 B.C.)」
espouse「支持する」
celebrity「著名人, 名士」 lavish「贅沢な」 disseminate「広める, 普及させる」 diversify「多様化する」 decentralize「分散させる」 erroneous「誤った ,間違った」 post「掲示する ,載せる」 hate group「（人種差別などの）扇動グループ」 scrutinize「詳細に調べる，吟味する」

vocabulary
Try to use the context in the reading section to figure out the correct definition
for each vocabulary word in the column on the left.
1. conduct		()		

a. to inform about negative consequences

2. warn			()		b. to support something

3. promote		()		c. to apply something on something else

4. exert			()		

d. advantageous or good for something

5. beneficial		()		e. to do or complete something

comprehension questions
Read each statement below carefully, and then based on the information
presented in this chapter, write “T” if it is true or “F” if it is false.
1. ______ Plato believed that poets and their poetry always had a positive
influence on children.
2. ______ Celebrities can sometimes use their fame in ways that have apositive impact on society.
3. ______ The growth of corporations means that only a handful of producers
and publishers can create media today.
4. ______ Hollywood is home to most production facilities for the Americanand international film industry.
5. ______ The author argues that we should avoid media as much as possible
due to the possibility of being negatively influenced.

4Chapter 1 The Hollywood Effectsummary①

8

Listen carefully to the audio recording for this summary and fill in the blanks
in the paragraph below.
Various forms of media 1.) __________ our everyday life, such as books, newspapers,
digital music files, movies, and the Internet. Though this may prove useful by
giving us 2.) __________ to a virtually unlimited amount of information, it does
raise the question: how can we make sense of so much information? A person’s
background 3.) __________ the way that he or she writes a book, for example, or
makes a movie. It is therefore important that people keep this 4.) __________
when they watch television or read books and articles, for they may otherwise
be unknowingly influenced by the creator’s own personal 5.) __________.

points of interest
The Origins of the Internet
People usually associate the Internet with peaceful activities, like providing access toinformation and connecting people from different parts of the world. Some of the core
principles for the Internet, however, were developed for military purposes during the heightof the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. The United States fearedthat a nuclear attack could destroy its centralized communications networks, which would
disrupt communications between America’s leaders and its nuclear facilities. Research
therefore began on a more decentralized system, which in the long run helped lay thefoundation for the Internet’s emergence decades later.

5