我终于明白了电影《百万美元宝贝》的结局。教练(克林特·伊斯特伍德饰演的角色) 做出这样令人心碎的决定,结束一位脑部受损的女拳击手(由希拉里·斯旺克饰演)的生命的?他凭什么做出这样的选择?他是如何下得了手的?
将近二十年后,在听到琼瑶的自杀和她丈夫悲惨的最后时光后,我终于开始理解了。琼瑶希望她的丈夫能够有一个有尊严的死亡,而不是在维持生命的机器上痛苦地拖延下去。然而,她与丈夫的子女之间爆发了一场激烈的公开冲突,最终不得不放弃自己的愿望。
回顾这两个故事,我意识到,做出这样的决定必须满足两个重要条件:
要果断地采取行动,必须深刻理解所爱之人的真实愿望。女拳击手是一位30岁的女服务员,后来成为了一名拳击手。她绝不可能想象自己会无助地躺在医院的病床上,逐渐衰败。教练对女拳击手此有着深深的理解。同样,在超过40年的婚姻生活中,琼瑶完全明白她丈夫的愿望——摆脱依靠机器维持的生命。
只有深沉的爱才能推动一个人采取如此极端的行动。教练清楚地知道,他通过向希拉里的静脉注射毒剂所做的行为几乎等同于谋杀。琼瑶本可以保持沉默,避免与她丈夫的子女发生冲突,但正是因为她深爱着丈夫,她才会如此坚决地争取。无论是在电影还是现实中,爱与理解让他们无法忍受所爱之人承受痛苦,即便这些人已经失去了意识,无法感知自己的痛楚。
某种意义上,琼瑶的丈夫是幸运的,因为他拥有一位如此理解他、深爱他的人。
I finally understand the ending of movie Million Dollar Baby. How could Clint Eastwood's character make such heart-wrenching decision to end the life of a brain-damaged boxer (played by Hilary Swank)? What gave him the right to do that? How could he go through with it?
Almost 20 years later, after hearing the story of 琼瑶's suicide and her husband's tragic last days, I finally began to understand. 琼瑶 wanted her husband to have a dignified death rather than prolonging his suffering on life support. However, she faced a bitter public conflict with his children and ultimately had to give up on her wishes.
Reflecting on these two stories, I realized that for such actions to take place, two essential elements must be present:
Understanding
To act decisively, one must deeply understand the desires of the person they love. Hilary Swanks character, a 30-year-old waitress turned boxer, could never have imagined herself wasting away in a hospital bed. Clint Eastwoods character knew this deeply. Similarly, after more than 40 years of marriage, 琼瑶 knew exactly what her husband wanted—freedom from a life sustained by machines.
Love
Only profound love can compel someone to take such an extraordinary step. Eastwoods character knowingly committed an act akin to murder by injecting a toxin into Hilary's veins. 琼瑶 could have stayed silent and avoided conflict with her husband's children, but she fought because she loved him so much. In both cases, their love and understanding of the person made it unbearable to see them suffer, even if they were no longer conscious of their pain.
In a way, 琼瑶's husband was so fortunate to have someone who understood him so completely.