Chapter 3 ：Men Go to Their Caves and Women Talk

第三章 男人需要洞穴  女人需要谈话

男女最大的不同，在于他们如何处理压力。压力来时，男人会愈来愈集中注意力和变得孤立；女人则愈来愈不知所措和变得情绪化。此时，男人对提升感觉的需求与女人不同，他藉由解决问题来让自己感觉舒服，女人则藉由谈论来使出自己感觉舒服。若不了解或无法接受这个不同，两性的关系就只会徒增摩擦。

One of the biggest differences between men and women is how they cope with stress. Men become increasingly focused and withdrawn while women become increasingly overwhelmed and emotionally involved. At these times, a man's needs for feeling good are different from a woman's He feels better by solving problems while she feels better by talking about problems. Not understanding and accepting these differences creates unnecessary friction in our relationships.

 

让我们看一个常见的例子：

Let's look at a common example.

 

汤姆回家后，想藉由看看报纸来轻松解脱一下，他这天被那些未解决的问题搞得焦头烂额，现在他只想忘了那些事以求得松懈。

When Tom comes Home, he wants to relax and unwind by quietly reading the news. He is stressed by the unsolved problems of his day and finds relief through forgetting them.

 

他太太玛莉也想为这紧张的一天好好放松一下，但她想由谈论她这天的问题来得到松懈。他们两人的紧张气氛慢慢形成，逐渐变成了怨恨。

His wife, Mary, also wants to relax from her stressful day. She, however, wants to find relief by talking about the problems of her day. The tension slowly building between them gradually becomes resentment.

 

汤姆心里暗自认为玛莉的话太多了，玛莉却觉得汤姆忽视她。他们若不了解彼此的不同，将会日益貌合神离。

Tom secretly thinks Mary talks too much, while Mary feels ignored. Without understanding their differences they will grow further apart.

 

你也许知道这种情形，因为这只是许多男女不和的例子之一。这种情形不只存在汤姆和玛莉之间，许多夫妻也都有类似问题。

You probably can recognize this situation because it is just one of many examples where men and women are at odds. This problem is not just Tom and Mary's but is present in almost every relationship.

 

解决汤姆和玛莉的问题不在于他们彼此有多相爱，而在于他们了解异性的程度。汤姆若不了解女人真的需要藉由谈论问题来获得纾解，他仍旧会以为玛莉话太多，并抗拒听她说。玛莉若不知道汤姆想藉由看报获得纾解，她就会认为汤姆忽视她，并坚持在他不想谈论时，试图让他开口。

Solving this problem for Tom and Mary depends not on how much they loved each other but on how much they understood the opposite sex. Without knowing that women really do need to talk about problems to feel better, Tom would continue to think Mary talked too much and resist listening to her. Without knowing that Tom was reading the news to feel better, Mary would feel ignored and neglected. She would persist in trying to get him to talk when he didn't want to.

 

我们可以透过了解男女处理压力的细节来分析这两种差异。让我们再观察火星人和金星人的生活，搜集一些洞察男人与女人的资讯。

These two differences can be resolved by first understanding in greater detail how men and women cope with stress. Let's again observe life on Mars and Venus and glean some insights about men and women.

 

火星人和金星人处理压力的方式

COPING WITH STRESS ON MARS AND VENUS

 

火星人难过时绝不说出是什么事使他困扰，除非他需要帮忙解决问题，否则他不会让另一个火星人来负担他的问题。他会沉默地到私人洞穴里思考问题以寻求解决方法。若他发现了解决方法，他会好过一点，并走出他的洞穴。

When a Martian gets upset he never talks about what is bothering him* He would never burden another Martian with his problem unless his friend's assistance was necessary to solve the problem. Instead he becomes very quiet and goes to his private cave to think about his problem, mulling it over to find a solution. When he has found a solution, he feels much better and comes out of his cave.

 

如果他不能寻得解决方法，他就会做些事来忘记他的问题，譬如看新闻或玩游戏。他会因心灵得到解脱而逐渐感到轻松。如果他的压力实在很大，他会做更富挑战的事，如飙车、参加竞赛或爬山。

If he can't find a solution then he does something to forget his problems, like reading the news or playing a game. By disengaging his mind from the problems of his day, gradually he can relax. If his stress is really great it takes getting involved with something even more challenging, like racing his car, competing in a contest, or climbing a mountain.

 

火星人藉着独自到他们的洞穴里解决问题而获得纾解。

 

金星人难过或感受压力时，纾解方式是找她信任的人，然后谈论她这天的问题细节。当金星人与他人分享沮丧的感觉后，她能马上感到舒服。这就是金星人解决压力的主要方式。

When a Venusian becomes upset or is stressed by her day, to find relief, she seeks out someone she trusts and then talks in great detail about the problems of her day. When Venusians share feelings of being overwhelmed, they suddenly feel better. This is the Venusian way.

 

金星人藉着群聚一起，坦然谈论她们的问题而擭得纾解。

 

在金星上，与人分享问题，事实上是爱与信任的表示，而非负担。金星人不以有问题为耻，她们的自我不是倚赖“能干”，而是倚赖于爱的关系。她们坦白地分享沮丧、迷惑、无助和疲惫的感觉。

On Venus sharing your problems with another actually is considered a sign of love and trust and not a burden. Venusians are not ashamed of having problems. Their egos are dependent not on looking "competent" but rather on being in loving relationships. They openly share feelings of being overwhelmed, confused, hopeless, and exhausted.

 

金星人以拥有能分享感觉与问题的好朋友为满足，火星人则以能在他自己的洞穴解决问题而满足。这种让自己感觉舒坦的秘密至今仍然适用。

A Venusian feels good about herself when she has loving friends with whom to share her feelings and problems. A Martian feels good when he can solve his problems on his own in his cave. These secrets of feeling good are still applicable today.

 

在洞穴中松懈压力

FINDING RELIEF IN THE CAVE

 

男人感受压力时，会到他心里的洞穴把自己孤立起来，专心解决问题，他常挑选最急迫或最困难的问题，专心一意地解决，把其他诸事暂时抛诸脑后。

When a man is stressed he will withdraw into the cave of his mind and focus on solving a problem. He generally picks the most urgent problem or the most difficult. He becomes so focused on solving this one problem that he temporarily loses awareness of everything else. Other problems and responsibilities fade into the background.

 

此时，他逐渐变得冷漠、疏忽、没反应、心不在焉。譬如，当你在家和他讲话时，他似乎只有百分之五的心神放在两性关系上，而百分之九十五的心神都在洞穴里解决他自己的问题。

At such times, he becomes increasingly distant, forgetful, unresponsive, and preoccupied in his relationships. For example, when having a conversation with him at Home, it seems as if only 5 percent of his mind is available for the relationship while the other 95 percent is still at work.

 

他的注意力没有完全表现出来，因为他在思考自己的问题，盼望能找到解答。压力愈大，他愈受问题的控制。此时，他无法给与女人平时他所给的注意力和关切。他的心已被问题占满了，他没有能力逃脱。但是，只要他能发现解答，他会马上得到纾解，并走出他的洞穴，立即回到两性关系上。

His full awareness is not present because he is mulling over his problem, hoping to find a solution. The more stressed he is the more gripped by the problem he will be. At such times he is incapable of giving a woman the attention and feeling that she normally receives and certainly deserves. Flis mind is preoccupied, and he is powerless to release it. If, however, he can find a solution, instantly he Will feel much better and come out of his cave; suddenly he is available for being in a relationship again.

 

但是，假如他不能找出解答，他会继续坚守在洞穴里。为了能暂时脱离洞穴，他会暂时将自己拉出来解决小问题，如看报、看电视、开车、做体操、看足球赛、玩篮球等等。任何只需百分之五心神的挑战性活动，都能帮助他暂时忘记他的问题和脱离洞穴。第二天，他可以更全副心力的将心神集中在问题上。

However, if he cannot find a solution to his problem, then he remains stuck in the cave. To get unstuck he is drawn to solving little problems, like reading the news, watching TV, driving his car, doing physical exercise, watching a football game, playing basketball, and so forth. Any challenging activity that initially requires only 5 percent of his mind can assist him in forgetting his problems and becoming unstuck. Then the next day he can redirect his focus to his problem with greater success.

 

让我们藉一些例子来探讨细节。吉米通常以看报来忘记他的问题。他看报时可以不再面对他这天的问题，他心神的百分之五不再留心他的工作问题，而是对报上的问题提出意见和寻找解答，他的心神逐渐进入新闻的主题，而忘了他自己的问题。藉此，他将对工作问题的注意力转移到世界的许多问题上(这不是他直接该负的责任)。

Let's explore in greater detail a few examples. Jim commonly uses reading the newspaper to forget his problems. When he reads the paper he is no longer being confronted with the problems of his day. With the 5 percent of his mind that is not focused on his work problems, he begins forming opinions and finding solutions for the world's problems. Gradually his mind becomes increasingly involved with the problems in the news and he forgets his own. In this way he makes the transition from being focused on his problems at work to focusing on the many problems of the world (for which he is not directly responsible. This process releases his mind from the gripping problems of work so he can focus on his wife and family again.)

 

汤姆藉着看足球赛来减轻压力、松弛身心。他因专注于他最喜欢的球队的问题，而使一心想解决自自己问题的压力减轻。透过看运动比赛，他可以感觉到每场比赛都替他解决了他的问题。他喜爱的球队得分或赢球时，他有沉浸在成功中的喜悦，如果他喜爱的球队失误，他会难过得好像自己失误一样。但是，不管是哪一种情况，他都可以减轻个人问题的枷锁。

Tom watches a football game to release his stress and unwind. He releases his mind from trying to solve his own problems by solving the problems of his favorite team. Through watching sports he can vicariously feel he has solved a problem with each play. When his team scores points or wins, he enjoys the feeling of success. If his team loses, he suffers their loss as his own. In either case, however, his mind is released from the grip of his real problems.

 

对汤姆和许多男人而言，任何运动比赛、新闻或电影都能够纾解他们的紧张。

For Tom and many men the inevitable release of tension thatoccurs at the completion of any sporting event, news event, or movie provides a release from the tension he feels in his life.

 

女人对洞穴的反应

Now Women Read to the Cove

 

一个男人陷在洞穴时，他无力给与妻子应有的注意。此时妻子很难接受他，因为她不知道他有多大的压力。如果他回到家能谈他所有的问题，妻子就比较能表示同情。相反的，他不谈他的问题，妻子会觉得他忽略她。她可以看出他的难过，但会错误地猜测是他不关心她，因为他没跟她讲话。

When a man is stuck in his cave, he is powerless to give his partner the quality attention she deserves. It is hard for her to be accepting of him at these times because she doesn't know how stressed he is. If he were to come Home and talk about all his problems, then she could be more compassionate. Instead he doesn't talk about his problems, and she feels he is ignoring her. She can tell he is upset but mistakenly assumes he doesn't care about her because he isn't talking to her.

 

女人通常不了解火星人如何处理压力，她们期待男人像金星人一样会坦白地谈论他们所有的问题。当男人坚守在洞穴时，女人就怨恨他不够坦然，当男人转而看报或出去玩篮球忽略了她时，她会觉得受到伤害。

Women generally do not understand how Martians cope with stress. They expect men to open up and talk about all their problems the way Venusians do. When a man is stuck in his cave, a woman resents his not being more open. She feels hurt when he turns on the news or goes outside to play some basketball and ignores her.

 

期待在洞穴中的男人马上变得坦然、负责、有爱心，就像期待正在难过中的女人能马上完全镇定下来一样的不切实际。期待男人总是保持爱的感觉是错误的，这就好像期待女人总是保持理性和逻辑也是错误的。

To expect a man who is in his cave instantly to become open, responsive, and loving is as unrealistic as expecting a woman who is upset immediately to calm down and make complete sense. It is a mistake to expect a man to always be in touch with his loving feelings j ust as it is a mistake to expect a woman's feelings to always be rational and logical.

 

一旦火星人到他们自己的洞穴时，他们很可能会忘记朋友也可能会有问题。男人有个本能告诉他：在你能照顾他人之前，先照顾好自己。女人却会抵抗和怨恨男人这种先照顾自己的行为。

When Martians go to their caves they tend to forget that their friends may be having problems too. An instinct takes over that says before you can take care of anybody else, you must first take care of yourself. When a woman sees a man react in this way, she generally resists it and resents the man.

 

她可能会以命令的口吻要求他的支持，好像她必须要为自己的权利而和这个不体贴的他吵架似的。女人若能记得男人是从火星来的，她就能因了解他的处理方法而正确解读他对压力的反应，而不在乎他是否表现出对她的感觉，此时她就可与他通力解决她的问题，而不再抵抗他。

She may ask for his support in a demanding tone, as if she has to fight for her rights with this uncaring man. By remembering that men are from Mars, a woman can correctly interpret his reaction to stress as his coping mechanism rather than as an expression of how he feels about her. She can begin to cooperate with him to get what she needs instead of resisting him.

 

另外，男人一到他们的洞穴时，通常多少会知道出自己变得冷淡了。当男人知道他进入洞穴的孤立行为可能影响女人时，他就能同情女人被忽视的感觉。男人若记得女人是从金星来的，就较能了解和尊敬她的反应和感觉。男人若不能正确了解她的反应，通常的反应就是保护自己，因而发生争论。以下有五个最常见的误解：

On the other side, men generally have little awareness of how distant they become when they are in the cave. As a man recognizes how withdrawing into his cave may affect women, he can be compassionate when she feels neglected and unimportant. Remembering that women are from Venus helps him to be more understanding and respectful of her reactions and feelings. Without understanding the validity of her reactions, a man commonly defends himself, and they argue. These are five common misunderstandings:

 

　　一、当她说：“你没在听。”他会说：“你说我没在听是什么意思？我可以重述你刚刚所讲的一切。”

I. When she says "You don't listen," he says "What do you mean I don't listen. I can tell you everything you said."

一个男人在洞穴时，可用百分之五的心神倾听，并记下内容。他认为只要用百分之五倾听就算倾听，而她要求的是他全神贯注的注意。

When a man is in the cave he can record what she is saying with the 5 percent of mind that is listening. A man reasons that if he is listening with 5 percent, then he is listening. However, what she is asking for is his full undivided attention.

 

二、当她说：“我觉得你好像不在这里。”他会说：“你说我不在这里是什么意思？我当然在这里，你没看到我的身体吗？”

2. When she says "I feel like you are not even here," he says "What do you mean I'm not here? Of course I am here. Don't you see my body?"

他认为只要他身体在，她就不该说他不在这里。但是即使他身体在，她却不觉得他全心全意在眼前，这就是她的意思。

He reasons that if his body is present then she shouldn't say he is not there. However, though his body is present, she doesn't feel his full presence, and that is what she means.

 

三、当她说：“你不在乎找。”他会说：“我当然在乎你。你不认为我正在试着解决这问题吗？”

3. When she says "You don't care about me," he says "Of course I care about you. Why do you think I am trying to solve this problem?"

他认为她应该知道他在乎她，因为他已经以某些方式来试着解决可令她获益的问题。但是，她需要的是直接感受到他的注意与在乎，这就是她的要求。

He reasons that because he is preoccupied with solving a problem that will in some way benefit her, she should know he cares for her. However, she needs to feel his direct attention and caring, and that is what she is really asking for.

 

四、当她说：“我觉得我对你好像一点也不重要。”他会说：“真荒谬，你当然很重要。”

4. When she says "I feel like I am not important to you," he says "That's ridiculous. Of course you are important."

他认为她的感觉不对，因他已为她的难处提出解决办法。他不知道，如果他只专心于一个问题上而忽略了她，几乎任何一个女人都会感到由自己不够重要。

He reasons that her feelings are invalid because he is solving problems to benefit her. He doesn't realize that when he focuses on one problem and ignores the problems she is bothered by that almost any woman would have the same reaction and take it personally and feel unimportant.

 

五、当她说：“你是直脑筋，没感觉。”他会说：“有什么错吗？你期待我要用什么别的方式来解决这个问题？”

5. When she says "You have no feelings. You are in your head," he says "What's wrong with that? How else do you expect me to solve this problem?"

他认为她要求过度，批评过甚，因为他已经为解决问题做了很不错的事了。他觉得自己没有得到感激。另外，他不知道她真正的感受，男人通常不知道他们自己从热情到冷漠、没反应的转变有多快、多极端。男人一到洞穴就被问题占据了，他不知道别人对他的冷淡态度会有什么反应。

He reasons that she is being too critical and demanding because he is doing something that is essential for him to solve problems. He feels unappreciated. In addition he doesn't recognize the validity of her feelings Men generally don't realize how extremely and quickly they may shift from being warm and feeling to being unresponsive and distant. In his cave a man is preoccupied with solving his problem and is unaware of how his indifferent attitude might feel to others.

 

为了增进互相扶持，男女必须更进一步彼此了解。一个男人如果开始忽略妻子，她通常会把它当成个人问题来看待。虽然了解那是男人处理压力的方式对她很有帮助，但却无法帮助她减轻痛苦。

TO increase cooperation both men and women need to understand each other better. When a man begins to ignore his wife, she often takes it personally. Knowing that he is coping with stress in his own way is extremely helpful but does not always help her alleviate the pain.

 

这时，她可能觉得有需要谈论这种感觉，这也是男人确认女人感觉的重要时机。他必须了解她有权力谈论被忽视与不受支持的感觉，就好像他有权力进入自己的洞穴，不言不语。如果这时她没感觉被了解，她就很难减轻受伤害的感觉。

At such times she may feel the need to talk about these feelings. This is when it is important for the man to validate her feelings. He needs to understand that she has a right to talk about her feelings of being ignored and unsupported just as he has a right to withdraw into his cave and not talk. If she does not feel understood then it is difficult for her to release her hurt.

 

女人以谈话纾解情绪

FINDING RELIEF THROUGH TALKING

 

女人感受压力时，会直觉地要找人谈她的感觉及引起这些感觉的可能问题。只要她一开始谈论，她就不会顾虑到问题的优先顺序。而她一难过，不论大大小小的事都让她沮丧不已。承受着压力的女人不会马上寻找问题的解答，反而会透过表达让人了解自己来求得放松。她用随意谈论她的问题的方式来减轻难过的程度。

When a woman is stressed she instinctively feels a need to talk about her feelings and all the possible problems that are associated with her feelings. When she begins talking she does not prioritize the significance of any problem. If she is upset, then she is upset about it all, big and small. She is not immediately concerned with finding solutions to her problems but rather seeks relief by expressing herself and being understood. By randomly talking about her problems, she becomes less upset.

 

　　承受着压力的女人并不急于马上寻求解答，宁可透过表达让人了解自己来取得纾解

。

男人承受压力时，倾向于专注在这个问题上而忘掉其他的；女人承受压力时，却会倾向于扩大问题和受困于所有问题中。她因谈论可能发生的问题而获得舒坦，这种讨论式的探讨使她发觉到底是什么事真正的困扰她，然后，她立即可以释怀。

As a man under stress tends to focus on one problem and forget others, a woman under stress tends to expand and become overwhelmed by all problems. By talking about all possible problems without focusing on problem solving she feels better. Through exploring her feelings in this process she gains a greater awareness of what is really bothering her, and then suddenly she is no longer so overwhelmed.

 

愈是谈论和探讨过去、未来、存在於潜意识和没有解答的问题，她们愈能得到舒坦。这是女人的方式。若期望有别的方式，除非女人否认了自己的意义。

To feel better, women talk about past problems, future problems, potential problems, even problems that have no solutions. The more talk and exploration, the better they feel. This is the way women operate. To expect otherwise is to deny a woman her sense of self.

 

女人受困时，她以谈论各种问题的细节来放松自己。通常只要觉得别人有在听她说话，她的压力就销声匿迹了。谈论了一个问题时，她会接着再谈别的问题、烦恼、失望、挫折。这些问题的主题都不需有任何次序，在逻辑上也似乎毫无关连。若她觉得还是不被了解，她可能会去多想其他将来可能会发生的问题，而变得杞人忧天。

When a woman is overwhelmed she finds relief through talking in great detail about her various problems. Gradually, if she feels she is being heard, her stress disappears. After talking about one topic she will pause and then move on to the next. In this way she continues to expand talking about problems, worries, disappointments, and frustrations. These topics need not be in any order and tend to be logically unrelated. If she feels she is not being understood, her awareness may expand even further, and she may become upset about more problems.

 

就像男人在洞穴里需要有一些让他迷惑的问题，女人若未得到倾听，也需要谈一些不急着纾解的问题。为了忘记自己的痛苦，她可能会情绪化地陷入其他问题中。此外，她也可能透过讨论朋友、亲戚、同事的问题来寻求自我的纾解。不管她谈的是自己还是别人的问题，说话永远是金星人面对压力时自然和健康的反应。

Just as a man who is stuck in the cave needs little problems to distract him, a woman who doesn't feel heard will need to talk about other problems that are less immediate to feel relief. To forget her own painful feelings she may become emotionally involved in the problems of others. In addition she may find relief through discussing the problems of her friends, relatives, and associates. Whether she is talking about her problems or others' problems, talking is a natural and healthy Venusian reaction to stress.

 

为了忘记自己的痛苦，女人可能情绪化地陷入其他问题之中。

 

女人需要说话时，男人有何反应

Now Men React When Women Ned to Talk 

 

女人一谈论问题时，男人通常的反应就是抗拒。他以为她和他谈论她的问题，是因为她认为他对她有责任，所以女人谈的问题愈多，他就愈觉得女人在责怪他。他不知道女人只是想藉由谈话让心情好转，他不知道只要倾听就可令女人十分满足感激。

When women talk about problems, men usually resist. A man assumes she is talking with him about her problems because she is holding him responsible. The more problems, the more he feels blamed. He does not realize that she is talking to feel better. A man doesn't know that she will appreciate it if he just listens.

 

火星人谈论问题只有两个理由：责备人或请求建议。女人若非常难过，男人会以为她在责怪他；若不太难过，男人则会以为她在请求建议。

Martians talk about problems for only two reasons: they are blaming someone or they are seeking advice. If a woman is really upset a man assumes she is blaming him. If she seems less upset, then he assumes she is asking for advice.

 

如果他以为她在请求建议，他就会戴上“修理先生帽子”解决她的问题；如果他以为她在责怪他，他会拿起盾牌抵御她的攻击。不管是哪种情况，他都会发现倾听是一件很困难的事。

If he assumes she is asking for advice, then he puts on his Mr Fix‑It hat to solve her problems. If he assumes she is blaming him, then he draws his sword to protect himself from attack. In both cases, he soon finds it difficult to listen.

 

如果他针对她的问题提出解答，她会谈更多的问题。提供了两、三个解答后，他期望她能得到舒坦，因为火星人正是因解决问题及获得解答而得到纾解，但若她没因此好过一点，他会觉得他的解答受拒绝，他没有得到应有的感激。

If he offers solutions to her problems, she just continues talking about more problems. After offering two or three solutions, he expects her to feel better. This is because Martians themselves feel better with solutions, as long as they have asked for a solution to be offered. When she doesn't feel better, he feels

his solutions have been rejected, and he feels unappreciated.

 

另外，如果他觉得受攻击了，他会保护自己，而认为自我表白可以停止她的责怪。但是他愈保护自己，她就愈难过。他不知道她根本不需要他的出自我表白，她需要的是他了解她的感觉，让她继续谈论更多的问题。如果他聪明的静静倾听，等她抱怨过后，不消片刻，就会改变话题谈别的问题。

On the other hand, if he feels attacked, then he begins to defend himself. He thinks if he explains himself that she will stop blaming him. The more he defends himself, however, the more upset she becomes. He doesn't realize that explanations are not what she needs. She needs him to understand her feelings and let her move on to talk about more problems. If he is wise and lust listens, then a few moments after she is complaining about him, she will change the subject and talk about other problems as well.

 

　　男人也会因无力插手女人所谈论的问题而感到特别挫折，譬如女人受压力时，会抱怨：

　　．我在工作上没有得到应有的报酬。

　　．姑妈愈来愈令人讨厌。

　　．我们的房子不够大。

　　．这个季节雨为何下不停？

    ．我们的帐户总是提款过度，超支了。

Men also become particularly frustrated when a woman talks about problems that he can do nothing about. For example, when a woman is stressed she could complain:

• "I'm not getting paid enough at work."

• "MY Aunt Louise is getting sicker and sicker, each year she gets sicker."

• "Our house just isn't big enough."

• "This is such a dry season. When is it going to rain.

• "We are almost overdrawn in our bank account."

 

女人可能透过这些话来表达她的烦恼、失望和挫折。她可能知道没什么办法可以解决这些问题，但为了纾解，她必须去谈它。如果倾听者关心她的挫折与失望，她会感到受支持，除非他了解她只是需要谈话，只要谈话，她就可以放松了。

A woman might make any of the above comments as a way of expressing her worries, disappointments, and frustrations. She may know that nothing more can be done to solve these problems, but to find relief she still needs to talk about them. She feels supported if the listener relates to her frustration and disappointment. She may, however, frustrate her mate partner‑unless he understands that she just needs to talk about it and then she will feet better.

 

女人谈太多问题的细节，男人会失去耐性，男人会误以为女人多谈细节有助于他发现解答，他努力寻找这些细节的连结性，却变得不耐烦。他不知道她要的不是解答，只是他的关心和了解。

Men also become impatient when women talk about problems in great detail. A man mistakenly assumes that when a woman talks in great detail that all the details are necessary for him to find a solution to her problem. He struggles to find their relevance and .becomes impatient. Again he doesn't realize that she is looking not for a solution from him but for his caring and understanding.

 

另外，倾听对男人而言是件苦差事，他误以为女人随便改变的话题会合乎逻辑。哪知她谈了三、四个问题后，他就会因为把这些问题的逻辑性牵连在一起，而感到极度的挫折与迷惑。

In addition, listening is difficult for a man because he mistakenly assumes there is a logical order when she randomly changes from one problem to another. After she has shared three or four problems he becomes extremely frustrated and confused trying logically to relate these problems.

 

男人另一个抗拒倾听的原因是，他正在寻找底线。尚未知道结果以前，他不能调配解答。他在听的时候，她谈愈多细节他就愈觉挫败。若他能记得谈论这些细节可使她获益，他的挫败感必能减轻；若他能记得谈论细节可以使她好过，他也能得到松懈。就像男人因解决了问题的复杂细节而获得满足一般，女人也因谈论问题细节而获得满足。

Another reason a man may resist listening is that he is looking for the bottom line. He cannot begin formulating his solution until he knows the outcome. The more details she gives the more he is frustrated while listening. His frustration is lessened if he can remember that she is greatly benefiting by talking about the details. if he can remember that talking in detail is helping her to feel good, then he can relax. just as a man is fulfilled through working out the intricate details of solving a problem, a woman is fulfilled through talking about the details of her problems.

 

就像男人因完成解决问题的复杂细节而获满足一般，女人也因谈论问题细节而擭满足。

 

女人可先讲结果再追述细节，来让男人容易了解问题，避免悬疑不安。但女人却通常喜欢经营悬疑气氛，因为那可将感觉带入故事中，别的女人会喜欢这种悬疑，但男人却会变得一头雾水。

Something a woman can do to make it a little easier for a man is to let him know in advance the outcome of the story and then go back and give the details. Avoid keeping him in suspense. Women commonly enjoy letting the suspense build because it brings more feeling into the story. Another woman appreciates this buildup, but a man can be easily frustrated.

 

男人反抗女人谈论问题的程度就是他抗拒了解她的程度。男人若能学习如何满足女人，并给与她情感的支持，他将发现倾听不是件困难的事。更重要的是，女人若能提醒男人，她只是想谈她的问题，不需要任何解答，这将能帮助男人松懈和倾听。

The degree to which a man does not understand a woman is the degree to which he will resist her when she is talking about problems. As a man learns more how to fulfill a woman and provide her emotional support he discovers that listening Is not so difficult. More important, if a woman can remind a man that she just wants to talk about her problems and that he doesn't have to solve any of them, it can help him to relax and listen.

 

 

发现和平相处之道的走出洞穴。

NOW THE MARTIANS AND VENUSIANS FOUND PEACE

 

火星人和金星人因能互相尊敬彼此不同之处而能和平相处。火星人学习尊重金星人藉谈话获得纾解，即使他没说什么话，他也知道，只要倾听就是支持她。金星人学习尊重火星人需要孤立来处理压力，因此洞穴再也不是令人惊恐的神秘之处。

The Martians and Venusians lived together in peace because they were able to respect their differences. The Martians learned to respect that Venusians needed to talk to feel better. Even if he didn't have much to say, he learned that by listening he could be very supportive. The Venusians learned to respect that Martians needed to withdraw to cope with stress. The cave was no longer a great mystery or cause for alarm.

 

火星人知道，即使遭到金星人的责怪、攻击、批评，那都是暂时的，金星人会马上突然转好，懂得感激与接受。经由学习倾听，他们发现金星人十分喜欢滔滔不绝谈论问题。

The Martians realized that even when they felt they were being attacked, blamed, or criticized by the Venusians it was only temporary; soon the Venusians would suddenly feel better and be very appreciative and accepting. By learning to listen, the Martians discovered how much the Venusians really thrived on talking about problems.

 

火星人因了解金星人只需谈问题，并非因他令她失望而得到心灵的平和。另外，只要他学知金星人很难停止留在谈论问题的窠臼里，他就能在倾听之际，免于认为他该对她的问题负责解答。

Each Martian found peace of mind when he finally understood that a Venusian's need to talk about her problems was not because he was failing her in some way. In addition he learned that once a Venusian feels heard she stops dwelling on her problems and becomes very positive. With this awareness, a Martian was able to listen without feeling responsible for solving all her problems.

 

许多男人，甚至女人，都把谈论问题的需要视为很严肃、正经的事，因为他们不知该怎么治疗这种需要。他们没有见过一个忧伤烦躁的女人如何马上改变心情，保持舒坦的态度。他们通常只看到一个忧心烦躁的女人(也许是他们的母亲)如河继续陷在她们的问题里。而女人也只在长期的感觉没有人爱她、听她时，才会显露出忧心烦躁。所以女人真正的问题不在于她所谈论的问题，而是她感受不到爱。

Many men and even women are very judgmental of the need to talk about problems because they have never experienced how healing it can be. They have not seen how a woman who feels heard suddenly can change, feel better, and sustain a positive attitude. Generally they have seen how a woman (probably their mother) who did not feel heard continued to dwell on her problems. This happens to women when they do not feel loved or heard over an extended period of time. The real problem, however, is that she feels unloved, not that she is talking about problems.

 

火星人学习到如何倾听女人说话后，他们有了一个惊奇的发现，他们发现倾听金星人谈论问题，就像看电视新闻、报纸一样，只要听、只要看，就可以帮助她们走出烦躁。

After the Martians learned how to listen they made a most amazing discovery. They began to realize that listening to a Venusian talk about problems could actually help them come out of their caves in the same way as watching the news on TV or reading a newspaper.

 

相同的，男人知道在倾听时不必觉得自自己挨骂或该负责时，倾听就成了轻易的工作了。若他能扮演一个很好的倾听者，他就能知道，倾听不但是一条忘记当日压力的捷径，也是使太太满意的方式。不过，万一他当天的压力很大，他可能需要先到他的洞穴中，再慢慢出来做其他的事情。

Similarly, as men learn to listen without feeling blamed or responsible, listening becomes much easier. As a man gets good atlistening, he realizes that listening can be an excellent way to forget the problems of his day as well as bring a lot of fulfillment to his partner. But on days when he is really stressed he may need to. be in his cave and slowly come out by some other distraction, like the news or a competitive sport.

 

 

接纳火星人的减压方式

What fin Venusians Learned

 

当金星人了解男人去洞穴并非表示不爱她后，她的心灵也能得到平静。此时，她会学习接受他，因她了解他正遭受到极大的压力。

The Venusians also found peace of mind when they finally understood that a Martian going into his cave was not a sign that he didn't love her as much. They learned to be more accepting of him at these times because he was experiencing a lot of stress.

 

因此，倘若火星人分心时，金星人不会发怒。当她正在说话而火星人心不在焉时，她会很礼貌的停止说话，在那儿等待他的注意，然后再继续话题。她了解，他有时很难全神贯注地听她说话，她也发现，在火星人轻松及易接受的状况下请求他的汪意，他会很乐意集中精神倾听。

The Venusians were not offended when Martians were easily distracted. When a Venusian talked and a Martian became distracted, she would very politely stop talking, stand there, and wait for him to notice. Then she would begin talking again. She understood that sometimes it was hard for him to give his full attention. The Venusians discovered that by asking for the Martians' attention in a relaxed and accepting manner the Martians were happy to redirect their attention.

 

若火星人早已被他们的洞穴占据，金星人就不会再视它为个人问题，她们知道此时不适合和他谈话，而会去找朋友谈论问题或逛街。金星人发现，如果火星人因此觉得被爱与接受，他们会很快走出洞穴。

When the Martians were completely preoccupied and in their caves, the Venusians also did not take it personally. They. learned that this was not the time to have intimate conversations but a time to talk about problems with their friends or have fun and go shopping. When the Martians thereby felt loved and accepted, the Venusians discovered that the Martians would more quickly come out of their caves.