眼鏡漫談

If you don’t wear glasses yourself， chances are that someone in your family， or someone you know， does. Much care is taken in the selection of glasses nowadays to be sure that the style is attractive and the frames are comfortably fitted. A good fit is necessary for maximum benefit from the lenses； however， in the early days fit was not considered at all. For this reason， the first eyeglasses were not easy to wear.

The earliest glasses were merely lenses fitted into circles that were riveted1 or wired together at the top， then balanced on the nose. Any movement of the head caused the glasses to slip or fall off. Centuries passed before improvements upon these first versions were made. It is no wonder that early spectacle2 wearers found it convenient to have their lenses3 mounted on a long handle that they could hold in place by hand.

The earliest known record of eyeglasses in Europe is found in a book written in 1267. Called Opus Majus， it was a scientific encyclopedia written by Roger Bacon4 of England at the request of Pope Clement IV5， a personal friend of Bacon's. Although the subject of lenses to correct vision defects6 was discussed in the book， Bacon was careful to keep his own knowledge on the subject quiet7. At that time， the masses of people were not educated， and superstition ruled their lives. Many believed that any device to correct a physical defect was black magic8 and should be strenuously9 avoided. Some years later， Bacon was imprisoned for two years for his work in alchemy10， an early form of chemistry. Being a scientist in the 1200s presented many risks.

By the middle of the 1300s， many churchmen were using eyeglasses. Paintings produced during this period show the various types of glasses commonly used. At this time books were still being written by hand， and only churchmen could read or write. After the invention of the printing press11 in the 15th century， when everyone who wished could obtain books， vision defects not noticed before became evident. Some people who had been able to see well enough to perform daily tasks found that their eyesight was not good enough for reading. It was then that eyeglasses became more generally accepted.

The first lenses were designed for people who were farsighted； those who could see well at a distance but could not focus clearly on things up close. The lenses described by Bacon in his encyclopedia were helpful to the farsighted. Nearly 300 years later， lenses for the nearsighted were developed. Leo X， who was Pope in the early 1500s， was nearsighted. He was very enthusiastic about his eyeglasses and thought they improved his aim while hunting.

Frames for the earliest eyeglasses were made of horn， tortoise shell， leather， or wood. Later， brass was used. Also， for the very rich， frames were made of gold or silver. Before the semicircular piece was designed to fit over the bridge of the nose， flexibility in the piece holding the two lenses together was sought in various ways. When made of bone， horizontal slits12 were cut in the bridge. The invention of the fitted bridge was only a slight improvement at the time， for without the temple13 pieces glasses had to be balanced on the nose or held in place14. Leather frames were tried at this time， with long leather thongs15 that were tied at the back of the wearer's head. They never gained wide popularity， however， because men as well as women wore elaborate wigs， and the leather ties interfered with16 hairdos.

Early in the 1700s a London spectacle maker named Edward Scarlett， sympathizing with17 wig wearers， invented improved frames with the addition of sidepieces that fit alongside the head for about four inches. Later these pieces were lengthened and made to fit over the ears.

The next big advance in eyeglasses took place about fifty years later when Benjamin Franklin invented his“double spectacles，”now popularly called bifocals18. Our eyes change as we grow older. We may need lenses to focus on close-up work， while still needing corrective lenses for distance. Franklin needed both kinds of lenses. Because of the nuisance of changing from one pair of glasses to another， he cut the lenses from both pairs in half and combined the bottom halves of his close-up lenses with the top halves of the distance lenses， then cemented19 them together and placed them in his frames. He found this a great improvement and today many people wear two kinds of lenses in one pair of frames.

Today the optician20 ’s trade is a highly specialized profession. Lenses are ground21 to individual specifications. Frames are sometimes made of plastic， although some wire rims22remain popular year after year. In the 1930s and 1940s， many wore glasses without rims in an effort to make glasses nearly invisible. Now， those who do not like to wear glasses but need visual correction usually turn to contact lenses that are worn directly on the surface of their eyes.

Many who need corrective lenses use them as a fashion accessory. Hundreds of styles are available to enhance some facial features and deemphasize23 those not so desirable. Oversized frames go in and out of style， but not everyone can wear them. Some people have facial characteristics that make it impossible to keep large frames from resting on the cheeks， causing discomfort. Still， there is enough variation in styles offered that every person can find frames that flatter24 as well as fit and that are comfortable and easy to wear.

即使你本人不屬于“眼鏡一族”，你的家人或你認識的人里也很可能會有人戴眼鏡。如今，人們花很多心思挑選眼鏡，確保其樣式美觀、鏡框佩戴舒適。要最大限度地發揮鏡片的效能，則必須佩戴舒適的眼鏡。但是，早期的眼鏡卻完全沒有考慮佩戴舒適的問題。因此，最早的眼鏡佩戴起來并不方便。

最早的眼鏡只是把鏡片鑲在鏡圈里，再把兩個鏡圈從上面鉚在一起或是用金屬絲串聯在一起，就這樣直接架在鼻子上。頭部的任何活動都會導致眼鏡滑脫或摔落。幾個世紀之后，這種眼鏡的雛形才得以改進。難怪早期那些戴眼鏡的人會覺得把鏡片固定在一根長柄上、手握長柄將眼鏡舉在眼前的做法很方便。

在歐洲，已知的關于眼鏡的最早記錄可見于一部寫于1267年的書。這部科學百科全書名為《大著作》，由英國人羅杰·培根應自己的朋友教皇克雷芒四世之邀而作。盡管書中探討了用透鏡矯正視力缺陷的問題，培根卻十分謹慎，對自己在這方面的了解只字未提。當時，民眾普遍沒有受過教育，人們的生活受到種種迷信觀念的支配。許多人認為所有可以矯正身體缺陷的發明都是巫術，應該竭力回避。數年后，培根由于在煉金術——化學的前身——領域的研究而入獄兩年。在13世紀，當科學家是一件充滿風險的事。

到14世紀中葉，很多神職人員已在使用眼鏡了。這一時期的畫作描繪了一些常用的眼鏡樣式。當時，書籍仍然都是手寫本，而且只有神職人員才能讀書寫字。15世紀印刷機發明之后，想看書的人有了書看，之前一直未被人們注意的視力問題變得突顯。一些在處理日常事務時眼神不錯的人，卻發現他們的眼睛在閱讀時變得不夠好使了。正是從那時起，眼鏡才越來越廣泛地為人們所接受。

最早的鏡片是為遠視者設計的。遠視者能夠清晰地看到遠處的物體，對于近在眼前的物體卻對焦不準而看不清楚。培根在他的百科全書中描述過的鏡片對遠視者頗有幫助。近三百年之后，人們才研制出了矯正近視的鏡片。16世紀初在位的教皇利奧十世眼睛近視。他十分喜歡自己的眼鏡，認為它幫助自己在狩獵時瞄得更準。

最早的眼鏡架是由獸角、龜殼、皮革或木頭制成的。隨后，出現了銅鏡架。同時，還有為大富豪們制作的金質、銀質鏡架。架在鼻梁上的半圓形的鼻梁架發明之前，人們想了很多辦法增加兩個鏡片連接部位的靈活度。比如在骨質鏡架上，人們會在鼻梁架上刻上一組水平的狹縫。發明出大小適中的鼻梁架在當時只能算是一種很小的進步，因為如果沒有眼鏡腿，眼鏡仍然只能被架在鼻子上或用手舉在眼前。這一時期人們還試制了皮質鏡架。這種鏡架有兩條長皮帶，可以系在佩戴者的腦后。不過，這種鏡架一直未得到廣泛使用。因為當時無論男女都戴著復雜精致的假發，而皮帶打的結會把發型弄亂。

18世紀初，倫敦一位名叫愛德華·斯卡利特的眼鏡制造商同情假發佩戴者，發明了一種經過改良的鏡架。這種鏡架增加了一對長約四英寸（編者注：約十厘米，現代的眼鏡腿通常長約十四厘米）、能卡在人頭部兩側的眼鏡腿。后來，人們增加了這種眼鏡腿的長度，使它剛好能架在耳朵上。

約五十年后，眼鏡又取得了一項巨大的進步，當時本杰明·富蘭克林發明了“雙光眼鏡”，即我們現在所說的“雙焦眼鏡”。隨著年齡逐漸增長，我們的眼睛也會發生變化。我們在需要矯正鏡片幫我們看清遠處物體的同時，可能還需要能幫我們看清近處物體的鏡片。富蘭克林就同時需要這兩種鏡片。由于嫌兩副眼鏡換著戴太麻煩，富蘭克林就把兩副眼鏡的鏡片全部一分為二，將近景鏡片的下半部分和遠景鏡片的上半部分固定在一起嵌入了鏡框。他發現這是一個很大的改進。時至今日，許多人都在戴這種一副鏡架上有兩種鏡片的眼鏡。

如今，眼鏡技師是一種非常專業的職業。鏡片被磨制成各種不同的規格。盡管一些金屬絲的鏡架年復一年經久不衰，鏡架有時也有由塑料制成的。20世紀30和40年代，許多人為了使眼鏡近乎“隱形”而佩戴無邊框眼鏡。現在，那些不愿意戴眼鏡卻又需要矯正視力的人通常會選擇直接覆在眼球表面的隱形眼鏡。

許多需要矯正鏡片的人也把眼鏡當作一種時尚配飾。有成百上千的眼鏡式樣可供人選擇，用來襯托五官的特點或掩蓋那些不盡如人意的地方。超大型鏡架時而流行時而過氣，但不是所有人都適合佩戴它們。有些人的面部特點使得這種超大鏡架容易滑落到臉頰上，戴起來不太舒服。不過，由于有多種鏡架款式可供選擇，所以每個人都能找到既美觀又適合自己、佩戴起來既舒適又方便的款式。

1. rivet vt. 鉚，鉚接（鋼板等）

2. spectacle n. 眼鏡

3. lens n. 透鏡，鏡片

4. Roger Bacon： 羅杰·培根（1212～1294），英國科學家、哲學家。他的最大貢獻在于強調觀察和實驗在科學研究中的重要性。

5. Pope Clement IV： 教皇克雷芒四世（1195～1268），1265～1268年間任羅馬天主教教皇。

6. vision defect： 視覺缺陷

7. keep sth. quiet： 將某事保密

8. black magic： 妖術，魔法，巫術

9. strenuously adv. 強烈地，激烈地

10. alchemy n. 煉金術；煉丹術

11. printing press： 印刷機

12. slit n. 狹長的口子；裂縫；狹縫

13. temple n. <美> 眼鏡腿，眼鏡腳

14. in place： 在合適的（或常處的、原來的、指定的）位置

15. thong n. 皮帶子；條帶

16. interfere with： 妨礙，沖突

17. sympathize with： 對……表示同情

18. bifocal n. [～s]雙焦眼鏡

19. cement vt. （用水泥或膠接劑）粘結，膠合

20. optician n. 眼鏡（或光學儀器）制造者；配制眼鏡技師；光學儀器制造技師

21. grind vt. 磨；磨成；ground為其過去分詞

22. rim n. [～s] （鑲在器物周圍的）框，邊

23. deemphasize vt. 使不重要，貶低……的重要性；不強調

24. flatter vt. 使顯得優點突出