These lines, which had fallen one by one on the paper, were what might be called drops of soul.
— Victor Hugo, Les Miserables, Chapter 5
这些字,一行行落在纸上,可以称之为点点滴滴的灵魂。
——[法] 维克多·雨果,《悲惨世界》,第5章
威廉·萨费亚(William Safire,1929—2009),《纽约时报》语言专栏(“On Language”)评论员,堪称文坛祭酒。他说,学习知识有三重目的:knowledge for survival (知以求存), knowledge for achievement (知以求成), knowledge for amusement (知以求趣)。如果说这三重探求是一般书籍的共同点,本书完全认同外,另有三重特色:醉心审美情趣 (rhetoric for aesthetic appreciation),眷念人文历史(rhetoric for liberal studies),沉浸于语言的表达(rhetoric for linguistic purposes);三者经纬交织、相辅相成,审美、素养、语用三维一体。