通往地獄的道路充滿了善意

通往地獄的道路充滿了善意是一句諺語或格言。另一種形式是「地獄充滿了美好的意義，而天堂充滿了美好的作品」。 ^[1]

起源

這個諺語的確切起源是未知的，它的形式已經隨着時間而演變。現代表達方式「通往地獄的道路充滿了善意」於1855年首次發表在亨利·博恩（英語：Henry George Bohn）的《諺語手冊》中。^[2] 1670年，約翰·雷（John Ray）收集了《英語諺語集》（A Collection of English Proverbs），其中出版了一個更早的版本《地獄充滿了美好的寓意和願望》。 ^[3] 最早的類似此短語的文字出現在維吉爾（Virgil）的Aeneid中：「facilis descensus Averno（下降到地獄很容易）」。^[4]

聖經中的相似語句可以在便西拉智訓 21:10找到，「The way of sinners is made plain with stones, but at the end thereof is the pit of hell.」^[5] 諺語一般錯誤被認為是伯爾納鐸寫的（約1150年），「L'enfer est plein de bonnes volontés ou désirs」（地獄充滿了美好的願望或欲望）。^[6]引用是在他去世大約五百年後的1640年發生的，在他的任何出版作品中都沒有發現該文本。

穆罕默德曾在聖訓中寫過相似的一句話：「天堂被困苦所包圍，大火被欲望所包圍。」

含義

該短語的一個普遍含義是，個人可能有意採取良好的行動，但是卻沒有採取行動。^[7] ^[8]這種無所作為可能是由於拖延，懶惰或其他的惡習。^[9]因此，這句話是一個警告，表示良好的意圖如果不遵循是沒有意義的。^[10]

這種說法的另一種解釋是，經常有人善意地做錯事或惡行。或是好意可能會帶來意想不到的後果（英語：Unintended consequences）。一個例子是引入入侵物種，例如在美國引入亞洲鯉魚。^[11]

亦有理解為：善意且無知的行為可能導向悲慘的結果。如：錯誤的政策比貪污更可怕。

參見

墨菲定律

參考文獻

^ the road to Hell is paved with good intentions, Proverbs, Infobase Publishing: 234, 2007, ISBN 9780816066735
^ Bohn, Henry, A Hand-book of Proverbs, 1855
^ Ray, John, A Collection of English Proverbs, 1670
^ Mawr, Mrs E. B., Hell is paved with good intentions, Analogous Proverbs In Ten Languages, Elliot Stock, 1885
^ King James Bible
^ Ammer, Christine, The American Heritage dictionary of idioms, 1997 [2020-09-15], ISBN 9780395727744, （原始內容存檔於2020-09-16）
^ The road to hell is paved with good intentions. The American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy Third (Dictionary.com/Houghton Mifflin Company). 2005 [March 28, 2013]. （原始內容存檔於2015-09-09）.
^ The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus Third (Dictionary.cambridge.org/Cambridge University Press). 2008 [March 28, 2013]. （原始內容存檔於2015-07-22）.
^ Collis, Harry; Risso, Mario, The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions, 101 American English proverbs: understanding language and culture through commonly used sayings, Lincolnwood, Ill: Passport Books, 1992, ISBN 9780844254128
^ Bowden, Charles L., editor; Burstein, Alvin George, editor. Psychosocial Basis of Health Care. Williams & Wilkins. 1983: 98. ISBN 0-683-00993-1.
^ Kalman, Izzy, Principle Number One: The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions, Psychology Today, Resilience to Bullying, August 16, 2010

[1] the road to Hell is paved with good intentions, Proverbs, Infobase Publishing: 234, 2007, ISBN 9780816066735

[2] Bohn, Henry, A Hand-book of Proverbs, 1855

[3] Ray, John, A Collection of English Proverbs, 1670

[4] Mawr, Mrs E. B., Hell is paved with good intentions, Analogous Proverbs In Ten Languages, Elliot Stock, 1885

[5] King James Bible

[6] Ammer, Christine, The American Heritage dictionary of idioms, 1997 [2020-09-15], ISBN 9780395727744, （原始內容存檔於2020-09-16）

[7] The road to hell is paved with good intentions. The American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy Third (Dictionary.com/Houghton Mifflin Company). 2005 [March 28, 2013]. （原始內容存檔於2015-09-09）.

[8] The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus Third (Dictionary.cambridge.org/Cambridge University Press). 2008 [March 28, 2013]. （原始內容存檔於2015-07-22）.

[9] Collis, Harry; Risso, Mario, The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions, 101 American English proverbs: understanding language and culture through commonly used sayings, Lincolnwood, Ill: Passport Books, 1992, ISBN 9780844254128

[10] Bowden, Charles L., editor; Burstein, Alvin George, editor. Psychosocial Basis of Health Care. Williams & Wilkins. 1983: 98. ISBN 0-683-00993-1.

[11] Kalman, Izzy, Principle Number One: The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions, Psychology Today, Resilience to Bullying, August 16, 2010

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