It's no accident that democracy and theater emerged around the same time in ancient Athens.
无怪乎民主和剧院同时出现于古代雅典。
Both of them yank the individual out of the enclosure of her private self.
民主和戏剧都把个体从私我中分离出来。
Both of them create great public experiences of shared ritual.
都从一种共同的仪式感中创立了伟大的公共体验。
Both of them bring the imagination to life in ways that remind us that all of our bonds in the end are imagined, and can be reimagined.
把想象带进了生活，让我们意识到错综复杂的社会联系都是由设想而来的，也可以进行重构。
This moment right now, when we think about the meaning of imagination, is so fundamentally important,
此时此刻，当我们思索想象的意义，便会发觉想象是何其重要，
and our ability to take that spirit and to take that sense that there is something greater out there,
我们如果有能力接受这样一种精神，这样一种感知，承认有更伟大的存在，
is not just a matter of technical expertise.
并非只是技术性的专长。
It's not just a matter of making the time or having the know-how. It is a matter of spirit.
不只是挤出时间或者拥有技术。这关乎一种精神。
But let me give you an answer to this question, "Why bother?" that is maybe a little less spiritual and a bit more pointed.
让我来揭晓答案，究竟为什么要投票。答案并不虚空，而是有实践意义的。
Why bother voting? Because there is no such thing as not voting.
为什么要投票？因为不存在不投票这种事。
Not voting is voting, for everything that you may detest and oppose.
不投票也是投票。只不过投给了所有你不喜欢和反对的东西。
Not voting can be dressed up as an act of principled, passive resistance,
不投票有时装扮成原则性的，被动的抵抗，
but in fact not voting is actively handing power over to those whose interests are counter to your own,
但实际上不投票是交出权力，给那些与你利益相左的人，
and those who would be very glad to take advantage of your absence. Not voting is for suckers.
那些很乐意利用你缺席的人。不投票是失败者的选择。
