作者：张兴贵（大陆）
编辑：韩唳 责任编辑：罗志飞
翻译：何兴强
一位从集中营地狱中爬出来的幸存者曾留下这样的哀叹：“我们这些活下来的人，绝不是最好的人，那些最好的人，早就死了。”
这句话如丧钟般回响，揭露了一个血淋淋的现实：在极权的碾压下，道德不仅脆弱，甚至可能成为通向死亡的陷阱。
在集中营的铁丝网内，生存是唯一的驱动力。你勇敢吗？若你反抗暴虐的看守，等待你的可能是枪口或绞架。你善良吗？若你将仅有的面包分给饥饿的同伴，你可能因此先倒下。在这样的环境中，道德的实践往往意味着自我牺牲，而生存则要求妥协甚至背叛。
这种现象可以称之为“道德的逆淘汰”。在极权体制的压迫下，那些坚持原则、坚守良知的人，往往最先被淘汰。幸存者并非最善良或最勇敢的人，而是那些学会了适应环境的人——他们可能更谨慎、更懂得隐藏，甚至更自私。这并非人性本恶，而是极权体制对人性的系统性扭曲，它让有道德变成了一种危险的奢侈品。
中国古代专制制度下有句谚语：“杀人放火金腰带，修桥补路无尸骸。” 这句古谚迫使我们直面一个残酷的问题：为何在一个社会中，恶行能换来荣华富贵，而善举却导向万劫不复？答案，深藏于制度的肌理之中。
一、权力至上：奖恶罚善的制度根源
我们必须直视极权制度的本质——一个权力高度集中的体系，其中法律、道德、资源都服务于统治者的意志。在这样的环境中，规则不再公平，而是成为权力的附庸。
为什么“杀人放火”能换来“金腰带”？因为这些恶行往往直接服务于权力的巩固。极权体制需要通过暴力、恐吓和绝对忠诚来维持统治，那些愿意执行“脏活”的人——无论是镇压异己、制造冤案，还是掠夺资源——都被视为“有用”的棋子，并因此获得财富、地位和特权。
反过来，“修桥补路”这样的善行却难以立足。因为它服务的是公共利益，而非统治者的私利。在极权者眼中，这种行为价值微乎其微，甚至可能因触动既得利益者的蛋糕而被视为对权力的挑战。于是，善行者不仅得不到回报，还可能被打压、被遗忘，这便是“无尸骸”的悲哀根源。
二、效率与控制：为何体制需要“恶”
极权体制之所以会“扬恶”，是因为“恶”在短期内是维持其运转的更“高效”的工具。
1. 权力的控制需求。 为了确保绝对服从，统治者必须通过恐惧和压迫来消除异议。这种手段本身就是一种“恶”，因为它限制自由、压制人性。而“善”的特质，如宽容、多元、同理心，与集权的目标天然冲突，甚至被视为软弱。因此，执行暴力任务者被视为忠诚的“自己人”并得到提拔，让恶行成为一条通往权力的“捷径”。
2. 社会控制的效率。 在极权逻辑中，效率优先于道德。恶，如暴力、监控、惩罚，能快速压制反对声音，建立表面秩序；而善，如对话、妥协、包容，则需要时间和信任，成本高昂且结果不可控。设想一位村民自掏腰包修路，方便了乡亲，却可能得罪了控制运输生意的权贵，结果不仅得不到感激，反而可能家破人亡。
因此，极权制度中的“善”往往是策略性的，它服务于权力控制，而非源于真正的道德追求。在这样的绞肉机中，人性中最美好的部分被系统性地碾碎，这不是个体的道德失败，而是制度的必然之恶。
The Moral Essence Under Totalitarianism
Author: Zhang Xinggui (Mainland China)
Editor: Han Li
Chief Editor: Luo Zhifei
Translator: He Xingqiang
Abstract:
This essay explores how totalitarian regimes distort and subvert traditional morality. Citing the words of concentration camp survivors and ancient Chinese proverbs, it introduces the concept of “reverse moral selection.” In a power-absolutist system, evil deeds are rewarded for serving the regime, while good deeds are suppressed for being of no use to centralized control. In the end, even virtue itself becomes a strategy of manipulation in service of power.
A survivor who crawled out from the hell of a concentration camp once left behind this lament:
“Those of us who survived are not the best ones. The best of us are long gone.”
This sentence tolls like a funeral bell, exposing a bloody truth: under the crushing weight of totalitarianism, morality is not only fragile, it may even become a trap leading directly to death.
Behind the barbed wire of the camps, survival was the sole driving force. Are you brave? If you resist the cruelty of the guards, the price may be the gun barrel or the gallows. Are you kind? If you share your last piece of bread with a starving comrade, you may collapse before him. In such an environment, the practice of morality often meant self-sacrifice, while survival demanded compromise—even betrayal.
This phenomenon can be called “reverse moral selection.” Under the oppression of totalitarian rule, those who hold fast to principles and conscience are often the first to be eliminated. Survivors are not necessarily the bravest or kindest, but those who learned how to adapt—more cautious, more hidden, perhaps even more selfish. This is not proof of inherent human evil, but of the systemic distortion of humanity by totalitarian power, where morality itself becomes a dangerous luxury.
Ancient Chinese autocracy left us a proverb:
“Those who kill and burn gain golden belts; those who build bridges and repair roads leave no corpse behind.”
This forces us to confront a brutal question: why is it that in certain societies, evil deeds can bring wealth and honor, while virtuous acts lead to destruction? The answer lies deep within the fabric of the system itself.
I. The Supremacy of Power: The Institutional Roots of Rewarding Evil and Punishing Good
We must face the essence of totalitarianism: a system of extreme concentration of power, where law, morality, and resources all serve the will of the ruler. In such an environment, rules cease to be fair and become nothing more than appendages of power.
Why does “killing and burning” bring a golden belt? Because such acts directly serve the consolidation of power. Totalitarian regimes rely on violence, terror, and absolute loyalty to maintain rule. Those willing to perform the “dirty work”—suppressing dissent, fabricating injustice, plundering resources—are seen as “useful pawns” and are rewarded with wealth, rank, and privilege.
Conversely, why does “repairing bridges and roads” fail to gain recognition? Because it serves the public good, not the ruler’s private interest. To the totalitarian eye, such acts hold little value, and may even threaten entrenched privilege. Thus, benevolent acts not only lack reward, but may provoke suppression or oblivion—this is the tragic root of “leaving no corpse behind.”
II. Efficiency and Control: Why the Regime Needs “Evil”
The reason totalitarian systems elevate evil is that evil is the more “efficient” tool for sustaining their rule.
The need for control through power.To ensure absolute obedience, rulers must wield fear and repression to extinguish dissent. This is itself evil, for it shackles freedom and suppresses human nature. “Good” qualities—tolerance, diversity, empathy—naturally conflict with centralized power and are even regarded as weakness. Thus, those who carry out violent acts are hailed as loyal insiders and promoted, making evil a fast track to power.
The efficiency of social control.In the logic of totalitarianism, efficiency trumps morality. Evil—violence, surveillance, punishment—quickly silences opposition and creates a façade of order. Good—dialogue, compromise, inclusiveness—requires time and trust, with high costs and uncertain outcomes. Imagine a villager who spends his own savings to repair a road for his neighbors, only to offend a local powerbroker who controls transport profits. Rather than gratitude, he may face ruin and death.
Thus, in totalitarian regimes, “good” often becomes strategic—performed only when it serves power’s control, not out of true moral pursuit. In this meat grinder, the noblest parts of human nature are systematically crushed. This is not the failure of individual morality, but the inevitable evil of the system itself.
