異類之不一樣的成功啟示錄 第80期:紐約律師所的出身歧視

"I certainly had come far. But I ought to understand how limited the possibilities of a firm like his

“我之所以到這，當(dāng)然是無事不登三寶殿。但是，我明白，像他這樣的公司，

were to hire a boy of my antecedents. And while he congratulated me on my progress,

雇用一個像我這樣的人的概率是微乎其微的。當(dāng)他吹捧我取得的成績的時候，

I should understand he certainly couldn't offer me a job.

我心里就已經(jīng)明白，他實際上不大可能給我這個飯碗。

But they all enjoyed seeing me and all that."

但他們自始至終，還是熱情地接待了我。

It is clear from the transcript of Bickel's reminiscences that his interviewer doesn't quiet know what to do with that information.

對比克爾求職的這段追憶，后來那些采訪他的人顯然都覺得有點迷惑不解。

Bickel was by the time was the interview at the height of his reputation.

比克爾接受這些記者采訪的時候，正是他聲譽最高的時期，他的身影常出現(xiàn)在最高法院，

He had argued cases before the Supreme Court. He had written brilliant books.

在那里，他力辯群雄，他寫了很多風(fēng)靡一時的書箱。

Mudge Rose saying no to Bickel because of his "antecedents" was like the Chicago Bulls turning down Michael Jordan because they were uncomfortable with black kids from North Carolina. It didn't make any sense.

而默基·羅斯律師事務(wù)所對比克爾說“不”，只是因為比克爾的出身，就像當(dāng)年芝加哥公牛隊拒絕接收來自北卡羅來納州的黑人孩子麥克爾·喬丹一樣。沒有任何其它說得過去的理由。

"But for stars?" the interviewer asked, meaning, Wouldn't they have made an exception for your?

“但是對名人也這樣嗎?”采訪者問他，意思是“難道他們不會破例嗎?”

Bickel:"Stars, schmars..."

比克爾說：“名人，schmars……”

In the 1940s and 1950s, the old-line law firms of New York operated like a private club.

20世紀(jì)四五十年代，紐約那些老牌律師事務(wù)所的運營方式就像一個私人俱樂部。

There were all headquartered in downtown Manhattan, in and around Wall Street, in somber, granite-faced buildings.

他們的總部都設(shè)在市中心的曼哈頓，在華爾街或其周邊用大理石砌成的沉重嚴(yán)肅的寫字樓里。

The partners at the top firms graduated from the same Ivy League schools, attended the same churches, and summered in the same oceanside villages on Long Island. They wore conservative gray suits.

頂級公司的合伙人都是常春藤聯(lián)盟學(xué)校的畢業(yè)生，他們參加同一個教會，都在長島的海邊度假。他們穿保守的灰色套裝，

Their partnerships were known as "white-shoe" firms in apparent appearance to the white bucks favored at the country club or a cocktail party,

他們所在的公司被稱為“白鞋”公司(”whiteshoe”firm)顯然，“白鞋”指的是出現(xiàn)在鄉(xiāng)村俱樂部或雞尾酒會的白色紳士鞋。

and they were very particular in whom they hired.

這些公司對所雇用的人員十分挑剔。

As Erwin Smigel wrote in The Wall Street Lawyer, his study of the old-line New York legal establishment,

就像艾文·斯米格爾(ErwinSmigel)在《華爾街律師》(TheWallStreetLawyer)一書中對紐約舊式法律公司所做的研究說的那樣，

they were looking for: lawyers who are Nordic, have pleasing personalities, and "clean-cut" are graduates of the right schools, have the right social background, and experience in the affairs of the world,appearances, and are endowed with tremendous stamina. A former law school dean, in discussing the qualities students needed to obtain a job, offers a somewhat more realistic picture.

這些公司尋找：來自北歐的律師，這些人性格隨和，穿著整潔體面，畢業(yè)于“合適的學(xué)校”，具有“合適的”社會背景及參與國際事務(wù)經(jīng)驗，且精力充沛，極具耐心。一位法學(xué)院前院長在一次談?wù)摲▽W(xué)院的學(xué)生找工作時應(yīng)該具備怎樣的特點時，提出了更實際的要求。