安布罗斯·比尔斯
美国 · 1842–c.1914
美国记者、短篇小说家与讽刺作家，因尖刻的机智而被称为"苦涩的比尔斯"。其《魔鬼辞典》以犬儒主义重新定义了英语，其战争小说至今仍是美国文学中最无情的篇章。
维基百科 ↗“What this country needs — what every country needs occasionally — is a good hard bloody war to revive the vice of patriotism on which its existence as a nation depends.”
英语
“这个国家所需要的——每个国家偶尔都需要的——是一场残酷的血腥战争，以复兴爱国主义这一国家赖以存在的恶德。”
“Cynic: a blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not as they ought to be. Hence the custom among the Scythians of plucking out a cynic's eyes to improve his vision.”
英语
“愤世嫉俗者：一个视觉有缺陷的恶棍，看到的是事物的本来面目，而非其应有的样子。因此斯基泰人有挖去愤世嫉俗者双眼以改善其视力的习俗。”
“Painting: the art of protecting flat surfaces from the weather and exposing them to the critic.”
英语
“绘画：一门保护平面不受天气侵蚀、却将其暴露给评论家的艺术。”
“Corporation: an ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility.”
英语
“公司：一种巧妙的装置，用于获取个人利润而无需承担个人责任。”
“History: an account mostly false, of events mostly unimportant, which are brought about by rulers mostly knaves, and soldiers mostly fools.”
英语
“历史：一份大部分虚假的记录，记载着大部分无关紧要的事件，由大部分无赖的统治者和大部分愚蠢的士兵所造就。”