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〈談文論譯〉自焚 self-immolate & 自

燃 self-ignite 蘇正隆

焚燒就是燃燒，但「自焚」(self-immolation/self-immolate) 則是自己縱火燒死自己；「自燃」(self-ignition/self-ignite) 是物品自己起火燃燒。

台北市長柯文哲在公安督導會報上，指「有一陣子西藏喇嘛都用自焚方式自殺，… 造成中共很大的困擾」，「透過自焚方式表達抗議，是很爛的方法。」引發爭議。

「自焚」通常是人們為表達對政治、宗教迫害的激烈抗議手段，不是為了解脫而自殺。按 Merriam-Webster Unabridged 的定義，immolate 是 “to offer in sacrifice (as to a deity); especially: to kill as a sacrificial victim” (獻上犧牲祭品)。

Wikipedia 上 self-immolation 的解釋如下：
Self-immolation is the act of killing oneself for political or religious reasons, particularly by burning. It is often used as an extreme form of protest or in acts of martyrdom. It has a centuries-long recognition as the most extreme form of protest achieved by humankind. – Wikipedia

「自燃」則是煤炭堆、麥稈堆等易燃物品 (flammable materials) 因壓力或氧化(oxidation reaction) 而起火。英文是 self-ignite/self-ignition 或 spontaneous combustion。

以下為 Collins English Dictionary 對 self-ignition 的解釋：
Self-ignition: the spontaneous combustion or ignition of something without any external spark or flame

Wikipedia 對 spontaneous combustion 的說明如下：
Spontaneous combustion is a process in which oxidation reaction takes place without the interference of an external heat source. The increase in temperature is caused by the heat liberated by coal through chemical reactions. ... This is common in coal mining operations both in the past and present. (Jerome Su, Nov. 02, 19)