刺刀过时了没有？

武夷山

Technology and Culture杂志2012年第4期发表John Stone的论文，The Point of Bayonet（刺刀尖）。文章有力地论证说，刺刀这一简单、传统的兵器，经历了300年的军事技术变革后仍在使用，是因为刺刀的效用主要在于提升士气，而不在于其物质特性。

训练拼刺刀，有助于培养团队精神，鼓舞士气。上刺刀，上的是精神。

博主：在其他领域，很多传统技术也都面临被淘汰的境地。其中哪些技术也类似于刺刀呢？由于只看到技术的物质层面、未看到技术的其他功能而贸然抛弃、鄙弃某些技术，将是令人遗憾的。

原文摘要如下，可以看出，标题中的Point是双关语：

Thisarticle investigates the continued presence of the bayonet in the face of rapidand sustained military-technological change, and argues that the technicalcharacteristics of this simple weapon are minimally implicated in itslongevity. Rather, the bayonet’s continuing military effectiveness is conjuredout of a collection of social practices amongst which the physical artifact isembedded during the process of training soldiers. The purpose of thesepractices is to forge strong associations between bayonet and aggressivebehavior, thereby bolstering the moral fortitude of soldiers in times ofbattlefield crisis. The real “point” of the bayonet is therefore psychological,as opposed to material, in character.