We understand that making choices is important for communication and language, but this alone does not prove that telling the truth is strictly necessary. Williams argued that truth matters not merely because it is important for language, but because it is essential for trust. We must admit that a society cannot remain stable solely through the calculation of personal interests. Here is a crucial thought: a value becomes intrinsic not because it is mysteriously “right” by nature, but because people can make sense of it within their own lives and still affirm it upon reflection. Therefore, a general takeaway from Williams is that we must understand our history and ourselves; we come to understand our values through our history and our own lives, and in doing so, we finally understand why we choose to stick to these values.

我们知道，做出选择对于沟通和语言很重要，但这本身并不能证明说真话是绝对必要的。威廉斯认为，真相之所以重要，不仅是因为它对语言重要，更因为它是信任的基础。我们必须承认，一个社会不可能仅仅依靠对个人利益的算计来维持稳定。这里有一个关键的思想：一种价值之所以获得内在性，并不是因为它在本质上有一种神秘的“正确”，而是因为人们能够在自己的生活中理解它，并在反思之后依然去肯定它。因此，从威廉斯那里得到的一个普遍启示是：我们不仅必须理解我们自身的历史，还要通过我们的历史和生活来理解我们的价值，并借此最终弄明白我们为什么要坚守这些价值。