In 1688 Johannes Hofer coined the term by combining the Greek words for returning home and pain. Nostalgia was originally seen as a quite serious medical condition affecting soldiers who missed home so much that they broke down and were unable to fulfill their duties. The only cure, as Hofer saw it, was to be sent home, to YOUR home.
Because nostalgia is really all about you, your memories, your past, who you used to be, and consequently who you are now, which makes nostalgia an often healthy way to answer the question “who am I?”. Well, you’re a person who remembers specific events in the past. You existed in the past and are a continuous being.
在1688年,Johannes Hofer 通过合并两个希腊词汇——回家和痛苦,造出了“怀旧”这个词语。怀旧,最初被看作是一种相当严重的医学疾病,它对那些非常想家的士兵有很大的影响,以至于让他们崩溃,无法完成自己的职责。在 Hofer 看来,唯一的治疗方法就是送回家,送回你自己的家。
因为怀旧是完全关于你自己,你的回忆,你的过去,你的曾经,与最终现在的你。所以怀旧往往是回答“我是谁”这个问题最合理的一种方式。你是一个记得过去特定事件的人,你存在于过去,同时又是一个持续的个体。