What has happened is that people cannot confess fully to their dreams, as easily and openly as once they could, lest they be thought pushing, acquisitive and vulgar.

现在的情况是，人们不能像以前那样轻易、公开地完全承认自己的梦想，惟恐别人认为他们爱赶时髦、贪得无厌、庸俗不堪。