"No!- no!- he has but increased the debt!" answered the physician; and as he proceeded, his manner lost its fiercer characteristics, and subsided into gloom. "Dost thou remember me, Hester, as I was nine years agone? Even then, I was in the autumn of my days, nor was it the early autumn. But all my life had been made up of earnest, studious, thoughtful, quiet years, bestowed faithfully for the increase of mine own knowledge, and faithfully, too, though this latter object was but casual to the other- faithfully for the advancement of human welfare. No life had been more peaceful and innocent than mine; few lives so rich with benefits conferred. Dost thou remember me? Was I not, though you might deem me cold, nevertheless a man thoughtful for others, craving little for himself- kind, true, just, and of constant, if not warm affections? Was I not all this?"
“沒有！——沒有！他只不過增加了他的負(fù)債！”那醫(yī)生回答說(shuō)；在他接下去說(shuō)著的時(shí)候，他的神情不再是惡狠狠的，而變得陰郁了?！澳氵€記得我九年前的樣子嗎，海絲特？即使在那時(shí)；我也到了垂暮之秋，而且還不是初秋。但我的全部生活都是由真誠(chéng)、勤學(xué)、沉思和寧?kù)o的歲月所構(gòu)成的，我忠實(shí)地將其奉獻(xiàn)給為自己增加知識(shí)，也同樣忠實(shí)地將其奉獻(xiàn)給為人類造?！m說(shuō)這后一個(gè)目標(biāo)與前一個(gè)相比只是附帶的。誰(shuí)也比不上我生活得那樣平和，那樣純真；很少有人象我那樣生活得富于裨益。你還記得那時(shí)的我嗎？雖說(shuō)你可能認(rèn)為我冷酷無(wú)情，難道我不是為他人著想，很少替自己打算嗎？——就算我不是溫情脈脈，難道我不是善良、真誠(chéng)、正直，對(duì)愛情始終不渝的人嗎？過去的我難道不就是這樣子嗎？”

"All this, and more," said Hester.
“是這樣子的，而且還不只這些，”海絲特說(shuō)。

"And what am I now?" demanded he, looking into her face, and permitting the whole evil within him to be written on his features. "I have already told thee what I am! A fiend! Who made me so?"
“可我現(xiàn)在成了什么樣子呢？”他緊盯著她的面孔，逼問著，同時(shí)讓他內(nèi)心的全部邪惡都無(wú)保留地表露在他的外貌上。“我已經(jīng)告訴過你我是什么了！一個(gè)惡魔！是誰(shuí)把我弄成這樣子的？”

"It was myself!" cried Hester, shuddering. "It was I, not less than he. Why hast thou not avenged thyself on me?"
“就是我！”海絲特周身戰(zhàn)抖著說(shuō)。“是我！我的責(zé)任并不比他小?？赡銥槭裁床粚?duì)我報(bào)復(fù)呢？”

"I have left thee to the scarlet letter," replied Roger Chillingworth. "If that have not avenged me, I can do no more!"
“我把你留給了紅宇，”羅杰·齊靈渥斯回答說(shuō)。“如果紅字還不能為我出氣，我也別無(wú)它法了！”

He laid his finger on it, with a smile.
他面帶微笑，把一個(gè)指頭放在紅字上面。

"It has avenged thee!" answered Hester Prynne.
“它已經(jīng)替你報(bào)復(fù)了！”海絲特·白蘭說(shuō)。

"I judged no less," said the physician. "And now, what wouldst thou with me touching this man?"
“我正是這么看的，”那醫(yī)生說(shuō)?！澳敲?，如今你要我對(duì)那個(gè)人怎么辦呢？”