《少年维特的烦恼·第一部·1771 年 5 月至 9 月》第4节
MAY 13. You ask if you shall send me books. My dear friend, I beseech you, for the love of God, relieve me from such a yoke! I need no more to be guided, agitated, heated. My heart ferments sufficiently of itself. I want strains to lull me, and I find them to perfection in my Homer. Often do I strive to allay the burning fever of my blood; and you have never witnessed anything so unsteady, so uncertain, as my heart. But need I confess this to you, my dear friend, who have so often endured the anguish of witnessing my sudden transitions from sorrow to immoderate joy, and from sweet melancholy to violent passions? I treat my poor heart like a sick child, and gratify its every fancy. Do not mention this again: there are people who would censure me for it.
注释摘要
这封信短得像一声灵魂的痉挛。威廉出于善意要寄书来，维特却用近乎哀求的口气拒绝了——他不是不需要书，而是不需要那种试图驯服他的书。信中几个词用得极有力："guided, agitated, heated"——引导、搅动、加热——他把自己当作一口已经沸腾的锅，任何外来的思想都只会让他漫溢出来。他要的不是启蒙理性所推崇的教益与规训，而是"strains to l…