77
The fact of my having been the common prisoner of a common gaol I must frankly accept, and, curious as it may seem to you, one of the things I shall have to teach myself is not to be ashamed of it. I must accept it as a punishment, and if one is ashamed of having been punished, one might just as well never have been punished at all. Of course there are many things of which I was convicted that I had not done, but then there are many things of which I was convicted that I had done, and a still greater number of things in my life for which I never was indicted at all. And as for what I have said in this letter, that the gods are strange, and punish us for what is good and humane in us as much as for what is evil and perverse[77a], I must accept the fact that one is punished for the good as well as for the evil that one does. I have no doubt that it is quite right one should be. It helps one, or should help one, to realise both[77b], and not to be too conceited about either. And if I then am not ashamed of my punishment, as I hope not to be, I shall be able to think, and walk, and live with freedom.
我不过是一所普通监狱里的一名普通囚犯，这一点我必须老老实实地接受；尽管你也许会觉得奇怪，我要教会自己的事有一件就是，别因此而羞愧。我必须接受这是一个惩罚；假如因为受到惩罚而羞愧，那惩罚受了就跟从来没受过一样。当然，有许多事我没干却被定罪，但也有许多事是我干的因而获罪，还有更多的事我干了却从未被告发过。我在这封信中说了，神是奇怪的，他们惩罚我们，不但因为我们的恶行和堕落变态，也因为我们的美好与善良[77a]。就这一点，我必须接受的事实是，一个人受惩罚，不但因为他作的恶，也因为他行的善。我不怀疑，人这样受罚很有道理。这有助于、或者说应该是有助于对一己之善恶的领悟[77b]，不会因为其中的哪一样而自满自负。假使我这样，就能像自己所希望的那样，不会对受惩罚感到羞愧，那我就能自由地思考、行走、生活了。
77