The Scarlet Letter — Page 4
The first time was three or four years since, when I favored the reader—inexcusably, and for no earthly reason, that either the indulgent reader or the intrusive author could imagine—with a description of my way of life in the deep quietude of an Old Manse.
La primera vez fue hace tres o cuatro años, cuando obsequié al lector —de manera inexcusable, y sin ninguna razón terrenal que ni el indulgente lector ni el entrometido autor pudieran imaginar— con una descripción de mi modo de vida en la profunda quietud de una Vieja Mansión.
And now—because, beyond my deserts, I was happy enough to find a listener or two on the former occasion—I again seize the public by the button, and talk of my three years' experience in a Custom-House.
Y ahora —porque, más allá de lo que merezco, tuve la suerte de encontrar uno o dos oyentes en aquella ocasión anterior— vuelvo a tomar al público del ojal y hablo de mis tres años de experiencia en una Aduana.
The example of the famous "P. P., Clerk of this Parish," was never more faithfully followed.
El ejemplo del famoso «P. P., Secretario de esta Parroquia» nunca fue seguido con mayor fidelidad.
The truth seems to be, however, that, when he casts his leaves forth upon the wind, the author addresses, not the many who will fling aside his volume, or never take it up, but the few who will understand him, better than most of his schoolmates or lifemates.
La verdad parece ser, sin embargo, que cuando el autor lanza sus páginas al viento, se dirige no a los muchos que arrojarán su libro a un lado, o que jamás lo tomarán, sino a los pocos que lo comprenderán mejor que la mayoría de sus compañeros de escuela o de vida.
Some authors, indeed, do far more than this, and indulge themselves in such confidential depths of revelation as could fittingly be addressed, only and exclusively, to the one heart and mind of perfect sympathy; as if the printed book, thrown at large on the wide world, were certain to find out the divided segment of the writer's own nature, and complete his circle of existence by bringing him into communion with it.
Algunos autores, en verdad, van mucho más lejos que esto, y se permiten tales profundidades confidenciales de revelación que solo podrían dirigirse, única y exclusivamente, al corazón y la mente de perfecta simpatía; como si el libro impreso, lanzado al vasto mundo, tuviera la certeza de hallar el fragmento dividido de la propia naturaleza del escritor, y completar su círculo de existencia poniéndolo en comunión con él.
It is scarcely decorous, however, to speak all, even where we speak impersonally.
Sin embargo, apenas resulta decoroso decirlo todo, incluso cuando hablamos de manera impersonal.
Vocabulary
- primera
- First; feminine ordinal number indicating order
- vez
- Time, instance, or occasion of something occurring
- fue
- Was or went; past tense of ser/ir
- hace
- Ago; used to indicate elapsed time
- años
- Years; plural of año
- cuando
- When; conjunction or adverb of time
- obsequié
- I gave or presented a gift to someone
- al
- Contraction of a and el meaning 'to the'
- lector
- Reader; person who reads a text
- manera
- Manner, way, or method of doing something
- inexcusable
- Inexcusable; impossible to justify or excuse
- sin
- Without; preposition indicating absence or lack
- ninguna
- No, none, or not any; feminine negative adjective
- razón
- Reason or motive behind an action
- terrenal
- Earthly, worldly, relating to the terrestrial realm
- ni
- Nor, not even; negative conjunction linking alternatives
- indulgente
- Indulgent, lenient, tolerant toward others' faults
- entrometido
- Meddlesome, nosy, interfering in others' affairs
- autor
- Author; person who writes a literary work
- pudieran
- Could or might; past subjunctive of poder
- imaginar
- To imagine or conceive something in the mind
- descripción
- Description; detailed account of something's characteristics
- modo
- Mode, way, or manner of doing something
- vida
- Life; the condition of being alive
- profunda
- Deep, profound; having great depth or intensity
- quietud
- Quietude, stillness, state of calm and peace
- Vieja
- Old; feminine adjective describing age or antiquity
- Mansión
- Mansion; large stately house or residence
- ahora
- Now; adverb indicating the present moment
- porque
- Because; conjunction introducing a reason or cause
- más
- More; comparative adverb indicating greater degree
- allá
- Beyond, over there; adverb of place
- merezco
- I deserve or merit; first person of merecer
- tuve
- I had; first person preterite of tener
- suerte
- Luck or fortune; favorable chance or outcome
- encontrar
- To find or encounter someone or something
- oyentes
- Listeners; people who listen to a speaker
- aquella
- That; feminine demonstrative adjective referring to distance
- ocasión
- Occasion, opportunity, or particular moment in time
- anterior
- Previous, prior, or former; coming before another
- vuelvo
- I return or come back; first person of volver
- tomar
- To take or grab; common action verb
- público
- Public, audience; group of people addressed collectively
- ojal
- Buttonhole; small loop for fastening a button
- hablo
- I speak or talk; first person of hablar
- experiencia
- Experience; knowledge or skill gained through practice
- Aduana
- Customs house; office managing import and export duties
- ejemplo
- Example; instance used to illustrate a point
- famoso
- Famous, well-known, celebrated by many people
- Secretario
- Secretary; administrative officer managing records and correspondence
- esta
- This; feminine demonstrative adjective indicating proximity
- Parroquia
- Parish; local church district or congregation
- nunca
- Never; adverb indicating something does not occur
- seguido
- Followed; past participle of seguir meaning to follow
- mayor
- Greater, larger, older; comparative adjective of grande
- fidelidad
- Fidelity, faithfulness, loyalty to a person or cause
- verdad
- Truth; conformity with fact or reality
- parece
- Seems or appears; third person of parecer
- ser
- To be; fundamental Spanish copulative verb
- embargo
- Sin embargo means however or nevertheless; a connective
- lanza
- Launches or throws; also means spear as noun
- páginas
- Pages; individual sheets of a written document
- viento
- Wind; moving air current in the atmosphere
- dirige
- Directs or addresses; third person of dirigir
- muchos
- Many; masculine plural adjective indicating large quantity
- arrojarán
- Will throw or toss; future tense of arrojar
- libro
- Book; bound written or printed literary work
- lado
- Side; lateral part or direction of something
- jamás
- Never, ever; emphatic negation adverb in Spanish
- tomarán
- Will take; third person plural future of tomar
- sino
- But rather; contrastive conjunction correcting a negation
- pocos
- Few; masculine plural adjective indicating small quantity
- comprenderán
- Will understand; future tense of comprender
- mejor
- Better; comparative adjective or adverb of bueno/bien
- mayoría
- Majority; greater part or number of a group
- compañeros
- Companions, classmates, colleagues sharing an activity together
- escuela
- School; institution for education and learning
- Algunos
- Some, a few; masculine plural indefinite adjective
- autores
- Authors; plural of autor, writers of literary works
- van
- Go; third person plural present of ir
- mucho
- Much, a lot; adverb or adjective of quantity
- lejos
- Far, distant; adverb indicating great distance
- esto
- This; neuter demonstrative pronoun referring to a concept
- permiten
- Allow or permit; third person plural of permitir
- tales
- Such, such kinds of; plural demonstrative adjective
- profundidades
- Depths; plural of profundidad, great deepness or intensity
- confidenciales
- Confidential; private and intended for select recipients
- revelación
- Revelation; disclosure of something previously hidden or unknown
- solo
- Only, alone; adverb limiting scope or adjective of solitude
- podrían
- Could; conditional tense of poder, expressing possibility
- dirigirse
- To direct oneself or address someone; reflexive of dirigir
- única
- Unique, sole; feminine adjective meaning only one
- exclusivamente
- Exclusively; in a manner limited to one thing only
- corazón
- Heart; organ or seat of emotion and feeling
- mente
- Mind; the cognitive and intellectual faculty of thought
- perfecta
- Perfect; complete, flawless, without fault or defect
- simpatía
- Sympathy or affinity; feeling of understanding and harmony
- como
- As, like, how; conjunction or adverb of comparison
- si
- If; conditional conjunction introducing a hypothetical clause
- impreso
- Printed; past participle of imprimir, produced in print
- lanzado
- Launched or thrown; past participle of lanzar
- vasto
- Vast, immense; adjective describing great size or extent
- mundo
- World; the earth or the realm of human existence
- tuviera
- Had; past subjunctive of tener expressing hypothetical possession
- certeza
- Certainty; state of being completely sure about something
- hallar
- To find or discover; synonym of encontrar
- fragmento
- Fragment; small broken-off piece of a larger whole
- dividido
- Divided; past participle of dividir, separated into parts
- propia
- Own; feminine adjective indicating belonging to oneself
- naturaleza
- Nature; innate character or the natural world
- escritor
- Writer; person who composes literary or written works
- completar
- To complete or finish; to make something whole
- círculo
- Circle; round shape or a closed group of people
- existencia
- Existence; the state or fact of being alive
- poniéndolo
- Putting or placing it; gerund of poner with pronoun
- comunión
- Communion; deep sharing or intimate fellowship with another
- Sin
- Without; preposition indicating absence of something
- apenas
- Hardly, scarcely, barely; adverb of small degree
- resulta
- Results, turns out; third person of resultar
- decoroso
- Decent, seemly, proper in manner or behavior
- decirlo
- To say it; infinitive of decir with direct object
- todo
- All, everything; adjective or pronoun of totality
- incluso
- Even, including; adverb emphasizing inclusion of something
- hablamos
- We speak; first person plural present of hablar
- impersonal
- Impersonal; not relating to a specific person or self
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