《四季随笔》是吉辛的散文代表作。其中对隐士赖克罗夫特醉心于书籍、自然景色与回忆过去生活的描述，其实是吉辛的自述，作者以此来抒发自己的情感，因而本书是一部富有自传色彩的小品文集。
吉辛穷困的一生，对文学名著的爱好与追求，以及对大自然恬静生活的向往，在书中均有充分的反映。本书分为春、夏、秋、冬四个部分，文笔优美，行文流畅，是英国文学中小品文的珍品之一。
以下是由网友分享的《四季随笔》节选 - 秋 12的内容，让我们一起来感受吉辛的四季吧!
The free man, says Spinoza, thinks of nothing less often than of death. Free, in his sense of the word, I may not call myself. I think of death very often; the thought, indeed, is ever in the background of my mind; yet free in another sense I assuredly am, for death inspires me with no fear. There was a time when I dreaded it; but that, merely because it meant disaster to others who depended upon my labour; the cessation of being has never in itself had power to afflict me. Pain I cannot well endure, and I do indeed think with apprehension of being subjected to the trial of long deathbed torments. It is a sorry thing that the man who has fronted destiny with something of manly calm throughout a life of stress and of striving, may, when he nears the end, be dishonoured by a weakness which is mere disease. But happily I am not often troubled by that dark anticipation.
一个自由的人几乎很少思考死亡，斯宾诺莎如是说。从他阐释的意义上说，我不能说自己“自由”。我经常会思考死亡，这想法确实一直都存在于我的头脑中；然而从另外一个意义上说，我当然是自由的，因为死亡并没有让我心生恐惧。曾有一个时候，我对它感到害怕；但只是因为它对于那些仰赖我生存的人，意味着灾难，肉体的消灭本身不能让我感到痛苦。我对痛苦的忍耐力不强，想到临死前在病床上长久地受煎熬，我会感到忧虑。一个人终其一生在重压下努力奋斗，勇敢平静地与命运抗争，在生命即将终结时，竟因为疾病这个弱点而蒙受耻辱，真让人扼腕。但是，幸好我并没有经常受到这种黑暗预测的困扰。
I always turn out of my way to walk through a country churchyard; these rural resting-places are as attractive to me as a town cemetery is repugnant. I read the names upon the stones, and find a deep solace in thinking that for all these the fret and the fear of life are over. There comes to me no touch of sadness; whether it be a little child or an aged man, I have the same sense of happy accomplishment; the end having come, and with it the eternal peace, what matter if it came late or soon? There is no such gratulation as Hic jacet. There is no such dignity as that of death. In the path trodden by the noblest of mankind these have followed; that which of all who live is the utmost thing demanded, these have achieved. I cannot sorrow for them, but the thought of their vanished life moves me to a brotherly tenderness. The dead, amid this leafy silence, seem to whisper encouragement to him whose fate yet lingers: As we are, so shalt thou be; and behold our quiet!
我常常会在散步时绕道穿过一个乡村墓地，这些乡村安息地对我充满吸引力，就像城镇的公墓令我感觉厌恶一样。我读着刻在石头上的那些名字，想到对他们来说，生活中所有的烦恼和恐惧都已经结束，便会感到一种深沉的慰藉。我没有感觉一丝悲伤的情绪，不管那是一个小孩子还是耄耋老翁，我都有同样的快乐的成就感；生命已走到尽头，随之而来的是永恒的平静，既然如此，时间的早或晚又有什么关系呢？没有比“长眠于此”更让人满足的事，没有比死亡更体面的事。在人类最高贵之士走过的道路上，这些人追随而去；活着的人的终极要求，这些人也都达到了。我不能为他们感到悲伤，但是想到他们消逝的生命，我对他们萌发出了兄弟般的温情。那些在枯叶覆盖的沉默中安息的死者，似乎在轻声鼓励着生命尚存的人们：我们的今天，就是你的明天，看看我们的宁静吧！
