Beyond Good and Evil — Page 4
Had the wicked Socrates really corrupted him?
Hatte der böse Sokrates ihn wirklich verdorben?
Was Socrates after all a corrupter of youths, and deserved his hemlock?
War Sokrates am Ende doch ein Verderber der Jugend und hatte seinen Schierlingsbecher verdient?
But the struggle against Plato, or--to speak plainer, and for the "people"--the struggle against the ecclesiastical oppression of millenniums of Christianity (FOR CHRISTIANITY IS PLATONISM FOR THE "PEOPLE"), produced in Europe a magnificent tension of soul, such as had not existed anywhere previously; with such a tensely strained bow one can now aim at the furthest goals.
Aber der Kampf gegen Platon, oder — um es deutlicher zu sagen und für das „Volk" — der Kampf gegen die kirchliche Unterdrückung der Jahrtausende des Christentums (DENN DAS CHRISTENTUM IST PLATONISMUS FÜR DAS „VOLK"), erzeugte in Europa eine prachtvolle Spannung des Geistes, wie sie zuvor nirgendwo existiert hatte; mit einem so straff gespannten Bogen kann man jetzt auf die fernsten Ziele zielen.
As a matter of fact, the European feels this tension as a state of distress, and twice attempts have been made in grand style to unbend the bow: once by means of Jesuitism, and the second time by means of democratic enlightenment--which, with the aid of liberty of the press and newspaper-reading, might, in fact, bring it about that the spirit would not so easily find itself in "distress"!
Tatsächlich empfindet der Europäer diese Spannung als einen Zustand der Not, und zweimal wurden im großen Stil Versuche unternommen, den Bogen zu entspannen: einmal durch den Jesuitismus und das zweite Mal durch die demokratische Aufklärung — die, mit Hilfe der Pressefreiheit und des Zeitungslesens, es tatsächlich bewirken könnte, dass der Geist sich nicht so leicht in „Not" befände!
(The Germans invented gunpowder--all credit to them! but they again made things square--they invented printing.)
(Die Deutschen erfanden das Schießpulver — alle Ehre ihnen! aber sie machten die Sache wieder wett — sie erfanden den Buchdruck.)
But we, who are neither Jesuits, nor democrats, nor even sufficiently Germans, we GOOD EUROPEANS, and free, VERY free spirits--we have it still, all the distress of spirit and all the tension of its bow!
Aber wir, die wir weder Jesuiten noch Demokraten, ja nicht einmal hinreichend Deutsche sind, wir GUTEN EUROPÄER und freie, SEHR freie Geister — wir haben sie noch, die ganze Not des Geistes und die ganze Spannung seines Bogens!
And perhaps also the arrow, the duty, and, who knows? THE GOAL TO AIM AT....
Und vielleicht auch den Pfeil, die Pflicht und, wer weiß? DAS ZIEL, AUF DAS MAN ZIELEN SOLL....
Sils Maria Upper Engadine, JUNE, 1885.
Sils Maria, Oberengadin, JUNI 1885.
Vocabulary
- Hatte
- Past tense of 'haben'; had
- der
- Definite article or relative pronoun; the/who
- böse
- Evil, wicked, or angry
- ihn
- Accusative pronoun; him
- wirklich
- Really, truly, actually
- verdorben
- Corrupted, spoiled, depraved
- War
- Past tense of 'sein'; was
- am
- Contraction of 'an dem'; at the
- Ende
- End, conclusion, finish
- doch
- After all, yet, still; emphatic particle
- ein
- Indefinite article; a, an
- Verderber
- Corruptor, one who corrupts or spoils
- Jugend
- Youth, young people, younger generation
- und
- Conjunction; and
- hatte
- Past tense of 'haben'; had
- seinen
- Possessive pronoun accusative; his
- verdient
- Deserved, earned; past participle of verdienen
- Aber
- Conjunction; but, however
- Kampf
- Struggle, fight, battle, conflict
- gegen
- Preposition; against, toward
- oder
- Conjunction; or
- um
- Preposition; around, at, in order to
- es
- Neuter pronoun; it
- deutlicher
- More clearly, more plainly; comparative of deutlich
- zu
- Preposition or infinitive marker; to, too
- sagen
- To say, to tell, to speak
- für
- Preposition; for
- das
- Definite article or demonstrative pronoun; the/that
- Volk
- People, folk, nation, common people
- kirchliche
- Ecclesiastical, relating to the church
- Unterdrückung
- Oppression, suppression, repression
- Jahrtausende
- Millennia, periods of a thousand years
- des
- Genitive definite article; of the
- Christentums
- Christianity; genitive form of Christentum
- DENN
- Conjunction; because, for, since
- DAS
- Definite article or pronoun; the/that
- CHRISTENTUM
- Christianity, the Christian religion
- IST
- Third person singular of 'sein'; is
- FÜR
- Preposition; for
- VOLK
- People, folk, nation, common people
- erzeugte
- Generated, produced, created; past tense of erzeugen
- in
- Preposition; in, into
- Europa
- Europe, the continent
- eine
- Indefinite article feminine; a, an
- prachtvolle
- Magnificent, splendid, glorious
- Spannung
- Tension, suspense, voltage, excitement
- Geistes
- Of the spirit or mind; genitive of Geist
- wie
- How, as, like
- sie
- She, they, or formal 'you'
- zuvor
- Before, previously, formerly
- nirgendwo
- Nowhere, not anywhere
- existiert
- Exists; third person singular of existieren
- mit
- Preposition; with, along with
- einem
- Dative indefinite article; a, an
- so
- So, thus, in such a way
- straff
- Taut, tightly drawn, firm, tense
- gespannten
- Tensed, drawn tight; declined form of gespannt
- Bogen
- Bow (weapon), arc, curve, sheet of paper
- kann
- Can, is able to; modal verb können
- man
- Indefinite pronoun; one, you, people
- jetzt
- Now, at this moment
- auf
- Preposition; on, onto, upon, at
- fernsten
- Most distant, farthest; superlative of fern
- Ziele
- Goals, targets, aims, destinations
- zielen
- To aim, to target something
- Tatsächlich
- Actually, indeed, in fact
- empfindet
- Feels, perceives; third person singular of empfinden
- Europäer
- European, a person from Europe
- diese
- Demonstrative pronoun; these, this
- als
- As, than, when
- einen
- Accusative indefinite article; a, an
- Zustand
- State, condition, situation
- Not
- Need, distress, hardship, necessity
- zweimal
- Twice, two times
- wurden
- Were; past passive auxiliary of werden
- im
- Contraction of 'in dem'; in the
- großen
- Large, great; declined adjective form
- Stil
- Style, manner, approach
- Versuche
- Attempts, trials, experiments
- unternommen
- Undertaken, attempted; past participle of unternehmen
- den
- Accusative/dative definite article; the
- entspannen
- To relax, to relieve tension
- einmal
- Once, one time, someday
- durch
- Preposition; through, by means of
- zweite
- Second; ordinal adjective form of zwei
- Mal
- Time, occasion, instance
- demokratische
- Democratic; adjective relating to democracy
- Aufklärung
- Enlightenment, clarification, education
- Hilfe
- Help, aid, assistance
- Pressefreiheit
- Freedom of the press
- Zeitungslesens
- Of newspaper reading; genitive compound noun
- tatsächlich
- Actually, in fact, really
- bewirken
- To cause, to bring about, to effect
- könnte
- Could; subjunctive form of können
- dass
- Conjunction; that
- Geist
- Spirit, mind, intellect, ghost
- sich
- Reflexive pronoun; himself, herself, itself, themselves
- nicht
- Not; negation particle
- leicht
- Light, easy, slight
- befände
- Would find itself; subjunctive of befinden
- Die
- Definite article feminine/plural; the
- Deutschen
- The Germans, German people
- erfanden
- Invented; past tense of erfinden
- Schießpulver
- Gunpowder, explosive powder used in firearms
- alle
- All, everyone, every
- Ehre
- Honor, glory, respect, credit
- ihnen
- Dative pronoun; them, to them
- aber
- Conjunction; but, however
- machten
- Made, did; past tense of machen
- Sache
- Thing, matter, issue, cause
- wieder
- Again, once more
- wett
- Even, compensated; part of wettmachen (to make up for)
- Buchdruck
- Letterpress printing, the art of printing books
- wir
- Personal pronoun; we
- weder
- Neither; used in 'weder...noch' construction
- noch
- Nor, still, yet
- Demokraten
- Democrats, supporters of democracy
- ja
- Yes; affirmative particle or emphatic
- hinreichend
- Sufficiently, adequately, enough
- Deutsche
- Germans, German people
- sind
- Are; plural/third person plural of sein
- GUTEN
- Good; accusative/dative declined form of gut
- EUROPÄER
- Europeans, people from Europe
- freie
- Free; declined adjective form of frei
- SEHR
- Very, much, greatly
- Geister
- Spirits, minds, ghosts; plural of Geist
- haben
- To have; also auxiliary verb
- ganze
- Whole, entire, complete
- seines
- Genitive possessive pronoun; of his
- Bogens
- Of the bow; genitive form of Bogen
- Und
- Conjunction; and
- vielleicht
- Perhaps, maybe, possibly
- auch
- Also, too, as well
- Pfeil
- Arrow, projectile shot from a bow
- Pflicht
- Duty, obligation, responsibility
- wer
- Who; interrogative or relative pronoun
- weiß
- Knows; third person singular of wissen
- ZIEL
- Goal, target, destination, aim
- AUF
- Preposition; on, upon, toward
- MAN
- Indefinite pronoun; one, you, people
- ZIELEN
- To aim, to take aim at a target
- SOLL
- Should, is supposed to; modal verb sollen
- JUNI
- June, the sixth month of the year
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