Beyond Good and Evil — Page 10
You desire to LIVE "according to Nature"? Oh, you noble Stoics, what fraud of words!
Ihr begehrt, „der Natur gemäß" zu LEBEN? Oh, ihr edlen Stoiker, welcher Wortbetrug!
Imagine to yourselves a being like Nature, boundlessly extravagant, boundlessly indifferent, without purpose or consideration, without pity or justice, at once fruitful and barren and uncertain:
Stellt euch ein Wesen vor wie die Natur, grenzenlos verschwenderisch, grenzenlos gleichgültig, ohne Zweck und Rücksicht, ohne Erbarmen und Gerechtigkeit, zugleich fruchtbar und unfruchtbar und ungewiss:
imagine to yourselves INDIFFERENCE as a power--how COULD you live in accordance with such indifference?
stellt euch GLEICHGÜLTIGKEIT als eine Macht vor – wie KÖNNTET ihr in Übereinstimmung mit solcher Gleichgültigkeit leben?
To live--is not that just endeavouring to be otherwise than this Nature?
Leben – ist das nicht gerade das Bestreben, anders zu sein als diese Natur?
Is not living valuing, preferring, being unjust, being limited, endeavouring to be different?
Ist Leben nicht Werten, Vorziehen, Ungerechtsein, Begrenztsein, das Bestreben, anders zu sein?
And granted that your imperative, "living according to Nature," means actually the same as "living according to life"--how could you do DIFFERENTLY?
Und angenommen, euer Imperativ „der Natur gemäß leben" bedeutet tatsächlich dasselbe wie „dem Leben gemäß leben" – wie könntet ihr es ANDERS machen?
Why should you make a principle out of what you yourselves are, and must be?
Warum solltet ihr ein Prinzip daraus machen, was ihr selbst seid und sein müsst?
In reality, however, it is quite otherwise with you: while you pretend to read with rapture the canon of your law in Nature, you want something quite the contrary, you extraordinary stage-players and self-deluders!
In Wirklichkeit jedoch verhält es sich bei euch ganz anders: während ihr vorgebt, den Kanon eures Gesetzes mit Entzücken in der Natur zu lesen, begehrt ihr etwas ganz Entgegengesetztes, ihr außerordentlichen Schauspieler und Selbstbetrüger!
In your pride you wish to dictate your morals and ideals to Nature, to Nature herself, and to incorporate them therein;
In eurem Stolz wollt ihr der Natur, der Natur selbst, eure Moral und eure Ideale vorschreiben und sie darin einverleiben;
you insist that it shall be Nature "according to the Stoa," and would like everything to be made after your own image, as a vast, eternal glorification and generalism of Stoicism!
ihr besteht darauf, dass sie Natur „gemäß der Stoa" sein soll, und möchtet, dass alles nach eurem eigenen Bilde gestaltet werde, als eine gewaltige, ewige Verherrlichung und Verallgemeinerung des Stoizismus!
Vocabulary
- Ihr
- You (plural/formal pronoun, second person)
- begehrt
- Desire or crave something eagerly
- der
- Definite article, masculine nominative case
- Natur
- Nature, the natural world or essence
- gemäß
- According to, in accordance with something
- zu
- To, toward, or too (preposition/particle)
- LEBEN
- To live; life (emphasized here)
- Oh
- Exclamation expressing surprise or emotion
- ihr
- You (plural informal) or her (possessive)
- edlen
- Noble, of high moral or social distinction
- Stoiker
- Stoics, followers of Stoic philosophy
- welcher
- Which, what (relative/interrogative pronoun)
- Wortbetrug
- Verbal deception, fraud through words
- Stellt
- Place, present, or imagine (imperative form)
- euch
- Yourselves, you (plural reflexive/accusative pronoun)
- ein
- A, an (indefinite article) or one
- Wesen
- Being, creature, or essential nature
- vor
- Before, in front of, or ago
- wie
- How, as, or like (comparison particle)
- die
- The (definite article, feminine/plural)
- grenzenlos
- Boundless, without limits or restrictions
- verschwenderisch
- Wasteful, extravagant, spending or using excessively
- gleichgültig
- Indifferent, unconcerned, not caring about outcomes
- ohne
- Without, lacking something entirely
- Zweck
- Purpose, aim, or goal of action
- und
- And (coordinating conjunction)
- Rücksicht
- Consideration, regard, or respect for others
- Erbarmen
- Mercy, compassion, pity for suffering
- Gerechtigkeit
- Justice, fairness in moral or legal sense
- zugleich
- At the same time, simultaneously
- fruchtbar
- Fertile, productive, bearing fruit or results
- unfruchtbar
- Infertile, barren, unproductive or fruitless
- ungewiss
- Uncertain, unclear, not definitively known
- stellt
- Places, presents, or imagines (third person singular)
- GLEICHGÜLTIGKEIT
- Indifference, complete lack of concern (emphasized)
- als
- As, than, or when (conjunction/preposition)
- eine
- A, an (indefinite article, feminine)
- Macht
- Power, force, or authority
- KÖNNTET
- Could you (plural conditional, emphasized form)
- in
- In, into, inside (preposition of location)
- Übereinstimmung
- Agreement, conformity, or correspondence with something
- mit
- With, together with (preposition)
- solcher
- Such, of that kind (demonstrative adjective)
- Gleichgültigkeit
- Indifference, apathy, lack of emotional concern
- leben
- To live, to exist and experience life
- Leben
- Life, existence as a living being
- ist
- Is (third person singular of sein)
- das
- The (neuter definite article) or that
- nicht
- Not (negation particle)
- gerade
- Exactly, just now, or straight (adverb)
- Bestreben
- Striving, endeavor, effort toward a goal
- anders
- Different, otherwise, in another way
- sein
- To be (infinitive of the verb)
- diese
- This, these (demonstrative pronoun/adjective)
- Ist
- Is (third person singular, capitalized for emphasis)
- Werten
- Values, principles regarded as important
- Vorziehen
- To prefer, to choose one thing over another
- Ungerechtsein
- Being unjust, the state of injustice
- Begrenztsein
- Being limited, the state of having boundaries
- Und
- And (coordinating conjunction, emphasized)
- angenommen
- Assuming, supposed, or accepted as true
- euer
- Your (plural possessive pronoun)
- Imperativ
- Imperative, commanding moral or grammatical directive
- bedeutet
- Means, signifies (third person singular)
- tatsächlich
- Actually, in fact, truly or really
- dasselbe
- The same (thing), identical (demonstrative pronoun)
- dem
- The (dative masculine/neuter article)
- könntet
- Could you (plural conditional mood)
- es
- It (third person neuter pronoun)
- ANDERS
- Differently, otherwise (emphasized adverb)
- machen
- To make or do something
- Warum
- Why, for what reason (interrogative adverb)
- solltet
- Should you (plural conditional/subjunctive)
- Prinzip
- Principle, fundamental rule or belief
- daraus
- From it, out of that (pronominal adverb)
- was
- What (interrogative or relative pronoun)
- selbst
- Yourself, itself, oneself (reflexive/emphatic pronoun)
- seid
- Are (second person plural of sein)
- müsst
- Must, have to (second person plural modal)
- In
- In, within (preposition of location)
- Wirklichkeit
- Reality, the actual state of affairs
- jedoch
- However, yet, but (concessive conjunction/adverb)
- verhält
- Behaves, relates to (reflexive verb form)
- sich
- Oneself, itself (reflexive pronoun)
- bei
- At, near, with, at the place of
- ganz
- Whole, entire, completely or quite
- während
- While, during (conjunction or preposition)
- vorgebt
- Pretend, claim falsely (second person plural)
- den
- The (accusative masculine or dative plural)
- Kanon
- Canon, established rule or authoritative standard
- eures
- Your (plural genitive possessive pronoun)
- Gesetzes
- Of the law (genitive of Gesetz)
- Entzücken
- Delight, enchantment, great pleasure or joy
- lesen
- To read (written text or information)
- etwas
- Something, somewhat, a little bit
- Entgegengesetztes
- Something opposite, the contrary or reverse
- außerordentlichen
- Extraordinary, exceptional, remarkable (adjective inflected)
- Schauspieler
- Actor, performer who plays roles on stage
- Selbstbetrüger
- Self-deceiver, one who deceives themselves
- eurem
- Your (plural dative possessive pronoun)
- Stolz
- Pride, a sense of personal dignity or achievement
- wollt
- Want (second person plural of wollen)
- eure
- Your (plural possessive pronoun, feminine/plural)
- Moral
- Morality, ethical principles guiding behavior
- Ideale
- Ideals, standards or principles considered perfect
- vorschreiben
- To prescribe, dictate, or impose rules on others
- sie
- She, they, or her (pronoun, various uses)
- darin
- In it, therein (pronominal adverb)
- einverleiben
- To incorporate, absorb, or assimilate into something
- besteht
- Insists, consists of, or passes (verb form)
- darauf
- On it, thereon, insisting on something
- dass
- That (subordinating conjunction introducing clauses)
- Stoa
- Stoa, the Stoic philosophical school of thought
- soll
- Should, is supposed to (modal verb)
- möchtet
- Would like (second person plural of mögen)
- alles
- Everything, all things without exception
- nach
- After, to, according to (preposition)
- eigenen
- Own, one's own (possessive adjective inflected)
- Bilde
- Image, likeness, or picture (dative of Bild)
- gestaltet
- Shaped, formed, designed in a particular way
- werde
- Will become (subjunctive/future auxiliary form)
- gewaltige
- Enormous, mighty, powerful (inflected adjective)
- ewige
- Eternal, everlasting, never-ending (inflected adjective)
- Verherrlichung
- Glorification, exaltation of something or someone
- Verallgemeinerung
- Generalization, extending a principle broadly
- des
- Of the (genitive masculine/neuter article)
- Stoizismus
- Stoicism, ancient philosophy emphasizing reason and endurance
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