History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire — Volume 1 — Page 9
It is in this sublime Gothic architecture of his work, in which the boundless range, the infinite variety, the, at first sight, incongruous gorgeousness of the separate parts, nevertheless are all subordinate to one main and predominant idea, that Gibbon is unrivalled.
Es en esta sublime arquitectura gótica de su obra, en la que el alcance ilimitado, la infinita variedad, la, a primera vista, incongruente magnificencia de las partes separadas, sin embargo, están todas subordinadas a una idea principal y predominante, donde Gibbon no tiene rival.
We cannot but admire the manner in which he masses his materials, and arranges his facts in successive groups, not according to chronological order, but to their moral or political connection; the distinctness with which he marks his periods of gradually increasing decay; and the skill with which, though advancing on separate parallels of history, he shows the common tendency of the slower or more rapid religious or civil innovations.
No podemos sino admirar la manera en que agrupa sus materiales y ordena sus hechos en grupos sucesivos, no según el orden cronológico, sino según su conexión moral o política; la nitidez con la que marca sus períodos de decadencia gradualmente creciente; y la habilidad con la que, avanzando por líneas paralelas separadas de la historia, muestra la tendencia común de las innovaciones religiosas o civiles, más lentas o más rápidas.
However these principles of composition may demand more than ordinary attention on the part of the reader, they can alone impress upon the memory the real course, and the relative importance of the events.
Por mucho que estos principios de composición puedan exigir más que una atención ordinaria por parte del lector, solo ellos pueden grabar en la memoria el verdadero curso y la importancia relativa de los acontecimientos.
Whoever would justly appreciate the superiority of Gibbon's lucid arrangement, should attempt to make his way through the regular but wearisome annals of Tillemont, or even the less ponderous volumes of Le Beau.
Quien quiera apreciar justamente la superioridad del lúcido orden de Gibbon, debería intentar abrirse camino a través de los regulares pero tediosos anales de Tillemont, o incluso los menos pesados volúmenes de Le Beau.
Vocabulary
- sublime
- Extremely beautiful or awe-inspiring in quality
- arquitectura
- The art and science of designing buildings
- gótica
- Relating to the Gothic style of architecture or art
- obra
- A literary, artistic, or musical work or creation
- alcance
- The range, scope, or reach of something
- ilimitado
- Without limits; boundless or unrestricted in extent
- infinita
- Having no end; limitless or immeasurably great
- variedad
- A range of different things; diversity or variety
- vista
- A view or sight; the act of seeing something
- incongruente
- Not consistent or compatible; out of place
- magnificencia
- Impressive beauty, grandeur, or splendor of appearance
- separadas
- Divided or kept apart from each other
- embargo
- Used in 'sin embargo' meaning 'nevertheless' or 'however'
- subordinadas
- Placed in a lower rank or made secondary to something
- principal
- Most important or primary among several things
- predominante
- Having the greatest influence or importance; dominant
- rival
- A person competing with another for the same goal
- sino
- Conjunction meaning 'but rather' or 'except'
- admirar
- To regard with wonder, pleasure, or approval
- manera
- A way or method of doing something
- agrupa
- Third person singular present of 'agrupar'; to group together
- materiales
- Raw data or substances used to create something
- ordena
- To arrange or organize things in a specific order
- hechos
- Facts or events that have actually occurred
- grupos
- Collections of people or things considered together
- sucesivos
- Following one after another in sequence
- según
- Preposition meaning 'according to' or 'depending on'
- orden
- A particular arrangement or sequence of things
- cronológico
- Arranged in the order events occurred in time
- conexión
- A relationship or link between two or more things
- moral
- Relating to principles of right and wrong behavior
- política
- Relating to government, politics, or public affairs
- nitidez
- Clarity or sharpness in expression or image
- marca
- To mark, indicate, or distinguish something clearly
- períodos
- Distinct intervals of time with defining characteristics
- decadencia
- A process of decline from a previous state of quality
- gradualmente
- Happening slowly and in small increments over time
- creciente
- Growing or increasing steadily in size or intensity
- habilidad
- Skill or ability to do something well
- avanzando
- Moving forward or making progress toward a goal
- líneas
- Long, narrow marks or series of connected points
- paralelas
- Running side by side without ever intersecting
- historia
- The study or record of past events and people
- muestra
- Shows or demonstrates something; a sample or example
- tendencia
- A general direction in which something is developing
- común
- Shared by or occurring in many; ordinary or widespread
- innovaciones
- New ideas, methods, or inventions introduced to practice
- religiosas
- Relating to religion, faith, or spiritual practices
- civiles
- Relating to citizens or civilian rather than military life
- lentas
- Slow in movement, progress, or action (feminine plural)
- rápidas
- Fast or quick in movement or action (feminine plural)
- principios
- Fundamental rules or beliefs guiding behavior or reasoning
- composición
- The way parts are arranged to form a whole work
- exigir
- To demand or require something with authority
- atención
- The act of focusing one's mind on something
- ordinaria
- Normal, average, or not particularly special
- lector
- A person who reads books or other written material
- grabar
- To record, engrave, or imprint something firmly
- memoria
- The mental faculty of retaining and recalling past experiences
- verdadero
- Real, genuine, or true; not false or artificial
- curso
- The route or direction along which something moves
- importancia
- The quality of being significant or having great value
- relativa
- Considered in relation to something else; not absolute
- acontecimientos
- Events or occurrences, especially significant ones
- Quien
- Relative pronoun meaning 'whoever' or 'who'
- quiera
- Present subjunctive of 'querer'; whoever wants or wishes
- apreciar
- To recognize and value the quality of something
- justamente
- Fairly, rightly, or precisely; in a just manner
- superioridad
- The state of being higher in quality or rank
- lúcido
- Clear and easy to understand; expressing ideas precisely
- debería
- Conditional of 'deber'; should or ought to do
- intentar
- To try or attempt to do something
- abrirse
- Reflexive form of 'abrir'; to open oneself or a way
- camino
- A road, path, or way to travel somewhere
- través
- Used in 'a través de' meaning 'through' or 'across'
- regulares
- Conforming to a standard pattern; consistent and orderly
- tediosos
- Too long, slow, or dull; tiresome and monotonous
- anales
- Historical records of events arranged year by year
- incluso
- Adverb meaning 'even' or 'including'
- pesados
- Heavy in weight or difficult to endure; burdensome
- volúmenes
- Books, especially as part of a larger series
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