History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire — Volume 1 — Page 8
Every national history, to be complete, must, in a certain sense, be the history of Europe; there is no knowing to how remote a quarter it may be necessary to trace our most domestic events; from a country, how apparently disconnected, may originate the impulse which gives its direction to the whole course of affairs.
Toda história nacional, para ser completa, deve, em certo sentido, ser a história da Europa; não há como saber a que região tão remota pode ser necessário rastrear nossos eventos mais domésticos; de um país, quão aparentemente desconectado, pode originar-se o impulso que dá sua direção a todo o curso dos acontecimentos.
In imitation of his classical models, Gibbon places _Rome_ as the cardinal point from which his inquiries diverge, and to which they bear constant reference; yet how immeasurable the space over which those inquiries range!
À imitação de seus modelos clássicos, Gibbon coloca _Roma_ como o ponto cardeal do qual suas investigações divergem, e ao qual fazem constante referência; no entanto, quão imensurável o espaço sobre o qual essas investigações se estendem!
how complicated, how confused, how apparently inextricable the causes which tend to the decline of the Roman empire!
quão complicadas, quão confusas, quão aparentemente inextricáveis as causas que tendem ao declínio do império romano!
how countless the nations which swarm forth, in mingling and indistinct hordes, constantly changing the geographical limits—incessantly confounding the natural boundaries!
quão incontáveis as nações que surgem em enxames, em hordas misturadas e indistintas, alterando constantemente os limites geográficos — confundindo incessantemente as fronteiras naturais!
At first sight, the whole period, the whole state of the world, seems to offer no more secure footing to an historical adventurer than the chaos of Milton—to be in a state of irreclaimable disorder, best described in the language of the poet:—
À primeira vista, todo o período, todo o estado do mundo, parece não oferecer ao aventureiro histórico base mais segura do que o caos de Milton — estar em um estado de desordem irrecuperável, melhor descrito na linguagem do poeta:—
—"A dark Illimitable ocean, without bound, Without dimension, where length, breadth, and height, And time, and place, are lost: where eldest Night And Chaos, ancestors of Nature, hold Eternal anarchy, amidst the noise Of endless wars, and by confusion stand."
—"Um oceano sombrio e ilimitado, sem fronteiras, sem dimensão, onde comprimento, largura e altura, e tempo e lugar se perdem: onde a mais antiga Noite e o Caos, ancestrais da Natureza, mantêm eterna anarquia, em meio ao ruído de guerras sem fim, e pela confusão se sustentam."
We feel that the unity and harmony of narrative, which shall comprehend this period of social disorganization, must be ascribed entirely to the skill and luminous disposition of the historian.
Sentimos que a unidade e a harmonia da narrativa, que há de compreender este período de desorganização social, devem ser atribuídas inteiramente à habilidade e à luminosa disposição do historiador.
Vocabulary
- toda
- All; entire; every part of something
- história
- History; a narrative of past events
- nacional
- National; relating to a nation or country
- para
- For; in order to; toward a destination
- ser
- To be; to exist; fundamental verb in Portuguese
- completa
- Complete; finished; whole or entire
- deve
- Must; should; ought to do something
- em
- In; at; within a place or time
- certo
- Certain; sure; particular or specific
- sentido
- Sense; feeling; meaning or direction
- da
- Of the; feminine form of preposition de+article
- Europa
- Europe; the continent north of Mediterranean Sea
- não
- Not; negation particle in Portuguese sentences
- há
- There is; there are; exists or occur
- como
- How; in what way; as or like
- saber
- To know; to understand; to be aware of
- que
- That; which; what; relative or interrogative pronoun
- região
- Region; area; geographical part of territory
- tão
- So; as; such a great degree or extent
- remota
- Remote; distant; far away in space
- pode
- Can; may; is able to do something
- necessário
- Necessary; required; essential or needed
- rastrear
- To trace; to track; to follow back
- nossos
- Our; belonging to us; plural possessive adjective
- eventos
- Events; happenings; occurrences or incidents
- mais
- More; greater quantity; additional or further
- domésticos
- Domestic; internal; relating to one's own country
- de
- Of; from; preposition expressing possession or origin
- um
- A; an; one; indefinite article or number
- país
- Country; nation; independent political state
- quão
- How; to what extent; degree of quality
- aparentemente
- Apparently; seemingly; as it appears or seems
- desconectado
- Disconnected; unrelated; not linked or joined
- originar-se
- To originate; to come from; to begin
- impulso
- Impulse; drive; sudden inclination or urge
- dá
- Gives; provides; third person singular of dar
- sua
- His; her; its; possessive adjective feminine form
- direção
- Direction; management; course or way forward
- todo
- All; every; complete or whole
- curso
- Course; path; progression or development
- dos
- Of the; masculine plural form of de+article
- acontecimentos
- Occurrences; events; things that happen or take place
- imitação
- Imitation; copying; reproduction of something else
- seus
- His; her; their; possessive adjective plural form
- modelos
- Models; patterns; examples to follow or emulate
- clássicos
- Classical; classic; of highest rank or quality
- coloca
- Places; puts; sets in a particular position
- Roma
- Rome; ancient empire; capital of Italy
- ponto
- Point; dot; specific location or place
- cardeal
- Cardinal; principal; most important or primary
- qual
- Which; what; interrogative or relative pronoun
- investigações
- Investigations; inquiries; research or examinations
- divergem
- Diverge; differ; move in different directions
- ao
- To the; at the; preposition+article contraction
- fazem
- Make; do; perform action; third person plural
- constante
- Constant; continual; occurring repeatedly or without interruption
- referência
- Reference; allusion; something mentioned or cited
- no
- In the; at the; preposition+article contraction
- entanto
- However; nevertheless; yet or but
- imensurável
- Immeasurable; boundless; cannot be measured or estimated
- espaço
- Space; area; expanse or distance
- sobre
- On; about; concerning; over or above
- essas
- Those; those ones; feminine plural demonstrative pronoun
- se
- If; whether; oneself; reflexive or conditional particle
- estendem
- Extend; stretch; spread out or reach
- complicadas
- Complicated; complex; difficult to understand or analyze
- confusas
- Confused; unclear; not easily understood or separated
- inextricáveis
- Inextricable; tangled; cannot be separated or untangled
- as
- The; feminine plural definite article or pronoun
- causas
- Causes; reasons; things that produce effects
- tendem
- Tend; incline; have a tendency or disposition
- declínio
- Decline; fall; descent from higher level
- império
- Empire; realm; dominion or sovereignty over territories
- romano
- Roman; relating to Rome or its people
- incontáveis
- Uncountable; innumerable; too many to count
- nações
- Nations; countries; peoples or ethnic groups
- surgem
- Arise; emerge; come into being or view
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