Leviathan — Page 9
Lastly, what is the Kingdome of Darkness.
Enfin, qu'est-ce que le Royaume des Ténèbres.
Concerning the first, there is a saying much usurped of late, That Wisedome is acquired, not by reading of Books, but of Men.
En ce qui concerne le premier point, il existe un adage fort usurpé de nos jours, selon lequel la Sagesse s'acquiert, non par la lecture des Livres, mais par celle des Hommes.
Consequently whereunto, those persons, that for the most part can give no other proof of being wise, take great delight to shew what they think they have read in men, by uncharitable censures of one another behind their backs.
En conséquence de quoi, ces personnes, qui pour la plupart ne peuvent donner d'autre preuve de leur sagesse, prennent grand plaisir à montrer ce qu'elles croient avoir lu dans les hommes, par des jugements malveillants les uns sur les autres en leur absence.
But there is another saying not of late understood, by which they might learn truly to read one another, if they would take the pains; and that is, Nosce Teipsum, Read Thy Self:
Mais il existe un autre adage, compris depuis peu, par lequel ils pourraient apprendre à véritablement se lire les uns les autres, s'ils voulaient bien s'en donner la peine ; et cet adage est : Nosce Teipsum, Lis-toi Toi-même :
which was not meant, as it is now used, to countenance, either the barbarous state of men in power, towards their inferiors; or to encourage men of low degree, to a sawcie behaviour towards their betters;
ce qui ne visait pas, comme on l'emploie aujourd'hui, à cautionner, soit le comportement barbare des hommes au pouvoir envers leurs inférieurs, soit à encourager les hommes de basse condition à une conduite insolente envers leurs supérieurs ;
But to teach us, that for the similitude of the thoughts, and Passions of one man, to the thoughts, and Passions of another, whosoever looketh into himselfe, and considereth what he doth, when he does Think, Opine, Reason, Hope, Feare, &c, and upon what grounds; he shall thereby read and know, what are the thoughts, and Passions of all other men, upon the like occasions.
Mais pour nous enseigner que, en raison de la similitude des pensées et des Passions d'un homme avec les pensées et les Passions d'un autre, quiconque regarde en lui-même et considère ce qu'il fait lorsqu'il Pense, Opine, Raisonne, Espère, Craint, etc., et sur quels fondements ; il pourra ainsi lire et connaître quelles sont les pensées et les Passions de tous les autres hommes, en pareilles circonstances.
Vocabulary
- Enfin
- Finally, at last; used to conclude or summarize.
- qu'est-ce
- What is; interrogative phrase opener in French.
- que
- That, what, which; versatile conjunction or pronoun.
- le
- The; masculine definite article in French.
- Royaume
- Kingdom; a territory ruled by a king or queen.
- des
- Of the; plural indefinite or partitive article.
- Ténèbres
- Darkness, shadows; often used in literary contexts.
- En
- In, by; preposition indicating manner or location.
- ce
- This, that; demonstrative pronoun or adjective.
- qui
- Who, which; relative or interrogative pronoun.
- concerne
- Concerns, relates to; pertains to a subject.
- premier
- First; indicating the initial item in a sequence.
- point
- Point; a specific idea, location, or argument.
- il
- He, it; third-person masculine singular pronoun.
- existe
- Exists; to be present or to have real being.
- un
- A, an; masculine indefinite article or number one.
- adage
- Adage; a traditional saying expressing common wisdom.
- fort
- Very, strong; intensifier or adjective meaning strong.
- usurpé
- Usurped; wrongfully taken or misappropriated over time.
- de
- Of, from; common preposition indicating origin or possession.
- nos
- Our; first-person plural possessive adjective.
- jours
- Days; plural of jour, referring to periods of time.
- selon
- According to; preposition expressing conformity or source.
- lequel
- Which; relative pronoun replacing a specific noun.
- la
- The; feminine definite article in French.
- Sagesse
- Wisdom; the quality of having good judgment and knowledge.
- s'acquiert
- Is acquired; reflexive verb meaning to gain or obtain.
- non
- No, not; negation word used to refuse or deny.
- par
- By, through; preposition indicating means or agency.
- lecture
- Reading; the act of reading a text or book.
- Livres
- Books; written or printed works bound together.
- mais
- But; conjunction introducing contrast or opposition.
- celle
- That one; feminine demonstrative pronoun replacing a noun.
- Hommes
- Men, humans; plural of homme referring to people.
- conséquence
- Consequence; result or outcome of an action or event.
- quoi
- What; pronoun used after prepositions or in exclamations.
- ces
- These, those; plural demonstrative adjective in French.
- personnes
- Persons, people; individuals referred to in a group.
- pour
- For, in order to; preposition indicating purpose or direction.
- plupart
- Most; the majority of a group of people or things.
- ne
- Not; negation particle used with pas or other words.
- peuvent
- Can, are able to; third-person plural of pouvoir.
- donner
- To give; to offer or provide something to someone.
- d'autre
- Other, another; indicating a different or additional element.
- preuve
- Proof, evidence; demonstration supporting a claim or fact.
- leur
- Their, to them; possessive adjective or indirect pronoun.
- sagesse
- Wisdom; prudent understanding and sound judgment in life.
- prennent
- Take; third-person plural present tense of prendre.
- grand
- Great, big; adjective indicating large size or importance.
- plaisir
- Pleasure; a feeling of enjoyment or satisfaction.
- à
- To, at, in; versatile preposition indicating location or direction.
- montrer
- To show; to display or demonstrate something to others.
- qu'elles
- That they; conjunction with feminine third-person plural pronoun.
- croient
- Believe; third-person plural present tense of croire.
- avoir
- To have; auxiliary verb and infinitive meaning to possess.
- lu
- Read; past participle of lire, indicating completed reading.
- dans
- In, inside; preposition indicating location within something.
- les
- The; plural definite article for both genders.
- hommes
- Men, people; plural noun referring to human beings.
- jugements
- Judgments; opinions or verdicts formed about someone.
- malveillants
- Malevolent, spiteful; having or showing ill will toward others.
- uns
- Ones, some; plural pronoun referring to unspecified people.
- sur
- On, about, over; preposition indicating position or subject.
- autres
- Others; plural pronoun or adjective meaning different people.
- en
- In, by, as; versatile preposition or pronoun in French.
- absence
- Absence; the state of being away or not present.
- Mais
- But; coordinating conjunction indicating contrast or exception.
- autre
- Other, another; adjective or pronoun indicating difference.
- compris
- Understood; past participle of comprendre, meaning grasped.
- depuis
- Since, for; preposition indicating time elapsed or origin.
- peu
- Little, few; indicating a small amount or short duration.
- ils
- They; third-person masculine plural subject pronoun.
- pourraient
- Could; conditional form of pouvoir indicating possibility.
- apprendre
- To learn; to acquire knowledge or a new skill.
- véritablement
- Truly, genuinely; adverb meaning in a real or actual sense.
- se
- Oneself; reflexive pronoun used with reflexive verbs.
- lire
- To read; to interpret written text or characters.
- s'ils
- If they; conditional conjunction with reflexive pronoun.
- voulaient
- Wanted; imperfect tense of vouloir meaning to wish.
- bien
- Well, good; adverb or adjective indicating quality or approval.
- s'en
- Of it, from it; reflexive pronoun combined with en.
- peine
- Trouble, pain; effort or difficulty involved in doing something.
- et
- And; coordinating conjunction connecting words or clauses.
- cet
- This; masculine singular demonstrative adjective before vowels.
- est
- Is; third-person singular present tense of être.
- Lis-toi
- Read yourself; French imperative meaning know yourself through reading.
- Toi-même
- Yourself; emphatic reflexive pronoun meaning oneself specifically.
- visait
- Aimed at; imperfect tense of viser meaning to target.
- pas
- Not, step; negation particle or noun meaning a step.
- comme
- As, like; conjunction or preposition indicating comparison.
- on
- One, we, they; impersonal pronoun used broadly in French.
- l'emploie
- Uses it; third-person singular of employer with pronoun.
- aujourd'hui
- Today, nowadays; adverb referring to the present time.
- cautionner
- To endorse, sanction; to formally approve or guarantee something.
- soit
- Either, be it; subjunctive of être or disjunctive conjunction.
- comportement
- Behavior; the manner in which someone acts or conducts themselves.
- barbare
- Barbaric, brutal; uncivilized or cruelly harsh in behavior.
- au
- To the, at the; contraction of à and le.
- pouvoir
- Power, to be able; noun meaning authority or infinitive verb.
- envers
- Toward, towards; preposition indicating direction of attitude.
- leurs
- Their; plural possessive adjective for third-person plural.
- inférieurs
- Inferiors, subordinates; those of lower rank or status.
- encourager
- To encourage; to inspire or motivate someone toward action.
- basse
- Low, humble; feminine adjective indicating inferior social condition.
- condition
- Condition, status; social standing or state of circumstances.
- une
- A, an; feminine indefinite article or number one.
- conduite
- Conduct, behavior; the way a person acts or behaves.
- insolente
- Insolent; showing disrespectful boldness or rude arrogance.
- supérieurs
- Superiors; those of higher rank, authority, or social status.
- nous
- We, us; first-person plural subject or object pronoun.
- enseigner
- To teach; to impart knowledge or instruction to someone.
- raison
- Reason; rational thinking or a logical justification for something.
- similitude
- Similarity; the quality of being alike or resembling another.
- pensées
- Thoughts; ideas or reflections produced by mental activity.
- Passions
- Passions; strong emotions or intense desires driving behavior.
- d'un
- Of a; contraction of de and un indicating possession.
- homme
- Man, human; an adult male or human being generally.
- avec
- With; preposition indicating accompaniment or association.
- quiconque
- Whoever, anyone who; indefinite pronoun meaning any person.
- regarde
- Looks at, regards; third-person singular of regarder.
- lui-même
- Himself; emphatic reflexive pronoun for third-person masculine.
- considère
- Considers; third-person singular of considérer meaning to reflect.
- qu'il
- That he, what he; conjunction combined with masculine pronoun.
- fait
- Does, makes; third-person singular present of faire.
- lorsqu'il
- When he; temporal conjunction combined with masculine pronoun.
- Pense
- Thinks; third-person singular present tense of penser.
- Opine
- Opines; expresses a formal opinion or judgment about something.
- Raisonne
- Reasons; uses logical thinking to form conclusions.
- Espère
- Hopes; third-person singular present of espérer meaning to hope.
- Craint
- Fears; third-person singular present of craindre meaning to fear.
- quels
- Which, what; masculine plural interrogative or relative adjective.
- fondements
- Foundations, grounds; underlying bases or principles supporting something.
- pourra
- Will be able to; future tense of pouvoir meaning can.
- ainsi
- Thus, so; adverb indicating manner or logical consequence.
- connaître
- To know; to be familiar with a person or thing.
- quelles
- Which, what; feminine plural interrogative or relative adjective.
- sont
- Are; third-person plural present tense of être.
- tous
- All, everyone; masculine plural adjective or pronoun.
- pareilles
- Similar, alike; feminine plural adjective meaning the same kind.
- circonstances
- Circumstances; conditions or facts surrounding an event or situation.
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