On the Method of Zadig: Essay #1 from "Science and Hebrew Tradition" — Page 10
From freshly broken twigs, crushed leaves, disturbed pebbles, and imprints hardly discernible by the untrained eye, such graduates in the University of Nature will divine, not only the fact that a party has passed that way, but its strength, its composition, the course it took, and the number of hours or days which have elapsed since it passed.
A partir de galhos recém-quebrados, folhas esmagadas, pedras perturbadas e marcas dificilmente discerníveis pelo olho não treinado, tais graduados na Universidade da Natureza irão adivinhar, não apenas o fato de que um grupo passou por ali, mas sua força, sua composição, o caminho que tomou e o número de horas ou dias que se passaram desde que passou.
But they are able to do this because, like Zadig, they perceive endless minute differences where untrained eyes discern nothing; and because the unconscious logic of common sense compels them to account for these effects by the causes which they know to be competent to produce them.
Mas eles são capazes de fazer isso porque, como Zadig, percebem inúmeras diferenças minúsculas onde olhos não treinados não discernem nada; e porque a lógica inconsciente do senso comum os compele a explicar esses efeitos pelas causas que sabem ser competentes para produzi-los.
And such mere methodised savagery was to discover the hidden things of nature better than _a priori_ deductions from the nature of Ormuzd--perhaps to give a history of the past, in which Oannes would be altogether ignored!
E tal mera selvageria metodizada deveria descobrir as coisas ocultas da natureza melhor do que deduções _a priori_ da natureza de Ormuzd — talvez para dar uma história do passado, na qual Oannes seria completamente ignorado!
Decidedly it were better to burn this man at once.
Decididamente, seria melhor queimar este homem imediatamente.
If instinct, or an unwonted use of reason, led Moabdar's magi to this conclusion two or three thousand years ago, all that can be said is that subsequent history has fully justified them.
Se o instinto, ou um uso incomum da razão, levou os magos de Moabdar a essa conclusão dois ou três mil anos atrás, tudo o que se pode dizer é que a história subsequente os justificou plenamente.
For the rigorous application of Zadig's logic to the results of accurate and long-continued observation has founded all those sciences which have been termed historical or palaetiological, because they are retrospectively prophetic and strive towards the reconstruction in human imagination of events which have vanished and ceased to be.
Pois a aplicação rigorosa da lógica de Zadig aos resultados de uma observação precisa e prolongada fundou todas aquelas ciências que foram denominadas históricas ou paletiológicas, porque são retrospectivamente proféticas e se esforçam para a reconstrução na imaginação humana de eventos que desapareceram e deixaram de existir.
Vocabulary
- partir
- To leave, depart, or set out on a journey.
- de
- Of, from; indicates possession or origin.
- galhos
- Branches of trees or plants.
- folhas
- Leaves of plants or pages of paper.
- esmagadas
- Crushed, flattened, or squeezed forcefully.
- pedras
- Stones or rocks.
- perturbadas
- Disturbed, agitated, or disrupted.
- marcas
- Marks, traces, or signs left behind.
- dificilmente
- Hardly, with difficulty, scarcely.
- pelo
- By the, for the; contraction of preposition.
- olho
- Eye or eyesight.
- não
- Not, negation.
- treinado
- Trained, coached, or educated.
- tais
- Such, of that kind or type.
- graduados
- Graduates or people with degrees.
- na
- In the; feminine form of preposition.
- Universidade
- University, institution of higher education.
- da
- Of the; feminine form of contraction.
- Natureza
- Nature, the natural world.
- irão
- Will go, future tense of ir.
- adivinhar
- To guess, conjecture, or divine.
- apenas
- Only, merely, just.
- fato
- Fact, something that is true.
- que
- That, which; relative pronoun.
- um
- A, an; indefinite article.
- grupo
- Group, set, or collection.
- passou
- Passed or went through.
- por
- By, for, through; preposition.
- ali
- There, in that place.
- mas
- But, however; conjunction.
- sua
- His, her, its; possessive.
- força
- Force, strength, power.
- composição
- Composition, arrangement, or makeup.
- caminho
- Path, way, or road.
- tomou
- Took, assumed, adopted.
- número
- Number, quantity, or figure.
- horas
- Hours, periods of time.
- ou
- Or; disjunctive conjunction.
- dias
- Days, periods of twenty-four hours.
- se
- If, reflexive pronoun; conditional.
- passaram
- Passed, elapsed, went by.
- desde
- Since, from; temporal preposition.
- Mas
- But, however; conjunction.
- eles
- They, masculine pronoun.
- são
- Are, third person plural of ser.
- capazes
- Capable, able, competent.
- fazer
- To do, make, perform.
- isso
- That, this thing; pronoun.
- porque
- Because, for the reason that.
- como
- Like, as, how; conjunction.
- percebem
- Perceive, notice, observe.
- inúmeras
- Innumerable, countless, very many.
- diferenças
- Differences, distinctions, variations.
- minúsculas
- Minuscule, tiny, very small.
- onde
- Where, in what place.
- olhos
- Eyes, sights, looks.
- treinados
- Trained, educated, practiced.
- discernem
- Discern, distinguish, perceive.
- nada
- Nothing, anything negative.
- lógica
- Logic, reasoning, rational thought.
- inconsciente
- Unconscious, unaware, not conscious.
- do
- Of the; masculine contraction.
- senso
- Sense, feeling, perception.
- comum
- Common, ordinary, usual.
- os
- The, them; masculine article.
- explicar
- To explain, clarify, elucidate.
- esses
- Those, those things; demonstrative.
- efeitos
- Effects, results, consequences.
- pelas
- By the, through the; feminine.
- causas
- Causes, reasons, purposes.
- sabem
- Know, are aware of.
- ser
- To be, existence.
- competentes
- Competent, qualified, capable.
- produzi-los
- To produce them; infinitive with pronoun.
- tal
- Such, like that; similar.
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