The Picture of Dorian Gray — Page 10
It was not conscience that made me do so: it was a sort of cowardice.
Ce n'est pas la conscience qui m'y a poussé : c'était une sorte de lâcheté.
I take no credit to myself for trying to escape."
Je ne m'attribue aucun mérite pour avoir essayé de fuir."
"Conscience and cowardice are really the same things, Basil.
« La conscience et la lâcheté sont vraiment la même chose, Basil.
Conscience is the trade-name of the firm.
La conscience est la raison sociale de la maison.
That is all."
C'est tout. »
"I don't believe that, Harry, and I don't believe you do either.
« Je ne crois pas cela, Harry, et je ne crois pas que vous le croyiez non plus.
However, whatever was my motive—and it may have been pride, for I used to be very proud—I certainly struggled to the door.
Quoi qu'il en soit, quel que fût mon motif — et ce pouvait être l'orgueil, car j'étais autrefois très orgueilleux — je me suis certainement frayé un chemin vers la porte.
There, of course, I stumbled against Lady Brandon.
Là, bien entendu, je me heurtai à Lady Brandon.
'You are not going to run away so soon, Mr. Hallward?' she screamed out.
« Vous n'allez pas partir si tôt, monsieur Hallward ? » cria-t-elle.
You know her curiously shrill voice?"
Vous connaissez sa voix curieusement perçante ? »
"Yes; she is a peacock in everything but beauty," said Lord Henry, pulling the daisy to bits with his long nervous fingers.
« Oui ; elle est un paon en tout sauf en beauté », dit Lord Henry, effeuillant la marguerite de ses longs doigts nerveux.
"I could not get rid of her.
« Je ne pouvais pas me débarrasser d'elle.
She brought me up to royalties, and people with stars and garters, and elderly ladies with gigantic tiaras and parrot noses.
Elle me présenta à des têtes couronnées, et à des gens avec des étoiles et des jarretières, et à des dames d'un certain âge avec des tiares gigantesques et des nez de perroquet.
She spoke of me as her dearest friend.
Elle me présenta comme sa plus chère amie.
I had only met her once before, but she took it into her head to lionize me.
Je ne l'avais rencontrée qu'une seule fois auparavant, mais elle s'était mis en tête de me traiter en célébrité.
I believe some picture of mine had made a great success at the time, at least had been chattered about in the penny newspapers, which is the nineteenth-century standard of immortality.
Je crois qu'un de mes tableaux avait remporté un grand succès à l'époque, du moins avait-il fait jaser dans les journaux à un sou, ce qui est la mesure de l'immortalité au dix-neuvième siècle.
Suddenly I found myself face to face with the young man whose personality had so strangely stirred me.
Soudain je me trouvai face à face avec le jeune homme dont la personnalité m'avait si étrangement ému.
We were quite close, almost touching.
Nous étions très proches, presque à nous toucher.
Our eyes met again.
Nos regards se croisèrent de nouveau.
Vocabulary
- conscience
- Awareness of one's own thoughts, feelings, and actions
- y
- Pronoun meaning 'there' or referring to a place
- poussé
- Pushed or driven toward something; past participle of 'pousser'
- sorte
- A kind or type of something
- lâcheté
- Cowardice; lack of courage or moral bravery
- attribue
- Assigns or credits something to someone; present of 'attribuer'
- aucun
- No, none; used in negative constructions to mean 'any'
- mérite
- Credit or worthiness earned through good actions
- essayé
- Tried or attempted something; past participle of 'essayer'
- fuir
- To flee or escape from a person or situation
- vraiment
- Truly or really; used to emphasize a statement
- même
- Same; also used as an intensifier meaning 'even'
- chose
- A thing or object in a general sense
- raison
- Reason or rationale behind a thought or action
- sociale
- Relating to society or social interactions
- maison
- A house or home where people live
- tout
- All or everything; used as adjective or pronoun
- crois
- First person singular present of 'croire,' meaning 'believe'
- cela
- Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'this thing'
- croyiez
- Second person plural imperfect of 'croire,' meaning 'believed'
- plus
- More; also used in negation meaning 'no longer'
- Quoi
- Interrogative pronoun meaning 'what,' often exclamatory
- en
- Preposition or pronoun meaning 'in,' 'of it,' or 'some'
- soit
- Subjunctive of 'être'; means 'be' or 'whether'
- quel
- Interrogative or exclamatory adjective meaning 'what' or 'which'
- fût
- Imperfect subjunctive of 'être,' meaning 'was/were'
- motif
- A reason or motive behind an action
- pouvait
- Imperfect of 'pouvoir,' meaning 'could' or 'was able'
- orgueil
- Pride or arrogance; an excessively high self-opinion
- car
- Conjunction meaning 'because' or 'for,' introducing a reason
- autrefois
- Formerly or in the past; referring to a previous time
- orgueilleux
- Proud or arrogant; having excessive pride in oneself
- certainement
- Certainly or definitely; expressing confidence in a statement
- frayé
- Cleared or made one's way through; past participle of 'frayer'
- chemin
- A path or road leading from one place to another
- vers
- Preposition meaning 'toward' or 'in the direction of'
- porte
- A door or gate providing entry to a space
- Là
- Adverb meaning 'there,' indicating a location or place
- entendu
- Of course; understood; past participle of 'entendre'
- heurtai
- Bumped into or collided; simple past of 'heurter'
- partir
- To leave or depart from a place
- si
- Conjunction meaning 'if' or adverb meaning 'so'/'yes'
- tôt
- Early or soon; referring to time before expected
- monsieur
- Formal title for a man meaning 'mister' or 'sir'
- cria
- Shouted or cried out; simple past of 'crier'
- connaissez
- Second person plural of 'connaître,' meaning 'you know'
- voix
- Voice; the sound produced when speaking or singing
- curieusement
- Curiously or strangely; in an odd or unusual manner
- perçante
- Piercing or shrill; describing a sharp penetrating sound
- paon
- A peacock; a large bird known for colorful plumage
- sauf
- Except or save for; used to indicate an exclusion
- beauté
- Beauty; the quality of being visually pleasing or attractive
- effeuillant
- Plucking petals off a flower; present participle of 'effeuiller'
- marguerite
- A daisy flower with white petals and yellow center
- longs
- Long; describing something of great length or duration
- doigts
- Fingers; the digits of the human hand
- nerveux
- Nervous or tense; also meaning 'sinewy' or 'agile'
- pouvais
- Imperfect of 'pouvoir,' meaning 'I could' or 'I was able'
- débarrasser
- To rid oneself of something; to get free from
- présenta
- Introduced or presented someone; simple past of 'présenter'
- têtes
- Heads; also used in expressions like 'crowned heads'
- couronnées
- Crowned; describing royalty or those wearing a crown
- gens
- People in general; a group of persons
- étoiles
- Stars; also decorative orders or medals worn on clothing
- jarretières
- Garters; bands worn around the leg to hold up stockings
- dames
- Ladies or women of social distinction
- certain
- A certain or particular; of an unspecified but definite kind
- âge
- Age; the length of time a person has lived
- tiares
- Tiaras; jeweled headpieces worn by women of distinction
- gigantesques
- Gigantic or enormous; of very great size
- nez
- Nose; the facial feature used for smelling and breathing
- perroquet
- A parrot; a colorful bird known for mimicking speech
- chère
- Dear or beloved; also meaning expensive or costly
- amie
- Female friend; a woman with whom one has a close friendship
- rencontrée
- Met or encountered; past participle of 'rencontrer'
- seule
- Alone or only; describing singular isolation or uniqueness
- fois
- Time or instance; as in 'one time' or 'once'
- auparavant
- Before or previously; referring to an earlier time
- mis
- Put or set; past participle of 'mettre'
- tête
- Head; here used in idiom 'se mettre en tête' meaning 'to decide'
- traiter
- To treat or deal with someone in a particular way
- célébrité
- A celebrity or famous person; the state of being famous
- tableaux
- Paintings or pictures; plural of 'tableau'
- remporté
- Won or achieved; past participle of 'remporter'
- succès
- Success; a favorable outcome or achievement
- époque
- Era or period; a particular time in history
- moins
- Less or at least; used for comparisons or minimums
- jaser
- To chatter or gossip; to talk idly about others
- journaux
- Newspapers; plural of 'journal,' daily publications
- sou
- A very small coin; used to mean a tiny amount
- mesure
- Measure or degree; here used as a type of currency of fame
- immortalité
- Immortality; the state of living or being remembered forever
- neuvième
- Ninth; the ordinal form of the number nine
- siècle
- Century; a period of one hundred years
- Soudain
- Suddenly; happening quickly and without warning
- trouvai
- Found or came across; simple past of 'trouver'
- face
- Face or front; also used in expression 'face à face'
- jeune
- Young; describing someone of a relatively small age
- homme
- Man; an adult male human being
- dont
- Relative pronoun meaning 'whose,' 'of which,' or 'from which'
- personnalité
- Personality; the distinctive qualities of a person's character
- étrangement
- Strangely or oddly; in an unusual or surprising manner
- ému
- Moved or touched emotionally; past participle of 'émouvoir'
- proches
- Close or near; in proximity to one another
- presque
- Almost or nearly; close to but not quite something
- toucher
- To touch; to make physical contact with something
- regards
- Gazes or looks; the act of looking at someone
- croisèrent
- Met or crossed; simple past of 'croiser,' as in eyes meeting
- nouveau
- New or again; 'de nouveau' means 'once again'
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