The Prince — Page 4
Whereas the magnificence of the Medicean rule during the life of Lorenzo appeared to have impressed Machiavelli strongly, for he frequently recurs to it in his writings, and it is to Lorenzo's grandson that he dedicates _The Prince_.
Alors que la magnificence du règne des Médicis du vivant de Laurent semblait avoir profondément impressionné Machiavel, car il y revient fréquemment dans ses écrits, et c'est au petit-fils de Laurent qu'il dédie _Le Prince_.
Machiavelli, in his "History of Florence," gives us a picture of the young men among whom his youth was passed.
Machiavel, dans son « Histoire de Florence », nous donne un tableau des jeunes gens au milieu desquels s'écoula sa jeunesse.
He writes: "They were freer than their forefathers in dress and living, and spent more in other kinds of excesses, consuming their time and money in idleness, gaming, and women; their chief aim was to appear well dressed and to speak with wit and acuteness, whilst he who could wound others the most cleverly was thought the wisest."
Il écrit : « Ils étaient plus libres que leurs ancêtres dans leur manière de se vêtir et de vivre, et dépensaient davantage en toutes sortes d'excès, consumant leur temps et leur argent dans l'oisiveté, le jeu et les femmes ; leur principal but était de paraître bien habillés et de parler avec esprit et finesse, tandis que celui qui savait blesser les autres le plus adroitement passait pour le plus sage. »
In a letter to his son Guido, Machiavelli shows why youth should avail itself of its opportunities for study, and leads us to infer that his own youth had been so occupied.
Dans une lettre à son fils Guido, Machiavel explique pourquoi la jeunesse devrait profiter de ses occasions d'étudier, et nous amène à déduire que sa propre jeunesse avait été ainsi employée.
He writes: "I have received your letter, which has given me the greatest pleasure, especially because you tell me you are quite restored in health, than which I could have no better news; for if God grant life to you, and to me, I hope to make a good man of you if you are willing to do your share.
Il écrit : « J'ai reçu votre lettre, qui m'a causé la plus grande joie, surtout parce que vous me dites que vous êtes tout à fait rétabli en santé, ce dont je ne pourrais recevoir de meilleures nouvelles ; car si Dieu vous prête vie, ainsi qu'à moi, j'espère faire de vous un homme de bien si vous êtes disposé à faire votre part.
Vocabulary
- Alors
- a-lor — Then, so, or at that time
- que
- kuh — That, which, or than; common conjunction
- la
- la — The; feminine definite article in French
- magnificence
- man-yee-fee-sahns — Splendor, grandeur, or impressive display of wealth
- du
- dü — Of the; masculine contracted definite article
- règne
- reyn — Reign or rule of a monarch or leader
- des
- day — Of the; plural contracted definite article
- vivant
- vee-vahn — Living, alive; present participle of vivre
- de
- duh — Of, from; very common French preposition
- semblait
- sahm-bleh — Seemed; imperfect tense of sembler
- avoir
- a-vwar — To have; essential auxiliary and main verb
- profondément
- pro-fohn-day-mahn — Deeply, profoundly; adverb modifying degree of impact
- impressionné
- am-preh-syo-nay — Impressed; past participle of impressionner
- car
- kar — Because, for; causal coordinating conjunction
- il
- eel — He or it; third-person masculine singular pronoun
- y
- ee — There; pronoun replacing a previously mentioned place
- revient
- ruh-vyahn — Returns, comes back; present tense of revenir
- fréquemment
- fray-ka-mahn — Frequently, often; adverb of frequency
- dans
- dahn — In, inside; preposition indicating location or time
- ses
- say — His, her, its; plural possessive adjective
- écrits
- ay-kree — Writings, texts; plural noun from écrire
- et
- ay — And; basic coordinating conjunction
- c'est
- say — It is, this is; very common expression
- au
- oh — To the, at the; masculine contracted article
- petit-fils
- puh-tee fees — Grandson; male child of one's son or daughter
- qu'il
- keel — That he; conjunction and pronoun contraction
- dédie
- day-dee — Dedicates; present tense of dédier
- son
- sohn — His, her, its; singular possessive adjective
- Histoire
- ees-twar — History or story; account of past events
- nous
- noo — We, us; first-person plural pronoun
- donne
- dun — Gives; present tense of donner
- un
- uhn — A, an; masculine indefinite article
- tableau
- ta-bloh — Picture, portrayal, or descriptive scene
- jeunes
- zhuhn — Young; plural adjective describing youth
- gens
- zhahn — People, folks; general term for persons
- milieu
- meel-yuh — Middle, environment, or social circle
- desquels
- day-kel — Of whom, from which; relative pronoun form
- s'écoula
- say-koo-la — Flowed by, passed; reflexive past of s'écouler
- sa
- sa — His, her, its; feminine singular possessive adjective
- jeunesse
- zhuh-ness — Youth, young years of one's life
- Il
- eel — He; third-person masculine singular subject pronoun
- écrit
- ay-kree — Writes; present tense of écrire
- Ils
- eel — They; third-person masculine plural subject pronoun
- étaient
- ay-teh — Were; imperfect tense of être
- plus
- plü — More; comparative adverb indicating greater degree
- libres
- lee-bruh — Free; plural adjective meaning unrestrained or independent
- leurs
- luhr — Their; plural possessive adjective
- ancêtres
- ahn-setr — Ancestors; people from whom one descends
- leur
- luhr — Their, to them; possessive or indirect pronoun
- manière
- ma-nyair — Manner, way, style of doing something
- se
- suh — Oneself; reflexive pronoun used with verbs
- vêtir
- vay-teer — To dress, to clothe oneself
- vivre
- vee-vruh — To live; fundamental verb of existence
- dépensaient
- day-pahn-seh — Spent (money); imperfect tense of dépenser
- davantage
- da-vahn-tazh — More, even more; adverb of quantity
- en
- ahn — In, on, by; versatile French preposition
- toutes
- toot — All; feminine plural form of tout
- sortes
- sort — Sorts, kinds, types of things
- d'excès
- dek-seh — Of excesses; overindulgence or immoderate behavior
- consumant
- kohn-sü-mahn — Consuming; present participle of consumer
- temps
- tahn — Time or weather; common versatile noun
- argent
- ar-zhahn — Money or silver; essential everyday noun
- l'oisiveté
- lwa-zeev-tay — Idleness, laziness; state of doing nothing
- le
- luh — The; masculine singular definite article
- jeu
- zhuh — Game, play, or gambling; leisure activity
- les
- lay — The; plural definite article for all genders
- femmes
- fam — Women; plural of femme
- principal
- pran-see-pal — Main, principal; most important adjective
- but
- büt — Goal, aim, or purpose of an action
- était
- ay-teh — Was; third-person singular imperfect of être
- paraître
- pa-retr — To appear, to seem; verb of appearance
- bien
- byahn — Well, good; common adverb of manner
- habillés
- a-bee-yay — Dressed, well-dressed; past participle of habiller
- parler
- par-lay — To speak, to talk; fundamental communication verb
- avec
- a-vek — With; preposition indicating accompaniment or manner
- esprit
- es-pree — Wit, spirit, or mind; intellectual cleverness
- finesse
- fee-ness — Finesse, subtlety, delicacy of manner
- tandis
- tahn-dee — While, whereas; used in tandis que
- celui
- suh-lwee — The one, that one; masculine demonstrative pronoun
- qui
- kee — Who, which; subject relative pronoun
- savait
- sa-veh — Knew how, was able; imperfect of savoir
- blesser
- bleh-say — To wound, hurt, or offend someone
- autres
- ohtr — Others; plural of autre, meaning other people
- adroitement
- a-drwat-mahn — Skillfully, cleverly, adroitly; adverb of manner
- passait
- pa-seh — Passed for, was considered; imperfect of passer
- pour
- poor — For, in order to; preposition of purpose
- sage
- sazh — Wise, sensible; adjective describing wisdom
- Dans
- dahn — In, within; preposition of location or time
- une
- ün — A, an; feminine indefinite article
- lettre
- letr — Letter; written communication sent to someone
- à
- a — To, at, in; essential French preposition
- fils
- fees — Son; male child in relation to parent
- explique
- eks-pleek — Explains; present tense of expliquer
- pourquoi
- poor-kwa — Why; question word asking for a reason
- devrait
- duh-vreh — Should, ought to; conditional of devoir
- profiter
- pro-fee-tay — To take advantage of, to benefit from
- occasions
- o-ka-zyohn — Opportunities, occasions; chances to do something
- d'étudier
- day-tü-dyay — To study; infinitive with elided preposition
- amène
- a-men — Leads, brings about; present tense of amener
- déduire
- day-dweer — To deduce, infer; to draw a conclusion
- propre
- propr — Own, proper; adjective meaning one's own
- avait
- a-veh — Had; third-person singular imperfect of avoir
- été
- ay-tay — Been; past participle of être
- ainsi
- ahn-see — Thus, so, in this way; adverb
- employée
- ahn-plwa-yay — Employed, used; past participle of employer
- J'ai
- zhay — I have; first-person present of avoir
- reçu
- ruh-sü — Received; past participle of recevoir
- votre
- votr — Your; second-person plural possessive adjective
- m'a
- ma — Has me, has given me; indirect object form
- causé
- koh-zay — Caused, brought about; past participle of causer
- grande
- grahnd — Great, large; feminine adjective of size or degree
- joie
- zhwa — Joy, happiness; feeling of great pleasure
- surtout
- sür-too — Above all, especially; adverb of emphasis
- parce
- par-suh — Because; used in parce que construction
- vous
- voo — You; second-person plural or formal pronoun
- me
- muh — Me; first-person singular object pronoun
- dites
- deet — Say, tell; second-person plural of dire
- êtes
- et — Are; second-person plural of être
- tout
- too — All, completely; adjective or adverb of totality
- fait
- feh — Done, made; past participle of faire
- rétabli
- ray-ta-blee — Recovered, restored to health; past participle
- santé
- sahn-tay — Health; physical condition of the body
- ce
- suh — This, that, it; demonstrative pronoun or adjective
- dont
- dohn — Of which, whose; relative pronoun
- je
- zhuh — I; first-person singular subject pronoun
- ne
- nuh — Not; first part of French negation
- pourrais
- poo-reh — Could; conditional tense of pouvoir
- recevoir
- ruh-suh-vwar — To receive; verb of obtaining or getting
- meilleures
- meh-yuhr — Better, best; feminine plural of meilleur
- nouvelles
- noo-vel — News, short stories; feminine plural noun
- si
- see — If, so; conditional conjunction or intensifier
- Dieu
- dyuh — God; supreme divine being
- prête
- pret — Lends, grants; present tense of prêter
- vie
- vee — Life; existence from birth to death
- qu'à
- ka — Than to, only to; conjunction with preposition
- moi
- mwa — Me, I; stressed first-person singular pronoun
- j'espère
- zhes-pair — I hope; present tense of espérer
- faire
- fair — To do, to make; essential versatile verb
- homme
- um — Man, human being; adult male person
- disposé
- dees-po-zay — Disposed, inclined, willing; past participle of disposer
- part
- par — Part, share; portion or role in something
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