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_.
Considerando que a magnificência do governo dos Médici durante a vida de Lourenço pareceu ter impressionado Maquiavel profundamente, pois ele frequentemente recorre a isso em seus escritos, e é ao neto de Lourenço que ele dedica _O Príncipe_.
Machiavelli, in his "History of Florence," gives us a picture of the young men among whom his youth was passed.
Maquiavel, em sua "História de Florença", nos dá um retrato dos jovens entre os quais sua juventude foi passada.
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."
Ele escreve: "Eram mais livres do que seus antepassados no vestir e no viver, e gastavam mais em outros tipos de excessos, consumindo seu tempo e dinheiro em ociosidade, jogos e mulheres; seu principal objetivo era parecer bem vestido e falar com espirituosidade e agudeza, enquanto aquele que pudesse ferir os outros com mais habilidade era considerado o mais sábio."
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.
Em uma carta ao seu filho Guido, Maquiavel mostra por que a juventude deveria aproveitar suas oportunidades de estudo, e nos leva a inferir que sua própria juventude havia sido assim ocupada.
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.
Ele escreve: "Recebi sua carta, que me deu o maior prazer, especialmente porque você me diz que está completamente restabelecido de saúde, do que não poderia ter notícia melhor; pois se Deus lhe conceder vida, e a mim, espero fazer de você um homem de bem se você estiver disposto a fazer sua parte.
Vocabulary
- Considerando
- Taking into account; considering a given situation or fact
- que
- That; conjunction connecting clauses or introducing subordinates
- a
- The; feminine definite article
- magnificência
- Magnificence; splendor and grandeur of something impressive
- do
- Of the; contraction of preposition de and article o
- governo
- Government; the ruling body or administration of a state
- dos
- Of the; contraction of de and plural article os
- durante
- During; throughout a period of time
- vida
- Life; the existence or lifetime of a person
- de
- Of; preposition indicating possession or origin
- pareceu
- Seemed; past tense of parecer, to appear or seem
- ter
- To have; auxiliary or main verb of possession
- impressionado
- Impressed; deeply affected or moved by something
- profundamente
- Deeply; profoundly, to a great degree or extent
- pois
- Because; since; a conjunction indicating reason or cause
- ele
- He; third-person singular masculine pronoun
- frequentemente
- Frequently; happening often or repeatedly
- recorre
- Resorts to; turns back to something repeatedly
- isso
- That; neutral demonstrative pronoun referring to something
- em
- In; preposition indicating location or context
- seus
- His/her/their; third-person plural possessive adjective
- escritos
- Writings; texts or works written by an author
- e
- And; coordinating conjunction joining words or clauses
- é
- Is; third-person singular present tense of ser
- ao
- To the; contraction of preposition a and article o
- neto
- Grandson; son of one's son or daughter
- dedica
- Dedicates; addresses or devotes a work to someone
- sua
- His/her/its; third-person singular possessive adjective
- História
- History; the study or record of past events
- nos
- Us/in the; pronoun or contraction of em and os
- dá
- Gives; third-person singular present tense of dar
- um
- A/an; indefinite article, masculine singular
- retrato
- Portrait; a vivid description or depiction of someone
- jovens
- Young people; youths, plural of jovem
- entre
- Among; between two or more people or things
- os
- The; masculine plural definite article
- quais
- Which; plural relative or interrogative pronoun
- juventude
- Youth; the period of being young; young people collectively
- foi
- Was/went; third-person singular past tense of ser/ir
- passada
- Spent/passed; elapsed or lived through a period
- Ele
- He; third-person singular masculine subject pronoun
- escreve
- Writes; third-person singular present tense of escrever
- Eram
- Were; third-person plural imperfect tense of ser
- mais
- More; comparative adverb indicating greater degree
- livres
- Free; unrestricted, plural of livre
- antepassados
- Ancestors; forebears or predecessors from past generations
- no
- In the; contraction of preposition em and article o
- vestir
- To dress; to wear or put on clothing
- viver
- To live; to exist or spend one's life
- gastavam
- Spent; past tense of gastar, to spend or waste
- outros
- Other; additional or different, masculine plural
- tipos
- Types; kinds or sorts of something
- excessos
- Excesses; behaviors or amounts beyond what is reasonable
- consumindo
- Consuming; using up time, money, or resources
- seu
- His/her/its; third-person singular possessive adjective
- tempo
- Time; the ongoing sequence of events; also weather
- dinheiro
- Money; currency used for financial transactions
- ociosidade
- Idleness; the state of being lazy or unoccupied
- jogos
- Games; activities played for amusement or competition
- mulheres
- Women; adult female persons, plural of mulher
- principal
- Main; most important or primary among several things
- objetivo
- Objective; a goal or aim one seeks to achieve
- era
- Was; third-person singular imperfect tense of ser
- parecer
- To seem; to appear a certain way to others
- bem
- Well; in a good or satisfactory manner
- vestido
- Dressed; wearing clothes, past participle of vestir
- falar
- To speak; to communicate verbally with others
- com
- With; preposition indicating accompaniment or means
- espirituosidade
- Wit; clever humor or lively intellectual sharpness
- agudeza
- Sharpness; keenness of intellect or pointed cleverness
- enquanto
- While; during the same time as another action
- aquele
- That one; demonstrative pronoun referring to someone distant
- pudesse
- Could; imperfect subjunctive of poder, to be able
- ferir
- To wound; to hurt or strike with cutting words
- habilidade
- Skill; the ability or talent to do something well
- considerado
- Considered; regarded or thought of in a certain way
- o
- The; masculine singular definite article
- sábio
- Wise; having great knowledge, wisdom, or good judgment
- Em
- In; preposition indicating location, time, or context
- uma
- A/an; indefinite article, feminine singular
- carta
- Letter; a written message sent to someone
- filho
- Son; a male child in relation to his parents
- mostra
- Shows; demonstrates or reveals something clearly
- por
- For/by; preposition indicating reason, means, or exchange
- deveria
- Should; conditional tense of dever, indicating obligation
- aproveitar
- To take advantage of; to make good use of something
- suas
- His/her/their; feminine plural possessive adjective
- oportunidades
- Opportunities; favorable circumstances for advancement or success
- estudo
- Study; the act of learning or examining a subject
- leva
- Leads; causes one to reach a conclusion or place
- inferir
- To infer; to deduce a conclusion from evidence
- própria
- Own; belonging to oneself; also meaning proper or actual
- havia
- Had; past perfect auxiliary from haver, indicating past action
- sido
- Been; past participle of ser, used in perfect tenses
- assim
- Thus; in this way or manner; so
- ocupada
- Occupied/busy; engaged with activity or taken up
- Recebi
- I received; first-person past tense of receber
- me
- Me; first-person singular object pronoun
- deu
- Gave; third-person singular past tense of dar
- maior
- Greater; comparative adjective meaning larger or more important
- prazer
- Pleasure; a feeling of happiness or enjoyment
- especialmente
- Especially; particularly; to a greater degree than usual
- porque
- Because; conjunction giving reason for a statement
- você
- You; second-person singular pronoun, formal or standard
- diz
- Says; third-person singular present tense of dizer
- está
- Is; third-person singular present tense of estar
- completamente
- Completely; entirely, without any part missing
- restabelecido
- Recovered; restored to health or a previous condition
- saúde
- Health; the condition of a person's physical wellbeing
- não
- No/not; negation word in Portuguese
- poderia
- Could; conditional form of poder, expressing possibility
- notícia
- News; a piece of information about recent events
- melhor
- Better; comparative adjective indicating higher quality
- se
- If/oneself; conditional conjunction or reflexive pronoun
- Deus
- God; the supreme being in monotheistic religions
- lhe
- To him/her/you; indirect object pronoun, third person
- conceder
- To grant; to allow or give something to someone
- mim
- Me; first-person singular pronoun used after prepositions
- espero
- I hope/expect; first-person singular present of esperar
- fazer
- To make/do; a fundamental verb of action or creation
- homem
- Man; an adult male human being
- estiver
- Is/will be; future subjunctive of estar
- disposto
- Willing; ready or inclined to do something
- parte
- Part; a portion or role in something larger
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