The Social Cancer: A Complete English Version of Noli Me Tangere — Page 5
The tactics employed in the conquest and the subsequent behavior of the conquerors were true to the old Spanish nature, so succinctly characterized by a plain-spoken Englishman of Mary's reign, when the war-cry of Castile encircled the globe and even hovered ominously near the "sceptered isle," when in the intoxication of power character stands out so sharply defined: "They be verye wyse and politicke, and can, thorowe ther wysdome, reform and brydell theyr owne natures for a tyme, and applye ther conditions to the manners of those men with whom they meddell gladlye by friendshippe; whose mischievous maners a man shall never know untyll he come under ther subjection; but then shall he parfectlye parceve and fele them: for in dissimulations untyll they have ther purposes, and afterwards in oppression and tyrannye, when they can obtain them, they do exceed all other nations upon the earthe." [1]
Die bei der Eroberung angewandten Taktiken und das nachfolgende Verhalten der Eroberer entsprachen dem alten spanischen Wesen, das so treffend von einem freimütigen Engländer aus der Regierungszeit Marias charakterisiert wurde, als der Kriegsruf Kastiliens den Erdball umkreiste und sogar bedrohlich nahe der „szeptergekrönten Insel" schwebte, als im Rausch der Macht der Charakter so scharf hervortrat: „Sie sind sehr weise und politisch klug und können durch ihre Weisheit ihre eigene Natur eine Zeit lang zügeln und umformen und ihre Gewohnheiten den Sitten jener Menschen anpassen, mit denen sie sich gerne im Guten einlassen; deren unheilvolle Art ein Mensch niemals kennen wird, bis er unter ihre Herrschaft gerät; doch dann wird er sie vollkommen wahrnehmen und spüren: denn in der Verstellung, bis sie ihre Ziele erreicht haben, und danach in Unterdrückung und Tyrannei, wenn sie diese erlangen können, übertreffen sie alle anderen Völker auf Erden." [1]
In the working out of this spirit, with all the indomitable courage and fanatical ardor derived from the long contests with the Moors, they reduced the native peoples to submission, but still not to the galling yoke which they fastened upon the aborigines of America, to make one Las Casas shine amid the horde of Pizarros.
In der Ausprägung dieses Geistes, mit all dem unbezwingbaren Mut und dem fanatischen Eifer, der aus den langen Kämpfen gegen die Mauren erwachsen war, zwangen sie die einheimischen Völker zur Unterwerfung, jedoch nicht unter das drückende Joch, das sie den Ureinwohnern Amerikas aufzwangen, um einen einzigen Las Casas inmitten der Horde der Pizarros erstrahlen zu lassen.
Vocabulary
- bei
- Preposition meaning 'at', 'near', or 'during'
- Eroberung
- Conquest; the act of capturing territory by force
- angewandten
- Applied; used in practice, as in tactics employed
- Taktiken
- Tactics; strategic methods used to achieve a goal
- nachfolgende
- Subsequent; following after something in time
- Verhalten
- Behavior; the way a person or group acts
- Eroberer
- Conqueror; one who conquers territory or people
- entsprachen
- Corresponded to; matched or was consistent with
- spanischen
- Spanish; relating to Spain or its culture
- Wesen
- Nature or essence; the fundamental character of something
- treffend
- Aptly; accurately and pointedly describing something
- freimütigen
- Candid; openly frank and outspoken in expression
- Engländer
- Englishman; a male person from England
- Regierungszeit
- Reign; the period during which a ruler governs
- charakterisiert
- Characterized; described by distinctive qualities or features
- Kriegsruf
- Battle cry; a shout used to rally troops in war
- Kastiliens
- Of Castile; genitive form of the region Castile
- Erdball
- Globe; the entire world or planet Earth
- umkreiste
- Circled; moved in a circle around something
- sogar
- Even; used to emphasize an extreme or surprising case
- bedrohlich
- Threatening; posing a danger or menace to someone
- szeptergekrönten
- Scepter-crowned; adorned with a royal scepter as symbol
- Insel
- Island; a landmass surrounded by water
- schwebte
- Hovered; floated or hung suspended in the air
- Rausch
- Intoxication or frenzy; an overwhelming rush of feeling
- Macht
- Power; the ability to control or influence others
- Charakter
- Character; the mental and moral qualities of a person
- scharf
- Sharply; clearly and distinctly standing out
- hervortrat
- Emerged; came forward or became prominently visible
- weise
- Wise; having good judgment and deep understanding
- politisch
- Political; relating to governance and political affairs
- klug
- Clever; showing intelligence and quick thinking
- Weisheit
- Wisdom; the quality of having deep knowledge and insight
- Natur
- Nature; the innate character or disposition of a being
- zügeln
- To restrain; to hold back or curb one's impulses
- umformen
- To reshape; to transform into a different form
- Gewohnheiten
- Habits; regular practices or customs of a person
- Sitten
- Customs; traditional practices and moral norms of society
- jener
- Of those; demonstrative pronoun referring to people mentioned
- anpassen
- To adapt; to adjust to fit new circumstances or people
- denen
- With whom; relative/dative pronoun referring to persons
- gerne
- Gladly; willingly or with pleasure
- einlassen
- To engage with; to get involved or deal with someone
- deren
- Whose; genitive relative pronoun referring to people
- unheilvolle
- Sinister; ominous or causing great harm and misfortune
- Art
- Nature or manner; the way someone or something behaves
- niemals
- Never; at no time, not ever
- Herrschaft
- Rule or dominion; authority and control over others
- gerät
- Falls into; comes under or into a certain condition
- doch
- But/yet; a contrastive or emphatic particle
- vollkommen
- Completely; fully and perfectly, to the utmost degree
- wahrnehmen
- To perceive; to become aware of through senses or mind
- spüren
- To feel; to sense or notice something physically or emotionally
- denn
- For/because; a conjunction giving a reason or explanation
- Verstellung
- Pretense; the act of disguising one's true intentions
- Ziele
- Goals; objectives or aims one seeks to achieve
- erreicht
- Achieved; successfully attained a goal or destination
- danach
- Afterwards; following that point in time
- Unterdrückung
- Oppression; the act of suppressing or crushing by force
- Tyrannei
- Tyranny; cruel and oppressive rule over others
- erlangen
- To attain; to gain or obtain something through effort
- übertreffen
- To surpass; to exceed or go beyond others in quality
- Völker
- Peoples; distinct ethnic or national groups of humans
- Erden
- Earth; the world, used in the phrase 'on earth'
- Ausprägung
- Expression or manifestation; the shaping of a characteristic
- Geistes
- Of the spirit; genitive form of 'Geist' meaning mind/spirit
- unbezwingbaren
- Unconquerable; impossible to defeat or overcome
- Mut
- Courage; the ability to face danger without fear
- fanatischen
- Fanatical; showing extreme and uncritical enthusiasm or zeal
- Eifer
- Zeal; intense eagerness or enthusiasm in pursuing something
- Kämpfen
- Battles or struggles; intense conflicts or fights
- Mauren
- Moors; Muslim inhabitants of medieval Iberian Peninsula
- erwachsen
- Grown; arisen or developed from a particular source
- zwangen
- Forced; compelled someone to do something against their will
- einheimischen
- Native; indigenous inhabitants of a particular place
- Unterwerfung
- Submission; the act of surrendering to another's authority
- jedoch
- However; used to introduce a contrast or qualification
- drückende
- Oppressive; weighing heavily as a burden on someone
- Joch
- Yoke; a burden or oppressive rule imposed on people
- Ureinwohnern
- Indigenous people; original native inhabitants of a region
- aufzwangen
- Imposed; forced something upon someone against their will
- einzigen
- Single/sole; the only one, unique among many
- inmitten
- Amidst; in the middle of a group or situation
- Horde
- Horde; a large disorganized and often violent group
- erstrahlen
- To shine forth; to radiate light or brilliance brightly
- lassen
- To let or allow; to cause something to happen
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →