The Social Cancer: A Complete English Version of Noli Me Tangere — Page 10
Only with the passing of the years and the increase of wealth and influence, the ease and luxury invited by these, and the consequent corruption so induced, with the insatiable longing ever for more wealth and greater influence, did the poison of greed and grasping power enter the system to work its insidious way into every part, slowly transforming the beneficent institution of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries into an incubus weighing upon all the activities of the people in the nineteenth, an unyielding bar to the development of the country, a hideous anachronism in these modern times.
C'est seulement avec le passage des années et l'accroissement de la richesse et de l'influence, l'aisance et le luxe qu'ils invitèrent, et la corruption qui en résulta, avec le désir insatiable de toujours plus de richesse et d'une influence plus grande, que le poison de la cupidité et de l'avidité du pouvoir pénétra dans le système pour frayer insidieusement son chemin dans chaque partie, transformant lentement l'institution bienfaisante des seizième et dix-septième siècles en un incube pesant sur toutes les activités du peuple au dix-neuvième, un obstacle inflexible au développement du pays, un anachronisme hideux en ces temps modernes.
It must be remembered also that Spain, in the years following her brilliant conquests of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, lost strength and vigor through the corruption at home induced by the unearned wealth that flowed into the mother country from the colonies, and by the draining away of her best blood.
Il faut également se rappeler que l'Espagne, dans les années qui suivirent ses brillantes conquêtes des quinzième et seizième siècles, perdit force et vigueur à cause de la corruption intérieure engendrée par la richesse non méritée qui affluait des colonies vers la mère patrie, et par le drainage de son meilleur sang.
Nor did her sons ever develop that economic spirit which is the permanent foundation of all empire, but they let the wealth of the Indies flow through their country, principally to London and Amsterdam, there to form in more practical hands the basis of the British and Dutch colonial empires.
Ses fils ne développèrent jamais non plus cet esprit économique qui est le fondement permanent de tout empire, mais ils laissèrent la richesse des Indes traverser leur pays, principalement vers Londres et Amsterdam, pour y former, entre des mains plus pratiques, la base des empires coloniaux britannique et néerlandais.
The priest and the soldier were supreme, so her best sons took up either the cross or the sword to maintain her dominion in the distant colonies, a movement which, long continued, spelled for her a form of national suicide.
Le prêtre et le soldat étaient suprêmes, aussi ses meilleurs fils prirent-ils la croix ou l'épée pour maintenir sa domination dans les colonies lointaines, un mouvement qui, prolongé longtemps, signifia pour elle une forme de suicide national.
Vocabulary
- est
- third person singular present of être (to be)
- seulement
- only; solely; merely
- avec
- with; accompanied by; in the company of
- le
- the (masculine singular definite article)
- passage
- passage; transition; narrow way or corridor
- des
- of the; some (plural indefinite article or preposition)
- années
- years; periods of twelve consecutive months
- et
- and; used to connect words or clauses
- de
- of; from; indicating possession or origin
- la
- the (feminine singular definite article)
- richesse
- richness; wealth; abundance of valuable possessions
- influence
- influence; power to affect others' actions indirectly
- luxe
- luxury; expensive comfortable living; great refinement
- qu
- shortened form of que (that; which; whom)
- ils
- they (masculine plural personal pronoun)
- invitèrent
- invited; past tense of inviter (to invite)
- corruption
- corruption; dishonesty; moral decay or depravity
- qui
- who; which; that (relative pronoun)
- en
- in it; of it; from it; some; any
- résulta
- resulted; came about as consequence
- désir
- desire; wish; longing for something wanted
- insatiable
- insatiable; unable to be satisfied or content
- toujours
- always; at all times; continually; still
- plus
- more; greater quantity; additionally; furthermore
- une
- a; an (feminine singular indefinite article)
- grande
- great; large; big; of considerable size
- que
- that; which; whom; than; used in comparisons
- poison
- poison; toxic substance that causes harm
- du
- of the; from the (contraction of de+le)
- pouvoir
- power; strength; ability; authority to act
- pénétra
- penetrated; entered; went into; past tense
- dans
- in; into; within; inside; during
- système
- system; organized procedure; set of connected elements
- pour
- for; in order to; by; so as to
- son
- his; her; its (possessive adjective singular)
- chemin
- path; way; road; journey; route traveled
- chaque
- each; every; all individual items separately
- partie
- part; piece; portion; section of something
- transformant
- transforming; changing; converting into different form
- lentement
- slowly; gradually; without speed; at slow pace
- institution
- institution; established organization; custom; practice
- seizième
- sixteenth; ordinal number sixteen in sequence
- dix-septième
- seventeenth; ordinal number seventeen in sequence
- siècles
- centuries; periods of one hundred years each
- un
- a; an (masculine singular indefinite article)
- pesant
- weighing; heavy; burdensome; pressing down
- sur
- on; upon; over; above; concerning
- toutes
- all (feminine plural of tout); every
- les
- the (plural definite article masculine or feminine)
- activités
- activities; actions; occupations; things that are done
- peuple
- people; nation; population; common folk
- au
- at the; to the (contraction of à+le)
- dix-neuvième
- nineteenth; ordinal number nineteen in sequence
- obstacle
- obstacle; barrier; hindrance; difficulty blocking progress
- inflexible
- inflexible; rigid; unbending; unyielding; strict
- développement
- development; growth; unfolding; progress advancement
- pays
- country; nation; land; region; territory
- hideux
- hideous; ugly; dreadful; horrifying; repulsive
- ces
- these; those (demonstrative adjective plural)
- temps
- time; period; era; weather; tense
- modernes
- modern; contemporary; relating to present time
- Il
- he; it (masculine singular subject pronoun)
- faut
- must; is necessary; ought; needs to
- également
- equally; also; likewise; in same manner
- se
- oneself; himself; herself; itself; reflexive pronoun
- rappeler
- to recall; to remember; to bring back mind
- Espagne
- Spain; country in southwestern Europe; Iberian
- suivirent
- followed; came after; pursued; past tense
- ses
- his; her; its (possessive adjective plural)
- brillantes
- brilliant; shining; splendid; distinguished; remarkable
- conquêtes
- conquests; victories; captures; territories gained
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