The Souls of Black Folk — Page 8
The would-be black savant was confronted by the paradox that the knowledge his people needed was a twice-told tale to his white neighbors, while the knowledge which would teach the white world was Greek to his own flesh and blood.
O aspirante a sábio negro se deparava com o paradoxo de que o conhecimento de que seu povo necessitava era uma história já contada para seus vizinhos brancos, enquanto o conhecimento que ensinaria o mundo branco era grego para sua própria carne e sangue.
The innate love of harmony and beauty that set the ruder souls of his people a-dancing and a-singing raised but confusion and doubt in the soul of the black artist; for the beauty revealed to him was the soul-beauty of a race which his larger audience despised, and he could not articulate the message of another people.
O amor inato pela harmonia e pela beleza que punha as almas mais rudes de seu povo a dançar e a cantar não gerava senão confusão e dúvida na alma do artista negro; pois a beleza que lhe era revelada era a beleza da alma de uma raça que seu público mais amplo desprezava, e ele não conseguia articular a mensagem de outro povo.
This waste of double aims, this seeking to satisfy two unreconciled ideals, has wrought sad havoc with the courage and faith and deeds of ten thousand thousand people,—has sent them often wooing false gods and invoking false means of salvation, and at times has even seemed about to make them ashamed of themselves.
Este desperdício de objetivos duplos, esta busca por satisfazer dois ideais irreconciliáveis, causou triste estrago na coragem, na fé e nas ações de dez milhões de pessoas — frequentemente os levou a cortejarem falsos deuses e a invocarem falsos meios de salvação, e por vezes pareceu até estar prestes a fazê-los envergonharem-se de si mesmos.
Away back in the days of bondage they thought to see in one divine event the end of all doubt and disappointment; few men ever worshipped Freedom with half such unquestioning faith as did the American Negro for two centuries.
Lá nos tempos do cativeiro, eles pensavam ver em um único evento divino o fim de toda dúvida e decepção; poucos homens jamais veneraram a Liberdade com metade de uma fé tão inquestionável quanto o fez o Negro americano por dois séculos.
To him, so far as he thought and dreamed, slavery was indeed the sum of all villainies, the cause of all sorrow, the root of all prejudice; Emancipation was the key to a promised land of sweeter beauty than ever stretched before the eyes of wearied Israelites.
Para ele, na medida em que pensava e sonhava, a escravidão era de fato a soma de todas as vilezas, a causa de toda a tristeza, a raiz de todo o preconceito; a Emancipação era a chave para uma terra prometida de beleza mais doce do que jamais se estendeu diante dos olhos dos exaustos israelitas.
Vocabulary
- aspirante
- One who aspires or is a candidate for something
- sábio
- A wise person; one possessing great knowledge
- negro
- Black; referring to a person of Black African descent
- deparava
- Was confronted with or came face to face with something
- paradoxo
- A paradox; a contradictory or seemingly absurd statement
- conhecimento
- Knowledge; the state of knowing or understanding something
- povo
- People; a nation or group sharing common identity
- necessitava
- Was in need of; required something essential
- história
- A story or history; a narrative of events
- já
- Already; indicates something has occurred before
- contada
- Told; narrated to an audience previously
- vizinhos
- Neighbors; people living nearby or adjacent
- brancos
- White people; plural of branco
- enquanto
- While; during the time that something else occurs
- ensinaria
- Would teach; conditional tense of ensinar
- mundo
- World; the earth or a particular community of people
- branco
- White; referring to a white person or the color
- grego
- Greek; relating to Greece or its culture
- própria
- Own; belonging to oneself, emphasizing possession
- carne
- Flesh; the physical body or meat
- sangue
- Blood; the fluid circulating in the body
- amor
- Love; deep affection or strong emotional attachment
- inato
- Innate; present from birth, not acquired later
- harmonia
- Harmony; a pleasing combination or agreement of elements
- beleza
- Beauty; the quality of being visually or aesthetically pleasing
- punha
- Would make or cause; imperfect of 'pôr'
- almas
- Souls; the spiritual or innermost part of beings
- rudes
- Rough or crude; lacking refinement or gentleness
- dançar
- To dance; to move rhythmically to music
- cantar
- To sing; to produce musical sounds with the voice
- gerava
- Generated or produced; imperfect tense of gerar
- senão
- But rather; except or only; introduces a contrast
- confusão
- Confusion; a state of disorder or lack of clarity
- dúvida
- Doubt; uncertainty or lack of conviction about something
- alma
- Soul; the spiritual essence or inner self
- artista
- Artist; a person who creates works of art
- pois
- Because; for; a causal or explanatory conjunction
- revelada
- Revealed; disclosed or made known to someone
- raça
- Race; a group of people sharing common ancestry
- público
- Public or audience; people attending or viewing something
- amplo
- Broad or wide; extensive in scope or size
- desprezava
- Despised or scorned; looked down upon with contempt
- conseguia
- Was able to; managed to accomplish something
- articular
- To articulate; to express clearly in words
- mensagem
- Message; a communication or piece of information conveyed
- desperdício
- Waste; squandering of resources, time, or talent
- objetivos
- Objectives or goals; aims one works toward achieving
- duplos
- Double; twofold, consisting of two parts or aspects
- busca
- Search or pursuit; the act of seeking something
- satisfazer
- To satisfy; to meet the needs or expectations of someone
- ideais
- Ideals; principles or standards considered perfect or desirable
- irreconciliáveis
- Irreconcilable; impossible to bring into agreement or harmony
- causou
- Caused; brought about a result or effect
- triste
- Sad; causing or experiencing sorrow or unhappiness
- estrago
- Damage or havoc; great harm done to something
- coragem
- Courage; bravery in facing difficulty or danger
- fé
- Faith; strong belief or trust in something
- ações
- Actions; things done or carried out by someone
- milhões
- Millions; the plural of million, a very large number
- frequentemente
- Frequently; happening often or at short intervals
- levou
- Led or caused; brought someone to a certain action
- cortejarem
- To court or woo; to seek favor or approval from
- falsos
- False; not genuine, untrue, or deceptive
- deuses
- Gods; divine beings worshipped in various religions
- invocarem
- To invoke; to call upon a higher power for help
- meios
- Means or methods; ways of achieving a goal
- salvação
- Salvation; deliverance from harm, sin, or suffering
- vezes
- Times; occasions or instances when something occurs
- pareceu
- Seemed or appeared; gave the impression of something
- prestes
- About to; on the verge of doing something imminently
- envergonharem-se
- To feel ashamed; to experience shame about oneself
- Lá
- There; referring to a distant or previously mentioned place
- tempos
- Times; periods or eras of history
- cativeiro
- Captivity; the state of being held prisoner or enslaved
- pensavam
- Thought; believed or supposed something to be true
- único
- Unique or sole; one of a kind, without equal
- evento
- Event; a notable occurrence or happening
- divino
- Divine; relating to or coming from God
- fim
- End; the conclusion or final point of something
- decepção
- Disappointment; the feeling of unfulfilled expectations
- poucos
- Few; a small number of people or things
- jamais
- Never; at no time, not ever
- veneraram
- Venerated; regarded with great respect and reverence
- Liberdade
- Freedom; the state of being free from oppression
- metade
- Half; one of two equal parts of something
- tão
- So or as; used in comparisons to indicate degree
- inquestionável
- Unquestionable; beyond doubt or dispute
- quanto
- As much as; used in comparisons of quantity
- fez
- Did or made; third person singular preterite of fazer
- Negro
- Black person; referring to African American identity
- americano
- American; relating to or from the United States
- séculos
- Centuries; periods of one hundred years each
- medida
- Measure or extent; the degree to which something applies
- pensava
- Thought; was thinking, imperfect tense of pensar
- sonhava
- Dreamed; was dreaming, imperfect tense of sonhar
- escravidão
- Slavery; the condition of being owned as property
- fato
- Fact; something known to be true or certain
- soma
- Sum or total; the aggregate of all parts combined
- vilezas
- Vileness or wickedness; morally reprehensible acts
- causa
- Cause; a reason or source of an effect
- tristeza
- Sadness; a feeling of sorrow or unhappiness
- raiz
- Root; the origin or fundamental source of something
- preconceito
- Prejudice; an unfair preformed opinion about a group
- Emancipação
- Emancipation; the act of being freed from oppression
- chave
- Key; something that provides access or solution
- terra
- Land or earth; ground or territory
- prometida
- Promised; something guaranteed or pledged to someone
- doce
- Sweet; pleasant to the senses or emotions
- estendeu
- Extended or spread out; stretched over a distance
- diante
- Before or in front of; in the presence of
- olhos
- Eyes; the organs of sight
- exaustos
- Exhausted; completely drained of energy or strength
- israelitas
- Israelites; members of the ancient Hebrew people
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