Thus Spake Zarathustra: A Book for All and None — Page 14
"
«
The first part of "Zarathustra" was written in about ten days—that is to say, from the beginning to about the middle of February 1883.
La première partie de « Zarathoustra » fut écrite en une dizaine de jours — c'est-à-dire du début jusqu'aux environs de la mi-février 1883.
"The last lines were written precisely in the hallowed hour when Richard Wagner gave up the ghost in Venice."
« Les dernières lignes furent écrites précisément à l'heure sacrée où Richard Wagner rendit l'âme à Venise. »
With the exception of the ten days occupied in composing the first part of this book, my brother often referred to this winter as the hardest and sickliest he had ever experienced.
Exception faite des dix jours consacrés à la composition de la première partie de ce livre, mon frère évoquait souvent cet hiver comme le plus rude et le plus pénible qu'il eût jamais connu.
He did not, however, mean thereby that his former disorders were troubling him, but that he was suffering from a severe attack of influenza which he had caught in Santa Margherita, and which tormented him for several weeks after his arrival in Genoa.
Il n'entendait pas par là que ses anciens troubles le tourmentaient, mais qu'il souffrait d'une grave crise de grippe qu'il avait contractée à Santa Margherita, et qui le tourmenta pendant plusieurs semaines après son arrivée à Gênes.
As a matter of fact, however, what he complained of most was his spiritual condition—that indescribable forsakenness—to which he gives such heartrending expression in "Zarathustra".
En réalité, cependant, ce dont il se plaignait le plus était son état spirituel — cet abandon indicible — auquel il donne une expression si déchirante dans « Zarathoustra ».
Even the reception which the first part met with at the hands of friends and acquaintances was extremely disheartening: for almost all those to whom he presented copies of the work misunderstood it.
L'accueil que la première partie reçut de la part de ses amis et connaissances fut lui aussi extrêmement décourageant : car presque tous ceux à qui il offrit des exemplaires de l'œuvre la comprirent mal.
"I found no one ripe for many of my thoughts; the case of 'Zarathustra' proves that one can speak with the utmost clearness, and yet not be heard by any one.
« Je n'ai trouvé personne de mûr pour beaucoup de mes pensées ; le cas de « Zarathoustra » prouve que l'on peut s'exprimer avec la plus grande clarté, et pourtant n'être entendu de personne.
Vocabulary
- La
- The (feminine singular article)
- première
- First
- partie
- Part, section, portion
- de
- Of, from, by
- fut
- Was (past tense of être)
- écrite
- Written (feminine singular past participle)
- en
- In, during, within (time/duration)
- une
- A, one (feminine singular)
- dizaine
- About ten, roughly a dozen
- jours
- Days
- est
- Is (present tense of être)
- dire
- To say, to speak
- du
- Of the, from the (contraction)
- début
- Beginning, start, outset
- jusqu
- Until (used with à)
- aux
- To the, at the (plural)
- environs
- Around, vicinity, surroundings
- la
- The (feminine singular)
- mi
- Middle, mid-point
- février
- February (month of year)
- Les
- The (plural article)
- dernières
- Last, final (feminine plural)
- lignes
- Lines
- furent
- Were (plural past tense of être)
- écrites
- Written (feminine plural past participle)
- précisément
- Precisely, exactly, just at
- heure
- Hour, time of day
- sacrée
- Sacred, holy (feminine singular)
- où
- Where, when (relative adverb)
- rendit
- Gave up, rendered (past tense)
- âme
- Soul, spirit
- Exception
- Exception, exclusion, leaving out
- faite
- Made, done (feminine singular)
- des
- Of the, from the (plural)
- dix
- Ten
- consacrés
- Devoted, dedicated (masculine plural)
- composition
- Composition, writing, creation
- ce
- This, that (demonstrative pronoun)
- livre
- Book
- mon
- My (masculine singular)
- frère
- Brother
- évoquait
- Evoked, recalled (past tense)
- souvent
- Often, frequently
- cet
- This, that (masculine before vowel)
- hiver
- Winter (season)
- comme
- As, like, since
- le
- The (masculine singular)
- plus
- Most, more
- rude
- Harsh, rough, severe
- et
- And (conjunction)
- pénible
- Painful, difficult, troublesome
- qu
- That, which (relative pronoun)
- il
- He, it (masculine singular)
- eût
- Had (subjunctive past of avoir)
- jamais
- Never, ever
- connu
- Known (past participle of connaître)
- Il
- He (masculine singular pronoun)
- entendait
- Meant, intended (past tense)
- pas
- Not (negation)
- par
- By, through, per
- là
- There, that (adverb)
- que
- That, which, what
- ses
- His, her, its (plural possessive)
- anciens
- Former, old, ancient (plural)
- troubles
- Troubles, disturbances, disorders
- tourmentaient
- Tormented, troubled (past tense)
- mais
- But (conjunction)
- souffrait
- Suffered, endured (past tense)
- grave
- Serious, grave, severe
- crise
- Crisis, attack, acute illness
- grippe
- Flu, influenza, grippe
- avait
- Had (past tense of avoir)
- contractée
- Contracted, caught (feminine singular)
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