Walden, and On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience — Page 8
It is hard to have a southern overseer; it is worse to have a northern one; but worst of all when you are the slave-driver of yourself.
Il est difficile d'avoir un contremaître du Sud ; c'est pire d'en avoir un du Nord ; mais le pire de tout, c'est quand vous êtes vous-même votre propre négrier.
Talk of a divinity in man!
On parle d'une divinité en l'homme !
Look at the teamster on the highway, wending to market by day or night; does any divinity stir within him?
Regardez le charretier sur la grand-route, se dirigeant vers le marché de jour ou de nuit ; une quelconque divinité s'éveille-t-elle en lui ?
His highest duty to fodder and water his horses!
Son devoir le plus élevé est de nourrir et d'abreuver ses chevaux !
What is his destiny to him compared with the shipping interests?
Que lui importe sa destinée comparée aux intérêts du commerce maritime ?
Does not he drive for Squire Make-a-stir?
Ne conduit-il pas pour le compte du Sieur Remue-ménage ?
How godlike, how immortal, is he?
Combien est-il semblable à un dieu, combien est-il immortel ?
See how he cowers and sneaks, how vaguely all the day he fears, not being immortal nor divine, but the slave and prisoner of his own opinion of himself, a fame won by his own deeds.
Voyez comme il se recroqueville et se faufile, comme il craint vaguement tout au long du jour, n'étant ni immortel ni divin, mais l'esclave et le prisonnier de sa propre opinion de lui-même, d'une renommée gagnée par ses propres actes.
Public opinion is a weak tyrant compared with our own private opinion.
L'opinion publique est un faible tyran comparée à notre opinion privée.
What a man thinks of himself, that it is which determines, or rather indicates, his fate.
Ce qu'un homme pense de lui-même, voilà ce qui détermine, ou plutôt indique, son destin.
Self-emancipation even in the West Indian provinces of the fancy and imagination,—what Wilberforce is there to bring that about?
L'auto-émancipation, même dans les provinces antillaises de la fantaisie et de l'imagination, — quel Wilberforce existe-t-il pour y parvenir ?
Think, also, of the ladies of the land weaving toilet cushions against the last day, not to betray too green an interest in their fates!
Pensez aussi aux dames du pays qui tissent des coussins de toilette en prévision du dernier jour, pour ne pas trahir un intérêt trop vif pour leur sort !
As if you could kill time without injuring eternity.
Comme si l'on pouvait tuer le temps sans blesser l'éternité.
The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.
La masse des hommes mène des vies de désespoir silencieux.
What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.
Ce qu'on appelle la résignation n'est que du désespoir confirmé.
From the desperate city you go into the desperate country, and have to console yourself with the bravery of minks and muskrats.
De la ville désespérée, vous allez à la campagne désespérée, et devez vous consoler avec la bravoure des visons et des rats musqués.
Vocabulary
- Il
- He; it (masculine singular pronoun).
- est
- Is (third person singular of être).
- difficile
- Difficult; hard; challenging.
- avoir
- To have; to possess.
- un
- A; an (masculine singular article).
- du
- Of the; from the (contraction).
- Sud
- South; southern region or direction.
- pire
- Worst; most bad; worse.
- en
- In; on; into; at (preposition).
- Nord
- North; northern region or direction.
- mais
- But; however; yet.
- le
- The (masculine singular definite article).
- de
- Of; from; by (preposition).
- tout
- All; everything; entire; whole.
- quand
- When; at what time.
- vous
- You (formal or plural pronoun).
- êtes
- Are (second person plural of être).
- vous-même
- Yourself (emphatic pronoun form).
- votre
- Your (formal or plural possessive adjective).
- propre
- Own; clean; proper; one's own.
- On
- One; we; people; someone (impersonal pronoun).
- parle
- Speaks; talks; one speaks.
- une
- A; an (feminine singular article).
- homme
- Man; human being; male person.
- Regardez
- Look; look at; observe (imperative).
- sur
- On; upon; on top of.
- la
- The (feminine singular definite article).
- se
- Oneself; himself; herself; reflexive pronoun.
- dirigeant
- Directing; heading; leading towards.
- vers
- Towards; to; in the direction of.
- marché
- Market; marketplace; buying and selling place.
- jour
- Day; daylight; period of twenty-four hours.
- ou
- Or; otherwise; either...or.
- nuit
- Night; darkness; period from sunset to sunrise.
- quelconque
- Any; any at all; whatsoever; ordinary.
- lui
- Him; her; to him; to her.
- Son
- His; her; its (masculine singular possessive).
- devoir
- Duty; obligation; task; must; to must.
- plus
- More; most; plus; additional.
- élevé
- High; elevated; raised; noble; exalted.
- nourrir
- To feed; to nourish; to sustain.
- et
- And; plus; together with.
- ses
- His; her; its (plural possessive adjective).
- chevaux
- Horses (plural of cheval).
- Que
- What; which; that; how.
- importe
- Matters; is important; does it matter.
- sa
- His; her; its (feminine singular possessive).
- destinée
- Destiny; fate; one's ultimate future.
- comparée
- Compared; in comparison with.
- aux
- To the; at the (contraction).
- intérêts
- Interests; benefits; profits; concern.
- commerce
- Commerce; trade; business; buying and selling.
- maritime
- Maritime; naval; related to the sea.
- Ne
- Not; negative particle; no.
- pas
- Not; step; pace.
- pour
- For; for the sake of; in order.
- compte
- Account; count; reckoning; bill.
- Combien
- How much; how many; to what extent.
- semblable
- Similar; alike; resembling; comparable.
- dieu
- God; deity; divine being or force.
- immortel
- Immortal; undying; eternal; never-ending.
- Voyez
- See; look; observe (imperative plural).
- comme
- As; like; how; since.
- craint
- Fears; is afraid of; dreads.
- vaguement
- Vaguely; indistinctly; dimly; unclearly.
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →