Walden, and On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience — Page 13
The incessant anxiety and strain of some is a well nigh incurable form of disease.
L'anxiété et la tension incessantes de certains constituent une forme de maladie presque incurable.
We are made to exaggerate the importance of what work we do; and yet how much is not done by us!
Nous sommes portés à exagérer l'importance du travail que nous accomplissons ; et pourtant, combien de choses ne sont pas faites par nous !
or, what if we had been taken sick?
ou bien, que se serait-il passé si nous avions été malades ?
How vigilant we are!
Comme nous sommes vigilants !
determined not to live by faith if we can avoid it; all the day long on the alert, at night we unwillingly say our prayers and commit ourselves to uncertainties.
résolus à ne pas vivre par la foi si nous pouvons l'éviter ; en alerte tout au long de la journée, la nuit nous disons nos prières à contrecœur et nous nous abandonnons aux incertitudes.
So thoroughly and sincerely are we compelled to live, reverencing our life, and denying the possibility of change.
Nous sommes si profondément et sincèrement contraints de vivre, en vénérant notre vie et en niant la possibilité du changement.
This is the only way, we say; but there are as many ways as there can be drawn radii from one centre.
C'est la seule voie, disons-nous ; mais il y a autant de voies qu'il est possible de tracer de rayons à partir d'un centre.
All change is a miracle to contemplate; but it is a miracle which is taking place every instant.
Tout changement est un miracle à contempler ; mais c'est un miracle qui s'accomplit à chaque instant.
Confucius said, "To know that we know what we know, and that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge."
Confucius a dit : « Savoir que nous savons ce que nous savons, et que nous ne savons pas ce que nous ne savons pas, voilà la véritable connaissance. »
When one man has reduced a fact of the imagination to be a fact to his understanding, I foresee that all men at length establish their lives on that basis.
Lorsqu'un homme a réduit un fait de l'imagination à n'être qu'un fait pour son entendement, je prévois que tous les hommes finiront par établir leur vie sur ce fondement.
Let us consider for a moment what most of the trouble and anxiety which I have referred to is about, and how much it is necessary that we be troubled, or, at least, careful.
Considérons un moment en quoi consistent la plupart des soucis et des angoisses auxquels j'ai fait référence, et dans quelle mesure il est nécessaire que nous soyons tourmentés, ou, du moins, prudents.
Vocabulary
- anxiété
- ahn-ksyay-tay — Anxiety; a feeling of worry or unease
- tension
- tahn-syohn — Tension; mental or emotional strain
- incessantes
- an-say-sahnt — Incessant; continuous, never stopping
- certains
- sehr-tan — Certain ones; some particular people or things
- constituent
- kohn-stee-twahn — Constitute; to make up or form something
- forme
- fohrm — Form; a type, kind, or shape of something
- maladie
- mah-lah-dee — Illness; a disease or sickness
- presque
- presk — Almost; nearly but not quite
- incurable
- an-koo-rahbl — Incurable; impossible to heal or fix
- portés
- pohr-tay — Inclined, prone; tending toward something
- exagérer
- eg-zah-zhay-ray — To exaggerate; to overstate something's importance
- importance
- am-pohr-tahns — Importance; the quality of being significant
- travail
- trah-vye — Work; labor or professional activity
- accomplissons
- ah-kohm-plee-sohn — We accomplish; complete or achieve tasks
- pourtant
- poor-tahn — Yet, however; used to introduce a contrast
- combien
- kohm-byan — How many; used to ask about quantity
- choses
- shohz — Things; objects or matters in general
- faites
- feht — Done; feminine plural past participle of faire
- serait
- suh-reh — Would be; conditional of être
- passé
- pah-say — Happened; occurred in the past
- avions
- ah-vyohn — Had; first-person plural imperfect of avoir
- malades
- mah-lahd — Sick; ill or unwell people
- vigilants
- vee-zhee-lahn — Vigilant; watchful and attentive
- résolus
- ray-zoh-loo — Resolved; determined to do something
- vivre
- veevr — To live; to be alive or experience life
- foi
- fwah — Faith; belief or trust in something
- éviter
- ay-vee-tay — To avoid; to keep away from something
- alerte
- ah-lehrt — Alert; a state of readiness or watchfulness
- long
- lohn — Long; extended in length or duration
- journée
- zhoor-nay — Day; the full duration of a day
- nuit
- nwee — Night; the dark period after sunset
- disons
- dee-zohn — Say; first-person plural of dire
- prières
- pree-yehr — Prayers; religious supplications or requests
- contrecœur
- kohn-truh-kur — Reluctantly; done against one's will
- abandonnons
- ah-bahn-doh-nohn — We abandon; give up or surrender something
- incertitudes
- an-sehr-tee-tood — Uncertainties; states of doubt or unpredictability
- profondément
- proh-fohn-day-mahn — Deeply; in a profound or intense manner
- sincèrement
- san-sehr-mahn — Sincerely; in an honest and genuine way
- contraints
- kohn-tran — Constrained; forced or compelled to act
- vénérant
- vay-nay-rahn — Venerating; showing deep respect or reverence
- vie
- vee — Life; the state of being alive
- niant
- nee-ahn — Denying; refusing to accept or acknowledge something
- possibilité
- poh-see-bee-lee-tay — Possibility; the chance that something may happen
- changement
- shahnzh-mahn — Change; the process of becoming different
- seule
- sul — Only, sole; the single or unique one
- voie
- vwah — Way, path; a route or method
- autant
- oh-tahn — As many; used to express equal quantity
- voies
- vwah — Ways, paths; plural of voie
- possible
- poh-seebl — Possible; able to happen or be done
- tracer
- trah-say — To trace; to draw or map out a path
- rayons
- reh-yohn — Rays; lines radiating from a central point
- partir
- pahr-teer — To leave; also used in 'à partir de' meaning from
- centre
- sahntr — Center; the middle point of something
- miracle
- mee-rahkl — Miracle; a remarkable or extraordinary event
- contempler
- kohn-tahm-play — To contemplate; to observe or reflect deeply
- accomplit
- ah-kohm-plee — Accomplishes; completes or fulfills an action
- chaque
- shahk — Each, every; referring to individual items
- instant
- an-stahn — Instant, moment; a very brief period of time
- Savoir
- sah-vwahr — To know; to have knowledge or understanding
- savons
- sah-vohn — We know; first-person plural of savoir
- voilà
- vwah-lah — There it is; used to present or confirm something
- véritable
- vay-ree-tahbl — True, genuine; authentic or real
- connaissance
- koh-neh-sahns — Knowledge; awareness or understanding of something
- Lorsqu'
- lohr-skuh — When; used to introduce a time clause
- homme
- ohm — Man; an adult male human being
- réduit
- ray-dwee — Reduces; limits or diminishes something
- fait
- feh — Fact; something known to be true
- imagination
- ee-mah-zhee-nah-syohn — Imagination; the ability to form mental images
- entendement
- ahn-tahnd-mahn — Understanding; the capacity to comprehend things
- prévois
- pray-vwah — I foresee; to anticipate future events
- hommes
- ohm — Men; plural of homme
- finiront
- fee-nee-rohn — Will end up; future tense of finir
- établir
- ay-tah-bleer — To establish; to set up firmly
- fondement
- fohnd-mahn — Foundation; the basis or groundwork for something
- Considérons
- kohn-see-day-rohn — Let us consider; reflect on or examine carefully
- moment
- moh-mahn — Moment; a brief period or point in time
- quoi
- kwah — What; used in questions or after prepositions
- consistent
- kohn-sees-tahn — Consist; to be composed or made up of
- plupart
- ploo-pahr — Most; the greater part or majority
- soucis
- soo-see — Worries; concerns or troubles
- angoisses
- ahn-gwahs — Anguish; intense anxiety or distress
- auxquels
- oh-kehl — To which, for which; relative pronoun with preposition
- référence
- ray-fay-rahns — Reference; a mention or allusion to something
- quelle
- kehl — What, which; feminine interrogative adjective
- mesure
- muh-zoor — Measure, extent; degree to which something applies
- nécessaire
- nay-say-sehr — Necessary; required or essential
- soyons
- swah-yohn — Let us be; first-person plural subjunctive of être
- tourmentés
- toor-mahn-tay — Tormented; distressed or severely troubled
- moins
- mwan — Less; used to indicate a smaller degree
- prudents
- proo-dahn — Prudent; careful and wise in behavior
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