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Voltaire's Candide or Optimism, Chapter 5

Chapter 5

V TEMPEST, SHIPWRECK, EARTHQUAKE, AND WHAT BECAME OF DOCTOR PANGLOSS, CANDIDE, AND JAMES THE ANABAPTIST.

Half dead of that inconceivable anguish which the rolling of a ship produces, one-half of the passengers were not even sensible of the danger. The other half shrieked and prayed. The sheets were rent, the masts broken, the vessel gaped. Work who would, no one heard, no one commanded. The Anabaptist being upon deck bore a hand; when a brutish sailor struck him roughly and laid him sprawling; but with the violence of the blow he himself tumbled head foremost overboard, and stuck upon a piece of the broken mast. Honest James ran to his assistance, hauled him up, and from the effort he made was precipitated into the sea in sight of the sailor, who left him to perish, without deigning to look at him. Candide drew near and saw his benefactor, who rose above the water one moment and was then swallowed up for ever. He was just going to jump after him, but was prevented by the philosopher Pangloss, who[Pg 19] demonstrated to him that the Bay of Lisbon had been made on purpose for the Anabaptist to be drowned. While he was proving this à priori , the ship foundered; all perished except Pangloss, Candide, and that brutal sailor who had drowned the good Anabaptist. The villain swam safely to the shore, while Pangloss and Candide were borne thither upon a plank.

As soon as they recovered themselves a little they walked toward Lisbon. They had some money left, with which they hoped to save themselves from starving, after they had escaped drowning. Scarcely had they reached the city, lamenting the death of their benefactor, when they felt the earth tremble under their feet. The sea swelled and foamed in the harbour, and beat to pieces the vessels riding at anchor. Whirlwinds of fire and ashes covered the streets and public places; houses fell, roofs were flung upon the pavements, and the pavements were scattered. Thirty thousand inhabitants of all ages and sexes were crushed under the ruins. [4] The sailor, whistling and swearing, said there was booty to be gained here.

"What can be the sufficient reason of this phenomenon?" said Pangloss.

"This is the Last Day!" cried Candide.

The sailor ran among the ruins, facing death to find money; finding it, he took it, got drunk,[Pg 20] and having slept himself sober, purchased the favours of the first good-natured wench whom he met on the ruins of the destroyed houses, and in the midst of the dying and the dead. Pangloss pulled him by the sleeve.

"My friend," said he, "this is not right. You sin against the universal reason ; you choose your time badly." "S'blood and fury!" answered the other; "I am a sailor and born at Batavia. Four times have I trampled upon the crucifix in four voyages to Japan[5]; a fig for thy universal reason." Some falling stones had wounded Candide. He lay stretched in the street covered with rubbish.

"Alas!" said he to Pangloss, "get me a little wine and oil; I am dying." "This concussion of the earth is no new thing," answered Pangloss. "The city of Lima, in America, experienced the same convulsions last year; the same cause, the same effects; there is certainly a train of sulphur under ground from Lima to Lisbon." "Nothing more probable," said Candide; "but for the love of God a little oil and wine." "How, probable?" replied the philosopher. "I maintain that the point is capable of being demonstrated." Candide fainted away, and Pangloss fetched[Pg 21] him some water from a neighbouring fountain. The following day they rummaged among the ruins and found provisions, with which they repaired their exhausted strength. After this they joined with others in relieving those inhabitants who had escaped death. Some, whom they had succoured, gave them as good a dinner as they could in such disastrous circumstances; true, the repast was mournful, and the company moistened their bread with tears; but Pangloss consoled them, assuring them that things could not be otherwise.

"For," said he, "all that is is for the best. If there is a volcano at Lisbon it cannot be elsewhere. It is impossible that things should be other than they are; for everything is right." A little man dressed in black, Familiar of the Inquisition, who sat by him, politely took up his word and said:

"Apparently, then, sir, you do not believe in original sin; for if all is for the best there has then been neither Fall nor punishment." "I humbly ask your Excellency's pardon," answered Pangloss, still more politely; "for the Fall and curse of man necessarily entered into the system of the best of worlds." "Sir," said the Familiar, "you do not then believe in liberty?" "Your Excellency will excuse me," said Pangloss;[Pg 22] "liberty is consistent with absolute necessity, for it was necessary we should be free; for, in short, the determinate will——" Pangloss was in the middle of his sentence, when the Familiar beckoned to his footman, who gave him a glass of wine from Porto or Opporto. [Pg 23]

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Chapter 5

V TEMPEST, SHIPWRECK, EARTHQUAKE, AND WHAT BECAME OF DOCTOR PANGLOSS, CANDIDE, AND JAMES THE ANABAPTIST. Volume 1|||||||||||||| V TEMPÊTE, TRAVAUX DE NAVIRE, TREMBLEMENT DE TERRE ET CE QUI EST DEVENU DU DOCTEUR PANGLOSS, CANDIDE ET JAMES L'ANABAPTISTE.

Half dead of that inconceivable anguish which the rolling of a ship produces, one-half of the passengers were not even sensible of the danger. ||||unimaginable|suffering|||motion||||causes|||||passengers|||||||threat À moitié mort de cette angoisse inconcevable que produit le roulement d'un navire, la moitié des passagers ne se rendaient même pas compte du danger. The other half shrieked and prayed. |||screamed||offered a prayer L'autre moitié a crié et a prié. The sheets were rent, the masts broken, the vessel gaped. |sails||torn apart||poles|||ship or boat|was torn Les draps étaient déchirés, les mâts cassés, le navire béait. Work who would, no one heard, no one commanded. Travailler qui, personne n'a entendu, personne n'a commandé. The Anabaptist being upon deck bore a hand; when a brutish sailor struck him roughly and laid him sprawling; but with the violence of the blow he himself tumbled head foremost overboard, and stuck upon a piece of the broken mast. ||||||||||savage|seaman|||harshly||||on the ground||||||||||fell||head first|into the water|||||||||mast L'anabaptiste étant sur le pont portait une main; quand un matelot brutal le frappa brutalement et le couchait étendu; mais avec la violence du coup, il tomba lui-même la tête en avant par-dessus bord, et se colla sur un morceau du mât cassé. Honest James ran to his assistance, hauled him up, and from the effort he made was precipitated into the sea in sight of the sailor, who left him to perish, without deigning to look at him. |||||aid|pulled||||||||||thrown|||||||||||||die or drown||stooping to look|||| Le honnête James courut à son secours, le hissa et, de l'effort qu'il fit, fut précipité dans la mer en vue du marin, qui le laissa périr, sans daigner le regarder. Candide drew near and saw his benefactor, who rose above the water one moment and was then swallowed up for ever. |approached|||||savior|||||||||||consumed||| He was just going to jump after him, but was prevented by the philosopher Pangloss, who[Pg 19] demonstrated to him that the Bay of Lisbon had been made on purpose for the Anabaptist to be drowned. ||||||||||stopped|||||||showed||||||||||||||||||drowning While he was proving this  à priori , the ship foundered; all perished except Pangloss, Candide, and that brutal sailor who had drowned the good Anabaptist. |||||||||sank or capsized||died||||||||||||| Alors qu'il le prouvait à priori, le navire sombra; tous périrent sauf Pangloss, Candide et ce brutal marin qui avait noyé le bon anabaptiste. The villain swam safely to the shore, while Pangloss and Candide were borne thither upon a plank. ||swam||||land||||||carried|to that place||| Le méchant nagea en toute sécurité jusqu'au rivage, tandis que Pangloss et Candide y étaient portés sur une planche.

As soon as they recovered themselves a little they walked toward Lisbon. ||||gathered||||||in the direction of| They had some money left, with which they hoped to save themselves from starving, after they had escaped drowning. |||||||||||||starvation||||| Scarcely had they reached the city, lamenting the death of their benefactor, when they felt the earth tremble under their feet. ||||||mourning|||||||||||shake||| The sea swelled and foamed in the harbour, and beat to pieces the vessels riding at anchor. ||rose up||bubbled and churned|||port area||battered||||ships|anchored||at rest La mer gonflait et moussait dans le port, et battait en morceaux les navires à l'ancre. Whirlwinds of fire and ashes covered the streets and public places; houses fell, roofs were flung upon the pavements, and the pavements were scattered. Whirlwinds||||remains of fire|||roadways||||||roofs|||||sidewalks||||| Des tourbillons de feu et de cendres couvraient les rues et les lieux publics; des maisons sont tombées, des toits ont été jetés sur les trottoirs et les trottoirs ont été dispersés. Thirty thousand inhabitants of all ages and sexes were crushed under the ruins. ||people|||||||suffocated||| Trente mille habitants de tous âges et sexes ont été écrasés sous les ruines. [4] The sailor, whistling and swearing, said there was booty to be gained here. ||whistling||cursing||||treasure|||obtained| [4] Le marin, sifflant et jurant, a dit qu'il y avait du butin à gagner ici.

"What can be the  sufficient reason of this phenomenon?" ||||||||event or occurrence said Pangloss.

"This is the Last Day!" cried Candide.

The sailor ran among the ruins, facing death to find money; finding it, he took it, got drunk,[Pg 20] and having slept himself sober, purchased the favours of the first good-natured wench whom he met on the ruins of the destroyed houses, and in the midst of the dying and the dead. ||||||confronting|||||||||||intoxicated||||||sobered up|||||||||||||||||||||||center|||||| Le marin a couru parmi les ruines, affrontant la mort pour trouver de l'argent; le trouvant, il le prit, se saoula, [Pg 20] et s'étant endormi sobre, acheta les faveurs de la première fille de bonne humeur qu'il rencontra sur les ruines des maisons détruites, et au milieu des mourants et des mort. Pangloss pulled him by the sleeve. |||||sleeve Pangloss le tira par la manche.

"My friend," said he, "this is not right. You sin against the  universal reason ; you choose your time badly." |act||||||||| Vous péchez contre la raison universelle; vous choisissez mal votre temps. " "S’blood and fury!" God's blood||anger «Du sang et de la fureur! answered the other; "I am a sailor and born at Batavia. ||||||||born in|| Four times have I trampled upon the crucifix in four voyages to Japan[5]; a fig for thy universal reason." ||||stepped on|||cross|||trips||||fig||your|| Quatre fois j'ai piétiné le crucifix en quatre voyages au Japon [5]; une figue pour ta raison universelle. " Some falling stones had wounded Candide. ||||injured| Des chutes de pierres avaient blessé Candide. He lay stretched in the street covered with rubbish. ||lying flat|||on the road||| Il gisait étendu dans la rue couverte de détritus.

"Alas!" said he to Pangloss, "get me a little wine and oil; I am dying." "This concussion of the earth is no new thing," answered Pangloss. |concussion of||||||||| "The city of Lima, in America, experienced the same convulsions last year; the same cause, the same effects; there is certainly a train of sulphur under ground from Lima to Lisbon." |||||||||upheavals|||||||||||||||sulfur||beneath the surface|||| "La ville de Lima, en Amérique, a connu les mêmes convulsions l'année dernière; la même cause, les mêmes effets; il y a certainement un train de soufre sous terre de Lima à Lisbonne." "Nothing more probable," said Candide; "but for the love of God a little oil and wine." "How, probable?" replied the philosopher. "I maintain that the point is capable of being demonstrated." |assert|||argument||||| Candide fainted away, and Pangloss fetched[Pg 21] him some water from a neighbouring fountain. |||||brought|||||||| Candide s'évanouit, et Pangloss lui alla [Pg 21] de l'eau d'une fontaine voisine. The following day they rummaged among the ruins and found provisions, with which they repaired their exhausted strength. ||||searched through||||||||||||| After this they joined with others in relieving those inhabitants who had escaped death. |||||||||people||||death itself Some, whom they had succoured, gave them as good a dinner as they could in such disastrous circumstances; true, the repast was mournful, and the company moistened their bread with tears; but Pangloss consoled them, assuring them that things could not be otherwise. one person||||helped||||||||||||||||meal||sad||||wet|||||||||||||||| Certains, qu'ils avaient secourus, leur donnèrent un dîner aussi bon qu'ils le purent dans des circonstances si désastreuses; il est vrai que le repas était triste, et la compagnie humectait leur pain de larmes; mais Pangloss les consola en leur assurant que les choses ne pouvaient être autrement.

"For," said he, "all that is is for the best. If there is a volcano at Lisbon it cannot be elsewhere. It is impossible that things should be other than they are; for everything is right." A little man dressed in black, Familiar of the Inquisition, who sat by him, politely took up his word and said:

"Apparently, then, sir, you do not believe in original sin; for if all is for the best there has then been neither Fall nor punishment." «Apparemment, alors, monsieur, vous ne croyez pas au péché originel; car si tout va pour le mieux, il n'y a alors eu ni Chute ni châtiment. "I humbly ask your Excellency’s pardon," answered Pangloss, still more politely; "for the Fall and curse of man necessarily entered into the system of the best of worlds." |respectfully|||||||||with greater politeness||||||||||||||||| «Je demande humblement pardon à Votre Excellence,» répondit Pangloss, encore plus poliment; "car la Chute et la malédiction de l'homme sont nécessairement entrées dans le système du meilleur des mondes." "Sir," said the Familiar, "you do not then believe in liberty?" "Your Excellency will excuse me," said Pangloss;[Pg 22] "liberty is consistent with absolute necessity, for it was necessary we should be free; for, in short, the determinate will——" |Your Honor||||||||||||absolute necessity|||||||||||||fixed intention| «Votre Excellence m'excusera», dit Pangloss; «la liberté est conforme à la nécessité absolue, car il fallait que nous soyons libres; car, en somme, la volonté déterminée ...» Pangloss was in the middle of his sentence, when the Familiar beckoned to his footman, who gave him a glass of wine from Porto or Opporto. |||||||sentence||||signaled|||servant||||||||||| Pangloss était au milieu de sa phrase, lorsque le Familier fit signe à son valet de pied, qui lui donna un verre de vin de Porto ou d'Opporto. [Pg 23]