Diotimos Library · Journals, Notebooks & Fragments Collection · Bilingual Edition

Joseph Joubert

The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume II

Name: The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume II
Author: Joseph Joubert

Complete Notebooks · French with an independent English translation.

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The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume IIYEAR 1807 · Entry 4989

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French Page · Branch 1208 of 4529

YEAR 1807 · Entry 4989

Translator notesBook Mode

French

p. 2415

23 janvier.

Ces entretiens où l’âme ni le corps n’ont aucune part. J’ap[…] ainsi ces conversations où personne ne parle du fonds du cœur, […] fonds de son humeur; où il n’y a ni abbandon ni gaîté, ni épa[…]ment ni jeu; où l’on ne trouve ni mouvement ni repos, ni dis[…]tion ni soulagement, ni recueillement ni dissipation. Enfin on […] a rien donné et rien reçu, ce qui n’est pas un vrai commerce […] contrainte sans but et sans nécessité : le plus mal-sain des […]mens, le plus insupportable inconvénient de toutes les dépenda[…] — établie entre des amis, voilà ce qu’on éprouve ou ce qu’on […] dans certains cercles, lorsque...

The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume II: YEAR 1807

p. 2416

January 23.

Those exchanges in which neither soul nor body has any part. I ap[…] by this name those conversations in which no one speaks from the depths of the heart, […] depths of their humor; in which there is neither abandon nor gaiety, neither épa[…]ment nor play; in which one finds neither movement nor rest, neither dis[…]tion nor relief, neither collectedness nor distraction. Finally one […] has given nothing and received nothing, which is no true commerce […] constraint without aim or necessity: the most unhealthy of […]mens, the most unbearable inconvenience of all dépenda[…] — established among friends, that is what one experiences or what one […] in certain circles, when...

T25.The bracketed gaps here mark damage to the reproduction, not Joubert’s deliberate ellipses. Uncompleted French words remain visible in the English where their exact wording is not established. Possible readings include J’appelle (I call), épanchement (outpouring), distraction (diversion), and dépendances (dependencies). These are possibilities, not certified completions. The damaged interval after Finally one may contain a negative element; the translation retains the visible nothing given and nothing received without inventing the missing construction. Commerce keeps the exchange image. Collectedness and distraction distinguish recueillement and dissipation. The source’s feminine établie, rendered established, and the final when remain syntactically incomplete.

T271.The source is extensively obscured at the right edge. Bracketed ellipses mark unreadable continuations or whole words, not authorial omissions. J’appelle, épanchement, distraction and dépendances are possible contextual completions but are not certified as complete visible readings. The wording l’âme ni le corps, the double b in abbandon, the hyphen in mal-sain, the feminine établie and the concluding lorsque... are retained. The damaged interval after Enfin on could include a negative element; its exact wording is unresolved. An independent enlarged facsimile confirms ép before the smear, with an a-like partial trace; the a retained in épa[…]ment is a qualified reading, not a secure complete prefix.

About This Reading Edition

Joubert’s notebooks return to the work of thinking and writing, the demands of friendship, and questions of faith, beauty and conduct. This edition pairs the French with a new English translation, preserving the order of the chosen source and the unfinished character of its fragments. Dates and source references allow readers to follow a thought through time or return to its printed context.

Historical Text and Translation

The French text follows André Beaunier’s 1938 edition of Les Carnets de Joseph Joubert, published by Gallimard from Joubert’s autograph manuscripts. Volume II continues the notebooks and includes seventy undated pieces. French and English are aligned paragraph by paragraph, retaining the source order, printed dates and page references so readers can return to the facsimile.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared this new English translation directly from the French, preserving Joubert’s distinctions, recurring images, ambiguities and unfinished thoughts. Translator’s notes clarify wording, references and uncertain readings: Essential keeps notes that help explain a passage, while All includes technical detail. Annotations from the 1938 source edition remain distinct from the new translator’s notes.

Rights

The linked facsimile records identify the French source as public domain in the United States. The new English translation and editorial notes are © 2026 Diotimos, with source annotations and new editorial contributions credited separately. This edition pairs the complete French notebooks with an independent English translation, preserving the distinction between Joubert’s text and its accompanying notes.