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 1816 · Entry 7687

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Facing Pages · Branch 3906 of 4529

YEAR 1816 · Entry 7687

Translator notesBook Mode

French

p. 7811

4 novembre.

Un crime... faiblement, petitement et timidement puni, et par un châtiment qu’on infligeroit avec équité à la simple turbulence, qui est presque une chose innocente... C’est rappetisser le crime même en quelque sorte. L’impunité absoluë avec son scandale lui auroit laissé plus visiblement son énormité.

Add. Et incomplette... Les juges de la Reine et de Mme Elizabeth sont [...] impunité.

The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume II: YEAR 1816

p. 7812

November 4.

A crime... weakly, pettily and timidly punished, and by a punishment that could fairly be inflicted on mere turbulence, which is almost an innocent thing... This is, in a way, to diminish the crime itself. Absolute impunity, with its scandal, would have left its enormity more visible.

Add. And incomplete... The judges of the Queen and of Mme Elizabeth are [...] impunity.

T162.The fragment, three adverbs, conditional fair punishment, mere/almost qualifications and physical diminution remain. Pettily retains the limited scale and spirit of petitement; turbulence is not inflated into a specified crime. The final conditional and more-visible enormity remain.

T323.The color witness supports a qualified complete 4: diagonal/crossbar and descending right stem remain visible, although native 389 loses much of the left contour. The navigation map’s provisional […]3 is not used. No earlier digit is supplied. Two indented paragraphs remain one unit. All three punishment adverbs, conditional infligeroit, presque, même/en quelque sorte and past-conditional auroit laissé with plus remain. Rappetisser has doubled p; absoluë has two upper e components; incomplette has doubled t. Add. is roman main text, not a note. The three ordinary printed ellipses and literal printed [...] omission remain distinct from current reproduction-loss markers […]; the final anomalous sont [...] impunité is not repaired. Mme is baseline, Elizabeth has plain initial E, and Reine keeps its capital. The left starts châtiment/est/quelque/plus/sont retain identifiable color forms.

T163.The Add. cue, incomplete fragment, historical titles and already printed bracketed omission remain. No missing preposition or predicate is supplied to repair the unfinished relation to impunity. The identity and date of the judgments are not independently established here. Elizabeth follows the collated printed spelling, replacing the preliminary Elisabeth.

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.