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 1819 · Entry 8008

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English Page · Branch 4227 of 4529

YEAR 1819 · Entry 8008

Translator notesBook Mode

French

p. 8453

De l’esprit qui n’est que beau et de l’esprit qui est puissant. L’esprit qui n’est que beau ne scait orner que ce qu’il pense; l’esprit beau et puissant scait encore embélir tout ce que les autres ont pensé. L’esprit qui n’est que beau vit de son propre fonds; l’esprit beau et puissant a le don d’assimiler à soi la substance de tous les autres. Il se nourrit de tout et tout lui devient propre. Il fait tout sien.

The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume II: YEAR 1819

p. 8454

Of the mind that is only beautiful and the mind that is powerful. The mind that is only beautiful knows how to adorn only what it thinks; the beautiful and powerful mind knows also how to beautify everything the others have thought. The mind that is only beautiful lives on its own resources; the beautiful and powerful mind has the gift of assimilating to itself the substance of all the others. It feeds on everything, and everything becomes its own. It makes everything its own.

T34.Every restriction and repeated beautiful/powerful phrase remains. Resources renders fonds without introducing money alone. The substance, feeding and assimilation images remain, including the apparently redundant last two sentences. French retains both literal scait forms and embélir, with an acute é and one l. English supplies a comma before and in It feeds on everything, and everything becomes its own; no such comma is printed before et. The whole passage is roman.

T141.The repeated nominal topic and all restrictive/comparative and possessive relations remain, including both final sentences. The two scait forms have ordinary dot-like i marks in color/native 423; literal embélir has an acute e and a single l, not normalized embellir. Fonds retains s. All left starts are identifiable despite show-through; the complete L’es-/prit wrap introduces no loss.

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.