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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 IIUNDATED · Entry 8310

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Facing Pages · Branch 4529 of 4529

UNDATED · Entry 8310

Translator notesBook Mode

French

p. 9057

70 (Liasse 31.)

C’est une chose admirable et consolante que dans aucun temps, dans aucun pays l’oppression d’un peuple ne puisse être totale, et qu’il n’y ait pas eu un seul despote, je dis le plus cruel et le plus absolu dans le pays le plus soumis et le plus lâche qui n’ait trouvé quelqu’un qui l’ait consulté et trahi, ce qui est au surplus très naturel et très simple. Dès que les vices des rois sont devenus plus terribles que leur puissance, et qu’on a plus de maux à craindre de leurs caprices que de leur colère on brave celle-ci et on se révolte ouvertement contre ceux-là. Il y a une vérité certaine que l’histoire et le monde offrent sans cesse à tous les yeux, c’est qu’il est un degré de méchanceté, en deçà de la méchanceté extrême, auquel il n’est possible à aucun homme même au plus vicieux de parvenir. En lisant les annales du reste du monde on croiroit que les monstres qui furent empereurs chez les Romains sont des chimères. Il n’a rien paru dans la nature humaine et jamais sans doute il ne paroitra rien de comparable à la cruauté, aux débauches, à l’ineptie, à l’audace, à la complette folie, aux fureurs inouies et à la longue impunité des tirans abominables qui gouvernèrent ce peuple dont la servile bassesse égale peut-être et surpasse l’excès de sa grandeur première. Un tigre est un animal doux, bienfaisant, estimable, sensé, humain, en comparaison de Néron, de Caligula, d’Héliogabale, de Commode et de quelques autres énormes coquins de ces temps-là. Quant au vieux Tibère, c’étoit un scélérat raffiné, poltron, qu’un sang âcre et un esprit défiant portoit au crime avec prudence. Celui-ci se conçoit; mais ses successeurs ne sont pas vraiment dans la classe des possibles, et s’il y avoit parmi leurs historiens des personnages moins graves, il faudroit les mépriser comme des imposteurs et publier hautement qu’ils se mocquent de nous et qu’ils ont menti.

S1.Source editor’s annotationIl y a encore un feuillet (liasse 22) non daté, de la main de Joubert, et très énigmatique. Je crois que ce ne sont que des notes prises en lisant, — mais en lisant quoi?... Le voici : « Les éternels. — Un chemin bordé de soleils. — Eloa, que vois-tu? — Je vois etc. — Ami futur des chérubins et des anges. — O créateur. — Un insecte mourant. — Un nuage descendit et couvrit un des douzes sièges d’or. — Elle est passée, elle est passée, la première heure, etc. — Il regarda vers le Thabord, Mais le jugement duroit encore. — De quel nom veux-tu que je te nomme auprès de ton fils? — Tu me nommeras du nom de père etc. — Etes-vous tous présents? — oui, nous sommes tous présents? — Il y a une voix qui manque. Etes-vous tous présents? etc. — Il feint que les jours montent vers les cieux et que les nuits en descendent en forme de voiles déployés. — Il lui sembla que son habit de grand prêtre tombait par terre avec fracas et se réduisoit tout à coup en poudre. — Il prit du sang avec sa main et le jetta contre le ciel. — Son sang coule! son sang coule! — Il vient. — »

The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert, Volume II: UNDATED

p. 9058

70 (Bundle 31.)

It is an admirable and consoling thing that at no time, in no country, can the oppression of a people be total, and that there has not been a single despot—I mean the cruelest and most absolute, in the most submissive and cowardly country—who has not found someone who consulted and betrayed him, which is, moreover, very natural and very simple. Once the vices of kings have become more terrible than their power, and more evils are to be feared from their whims than from their anger, one braves the latter and openly rebels against them. There is a certain truth which history and the world continually offer to every eye: there is a degree of wickedness, short of extreme wickedness, which no man, even the most vicious, can possibly reach. Reading the annals of the rest of the world, one would think the monsters who were emperors among the Romans were chimeras. Nothing has appeared in human nature, and doubtless nothing will ever appear, comparable to the cruelty, debaucheries, ineptitude, audacity, complete madness, unheard-of rages, and long impunity of the abominable tyrants who governed that people whose servile baseness perhaps equals and surpasses the excess of its former greatness. A tiger is a gentle, beneficent, estimable, sensible, humane animal compared with Nero, Caligula, Elagabalus, Commodus, and a few other enormous scoundrels of those times. As for old Tiberius, he was a refined, cowardly villain, whom acrid blood and a suspicious mind drove prudently to crime. This one can be conceived; but his successors truly do not belong to the class of possible beings, and if there were less grave figures among their historians, one would have to despise them as impostors and proclaim aloud that they mock us and have lied.

S1.Source editor’s annotationThere is also an undated leaf (bundle 22), in Joubert’s hand, and very enigmatic. I believe these are merely notes taken while reading—but reading what?... Here it is: “The eternal ones. — A path lined with suns. — Eloa, what do you see? — I see etc. — Future friend of cherubim and angels. — O creator. — A dying insect. — A cloud descended and covered one of the twelve seats of gold. — It has passed, it has passed, the first hour, etc. — He looked toward Thabord, But the judgment still endured. — By what name do you wish me to name you before your son? — You will name me by the name of father etc. — Are you all present? — yes, we are all present? — There is a voice missing. Are you all present? etc. — He imagines the days rising toward the heavens and the nights descending from them in the form of unfurled veils. — It seemed to him that his high priest’s robe was falling to the ground with a crash and suddenly crumbling to dust. — He took blood in his hand and cast it against the sky. — His blood flows! his blood flows! — He comes. —”

T170.All universal negatives, the paradoxical limit short of extreme wickedness, the long list, tiger comparison and qualified perhaps/doubtless remain. Consulted and betrayed follows the complete literal consulté et trahi, confirmed in the documented original-size color and native collation. The contextual difficulty remains; no conjectural insulté or other French repair is substituted. The finite relative preserves the reported acts of qui l’ait consulté et trahi rather than implying recruitment or purpose. Celle-ci clearly resumes colère; English the latter retains that relation. Masculine plural ceux-là can resume the nearer caprices, while rois or vices also remain possible; English them leaves that plural antecedent open rather than fixing it to whims through former. Acrid blood preserves the bodily phrase. French retains complette, tirans, mocquent and plain paroitra/inouies. The English enclosing dashes around I mean clarify the source’s comma-marked expansion; the colon after every eye replaces a source comma. English uses conventional imperial names without changing the French. The judgments of emperors remain the source’s claims, not independently authenticated historical findings. The complete main paragraph is roman; only Bundle 31 is italic in its separate undated label. The final source call follows menti/lied before the terminal period.

T171.The source editor’s explicitly undated separate leaf, uncertain reading source, one annotation paragraph and every dash-separated fragment remain. Only liasse 22 and bundle 22 are italic, within roman parentheses; the quoted fragments are roman. The repeated questions, the reply’s question mark, lower-case yes/his, repeated naming and final He comes. — before the closing quotation remain. These printed fragments and quoi?... are not reproduction losses. Literal Eloa, Thabord, douzes with final s, plain O and Etes, and jetta with double t remain in French; the English does not silently identify or normalize the names. The source’s capital Mais after a comma corresponds to capital But, and first Son/later son to His/his. Seats of gold follows sièges d’or; imagines gives a contextual literary reading of feint, with the two source finite image clauses recast as English rising and descending. This choice does not identify the unknown work or uniquely settle its literary force. No title, author, mythological identity or date is invented. The physical closing rule is not translated text.

T278.In the French source, printed item 70 is one complete roman main paragraph and one separate source annotation. Liasse 31. alone is italic in the heading; neither manuscript-group label supplies a date. The final raised call 1 follows menti before the main terminal period. Literal consulté is complete and supported by both original-size color and native 469. Its contextual difficulty does not authorize replacing it with insulté or another anticipated verb. The finite relative qui l’ait consulté et trahi remains; no lexical loss or conjectural French repair. Literal complette, tirans, mocquent and plain paroitra/inouies remain. Inouies has one ordinary i dot in color/native, not a certified diaeresis. The source’s universal negatives, en deçà paradox, maybe/doubtless qualifications, imperial names and repeated comparatives remain unaltered. The printed main uses commas around the je dis expansion, not enclosing dashes. The final historical accusations remain the source’s assertions. No outside historical authentication or reconstructed intention is claimed.

T279.In the French source, the entire annotation is one paragraph. Only liasse 22 is italic, within roman parentheses. Its explicitly undated separate leaf and unknown reading source remain unresolved; the closing rule is not text. Literal Eloa, O créateur., douzes with final s, Thabord, capital Mais after the comma, plain Etes twice, jetta with double t and the first capital Son/later lowercase son remain. No title, author, date or mythological identity is supplied. All dash-separated fragments, the repeated present questions including the reply’s question mark, quoi?... and final Il vient. — before the closing guillemet remain. The printed ellipsis and sequence of fragments are not reproduction losses. Il feint remains a literary-image verb in the source; any English imagines interpretation is contextual and does not establish a historical source. These readings follow the source specialist’s documented color/native comparisons, with the stated qualifications retained.

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.