{"id":6143,"date":"2011-05-13T14:14:33","date_gmt":"2011-05-13T18:14:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=6143"},"modified":"2017-10-19T13:52:15","modified_gmt":"2017-10-19T11:52:15","slug":"french-poem-les-vers-dores-the-golden-lines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/french-poem-les-vers-dores-the-golden-lines\/","title":{"rendered":"A French Poem: Les vers dor\u00e9s (The Golden Lines)"},"content":{"rendered":"

If Andr\u00e9 Breton<\/a> and his happy bunch of Surrealists “\u00e0<\/em> la<\/em> Salvador Dali”<\/a> stroke you\u00a0l\u00e9g\u00e8rement<\/em> <\/em>(slightly) as the “eccentric” type, then wait until you meet another French monsieur<\/em> who preceded them by a few decades. His name is\u00a0G\u00e9rard de Nerval…<\/span><\/p>\n

Considered by some as le p\u00e8<\/em><\/em>re\u00a0spirituel<\/em> (the spiritual father) of Victor Hugo<\/a>, he is known to have had an unusual pet around him wherever he went: un homard <\/em>(a lobster) he called “Thibault”!<\/p>\n

In this poem, G\u00e9rard de Nerval refers to “les vers dor\u00e9s<\/em>” or\u00a0“Golden Verses” <\/em><\/em>of the Greek Master philosopher\u00a0Pythagoras, who is known in French as “Pythagore”, and famous entre autres choses <\/em>(among other things) for le th\u00e9or\u00e8me de Pythagore <\/em>(The Pythagorean theorem)<\/p>\n

* * *<\/p>\n

VERS DOR\u00c9S<\/big><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
Eh quoi\u00a0! tout est sensible\u00a0!<\/em><\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
Pythagore.<\/em><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Homme, libre penseur\u00a0! te crois-tu seul pensant<\/em>
\nDans ce monde o\u00f9 la vie \u00e9clate en toute chose\u00a0?<\/em>
\nDes forces que tu tiens ta libert\u00e9 dispose,<\/em>
\nMais de tous tes conseils l\u2019univers est absent.<\/em><\/p>\n

Respecte dans la b\u00eate un esprit agissant\u00a0:<\/em>
\nChaque fleur est une \u00e2me \u00e0 la Nature \u00e9close\u00a0;<\/em>
\nUn myst\u00e8re d\u2019amour dans le m\u00e9tal repose\u00a0;<\/em>
\n\u00ab\u00a0Tout est sensible\u00a0!\u00a0\u00bb Et tout sur ton \u00eatre est puissant.<\/em><\/p>\n

Crains, dans le mur aveugle, un regard qui t\u2019\u00e9pie\u00a0:<\/em>
\n\u00c0 la mati\u00e8re m\u00eame un verbe est attach\u00e9\u2026<\/em>
\nNe le fais pas servir \u00e0 quelque usage impie\u00a0!<\/em><\/p>\n

Souvent dans l\u2019\u00eatre obscur habite un Dieu cach\u00e9\u00a0;<\/em>
\nEt comme un \u0153il naissant couvert par ses paupi\u00e8res,<\/em>
\nUn pur esprit s\u2019accro\u00eet sous l\u2019\u00e9corce des pierres\u00a0!<\/em><\/p>\n

* * *<\/em><\/p>\n

Golden Lines<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

Well, then! All is sentient!<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Pythagoras<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Free-thinker, Man, do you think you alone<\/span><\/p>\n

Think, while life explodes everywhere?<\/span><\/p>\n

Your freedom employs the powers you own,<\/span><\/p>\n

But world is absent from all your affairs.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Respect an active spirit in the creature:<\/span><\/p>\n

Each flower is a soul open to Nature;<\/span><\/p>\n

In metal a mystery of love is sleeping;<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018All is sentient!\u2019 Has power over your being.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Fear the gaze in the blind wall that watches:<\/span><\/p>\n

There is a verb attached to matter itself\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Do not let it serve some impious purpose!<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Often a hidden god inhabits obscure being;<\/span><\/p>\n

And like an eye, born, covered by its eyelids,<\/span><\/p>\n

Pure spirit grows beneath the surface of stones!<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

If Andr\u00e9 Breton and his happy bunch of Surrealists “\u00e0 la Salvador Dali” stroke you\u00a0l\u00e9g\u00e8rement (slightly) as the “eccentric” type, then wait until you meet another French monsieur who preceded them by a few decades. His name is\u00a0G\u00e9rard de Nerval… Considered by some as le p\u00e8re\u00a0spirituel (the spiritual father) of Victor Hugo, he is known…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":23761,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[55022,55024,55025,55023,9138],"class_list":["post-6143","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-vocabulary","tag-les-vers-dores","tag-pythagoras","tag-pythagore","tag-the-golden-lines","tag-victor-hugo"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t